Flexibility --> Amazing Moments

I took the last 3 days off from posting blogs - now I know I made myself a promise to post a blog daily to help keep myself motivated and to try to motivate and inspire others.  BUT, I also know that sometimes you need to compromise and go with the flow in order to totally take advantage of all of life's opportunities.

The reason that I took the last 3 days off from blogging was to spend time with my family.  Today is my baby girl's 19th birthday and she came home from college this weekend to visit.  We had an AMAZING weekend - we didn't really do anything big or special, we just spent time with each other.  

So I dedicate this blog to saying, "Happy Birthday" to my daughter and "I Love You" to my entire family!!

If you get anything out of this blog, I hope you realize the importance of spending quality time with the people you love and the importance of being flexible and willing to compromise in order to truly enjoy life's blessings!

Affirmations

Tonight the words aren't quite flowing, but I still wanted to make sure that I took the time to post.  Personally, I could use a little positive affirmation right now.  And I have learned that you should give whatever it is that you need.  So, I hope you feel inspired and lifted . . . 

Resume Tips

In thinking about what to write about this evening, I felt the need to let my "career coach" out.  Today I taught a workshop on creating an attention grabbing Resume in today's job market and was inspired to create a basic list of Do's and Don'ts to help people as they create their resume . . . . hope that you find them helpful in having a successful job search campaign!

DO

·         Ensure your resume looks, feels, and sounds like YOU on paper

·         Make sure your resume is PLEASING to the eye

·         1”margins on all 4 sides

·         Choose one font for entire document (including header and footer)

·         12 point font for Body

·         14 – 16 point font for NAME

·         Line spacing 1.15

·         Turn your contact information into a header so that it appears on every page

·         Customize your resume for each specific job

·         Focus on the employer’s needs and how you meet them

·         Create a professional e-mail address using your name

·         Highlight the position title you are applying for below your name

·         Give just enough information to grab the employer’s attention and make them feel like they have to meet you face-to-face to get the rest of the story

·         Triple Check for accuracy

·         Start with a Summary paragraph explaining why you are the right person for the job

·         Include Key Skills in the top 1/3 of your resume

·         Create between 3 and 6 bullets to describe each position in your work history

·         Start each bullet with a VERB to show you are action oriented

·         Keep all bullets in the same tense

·         Customize bullets to highlight skills employers are seeking

Quantify bullets to show measurable accomplishments


DON'T

·         Make your font or margins too small

·         SQUEEZE your resume onto a page

·         Use a generic resume

·         Have an unprofessional e-mail address

·         Include References or state that they are “Available upon Request”

·         Get someone else to write your resume or use a canned program to create your resume

·         Use an Objective statement

·         Give too much information

·         Over bulletize

·         Make references to politics, religion, race, gender, etc.

·         Include outdated or irrelevant skills

·         Have ERRORS – typo, spelling, grammar

·         Include your address if you live too far away

·         Use 1^st person – I, me, my, mine

·         Apply for jobs you aren’t qualified for

·         Use paragraphs

·         Use “Entry-level”

Include bullet points that sound like a job description

Power of One

We've all heard that there is strength in numbers and that one is the loneliest number, but recently I have heard a couple of things that have made me stop and think about 1.  

I know, sometimes my mind wanders and wonders about strange things - but I am sure there is at least one other person out there that can relate ;)

The first thing that I heard about one had to do with temperature . . . to be exact 1 degree.  The difference between "hot" and "boiling" is just 1 degree.  I read this in a Simple Truths book.

The second thing I heard about one had to do with time . . . to be exact 1 minute.  All change happens in the span of a single minute.  I heard this on a Tony Robbins CD.

So why do these things matter at all?  Why have I been pondering the number 1?  WHY?  Because 1 is so powerful!!  The difference between living a life of mediocrity and living an AMAZING life is the one degree of extra effort that we put in, that one minute where we make a decision to take action and make a change instead of allowing procrastination and complacency to keep us captive in a life of ONE of THESE DAYS instead of a life of TODAY and NOW!!

Please, embrace the POWER of 1!  Take a stand, make a change, give it your all . . .

A Job

In my quest to become my best ME, a friend has shared her Tony Robbins materials with me.  In the first few minutes of listening, I already had a page full of notes.  If you are ready for any type of personal journey, I highly recommend that you spend a little time with Tony :)

One of the things that really hit home with me is that many of us (including myself) live the majority of life as if it were a job - something to be gotten done, taken care of, worked through . . . what a horrid way to exist!  When we live our life as if it were a job, we aren't really living at all - we are simply existing!

Life is something that should be enjoyed, savored, embraced.  Another one of Tony's pearls of wisdom that I jotted down is that your life is all about how you feel.  Our emotions dictate the way act and react to the things around us.  To help make sure that we live a life filled with emotions make sure that you are living life from a stand point of "Get to" and not a stand point of "Got to".  When you are facing a task, looking at your to do list, staring down a Monday, etc. change your state of mind and embrace all of the "adventures" that you "Get" to be a part of!

Earth Day

Today is Earth Day and so I thought this Native American saying was a great reminder to us all, "We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."

As we go about our daily lives, this is a great thing to keep in mind.  Are the things you're doing, the actions you're taking, doing something that will leave a positive legacy for the next generation?

A Gift

"When you are in need, plant a seed." Joel Osteen

Too often when things aren't going our way, we're having a bad day, not feeling too well, etc. that tends to be where we focus our thoughts and our efforts.  Most often when we do focus on these things, it only tends to multiply them.

Instead of focusing on ourselves, we need to learn to focus on others.  If you are feeling kind of cruddy, go visit with someone else  that is feeling cruddy and try to lift their spirits.  If you are stressed about not being able to find a job, try to help someone else reach their career goals.  If you are depressed about not being able to lose weight, go encourage someone else in their weight loss efforts.  If you are worried about not being able to meet your financial obligations, go donate time and money to someone who is in even more need of assistance.  Do all of these things with an open heart, not an expectation of repayment!