Your Employer Owes You Nothing

Your Employer Owes You Nothing

I see many people working a normal job with the idea that if they work hard they will be rewarded for their good service. That isn't the way it works. Your employer owes you nothing. It doesn't matter how long you've worked at the job or how loyal you've been. In the end, your years of service aren't going to turn into some valuable investment that you can cash in. Just the other day, a friend of mine was let go (along with all the other employees) at a business where he had been working for the past several years. The sad part is that, he had several offers over the past few months for jobs that he really wanted to take, but he decided to stay out of loyalty to his current … [Read more...]

Starting a Business in a Down Economy

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A friend of mine is starting a business selling Cupcake Towers. When I first heard what she was doing I thought, "Why would you want to start a business right now?" After further consideration, I realized that if you have a good product or service, now might be the best possible time to start a business.  Here is why: There is less competition for workers right now so you can get good help for a reasonable cost. If you have a business idea that you can run on the side, it makes sense to start before you quit your day job. Technology has drastically reduced the cost of running a business. You can get a web store up for $20 to $40 per month (sometimes even less). If you want to … [Read more...]

Don’t Depend on Your Job

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I see a lot of people who become overly dependent upon their job. This isn't surprising and it's very easy to do--particularly with highly motivated performance oriented individuals. However, if your entire identity, self-worth and financial resources are tied up in your job, you are setting yourself up for catastrophe. I'm not saying you shouldn't be proud of your work or enjoy your job, but I am saying that you shouldn't let yourself get blinded to all these economic realities. No matter how good you think you are, you can be replaced. This is true now more than ever. In fact, if you are an extremely high performer and are being paid commensurate with your capabilities, your salary … [Read more...]

Younger Look for Resume

Thursday's WSJ has an example of how a 49 year old woman was able to get more attention for jobs by adding a photo to her resume where she was dressed to look younger and trendy.  She also tried to minimize the length of her experience by removing her graduation date and some of the earlier jobs. What do you think of adding a photo to  your resume? … [Read more...]