Searching for meaning?

By: Lori McMullin, APR, Director of Business Operations & Communications

Center for Business Excellence

A good friend came across a passage in Victor Frankl’s book, "Man's Search for Meaning,” which was a daily account about life in a Nazi concentration camp.

"Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms--to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's way. The way in which a man accepts his fate and all the suffering it entails, the way in which he takes up his cross, gives him ample opportunity--even under the most difficult circumstances--to add a deeper meaning to his life. If there is a meaning to life there must be a meaning to suffering. His unique opportunity lies in the way in which he bears his burden."

These words are powerful and definitely something to use as a guide in our daily struggles.

The Often Neglected Element of Job Searching

Posted by: Darlene Duncan. CWDP. JSS, CCC, JCTC, JCDC
Training Coordinator

You’re sending out résumés, filling out applications on a regular basis, posting on Facebook and keeping your profile updated on LinkedIn. You’ve even attended some networking events. In your mind you’re doing everything you can to find a job.

What else could you possibly do?

There is an element you’re, very likely, not including in your search and it has many benefits. It keeps you out in the workforce where you’ll continue to use your current skills and pick up new ones. You’re presented with opportunities to meet people who may be able to supply you with job leads.

Have you guessed it yet? It’s volunteering. No! Don’t go away. I know you need a PAYING job. I also know that volunteering can be a vital part of your search for that paying job. More than once I’ve had people tell me that they got the job they have because they used to volunteer where they’re now working.

The worst thing that happens is you spend some time helping others. Is that such a bad thing? Of course not. The best thing that happens is someone where you’re volunteering gives you a lead that gets you a job or the organization you’re volunteering at offers you a paying position. No matter how you look at it, it’s a win-win situation.

(This is a repost from December 2010.)

Can volunteering lead to a job offer?

By: Lori McMullin, APR, Director of Business Operations & Communications

Center for Business Excellence

In today’s tight job market, many former private-sector, for–profit employees may want to consider dipping their toes in the non-profit “pond.” Those of us who have worked in the non-profit world for any length of time know there is a real network among the varying local community agencies.

Executive directors and staff alike talk with frequency in an industry that demands collaboration at its finest to make every precious dollar stretch as far as it can. Although many industries are working with fewer resources and non-profit organizations seem to be hit the hardest and leaned on the most, some paid positions must continue to be filled.

As a former executive director of a local agency, I can tell you I received my best job candidate referrals from my network of colleagues (to include my friends at CBE, of course)! If I found a candidate with both for-profit and non-profit experience, I was very eager to get them in front of me to interview. The combination of private business experience with the understanding of how the non-profit world operates is phenomenal.

The bottom line is this. If you are out of work, seriously consider volunteering at a local non-profit organization. It very well may lead to a job offer at the agency or another one. Yes, the salary will most likely not be what you are accustomed to, but don’t box yourself in.

Who knows? Today, you may be a volunteer coordinator and two years from now, you may be the executive director. To quote one of my favorite songs, “Take your passion and make it happen!”

Check out this link for more tips:

http://www.keppiecareers.com/2010/04/06/altruistic-tuesdays-can-volunteering-win-you-a-job/

Innovative thinking a desired quality

By Suzy Kridner
Career Specialist
Innovation is just one of the qualities that prospective employers are seeking in new hires. In today’s world, a company needs to stay one step – or many steps -- ahead of its competition.
The late Apple CEO Steve Jobs built his fortune on innovations. There is the digital music player, the iPod, and the most successful digital media service, iTunes. He introduced the first super-smartphone, the iPhone, and the only truly successful tablet computer, the iPad. And then there’s the chain of retail stores.
But for many of us, there are roadblocks to innovation, including assumptions we may have that may hold us back.
Mitch Ditkoff, co-founder and president of Idea Champions, writes that assumptions are invisible, insidious and habitual.
They stop us before we even start -- the default position for those of us too consumed by our past to consider the future the way it really is: pure potentiality, according to Ditkoff.
Steve Jobs recognized that potential and we have a better world for it.
Read more about the Sump of Assumptions in this excerpt from Mitch Ditkoff’s Creative Thinking Guildbooks.

How to Make a Potential Employer Love You

Posted by: Darlene Duncan. CWDP. JSS, CCC, JCTC, JCDC
Training Coordinator

In my never ending quest to find material for this blog, I recently came across an article with some wonderful advice about how to make a potential employer fall in love with you (as a job candidate).

The workshops presented at the One-Stops in Volusia and Flagler counties follow a great deal of what the article recommends. The writer has reviewed hundreds of résumés and conducted many interviews, so this information comes from an individual with a lot of practical real world experience in the realm of hiring.

Click here to read the article.

Women and body image. Are you unknowingly holding yourself back in your job search?

By: Lori McMullin, APR
Director of Business Operations & Communications
Center for Business Excellence


“And when you smile,
The whole world stops and stares for awhile
Cause girl you're amazing
Just the way you are…”

Trying to stay hip and with it (yeah, right), I recently heard a new song by Bruno Mars, “Just The Way You Are.” It really encapsulated how I, as a woman, want to be perceived by others.

Too often, we are our own worst critics. If we view ourselves in a negative light, it will most definitely show during a job interview.

I’ve struggled with body image since my teenage years. Some of that came from external sources such as images from Hollywood and magazines. Others came from people in my life. You know-- soul-crushing comments like, “If only you’d change “XYZ,” then you would look good.” However, the most damaging messages came and, sometimes, still come from negative self talk.

Of course, we should all strive to be as healthy and fit as we can be, but this also means learning to love ourselves. I found an interesting article on the subject on the CVS/Pharmacy Web site: http://www.cvshealthresources.com/topic/bodyimagewomen

In any case, I hope Bruno Mars really means what he sings. If so, we should embrace our daughters, sisters, mothers, etc., and tell them they are beautiful just the way they are! Check out this awesome anthem of sorts that could change the way we think about ourselves and how we communicate to other women: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjhCEhWiKXk

Are You Thinking Outside the Box?

By Suzy Kridner
Career Specialist
How often do we hear "You need to think outside the box?"
And what exactly does that mean?
When I was laid off after a fulfilling career as a newspaper editor, I was often told I need to reinvent myself and think outside the box. I was resistant to change as I loved my career.
But with the Internet stealing our newspaper readers, I didn't have a choice but to think outside the box. What to do? . . . What to do?
I hung out at the Daytona One-Stop trying to find myself -- and find a job. The dedicated staff there helped me with my resume and interviewing skills. I also was active in their Pro-Net, a professional networking group that made me realize others were in the same situation.
I was fortunate to land a temporary position there as an administrative assistant for the Center for Business Excellence, which operates the One-Stops. It was perfect, working on special projects and even writing an occasional blog.
And when that job was about to end, I was offered a position in the One-Stop Center as a career specialist. Now I am helping others who are in the same situation I was not so long ago.
The Daytona One-Stop, as well as our offices in Flagler and DeLand, offer many services to help us in our job searches. They can be found on our website, http://www.onestops.com/.
And the state of Florida's phenomenal website, http://www.employflorida.com/ lists hundreds of jobs in Volusia and Flagler counties, and throughout the state. Just register and you can build a resume, tailor a cover letter, and with the virtual recruiter even have jobs listings delivered to your email's inbox every day.
Sometimes a job may not be our ideal position but it often can lead to better things.
Read more in Mitch Ditkoff's blog on the "The Six Sides of the So-Called Box."