Making your resume stand out

You… “I add value.” “I have great interpersonal and communication skills.” “I am organized and hard working.” Hiring person… “Yawn.” That’s what the person sitting across the table from you in the interview is doing. And if someone is reading your resume or LinkedIn profile, their eyes probably skipped right over these all too common ideas. If you are in a networking meeting or informational interview, you might have blown your chance to make that important impression…

Restructuring your work space

Questions for you: Where do you do your best work? Are there places where you do a certain kind of work better? What is the right space for you for a certain kind of work activity?

Me: I need to have multiple work environments for my best productivity. For example, I do my best writing either sitting outside on the deck (as I am now), in my living room, or, believe it or not, in a cafe. There is something about the ambient noise that allows me to write creatively.

Howe…

Sharp readers are going to catch me stating the obvious on occasion...that's ok. Often, the most obvious is really a profound truth. Here is one that can make your life a lot more pleasant, and increase your chances of success:

Try and work and do business with people you like and respect.

Being successful in your work, career and business dealings to a large extent is about putting yourself in situations that fit.

Cultural fit. Environmental fit. Job fit. And, people fit. If you can't stand…

Have you ever been participated in a 360 Degree Evaluation? As a reviewer, or the recipient? If the thought causes fear in you, you might want to read an article I just wrote for Monster.com on how to survive and benefit from a 360 degree evaluation.

Have you ever thought about your career or the work you do as art…as a form of personal creative expression? We can easily summon an image of the painter, sculptor, musician, writer or inventor in their studio, engaged in the wonderful process of creating a masterpiece. (One of my dreams is to model my office on a Leonardo Da Vinci-type studio, but that’s another story.) Try applying this analogy to you and the work you do. Your career…past, present and future is a canvas upon which you are pain…

One of the most important career and life-planning activities you can engage in is finding your own definitions or models of career success. This is vitally important for a number of reasons: If you haven’t done this, how do you know what’s best for you? How can you make sound career decisions if you aren’t crystal clear about how you define success? How can you be happy if you don’t know when you’re successful?

If this question is relevant to you right now…

There is never a bad time to discover a…