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Make Your Resume A Breath of Fresh Air

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 As a job seeker, it’s easy to see hiring managers as big, bad obstacles that need to be overcome. They’re the gatekeepers, after all. But, this kind of thinking actually leads to weaker job applications. Think about it this way: Hiring managers read a ton of resumes —to the point at which their eyes cross. More importantly, hiring managers are just people. With this in mind, the only thing you really need to do to stand out is to have the one resume that actually lets them breathe a sigh of relief during this painful process. Here are simple things you can do. Make the First Thing on Your Resume Immediately Relevant There’s nothing worse for a hiring manager than having to dig through a resume to find what, exactly, an applicant’s relevant experience entails. Don’t make this harder than it needs to be for the person who will be reading your resume, and make sure the first thing on your resume is something you know he or she wants. Are you applying to a sales position? Titling
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Effective Email Writing

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Email is widely used as a form of inexpensive yet highly effective business communication tool. Emails are rarely taken print-outs of, and are used as soft copies because it is easy to archive and retrieve emails. The reason of its popularity is its ease of access, which everyone in an organization starting from the CEO to the janitor can use. Emails are an efficient way to communicate information in a well-presented, easy to read and professionally appropriate manner. Many people quote lack of time as a reason to forward substandard emails that range from incomplete to incomprehensible. Now, let’s discuss some tricks to write effective emails: Plan your message.  Use the subject line to grab reader’s attention.  Keep your message short and clear.D on't type your entire message in lower case.  Proofread your message before sending it and assume accountability. If you are angry, take a few minutes to cool down before sending an email.  Don't type your message in
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Understanding Memo Writing

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The primary purpose of writing a memo is to support decision-making by  documenting a reference for future use. It also helps in conveying information,  presenting an informal report, and proposing a solution to a problem. A business memo is appropriate to use when making company announcements  such as employee appointments, promotions and changes in company policies. Format of a Memo A memo normally includes the following elements: a) Organization name – in the letterhead. b) Memo Title – at the top of the page. c) Attachments – documents attached to the memo for reference. d) Summary – placed at the beginning of the memo, should condense the  subject to five or ten lines. It should not contain jargon or highly technical  language. e) To – Reader’s full name (include honorary titles, but keep generic titles  like ‘Mr.’, ‘Ms.’ out. The ‘To’ line negates salutation usages like ‘Dear’. f) If the number of readers exceed five, mention them at the end of the memo under ‘Dist
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Achieving Mutual Gain in any Negotiation

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When the parties in a negotiation are committed to a position, they feel that moving from that position is a failure. Instead, the focus should be given to their purposes. To achieve mutual gain, focus should be given on interests, rather than positions. An environment of respect and discipline should be prevalent between both the parties. For example, in a school, one party favours uniforms, the other opposes it. The reasons for the first party to support uniforms is to avoid circumstances where students wear casuals, because it may give rise to an act of bullying where a person or group may act hostile towards each other regarding their individual style.  The second party is against the use of uniforms because wearing a uniform has its own drawbacks. It makes students easily distinguishable to outsiders. It might even cause financial issues for guardians with limited income. In such a case, the solution is to allow students to dress according to a specific dress code. All
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Résumé Writing

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A résumé is a document used to present an applicant’s backgrounds and skills  while applying for new employment. It’s a summary of a candidate’s job  experience and education.  Format of a Résumé Although the templates of resumes vary from profession to profession, we will  discuss the most widely accepted format here, which consists of: a) Name - Full name of the applicant without general salutations like Mr.,  Ms. b) Address - the permanent address c) Objective - the aim of your professional life d) Education - your academic qualification e) Skills - areas of expertise in your profession f) Programming Languages - if any g) Software Tools - Software tools you use in your profession (MS Word,  Excel) h) Operating System Platforms - operating system you use (Windows,  Mac) i) Database Management System - if any j) Personal Skills - soft skills k) Experience Breakdown - detailed explanation of your experience l) Achievements & Interests - Hobbies. Achievements i
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How Long Should My Resume Be

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How long should my resume be?” is one of the most often asked questions about resumes. Lately, job seekers were advised that a resume should not exceed one page. Those who broke this golden rule were destined for the circular file. Times have changed, and thus has the criteria for resume length. The new guideline is: A resume should be long enough to entice the hiring managers to give you a call for an interview. That may sound vague, but there is no hard-and-fast resume length rule that works for everyone. Things to consider include career objective, occupation, industry, experience, years of experience , scope of accomplishments and education/training. Resume Format: Keep these factors in your mind when deciding on resume length: Your resume can be a career marketing strategy, not an autobiography. Do your best to keep your resume concise and focused on your key selling points. Leave out the past experiences that don’t market you to your current goal. Every word in the res
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When You Have No Relevant Work Experience

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Your resume is essentially a formal introduction of who you are to your potential employer. It should therefore comprise your educational background, former occupational positions, and any other relevant information about you that would come in handy with the specified job description. Lack of relevant job experience is a particularly common problem especially for first time job applicants and could easily stop you from pursuing an employment opportunity. However, this shouldn’t always be the case. As a job seeker with no prior job experience, there are a number of ways you can tweak your resume to stand an equal chance with those who may have several years of experience in their resume. Set and clearly define your goals and objectives on your resume Employers are looking for people who will contribute to their company, you should look at the job position on offer critically and then examine yourself on a personal level, and ask yourself this question. Are you up to the task?
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