The 10 Worst Things to Post on Social Media as a Job Seeker

The 10 Worst Things to Post on Social Media as a Job Seeker Social media can be both your best friend and your worst enemy in your job search. Although  it can be an extremely valuable tool for learning about vacancies and creating a professional personal brand for yourself, all of your job hunting efforts could be crushed if you present yourself poorly online. Whereas sharing photos from a crazy night out might seem like a bit of fun between your friends, an employer might not see it that way; so its essential that you  sensor what you post on social media and who can see it. Here are just a handful of some of the worst things you can post on social media as a job seeker! Are you guilty of any of these?! 1) Unprofessional photos Im afraid I dont think potential employers will see the funny side of a photo that shows you drunkenly slumped at the side of the road or sporting a mankini. 2) Bad language Painting yourself as a polite and approachable individual in all of your job applications and then swearing like a trucker all over social media is probably a tad counterproductive. 3) Negative remarks  about a past/current employer or colleague Something got a bee in your bonnet at work?  It can be tempting to use social media to vent, but employers will be looking out for this kind of thing, so avoid the public bad mouthing! 4) Reference to illegal activity FYI bragging about drug use, anti-social behaviour, etc. is more likely to land you a spell in prison than a new job! 5) Controversial comments Expressing strong political views or controversial opinions can be dangerous. Its likely that a lot of people may not agree with what you are saying and its possible that someone may take offence. 6) Whinging and whining Nobody wants to work with a moaning Myrtle! They bring the mood down in the workplace and can be impossible to please. So if youre using social media to complain about every little thing thats ticked you off each day, think about how its portraying you as a person. 7) Comments and tags from other people Weve all got that one friend who loves to tag us in awful photos or is forever posting inappropriate links on our Facebook page!  If youre at risk of them tarnishing your reputation, make sure you change your settings so that you have to approve tags or ask them to stop all together. 8) Posting hastily Posting carelessly when youre in a hurry or getting excitable can lead to spelling/grammatical errors and poor judgement. Before posting something on social media make sure you read it through. 9) Outing yourself Bragging about skiving off work to go on a jolly or making a joke out of being late for work for the third time in a week doesnt really scream star employee! 10) Not posting anything at all No social presence at all can sometimes be as bad as a poor one! In this day and age job seekers are expected to be in touch with the latest technology and being proactive about creating a personal brand for themselves. [Image Credit: Shutterstock]

Three Common Startup Mistakes to Sidestep

Three Common Startup Mistakes to Sidestep Once you’ve launched your startup after researching a promising marketing opportunity, picking the best business name, refining your business plan, market-testing your price points, and recruiting the right team, it’s critically important to leverage the power of established management practices and advanced technology to increase your probabilities of achieving business success. While it’s impossible to avoid making any mistakes in your business, some common mistakes can be preempted with a little forethought. Common mistakes startups tend to make are failing to choose the right payment processor for managing global payments, failing to secure their computer systems from hackers, and failing to develop a powerful sales team. Let’s take a closer look at each of these three potential blunders and what you can do to steer clear of them. Mistake #1: Choosing the wrong payment processor. Since your business will need to be able to process global online payments, it’s essential that you choose a payment processing service that provides your customer with a wide range of options for making payments. Besides the ability to offer online and mobile checkout options, your company will also benefit from using a service that offers support for manual orders, subscriptions, and invoicing. Mistake #2: Neglecting data protection. The first thing you should be aware of when securing your business data is identifying what to protect. Usually, these are paper and digital records related to employees, customers, trade secrets, proprietary information, financial transactions, and marketing plans. Next, identify all possible risks, as well as your tolerance for risks associated with your company’s services, information usage, and privacy needs. Besides protecting your hardware, software, and networks, you may also need to adopt physical security measures, like locking doors, issuing security badges, or developing a fire control system with sprinklers. Finally, you have to ensure that your employees are informed about what to do to keep business data safe. For instance, they should be made aware of common phishing techniques; taught how to use strong passwords; and trained in what procedures to follow to securely access confidential information. Mistake #3: Underestimating the value of a good sales strategy. A good sales strategy has three primary components: first, hiring the right people; second, emphasizing the need for consistent training; and third, equipping your sales team with the best sales software. 1. Hiring the right sales team:  When hiring salespeople, don’t look at how many years they’ve worked in sales, but at the kind of sales experience they have that would make them a good fit for your type of business. Also, look at their consistency in meeting sales goals, their passion for providing customer satisfaction, and their ability to build strong client relationships. 2 Providing ongoing sales training:  While initial sales training teaches basic skills like how to prioritize a work day or how to close a sale, ongoing training is more about providing your salespeople with the feedback and support they need to integrate the reality of their field experiences. It’s a way for them to share their slip-ups and learn better ways of handling a similar type of prospect or situation in the future. 3. Using the best sales software:  The use of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software makes it easy for your sales manager and your sales team to stay on top of every step of the sales process. CRM improves communication with customers through features like reporting, invoicing, and making payments. It automates all activities related to sales; captures leads and assigns them to the right sales person. And it helps keep track of customer purchase and payment history in order to establish a loyalty program. Stack the Odds in Your Favor Although highly talented people, especially those with technical knowledge and skills, can easily find a great job and earn a large salary, you may be one of those rare people who perform at peak capacity when you chart your own course and are open-minded enough to notice signs that your startup is starting to fail.  However, the race isn’t always run by the most ingenious and resourceful entrepreneurs, because a few overlooked hazards can derail your business, making it impossible to recover. Consequently, a little old-fashioned prudence can go a long way in making sure that your business has all the opportunities it needs to flourish.

5 Surefire Ways to Distinguish Yourself from Your Work Colleagues

5 Surefire Ways to Distinguish Yourself from Your Work Colleagues Most employees show up for work every day and only do the bare minimum. Only a rare few will go above and beyond what’s required. If you fall into the former category, you may be wondering what you can do to stand out from your co-workers and colleagues. Don’t be afraid to voice your suggestions. Most bosses would be happy to hear of ways that you can work more efficiently. As your best ideas get passed up the line, upper management will take notice of the person who made those great suggestions. If you’re able to anticipate problems, that’s even better, because you’ll prevent problems before they even happen. Speak up at company meetings. You don’t have to challenge everything that your boss says, but you can provide some feedback or simply participate. The point is to stand out and make yourself noticed. Since most of your colleagues will sit quietly, your contributions will make you seem like a leader. Do more than what you’re asked to do. Every employee has certain job requirements that they need to follow, but it’s always possible to do a little bit more. For example, if you primarily work in an office and don’t have a lot of contact with customers, you can still go out of your way to help someone if you happen to be in the same place at the same time. Odds are that people will talk about how helpful you are, which looks good in the eyes of upper management. Customers aren’t the only people who need help. You can help your co-workers whenever possible, too. You’ll become known as the go-to person at the office. People will come to rely on you and to see you as an expert. If something needs to be done at work, but your co-workers aren’t taking care of it, do it yourself. It’s always better to be proactive than to wait for your boss to ask you to do something. Participate in your job outside of your nine-to-five schedule. Most employees clock in and clock out at their scheduled times, then forget about work for the rest of the week. If there are committees, teams or other ways to get involved with your job outside of designated work times, sign up! You need to be alert and decisive whenever you can. Extras… Taking a good quality dietary supplement can help boost your performance at work, or you could do what an increasing number of high-flyers are doing and use Armodafinil to improve mindfulness and alertness. Another good option is Modalert, a wakefulness-promoting agent that helps you keep the focus and energy that you need throughout the day. And then there are the real fundamentals of your ability to perform day in, day out. The most simple building blocks of life. A healthy diet, regular exercise, and sleep. As much sleep as you can get. Put these three in place and build on them. Even just a few hours of sleep deprivation each night can lead to some unforeseen issues, which can actually have a serious detrimental effect on your overall health. So, take this basic stuff seriously if you want to get the rest right! Finally, if you have a complaint about your company, don’t voice it to anyone and everyone who will listen. Don’t complain to your co-workers or talk about the issue on social media. This will thwart any efforts you’re making to advance. If there’s a serious problem, speak with your supervisor.