5 Business Networking Models (That Can Work for You) Building Your Future Now

5 Business Networking Models (That Can Work for You) Building Your Future Now Developing your own networking event can be an rewarding experience. If you put in the time and effort the right people will come. There are many models that you can tryhere are 5 you can apply: 1. Pure Networking Putting together this type of networking event goes straight to the meat! Professionals meeting other professionals without anything else getting in the way. 2. Panel Discussion Adding this component gives your event some depth. Getting experts and professionals discuss their experiences is an amazing way to add a different aspect to your networking event. 3. Featured Guest Speaker Getting one featured guest speaker can pull a lot of people inthis expert or specialist can attract a certain crowd. 4. Workshop Workshops are interaction and provide professionals with an opportunity to learn and engage. Find out what prospective guests want to learngives you a better idea what to focus on! 5. Combination Event You can choose a combination of the above event ideas in order to really make your mark. Have some fun and explore what works and doesnt. Running a successful networking event isnt an over-night thing. It takes time to perfect an event that people will continually come out to. Image: RawPixel

7 Things Interviewers Must NOT Say During an Interview

7 Things Interviewers Must NOT Say During an Interview Are you currently interviewing candidates for the first time? Maybe youre worried about how to phrase a particular question without overstepping the mark or perhaps you simply want to make sure that your companys interview questions arent too imposing? Whether you are interviewing for the first time or would like a point of reference make sure you avoid any awkwardness by staying clear of the following topics: 1. I was looking at your Facebook profile  and I noticed that Its no secret that many potential employers will research the interviewing candidate on social media and/or give them a quick google ahead of the interview and this is fine! However, steer clear of mentioning your findings or personal opinion about a candidate based on their social media presence. Not only is this a subjective opinion that you are forming its highly unlikely what they got up to last Saturday night has any  correlation to  their ability to perform the required tasks for the role which they applied for! 2. Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend? Aside from being  completely unrelated and weird, this is an intrusive question and it can make candidates feel very uncomfortable! If you would like to make general conversation stay clear of anything that could be misinterpreted by the candidate interviewing and opt for safer questions about the weather or why not their plans for the rest of the day. 3. How would you  manage in a team full of guys/girls? Whilst its obviously important to ensure that any potential hire will fit well into the current team dynamic make sure you avoid questions which highlight a candidates gender or personal characteristics. The fact that the candidate is female/male in a predominantly gender biased office doesnt impede their ability to do the job. Moreover, if you ask this question and the candidate doesnt get the job you are at risk of the candidate thinking that you made a sexist decision. 4. How much do you want to earn? As a candidate, having been asked this question during interview I cant help but feel like this is a ridiculous question! When asked, in my head I picture myself in my imaginary penthouse on the beach of course, everyone wants to earn as much as possible. Instead, based on the answers given by a candidate  during the interview process you should be able to gauge how much the company can justify allocating towards the salary for this candidate against the general market. 5. I’m interviewing another X people this week  for the same  job; why  should I hire you? Aside from the fact that youre asking a candidate to compare themselves to people which they know nothing about its a very awkwardly phrased question which could easily rub  a candidate up the wrong way. Instead, ask them (based on your conversation/their communication about the responsibilities  of the job role) how their experience and personal traits could add value to the organisation. From this answer, you can personally make comparisons between the answers which they give and the answers given by other candidates throughout the process. 6. Do you have any problems going out drinking with the office on Fridays? Whether office drinks are part of your work culture or not it shouldnt matter whether someone likes to go out for a drink on a Friday as it has no bearing on their ability to do the job they are interviewing for. Ensuring that there is a good, diverse team will mean that your workforce will have mixed interests and skill sets but these should complement each other. The easiest way to  compare this to real life is to think of your office team as a football team whilst it would be great to have a Lionel Messi, if you had 11 Lionels and no defensive players / goalkeeper your team would have a fundamental  defence problem! Instead of directly asking a candidate about work drinks, make sure that during the interview you highlight the company culture and any other (non-drink related) perks/incentives. 7. Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years? This is why this question is ineffective how many people can truly say that they are in exactly the position/role/walk of life which they envisaged this long ago? Its highly unlikely that you are going to be able to  effectively estimate economic change and the impact that this will have on the need to evolve in the industry. All the candidate is going to be able to answer in a roundabout way is that they want to be as successful as possible or theyll throw a textbook high-flying job title at you. Youd hope that youd be able to gauge from the previous  answers given throughout the process whether this candidate has a genuine drive to do well. Instead ask them an open question about their career goals and how they think that this role would help them to reach those goals. Whether a candidate is successful or not you want them to enjoy the experience and leave the interview process feeling like your company is one that they would like to work for, whether thats now or in the future. Bad interview practice doesnt bode well for a companys reputation, especially with online review sites  like  Glassdoor at the candidates fingertips in an age where the importance of a companys online brand is only ever increasing!  Make sure you represent your brand in the best possible way by conducting a professional interview, stay away from personal questions and couple it with detailed constructive interview feedback and timely responses.

2 Trends in Business and Entrepreneurship for 2017 - Classy Career Girl

2 Trends in Business and Entrepreneurship for 2017 There are two trends you need to know about right now.   2 Trends in Business and Entrepreneurship for 2017 The first trend is the global impact that you and your business can make. Your business can have clients around the world and reach and help millions of people. Today as an entrepreneur there are no barriers. You don’t have to have thousands of dollars to spend on advertising. You can start with $5 and reach your target market with one click online. I live in San Diego but my very first sale came from someone in the United Kingdom.       The second trend is that women desire and can have more freedom than ever before. The US is the only country to not offer paid maternity leave and this makes things difficult right now if you are a mother or are thinking of becoming one, right? If you are like me, you want to build your career on your own terms with the freedom and lifestyle you desire. We want freedom to be creative and to collaborate and make a difference on the projects we are so passionate about. Whether that is at 7pm at night after the kids are in bed or early morning before they wake up.     What do you think of these trends in business?   Freedom is Real Freedom is real and it’s a big change in the online space because you can work from your laptop anywhere you want. Ive worked from Brazil, a car, an airplane, a closet, a laundry room and even in a coffee shop from Australia with a 6 month-old on my lap. When Corporate Rescue Plan launched, I recorded the launch video in a koala sanctuary in Australia while holding my daughter. If that’s not life on my own terms, I don’t know what is.     And you can make small steps on the side of your day job like I did. I worked as a Corporate Consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton for 8 years. I know how little time I had to build my dream. But guess what, I had 15 minutes here and there and I used that time to grow my little business into the internationally recognized e-learning platform that it is today. [RELATED: 13 Time Management Habits of Successful Women] You are not too young or too old to start a business. Your company doesn’t have to know you have clients during the nights or weekends. You can start a business with an alias and not your real name. Why do you think my business grew under the brand of Classy Career Girl. I was completely anonymous when I started until my boss came to work one day and told me she spotted me in People Stylewatch magazine. Oops!   Here is what is possible: You can make as much or more as your income right now and you can build it up so that when you do make the leap, you aren’t stressed wondering how you will pay your bills.     You can make more money building your own business and be in charge of your own raises. You can start building your own goals instead of working on someone else’s goals every day when you go to your day job. You don’t have to wait for your boss’s approval to make a change.   You don’t need a ton of money to get started and you have these two trends of global impact and freedom opening up the opportunities for you. Now I’m sure you’ll agree, trying to start a successful business that matches your purpose and makes a difference, isn’t always as simple as people sometimes make it seem.       The Bad News Here’s the thing.  Entrepreneurship is HARD, right? And it’s so easy to get distracted by the pretty photos on Facebook where it looks like entrepreneurs fly to Paris last minute, drink champagne in Italy and live a luxurious laptop lifestyle from the beach. They make it look so easy so why is it so hard for us!     I am often hustling in my bedroom in a messy house with my daughter running around and dishes piled in the sink. So, I decided to create a movement around the REAL experiences of starting a business. The truth is, entrepreneurship comes with a lot of challenges.     You probably have heard that if you go the entrepreneur route you will you never find benefits or live without the security of a paycheck and how the heck will you have enough money to support your family.   I get it. My husband and I quit our jobs within three months of each other and we had a 6-month-old daughter. We had to make the leap and figure all this stuff out too. Then, of course, the fears of what will people think! Some family members were not in support of both of us quitting our jobs. They said, How can you do this. What if the internet breaks! One of my regrets is that I didn’t have a solid business plan that I could show him when I quit. I mean it was in my head and I knew I was going to succeed, but a business plan to show him would have been helpful which is what I’ll teach you in this free video series that starts December 29th.   The Freedom Workshop So what are your first steps to creating your plan. Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. In the first video, I’m going to share a system to help you figure out if your business idea will be profitable. This “Build a Profitable Business” Assessment I developed after years of trial and error, throughout business school and while launching hundreds of products and services myself as well as over the last seven years using it with my clients. This system will serve as a tremendous resource for you to eliminate your fear of failure and wasted time so that you can sell the RIGHT products and services successfully. Because let’s face it, us entrepreneurs have a ton of ideas and we always have bright shiny object syndrome, right?     Who is it for? Maybe you’re just thinking about becoming your own boss or maybe you’re already a business owner but you want to increase your profits or utilize more online marketing tools to expand your reach and income. Either way, you’re in the right place because after video #1 you’ll know if you have a profitable business idea or not and what steps to take next.       Plus, later on  in my  free training series, I am going to walk you through the things you need to know to build a successful business with limited time. And do it in a way that doesn’t create overwhelm and stress you out.   And, most importantly, it gives you the lifestyle you want.   Regardless of if you are just starting out or you already have a business but it just isn’t getting the growth that you want it to have and you know you need a change. This training series will set you up for tremendous success. In the final video I’m going to demystify the process of starting a business which is going to save you a lot of time, a lot of money and a lot of frustration.   Why I Created the Freedom Workshop I developed this framework for building a business on the side of your day job because I saw so many women who wanted to be their own boss, work from home and turn their passion into a paycheck. They had so much talent and skill and I knew they could help millions of women with their businesses, I could envision it, but they were getting completely sidetracked and scared so they just did nothing and stayed in their jobs.   For example, I saw women who wanted to start a business who were treating it more like a fun hobby, they were trying to grow their social media accounts and get a bunch of followers online before they knew who their ideal clients were, what those clients actually wanted and what they were even going to sell. Not only that but they didn’t know what business they should even start. The worst part was that they didn’t believe in themselves and their business idea and were scared to put themselves out there. They got a few clients here and there but nothing that could ever support them full-time.       Then I saw women who already had businesses trying to get more steady streams of cash on a monthly basis struggling because they didn’t have a profitable business model in place and they were scared to make a change even though their business didnt fit their passions and desires anymore. And not only that it’s stressful when you run a business that sucks up all your time. These women started a business to have more time with their families but now had to run the business so they had little time with their families.       I could go on, but I knew that people needed clarity because in full transparency, that  was my story too.  Sign-up now (its FREE!)

5 Professionals to Hire to Grow Your Business - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

5 Professionals to Hire to Grow Your Business - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career When your business is just getting off the ground, it’s often just you and your partners burning both the midnight oil and the candle at both ends. Once you’re going somewhere, it can be a great learning experience to handle all components of business operations â€" but eventually, you’re going to need help. As your startup gets bigger and you start to bring on team members, it’s important to think about not only the kind of person you’re hiring, but also the role they’ll play in your growing business. You may think that with increasing interest in your product or service, you’ll need to hire more and more salespeople, but salespeople don’t grow businesses alone. You’ll need a support system built on highly specialized expertise that you may only get through hiring outside professionals. Here are five people with the skills you need to help you grow your business: PR/Marketing The time comes when you can’t rely on word of mouth alone to market your business. You also can’t depend on the banner ads or email blasts you’ve been doing yourself, on top of everything else you have to do. You’ll likely need marketing help, especially if you’re a consumer-facing company trying to grow your brand. A marketing professional will not only have the skills to carry out your marketing plan, but they will also have the know-how to develop a marketing strategy that looks at the long term. Depending on what your business does, it may be helpful to hire a press or public relations professional. Companies looking to increase their standing in their industries or expose themselves to new potential partners and clients will likely want to get their name out to news outlets, trade publications and conferences â€" all of which are in a PR rep’s rolodex. Finding a marketing professional specific to your industry will increase your exposure immensely, and they’ll be able to find you opportunities in places you never thought to look. Payroll/Human Resources When it was just one or two of you, handling payroll and any other human resources tasks was likely no big deal. However, as your business grows, so will the responsibility when it comes to background checks, tax forms, payroll and benefits. Take all of that off your plate, and avoid a mutiny over late paychecks, by hiring someone to do HR or payroll for you. These days, you can outsource human resources and payroll easily â€" saving you time and worry about employee procedures being done right, like employee onboarding, benefits, taxes and payroll. Maintenance Sure, you can break out the vacuum cleaner or the disinfecting spray every once in awhile, and you may even be pretty handy with a screwdriver. When it comes to the big aspects of your business, however, you probably shouldn’t be handling maintenance yourself. Especially for retailers or other businesses with storefronts, maintaining them can be a big job. Hire an outside company to do any big work on the outside of your building. Things like brick cleaning, concrete restoration, and window repair should be left to the professionals. IT/ Tech Professionals Being computer literate these days is a necessity, and the majority of startups wouldn’t even exist without a bit of computer knowledge. However, your small business will inevitably reach the point where even a tech savvy entrepreneur can’t solve a tech issue. That’s when you bring in the IT professionals. When your team starts to grow, it’s important to have someone there to install new computers, set up the team’s emails and manage the centralization of certain information and data. They’ll have the skills to keep your tech up and running â€" so you don’t have to waste time hitting CTRL + ALT + DEL and crossing your fingers that it works. CPA/Financial Accountant Sometimes hiring an accountant goes along with hiring a human resources professional, but it doesn’t always. Small businesses and solo entrepreneurs can usually get away with using simplified versions of the accounting process in certain software systems. Once your business does start to increase in size, though, your billing gets more expansive, and the books aren’t so easy to do yourself. As the owner of your startup or small business, you need to hire an accountant you trust and who will make sure you need to be involved in as little of the day-to-day invoicing and bookkeeping as possible. Good accountants don’t come cheap, but the time you’ll save yourself, along with their know-how, is worth it. We all want to be a Jack-of-All-Trades, especially when it comes to a small business or startup that’s close to our hearts. Even the best of us, however, eventually reach the tipping point between ‘Jack-of-All-Trades’ and ‘Master-of-None.’ When we do, it’s time to call in these rock-star specialists to help.

5 Career Lessons I Learnt as a Copier Salesman

5 Career Lessons I Learnt as a Copier Salesman After working for the same company for 5 years- I reached a point in 2011 , where I was not feeling challenged anymore, with the recent changes in Top Management â€" the future looked bleak. I had a decision to make â€" I could either continue where I am -feeling bored,unchallenged unmotivated or Take on a new challenge.In the Fall of 2011, I was approached by Canon Canada for a new opportunity for the role of selling copiers in a given territory. I went through the interview process, and I accepted the job offer.A part of me felt that I was making a big mistake. I heard a voice saying “Why would you want to leave a job where you have established yourself for 5 years and start from scratch again?”.evalI thought to myself â€" I needed a new challenge, needed to learn new skills, expand my horizons. And after a tug-of-war between two parts of my brain ; I decided to take the job.I did not get a lot of support from my company In all our weekly sales meetings our Sales Manager Remo repeated the same mantra “This business is simple, all you need to do is to manage your activity â€" put in the effort, do the work and the results will come”.If you are in Sales, I am sure you have heard about this mantra “It is a numbers game”. I believe that mantra applies to anything in life. Quantity always precedes quality. Do more of anything, and overtime your skills will improve, and so will your results. I was listening to an audio program once and I learnt a valuable lesson. Success is directly related to your level of Skill, and your skill is directly related to your level of Action.Action â€"â€" Skill â€"- SuccessIn order to get massive success, you need to increase your skill level quicker , and this can be done by taking Massive Action.Massive Action â€"â€" High-level of Skills â€"â€" Massive Success.evalI embraced the above idea, I decided to go all in â€" Embrace Action to the Fullest â€" working longer hours,working during lunch hour and over the next few months I became very competent eventually very successful at that job.3. Simplicity is KingOur Manager also repeated “This is very simple, all you need to do is to knock on 35 doors a day, hand them your business card and you will get customers calling you when there is a need” “But if you don’t take that simple action,no one will call you and won’t sell anything”.Initially I thought to myself, it can’t be that simple “What about the 13 steps Sales Process and the 103 Closing Techniques?”.I realized that none of the techniques mattered as long as I focused on the fundamentals. Success in any endeavor is simple 5. People do business with peopleCanon has a reputation for making top-notch products â€" lenses,cameras,copiers,etc. And every year they win numerous awards. But that does not always mean people are flocking to buy the products.This is the same with every organization â€" if all that mattered was the best product, then there would not be salespeople, marke ters, customer service reps, quality assurance team,etc. This is something I learnt â€" it is up to us â€" salespeople, marketers, professionals to make sure our potential customers benefit from our products. And it is our job to reach out to them,educate them and persuade them to use our products. Even though we live in a hyper-connected world â€" people still make the products, people sell the products , people buy the products and people use the products. Working for Canon , and selling copiers was definitely a fruitful experience for me. In one year, I learnt more street-smart business skills than from 4 years in school. I have been able to create a strong foundation in Sales Career as a result.Companies like Xerox, Canon still continue to provide the best training programs and have been able to shape the careers of numerous individuals. In fact the Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks started off selling copiers at Xerox. Similarly Bill McDermott , the CEO of SAP also started off selling copiers at Xerox.evalIf you are a new graduate and you are considering a career in sales or in the business world â€" I recommend starting out selling Copiers. The skills you will learn, will forge a strong foundation in your future career. “If you can learn to sell copiers you can sell anything”.

How To Retrain And Get The Career Of Your Dreams! - CareerAlley

How To Retrain And Get The Career Of Your Dreams! - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. Do you feel dissatisfied with your choice of career? Many of us do and feel trapped in the career we fell into straight after leaving school. Students are often channelled into careers which reflect their skill levels or into a career which is perceived as being a good profession rather than what they enjoy. It is fairly common these days for people to make radical career changes in order to feel fulfilled in their work life. Lets face it you spend a lot of time working and it would be so much better if you got enjoyment and satisfaction from your choice. If the prospect of changing careers seems a little daunting, read on for inspiration. image source In previous years your only option for retraining was to leave your current job in order to go to college or embark on an evening class, thankfully there are now more options available. The advent of the internet has allowed distance learning to become a possibility by learning using online resources and Skype. This option allows for flexibility and it may be possible to retrain whilst keeping your current position. There are also now more funding options available, making financing your training easier. Often its deciding on which career pathway to take which can be the problem. Do lots of research to find out whats out there, the results may surprise you. Which careers are you drawn to? Try to make the process of choosing a direction a little more methodical than plucking ideas from thin air! Start by writing down all the skills you already possess, try to look at personal skills as well as qualifications. Then write down what you enjoy and areas of interest which you would like to develop. Once you view these in black and white you may be able to create your ideal career. If you are struggling it would be a good idea to meet with a careers advisor who are experts in this area. They will be able to analyse your skills, likes and dislikes in order to identify possible careers which would suit you as an individual. Let's face it you spend a lot of time working and it would be so much better if you got enjoyment and satisfaction from your choice. If the prospect of changing careers seems a little daunting Tweet This Which careers are in demand? There are certain careers and skills which are in short supply across the country and internationally. If you are taking the time to invest time and money in order to retrain it would be wise to choose an area where there is a skills shortage. Skills shortages change on a year to year basis, but there certain careers which have been mainstay for quite a few years. Beauty technicians are in short supply especially if trained to a high standard in order to administer the latest techniques. You could consider investing inaccredited Botox training, which would enable you to become fully qualified in Botox and dermal fillers. Other career pathways in demand are building trades, computer programmers, software developers, nurses and personal trainers. Research is key to find a potentially lucrative career as well as one which ticks all the boxes in regards to job satisfaction. Training options image source Once you have discovered which career pathway you would like to pursue its time to look at how you will become qualified in order to be employable and skilled. Look at all options available to you and research them carefully. If you are choosing a career with a high level of practical elements such as hairdressing or building, it would be pointless doing an online course as you wont gain the necessary skills. Look at what your local college offers or maybe your qualifications could be best achieved at university. Take another look and your skills and experience. Does your resume really reflect all that youve done and all of your skills? Now is not the time to be shy. List every accomplishment and success youve had over the last 10 years (and the skills needed to accomplish those successes) and make sure they are reflected in your resume. careeralley.com Whichever training pathway you choose its essential to ensure the qualification is recognised by the sector in which you wish to work. Some training providers only provide in-house certificates which are not recognised. You could waste valuable time and money if you dont research carefully. Look at reviews from previous students and look at statistics showing how many students moved on to find employment in the sector following qualification. SEctors often have regulating bodies who can give useful training advice. Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash Secure funding Retraining involves a fairly substantial amount of financial investment. It may be possible to retrain alongside your current job, so that you maintain an income, or perhaps you could consider working part-time. Research funding options which may be available to you. You may be able to secure funding via a grant, bursary, student finance or loan. Ensure you read the small print carefully when making any funding decisions. Dont feel trapped in your career. Research options available to you and achieve your dreams! What's next? Ready to take action? Choose the right tools to help you build your career. Looking for related topics? Find out how to identify and land your dream job. Subscribe and make meaningful progress on your career. It’s about time you focused on your career. Get Educated Contact Us Advertise Copyright 2020 CareerAlley. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy + Disclosure home popular resources subscribe search

Official Resume Writing Services - Use Their Services

Official Resume Writing Services - Use Their ServicesWhen you are looking for employment and career opportunities, one of the best ways to promote yourself in the world is by using official resume writing services. The first step is to find a company that will be able to offer you a professional writing service. You will need to look for a reputable company and it is always best to do your research before you get started.If you are interested in this type of work then you will be looking for an organization that is either on the inside or has access to information gathering for those who have a lot of experience. Remember that these services are very important when trying to get your foot in the door and they can even land you a job before you even have the chance to say goodbye to the person who hired you.There are many ways that you can find these companies. You can go online and see what sort of companies have a webpage that tells you how they will help you. There are a number of agencies that will offer these services so keep looking until you find one that works for you.Once you have found a good agency, you will want to make sure that they are reputable and that they have the skills that you need. These services are used for many reasons but it is important that they are reliable and they can actually help you get the job that you are applying for. These are usually able to look at your experience and use it to help you write the best resume possible. They will analyze what you have done and what you know and the document will be tailor made for you to make the most of your skill set.Be sure that the company that you have chosen is willing to help you and will be able to find you jobs. This is one of the most important steps in your career as you will want to have a portfolio that you can show prospective employers when they contact you. Be sure that they know what they are looking for when you contact them.The next step is to learn more about the company that you are looking at and what they are offering. This is where the writing service can really come into play. You will want to know what sort of writing that they will be doing and what you will be expected to do.After you have a few samples sent to you, it is time to do some additional research and learn more about the company. You will want to check out their references and see what sort of feedback other people have had about them. Your resume is the first impression that they will be making on others so be sure that you put in the time to get it right.It can be a bit overwhelming at first but these services can help you get your career off the ground and you will find them very useful in helping you reach the career goals that you are working towards. If you take a step back and take a look at the bigger picture, you will be much more likely to succeed. Remember that these companies exist to help others so be sure that you put in the time and effort needed to get the job tha t you are seeking.