Is It Too Late For Me To Change Career

“Is It Too Late For Me To Change Career” Help from our Community “Is It Too Late For Me To Change Career?” * Richard is approaching the end of his contract. The sensible option would be to find another job in the same profession, but his heart's telling him to follow his passion project. How do you find the confidence to jump into something new, when conventional wisdom, and your age, says to play it safe? What's your career history and current job? I've been a teacher for 13 years. I teach chemistry at further education level. Prior to that, I was a research scientist with the Ministry of Defence, but due to government cutbacks I was made redundant. How do you feel about your work? I fell into teaching really. When my dream career fell apart 13 years ago, it was quite a loss because I loved it so much. I loved the science and the research. And that's never gone. In fact, it's my main driver. I dislike the bureaucracy in teaching though and I no longer want to be in front of a classroom. It's quite a challenge because of my age to feel this way. I've still got a very sharp mind.I love problem solving, and that's why I'm a scientist. Ithink I've still got a lot to give. It's frustrating though; I feel we live in an ageist society where it's harder to find work or do something new when you're at the older end of the working age spectrum. What would you like to be doing instead? I'm still interested in education, but I’d rather help teachers develop new skills. I have an idea to develop a business where I'd help teachers learn to use electronics in their lessons in the science curriculum. One possible role would be to deliver training to teachers in schools on how to incorporate microprocessor-based methods into the teaching of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects. I've been slowly networking with hobbyist groups and science clubs to develop a prototype of some new electronic measuring equipment, which would give teachers new skills and involve students too. My heart tells me to pursue this business idea. On the other hand, and this is my dilemma, my head tells me I should find another role in teaching. What's the biggest obstacle in your way? I don't have the confidence to sell my idea. The trouble is that I'm not a salesman. I've always been a doer, the back seat driver, never at the front taking credit. I suppose I could get a partner to help me, or learn new skills in that area. My age plays on my mind a lot. When I think about applying for another job, I remember that all the job adverts I see these days in other areas of education, such as training teachers rather than teaching itself, specify “graduates with a few years' experience”, which applies to people in their 20s, not me. That puts me off applying. It's not so bad in teaching because there's high demand, so I could probably find another role. If I worked for myself, maybe the age barrier wouldn't be there. Money would be a challenge but I know I could get some supply teaching work on the side, just to support myself. At least if I went down that route, following my business idea, I know I'd be very happy, although there's a lot of trepidation involved. Whereas If I go down the route of looking for another job in teaching, it offers me financial stability, but I face the challenge of being older and the fact that science has moved on since I got my PhD in chemistry. The business idea feels like the route for me, but I can't seem to find the confidence to jump into it with both feet. Is it ever simply too late to change? Can you help Richard? Have you been in a similar situation, or are you in the same boat right now? How do you think Richard could move his shift forwards? Do you know anyone he could talk to? Share your thoughts in the comments below and click the thumbs-up button to show your support.

What Does Work Stand For When Writing a Resume?

What Does Work Stand For When Writing a Resume?To put it in simpler terms, what does work stand for when writing a resume? What are the points that you should emphasize in order to make a great impression?This is a question that many job seekers ask but not many can answer correctly, so how does work stand for when writing a resume? In this article I will provide you with some of the key points of a resume that I believe will get you a job. The first and most important point to remember is that your job experience is the most important factor in any CV, but what does work stand for when writing a resume goes a little bit further.The very first thing that you need to stress on your resume is that you should always list down your 'work experience' where you have worked. This is because employers do not need to know what you did on holiday or when you were sick or what you did when you were a kid. All they really want to know is what have you done that would make you the perfect fit for their job.Your next focus should be on the skills that you have which make you an asset to the company. These can be anything from your writing skills, how efficient your computer skills are, or even how well you solve problems if you are a specialist. You should list these points down, as they make you stand out from other applicants.Now, when we are talking about what does work stand for when writing a resume we must also consider that you need to stand out from the crowd in order to get the job of your dreams the next time that you apply for a job with a good potential employer. If you write down your skills on the first page then you will be at a competitive disadvantage with your competition when the interview comes round. That is why you need to be brief in your cover letter and your CV.While you are stressing your previous work experience, you should also stress your future ones as it is a great way to showcase your talents and abilities without ever mentioning the past. The kind of cover letter that you use should be one that has a well thought out headline that allows the reader to get to know your skills before they read through your CV.When you are writing a cover letter and you get stuck you can always seek professional help. Look into what services are available in your area and try to find someone who can help you turn your resume from a draft to a polished one.These are just a few tips on what does work stand for when writing a resume. Remember to highlight your work experience, skills and abilities and you will surely be able to get the job of your dreams.

5 ways to be better at self-promotion

5 ways to be better at self-promotion I get asked a lot of questions about self-promotion. Mostly I give answers like find something you are great at doing and be nice to people. Its a killer combination, really. But people always want more advice than that. So, here are five tips that I give a lot. And I live by them. 1. Specialize, which means saying what you dont do In order to talk about yourself in a memorable way, you need to say something specific. This is why specializing is essential for effective self-promotion. A good example of this is promoting yourself as a personal trainer. If you say you can train anyone, then you are the same as everyone else. If you say you help people work on their core strength without free weights, then not only do you separate yourself from the crowd, but you say something so unique that you encourage more questions. Its always scary for people to specialize because they think theyll lose clients. But turning away clients is actually the best way to get them. You have to say no to people to establish yourself as an expert in something, and experts get hired more often than non-experts. 2. Stay the most focused when things look the most difficult We each have a wide range of talents. And its easy to get frustrated when things are not happening fast enough. So it makes sense that wed try something new, to see if it might work faster. I did this a lot while I was trying to be a freelance writer. I can write a wide range of stuff, and it took me a while to figure out the intersection of things I like to write and things I could get paid well to write. I knew a ton of opportunities in both of those categories, but I could think of very few things at the cross section of the two categories. Which is why I found myself writing online dating profiles. I could tell Id be good at it because its a lot like writing a resume. And I could tell there was a big market of people who would pay well for the service. So I gave it a try with my ex-boyfriends profile. I told him his was bad and I could fix it. And I did. And then I wrote myself a plan to promote myself as a dating profile editor. And then I threw it out, and focused on my real, long-term goals. I did this all the time on my way to where I am now. The important thing is to recognize when something is a brilliant idea and when it is a way to avoid facing your true goals when they are difficult. 3. Be the tortoise, not the hare Self-promotion is about building a long-term reputation for yourself. Establishing trust and respect in the marketplace. This is not something you do in a few months. So you need to get some work habits that will allow you to move self-promotion from a project type thing to a lifestyle type thing. So first of all, get out of your head that you work well under pressure. You dont. No one does. Not when you are promoting yourself. Because in the end, what will make you stand out is your ability to find creative approaches to your chosen specialty. And it is a myth that creativity happens best under pressure. Also, you need sleep. People who get enough sleep are more creative. Another hurdle for being good at self-promotion is that its hard to quantify success. There are some metrics, like blog rankings or Academy Awards, but they never show the whole picture. One of the biggest risk factors for burnout is doing lots of work without being able to measure your success. So its important, with self-promotion, that you make daily goals for doing something small reaching out to someone, publishing something, showing up at an event. This way you can show yourself that you are making measurable progress in the self-promotion realm even if the real measure like new clients will come months later. 4. Mitigate the fear of starvation Getting your name out there takes time. And while youre doing it, there is a nagging fear that you wont be able to and you will starve. You might be encouraged to hear that this is actually a feeling that is essential to grand success. But heres some practical advice as well: Dont say no to anything. Just because someone is offering you a stupid project or a project that you would never want your name on, dont turn it down, just raise your fee. Its rare that someone would offer you work that you wouldnt do for a million dollars. Start there and go down. For most of my freelance life I was willing to write anything for triple my regular fee. Another good way to freelance without starving is to change how you think about time. If you keep a paying job and do self-promotion on the side, until you have some traction, then you are giving yourself time to learn how to be your own publicist before you depend on that for food money. 5. Know yourself, really, so you know when to shut up Most people err on the side of not talking themselves up enough. We each need to learn the right way to toot our own horn. However sometimes you really do have to let your actions are speak louder than words. I am struck by how well Oprah balances this. When her school was getting trashed, she got out into the press and defended it. But it turns out now that she was the only mainstream media figure to come out against the Iraq war before we went to war, and she does not make a big deal about this at all. How does Oprah know when to be loud and when not to be? She knows her brand well because she knows herself well. She understands what she has to offer so clearly, and what her goals are so clearly, that she knows she needs to stand up for the school in order to protect her brand, but making a big deal out of her early position on the war would not help her meet her goals. Make it a point in your life to have the same level of self-knowledge that Oprah has. Dont underestimate that piece of the self-promotion puzzle.

The Most Significant Personal Branding Statistic of 2007 - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

The Most Significant Personal Branding Statistic of 2007 - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Pew Internet and American Life Project reported on December 16th that 18% of working college graduates said that their employer expects some form of self-marketing online as part of their job. Reading this part of the research report made my day, as it is highly in favor of personal branding. Im not surprised at all by this figure and believe that you will see this number increase drastically as we move forward. We need to keep evangelizing personal branding (they call it self-marketing) and companies will see the true value in social media as a way to connect people and build external voices. The 18% represents employers who recognize the significance of building their employee brands, as a way to extend their corporate reach, and increase employee retention (through this benefit). Salespeople need to sell themselves before the product, while technical specialists have an endless supply of information to share and marketers need to collect customer research and new ideas. In my generation, college graduates are looking to advance at a rapid pace and through personal branding, they can accomplish years of work, in a few months. Companies who are not embracing personal branding have two main concerns: the more visible their employees are, the more likely they will be recruited by competitors and the lack of control they have over employee blogs. As employees venture to the online world, they are viewed as ambassadors of the company and if they foul up, then the companys brand takes the hit as well. The corporate target gets much bigger if employees are engaging in conversations online. Competitors can start throwing darts at the target, as well as unhappy customers. As the adoption rate of social media and networks rises, the percentage of employers who build it into their job descriptions will climb as well. College graduates will expect that they will be allowed to blog and join social networks because they will be already participating in them prior to their job offer. The fact that 55% of online teens have created an online profile allows us to assume that as this generation enters the workforce, they will have the expectation that personal branding be a part of their job. Nearly half of all internet users (47%) have searched for information about themselves online, up from just 22%, as reported by the Pew Internet Project in 2002. Googling yourself is becoming a routine part of our life and if youre not searchable through Google, then you wont be seen by employers. Some people do it for fun, others for reputation management and some as a research project. People Google you in the same way, for the same reasons. Information found comes in a few formats: 1) Comments you write on other blogs 2) Websites that you currently own 3) People who blog about you 4) Press that youve received (bylined articles/written columns) 5) Profiles from social networks you belong to.   Scared of what youll see?   You can always fight back with SEO (search engine optimization). Subscribe to this blog.

Easy Tips to Make Your Resume Inexpensively

Easy Tips to Make Your Resume InexpensivelyA resume infographic is an easy way to make your resume more interesting. It can also help you write your resume in a better manner so that it makes a good impression on the hiring managers.In case you are looking for a good resume infographic then you must do some research about the tips that you can do to make yours more attractive. With a good graphic and resume writing, you can make your resume impressive and different from other applicants. Here are some easy ways to make your resume more appealing.You need to be careful when choosing your name. Choose something that is short and catchy. Your name should be memorable and stands out of the crowd. There are many business firms who have made their name catchy with their name. Since the companies who have catchy names are earning a lot of customers, there are a lot of graduates who go for this kind of careers.Write a memorable phrase that is related to your personality. The best way to do t his is by asking yourself what your strengths are and what you can offer to the company. This is the best way to write down your best assets. This will help you in highlighting these parts of your personality so that the reader can easily connect with you.The next step is to use a compelling graphic. One of the most important things that a resume should include is a graphic. The graphic has to highlight all the necessary information of the job. The graphic should make the reader interested about your qualifications.The next step is to use colors that are well known in resumes. The colors in the resume can draw the attention of the readers of the resume. If you use a bright color then it will make your resume look lively.You need to include your college degree or diploma. Even if you have no formal education background, the resume graphics should have the mention of your college degree. This will help you build your credibility among the readers.Now that you know how to make your res ume infographic, you can hire a professional resume writer to make it for you. These writers are able to come up with a resume that looks very professional and will definitely impress the readers. They can also help you make your resume interesting and attractive so that it can stand out from the crowd.

5 biggest mistakes you are making with work relationships - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

5 biggest mistakes you are making with work relationships 5 biggest mistakes you are making with work relationships that prevent you from being an effective leader For this weeks post, Ive recorded a short video where I talk about the biggest mistakes people make with work relationships. This will be relevant to you especially if you are a leader or want to transition to a leadership position. Watch the video below to hear about 5 common mistakes people make when building relationships at work. Hopefully, you won’t see yourself in any of these examples. If you do, keep listening and I’ll share some strategies for getting back on track! I will talk about: 1. Taking before giving 2. Being an opportunistic relationship builder 3. Seeing relationship building as playing office politics 4. Forgetting about results 5. Limiting your relationship circle. Youll also find out how to evaluate where you are, and how to find problem areas that could cause trouble later by creating a relationship map. Id love to hear your thoughts on this post. What other mistakes do you see people making and what strategies have really worked in terms of creating authentic relationships?

SMART NETWORKING - How to get more job leads, referrals and recommendations

SMART NETWORKING - How to get more job leads, referrals and recommendations SMART NETWORKING How to get more job leads, referrals and recommendations SMART NETWORKING How to get more job leads, referrals and recommendations January 18, 2013 by Career Coach Sherri Thomas Leave a Comment   The goal of networking is NOT to start asking about job opportunities the instant you meet someone. The goal of networking is to create a connection or establish a relationship with someone. As a Career Coach, I’ve noticed that many professionals looking to reinvent their career make the mistake of sending a message to others, ” I need a job.” But instead, you want to be sending the message that you’re a successful professional who’s resourceful, well connected, and who has some similar interests as they do. You want them to realize that you are someone that THEY should get to know!   Below is my simple step-by-step process to help you build a powerful network to get more job leads, referrals and recommendations…   Seek out others in the industry or job role where you want to work. The next time you meet someone who works for a company where you want to work, or in a job role that you’d like to have, keep the conversation focused on that person (it’s not about you! -at least not yet!) Talk about their latest marketing campaign or product launch, or something new or interesting that’s going on inside their company.   2.   Ask to keep in touch! Next, you don’t need to have a long, in-depth conversation with each person. Instead, when you feel that the conversation has run its course, simply say, “I’d love to stay in touch â€" how about if we exchange business cards?” 3.   Send the message that you’re knowledgeable and resourceful!