How McDonald's Big Mac Can Help You Find a Job

Every year McDonald's sells 560 million Big Macs a year. That's crazy! Over half a billion. It would take you almost 16 years to count that high. What's so special about the Big Mac? Is it the largest burger in the world? No. According to the Guinness Book of World Records that distinction belongs to Mallie's Sports Bar and Grill in Southgate, MI. Is the Big Mac the best tasting burger? No. According to Zagat's Fast Food Survey In-N-Out Burger holds that title. Was it the first of its kind? Nope. The whole Big Mac concept is a direct ripoff of the Bob's Big Boy burger. So what is it?

"Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame bun. "

It's gotta be the sauce, right?

What's so special about the special sauce? Other than calling Thousand Island dressing "special sauce," absolutely nothing. What the special sauce did was allow McDonald's to take another restaurant's idea and wrap it in a super effective marketing campaign. That marketing campaign is the reason you (and I) can still sing the ingredients by heart easily 10 years after the last time I can remember hearing it on TV. And I don't even like McDonald's. That is special.

What you can learn from the Big Mac

If you can take anything from the story of the Big Mac it should be that you don't have to be the biggest or the best or revolutionary to be the most successful.What you do need is a good marketing campaign to get your message out. And the most effective marketing in the world is....word of mouth. Word of mouth is just another way to say networking. I like using word of mouth advertising better than networking because people grimace less when they hear it. That's because most people are career networking horribly wrong. As a matter of fact what many people consider "career networking" is nothing more than begging.

Quick and easy guide to start career networking

The bad news is without some type of career networking you will never be as successful as you could and should be by career networking properly. The good news is you already know and do everything you need to get started. Keep in contact with as many of the people you were laid off with as possible. They will play a key role in building your networking team. Get their email addresses and place them into a mailing group. Many of the jobs you'll come across during your job search won't be right for you. Don't just skip by them.

Most job search websites allow you to email job openings to people. Email every job you're not applying to but might fit someone else's skill set to your email group. This works best if you send specific job openings to specific people but don't worry about that starting out. After a couple of weeks you will start to see that some of the people you have been sending those emails to will start sending you emails with jobs you might be interested in. If you are not interested in those jobs then send those openings back out to your career networking group.

Soon you will notice that you are becoming a resource for people who are in the same boat as you. In return you will have created a team of people who will directly and indirectly increase your chance of finding a job. It's a baby step but a step in the right direction, and infinitely better than no step at all. Congratulations you're career networking!

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Tips to Starting a Small Business

Before starting a business it is wise to take the time to plan. A business plan is the most important document you will compose and it should be well thought out. Your plan may change over time, but the basics will keep you on the right track to making your business a success. You may have the passion to start a business and that passion and vision are only a part of what it takes.

1. Write a business plan that addresses your resources, capital needs, marketing plan, budget and how to differentiate you firm from others.

2. Do a competitive analysis. Where are the competitors? Are you better and what is the value proposition that makes you faster, cheaper or state of the art?

3. When businesses fail they fail in part because of a lack of planning. Run scenarios and use different assumptions on sales and expenses to ensure you have staying power

4. Use a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats ) to help you assess the business strategy and its pitfalls.

5. Do a PEST analysis to stay abreast of how or what the Political, Economic, Social and Technological environments can affect your business. Example: Is there a local ordinance or law that you have to comply with? Do you understand all the regulations regarding your business such as sales tax, business license, and how your firm's ownership structure can impact your compliance with taxes?

6. Remember you are not alone...seek an experienced and certified coach to help you unlock your potential, be a sounding board to your ideas, and keep a positive perspective.

Key Pointe Coaching works with companies to unlock the potential of their greatest asset, their employees. We offer coaching to all management and executive levels as well as leadership training courses.

Candice Shehorn

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Jobs Are Back, Search for Headhunters, First!

True, the phrase jobs are back is the new buzz across nations and continents. The indication is certainly towards the fateful economic downturn that rattled major economies of the world. As an obvious consequence of the economic downturn the jobs almost vanished but the good news is that all the major economies are showing promising signs of recovery and optimum positive response is the reappearance of thousand of jobs that sank during the recession.

In the present world scenario employment search is a whole new concept is no where near what it used to be. One would not bet against the fact that like many of other aspects it is the interference of the internet that has revolutionized the methodology of searching for jobs.

The methodology for searching jobs-

If you are a job seeker then you will certainly find a true friend in the form of job sites that have thousands of jobs enlisted in their catalogues. You just need to perform a few concrete steps and as fruit of your toil you will certainly find yourself launched successfully for your dream job. This holds equally true for fresher and experienced job seekers. The fresher can search for jobs that suit the best with their educational qualification, aptitude and preferences. If you are fresher then it is almost religion to register yourself with the leading job sites and make yourself visible for the leading corporate requites. The experienced candidates aim for better profiles or salary hikes, constant up gradation of resume proves to be of great aid for this purpose. Finally, your aim should appear distinctly through your resume. At this point one should note that your resume is all that what speak for you, so, it is of prime importance that your resume should make an impression and should stand apart among millions. There are thousands of jobs sites that provide with expert made resume formats. Thus, there are people ready to assist you in your endeavour to search for jobs.

For the Corporate recruiters-

The job sites are made to assist both the ends of the job seekers and that of the corporate recruiters. The corporate recruiters employ different methods in order to find a suitable candidate, among these job consultancies and internet job sites are favoured choices. They are the best place to find a head hunter for any kind of company profiles.

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Ten Resume Writing Tips You Can't Live Without

For some job opening, employers receive
hundreds and even thousands of resumes.
When you are looking for a job, how
can you best promote yourself? How
can you convince a prospective employer
to pick-up the phone and call you for
an interview?

Sought-after career coach and author
of the critically-acclaimed book,
The Dark Before the Dawn: 70 Secrets
to Self-discovery, Theresa Castro
states that you should take into
consideration that your resume is the
first exposure a potential employer will
have of you. Given this, you shouldn't
take your resume lightly. Castro
offers a list of ten tips that will
assist you in creating a winning
resume and increasing your chances
of getting called for an interview.

1. Do address employment gaps briefly
in the cover letter only if the gaps
are a significant amount of time
such as maternity leave. Use a
functional resume to address gaps
in employment or changes in field
of interest.

2. Think from the perspective of your
future employer. What's in it for
them? Why should this company call
you? Keep in mind that your resume
is not the only resume that will be
considered.

3. Recognize that your resume is your
"sales person". This "sales person"
must convince the prospective
employer to pick up the phone and
schedule an interview with you. If
your "sales person" isn't convincing
enough then guess what ... there won't
be any phone calls. Thus, take the
time to make your resume sell, sell,
sell...yourself.

4. Ask a friend or co-worker about your
accomplishments. Some times, we don't
readily recognize or recall the many
things that we have done.

5. Make certain that your contact
information is correct. It would
dreadful to think that an employer
wanted to reach you but you mistakenly
listed the wrong information.

6. Take advantage of internet technology
and place your resume on various
websites. There are numerous websites
such as Monster, Career Builder and
HotJobs that allow you to find a job
based on your particular interests.
In addition, there are websites that
will list jobs that are specific to
a particular industry. For example,
Medzilla is a website that has job
listings exclusively for the medical
industry.

7. Demonstrate the key traits in your
resume: leadership, communication,
teamwork, decision making and problem
solving. For leadership, how are you
an innovator? For communication, are
you approachable? Are you open-minded?
Can you communicate effectively orally?
In a written format? In regard to
teamwork, can you work with others?
What examples of teamwork could you
illustrate from the past? As far as
decision making is concerned, what
have you done to play into the success
of the companies for whom you have
worked? In regard to problem solving,
when have you seen the big picture and
created a change that had a positive
and quantifiable outcome?

8. Each job listing has a particular list
of required experiences. If you
possess these experiences, then make
sure that you express this in your
resume. You can't make any assumptions
about what the potential employer knows
about you or your work history.

9. Read your resume out loud. By doing
this, you will find missing words,
grammatical errors or content that
just doesn't make sense.

10. Have at least three friends review your
resume. You are utilizing their
assistance to ensure that you haven't
missed something or made an easy to fix
mistake.

(c) 2005, Theresa Castro

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Resume Writing - Tips When You Change Careers

Drafting and writing a resume in which you wish to change careers raises some special challenges. First, you need break down what you have accomplished in your current career into smaller more generic bites. These smaller parts of the current career will become the building blocks of the new resume.

You need to do some detective work on the new job or career. Find one or more people currently in the proposed new career position and contact them and see if you can come in for a short fact finding interview. If an interview is not possible find the best time to talk to them on the phone for a few minutes. Have your questions prepared. You need to know the three or so critical skills of the new career that would make you a good candidate. What skills or what lack of experience would absolutely not qualify you for the new career?

For example, if the new career required you to work in a team orientated environment and you've never worked in that type of environment, would you be disqualified? Not necessarily. Upon reflection in your present position, for example, although working alone there was a great deal of coordination required with others and with other departments to get your work done. In truth you were working in a quasi-team and doing very well.

Your resume will now be written to reflect your skills at working with others. Point out results achieved by your abilities to work with and through others.

In another example, a long time flight attendant was growing weary of the travel and other headaches and decided to move to another career. She had previously had her kitchen remodeled and was appalled at the real lack of customer service in the whole process. After some thought and interviewing the principals of several small and larger companies that performed this type of remodeling service she began drafting her resume. It focused on her considerable customer service skills, her analytical abilities, her first hand experience in remodeling her home, and her sales skills. In a relatively short period of time she landed a job in the trades' office of a larger construction firm that specialized in remodeling projects. Within a short time she was doing estimates and some designing. She now views her new career as having a future that is almost unlimited.

In yet another example, the applicant used his success at fund raising for his son's high school band
to leverage his way into another career. His former position as a parts manger for an automobile dealership had little room for growth. After he reworked his resume he uncovered a growing position as an area technical manager for a large manufacturer. The key to the new career was his showcasing of his fund raising experience, along with his technical background made him a desirable candidate for the new career.

The key in both examples was to break down the current position into smaller parts. And then take those parts and build a resume that directly addressed the needs of the new career. Of course, if the new career requires additional education, it can be secured through self-study, the internet or local educational institutions while you continue in your present position.

Once you find the relevant skills needed in the new career you'll be surprised how many of them you perform on a daily or weekly basis. The secret is to write the resume to highlight the required skills. For if you successfully perform a particular task infrequently what's to say that you can't be successful doing it closer to full time. With this approach, you'll be closer to your ideal planned career.

John Groth

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Job Fairs For Convicted Felons

More and more I read about job fairs across the country aimed at helping convicted felons get jobs. Ex-offenders and felons looking to give new direction to their lives are flocking to these job fairs in record numbers. Do all of them have the opportunity to bet hired? Unfortunately many ex-offenders and felons leave themselves out of contention for jobs by not being prepared. By not being prepared, I mean they lack the essential elements sought by employers looking to hire. If convicted felons hope to compete for jobs, they must at least show up with some basic tools. Being prepared is the best way to get the most out of a job fair. Here are some tips to give you an edge at the next job fair you attend.

1) Look like you want a job - I see photographs of job seekers at job fairs looking like they are just hanging out rather than looking like serious contenders for available jobs. Professional attire is a must. Always approach job fairs like you approach interviews. The ideal dress for men is a navy blue or dark suit or sport jacket with a long sleeved, light colored shirt and a color-coordinated tie. Be sure to wear a belt that matches your shoes. For some, this may not be possible. At the very least, a white shirt (you can never go wrong with a white shirt) with dark slacks. For women, wear a classic skirted suit with a light colored blouse or a simple dress that does not rise above the knee. Do not wear anything too tight or too revealing. Be sure to wear coordinated pumps that are neat and clean. The pantyhose should be a light, natural color with no pattern.

2) Do some homework - Often job fairs have more than employer taking applications. To save time, find out ahead of time which employers will be there and have a list of employers you are most interested in. You can get a list of participating employers from the job fair advertisement. Select the companies you are interested in and get some basic information on them.

3) Have all of your tools - Have your tools ready (plenty of resumes, pens, personal business cards, etc.)

4) Get some practice in - Speak to as many employers as possible to practice your interview skills. There is nothing like practicing with a live person.

5) Pay attention to everything -Often there are lines to speak with employers. Pay close attention to the person ahead of you as he is being interviewed. Listen to the questions being asked.

6) Always ask for business cards - Get a business card from everyone you speak with. I guarantee that you will forget an interviewer's name two minutes after you leave them. A business card will allow to get names and contact information so you can follow-up later.

You will be competing with other people for most jobs you want. You have to put your best foot forward and be at your best. These six steps will separate you from the crowd and give you an edge.

Eric Mayo

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Jobs in International Marketing

International marketing has become a very lucrative aspect of any job and today there are many young people everywhere that want to take this up as a career. Marketing in itself is very interesting and along with the basics of sales, it is taught in the school level itself these days.

This is so that young minds can grasp the subject properly and much earlier because the competition is much more in today's day and age. Jobs in international marketing are quite demanding because one needs to look after not a single country's profile but many other countries and parts of the world.

Marketing careers and marketing jobs are what people are going in for. Every government is also pressing on the need for entrepreneurship and thus, this is one motivating factor behind the reason which people want to study it and take it up as a career. It requires a great amount of dynamism as the main aim requires people to keep coming up with new and improves solutions and ideas as to how one can improve the sales and marketing of a particular firm.

There are umpteenth numbers of big names that are attached with these projects and we keep reading about them in the papers each day. It is very exciting as companies become rivals with each other and try and battle it out in the market or the consumer base by trying to come up with newer marketing strategies which would improve their sales.

If you want to work in international marketing, then you will have to get the required degrees. An MBA is also a great degree to have from a reputes university because it would help you in getting a job in this kind of a career profile. The rates and levels of employment in international marketing have also been on a rise lately because there are more and more companies on the rise each day and equally more employees who are waiting to be accepted by them and work for them.

You need to have a fresh mind full of new marketing strategies and ideas to either help the firm maintain its sales and marketing levels or increase them. These are the mark of a good employee. International marketing firms also treat their employees well. They have the provisions for living arrangements, transport, and food with very well made and maintained cafeterias.

Many even have provisions of gyms and gardens for their employees to relax in. Thus, it is quite an interesting career type if you are interested in it, and you should do a little more research about the company and its achievements before going in for it.

Silas Reed

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