Monday, April 20, 2020

Resume Writing Resources - How To Use Them Wisely

Resume Writing Resources - How To Use Them WiselyWriting a resume is never an easy task to do but if you get the right resume writing resources, it can become as easy as pie. There are so many resume writing resources available in the market today, some of them can prove very helpful while some others can be less useful.Most people have noticed the rise in the number of resources that provide you with a better chance of writing a resume than other people in the market. If you get the right resume writing resources, your resume will come out as flawless as a piece of art. So if you are seeking for resume writing resources, you should do some basic research and start looking at the various resources on the Internet.The first resume writing resource which can prove very helpful for you is the resume sample. There are companies or agencies which offer you samples of resumes which have been written by their top professionals. These samples are available in different formats like Word, PDF , Microsoft Word, and even audio format.If you are using a professional resume writing software, you can use these samples to write your resume. The advantage with these samples is that they have already been tried and tested. If you try to use samples that you found online, you will not be able to understand and work on the ideas of your own. With the help of a sample, you can get the best idea as to how your resume should look like.The second resume writing resource is the online resume. This is a perfect opportunity for you to get a sample of your own as to how your resume should look like. There are plenty of free resources available online. There are some websites which offer free samples which can serve as a good example as to how your resume should look like.The third resume writing resource is the resume advisor. If you want to make the most out of your resume writing skills, this is a good option for you.Resume advisors can provide you with samples which have been used by m any other people who have written their resumes successfully. Once you have these samples under your fingertips, you can start writing your resume as effectively as you are able to do with the help of the sample.

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

How Much Money Can You Save By Working From Home - Money Under 30

How Much Money Can You Save By Working From Home - Money Under 30 How Much Money Can You Save By Working From Home? Do you know how much it costs you to go to work? Perhaps you’ve wondered how much money you’re spending on a long car commute. But there are other hidden expenses associated with working outside your home. If you buy a coffee and/or a meal a few times a week, the monthly total could easily rival your cell phone bill. Most office jobs have a dress code that requires you to buy a certain amount of business casual clothing. And if those clothes are dry clean only, you’re looking at another $50/month or so. Ultimately, the biggest cost of working outside of your home might be all of the convenience services the modern professional is often willing to pay for in exchange for precious free time. From lawn maintenance to house cleaning, and all of the smaller things like grocery delivery in between, outsourcing your life can easily encroach on your net income. Not to mention the retail therapy we often indulge in after a stressful day or week at the office. If you’re a freelancer or your employer will let you do it, working from home is a great way to eliminate many of these unnecessary expenses. It can also improve your health and wellbeing. In this article we break down the common costs of working at an external location and show you how much you can save by spending your work day at home. The price of a long commute With about half of America’s jobs located in a few congested metro areas, many workers can’t afford to live near their workplaces. They buy or rent in outer-ring towns to lower housing costs and opt for public transit or longer commute times. According to AAA’s cost of driving charts, a person driving 10,000 miles a year in a small car could spend about $5,700 annually. Commuting on public transit is cheaper, but still a $150 monthly train pass adds up to $1,800/year. For example, let’s look a person who makes $75,000 a year and lives in San Francisco (the median household income for SF is $92,500). With median rents within 30-40 minutes of the city in the $2,000 range, living within commuting distance of San Francisco would take up about 50 percent of this person’s salary. On the other hand, if they have to commute without access to public transit, they’ll incur the following costs: Car-related expenditures With bridge tolls above $10 a day, gasoline costs likely $200 a month, and the additional need to insure a car ($125, say) and park ($500 a month or more) you are spending more than $1,000 a month just driving around. That’s the equivalent of a full-time, minimum-wage job. Lost time Commuting to San Francisco via car from a more affordable city like Martinez, CA would take about three  hours a day. This time cost would be less in most areas, but can safely be suggested to be over $500 a month plus the money lost from “time cost”working from the assumption that one could use the two to three  hours spent driving and taking trains around, doing something economically viable. Live anywhere and spend less on housing You can work remotely for your San Francisco or New York office and find a place to live that’s far less expensive. Living in cities like Lancaster, PA or Cincinnati, OH would in terms of rent or mortgage cost $1000-$2000 less a month than if one were to live in a smaller house or apartment in New York or San Francisco. Lest you fear you’d be bored living away from the big city, Lancaster was featured in our list of best cities for artists along with four other small, affordable, and vibrant places. Improve your health and wellbeing One important thing that people with high-stress office jobs tend to forget about is self-care. Studies have shown that extensive sedentariness leads to obesity and heart disease. Furthermore, losing time you could use to prepare healthy food can result in a poor diet. Working from home will free up all that commuting time to care for yourself. In the long-term, this leads to decreased healthcare costs. Generally, people in poor health have a higher chance of having chronic conditions (i.e., diabetes; joint issues requiring replacement) in their 50s and 60s, which in aggregate can add hundreds of thousands of dollars to late-life health costs. Much of this money will be coming from your own pocket. Take more tax deductions Freelancers can write off things like the use of your home as an office, your internet provider service (if it’s primarily used for business purposes), your car (for instance, if you have to present work to a client, the gas mileage can be written off at 0.55 cents a mile), and health-insurance related expenses (including health expenses that came from your own pocket because your insurance didn’t cover them). When the commute is worth it Telecommuting as an employee or working from home as a freelancer can be financially beneficial and free up more time to do things you enjoy, but there may come a time when you want or need to give up your home office. Heres why you might consider working in an office again.   You’re less likely to get promoted This is true; even in today’s digital age, companies have very few managerial-level staff who work off-site. You may be in a situation where you have to accept a lower income ceiling. Note that, from a money standpoint, this may still be better: making $60,000 and living in Lancaster or Cincinnati is infinitely better than trying to make it in San Francisco on $80,000.   However, you may find that after a few years, you’d like to make a next step in your career that isn’t possible without returning to an office job. This may be beneficial economically if, long-term, you boost your salary by at least $30,000 (about $1,600 a month after taxes in most places). Such a raise  may be worth it and offset the additional costs associated with commuting and working outside of your house. You need the benefits Working from home as an employee usually comes with health insurance and other benefits, but freelancers may find they need to take an office job simply for the healthcare. Summary There are a variety of obvious and hidden costs associated with commuting and working in an office. Telecommuting can help you save money on transportation, eating out, and other convenience services, but you may eventually find you want or need to return to working on-site to advance your career or gain benefits unavailable to freelancers. Read more 7 Real And Reputable Work From Home Companies How To Ask Your Boss To Work From Home

Friday, April 10, 2020

7 Practical Tips For Conducting Great Video Interviews - Work It Daily

7 Practical Tips For Conducting Great Video Interviews - Work It Daily Recently, many recruiters have turned to video interviews to augment communications during interviews and throughout the hiring process. While video conferencing can be a very effective solution, there are a number of variables and factors to consider when deploying the interview. Here are some tips: 1. Prepare Yourself The Room The Room: Optimize your space to work for you. Don’t assume that every room is aptly suited for your conference. For example, windows can create glare and unnecessary noises, therefore, avoid windows altogether. Presentation is really important, therefore be sure that your environment looks great. This means that the lighting is goodâ€"if the room is too dark, the other party won’t be able to see you. Additionally, make sure the setting is professionalâ€"i.e. don’t interview in your bedroom, kitchen, and so on. Preparing Yourself: Be sure that you look the part. Dress professionallyâ€"wear what you would during an in-office meeting. Also, coordinate colors. Solid muted (or pastel) colors are highly recommended (i.e. blue and/or grey). Inversely, colors like red, green, and orange, as well as busy patterns are best left out. Aside from your actual clothing, carrying yourself professionally is also very important. As such, it’ll be wise for users to submit themselves to a code of video conferencing etiquette. Ways to do this include: Maintain eye contact Avoid Nervous gestures Use natural language, volume, and gestures when you speak 2. Prepare Your Equipment Don’t wait until the last minute to set up everything for your conference. You want to make sure you’ll have optimum quality during your conference; therefore, take into account: Video imageâ€" our room’s lighting and how it appears on camera. Positioning the camera itselfâ€"does it allot for best video and audio quality? Your computer’s functionalityâ€"do you have all the necessary programs? Availability of informationâ€"are all your documents prepared and ready to be sent? 3. Create A Specific Plan Prepare for the conversation by outlining key talking points to be sure you touch upon every area you’d like. If you were going to an in-office meeting, you’d likely have information and an approach prepared. Apply the same preparation to video conferencing. Don’t ramble on or fall of track. Make a guide to keep you on point and on schedule. 4. Avoid Changes To Settings During The Interview It’s important to maintain as much consistency as possible during a video conference. Keep the attention on the matter at hand, not the conference itself. As such, users should work out all the variables beforehand. Select a secure and reliable Internet connection Adjust camera angles for best lighting and positioning Adjust volume setting for background notifications 5. Practice Your Talking To Get Appropriate Volume And Tonality A good way to be sure that everything is set perfectly is by doing a dry run. In doing so, users can be sure their topics stay on point, the settings and quality are all-concrete, their volume and appearance is perfect, and so on. Additionally, it can help users get more comfortable. Practice does make perfect. If you are familiar with the process, you’ll be more comfortable delivering it, and you’ll likely deliver it much more effectively. 6. Account For Delays In Data Transmission You want to be sure your party can hear you, but repeatedly asking, “Can You Hear Me?” can really hurt a video conference. Sure, you can ask this initially, but a practice run might be the way to eliminate this altogether. Still, it’s inevitable that you face some hiccup with quality sooner or later. In this event, it’d serve users well to account for a two second delay when they are speaking. Give your party enough time to receive and absorb whatever it is you’re saying. On the other hand, this applies to you as well. Allow the other party enough time to say what they need to. 7. Punctuality Timing Are Crucial Users want to be sure they retain professionalism. A good way to do this is through being on time. It can be very distracting when individuals arrive late, even if they’re merely sitting in on the conference. A late entrance creates unexpected background noise that can really hinder the interview. Another good way to optimize your time is by making sure that all involved parties are on the same page. Send out your agenda to all parties. Be sure to include: Time, Date, Time Zone of interview Complete list of all participants Meeting name and phone number Video conferencing can be a great tool for interviews in augmenting the hiring process. However, users need to be sure they are able to supplement the platform efficiently. As such, it’s wise to think ahead and prepare as much as possible. Enjoy this article? You've got time for another! Check out these related articles: Skype Interviews: What You NEED To Know Top 3 Tips For Phone Interviews How To Ace The Panel Interview Photo Credit: Shutterstock Have you joined our career growth club?Join Us Today!