By CAREEREALISM-Approved Expert, Deborah Shane

I have recently been dealing with the DMV, discount travel sites, airlines, car companies, corporations and organizations that make it impossible for me to consider promoting them in a testimonial way. They completely time sucked me and it was anything but a colossal waste of time. GRRR…

Why put phone numbers on the site when they are always busy?

I stayed on hold as an experiment for 45 minutes and then a recorded message came on that said “they were not there” and to call back another time!

Why refer people to another site when they don’t know anything and then they refer you back to the site you came from?

Here are 5 simple, basic and time tested practices that can make customer experiences pleasant and effective, even for state, county, government and corporate companies and turn them into ‘testimonials relationships.”

First impressions. Make sure whoever greets customers,  answers the phone, or fields any interaction is pleasant, courteous and positive.

Faster delivery and response. How impressive and unexpected is speed in responding to and helping customers? Yes, it’s an investment in training but it pays off big time.

Real people real conversations. People crave real people, in their own country to speak to when they have a question or problem. Stop the insanity of thinking we are OK with anything but.

The bar tender principle. Know something about your customer either before or during the interaction, so we don’t have to re-tell the issue or story. Keep your files updated on prior conversations.

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Anticipate needs and wants. Noticing a pattern to your inquiries and complaints? Fix them, look into them, research them before they happen again.

Consistent brand and customer service language. Again, train your people to consistently know anything and everything they need to about your company, products or services or have someone designated who does.

Right people for the team. Don’t just put bodies in seats, on the phones or out in the field. At least make sure they have some appreciation for what you do, what you sell and why you are in business. Trust me, we know!

Who are the companies that consistently impress you with how they serve you and why?

Who fails the test and why?

What are some of your practices that build testimonial relationships?

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CAREEREALISM Expert, Deborah Shane delivers business education and professional skill development specializing in women in business, those in career transition, sales and personal and social brand strategy and integration. Follow her on Twitter and LinkedIn.

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Technorati Tags: business, career advice, career expert, career question, CAREEREALISM, customer service, testimonials

By CAREEREALISM Founder, J.T. O’Donnell

One of our latest success stories inside our Career HMO successfully negotiated a higher starting salary, watch video to learn how!

Technorati Tags: career advice, career expert, career hmo, CAREEREALISM, club, job offer, negotiate, negotiations, recession, salary

By CAREEREALISM-Approved Expert, Chrissy Scivicque

Okay, so you gotta get out. I hear you. You’re practically screaming it from the rooftops. It’s time.

But let’s not be hasty here. Believe me; I’ve done this a few times. It’s much more effective to focus on doing it right. Here are a few of the ideas I like to review with my career coaching clients when they’re ready to give up and go home.

Run Towards, Not Away From

Don’t just focus on leaving your current gig. Quitting isn’t about running away, it’s about moving forward. It’s a path that opens opportunities so focus your attention on the future. Don’t waste time and energy pushing the job you don’t want away from you. Instead, pull the job you do want towards you.

Slow Down and Check Your Ego

Don’t get in a rush. Focus on making the right long-term career decisions. Ideally, give yourself as long as six months to make the move. Obviously, this can be difficult. Many of us get to a breaking point before we truly make the decision to quit. By that time, we’re maxed out with anxiety and frustration. Try to be proactive and make the decision before you get to that point.

Once the decision is made, check your ego. When you know you’re ready to leave, it can be hard to put up with those everyday irritations. You want to just mentally and physically check out. Instead, swallow your pride and continue to do your best even with one foot out the door. Don’t disengage before it’s time. The right position may not come along for a while so keep yourself grounded. There’s no need to rush the process just because the decision to quit has been made.

You Have Nothing to Prove

Quitting is an emotional experience. Often, when we’re ready to move on, we start noticing all the ways in which others have been holding us back or treating us unfairly. Our patience goes right out the window. All too often, I see people trying to teach others “a lesson.” They think by quitting abruptly or making a dramatic exit, they’ll prove something to those who let them down. Save yourself the energy. You’ll never teach anyone anything by quitting in a huff or storming out. Don’t pour your frustrations into a manifesto Jerry McGuire style. No one cares. That’s a hard pill to swallow, but it’s the truth.

Be Honest with Yourself

When you’re searching for a new job, you’ll need to weigh your options. No position is perfect, no matter what they tell you during the interview. In every career transition, something is gained and something else is lost. Don’t fool yourself into believing that any career move will come without a shred of sacrifice. Just be honest about it. If you’re willing to give up the big bucks in exchange for a job you truly love, understand that this decision will come with a few hardships. If you want the paycheck and are willing to do a job that doesn’t ignite your passion, recognize that there will be a different price to pay. Make your decisions with eyes wide open and remember one is not better than the other; they simply have different consequences.

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Be Respectful

No matter what, I always recommend you give a full two week notice. There is simply no excuse for failing to do so. It’s unprofessional and it puts an unfair burden on the employer. You won’t make any friends in business if you don’t respect the basic rules of etiquette, and this is certainly one of the most important. Offer to help train others and organize your work as best you can for an easy transition. No matter how you feel about the job or the company you’re leaving, it still provided you with a paycheck and the experience you needed to get to this next step. A two week notice is a small price to pay.

Manage Your Stress

Change of any kind is stressful. The process of transitioning out of one job and into another is one of the most stressful changes to go through, even once the job search is over. You end up in a new environment, learning new skills and meeting new people. It’s a brand new routine and, for many, it can take months to feel comfortable in a new job. Create a game plan for managing that stress and recognize even the most positive career changes can feel downright overwhelming at times.

Visualize your perfect career transition. Make a plan and then execute it to the best of your ability. If you need a little more guidance and personal assistance, consider working with a career coach throughout the process. You may find it’s one of the most intelligent investments you’ve ever made in your long-term career success strategy.

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CAREEREALISM Expert, Chrissy Scivicque (pronounced “Civic”) is an experienced professional skills trainer and career coach focused on helping entry-level professionals and those in transition take meaningful, strategic action towards achieving career goals. Her philosophy encourages professionals to be proactive and make career management decisions with a holistic point-of-view in order to create a truly nourishing professional experience.

CAREEREALISM.com provides the best career advice from proven career experts on a daily basis. How do you find a job today? You get career and job search help from us! Sign-up today to get our updates daily.

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Technorati Tags: career advice, career expert, career question, career transition, CAREEREALISM, job search help

By CAREEREALISM-Approved Expert, Teena Rose

Whether in your personal life or in business, you only get one chance to make a first impression…we’ve all heard that before, right? So, why do so many job seekers screw up something so important?

The cover letter is a chance to make a positive impression on a potential employer. Unlike a face-to-face meeting, where your nervousness or bad luck can turn a first impression into a disaster, a cover letter is a first impression you get to have complete control over. You decide exactly what you will say, without any time pressure or having to come up with something spontaneously, and you also get to “stage” your letter.

You control what it looks like, what it sounds like, and how you come across.

The key element to remember is while you might easily spend two hours agonizing over every detail of your cover letter, the first person reading it is not going to invest even a small fraction of that time. Your letter will be scanned quickly the first time, and only if your resume or application jumps to the “short list” is it likely anyone will really take the time to read your letter word-for-word. So you have a two- fold challenge: you must write a well-crafted letter that comes across well on a deep reading, and you must write a letter that favorably grabs the attention of the casual reader who is simply scanning.

Your first impression makes a first impression itself – the envelope and paper you use for your cover letter will send an unmistakable signal to the person who receives it. What? You thought printed resumes and cover letters were dead? Not exactly. There are plenty of smaller companies that still welcome (some preferring) printed materials. In fact, go to a job fair and you’ll find paper resumes nervously gripped by anxious job seekers.

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When printing, does your cover letter arrive in a neatly-typed business envelope, laser-printed on heavy paper? Or is it a blurry ink-jet printout on the lowest grade of bond paper, folded up double and stuffed into a small envelope? You can guess which of these two letters is going to make a positive impression. It’s worth investing a few dollars in the proper grade of paper and the right kind of matching envelope – you don’t need to spend a fortune, but you do need to print your letter on something other than the recycled dot-matrix paper you’ve been storing in the attic since 1984. If you don’t have a quality printer in your home office, then use the laser printers at Kinko’s or your local business center – even the library often has printers available for public use.

But let’s look beyond old-school paper submissions. What about impressions resulting from job inquiries sent by email? When applying for employment, do your email attachments open properly? Do your docs look crisp on screen? In making your first impression via the cover letter, you need to ensure the letter appears professional (whether sent via email, fax, or mail), that the content is relevant and appropriate, and that your letter adds value to your application or resume. A phoned-in, cookie-cutter cover letter is better than no letter at all, sure, but a good letter can step your candidacy up a notch. Take every opportunity to improve your cover letter, so it opens a few more doors.

The above text was excerpted from “Designing a Cover Letter to ‘Wow’ Hiring Personnel.” This book includes 100+ cover letter examples!

CLICK HERE NOW to get a free 19-page book preview with 5 cover letter examples.

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CAREEREALISM Expert, Teena Rose is a Personal Branding Strategist, Career Coach, and Professional 10-Year Resume Writer with Resume to Referral. She is highly endorsed and recommended, making her your best choice for job-search and career success. She has been helping professionals grow, excel, and succeed since 1999. Contact Teena by her website, www.resumetoreferral.com, follow her on Twitter, and check out her LinkedIn page.

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Technorati Tags: career advice, career expert, career question, CAREEREALISM, cover letter tips, job search help

In this job market, there are two types of candidates to hiring managers: Must-haves and Nice-to-haves.

The question is: Which one are you?

This video shares my recent conversation with a “nice-to-have” job seeker who’s been unemployed for quite some time…

Technorati Tags: business-of-one, career advice, career expert, CAREEREALISM, find a job, job search, must-have, nice-to-have

By CAREEREALISM Founder, J.T. O’Donnell

Last week over at ABC News, career journalist, Michelle Goodman wrote an article highlighting a job seeker who recently made a $12,000 career mistake. I’ve heard several similar stories lately. There are 2 career truths in the new economy impacting us directly. You may not want to believe them, but sooner or later, you’ll see the following applies to us all:

1. EVERY job is temporary.

2. NOBODY should job search alone.

Okay, so the recession has proved the first truth, but have you really come to understand the second? While we do our best to give you cutting-edge, timely career advice via this free blog, the truth is we will never be able to match the benefits of getting direct help from an expert. FACT: Working with a proven career coach can do far more for you than you just reading and trying to apply the concepts yourself. Consider these 3 questions:

• Do you still think you can navigate your career and all the complex decisions around finding the right career path by yourself?
• Do you know exactly what it takes to get hired in the most competitive job market in our history?
• Do you fully understand the necessity of building a brand for your business-of-one?

Unless you have friends, family members or co-workers trained in job search and career development, the reality is you will need to work with a professional at some point in your career who will close your gap in knowledge and get you on the professional track you desire. In the same way we use trained professionals like doctors, dentists, accountants and lawyers, the time has come that we will all have to invest at some point in working with a career expert.

School teaches you everything EXCEPT how to get the job, industries die in a matter of years and people’s areas of professional expertise can fall out of demand overnight (i.e. just ask anyone in mortgages, banking, manufacturing or construction these days). Which means, investing in a career coach to help you shorten your job search and learn how to stay employable long-term will be (if it isn’t already) vital to your professional future.

5 Tips for Finding the RIGHT Career Expert for YOU!

The following are tips I give when people ask me the best way to select a career coach to work with:

1. Proof of satisfied customers. Nothing beats a referral when we are buying services of any type. This is your career’s health! You shouldn’t trust it to anyone you don’t feel has a good track-record. In the same way we ask around for a good doctor or dentist, we should seek a career coach by asking others if they have heard of any good ones in the area.

Can’t find one? Visit the top career blogs and look at who is providing online advice that really resonates with you. These coaches are usually for hire and their contact info is listed in the post. A good example is how we have 30+ approved career coaches who all offer services on CAREEREALISM.com – we list their profile and samples of their work so readers can reach out if they feel they connect with their style.

2. Always do an Internet search on a coach. If they don’t have a strong online presence (i.e. LinkedIn profile with referrals, website, blog, memberships in groups, etc.), then do some extra checking on them. In a digital age, a career coach who doesn’t understand the power of personal branding online is suspect! For example, if they aren’t doing the right things to market themselves as an authority via online tools, then they definitely can’t coach you on how to leverage the Internet and social media to advance your own career.

Also, search on their name and the key words ‘bad coach’ or ‘bad advice’ to see if someone has ever publicly denounced their services. That can be harder to find, but it’s always good to know what people are saying about a coach.

3. REMEMBER: Certifications and degrees don’t automatically make them a great coach. While I think getting certified as a coach can help the coach, it doesn’t mean a person is automatically qualified to help you. I’ve met plenty of certified coaches who are not good at what they do. In fact,  as I’ve mentioned above, I’ve met plenty of people who got burned by coaches who gave them poor advice (i.e. quit your job), and when they questioned the advice, the coach said, “I’m a certified coach. I know what’s best.” Keep looking until you find a coach that has the kind of track record that makes you feel confident in their ability.

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4. Interview the coach first – and always for free! All good coaches will offer you a way to chat with them for free prior to paying for their services, either live or by e-mail, depending on the service. It’s a chance for you to ask about their approach and methodology so you can be certain you understand how the process will work and what you can expect for results. It also gives you a chance to see if you like their communication style and if you feel like you’d be able to work with them effectively. After sharing your situation with them, here are some questions to ask:

• What’s your coaching methodology? Please outline the steps you take and why they work for your clients.
• How often and in what way will we communicate?
• How long will the process take?
• What can I expect when I’m done?
• Who works best with you?
• Who doesn’t work best with you?
• What happens if I’m not satisfied with your services?

While the above questions may seem direct, they set the tone for your relationship with the coach and makes it clear to them you want results for your money.

NOTE: If you get any sense the coach is uncomfortable answering these questions, that is a clear sign to move on. No good coach should struggle to answer the above. As a coach, we all know our coaching styles are different and that not every person is a good candidate for our services. A greedy or inexperienced coach will find it more difficult to answer the above questions honestly and thoroughly.

5. Always get a second (and third!) opinion. It’s important first-time users of a coach reach out and speak to at least 3 coaches so they can compare and contrast their methodologies and answers to the above questions. This allows the user to make an informed decision about who to work with. They’ll also be more excited about their choice because they’ll feel like they chose the right person for them.

And finally….

If the idea of using a career expert makes sense, but you are budget-conscious or were burned by a bad experience, you need to come join me at CAREERALISM Club. I want to show you what being part of a Career HMO can do for you. It comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee so you’ve got nothing to lose. Mention this article referred you when you sign up and get the  20% discounted rate membership.

CLICK the ‘Sign-up’ button and complete the form for the “Preferred Professional” option!

I promise, the inspiration, education and connection you’ll experience will help you see the power of joining a Career HMO.

I wish you all the best and hope you find a career expert that can help you learn how to find the job you want and deserve!

CAREEREALISM.com provides the best career advice from proven career experts on a daily basis. How do you find a job today? You get career and job search help from us! Sign-up today to get our updates daily.

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Technorati Tags: career advice, career coach, career coaches, career expert, Career Experts, CAREEREALISM, find a career coach, find a career expert, find a job, job search

By CAREEREALISM Founder, J.T. O’Donnell

Getting ahead professionally means knowing how to gain the respect and admiration of co-workers and management. Easier said than done. Why? Because nobody teaches us how to strategically develop our reputation as a “top-notch, team-player with real promotion potential” – at least not until now!

Join CAREEREALISM founder and nationally syndicated career expert, J.T. O’Donnell as she reveals the 6.2 ways to get everyone to love you at work.

In this hour-long, FREE webinar, she’ll highlight simple yet powerful techniques that will get c0-workers singing your praises, and more importantly, management planning your next promotion.

Sign-up here for this FREE webinar designed to help you get ahead!

It’s being held this Wednesday, September 1 at 1:00 PM EST/10:00 AM PST.

Can’t make the live event? Don’t worry. As long as you register, you’ll get the recorded version the next day by e-mail. That way, you can still learn the secrets and get started on your way to having the entire office wrapped around your finger!

CAREEREALISM.com provides the best career advice from proven career experts on a daily basis. How do you find a job today? You get career and job search help from us! Sign-up today to get our updates daily.

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Technorati Tags: career advancement, career advice, career expert, get ahead, irrisistable, professional development, promotion

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By CAREEREALISM-Approved Expert, Andria Corso

In order to have a productive career discussion with your manager, it is important for you to prepare and think through some key items ahead of time. You want to be in full control of your career path and the best way to do that is to approach your manager with confidence and conviction around your career goals. To prepare for the discussion, start by answering some basic questions about yourself and your career:

What is your personal mission statement with regard to your career?
This response should focus on what you hope to achieve through your career.

What are your values?
This response should include your top five values in your life. The importance of answering this question is to be sure your career goals match your current values. For example, if you value innovation, that influences your career choice and objectives.

What are your motivators?
This response includes examples of what motivates you. Is it fast-paced work with short
deadlines? Is it structured work or flexible work? As with your values, you want to be sure your career objectives align with your motivators

What is your short-term career objective?
This response should be about where you see yourself in the next 12 months. If you want to be in a new assignment, then you should state that, as well as what that assignment could be. If you want to remain in your current role but perhaps take on additional duties, then include that information in this question response.

What is your long-term career objective?
This response highlights your ultimate career objective. Some people do not know what this is but if you do, it is important to share it with your manager. This helps your career plan to be tailored towards reaching your ultimate career objective.

What are your strengths?
This response focuses on your current strengths that you can leverage as you grow in your career.

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What are your developmental areas?
This is about the areas where you need to grow so you can reach your career objective.

What are you willing to do in the next 12 months to reach your career objective(s)?
This response should focus on some specific, tactical items that you can work on over the next 12 months. Consider this your action plan to reach your objective.

After you have these questions answered and feel comfortable with your responses, it is time to share this information with your manager. Ask your manager for input on your career objectives and whether they feel these are reasonable and achievable. Ask them for input on your strengths and development areas and also request their support of our action plan. This will aid in your ability to be successful in reaching your objectives. By taking the time to answer these questions and prepare for your career discussion, it will be much more productive and, hopefully, a more engaging discussion for both you and your manager.

Did you enjoy this article? You can read more articles by this expert here. Also, check out all of our free webinars!

CAREEREALISM Expert, Andria Corso is a career and leadership development coach and Strategic HR consultant with areas of expertise in career and leadership development and executive coaching. Andria has over 15 years of HR leadership experience insider Fortune 100 companies, including 11 years inside Lockheed Martin Corporation. Andria specifically works with clients on career transitions, career advancement & career development so they can reach their highest potential. She is the author of “From Gatekeeper to Trusted Advisor: Success Strategies for Today’s HR Professional.”

CAREEREALISM.com provides the best career advice from proven career experts on a daily basis. How do you find a job today? You get career and job search help from us! Sign-up today to get our updates daily.

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Technorati Tags: career advice, career expert, career question, CAREEREALISM, Manager, managing up

By CAREEREALISM Founder, J.T. O’Donnell

I cringe when I see the attention Stephen Slater is getting for his in-your-face exit from Jet Blue. It used to be that any publicity was good publicity. However, in a time where long memories get longer (thank social media and the permanence of everything posted on-line), I can tell you most traditional employers won’t touch him with a 10-foot pole. Even if he gets a TV show or other offers, his fifteen minutes of fame will die, and all those supportive fans will drop off like flies. When the attention dies, he could start to act desperate – and hiring managers don’t like desperate.

That being said, if you are one of the millions of Americans who want to sing, “Take this job and shove it!” to your employer, I’d like to offer you 5 reputation-saving alternatives:

#1 – Take a “mental health” day – or two. When we feel this frustrated, there is usually a lot more going on in our lives. Relationship, financial and health issues can make work seem unbearable. Since we spend a great deal of time at our jobs, it’s easy to channel blame for things going wrong in our lives towards our work situation. Instead, remove yourself from work and spend some time sorting out all the things bothering you. Vacations can provide a much needed change of scenery. If you can’t afford  one, take a ‘staycation’ instead. The key is to give some of the other areas of your life a little TLC. In doing so, you may find your perspective on work gets better too.

#2 – Volunteer. Spend some time with those less fortunate than you. Give yourself a little reality check. Think you’ve got it bad? Go spend an hour at a soup kitchen for the homeless. Better still, visit a children’s hospital and spend time with these brave kids and their families who are battling life-threatening illnesses. Then ask yourself if work is so terrible.

#3 – Start your own company. If you are so frustrated with working for someone else, try working for yourself. It’s amazing how many employees think their management team is a bunch of idiots, but yet, they’d rather sit and complain about the company that pays them then step up to the plate and create a job for themselves. Running a company isn’t easy folks. If it was, everyone would do it.

I recently met an ex-entrepreneur. He had quit his last corporate job out of frustration and opened up his own shop. 18 months later he was thrilled to be back in the corporate environment. “I have a whole new respect for what it takes to run a business,” he told me. In fact, he said his ability to work with senior management felt improved and he was now getting the kind of recognition he had previously been unable to attain. “I am approaching the job differently because I’ve been in management’s shoes. They have my respect and I’m getting theirs. It’s a win-win.”

TIP: Don’t have the funds to go out on your own? Start a hobby business. This will let you build the business on your own terms, while doing something you enjoy. Before you know it, you could be quitting your day job. At the very least, you’ll learn a lot about what it really takes to run your own show.

#4 – Actually look for a new job. 72% of Americans claim they are going to look for a new job when the economy improves. My question is: Why wait? If you do, there’s going to be a lot more competition, since everyone else will start looking then too. Put some real effort into building up your job search game-plan and start looking for a new, better position immediately.

#5 – Get expert help (and I’m not talking about a psychologist). Most people don’t know the right way to look for a job. If your first thought when thinking of starting a job search is to get your resume done and start blasting it out to open positions on the Internet, expect to come up short. This is the WRONG WAY to look for a job in today’s economy. Which means, you need to start investing some time into closing your gap in knowledge. There are several ways you can do this. A good start is to subscribe to a few top career advice blogs and begin reading them daily. The more you read, the better informed you’ll be. Then, consider investing in career resources that will help you shorten your job search. FACT: The right career expert resource can teach you how to find the job you want faster than you can teach yourself. Just like a doctor or a dentist, there are times when the health of our careers rest on getting expert advice!

In summary…

Everyone hits a point in their career when they feel like they’ve had enough. It’s how we deal with those moments that define us as professionals. I’d hate to see your career suffer for a few moments of vindication. One career party moment like that can cause a long professional hangover. I say, don’t risk it.

CAREEREALISM.com provides the best career advice from proven career experts on a daily basis. How do you find a job today? You get career and job search help from us! Sign-up today to get our updates daily.

Technorati Tags: career advice, career expert, exit, find a job, jet blue, job search, quit a job, stephen slater, steve slater