How to Pick a Career You Actually Like

Don't Believe the Hype

We have a grass-is-greener approach to professions that are not our own. For example, this award-winnng video from Chipotle about farmers becoming more animal-friendly pretends that it's just a mental and emotional evolution for farmers to realize that going back to nature, and being good to animals, is what feels best, so they should do it. It's so easy, for example, to take the pigs out of an assembly line.

The Chipotle video is total crap, to be honest. It's not that farmers don't know that pigs on pasture is nicer. It's that there is no market for pigs on pasture because consumers won't pay enough to eat humane meat (without farrowing crates, for example, pork prices would quadruple). So the idea that being a farmer is so beautiful and back-to-the land is just absurd. Being a farmer is actually really complicated, hard entrepreneurial work with very low wages.

Another example of a hyped up job is a lawyer. You see their exciting life on TV: a gloriously safe path from college to law school to a high paying job. But behind the scenes, each year the American Bar Association conducts a survey to ask if lawyers would recommend their profession to other people, and the vast majority of lawyers say no.

Pick a Lifestyle, Not a Job Title

Look at the lives you see people having, and ask yourself whose life you would want. That's easy, right? But now look deeper. You can't just have the life they have now. You have to have the life they lead to get there. So, Taylor Swift has had great success, and now she gets to pretty much do whatever she wants. But could you do what she did to get there? She had her whole family relocate so she could pursue her dreams in Nashville. Do you want a life of such high-stakes, singular commitment?

Look at the successful writers you read. Most of them wrote for years in obscurity, risking long-term financial doom in order to keep writing. Do you really want that path for yourself? Marylou Kelly Streznewski, author of Gifted Grownups, finds that most people who are exceptionally creative have to give up almost everything else in order to pursue "creativity with a big C." For most people, that path is not appealing.

Help! How Do I Choose Between Two Job Offers?

 

Q: I've got a problem that I feel very lucky to have, especially in today's job market. I've been offered two good jobs, both of which have their pros and cons. I've gone over all the issues involved, and just can't decide which job I should take. But I need to make my decision fast – with so much competition for among job seekers, if I hesitate one of the employers is likely to move on to another candidate. What do I do?
A: Wow! Considering the current economy, most job seekers would love to take a problem like that off your hands. But nonetheless, it is a problem, and one you need to solve asap. If you're having trouble determining which job is right for you, here are some approaches that can hopefully make your decision a little bit easier:
Trust your gut. Your gut won't lie to you. If you have an unexplainable positive or negative feeling about one job or the other, don't ignore it. It's easy to rationalize yourself into taking a job you don't want but are supposed to like, but after a few weeks at the new position you're likely to find out your original instincts were correct.
When in doubt, get more information. Sometimes it can be hard to trust your gut, because your gut keeps changing. In these situations, it helps to come up with some questions that address your confusion, and then ask some of them in a second interview. Getting another opportunity to talk with your potential manager can help clarify how you really feel about a job.
The most important thing you can do, however, is find a way to break your internal debate. So if you're still finding it hard to make a solid decision, try the following process to lay out all your options:

• For the first job, make four columns on a sheet of paper.
• Start again on another sheet for the second job
• With the two sheets completed, now compare them.
• 1. Grab the nearest two-sided coin.
• 2. Flip it.

In the first column, list Job A's five obvious advantages. In the second column, rate the importance of each advantage on a scale of 1 - 10. Then total all your ratings to get an overall "positives" score.
Moving to column three, now list up five negative aspects of the job. Rate each on a scale of 1-10 in the fourth column, then total it.
You should now have a breakdown of Job A that looks something like this:

Start with the positive factors in columns one and two. Does Job A or B have more important individual pluses? Which one has the better combination of positives? Is either job clearly more positive overall?
Conclusion: Job A has two 10s, while Job B has only one. And Job A's positive total is greater than Job B's. Looking only at the pluses, Job A is the better offer.

Now compare the negative factors and their totals. Which offer has either fewer (or less important) negatives? Does one look substantially worse than the other?

Conclusion: Once again Job A is the winner, with fewer negative issues than Job B, and a lower negative total overall.
Using this exercise as your decision-making tool, Job A outshines Job B in both positive and negative comparisons. You have solid, tangible reasons for accepting Job A. Go for it!
Tip: If there isn't a clear winner, just keep going. For each position subtract the negatives total from the positives total. Eventually the job with the larger remainder will emerge your best choice.
In our example comparison, Job A is the final winner with a positive margin of 6. Job B, on the other hand, only manages to break even, with no advantage in either the positive or negative columns. After laying out all these elements for your own situation, you can pick up that phone and say yes to Job A with confidence.
Of course it can be hard to rely on numbers alone. If you don't feel comfortable letting a calculation determine your employment future, try using a whole-brained decision-making process, combining this left-brained exercise with your right-brained "gut thinking." And if you're still stumped, it's safe to assume that the jobs are equally good, so it doesn't really matter which one you accept since you’d be happy with either one.
If this turns out to be the case, you can forget the techniques listed here. Instead, it's time to turn to a tried-and-true decision-making process, one that’s been used by wise individuals for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. It goes like this:
Either heads or tails should work out just fine

Track and Leverage Your Accomplishments

What if you’re a college student with little or no job experience from which to cull accomplishments? Don’t miss this page of our Cover Letter Tutorial, which offers lots of ideas for making the most of your college accomplishments.
Finally, a word of caution: Resist the temptation to blow your accomplishments out of proportion. Accomplishments should be measurable whenever possible and always verifiable. Don’t risk having a prospective employer call a former supervisor and ask, “Did she really save the company from bankruptcy?” and have your ex-boss say, “Huh?

Job Interviewing Tutorial for Teen Job-Seekers: Confident

 

#3: Be confident in the interview.

How do you show your confidence?

Well, not by bringing a megaphone to the interview — of course — but by projecting your voice.
Speak at one level above your know conversational tone.
Speaking quietly not only makes it hard for the interviewer to hear you, but it expresses that you have a lack of conviction in what you’re saying.
Also try to avoid “Valley Girl” speak… in other words, do not end your sentences like there is a question mark at the end rather than a period

Job-Seeker Resume Tutorial: Web Resume Tips

What About a Web-based Resume?

Some expert tips on value of creating Web-based job-search resume…

• The biggest advantage of a Web-based resume is that it is available 24/7.
• Posting your resume on-line allows global exposure to the job market.
• A growing number of companies are actively using the Internet in their job searching strategies.
• A Web-based resume is different because page restrictions do not exist, allowing you to do more tailoring and adding more specifics than you might with a traditional resume. You can also use more keywords and phrases.
• Check out this great collection of sample Web resumes.
• Having a Web resume published on your site (firstname.lastname.com) or a networking site (such as LinkedIn) is one small part of building your online personal/career brand — which is the future of job-hunting. Learn more about personal career branding, go to this section of Quintessential Careers: Personal Branding & Career Self-Marketing Tools for Job-Seekers and Career Activists

7 Ways to Quit Your Job Gracefully

 

There's a Right and Wrong Way to Quit a Job

So you're quitting? Congratulations on getting a new gig or just getting out of your old job that wasn't working. But no matter why you're leaving, make sure you do it the right way.
Your parents probably told you to be the bigger person, right? Well now it's time to put that to the test. And that test can be pretty difficult if you really hated your job. There's no question that, for some people, it feels really good to quit with a bang and stick it to everyone who wronged you in the past. But even though that'll give you instant gratification, it could have long-term negative repercussions on your future employment.
Even the worst jobs usually have some sort of silver lining. So when you're getting ready to leave, think about the one or two things you learned that will be of value going forward, and appreciate those nuggets. Be a professional, take the high road (even when no one would blame you for going nuclear), and avoid purposely leaving your company in a bad predicament when you walk out the door. Here are some tips to remember before your last day

7. Give Enough Notice 

First thing's first -- give ample notice.
For most people, the standard (and bare minimum) is two weeks. If you really liked your job but just found a better opportunity, then do everything possible to give them as much time to mitigate your loss as possible. This shows your appreciation for everything you've learned while on the job, and maintains a positive relationship going forward. But even if you had a terrible boss at a rotten company, you should still give them the courtesy of two weeks notice because you're a professional.
Some businesses might be choose to escort you out the door early. That's their call. But you should still stick with the courtesy of giving proper notice.

6. Request an Exit Interview 

Whether your experience at the company you're leaving has been pleasant or abysmal, an exit interview is still a good idea.
Even if they're not offering it, you should think about requesting one. Exit interviews allow you to officially thank your employer for the time you've spent there, the experience you've gained, and all you've learned in the process. It's also a great time to make sure you can rely on the higher-ups for a reference or even a future collaboration that is mutually beneficial. It also gives you an opportunity to provide some constructive criticism about the company, and politely explain what circumstances led to your leaving.
A good manager will value that information and use it to keep other high-value employees from jumping ship

5. Create a Manual & Offer to Train Your Replacement 

When you leave, it's going to be chaos for everyone else still working there for a little while. So why not try to make that turmoil a little easier?
The first thing you should do is create a manual for whoever is coming in to fill your position. Just an outline of what you do, your schedule, and how you go about accomplishing your job responsibilities. Be sure to include any necessary passwords (especially for things like corporate social media accounts or any program that requires access only you have had) so you aren't fielding desperate calls while you're getting your feet wet at your new job. Also, if your company knows who your replacement will be, offer to spend your remaining time training him/her so the transition will be smoother when you finally leave

4. Let Coworkers & Clients Know 

As simple as this one sounds, you'd be surprised at how often employees leave and the people left behind -- as well as clients -- have no clue.
This likely happens more in bigger companies where communication can often fall through the cracks, or during summer when lots of people are out on vacation. But there are times when workers have tried to reach someone within the company because they're collaborating on a project, only to find out the lack of a response is because the person has left the company. Don't let employees and clients find out you're gone from someone else. Reach out and let them know via phone or email, and don't forget to put up an out of office explaining what's happened on your email system.
This also serves as a great way to thank everyone you worked with over the years while you're informing them of the news

3. Finish Your Work 

It's tempting to feel like you've got one foot out the door and you want to start focusing on the future. But resist it.
If you've got a whole bunch of loose ends, tie them up before you leave. Or if you can't finish everything, at least let your coworkers and managers know where everything stands so it's not total confusion after you're gone. Make sure the big presentation you're supposed to do is finished before you go, get your team members up to speed about where you are on big projects, and do all the things you were supposed to get done before your time is up. It's just the right and responsible thing to do, because it's no fun to pick up the slack of others in a pinch

2. Don't Be Petty 

This is especially important because we live in the age of social media. When a few seconds of anger recorded into a Facebook status update or tweet can impact your life forever.
Were you treated like crap? Are you angry? Is it tempting to post a last-day-of-work selfie while giving the biggest of middle of fingers and uploading it to Instagram? Yes, it can be tempting. Very tempting, actually. But don't do it. Despite the number of likes you'll get from like-minded people fed up with their jobs, it'll eventually be found by someone. Someone who might make hiring decisions at a company where you'd really like to work. And in the end, any gain you get from sticking it to your old bosses will soon be dwarfed by other people seeing what you've done, and deciding not to hire you because you might do the same thing to them.

1. Keep It Positive 

In the end, it's best to stay positive and focus on the positives.
Find the things that were good about the job and be glad you learned something. Take the good connections you've made and add them to LinkedIn, use them as references, and know that at least you've gained some kind of advantage from your time there. And, most importantly, don't go badmouthing your old employer when you start your new job. You never know who is connected to who, and that stuff finds a way to come back and bite you. You're out, you're moving on, so focus on the future.

Key Salary Negotiation Strategies:

Key Salary Negotiation Strategies:

1. Delay salary and benefit negotiations for as long as possible in the interview process. You’ll have more power to negotiate when the field of candidates has been reduced to just you — when the employer is completely sold on you as the best candidate for the position.
2. Remember that you’ll have your greatest negotiation leverage between the time the employer makes the original offer and the time you accept the final offer. Once you accept an offer, you have little to no room to negotiate.
3. Don’t negotiate at the time the initial job offer is made. Thank the employer for the offer and express your strong interest and enthusiasm in the job, but state that you’ll need time to evaluate the entire compensation package. Most employers are willing to give you a fair amount of time to review.
4. Do your research. The greatest tool in any negotiation is information. Make sure you have done a thorough job of determining your fair market value for the job you seek, the salary range of the job for this specific employer, and geographic, economic, industry, and company-specific factors that might affect the given salary.
5. Just do it. While a large percentage of corporate recruiters (four out of five in one study conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management) are willing to negotiate compensation, only a small percentage of job-seekers actually do so. You don’t have to be an expert negotiator to get a sweeter deal; you just need to know the rules and strategies of negotiation.
6. Negotiate to your strength. If you are a smooth talker (an extravert), call the employer and ask for a follow-up meeting to discuss a counter proposal. If you communicate better in writing, follow our guidelines for writing a counter-proposal letter (below).
7. Always ask for a higher salary (within acceptable limits) than you are willing to accept so that when the employer counters your proposal, the salary should be near your original goal.
8. If the salary you’re offered is on the low end — and the employer has stated that salary is not negotiable (probably because of corporate salary ranges or pay grade levels), consider negotiating for a signing bonus, higher performance bonuses, or a shorter time frame for a performance review and raise. Always negotiate base salary first, and then move on to other elements of the job offer.
9. When presenting a counter-proposal to the employer, be sure and include a few benefits that are expendable so that you can drop them in a concession to the employer as negotiations continue.
10. Never stop selling yourself throughout the negotiation process. Keep reminding the employer of the impact you will make, the problems you will solve, the revenue you will generate. And continue expressing interest and enthusiasm for the job and the company