Personal Branding Renegade Why I Resist Labels

Personal Branding Renegade Why I Resist Labels 29 When you can't be painted with one brush. This is a guest post by Margie Cohen-Jackel. If you’d also like to guest post here on JobMob, follow these guest post guidelines. I grew up in a family where almost everyone was either educational â€" teachers of regular and special education, support staff and/or or medical personnel â€" doctors in different specialties, nurses etc… (My father, now retired, was an electrical engineer â€" he was in the minority.) So, when the time came for me to determine a direction for myself, I studied Music Therapy (an outgrowth of my violin playing) and educational social work. I began my career as a school social worker in an Ohio school system in regular education; after that I worked in kindergartens for children with special needs.eval Soon afterwards, I was in a horrific traffic accident in which I was severely injured, and needed to learn to walk again. Luckily my two kids who were with me that day had much less serious injuries than I, and the third was out of the country with his father! However, halfway through the final project (which one had to complete in order to get certified), a fellow English teacher's husband was transferred halfway across the world and she offered me her job before she told the school authorities. As I wasn't back to driving yet (scared, I guess) and the job was right in our own community, I took it.eval Recently, I have become a partner in a Remedial Learning Center and teach English there, both individually and in small groups. This is ideal as I combine my background in Learning Disabilities with my experience as a school guidance counselor. It is almost as if my career has come full circle from where I began. Personal branding? Well, I have always been a person who resisted labels, both for myself and for my students. I enjoy the variety of jobs I have and the way they sometimes overlap. This has also carried over to my blog, not surprisingly. I was told to pick an approach and write articles only about that subject, that I would gain readers by branding myself as ABC or XYZ. But since so many parts of my life converge, I couldn't separate them for the purpose of the blog, so it is really a reflection of the different aspects of my life, and how they all come together. And my kids? They all have found different paths: one works for the website of a newspaper, one works in security, and the third works at a high-tech company and is working on a degree in Computer Science. None of them wanted to be an English teacher… About the Author Margie Cohen-Jackel was born in Cleveland, Ohio and has been living in Israel since 1984. She has three grown children who live and work nearby. She is trained as a guidance counselor and now teaches EFL (English as a Foreign Language) to various populations, including to students with learning disabilities. She is a partner in a Remedial Learning Center and also teachers Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparation to teens with special needs. In her rare spare time she reads as much as she can and plays her violin. She can be found on Facebook: Margie Anne Cohen-Jackel Her blog URL is: http://margiecj.blogspot.co.il This article is part of the The $10000 7th Annual JobMob Guest Blogging Contest. WebHostingBuzz is a reliable web hosting company with the servers hosted at multiple US and Europe locations and over 30,000 happy customers worldwide. If you want Margie Cohen-Jackel to win, share this article with your friends. READ NOW: 5 Good Personal Branding Habits For Bloggers

Its time to ditch the American obsession with meritocracy

Its time to ditch the American obsession with meritocracy Americans have an unwavering belief in economic mobility. Most people in the U.S. think they can work hard to get ahead, even though economic mobility is lower in the U.S. than in other industrialized countries. Americans underestimate the importance of luck and believe that people who are ahead got there from hard work and intelligence. Even something like a good photo is statistically just luck based on how many photos we take. But when we get a good photo we feel skilled. Economists have found that the bigger a gap there is between rich and poor, the more important luck is in determining wealth, and the more important going to the right college is so you can meet the right people to have the right luck. Public schools in the U.S. are a study of our increasingly delusional obsession with meritocracy. Kids in wealthy zip codes perform higher than kids in lower-income zip codes. Putting a poor kid in a rich-kid school wont improve the outcome for that kid. Putting a rich kid in a poor-kid school wont hurt the outcome for that kid. And charter schools change nothing. Which means the school has no impact on outcomes. (Parents who put their kids in school choose to ignore all this data.) There is one exception: sports. In the past, kids in poorly funded school districts have had success in sports that provided social mobility. But not anymore. Today the gap is so wide between well-funded schools and poorly funded schools that coaches say its unfair to pit the rich kids against the poor kids just because their geography puts them in the same athletic conference. The proposed solution is to segregate kids into poor athletic conferences and rich athletic conferences. That sounds familiar. Im sure itll be great. Colleges recruit for sports that do not typically exist in public schools, like squash, lacrosse, field hockey, and swimming. The average family income for these recruited athletes is $500,000. If we segregate low-income athletic teams from more well-funded athletic teams, then the median family income for public school sports like basketball, football, and soccer will skyrocket as well. But what about using language similar to that in Title IX? Why do girls need equal access to athletic opportunities but poor kids do not? Presently we interpret the Equal Protection Clause to ban only racially motivated segregation. Which means middle-class parents can make sure their kids dont go to school with lower-income kids. The one percent do not send their kids to public school. In fact, most super-rich families are trying some  version of homeschooling. The middle class is desperately trying to hold onto their status  by endorsing unequal school funding. The segregation of middle-class schools and poor schools in athletics is one more way to make the middle class feel like they wont slip any lower. Peter Arcidiacono, a professor of economics at Duke, just published scathing data about Ivy League admissions. The admission rate for Harvard overall is around 4%. But the admission rate for athletes is 87%. Once we decide lower-income kids can have unequal coaching, unequal equipment, and an unequal level of opponents, then we close off one of the last paths to social mobility. In a society with a wide gap between rich and poor, where you go to college matters even more. But the stacked deck isnt only about college admissionsâ€"its about wellbeing. Playing competitive sports makes men and women more confident, more clear thinking, and more successful throughout life. This TED video tells girls how to monitor their school to make sure the girls receive fair treatment in sports. Where are the videos to tell low-income kids how to monitor their school to ensure fair treatment? Maybe we dont have those videos because we dont know where to start. Unequal opportunities for low-income kids start so early  that public schools cannot bridge the gap. So what can we do? Stop talking about school as inherently good. School has been a way to segregate since its inception. Our school system keeps poor people poor. And the ranked college system keeps middle-class people from moving up: 40% of Ivy League students come from the top .002%. Stop conflating education and democracy. The idea of education as a (maybe misogynist) precursor to good government is from the 1700s, before there was a mandatory public school. We dont need public school for good government.  And we definitely dont need to imply that we are making another test people have to pass in order to vote.  The only way to revolutionize who learns is to revolutionize who votes. You dont need to be good at school to be good at voting. Stop talking about all your hard work like youve somehow earned what you have. Our natural bias is to remember events that lead to disadvantage rather than an advantage. So we dont remember having luck as much as overcoming hardship. Telling yourself everything you have is from hard work makes you scared to slow down. The myth of meritocracy makes parents put their kids in competitive preschools and middle schools with too much homework. After college, those kids choose a competitive career that does not interest them. Because life is about showing you have merit. If we accept that luck has big impact, then we dont see everything we do as a judgment on our merit. We can relax and just be ourselves. Also, if you see your personal story from that perspective you are more likely to be kind, generous, and understanding. S0 Ive been trying to notice moments each day when Im lucky. And theres an extra benefit to doing that: noticing ones luck promotes feelings of gratitude, and people who have gratitude are happier. But thats for a whole other blog post.

First Time Homeowners Guide To Remodeling A Bathroom

First Time Homeowner’s Guide To Remodeling A Bathroom Purchasing your very first home is an exciting time in any person’s life. Your first home, however, may not be your dream home. But, that doesn’t mean it couldn’t be. After finalizing the purchase, you can start making plans to remodel the home to be your dream home. As an added bonus, remodeling will just increase the value should you decide to sell it one day. Get The Money Together Home Advisor estimates that homeowners spend anywhere from $5,000 to $14,000 remodeling a bathroom. The media outlet does acknowledge this price range varies pretty greatly depending on a number of different factors. With any remodel project, it is always better to overestimate and end up spending less money than you planned. This being the happy alternative to ending up in a situation where you run out of money before finishing the remodel. Just to play it safe, you should set aside $20,000 for the bathroom remodel expenses. Once you have the money together, you can move on to the next steps. Choosing The Bathroom Layout The very first step to remodeling the bathroom in your new home is choosing bathroom floor plans. Typically, there are four different types of bathroom layouts. Learning a little more about each one can make it easier for you to decide which option is ideal for your remodel. Custom Bathrooms A custom bathroom is just your typical bathroom. It comes complete with a tub, a shower, and a toilet. Depending on how much space you have to work with, you get to decide if the tub and shower are going to be one fixture or two separate fixtures. Attached Bathrooms Just as the name implies, an attached bathroom is attached to another room. It is pretty typical for the master bedroom to have an attached bathroom. Other rooms, however, could have a bathroom attached to them as well. This type of bathroom can have everything a custom bathroom has in terms of fixtures and appliances. Again, you will need to consider the allotted space when determining what all you want to install in the room. Wet Room Wet room is a fancy name for a shower room. The entire room is designed to be waterproof with a drain in the middle of the floor to collect the water. This type of bathroom is great for a household with a lot of people. Powder Room A powder room is also commonly referred to as a half-bath. As the name suggestions, it is half of a bathroom. The room will continue a sink and a toilet without containing much else. It is also not uncommon for a half-bath to have a washer and dryer set up in it. Once you’ve decided what kind of bathroom you want, you can sit down and figure out exactly where you want fixtures such as the sinks and bathtubs to go. Choosing The Bathroom Theme One of the more exciting steps in remodeling a bathroom in your new home is choosing a theme for your bathroom. Technically, there are two different methods to making this decision. You can either select some of the decorations and accessories for the bathroom first or you can select the theme first. Choosing a theme before you go shopping is the easier route to take as it helps make shopping for accessories easier. If you, however, already have bathroom accessories tucked away in the hope chest you slowly filled with household items in anticipation of the day you bought your first house, you are going to want to pick a theme that complements those items. A bathroom theme can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. Ultimately, it comes down to how much money you have to spend on it.

Make the most of the job Fairs University of Manchester Careers Blog

Make the most of the job Fairs University of Manchester Careers Blog Careers fair season starts in Manchester next week.   All our events are open to graduates and members of the public as well as current students. There are 4 jobs fairs: Ethnic Diversity Fair Wednesday 10th October Aimed at black and Asian students and graduates. Engineering, Science and Technology Fair Wednesday 17th October Finance, Business Management Fair Thursday 18th October Law Fair Tuesday 20th November To make your visit a success you need to prepare and plan. 1. Research Look at the A-Z of exhibitors on the fair website and list the companies that interest you. Dont rule out an organisation just because you have not heard of it before, read the details of the jobs on offer, there can be some unexpected gems. Research the companys website. Look at their requirements and consider how you meet them, find out as much as you can about the organisation and the opportunities. Make a note of any concerns or queries that may occur to you. Look at the application procedure, if there is an online application form register and look at the questions that you will be asked. 2. Plan what you want to ask There is no point in asking a question which you could have answered yourself by reading the companys website. You need to ask the types of questions that will give you the information you need to decide whether the organisation is right for you and to enable you to make a successful application. Start with your notes from your research. If you just miss an entry requirement, you could ask if it would still be worthwhile to apply. Maybe you would like to ask if it is possible to take a gap year and defer entry. If you are available for immediate start and late opening graduate jobs are not advertised on their website you could ask if jobs like this ever come up and if so how to find out about them. Is the organisation right for you? If you have strong feelings about ethics or the environment you could ask about the companys attitude to these things. If you are concerned about being in a minority in a company (because of your race, religion, gender, sexuality or age) you might want to get a feel for their attitude: e.g. Have there been mature entrants on the graduate scheme in the past? Is there a support network for LGBT staff? Do you know if there is anybody out where you work? How flexible is the company when accommodating the religious obligations of staff? What makes the organisation stand out from the crowd? You need this information to help you explain in your application why you are applying to that company. These questions are best tailored to the person you are speaking to. Organisations often send a mix of HR staff and recent graduate recruits to the fairs. Each will have different valuable insights to offer. Questions for graduate recruits: What has most/least impressed you so far? What has been the most challenging/rewarding part of your job so far? What is your top recommendation for someone applying this year? Questions for HR: What have past trainees gone onto do? What proportion of trainees stay with the company after completing the graduate scheme? What type of characters succeed in this organisation/role? What do you wish more applicants would do? What is the biggest mistake applicants make? Silly questions Fairs can be anonymous, if you have a silly question it is better to ask at a fair than in your interview! Obviously this is not a good idea if you are leaving your CV or hoping to follow up with the person you are speaking to. 3. Get ready Prepare a notebook with a couple of pages for each organisation and write out your list of questions for each. Leave space for notes on the day. Dont forget to take a pen. Check your outfit it is best to err on the side of smartness, you cant go wrong with a suit. Decide whether to take your CV. Not many organisations will accept CVs at the fair, if there is an online recruitment process you will be expected to use it. However it can be useful to have copies of your CV with you especially if you are looking for niche or immediate start opportunities or if you are going to speak to an organisation that does not have an online system. Look at our CV advice to ensure yours is up to date, consider coming to a Quick Query session for feedback. Take your clean unfolded CVs in a folder so they look professional when you hand them over. Register in advance on the fair website to save yourself a few minutes when you arrive. 4. On the day Arrive as early as you can. These events are long days for the company representatives so it is best to speak to them when they are fresh. Plus some exhibitors may leave a little early Pick up a free fair guide on your way in. Look at the map of exhibitors and plan your route around the fair. If you have arrived as the fair opens start at the back of the room most visitors go to the nearest stands first so they will be swamped whilst those at the back will be very quiet, and able to give you more attention. When you speak to a company representative make a note of their name and job title. They may give you a card, but if not write it down. You may wish to mention them later in an interview or application. Write notes immediately after leaving each stand while everything is fresh in your mind. There is one final fair this term for students and graduates wanting to take a postgraduate course, it is attended by universities, funding bodies and advisory organisations.   NOT a jobs fair for postgraduates, but not to be missed if you are considering postgraduate study as your next step. Postgraduate Study Fair Wednesday 21st November All Graduate

Resume Writing - What to Look For

Resume Writing - What to Look ForWhen it comes to resume writing, we as human beings take it for granted that you have to write a lot of things and create a whole structure out of your personal and professional life. But how much of a job actually does this really do? After all, people aren't looking at a resume for you to tell them everything that you've done, but they also want to know if you have the skills and qualities that they're looking for.As an employer, you have to go to a little bit of a different level when it comes to making your resume-writing so what you should be looking for is what is currently happening in your present situation. Keep these tips in mind and you'll be well on your way to creating a successful, appealing resume.First, you need to start by going back to your current work situation. What sort of things do you consider to be most important in a job? Are you a morning person or a night owl? If so, the following day, which part of the day do you focus on the most? Knowing your situation in relation to your current job is important, because once you know where you are in your career, you can come up with your own ideas of what is important to you.The next step would be to think about what sort of work experience you have, if any, to help give you an idea of how long your experience is, as well as the quality of it. A great example of this is to think about how long you've been in the same job. Your resume should include all of this information, but it's especially important for professionals to do so.The next thing you'll want to be thinking about is the type of education you have that will help you in your resume. Do you have any experience with customer service, or sales, or even public relations? What do you know about the government and politics that will show up in your resume?Next, what kind of volunteer work have you done that can show up in your resume? Maybe you were a counselor for a certain group of children in your youth or had an internship with a local child aid agency. These kinds of experiences should show up on your resume, especially if they weren't something that you had planned ahead for. Remember, you're seeking the right job, not just going through the motions of trying to get by.You should also consider your personal attributes, whether it's in terms of the things that you do and have done over the years. In other words, is there anything that stands out in your background that you could explain in your resume? After all, your personal information should be truthful and believable, and hopefully it'll look just as good as the things that you have done to get there.To finish up, remember that you can't just sit down and start writing your resume. Take the time to think about your life and see what things stand out, what sort of things you did as a teenager that you didn't end up putting in your resume but that show up in the way that you live your life now.

BONUS EPISODE Kickstart Your Career to Find Your Dream Job - Jane Jackson Career

BONUS EPISODE Kickstart Your Career to Find Your Dream Job - Jane Jackson Career Welcome to your bonus episode on Your Career Podcast! This is especially for all the listeners who have asked for advice on how to take control of their career and positively focus on how to secure their dream job.This is the introduction to my FREE audio course covering each step that must be considered when exploring a new career direction or looking for a new job.  From sorting out your mindset to build your confidence to make a change, to assessing what is most important to you and every step to conduct a successful job search, the Kickstart Your Career free course has you covered. Listen to the introduction now and find out how you can also get going support via the Private Kickstart Your Career Facebook page Ive set up for job seekers who have completed the Kickstart course too!To sign up for this FREE course now, click this link: KICKSTART YOUR CAREER Find Your Dream JobFollow me on TwitterLets have a chat on FacebookVisit me on LinkedInEnjoy my inspirational mêmes on Insta gram

Five Qualifications for a Job in the Retail Industry - CareerAlley

Five Qualifications for a Job in the Retail Industry - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners.1 Many jobs in the retail industry require interaction with customers. This means a candidate for a job in retail has to have specific qualifications in order to be considered for the position. Discover five qualifications that are essential for success in a retail job. Good Communication Skills Any employee who is out on the sales floor of a boutique, department store or shop must have good communication skills. Welcoming customers and offering assistance are two things every employee should be able to do. Simple things such as smiling and looking at customers when speaking to them can make shoppers feel at ease and welcome in a retail establishment. Managers and store owners are always looking for individuals who would be excellent representatives of their retail business. The courses in a program like the Youth Jobs Path can help ambitious young people fully prepare for work in the retail industry. Efficiency in Completing Basic Tasks Retail employees have a number of tasks to complete. Of course, these tasks vary depending on the specific job. For instance, a cashier in a department store stands at the cash register and rings up purchases for customers. A sales clerk may organize items on a sales floor and provide help to shoppers who want to find specific items. An employee working at a customer service desk answers questions and helps customers who want to return unwanted items to the store. A retail employee should know exactly what his or her job entails and complete those tasks with energy and efficiency. A Professional Appearance Having a professional appearance is essential in any retail job. The appearance of employees reflects on the quality of the store. In short, if employees are dressed neatly and stylishly, shoppers get the impression that the store is run in an efficient, customer-friendly manner. An employee who is hired for a retail job must ask management about the dress requirements. Some retail establishments have a particular uniform or style of clothing they want employees to wear. This will likely be explained to a new employee during the training period. Time Management Skills Time management skills are critical in retail jobs. These skills can help you get to work on time, finish tasks on schedule and serve each customer in an efficient way. These skills can be helpful in other parts of your life as well. The Ability to Work with Other Members of a Team Most people know that people who work in the retail industry must be able to interact with customers. But, they must also be able to interact with coworkers. Some projects and tasks require employees to work together to get the job done correctly. So, being able to share tasks, communicate ideas and treat one another with respect is very important. Coworkers can help one another succeed. Finally, having these and other basic qualifications can get a person his or her first job in the retail industry. Naturally, the person will learn and garner more skills helping him or her to move up the ladder to a job with more responsibility. Starting out in the retail industry with the right kinds of skills can give you an advantage over other workers. We are always eager to hear from our readers. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or suggestions regarding CareerAlley content. Good luck in your search,Joey Google+