The Start of Your 2009 Financial Makeover

The Start of Your 2009 Financial Makeover As another new year approaches, many of us are reflecting on 2008’s accomplishments. We are also reflecting on things that we would like to change in 2009. For most American’s this consists of making the same New Years Resolutions year after year, most of which will be abandoned by March. According to www.usa.gov, the top five new years resolutions are: 1. Lose Weight 2. Manage Debt 3. Save Money 4. Get a Better Job 5. Get Fit I would say all five of these resolutions sound pretty appealing to me and probably to most other twentysomething-aged women I know. Because I’m a huge advocate of setting realistic goals and sticking to them each year, I’ve decided to start a series to help Career Girls readers break these vague goals down into bite sized pieces. The first series will be about managing debt and saving money. Now let me put out a disclaimer. I’ve always had a huge fascination with Personal Finance and money. This is why I studied Finance in college and am pursuing my CFP in 2009. BUT, I must admit that part of my interest is rooted in the fact that I have not always been the most responsible lady with my money. Sort of like the overweight girl who says she knows that eating crap food every day is wrong and working out is right, I know that spending too much and saving too little is wrong. Yet somehow our emotions, desired lifestyle or temptations get the best of us and we do not listen to the logical black and white of what is right and wrong. Rather than sitting here and telling you things you already know that will never help you change your habits and behavior, I’m going to take it a step further and give you real tools and facts, along with some emotional boosts to get you in better financial shape in 2009. I promise to be honest and real and follow my own advice. I think that facing our financial situation is sometimes the hardest part of getting started, especially since we are women. Many women have the idea that a prince will come and take all their money problems away. Others have grown up in families that did not discuss money, and now that they are in the real world they have no clue what to do so they keep spending more than they earn and hoping that things will eventually work out. I know I’ve probably lost a handful of readers by this point in the post, but for those who wish for more freedom, confidence and power in life it really does start with getting your finances in order and understanding how this whole money thing works. So let’s get to it! That way in a year from now, we can have less debt, more savings, and sleep better at night knowing we are on the right track to achieve our life goals.

My Biggest Lessons Learned in 2018 - Classy Career Girl

My Biggest Lessons Learned in 2018 As the holidays are winding down and the new year is about to begin, I wanted to make sure I document some things that happened this year. I do this every year and this year was another huge year! Having another baby was a huge personal change that affected my life, my family and my business. I learned a ton and wanted to share what Ive learned. Ive also learned a ton as a CEO and managing people was probably one of the biggest growth areas for me this year. Here are my biggest lessons learned in 2018: 1. Lessons Learned About Hiring Staff This year I learned that no employee will love my company as much as me.   As much of a bummer that is, because I love our mission so much, its just not possible. Employees dont have to stick around and may not be with you forever. This year one of our contractors whom I trusted a lot, quit abruptly. I was shocked and had no idea how I was going to be able to handle it at the time since I had delegated so much to her. We had very little turnaround as we decided it was better to end things quicker rather than prolong them since this person had a huge impact on our community. Initially, I felt terrible. But, what I learned after giving myself some times to process it all was that it was completely my fault. I had given her a lot of new tasks because I thought she was able to handle them and was doing an excellent job. But, I never updated her job description so there was a huge lack of oversight and communication between us. Totally my fault. I learned big time that if there is an issue on my team, its usually my fault. I will not blame her or anyone else for things that go wrong. I may not like how it went down or give a recommendation but its always the managers fault when there is a clear lack of communication. And in this case there was. It truly was a bummer and one of the most stressful and frustrating times of 2018 especially since I was 20 weeks pregnant and planned to have her help with my maternity leave. But, by the end of the year, the rest of the team had completely absorbed that role in other ways and we got rid of a lot of tasks that didnt need to be done at all so that I could have a 3 month maternity leave. We realized that the role wasnt even needed. We had added a lot of work to our team and I had put a lot of management requirements on myself like extra calls and communication. Once that stopped, I was honestly relieved. I had to pick up a lot of her tasks but I had less to do. Sometimes, an employee can put a lot of pressure and extra assignments on you that you dont even need. YOU DONT NEED A BIG TEAM! Just because someone else has a team of 20 doesnt mean you have to. Try to do more with less and cut tasks that arent needed. Find the BEST people for the job not just the people who are doing OK. And an even bigger lesson learned in 2018, sometimes employees dont fit the brand you are trying to create. This was a big eye opener as I am working on a rebrand and website update in early 2019. What I want to communicate and HOW I want to communicate is not what we were doing when this employee was on our team. This is why hiring right is so important and if/when I hire again, I will be watching for so many more things to ensure I hire the right people who fit our brand and mission. 2. Lessons Learned About Growing Your Business Income and TAXES As you grow your business, your needs change. I am no longer running a hobby blog on the side of my day job. I am running a business that has grown to support my entire family. What this means is that the experts and contractors that I hired to help me with finances and accounting when I first started (and wasnt making enough to survive) are not the same experts I should be using today unless they are growing with me. This year we got to tax time and had a tax bill that was thousands of dollars. Unplanned. Out of nowhere. Holy cow. First of all, if you have a tax bill it means you made a lot of money and this is a good thing! Except when you werent prepared for the bill like we werent. Ill never forget getting the email from our CPA walking out of church and telling my husband. He immediately started thinking of ways to make extra cash on the side. We are usually pretty awesome at managing our money and our cash flow but we werent prepared with thousands of dollars on a rainy day to throw away on our taxes. After some evaluation, we were able to do some research and review of our available balances ourselves. Through that research, we found out that we were able to contribute to our retirement accounts instead of paying the IRS. Thank God! The lesson learned here is to make sure you have the right people supporting you as you grow and hire the people who will watch out for you. We had an incredible year and made a lot more money. We needed someone helping us to avoid a last minute tax bill that we werent prepared for. This year, we are working with a CPA who manages companies with multi-millions of dollars. Before the end of the year, we know what we need to do to avoid a last minute crisis and how much we need to set aside if needed. As you grow, celebrate that extra income. But also hire the right people so you know what to do with it. ?? 3. Lessons Learned About What I Offer For many years I have put my attention and focus into creating affordable and quality online courses and membership sites. Overdelivering at every step and providing as much value as I possibly can is what I love to do. For this reason, my focus has been OFF of coaching and working one-one-one with people and even in group settings but this year I brought it back on a whim. My mentor, Stu McLaren, gave me a push and said heck yes people would love a higher level of your membership site. Why dont you ask them if they would be interested first? So I did. I sent out an email to my Corporate Rescue Plan members in April and got over 25 responses from people interested in a group coaching program. We kicked off CRP PLUS in April and its been an incredible 8 months of diving deep with a smaller group of women and really help them grow their businesses. I love getting to know these ladies and seeing their progress since April is astounding and so exciting. We are kicking off 2019 with a new group of CRP PLUS members and for 48 hours on Jan 1-Jan 2nd 2019, Ill be opening enrollment to the public. This happens only ONCE a year to the public so if you want to learn how to join my group coaching group for 2019, add your name and email to the waitlist here. What I learned is that I love going deep with a small group of people. I learned that I love group coaching and the energy that comes from getting the right group of women together that is encouraging and supportive. I still offer so many affordable ways to work with me but now there is something to strive for and work towards in our group coaching program. I am opening the door for these ladies to say yes to themselves and invest in getting extra support to create the businesses of their dreams. This is exactly what someone else did for me back in 2013 and my business TOOK OFF. Getting support and guidance changed everything for me and helped me turn a hobby into a real business. Theres only so much I could learn and figure out myself and there was a time when I had to take the leap and really invest in myself. Id love to work with you in 2019. 4.Lessons Learned About Content Creation This year I had to make some tough decisions about content creation. Planning out a 3 month maternity leave made me really focus on what was important. Towards the beginning through mid year, we were pushing out a ton of content. We had guest contributors posting 2-3 times per week and I had a contractor helping me with coordinating the schedule, communicating with the writers and editing and publishing the articles. The good part about this was that we got a ton of content out there throughout the years and on weeks when I didnt have time to publish a blog post, content was still going out! The bad news is that not all the posts fit our brand and style. While on maternity leave, we published an article that was not in our voice and did not fit our brand. I hated that I didnt know what our brand guidelines were anymore and how to communicate this with our contractors and writers. A few weeks later our contractor who was posting the guest articles told me she had to take a break to focus on school work. I made the hard decision to say no to guest articles moving forward. Without her help and on maternity leave, I didnt have the time to take on the work. And I wanted to start producing higher quality content myself when I returned from maternity leave. So for a few months, we had little content posted on the blog each week. But I was ok with that. I decided when I returned from maternity leave that we would focus on quality over quantity in everything we did online. Less blog posts but put way more time in making them great. Less podcasts. Less instagram posts. I would only put out content that i was 100% proud of. This has changed everything. I am now proud of everything we create and passionate and excited about our brand again and where we are headed in 2019. I started taking my own photos and planning out the creative part of our brand. I hired another contractor at the end of 2018 to help me create and plan out this high quality content and Im excited about where this will take us in 2019. 5.  Lessons Learned About Motherhood and Working My daughter is 5 months old and we are inseparable. My days are a mix of work and life. I read a quote by Richard Branson when he was asked how he maintains work-life balance. He said, “Work? Life? It’s all the same thing. I call it LIVING.”? That’s how I feel. There’s no balance. It’s just my life. It’s two of my passions mixed together all day long. I don’t have a schedule. I don’t get that much work done each day. ?Definitely not getting as much done as I used to get done. But I get the few RIGHT things done each day. I don’t sit at a desk for 9 hours. I do a lot of catch up between 8-11pm. My morning work hours are long gone with Sienna waking up between 3-6am repeatedly. But it’s ok. I’m soaking up the cuddle time focusing on what does matter while still doing what I love here and there throughout the day. My biggest lesson learned about becoming a working mom again for the second time around is that I cant do it all. Im an achiever but I cant achieve as much as I used to. Focusing on my tasks and priorities is the only way to reach my goals and dreams. Im not answering emails (sorry). Im not wasting time. Thats the only way that our planner got launched in December. After two years of thinking about it I finally said Im making it happen. I didnt have time. I had a newborn but I was determined. I made a list of just what needed to be done. And each day I kept taking 20 minutes to move myself a little closer to making my dream happen. And it did. A highlight of 2018 is launching our first physical product, The Create Your Future 90-Day Planner. When you achieve your goal you have been dreaming about for over 2 years, what cant you do. Watch out 2019! ?? Lesson learned: Dont do it all! Stay hyper focused on planning out your priorities and only doing the most important things each week. I love sharing my lessons learned and do this each month with members of our group coaching program, Corporate Rescue Plan PLUS. If you are interested in learning more about joining me when we open for just 48 hours to the public on January 1st and 2nd, click here to add your name to the waitlist.

Federal Jobs Is Difficult to Hire

Federal Jobs Is Difficult to HireFederal jobs are notoriously difficult to secure. If you have done your research and considered all of the options, you are able to find many federal jobs that are available to qualified candidates.The government offers jobs at many different levels. For example, some positions are only for the supervisor, some positions are executive level, and other positions are part-time positions and temporary. You should familiarize yourself with the different levels before you consider a particular job position.In addition to federal jobs, there are also many private sector jobs that are available. If you are looking for a private sector job, you can use the reverse Federal Job Search Service that will help you quickly locate and get a resume writing sample for any position you are seeking. This is one of the best resources available for a wide range of private sector jobs.You can also visit the United States Department of Labor's Employment Bureau or the Caree r Federation to learn more about your options. There are many agencies that offer resume writing samples and other information on how to develop a quality resume. Some agencies offer free resume writing and information on how to prepare for interviews. These agencies are valuable tools when it comes to getting your resume in front of the most experienced HR professionals in the country.One of the best services available for the job seeker is a service provided by the Career Search Resource Center. This service provides resources on everything from government jobs to private sector jobs. There are webinars on resume writing, finding experience and resume writing samples, hiring managers, and other topics on federal jobs.After you identify the right opportunity, your next step is to research the company and do some background research. Many of the jobs offered by the government are 'expedited' positions. You should consider the possibility of working with an employer who is also inter ested in recruiting.There are many benefits to working for a private company that is offering federal jobs. The amount of money and time you will be spending is often less than you would spend on a resume writing and interview preparation service. Many of the businesses that are offering government jobs are providing assistance to help the small business owner or non-profit organization become self-sufficient.When you are looking for federal jobs, it is important to focus on what is right for you and your needs. You need to find a position that will match your skills and interests.

How to Protect Every Employee - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

How to Protect Every Employee You will hear people often say that employees are the lifeblood of every organisation, and this is certainly true! It means that their safety should be one of your top priorities in the office, as it means they will be able to give their all to your company, its future and its success. There are many ways their wellbeing can be affected while at work, from internal stresses to outside threats. Though this may seem like more to worry about on top of your busy schedule, there are some key steps you can take to promise the safety of every employee with ease. Create a safe workplace One of the biggest problems facing bosses when they are hoping to protect their employees is external threats. These often come in the form of burglars or other criminals who want to take valuable equipment and information from businesses around the country. If an employee comes face-to-face with a criminal, their life can be put even more at risk. Ideally, you should be investing in a high-tech security system to protect them, where security cameras and burglar alarms are a huge help. Trusted burglar alarm installers Bristol ensures you have only the best alarms in use. Don’t forget cybersecurity In the modern world, threats don’t just come from outside. In fact, employees face more risks from cybercriminals. Aside from installing the most effective anti-virus software on your computer systems, you can teach your employees about cyber safety through staff training. Doing this through mobile learning and on-the-go training means they will be able to familiarise themselves with such threats through a more comforting mode of training. You should also place physical reminders on office desks about how to keep sensitive information protected, and how to create the best password. Minimise workplace dangers Most employee accidents happen within the workplace. These are usually due to hazards that can be avoided easily if the right precautions are in place. From having a safe fire escape route to tucking away any loose wires, there are many risk assessment factors you should be looking at regularly. Informing your employees about these during training also allows them to take their own steps to ensure their safety. As with cybersecurity reminders, it is a good idea to have physical reminders around the office on how to avoid accidents, or on what to do should one occur. Consider their mental wellbeing Unfortunately, the UK is facing a climbing mental health epidemic, which is starting to affect many employees and companies. With more people needing to take days off than ever due to work-related stress, you should start to consider how your work environment may be affecting the mental wellbeing of your employees. Many could be being overworked, or others might not be receiving the support they need. In any case, you should aim to create a welcoming and supportive workplace, where your employees won’t feel as though being at work is making their mental health decline. You should also consider giving mental health days, and adequate lunchtime breaks to those who are struggling.

7 Ways To Find Unlisted Job Opportunities - Sterling Career Concepts

7 Ways To Find Unlisted Job Opportunities 7 Ways To Find Unlisted Job Opportunities Upwards of 80-85% of jobs have been reported as “unlisted” or “hidden”. Have you wondered how you could tap into this supposedly ‘hidden’ job market? Given available talent in today’s job market, many companies have the luxury of finding enough qualified candidates without posting job advertisements. While it may seem “easy” to find job listings online, the “hard” work required in finding unlisted opportunities is worth it because a smaller applicant pool increases your odds of success. Wondering how to start looking for unlisted job opportunities? There are countless ways, but here are seven strategies to get you started: Join online industry associations to network and participate in their online chat boards or email groups. Join local networking groups and chambers of commerce to develop contacts (ideally before you need them) and establish the “know, like, and trust” factor. Reach out to members of your college alumni association to “talk shop” and learn how they secured their own positions. Connect with recruiters and industry colleagues on LinkedIn and in LinkedIn groups. Be of value to executive recruiters by always being willing to forward their job leads to qualified people in your network. Establish yourself as an expert in your field by blogging, tweeting, and posting about your area of expertise. Consistently and thoughtfully share links online to articles of professional interest (“Saw this and thought you might be interested”) and comment on trends in your industry. Conduct a proactive “old school” search to network in to your target companies with the goal of circumventing the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to get your resume in the hands of the hiring manager, including a combination of mailing a hard copy, walking a copy in to reception, or having an internal contact pass your resume over. Identify companies in growth mode either by reading the business section in the local newspaper or trade journals. Expanding companies will have a greater need for strong talent and have been known to even create an opportunity for the right person. A common theme for these strategies is to become top of mind among your contacts for when they hear of new opportunities. While initially it may feel like hard work, it’s smart work and well worth your time. Laurie is a valuable resource to tap for her expertise of the tools, tips, and techniques of job search. Contact her today for help with integrating these job search tips and more!

Resume Writing Tips

Resume Writing TipsResume writing is a tough task because everybody who wants to be an internet marketer needs to have one. It helps people to advertise their skills and knowledge in the field of their choice, it also shows what people want to know about you. Many companies ask for resumes when they are planning to hire for a certain position. But, before you write a resume, you need to do your homework first so that you will know what to write in it, how to word it and what should be the things that should be left out.One of the easiest way to understand what a resume means is through the example of the most famous person in the world, Barack Obama. He once said that if you don't know what you're looking for, then you should go to the library. Well, as a person who has been writing resumes for many years, I would say, 'Yes!'As much as possible, try to put things that are important to you in the resume. It is a common mistake to put your age or physical appearance or something that's not relevant in your resume. Make sure that what is important for you in your resume will be in there.You need to mention your college education because it helps you get a job. It also helps you to get a new and updated resume that will help you get the job that you are looking for.Information is important when it comes to your resume. Include some information about your past work experience. Try to include in your resume things that will show what kind of work experience you had at that particular company.Other than the things that you will mention in your resume, make sure that you mention in your resume things that will help you when you're interviewing. Some other things that you should mention in your resume are your goals, accomplishments, and also those that will help you communicate well with others. If you don't know what those things are, then do a little research on them so that you can know what they are.When you are writing your resume, always keep in mind that you hav e to choose a career path that will help you reach your goals and dreams. So, choose a career path that you like and a career that you can work on. Then, make sure that your resume reflects your strengths and weaknesses and also your traits that make you a good candidate for a certain job.

Job Search Assistance - The 5 Best Sites To Help You Land a Job

Job Search Assistance - The 5 Best Sites To Help You Land a Job Spread the loveFinding a job can certainly be time consuming and frustrating. This causes many job seekers to look for job search assistance which can be in the form of resume writing services, career coaching or other job search assistance services.The big question is whether these services are really worth it. Hiring a career coach  can be very expensive. The  cost of hiring a career coach can range from $1000 $2,500 at the low end.Is it worth it?It may be for more experienced executives and those that are making a career change but for the average job seeker its just not worth it.We wrote a good post on  when you should consider hiring a career coach here.So what should you do?You should first begin by trying to determine what the issue is before seeking out job search assistance.Are you not receiving responses or interview requests? Then its likely  that your resume and/or LinkedIn needs some  improvement.Not hearing back after interviews?   Then you may need to improve your i nterviewing skills.Are you having difficulty finding positions youre qualified for? Then you may be searching in the wrong places.Most job search experts agree that the most effective and inexpensive service job seekers should consider is a professional resume rewrite. Your resume is the most important document for your job search and ensuring its polished and optimized for modern resume scanners most companies use will likely land you more interviews.Here are some sites and services that can help you find a job or improve your resume, LinkedIn and interviewing skills:Top Job Search Assistance Services#1 ZipJobResume Writing ServicesZipjob is a resume writing service that uses professional writers and technology to ensure your resume gets noticed. Most companies use an ATS which automatically screens resumes to see if youre a good fit for the position. Nearly 75% of resumes are automatically rejected by the software and many times the candidate is qualified but the resume isnt opt imized.Zipjob provides a professional resume rewrite and uses the same ATS technology most employers use today to make sure your resume is being read correctly.Visit Zipjob.com#2 IndeedJob SearchIndeed is the worlds largest job search site and one every job seeker should be on. You should also create an account and upload your resume to have hiring managers and recruiters find you. Indeed is a job board aggregator so you can find many jobs that are listed on other job boards all through the Indeed platform. (Think of it like  Google for job search)Visit Indeed.com#3 BigInterviewInterview AssistanceOkay this isnt really job search assistance but its something many job seekers struggle with and it may be costing the job. Biginterview contains many guides to help you through any stage of the interview. They also have many sample interview questions and answers you can browse for free.Visit Biginterview#4 LinkedInJob SearchThis is probably the most important career related site that every job seeker should be on. Make sure youre on LinkedIn and your profile is polished.  Ensure that you have a professional image, a good amount of connections and that your profile is keyword optimized so employers and recruiters can find you.You can also try searching LinkedIn for recruiters and headhunters that specialize in your industry.Visit LinkedIn#5 The MuseCareer CoachThe Muse is a popular career and job search related website which  also has a large platform of career coaches you can connect with. Remember that a career coach is expensive and should only be considered as a last resort or for high level executives or those making drastic career  changes.Visit The MuseClosing ThoughtsMany would ask cant you just pay for someone to help you find a job? it just doesnt work that way. You can, however, use services to help improve your resume, LinkedIn and interview skills. You should also be searching for jobs in the right places (LinkedIn and Indeed).Good luck with your jo b search! Job Search Assistance - The 5 Best Sites To Help You Land a Job Spread the loveFinding a job can certainly be time consuming and frustrating. This causes many job seekers to look for job search assistance which can be in the form of resume writing services, career coaching or other job search assistance services.The big question is whether these services are really worth it. Hiring a career coach  can be very expensive. The  cost of hiring a career coach can range from $1000 $2,500 at the low end.Is it worth it?It may be for more experienced executives and those that are making a career change but for the average job seeker its just not worth it.We wrote a good post on  when you should consider hiring a career coach here.So what should you do?You should first begin by trying to determine what the issue is before seeking out job search assistance.Are you not receiving responses or interview requests? Then its likely  that your resume and/or LinkedIn needs some  improvement.Not hearing back after interviews?   Then you may need to improve your i nterviewing skills.Are you having difficulty finding positions youre qualified for? Then you may be searching in the wrong places.Most job search experts agree that the most effective and inexpensive service job seekers should consider is a professional resume rewrite. Your resume is the most important document for your job search and ensuring its polished and optimized for modern resume scanners most companies use will likely land you more interviews.Here are some sites and services that can help you find a job or improve your resume, LinkedIn and interviewing skills:Top Job Search Assistance Services#1 ZipJobResume Writing ServicesZipjob is a resume writing service that uses professional writers and technology to ensure your resume gets noticed. Most companies use an ATS which automatically screens resumes to see if youre a good fit for the position. Nearly 75% of resumes are automatically rejected by the software and many times the candidate is qualified but the resume isnt opt imized.Zipjob provides a professional resume rewrite and uses the same ATS technology most employers use today to make sure your resume is being read correctly.Visit Zipjob.com#2 IndeedJob SearchIndeed is the worlds largest job search site and one every job seeker should be on. You should also create an account and upload your resume to have hiring managers and recruiters find you. Indeed is a job board aggregator so you can find many jobs that are listed on other job boards all through the Indeed platform. (Think of it like  Google for job search)Visit Indeed.com#3 BigInterviewInterview AssistanceOkay this isnt really job search assistance but its something many job seekers struggle with and it may be costing the job. Biginterview contains many guides to help you through any stage of the interview. They also have many sample interview questions and answers you can browse for free.Visit Biginterview#4 LinkedInJob SearchThis is probably the most important career related site that every job seeker should be on. Make sure youre on LinkedIn and your profile is polished.  Ensure that you have a professional image, a good amount of connections and that your profile is keyword optimized so employers and recruiters can find you.You can also try searching LinkedIn for recruiters and headhunters that specialize in your industry.Visit LinkedIn#5 The MuseCareer CoachThe Muse is a popular career and job search related website which  also has a large platform of career coaches you can connect with. Remember that a career coach is expensive and should only be considered as a last resort or for high level executives or those making drastic career  changes.Visit The MuseClosing ThoughtsMany would ask cant you just pay for someone to help you find a job? it just doesnt work that way. You can, however, use services to help improve your resume, LinkedIn and interview skills. You should also be searching for jobs in the right places (LinkedIn and Indeed).Good luck with your jo b search!