Time for No

Can “No” be a Gift?

Many people have a difficult time saying ‘no’. Sometimes, this stems from a good place. You may tell your elderly neighbor you’ll help her with her garden because you don’t want to disappoint her. You might promise to help a colleague with her project because you know she’s having a hard time at home.

Other times, you avoid saying ‘no’ because you care about what people think. You’re afraid if you turn down that project that you’ll get passed over for a promotion. You worry that if you don’t do what everyone else is doing you’ll be thought of as weird. So you keep trying to contort and fit into a mold that wasn’t made for you.

But what if you stopped viewing ‘no’ as a bad thing? What if you began to look at ‘no’ as a word that can help you shape your life to reflect your values and dreams? What if ‘no’ is really a gift you can give yourself?

No Can Often Make You Happier

One of the best reasons to say no is simply because it makes you happier. How many times have you agreed to be on a committee or volunteered to tackle a big project only to regret it later? You wish you’d never said yes. You’re sorry that you didn’t let someone else step up and do these tasks. But now it’s too late and you feel bound to follow through on your promise.

The reason saying no makes you happier is because most people overestimate how much they can get done. This leads to overcrowding your schedule and feeling pressed for time constantly. Then you feel stressed out and guilty on top of everything else.

No Can Set You Free from Expectations

Another advantage of saying no is that it can help you let go of expectations. Ask yourself who you’d be if you didn’t worry about what other people thought. Would you pursue that degree you’ve always wanted? Would you take up a new hobby? Would you decide to spend the majority of your time traveling?

But sometimes, expectations don’t come from others. Sometimes, they can come from you. You might say, “I’ve always been like this.” Or you might tell yourself, “This is just who I am.”

What if you let go of those expectations? What if you chose to believe that you can change? You could say, “I’m rewriting the script today. I’ll try new things and discover new places.”

No Can Help You Honor Yourself

Few things are more upsetting than realizing you’ve failed to honor yourself. Perhaps you took on projects that weren’t a good fit for your gifts or you stayed in a relationship with a partner who didn’t honor you. Maybe you tried to squeeze inside a mold someone else created, even though it was painful. You fought hard to be who you thought you should be. That’s why no can be so powerful.

If you’re already in a situation that’s not helping you be your best self, look for ways to change your circumstances.

Maybe you need to take a break from a partner who’s controlling you. Maybe you have to walk away from a business opportunity that’s not right for you. Maybe it’s time for a serious conversation with a loved one who keeps sabotaging your success.

Don’t be afraid to say no to situations and people that don’t respect or cherish you. You deserve to be treated well. You deserve to be loved and appreciated for who you are, not who someone else wishes you to be.

Look at saying no as a good thing. It means you know what you want and you’re serious about growing into your best self.

What will you say NO to? How can I help support you?

Fran Watson

P.S. Leave extra space on your calendar this week so you can relax and simply be.

Covid Christmas

Covid Christmas 2020

What will your Christmas look like this year? Will you be able to get together with family? Will you be doing an online get together? Will you be sending cards and greetings via email and messenger, or perhaps Instagram or TikTok?

Got this in my email….. kind of says it all….LOL

Shut Down

Getting the news this week that our whole province is going to be shut down has certainly made me stop short. I worry about all the small businesses that will no longer be able to operate, who may have to shut down because this year has taken such a heavy financial toll on them. My youngest son and my daughter-in-law have suffered through this pandemic with their business.

I worry about those who have contracted Covid and are in the hospitals or recovering at home. I worry about my family members who are considered essential workers who will be still going out to work. I worry about my family members who are living in what is considered a “red” zone, where there are an abundance of Covid cases. I worry about my mother who is 100 and living in a nursing home. I thank God that she is safe and that my family members are currently all healthy. I continue to do my testing every two weeks in order to be able to visit my mom.

Family Get together

Our Christmas plans will be quite different this year. Normally our family gets together to celebrate. This year we will be having 3 smaller Christmas celebrations, and one of my children was unable to make it home to Canada this year due to the pandemic and travel restrictions.

We have added two new babies to our family since this picture (2018) and they will be unable to see their great Grandmother at Christmas due to Covid. We did have a chance to celebrate Mom’s 100th birthday in August, and for that we are thankful. We were able to visit two by two – kind of like Noah’s ark.

This year has brought many changes in our work lives, our personal lives and in the world around us. We have seen and done things we never imagined we would be doing, for example wearing masks everywhere we go. There are those who do not seem to care about others who choose to not follow the guidelines, and I worry about them too as well as those they come in contact with.

I truly hope that you can still find peace and joy in your Christmas activities this year, however you celebrate. And may you stay healthy and safe throughout the coming year!!!

Merry Christmas, wishing you a season filled with warm moments and cherished memories.

P.S. Still some time for Christmas baking – here is a gift from me. Memories3 – Christmas Baking new

Say Yes

Say YES!

Margaret was an elementary school teacher. She loved her students, but she didn’t find her job fulfilling any longer. As a teenager, she’d always dreamed of traveling around the world and writing novels on her laptop.

She wanted more freedom in her personal and professional life, but she worried. She was afraid of what would happen if she really did start chasing her dreams. She doubted she had the ability to make her dream a reality. She wondered what everyone around her would think if she quit her job and wrote instead.

Margaret was stuck in a rut, afraid to say “yes” to her best life. Maybe you can relate. You’ve spent years daydreaming about what you want your life to look like. Instead, you tuck your dream away quietly and get back to your ordinary world.

But before you do that, here are three simple reasons you should lean into your yes…

Reason #1: New Discoveries Are Waiting

Everything you love right now was once an unknown. Your favorite ice cream flavor, your favorite movie, your favorite makeup—all of these things were once unknown to you. But you didn’t let that stop you and tried them anyway.

When you say yes to new discoveries, you learn more about what you like and love. You took a chance and made a bold decision. This doesn’t mean you’ll love the results of every yes you go after. Sometimes, you’ll simply discover what you don’t like. That’s okay too.

Reason #2: Personal Growth Doesn’t Happen in Your Comfort Zone

For some people, saying ‘no’ is an automatic response. Is this you? Do you say ‘no’ to that new project even though you know it could lead to a promotion? Do you say ‘no’ to healthy foods even though you know it could lead to more energy?

Real personal growth never happens inside your comfort zone. If you really want to make a difference and change your life, then you have to be willing to do things you’ve never done before. You have to be willing to say yes even when the future feels scary and uncertain.

Reason #3: Learning New Things

Besides growing into your best self, saying yes helps you learn new things. You might say yes to the chance to host a party and discover you love being a hostess. You could say yes to a giving a presentation at work and find out you love public speaking.

What you learn won’t be just limited to your personality though. You’ll also learn more about your relationships, your finances, your health, and so many other areas of your life. Maybe a new dance class makes you realize how supportive your partner is. Maybe an unexpected road trip with an aging parent gives insight into how your mom grew up.

Saying yes can be the beginning of a beautiful new adventure. But don’t feel you have to start out by tackling something big like changing your job or moving to a different country. Instead, start with something small like taking a new class or reaching out to form new friendships. The more you say yes to little things the easier it will become to say yes to the big things.

What will you say yes to in the coming year? How can I help and support you?

Fran Watson

P.S. Here are 8 Personal Growth Strategies to Take Your Life to the Next Level

Be Careful What You Post Online

What are you posting online?

Can having a blog, a personal web site, or an account on a social networking site impact your job search, for better or for worse?

Yes, it could. With the growing popularity of sites such as Facebook, MySpace, LavaLife and other dating sites, just about anything that is online can be read by someone – or everyone. If you don’t want the world to read what you’ve posted, make sure they can’t. Don’t put it online, or if you do, post it anonymously without a picture.

Should prospective employers be reading your personal information? Maybe not, but if you put it on the internet and it’s readily accessible, they can and they might.

A study done by the NACE (National Association of Colleges and Employers) reveals that more than one in 10 employers responding to their Job Outlook survey reported plans to review profiles on social networking when considering candidates for jobs, and more than 60 percent of employers who review social networking sites indicated that the information could have at least some influence on their hiring decision.

At New York University, recruiters from about 30 companies told career counsellors that they were looking at the sites. They look to see if there is something about a potential employee’s lifestyle that they might find questionable or which goes against the core values of the corporation.

Companies such as Microsoft and others involved in the digital world say that researching employees through social networking sites was now fairly typical. Joe Spartz, of the Employers Association Inc. said that “It makes a great deal of sense for an employer to go ahead and get creative about the sources they are turning to to get that information.” The internet is an incredible vehicle by which employers are able to gather information.

People may never know when they have been passed up for an interview or a job offer because of something a recruiter saw on the internet.

If your profile contains information on your real identity, the people you least expect, and those that you certainly don’t want reading it, may find it. Not only your boss and prospective employers, but, also your customers, colleagues and coworkers.

Some years ago I found one of my clients online at a dating site and what I read there would have eliminated her for any of the positions she was looking for. I immediately reached out to her to suggest she remove the profile while she was job searching.

Remember…the more information put on social networking sites, the more tempting it is for recruiters and hiring managers to check out potential employees.

If you aren’t sure what an employer might see about you, try googling your name and see what comes up.

To your job search success

Fran Watson

Finding A Job in Today’s Economy

How to Find a Job in Today’s Tough Economy

“So, what will the world look like when the crisis ends? Much different than before, I expect. Months of sheltering in place will fundamentally change our lifestyles and will continue to influence the way we live and do business, long after the coronavirus is history. Here are some of the changes I expect.”

More work from home

“In the space of a few weeks, we’ve discovered that jobs no one thought could be done remotely can be handled very effectively with a laptop computer and video conferencing. I spoke the other day with a senior executive in the insurance industry who told me his entire office is now working from home and that, so far, it is proving to be effective.

There are many reasons why this trend might continue post-crisis.

It would reduce costs for cash-strapped businesses through the reduction or elimination of office space and its attendant costs. Teleconferencing will reduce the need for business travel, another cost saver. Commuting costs would be cut – a walk to the home office beats hours in a car or on public transit.

Of course, not everyone can work from home.

Construction workers will still be needed on job sites. Staff will be required in grocery stores and pharmacies. Delivery service drivers have become essential to our new lifestyle. We’ll still need police firemen, pilots, and others to report to work. But many white-collar jobs that are now being done from home will remain there when the crisis passes.” https://www.everythingzoomer.com/money/2020/04/20/what-will-life-and-business-look-like-after-the-covid-19-crisis/

“What the average workplace will look like in a post-COVID-19 world will be very different than before workers left, experts say.

As provinces roll out their plans for reopening businesses, companies are already starting to consider how best to operate while taking into account the dangers posed by the novel coronavirus and the importance of keeping workers safe.

For companies with thousands of employees occupying open-concept office spaces, this means rethinking current work landscapes, productivity models, employee schedules and even how to use the elevator. ” https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/what-a-post-covid-19-workplace-could-look-like-1.4928118

The pandemic has forced the adoption of new ways of working. Organizations must reimagine their work and the role of offices in creating safe, productive, and enjoyable jobs and lives for employees. It’s no secret that the job market is tough right now. Long-standing jobs are being eliminated, and once rock-solid companies are losing business and even going out of business! The situation is not optimal, to say the least. Men and women everywhere are wondering how to find a job – even people who still have a job are considering their options, just in case the worst happens.

You need to create a job hunting strategy that will prove effective.

Put the following tips into play when you’re developing your job hunting plan. And remember that in a situation like this, you have to pull out all of the stops – now is not the time to be shy.

Call everyone you know and let them know that you’re on a job search. You should call former employers, assuming you left them on good terms, friends, family members, people you know from clubs and organizations – even your neighbors. Ask them if they know of openings, and if they would be willing to share your name and resume with people they know who are searching for great employees like you.

Use social networking to help you find a job. When it comes to the question of how to find a job, social networking is often one of the best answers. You can reach out to people you know on Linked-In. Check out where your old classmates are working. See who you know at the company you would like to work for. The number of websites that are available for making friends, sharing information, and finding out about job opportunities is huge. Take advantage of this new technology!
Make job hunting your full time job. It’s easy to get into the groove of getting out of bed a little later and spending more time relaxing when you’re unemployed. But if you want a job, you need to put a good amount of time and energy into finding one. You can use the time to brush up on your skills or take a course as the skills that will be needed post-COVID may be a little different.
Make use of the newspaper employment section and Internet employment sites as well. The newspaper will give you a listing of what is available. Internet employment sites will give you listings and also allow you to post your own resume for potential employers to see. Look at the ads carefully to see exactly what the employers are looking for and compare their needs with your skills. If you see some gaps, this is where you can look at filling in those gaps while you are not working.
If you attended college, contact your alumni association or the career counseling department of your alma mater. They often have access to job search resources that alumni can use. Your local community college or university may offer similar services to the general public.
When able, go to job fairs, trade shows and seminars that are related to your field. You can make important contacts with potential employers this way.
Update your resume and make sure that it has all the necessary information, is formatted attractively and that the spelling and grammar is perfect. Ensure that you are highlighting the skills match between your skills and their needs.
Think outside the box. Are the skills you have translatable to another type of work? Would a bit of extra training give you a leg up in the job market? Are you ready for a new career (meaning that maybe it’s time to get some more education and make a major change)? Is it time to talk with a career counsellor to determine if now is the time for you to make a change?

“During the pandemic, many people have been surprised by how quickly and effectively technologies for videoconferencing and other forms of digital collaboration were adopted. For many, the results have been better than imagined.

According to McKinsey research, 80 percent of people questioned report that they enjoy working from home. Forty-one percent say that they are more productive than they had been before and 28 percent that they are as productive. Many employees liberated from long commutes and travel have found more productive ways to spend that time, enjoyed greater flexibility in balancing their personal and professional lives, and decided that they prefer to work from home rather than the office. Many organizations think they can access new pools of talent with fewer locational constraints, adopt innovative processes to boost productivity, create an even stronger culture, and significantly reduce real-estate costs. These same organizations are looking ahead to the reopening and its challenges.” https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/reimagining-the-office-and-work-life-after-covid-19#

If you’re working on solving the problem of how to find a job, remember that there are still jobs available – just not as many as you’d like. Don’t be discouraged. Just keep in mind that finding a job in today’s economy requires you to really put forth a strong and concerted effort. You’re going to have to make finding a job your present job!

“Leading organizations will boldly question long-held assumptions about how work should be done and the role of the office. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. The answer, different for every organization, will be based on what talent is needed, which roles are most important, how much collaboration is necessary for excellence, and where offices are located today, among other factors. Even within an organization, the answer could look different across geographies, businesses, and functions, so the exercise of determining what will be needed in the future must be a team sport across real estate, human resources, technology, and the business. Tough choices will come up and a leader must be empowered to drive the effort across individual functions and businesses. ” https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/reimagining-the-office-and-work-life-after-covid-19#

COVID-19 has challenged business leaders to do three things at once: stage the return to work, understand and leverage the advancements they enacted during the crisis, and chart a new path forward.

New possibilities arising from the COVID-19 crisis …

To your job search success

Fran Watson

Over 50? Online Business Ideas

Are you over 50, retired or soon going to be?

Jim Daniels recently became a “Senior”. He became a little more serious about looking into some of the things that seniors have to deal with. I have excerpted some comments from 3 or 4 of his blog posts and recommend that you check out each of them. Links are included.

“More retirees are choosing to supplement their retirement incomes with an online business rather than enduring the astronomical costs of an offline business. The cost is low and they can set their own hours and be their own boss.

Unlike a traditional offline business, the requirements of an online business are as simple as having an idea and developing a blog and website.

All you need are a computer and an Internet connection and some knowledge of both and you’re ready to go.

There are so many types of online business which utilize the skills and experiences that seniors likely have that it can be fairly easy to find a niche that will be profitable and even fun and rewarding.”

And it’s cheap! Read More https://bizweb2000.com/over50/

Will your pension be enough?

Many of us think that our pensions will be enough to carry us through, but then we find out that they have not kept up with the cost of living. When I semi-retired 10 years ago, my pensions were enough to cover the cost of my mortgage, but not much more. I still had to pay for hydro, gas, car maintenance, food, etc. I found that I had to find another source of income. Here’s what Jim had to say:

“Senior entrepreneurs often begin their online journey out of necessity. Perhaps they involuntarily lost their jobs through no fault of their own or had to retire on a savings that’s totally inadequate for today’s cost of living.

It’s easy for seniors to get into a negative mindset that prevents them from keeping up with the world, getting things done and enjoying life to the fullest. They may think they’re too tired, too old or just don’t have the skills necessary to embrace a can do mindset.

Retirement sometimes makes couch potatoes of seniors who can still make a difference, but are afraid to try. It’s true this is a fast-changing world and new skills are necessary to do almost anything – for the young or the old.

Most seniors today find it difficult to make ends meet – even after a lifetime of saving money. Pinching pennies wasn’t what they had in mind for their retirement years, yet it’s the way most seniors live.

There are plenty of senior entrepreneurs who have been enormously successful with startup businesses. At the very least, seniors can easily supplement their retirement income and live a better lifestyle than before the Internet made it possible to become successful with home-based businesses.

It’s a fact that age isn’t a factor in Internet startup businesses. If you have the passion and can make a commitment to learn and utilize all that computers and the Internet has to offer, you can profit during financially tough times.”

Have you found that you are being discriminated against because you are over 50?

“Here are six reasons why online trumps offline for seniors who want to keep earning…

The Internet doesn’t discriminate against age as some offline employers do. You can even use a pen name for your websites and other communication if you don’t want to put your real information out there.

You can work in any niche that appeals to you or that you may have developed skills in from another job. This can also appeal to other marketers who may use you as a freelancer to gather information about the niche.

People are purchasing more products online than offline. It’s a convenient way to shop and your advertising will reach far more of the global population than typical paper and media advertisements that you pay a premium for.

Social media sites can be an awesome tool to drive traffic to your website. I’m no social bee, but it works for me, just check out my Facebook experiments and Twitter experiments to see how I automate my social media. It certainly beats setting up a booth at a trade-show and hoping that buyers will stop by and make the long day a profitable one.

It’s easier to monitor your online marketing efforts versus offline methods. And you can change your ads or methods of getting your product known immediately and without great costs involved.

The use of email marketing to your online customers is also a better and more profitable way to market rather than flyers or other means of offline communication – and emails don’t cost more than a monthly fee in some cases.”

While you are reading those articles on bizweb, be sure to check out this one as well: Are These The 5 Easiest Ways To Make Money Online? Read More https://bizweb2000.com/5-money-methods/

I’ve been following Jim for a number of years now and he always has great information to share. I was very interested in these particular posts since I am a senior and I am working online. You can out more about Jim and his journey here: https://bizweb2000.com/contact-us/

Seniors Rock!!

To your online success

Fran Watson

Post Pandemic Preparation

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” This opening line from Charles Dicken’s A Tale of Two Cities captures the contradictory times we live in. It also describes how organisations may react to the coronavirus pandemic in very different ways.

Take fictional Company A. When the pandemic occurred, fear permeated its top echelons. For years, its leadership had bought back shares to improve its financial metrics and warrant fat bonuses for executives. This reduced its financial leeway, prompting the CEO and the CFO to go on a major cost-cutting spree, including the cancellation of all training and development activities. They also used the turbulent economic environment as an excuse to lay off many employees they didn’t like, without any explanation. In light of these actions, a doomsday atmosphere prevailed.

At fictional Company B, senior executives reacted very differently. Granted, with the lessons learned from the last recession, they had created strong financial reserves, which enabled them not to lay off anyone. Instead, they eliminated overtime hours, put in place sabbatical programmes and made use of government support schemes. They instituted a salary freeze and downsized their own remuneration. Knowing that recessions offered exceptional opportunities to pick up high-quality talent, they kept their eyes open. They would not fall into the trap of having a shortage of people with key skills. Although it would have been easy to cut training, top management decided to keep key elements of it to better prepare its workforce for the future.

Which company will be in better shape when the economy turns a corner?”

excerpted from: Seven Ways Leaders Can Prepare for Post-Pandemic Times

by Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries, INSEAD Distinguished Clinical Professor of Leadership Development and Organisational Change | June 8, 2020

This was an excellent read. Company A made me think about some of the privately owned nursing homes and how they treated their employees and how many of their people got the COVID virus and died. Thankfully the nursing home where my mom resides were more like Company B.

Fran

Job Search Strategy

Developing A Strategy for your Job Search

Developing a Strategy

To keep moving forward with your job search, you need to have a strategy. You don’t need to have made any final decisions – you may still be working on several possibilities. As you review your various job prospects, you should:

Identify any gaps or discrepancies in your knowledge and experiences
Explore what you can do about these – volunteer, take courses, find a mentor
Identify a range of possible routes to your goals – part-time, full-time schooling
Investigate ‘stepping stones’ for each route

Your Action Plan

Whatever your goals, whatever stage you are at in the decision making process, you are most likely to make progress if you break down the tasks you have to do into small steps and then identify the actions you need to take for each step.

Many action plans fail because the tasks appear too difficult. You may have several goals – but you need to break each down into a list of tasks. Set a timescale for each action – but be realistic – do not expect the impossible.

Firstly identify clear and specific goals – these could vary from ‘find a job as an editor in Publishing’ to ‘explore the training courses for secondary teaching in Scotland’ or even ‘revisit my responses in my “Prospects Planner” to narrow down my options’.

For each goal determine:

What actions you will take
How you will take action
Who or what will help you
Why you might not take action
When you will take action

To your successful job search

Fran Watson

P.S. PM me for an Action Plan Checklist

Communication Skills

How Well Do You Communicate?

Successful communication is critical in business.

Employability skills is an umbrella term for a set of highly desirable, transferable skills that turn you into a very attractive candidate or employee. They can be defined as a set of skills employers want from a potential employee.

According to Randall S. Hansen, Ph.D., and Katharine Hansen, Ph.D., Every employer is looking for a specific set of skills from job-seekers that match the skills necessary to perform a particular job.

But beyond these job-specific technical skills, there are other skills that are nearly universally sought by employers. The good news is that most job-seekers possess these skills to some extent. The better news is that job-seekers with weaknesses in these areas can improve their skills through training, professional development, or obtaining coaching/mentoring from someone who understands these skills.

So, what are some of these critical employability skills that employers demand of job-seekers?

Communications Skills (listening, verbal, written).

By far, the one skill mentioned most often by employers is the ability to listen, write, and speak effectively. There’s more to communication than saying things so that people understand what you say. To be called a good communicator, you need to:

listen to understand what the other person is telling you
empathize with them in order to build rapport
draw logical conclusions from listening to what they said
adapt your language to your audience
act on the information you gather in a constructive manner

Analytical/Research Skills.

Deals with your ability to assess a situation, seek multiple perspectives, gather more information if necessary, and identify key issues that need to be addressed. Employers look for people who can: find the right information in any medium, organize it in a meaningful way, analyze it and draw conclusions and then communicate it to others.

Interpersonal Abilities.

The ability to relate to your co-workers, inspire others to participate, and mitigate conflict with co-workers is essential given the amount of time spent at work each day. These skills include: Professionalism, Confidence, Creativity, Drive, Enthusiasm, and Transparency

Leadership/Management Skills.

While there is some debate about whether leadership is something people are born with, these skills deal with your ability to take charge and manage your co-workers. Key leadership skills include: Being self-motivated and focused, Effective use of mental capacity, physical space, and resources, Managing tasks and people, Prioritizing and Delegating

Teamwork.

Because so many jobs involve working in one or more work-groups, you must have the ability to work with others in a professional manner while attempting to achieve a common goal. Teamwork skills may involve time management skills such as: Planning the use of available resources (time, effort, people, money, etc.), Establishing a task or project time frame, Setting schedules and milestones

Many of these skills can be developed through participation in a group or club such as Toastmasters. Many people have an unrealistic idea of what Toastmasters is all about. It is not about giving speeches, it is about developing your communication skills – listening, sharing, evaluating and more.

Find out more by going to www.toastmasters.org to find a club near you, then drop in for a visit. You may be surprised by what you find. Check it out. You may find it very helpful in your working life.

To your success in communicating your ideas and strengths to others.

Fran Watson

Above excerpted from https://www.quintcareers.com/job-skills-values/

and from https://zety.com/blog/employability-skills

What Industry Are You Interested In?

Job Searching? What do you know about the industry you are looking into?

What do I know already?

Have you ever had a part–time job, volunteered to help an organization or been a member of a club or society inside or outside of university? If so then you will have a useful starting point from which you can reflect on your experience(s) so far. As you think of an organization/company/club/society you have been involved with in a paid or voluntary capacity, ask yourself the following questions.

What products or services does this organization provide?
Who are these products/services targeted at?
How does this range of products, or level of service, compare with that provided by other similar organisations?
How is this organization structured?
How does this organization see itself? What is its ethos/culture? (eg industry leader; work hard/ play hard approach; democratic style, family friendly policies.)
What are they key issues facing this organization and other organizations in this sector?
How is this organization affected by external factors (eg the state of the economy and the current political context?)
What have you discovered about the career opportunities offered by this organization?
Why would I like to work there?

Finding answers to questions like these helps you to develop your career awareness. You can often find more information by checking out the organization’s website. Also consider asking questions of people working for any organization you are interested in working for.

Review various company websites to see what the similarities and differences are in the companies before you submit your resume.

To your job search success.

Fran Watson

P.S. If you would like help with your resume, cover letter or interview tips, contact me.