The Formula for Selling Anybody, Anything, Any Time

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/qh/ar5l2k56g3nkpr14fvqh.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/qh/ar5l2k56g3nkpr14fvqh.gif" /></a></div>Here's the thing: Sometimes we're selling our ideas, sometimes we're selling our products and, these days, many of us are selling ourselves as the best candidate for the job. With this in mind, here's the proven formula for selling your best self to anybody, anywhere, any time.<br /><br />First: Yale University did a study of the 12 most persuasive words in the English language. They discovered that the most persuasive word in the English language is "you." Consequently, I recommend throwing it around a lot: "As I'm sure you know," "As I'm sure you've heard," "I wanted to talk to you today," etc.<br /><br />Second: California-based social psychologist Ellen Langer says one word in the English language increases the possibility of cooperation from 60 to 94 percent. No, that is not a typo. I will repeat: 60 to 94 percent. This word is "because." <br /><br />Lastly: The Duncan Hines Cake Mix Marketing Theory. When Duncan Hines began making cake mix, the decision to have cooks at home add the egg was made in the marketing department. Why is this effective? Because they realized that when we add the egg, we feel proud because we contributed; we can say, "I baked!" <br /><br />Following, then, are three ways you can apply this formula for success:<br /><br />A job interview scenario<br />When you are talking to a company about coming to work for them, you need to articulate the contribution unique to them that they can they make to your success, so it becomes your shared success. <br /><br />Too often, however, we spend our interviewing time talking about why we are right for the job. What we need to be talking about is why the job is right for us. <br /><br />What might this sound like? <br /><br />"I wanted to talk to you today because your job description/your company's mission statement/your bestselling product is X, and my skill set/my personal passion/my sales experience is in Y. Applying the full force of my expertise to this job will enable us both to reach our goals." <br /><br />Talking to your boss about a brewing situation<br />The use of the word "situation" here is deliberate. The White House doesn't have a Crisis Room, it has a Situation Room. Likewise, you don't have a crisis -- you have a situation that needs to be resolved.<br /><br />So, what would the formula for success sound like here?<br /><br />"I wanted to bring a potential situation to your attention immediately because it requires expert attention. X has occurred and I have come up with the following two possible solutions. Is there one that you prefer?"<br /><br />In this instance, the egg is not as much the mention of the expert attention but the opportunity you are giving your boss to apply that expertise to two possible strategies. Having him choose which he prefers (and tell you why it's far better) not only allows him to add an egg, but to choose the temperature at which the solution is "baked."<br /><br />Talking to a potential target at a networking event<br />Too many networking events are about what others can do for us, rather than what we can do for others. In my experience, however, the most successful networkers aren't asking, "What can you do for me?" but "What can I do for you?" In this scenario, the formula would likely sound like this:<br /><br />"Hello, I'm X. I wanted to introduce myself because I know you are the visionary behind X idea/product/company, and I wanted to introduce you to Y/write about you in my newsletter/ask if I could help you organize your next charity event." (If your target is standing with another person or in a group, introduce yourself to everyone present.)<br /><br />As you can see, the offer doesn't need to be –huge; the fact that you made it at all is what helps you stand out. Leaving room for another person to add the egg of her choice is what will ensure your successful connection. <br /><br />By Frances Cole Jones, author of "The Wow Factor: The 33 Things You Must (and Must Not) Do to Guarantee Your Edge in Today's Business World." Her company, Cole Media Management, works with clients to enhance their professional and personal presentation skills. She lives in New York City.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

The Formula for Selling Anybody, Anything, Any Time

Here's the thing: Sometimes we're selling our ideas, sometimes we're selling our products and, these days, many of us are sellin...

Read more »

Available Jobs, Not Enough Skilled Workers

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/87/ar5l6qn6r744vgvxls87.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/87/ar5l6qn6r744vgvxls87.gif" /></a></div>Two years after the start of the recession, the unemployment rate is still near double digits, which translates to millions of Americans looking for work. For every open job, employers have dozens or even hundreds of applicants eager to get hired. Yet many employers insist that finding qualified candidates is difficult, even in this economy. How can that be?<br /><br />These employers don't have a shortage of applicants -- they have a shortage of qualified applicants. For most positions, the necessary skills, experience and education requirements are firm and can't be loosened because of a lack of suitable candidates. Bad economy or not, employers need to know their workers are the best possible people for the job.<br /><br />A good worker is hard to find<br />"These jobs were difficult to fill prior to the economic downturn," says Julian L. Alssid, executive director of the Workforce Strategy Center in New York. "Hopefully, they will be less difficult to fill as we move more toward a more demand-driven work-force development system in the U.S. This means local employers working directly with community colleges, trade schools and other post-secondary institutions that help people gain skills that are in demand by employers."<br /><br />Education is an invaluable asset for any applicant, but as many job seekers can attest, it isn't the only prerequisite for employment. When employers are choosing the right candidate for their organizations, they want to see years of experience and an education that isn't outdated. As you can imagine, any worker who falls at extreme ends of the spectrum -- such as a new graduate or an industry veteran -- can be at a disadvantage. New graduates know the latest research and technology, but they don't have the years of firsthand experience that employers value.<br /><br />"We do hear employers complain that younger workers fresh out of school often lack a practical understanding of how to apply what they have learned in their classrooms to the workplace," Alssid says. "That said, we have heard from several experienced workers that they feel they are losing out on jobs to younger -- less costly -- candidates."<br /><br />Education matters<br />Don't mistake a need for experience as a reason to dismiss education. The problem is that job seekers have to take responsibility for their education because many employers no longer have the time and budget to groom new hires.<br /><br />"Employers seem to be less willing to invest in training in this economy. Again, it is the combination of the right credential and practical experience they look for," Alssid says.<br /><br />Take the initiative to improve your credentials so employers see a candidate they're ready to hire now.<br /><br />"Many job seekers can make themselves more competitive by getting industry-recognized credentials that are valued in today's workplace," Alssid says. "In many cases, that might mean a short-term certificate, not another college or graduate degree."<br /><br />But many employers are ready to hire.<br />"We hear about the skills shortage from industries including health care, advanced manufacturing, IT and energy," Alssid says. Although no specific job title is in constant need, any positions relying on math and technical expertise are consistently difficult to fill. "I have heard from several advanced manufacturers that they would hire engineers and engineering technicians in a heartbeat."<br /><br />Supporting his assessment is the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which expects biomedical engineers and network systems and data communications analysts to be the fastest-growing occupations between 2008 and 2018. As a result, job seekers who are applying to these fields and who have the qualifications need to put their experience and skills front and center. In the cover letter, résumé and interview, don't let hiring managers forget that you already have the skills they need. After all, you are just one job seeker in a competitive market; show employers that you're different from the rest.<br /><br />By Anthony Balderrama, writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com and its job blog, The Work Buzz. He researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/abalderrama.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

Available Jobs, Not Enough Skilled Workers

Two years after the start of the recession, the unemployment rate is still near double digits, which translates to millions of Americans loo...

Read more »

Fastest Growing Jobs in Health Care

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/k7/ar5f36g6rhc5rc8tybk7.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/k7/ar5f36g6rhc5rc8tybk7.gif" /></a></div>In the two years since the economy began its downward slide, health care has been one of the few industries that continued to rise. Because we're living longer than ever and the baby boomers are aging, demand for health care is growing.<br /><br />Understandably, many people think of health care as all about doctors and nurses. After all, when you go to the hospital or have your annual check-up, your interaction is usually with a nurse and then a doctor. All the lab tests and other work are done behind the scenes, so these positions get overlooked. The health care industry will continue to grow in the coming decade and the jobs won't just be in the operating room, though many will.<br /><br />According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, these 11 jobs in health care will see growth in the coming years. Here are the jobs, their expected growth in the next decade, education requirements and annual mean salary*:<br /><br />1. Physician assistants perform many of the same tasks of a physician -- such as treating injuries and supervising medical assistants -- but are under a physician's supervision at all times.<br />2008-2018 increase: 41.3 percent<br />Education: College degree and relevant experience<br />Salary: $81,610<br /><br />2. Medical secretaries perform administrative duties in health-care facilities and rely on their knowledge of medical terminology and procedures.<br />2008-2018 increase: 27 percent<br />Education: Varies, but college degrees are increasingly common requirements<br />Salary: $30,800<br /><br />3. Physicians and surgeons treat patients for existing medical conditions and also advise them on preventative care. Surgeons concentrate on operations rather than the non-surgical approaches of physicians.<br />2008-2018 increase: 26 percent<br />Education: Medical degrees, residencies and licenses<br />Salary: Surgeons - $206,770, general internists - $176,740<br /><br />4. Registered nurses address some health problems of patients as well as collect and maintain their medical records.<br />2008-2018 increase: 23.4 percent<br />Education: Varies between college degrees requirements and certification, depending on state and employer<br />Salary: $65,130<br /><br />5. Counselors work in various health-care facilities to help clients overcome physical or mental health obstacles they are encountering. <br />2008-2018 increase: 22.6 percent<br />Education: Varies by state and facility, but college degree and certification are typical<br />Salary: Mental health - $40,270, rehabilitation - $34,600, substance abuse and behavioral disorder - $39,670<br /><br />6. Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses provide care for injured or ill patients in health-care facilities and private homes.<br />2008-2018 increase: 21.9 percent<br />Education: Nursing license from an accredited school or institution, other requirements vary by state<br />Salary: $40,110<br /><br />7. Billing and posting clerks and machine operators assess the cost of a patient's health care, draw up the bill and send it to them. <br />2008-2018 increase: 19.7 percent<br />Education: Varies by institution, but a high school diploma and basic computer skills are common<br />Salary: $32,120<br /><br />8. Social workers provide emotional and mental support to patients who have substance abuse problems or suffer from medical ailments.<br />2008-2018 increase: 19.5 percent<br />Education: Bachelor's degrees and often advanced degrees are required, in addition to state-mandated licenses and certifications<br />Salary: Medical and public health - $47,560, mental health and substance abuse - $39,630<br /><br />9. Receptionists and information clerks work in health-care facilities and address customer or patient questions or concerns and direct them to the appropriate department or personnel.<br />2008-2018 increase: 16.1 percent<br />Education: Minimum requirement of high school diploma, although some employers require more education or relevant experience<br />Salary: $25,400<br /><br />10. Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians work in medical laboratories to perform tests that help diagnose, treat or prevent illnesses.<br />2008-2018 increase: 14 percent<br />Education: Technologists need a bachelor's degree in a related subject and technicians need an associate degree<br />Salary: Technologists - $54,050, technicians - $44,310<br /><br />11. Pharmacists dispense medicine to patients based on the diagnoses and prescriptions of physicians and other medical professionals.<br />2008-2018 increase: 14 percent<br />Education: A Doctor of Pharmacy degree and license<br />Salary: $104,260<br /><br />By Anthony Balderrama, CareerBuilder.com writer <br /><br />*All information based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.<br />Anthony Balderrama is a writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com and its job blog, The Work Buzz. He researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/abalderrama.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

Fastest Growing Jobs in Health Care

In the two years since the economy began its downward slide, health care has been one of the few industries that continued to rise. Because ...

Read more »

Forum "Intérim et handicap"

<BR><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqfzu8Y6bMvJgPLtyc-6mHqZJfR_wRm93vVkYB0l1NIQeVHRNUK12-1wdMW39-KEHL28C9ig35Sg6TUGbjkQZ9g-5ny7Kb_eX_bwIJSYkj1vFoniCAsVRm2GLcFoY6hJzXgJjszGG4GiYr/s1600-h/au+centre+de+l%27emploi.gif"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382819620292507314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqfzu8Y6bMvJgPLtyc-6mHqZJfR_wRm93vVkYB0l1NIQeVHRNUK12-1wdMW39-KEHL28C9ig35Sg6TUGbjkQZ9g-5ny7Kb_eX_bwIJSYkj1vFoniCAsVRm2GLcFoY6hJzXgJjszGG4GiYr/s320/au+centre+de+l%27emploi.gif" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 75px;" /></a><br />Un Forum Intérim et handicap aura lieu :<br /><ul><li>le <span style="font-weight:bold;">Mardi 08 juin 2010</span> de 9h30 à 17h <br /><li><span style="font-weight:bold;">Complexe sportif du BRGM</span> - Rue Buffon - 45100 Orléans-la-Source</ul><br /><a href="http://www.aucentredelemploi.fr/doc/liste-8juin.pdf">Liste des entreprises présentes</a><br /><br />Un interface de communication en Langue des Signes Française (LSF) sera présent sur le forum.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Accès par bus</span> - Ligne 20 ou N - arrêt "BUFFON"<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Accès Tram</span> - arrêt "Université-l'indien" avec navette adaptée aux personnes à mobilité réduite.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Plan d'accès</span> : <br /><br /><iframe width="425" height="350" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" src="http://maps.google.fr/maps?q=brgm,+Avenue+Buffon,+Orl%C3%A9ans&hl=fr&cd=1&ei=vCgFTNKtLsPxOZL2sYAL&sll=47.830458,1.937587&sspn=0.015027,0.007368&ie=UTF8&view=map&cid=2256573941559129817&ved=0CCYQpQY&hq=brgm,+Avenue+Buffon,+Orl%C3%A9ans&hnear=&ll=47.830458,1.937587&spn=0.006295,0.006295&iwloc=A&output=embed"></iframe><br /><small><a href="http://maps.google.fr/maps?q=brgm,+Avenue+Buffon,+Orl%C3%A9ans&hl=fr&cd=1&ei=vCgFTNKtLsPxOZL2sYAL&sll=47.830458,1.937587&sspn=0.015027,0.007368&ie=UTF8&view=map&cid=2256573941559129817&ved=0CCYQpQY&hq=brgm,+Avenue+Buffon,+Orl%C3%A9ans&hnear=&ll=47.830458,1.937587&spn=0.006295,0.006295&iwloc=A&source=embed" style="color:#0000FF;text-align:left">Agrandir le plan</a></small><br /><BR>

Forum "Intérim et handicap"

Un Forum Intérim et handicap aura lieu : le Mardi 08 juin 2010 de 9h30 à 17h Complexe sportif du BRGM - Rue Buffon - 45100 Orléans-la-Sour...

Read more »

Sometimes I'm just tired of fighting the fight

Today was one of those days. A day where I didn't want to exercise, but I did anyway. A day where I was hungry all day, and I felt like a bottomless pit. I just wanted to eat all day, but I didn't.<br /><br />Today was one of those days where I wanted to lay down my sword and give up the good fight.<br /><br />I don't get these days too often anymore, but they still happen. When they happen I have to remind myself why I'm doing this, why I'm in a constant state of being on guard, why I've accepted it's okay to be hungry sometimes. I have to remind myself why I can't always give in to my desires to eat until I feel full, and that I have to exercise. It's not optional. This is now my life.<br /><br />There are many reasons I don't give up on myself. Number one is my self-confidence and self-esteem issues. I remember the sad 51-year old woman that weighed 240 pounds in February of 2008.<em> </em> I<em> </em>remember how much I hated myself for letting my body get in such bad shape. I've never felt uglier or sicker than I did at 240 pounds. Considering I've always had a very bad self-image, that's saying a lot.<br /><br />I remember the one pair of size 20 black slacks I owned, that I wore every single day. I remember the ugly size 3X tops, designed for someone much older than I felt in my heart. My body felt every day of 51 years, but in my heart, I still felt like I was in my twenties. During that time I couldn't imagine going on in life and reaching old age, not feeling and looking like I did. <br /><br />My health was a wreck in Feburary 2008. Everything hurt. My blood pressure was 180/110. I was a heart attack or stroke waiting to happen. My knees and ankles were in agony. Just walking at a slow pace on a level surface caused intense pain in my chest, knees and ankles.<br /><br />I had difficulty breathing. I didn't exercise. I thought I couldn't exercise without killing myself. Just walking from the parking lot at work in to my office, I often thought I was going to have a heart attack.<br /><br />My marriage was in serious trouble, mainly because of my low self-esteem. If you hate yourself how can you believe anyone else can love you? You can't, it's simply not possible. I assumed my husband was as disgusted and disappointed in me as I was in myself. It was a recipe for a very toxic relationship.<br /><br />In a word, I was MISERABLE on every level. <br /><br />When days like today happen, when I'm really not feeling it, when the desire to track my Points and stay within my limit doesn't feel within my grasp, and when I don't feel like exercising, I have to remind myself how far I've come in the last 2 1/2 years. Even though I'm not at goal yet, I've come a long way.<br /><br />Seventy-five pounds off my body has made a world of difference in how I view myself, my marriage, and my world. I don't hate myself anymore. I'm not disgusted by myself. I expect my husband to be proud of me. Yes, me. Just as I am now. I'm in the best physical condition of my entire life. My resting pulse is 49, my blood pressure is 120/60 (no medicines), and my cholesterol and triglycerides are below normal (137 and 68). I wear a size 10.<br /><br />I've worked hard to get here. I refuse to let a bad day screw with me. I'll never go back to the person I was when I started this process. I simply can't imagine that will ever happen, regardless of how much I like food, I like myself better. <br /><br />Anyone who has followed me for any length of time knows I've had slip-ups with my food. I even re-gained 25 pounds last fall. I was sure I was on my way back to 240 pounds plus the obligatory regain of an additional ten pounds. Somehow this time I found the strength within myself to fight back. I picked up my sword and went back to battle, losing 17 of the 25 pounds (so far). I'm going to keep waging the battle until I get to goal and maintenance for life. <br /><br /><strong>I'm not giving up the fight. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not ever.</strong>

Sometimes I'm just tired of fighting the fight

Today was one of those days. A day where I didn't want to exercise, but I did anyway. A day where I was hungry all day, and I felt like ...

Read more »

I remember when it started, this love-hate relationship with food

I remember the very first time I woke up in the middle of the night feeling hungry. I was fourteen years old and wanted to lose fifteen pounds. <br /><br />It was the summer of 1970, and my mother had planned a three-week vacation for the two of us to fly from Fairbanks to New York to Kansas City to Sacramento to Missoula to Seattle and back home to Fairbanks. We visited relatives in every city, some of whom I'd never met in my entire life. <br /><br />I wanted to be skinny for the trip in August. At the beginning of the summer I was 140 pounds (5' 6"). I wanted to weigh 125 pounds. I thought I was hideously fat at 140. All my girlfriends weighed under 120 pounds. I was obese in comparison.<br /><br />Back then I didn't know about cardio and strength training. I did things like sit-ups, leg lifts, donkey kicks, jumping jacks. This was pre-internet . I think I read about the exercises in some magazines. I didn't exercise very much or very often.<br /><br />I also didn't know much about nutrition back then, and the importance of a balanced diet. Instead I crash dieted cutting my calories down to 800 calories a day. In two months I lost 10 pounds and was down to 130 pounds. I wanted desperately to get down to 125. The night before the trip I woke up at 1 a.m. I was starving. I remember not allowing myself to eat. I was so hungry that I couldn't sleep. Finally, after tossing for over an hour I got up and ate a tomato, and went back to bed. <br /><br />I weighed that morning before getting ready for our flight. I was 129 pounds. I was so mad at myself for not getting down to 125 pounds. I thought I was fat. <br /><br />I've looked at pictures of myself from that trip. I was so skinny. I actually looked malnourished. I didn't look healthy. I was pale and thin. Yet I still felt fat. <br /><br />That was my first big diet, forty years ago. I'm still trying to lose weight, but now my goal is 135-140. Funny how things change, but stay the same. I'm still waking up in the middle of the night, wanting to eat because I'm hungry and trying not to eat. because I don't want to gain weight. Sometimes I win at this and sometimes I lose.<br /><br />Tonight I didn't win. I ate, but it was controlled eating, about 400 calories, or 8 Points. It wasn't planned eating, but I have the Points available, so I ate. I am not beating myself up about it. Even though I know I'll probably see a slight gain tomorrow, it's all okay. <br /><br />I will always have this love-hate relationship with food. I love it for the  obvious reasons. It makes me feel good, it gives me energy, it tastes good, and I get a lot of pleasure from eating. I hate it because I think about it too much, and thoughts of it often consume me. It makes me fat if I eat too much of it.  <br /><br />You would think after all these years I'd have this figured out. I'm closer to understanding it than when I was a girl of 14. I've learned to accept my body with all it's flaws and to appreciate it's strength. I'm still working on my food issues, trying to accept that it's okay to eat if I'm hungry. If I can come to peace with the food, I just might be okay. Maybe someday.

I remember when it started, this love-hate relationship with food

I remember the very first time I woke up in the middle of the night feeling hungry. I was fourteen years old and wanted to lose fifteen poun...

Read more »

Reflections On Oklahoma IV

The Olkahoma IV National Consultation On Native Ministries is over and I am in the Chattanooga airport sorting it out. There was a lot of pain and frustration in the room. The human lot involves a share of that -- but these folks had more than their share and the form it took for them was a specific brand of oppression called conquest, colonialism, or "the doctrine of discovery."<br /><br />The question was how to move forward. There were a lot of ideas -- including institutional solutions like separation from the Episcopal Church, a non-geographic diocese for indigenous peoples, an indigenous bishop, etc. There was also a major focus on ordination -- not so much on Ministy of All Baptized. I sometimes had the sense that some wanted to be ordained as a way to be healed and validated. Heaven knows we all need healing and validation, but speaking as one who has been ordained 3 times now, I'm pretty sure it doesn't work for those purposes. I am quite open to all of the instutional options that were suggested, but I wish we could look more at the interpersonal dynamics, local ministries, and a spiritual solution. There will be more conferences. There will be time for all these conversations. The Jamestown Covenant is a good framework for a broader discussion.<br /><br />One thing came up appropo of my previous post about apologies. The presenter who advocated separation from the Episcopal Church emphasized that the Church has never apologized to Native Americans for our complicity in colonization. This failure was contrasted to the Anglican Church of Canada's apology. I was pretty sure I rememberd that we had and certainly thought we should if we had not. But then a Native American bishop responded in our small group. She had been deeply involved in Jamestown I when Presiding Bishop Edmund Browning and the President of the House of Deputies extended precisely this apology years before the Candadian apology. So we have at least done this -- and under less pressure than Canda was experiencing in that sad time. The issue is not whether we acknowledge past wrongs and ask forgiveness. The issue is amends. How do we go on to create a new relationship out of the ashes of colonialism and conquest?<br /><br />The ideas for a future all had merit and all had some downsides. My hope is that these different approaches can somehow be integrated into a new way forward for indigenous peoples and that the rest of the Church can make rooom in its structures to honor the unique way of this population. The challenge of being the church -- like the challenge of being human -- is always to live in the creative tension of unity and diversity.

Reflections On Oklahoma IV

The Olkahoma IV National Consultation On Native Ministries is over and I am in the Chattanooga airport sorting it out. There was a lot of pa...

Read more »

Planning de la semaine du 31 mai au 04 juin 2010

<BR><br /><h2><strong><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 113%;color:#005c9b;" >Permanences<br /></span></strong></h2><ul><br /><li>Le <strong>Conseil Général du Loiret</strong> sera présent dans les locaux de la Maison de l'Emploi du bassin d'Orléans<br />- le lundi 31 mai de 9h à 12h30,<br />- le mardi 1er juin de 9h à 12h30 et de 13h30 à 17h,<br />- le mercredi 02 juin de 13h30 à 17h<br />- le jeudi 03 juin de 13h30 à 17h<br />- le vendredi 04 juin de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2007/11/solidarits-nouvelles-face-au-chmage.html">Solidarités Nouvelles face au Chômage</a></strong> - mercredi 02 juin de 10h à 12h30<br /><br /><li><strong><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2007/11/boutique-de-gestion.html">Boutique de Gestion</a></strong> - vendredi 04 juin de 09h à 12h30 (sur rendez-vous)</ul><br /><h2><strong><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 113%;color:#005c9b;" >Ateliers</span></strong><br /></h2><br /><ul><li><strong>CV</strong> - mardi 1er juin de 9h à 12h30 et mercredi 03 juin de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong>Lettre de Motivation</strong> - mardi 1er juin de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong>Préparation à l'entretien</strong> - jeudi 03 juin de 13h30 à 17h<br /><br /><li><strong>Pôle-emploi.fr</strong> - vendredi 04 juin de 10h à 11h30<br /><br /><li><strong><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2009/07/atelier-situtilises-tu-trouves.html">Sit'Utilises tu trouves</a></strong> - vendredi 04 juin de 14h à 16h</ul><br /><h2><strong><span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 113%;color:#005c9b;" >Information collective</span></strong><br /></h2><br /><ul><li><strong>Boutique de Gestion</strong> - lundi 31 mai à 14h</ul>

Planning de la semaine du 31 mai au 04 juin 2010

Permanences Le Conseil Général du Loiret sera présent dans les locaux de la Maison de l'Emploi du bassin d'Orléans - le lundi 31 ma...

Read more »

Weekend musings

<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><strong>Who's counting Points?!</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Yes! That would be ME! After two mediocre weigh-ins in a row, I decided it's seriously time to get my game on. Yesterday's weigh-in was a paltry 0.4 pound loss. I can do better than that!</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Not counting my Points for two weeks resulted in a total loss of 1.2 pounds. I weigh 163.6. I've been up and down a few pounds from this for years!</strong></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Well, actually my four months of traveling last fall had me with a gain of 25 pounds, and I was up to 180.4 January 9, 2010, so in five months I've lost 17 pounds. I'm happy about that, but still, I really should be at goal. </strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Exactly one year ago on May 31, 2009 I weighed in at 155.2. I honestly don't know what I've been doing the past year. Gaining, losing, gaining, losing. Semi-maintenance. Not a terrible thing, but darn it, I'm not at goal! This means I really shouldn't be in maintenance mode yet. </strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Big Results Require Big Changes</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><strong><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;"></span></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>So this keeps popping back in my head. It's something my Weight Watcher leader has said over and over. If you want big results, you have to make big changes. I even read the same thing in a magazine lately (Shape, Women's Health or Weight Watchers - can't remember which). </strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><strong><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;"></span></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>This means I need to change things up. What I'm doing simply isn't working. I haven't been tracking my Points with gusto for months. I start the day, then I give up. Mainly because I'm pretty limited on Points now. I get 20, and even though I eat all of my 35 weeklies, it just doesn't feel like much food. I think I don't track my food because then it makes it easier to cheat.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><strong><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;"></span></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>I usually track my food on-line on line, at work and at home. I also carry the 3-month tracking journal in my purse, and I have the Weight Watchers mobile app on my Blackberry - there is simply no reason not to track. Other than I'm lazy, and I have a secret desire to cheat.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><strong><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;"></span></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>So I have a new tactic. I'm eating almost all Filling Foods. This is the suggestion of my Weight Watcher leader, Janis (who I totally LOVE!). I'm still tracking, not quite ready to give that up, but when you look at my tracker, it's almost entirely green diamond foods. It's true what they say, they do help with a feeling of fullness.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span><br /><strong><span style="background-color: white; color: purple;"></span></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: purple;">I'm still off added sugar 100%. I almost gave in after hearing about the new pretzel-chocolate-caramel 2-Point bars at Weight Watchers. How they're the best ever bar Weight Watchers has ever made. I was in line with a box in my hand, I glanced at the label. First ingredient, enriched wheat flour (bad, never eat anything with the word "enriched" in front of it), second ingredient, SUGAR. OH MY FREAK! NO! I quickly put the box back on the shelf and left. That stuff would be crack for me. Pure and simple, I'm a sugar addict. I can't have it in my possession.</span> </span></strong></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Amp Up Your Activity!</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>This week's Weight Watcher topic was Amp Up Your Activity. Anyway who reads my blog knows I'm a gym rat. I hit the gym six days a week, every week unless I'm out out town. </strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Lately though, my workouts have been kind of lackluster. My heart (literally) just hasn't been into working out. I go, I do my thing, but sometimes I don't give it my all. Sometimes I do it half-hearted. Sometimes I even leave the gym early, before my minimum required hour is completed.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Last week I made an effort to try swimming. That didn't work out too well for me. I kind of hated it. So that's off my list. </strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Yesterday's workout was fabulous. I did an hour of cardio, a new weekend rule for me. An hour of cardio and 40 minutes of strength on the weekends. I have the time, and yesterday I had the desire. It was probably my best workout in weeks.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Preferably I'd like to be outside on my bike, but our weather here in the Northwest sucks lately. As soon as I see some sun, I'll be back on my bike. Right now it looks like it's going to downpour any second. It's been like this for weeks, and the forecast is more of the same. I'm so jealous reading every one's blogs about the great weather they're having. Even Fairbanks, Alaska is having weather in the high 70's with sun. What the heck?</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Blogging</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>I'm not sure why or when this happened, but I've kind stopped posting on my blog on a consistent basis. I know it's key and what's helped me keep on track for the past three years. It's essential I post something every day.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: magenta; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong> Not being accountable is my downfall. I can hide a 5-pound gain from my husband, but I can't hide it from you. Weird how that works, but that's just me. I feel the strange need to be 100% honest here about my struggles, my failures, my successes. People who only know me through this blog, know more about my daily struggles with weight than anyone in my non-blog world.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>My goal weight?</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: Verdana;"><strong>Not sure why I'm wordier than normal today. Maybe because I'm hyped up that I'm determined to get to goal. I'm not even sure what my goal is going to be. It was 135 pounds when I started, but as I get closer and this gets harder, I'll have to see where I land. </strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: Verdana;"><strong>Technically at my height, 5' 6", Weight Watchers high end of the scale for a healthy weight is 155. That's tempting, but it's not where I want to be. My goal has always been a size 8, but truthfully, size 8's are a lot bigger these days than when I started trying to lose weight 30 years ago.</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: Verdana;"><strong>Truthfully, I love the idea of losing 100 pounds, which would be 139. I guess I'll have to see how it goes.</strong></span><br /><br /><strong><span style="color: orange; font-family: Verdana;">**********</span></strong><br /><br /><span style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Mickey, helping me enter my food into the online tracker. So cute. :)</strong></span><br /><span style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana;"></span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHr-EUup65P78Hf266B9m3GU0tnjwQAgV1eSOCCHJUSn5yl_DQlMpPkOImqJuTcYl-jHspX-Qc945MtHcZQEVxxSkBIrNxbyT6DtnXY5c9nMs1I4DVeaudIkb9PpgtcO69Fkm95fdmNUWX/s1600/Mickey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHr-EUup65P78Hf266B9m3GU0tnjwQAgV1eSOCCHJUSn5yl_DQlMpPkOImqJuTcYl-jHspX-Qc945MtHcZQEVxxSkBIrNxbyT6DtnXY5c9nMs1I4DVeaudIkb9PpgtcO69Fkm95fdmNUWX/s320/Mickey.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div>

Weekend musings

Who's counting Points?! Yes! That would be ME! After two mediocre weigh-ins in a row, I decided it's seriously time to get my game o...

Read more »

What Was Wes Thinking?

Tonight, on the luxuriantly arboreal and Anglophiliac campus of the University of the South, here in the Rebel’s Rest guesthouse, I iron my clerical shirt, cassock, rochet, and chimere. Such garments wrinkle when packed for travel. So I iron and as I iron I think of the string theorists who aspire to formulate a single comprehensive theory to explain the entire physical universe – and I know that I can never come anywhere near understanding just this day. It has been complex.<br /><br /> I suspect that these two things are important parts of the context: Before I arrived (while I was stranded in airports by Carolina thunderstorms) the people gathered here for the 2010 Native Ministries Consultation were dealing with the “doctrine of discovery,” acknowledging the grievances of First Nations Peoples, what native singer Bill Miller referred to tonight as “historic trauma.” The other part of the context is that we have a really tight agenda which strikes one as a cultural oddity but then that could be stereotyping. I’m just saying that it’s part of the context of the day. Here is one mysterious story from the day.<br /><br /> This morning I talked with a Maori man who told me with some pride about the time he had told off Wes Frensdorff. Since Wes is so highly regarded in Nevada, I was surprised and curious. He told the story of a Roland Allen Conference (Roland Allen was a missionary to China who invented the ministry model on which Total Ministry was based) in Hawaii. The Maori people in attendance felt deeply alienated and excluded at the conference. I am not sure I understand why – but I think that following agendas and sitting around tables for structured discussions is just not what they do in New Zealand. So they boycotted part of the meeting, and then showed up for a session Wes was leading.<br /><br /> The Maori man stood up and interrupted the session, saying he had some things to express. Wes said there would be a time for that later but right now they were going to do what the agenda said. The man was not having it. An argument ensued. I don’t know how it ended, but it included the Maori man saying to Wes. “You’ve told us what to do long enough. Bishop, sit down and shut up.”<br /><br /> About a year later, Wes visited New Zealand. He telephoned the man several times, leaving messages saying he’d like to have a conversation. The calls were not returned. So Wes found someone who knew where the man lived and got them to drive him to his house. Wes met him there and apologized. Just a few months later, he died in the plane crash.<br /><br /> Why did Wes apologize? I feel sure I would have done the same thing at the conference, tried to keep the meeting going according to plan rather than let a heckler take it over with no authority other than the intensity of his feelings. But would I have been right? In one of our meetings today, a First Nations person said we “disguise oppression as order.” Did Wes realize that sticking to the agenda was wrong? Or was it a case like Matthew 5 of being on your way to the altar and remembering that your brother has a grievance against you?<br /><br /> I don’t understand the other man’s anger either. There was clearly some sense of insult in the act of regulating a meeting with an agenda. Was it part of an old grievance, a historic trauma? Was it part of the “doctrine of discovery?” As I listened to the story, I identified with Wes and felt an anxiety as if I were the one being challenged, having the meeting wrested from my control. And when I heard of Wes’s apology, I thought that I would like to apologize like that – even though I don’t know what he was thinking.<br /><br /> Tonight we attended a remarkable concert by the Grammy Award winning Mohican musician Bill Miller. Bill talked as much as he sang because he had a message for the audience. It was that living in historic trauma is a dead end. The historic trauma is real, but the way to life is to claim victory over it. Needless to say, one cannot tell anyone else that about their historic trauma. It’s something we have to come to for ourselves, but Bill Miller was able to say it. He told the story of his hatred of his father, a violent, abusive, drunken man. He looked forward to his father’s death, but when it happened, he discovered that his father had been forgiven by God and found happiness for the first time in his life at the end of his life. Bill was able to forgive his father and found freedom from his historic trauma. He was able to live anew instead of living in his old grievance. It was one of the most moving testimonies I’ve ever heard.<br /><br /> I wonder something about apology. I wonder if anything we ever do is so unambiguously right that there isn’t something to regret in it. Philosophers call it a “moral remainder” – the bad part of even the best things we do. So maybe sometimes the question isn’t whether we have been wrong enough that we are obliged to apologize – asking that just puts us on the defensive – maybe the question is: would an apology help the other person move on beyond their sense of grievance? Would it set someone free?

What Was Wes Thinking?

Tonight, on the luxuriantly arboreal and Anglophiliac campus of the University of the South, here in the Rebel’s Rest guesthouse, I iron my ...

Read more »

Kyle’s Birthday

<p>Wednesday was Kyle’s “golden birthday”! I took the day off work and we spent the day together! We started out our day together with a run! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR-G0tm6eaMojSn_2-CgO43jW-MJW6XcUWB90jxTlq1eoB3YDZPnV4Qiowej3umkAiav5_PomcZXTT2vp5a3ID2TsVwkQqoyIBDvWT3cqSycJAid3U3wByEB2CjD3pt81ATJmeUvzK4bve/s1600-h/DSC07396%5B4%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07396" border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_P7FGKzyL1YxU3Z5xI6ijNNWeHvOjQJ01tTksoNPVXqokLbrVxJgE6i5HsJx0ljK-H89iiJz5QETBGLvV9EMc7nrYICyGlmn1SmWhVgbaZFzdBEB5w9oM5hrVj1Zdd09jFI5bOqmjzUSc/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07396" width="404" /></a></p> <p>We ran 2.6 miles for Kyle’ s 26th birthday! Kyle said it would have been much cooler if we could have ran 26 miles!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBpTpWBCL_b0gfshjNXiY53rGtTp3gB3VyOXj69Ko5HjLjOnfij_DJBeQpbkUVY9s512rPvCNc3CdNVFb7YBiP7qx2kBtz1wWZN-dXGPJ5xJ_r4obrVaulT7M6t86F0S37VBfwQkut3Sl0/s1600-h/DSC07401%5B4%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07401" border="0" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNzPCgDtS4O-Pqg9v1PiZz1wDGF7s3egtOUFQUqmJ4fYd3MsVZ9anNNXylvbntj4zzcvkEKGbUShEy7VtTN3NlnzGo6p2A42DXiTsY-CAOqImGAg7nKFVqpcf8U_Bus4VpwmZOBmU98Gzu/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07401" width="404" /></a></p> <p>After our run I made breakfast for me and the birthday boy! He loves chocolate chip pancakes! Good stuff!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLq6Qrm_zuSPg9szBt7uiDxPEIGVkSHksf9NBZI8gcJK40UhHbZA5mCM-N2rID6txE7iOAqU_UlJen93qJx8tRJMsdkx94VDyvq2IcOh69HIxz8osaiif-rPMJQJz-I9CajKwc3TUi-8Pv/s1600-h/DSC07403%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07403" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj86tBJLh8x8SAVfLLxinOWJ7dWgS8JakNGS3OyCPgIMO2pKaaQ1MglpTJQoBShWcrvE7BI1ixFiuiAnRDUhkYrmGwOIH_LfwUaMFvSm-cUqNMZsZwL-fPXj_llQZ4S3IFKDErkI242C1Bl/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07403" width="404" /></a></p> <p>We spent our day running a few errands. Kyle got a new cell phone and we had to get a few things ready on Kyle’s car. It was an overall easygoing, relaxing day!</p> <p>We couldn’t wait for our early supper. We had purchased some “Chicago style” pizza from <a href="http://www.giordanos.com/">Giordanos</a> and had them shipped here on dry ice. We tried this when we were in Chicago in February and Kyle LOVED them. It was perfect to have on his birthday!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyvBaqFRfN1PfoIIRTKWmOu9wfFzURd2gwKia92VGLLPHHfR41CM7XirA0g_OO4dCUf3iJS6ONNUdq4f4TqnmHI9vmstPwYZo8DHES22EFW01cm22Xw4DgJTZQ_EzqCd5PBb2flzo740Xs/s1600-h/DSC07404%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07404" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD7yTXt4D8ScUCn8HA8-Iu-tXqeLj6GXPDhfYiy9O4-UFScRqRg-mhFSiB_PCvQdFdjnkzrv8K3U9DxZqELs-xq_BCn6tRp9hk9NwXS4kWcvzDMcKEr0tXf9BRz5BHQap5zErKUPF_r_A1/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07404" width="404" /></a></p> <p>MMMMmmm good!! I had 1 piece and 2 bites of another one and was STUFFED!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD8qN_GYZFUObaEIH3Ty7FO4L1VQKkcoSZrsW3RBi6tZA_nOXw32dWL7HFPaJyTZ8Z1IV6OnjnJsN3vJZwyqtkwiVH-zUvn1ptz5L6fkuY7sdQsKnCZx-8_R7NJ6h1P2aPxOUq2pm69qy7/s1600-h/DSC07405%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07405" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqUzim4-dO_7Hs7CHcDggEZJegVt3Cwb7SOoXtyQB5TyDeaIQh1UCc2vDRmiU56_I-zFgfKhykOucquizZftkBnyHhP442Oh-t3C3fzMjOuBUOWNbIfnUDQw6TaV1LXOW1Shaq-nAzzYDD/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07405" width="404" /></a></p> <p>And Kyle’s birthday would not be complete without a trip to the Dariette!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkGWNEgK10lr8xBJtKf5hGohI-Nk9S-O2wb8T_cdOI9Aiky77uCjpAbjeRM29PA7yEEUNH5TQd19XnMLrXw2awmMAONmuXBPz2Dp2M4NtxJrrbrZGFXdxfg50paBdzo9gFIsDaEwtUUaMO/s1600-h/DSC07406%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07406" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGOOyYRIEM4Reu-hGhQSIFve76lSxVYIEWKTjnztSeS22er0Oigb1vp2rOmkJaCxJ-RAT6zt7PMMac8cn90SyhA3cY0MXIqx31MJflsdQnsB8nob8aUztTxmE45VoE2twtLAUdBC_Gy_-N/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07406" width="404" /></a></p> <p>We each got our classic favorites, Kyle got a peanut butter cup whip and I got a lemon ice cream cone!</p> <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" width="400" border="0"><tbody> <tr> <td valign="top" width="200"><img alt="DSC07407" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzT-nkdIdDYzHxeKE8TgMeaMrn-cP1Ei19adTEqt7uRKAcjlczsGBV-hhVdjSTTAeJtDeqpQNTAjPQNcbkkDevvmyrrNiadh3Dg593ofQ6J2JDgxl1o70leE0ScvKarS4XC5hV-feylWak/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07407" width="204" /></td> <td align="center" width="200"><img alt="DSC07409" border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXYr85n_h_D1eKq-wMFXSAsV5tzZBgTe9t0jbh7Z-ayREipbVjzLJpyEyDTozGLkpyDp_QoYnqfMUAbMhc_Y3V1q_OjCc-FyJGCOOVeFm_0l1yutJjauv6BdeUYkriTaJc2LYkt8VFgT5P/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07409" width="204" /></td> </tr> </tbody></table> <p>If you missed my post earlier today you should check our what I did for Kyle on Saturday! <a href="http://bangertfam.blogspot.com/2010/05/surprise.html">Click here</a>! I think Kyle had a great birthday, he very much deserved it! </p> <p>Lots going on for me right now!</p> <ul> <li>Tomorrow I work.</li> <li>I need to pack tomorrow night.</li> <li>Bright & early Saturday morning I am headed out on a work trip to Austin, TX for 5 days.</li> <li>I get home late Wednesday night/early Thursday morning.</li> <li>Friday night Kyle and I leave for our race! </li> </ul> <p>Hope everyone has had a great week and is looking forward to their long weekend! Tomorrow’s Friday!</p>

Kyle’s Birthday

Wednesday was Kyle’s “golden birthday”! I took the day off work and we spent the day together! We started out our day together with a run! ...

Read more »

Episcopal Leadership

News flash from College for Bishops: The good news is that my scores as a "transfomational leader" are much improved from the marks I got when I'd only been in Nevada for 6 weeks. (Grading was done each time by some of the staff and a few clergy). I'm glad it didn't go the other way.<br /><br />But the big footnote on that "improved" score is that I don't believe in the transformatoinal leadership model anyway. It's too individual, too heroic, too hiearchical, too top down. We have a program this afternoon on "complexity leadership" which strikes me as far more appropriate for the church, especially a church committed to Ministry of All Baptized. It's about groups working together as equals instead of working under the same boss. Leadership is not top down. It is leading out to each other as equals and, when the administrative structure is hiearrachical, it's leading up, speaking up, offering our insights. Complexity leadership is about the interactions among group members that affect the whole group for good or for ill. This is much more the kind of leadership I believe in -- and most of my worst mistakes have come from having gotten hoodwinked into trying to lead the old fashioned transformational way.<br /><br />My main job needs to be enabling groups of people to come together for creative, innovative interaction. The Ministry Development Commission has been especially creative and proactive recently. I feel good about my small part in midwifing the birth of that group -- but the creative leadership is being done by them.<br /><br />Often people think the bishop is a ruler, the one who calls the shots. But that's not what our vows say, and it is rarely what the canons allow. We are more often facilitators and spiritual guides. The whole point of the English Reformation was to shift authority away form purple shirted individuals barking orders into the hands of groups of Christians, working through issues in fellowship.<br /><br />The Church is a context for people to grow into the full stature of Christ. People don't grow through cow towing to domination. People grow thourgh convesation and fellowship, learning to speak thier own minds then work togther, especially when we don't all agree.<br /><br />Tyranny is far more efficient than democracy. But democracy is more human. The Church needs to be human, deeply human -- that is better than efficient.

Episcopal Leadership

News flash from College for Bishops: The good news is that my scores as a "transfomational leader" are much improved from the mark...

Read more »

Just so ya know!

Happy Thursday everyone!! I hope everyone is have a GREAT week!! I sure am! Yesterday Kyle [my husband] celebrated his 26th birthday! I took the day off and we had a nice time. I will be doing a lunch post on my day for Wednesday. <br /><br />But I didn't want you guys to think I "fell off the wagon" again and so I wanted to "check in"! <br /><br />Check out <a href="http://bangertfam.blogspot.com/2010/05/surprise.html">this link</a> to see a recap of Kyle's surprise party from Saturday!!

Just so ya know!

Happy Thursday everyone!! I hope everyone is have a GREAT week!! I sure am! Yesterday Kyle [my husband] celebrated his 26th birthday! I took...

Read more »

Maybe swimming isn't for me

I tried something different this morning. I did my normal cardio workout (intervals), today it was the elliptical for thirty five minutes, then a few lower body weights for about twenty minutes, then swimming again, for only twenty minutes.<br /><br />The reason for only twenty minutes of swimming:  I almost drowned in five foot of water. I'm serious.<br /><br />While I was in the middle of my fifth lap of doing the backstroke, I somehow flung a bunch of water up my nose as I was inhaling. I panicked, started coughing, choking, and gasping for air. I tried to stand up but couldn't touch the bottom of the pool. My mind couldn't register this because I was sure the pool was four foot, even in the deepest area. I'm 5' 6", I should have been able to stand up and touch bottom.<br /><br />There were only two other people in the pool with me, swimming the lanes on each side of me. As I coughed and choked, they kept swimming. I grabbed onto the plastic rope that separates the lanes and gathered my composure. I was mainly embarrassed, and a little bit afraid. Then I saw the sign on the edge of the pool next to me. It said "5 Ft.". Okay. I can touch the bottom. I stood up, on my toes, with my head tilted back and quietly walked a few feet until I was in the four foot area. I swam a few more laps but I'd lost my momentum.<br /><br />After the pool I went into the dry sauna for six minutes (thermometer said it was 205F degrees...I think it must have been broken). Then I went into the steam room for six minutes.<br /><br />All day I was absolutely physically exhausted. It wasn't a hard workout so I'm not sure why I was (and still am) so wiped out.<br /><br />Someone recently told something that's making me rethink this whole swimming thing. They said recent research has shown older people are happier people. The reason is because older people have figured out what they like to do and what they don't like. Now that they're older they focus on just the stuff they like, and forget the stuff they don't like.<br /><br />I've never liked swimming. I don't like water in my face in up my nose, or the taste of chlorine. I don't like wearing a swimsuit. I don't like the fear I get that I could drown in five feet of water. I don't like that I can't wear my heart rate monitor or my iPod. I don't like the silence. I don't like other people in the water with me. I don't like that it's so hard for me and that it hurts. I don't like it that I don't like. Everyone loves swimming, right?<br /><br />What do you think? Should I just forget about the swimming? Maybe I should try an aerobics class or something else? My gym has spinning classes, but only at noon, so that's not an option. In my twenties aerobics was all the rage, high impact aerobics. Remember "no pain, no gain"? I must have heard that a hundred times in all those stupid step aerobic classes I took in the 80's. <br /><br />I really need to do something different. The gym with it's daily grind is losing it's charm. I go, but I don't go enthusiastically. At least not lately. Maybe when and if it ever stops raining around here in this hell hole called the Pacific Northwest, I can get back to riding my bike. I just need something new, but maybe not swimming.

Maybe swimming isn't for me

I tried something different this morning. I did my normal cardio workout (intervals), today it was the elliptical for thirty five minutes, t...

Read more »

Un site d'offres d'emploi dédié au secteur des cafés, hôtels et restaurants

<BR><br />Un site <a href="http://www.emploi-cafe-resto.fr" "target=_blank">www.emploi-cafe-resto.fr</a> a été mis en place par Pôle Emploi en partenariat avec les plus grandes fédérations et syndicats professionnels de l'univers des cafés, hôtels et restaurants.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf07KGh53t-cOoZIBJxyYKXPeImaGvvJjbYlsGFBzqLB4mL7rjaYcC9qkfCN-QkMjEZm0EBJTIr6IlbMwljqR8XRjQLd5el3uZWNpzUvUR1ZigSqJ5QpN3ZS1ipo2ByR720GuL9LmCnlOn/s1600/emploi-cafes-hotels-restaurants.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475620698229802434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf07KGh53t-cOoZIBJxyYKXPeImaGvvJjbYlsGFBzqLB4mL7rjaYcC9qkfCN-QkMjEZm0EBJTIr6IlbMwljqR8XRjQLd5el3uZWNpzUvUR1ZigSqJ5QpN3ZS1ipo2ByR720GuL9LmCnlOn/s200/emploi-cafes-hotels-restaurants.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 185px; height: 200px;" /></a><br /><br />Les demandeurs d'emploi peuvent consulter les offres d'emploi du secteur et postuler en ligne, mais aussi s'informer sur les métiers.<br /><br />Les employeurs peuvent déposer gratuitement leurs annonces, consulter les candidatures ...<br /><BR>

Un site d'offres d'emploi dédié au secteur des cafés, hôtels et restaurants

Un site www.emploi-cafe-resto.fr a été mis en place par Pôle Emploi en partenariat avec les plus grandes fédérations et syndicats professio...

Read more »

Facing the Scale

<p>I have to start my post out today by saying <strong><u>THANK YOU</u></strong> guys <strong><u>SO</u></strong> much for all the encouraging comments from my post <a href="http://weightloss-stories.blogspot.com/2010/05/confessions.html">yesterday</a>. You guys are the <strong><u>best</u></strong>!!</p> <p>My breakfast this morning was more like desert! I mixed up my <strong>oatmeal</strong> with a <strong>sliced banana</strong>, <strong>1 T peanut butter</strong>, and <strong>1 t</strong> of <strong>mini chocolate chips</strong> for a total of <strong>6 points</strong>. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2g4aj672GzglEbyhUsX2wZW0brLoIZGEXMOp0gtHAoX0-4VD5My2szc8C6oFybzKVZLdmsgkcIrS1yPkGbaV0KEbKKeGCabCKJXAYeqDSaOC261cSYOjUoqCde3-nY8-yIlCelKt5JEa7/s1600-h/DSC07388%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07388" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi85oVbdJAKlz4eWAHx-Ya4bJbyyKemHfNhNdBwh4fOy7JmglHJ6ZlMG0puPppFKU9p678V6l0MNQslP_8KrXTmo7FmEgFS3I0Ff4cdxYnPH7CdyvfWwUesgtGhXv1Bem32MjOznJNbEh3n/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07388" width="404" /></a></p> <p>I couldn't believe that my oatmeal held me over till lunch! I might have to have this breakfast more often!</p> <p>Lunch today was a <strong>smart ones</strong> for <strong>5 points</strong> and <strong>1 cup</strong> of <strong>fruit salad</strong> for <strong>1 point</strong>. Click <a href="http://weightloss-stories.blogspot.com/2010/05/confessions.html">here</a> to get the recipe. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpL1NAbFn6ZSK0NpL_qCkUtNZG_48VRchoDi6buH0ajAn6o54XrsVtPqvlDT4r070oH4um5zTkmk5cxpoMNwomvXkphBtGSFFt3znNjGB-do4CF8vWTlMVvtZ_KRF73D5qGek84bU8yK91/s1600-h/DSC07389%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07389" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ByCEBuIQRIbUwrvx9RFv31GlPXFuCdUOZ89-rkgt3ScR4GBb4wlAoPbwq5wqZGJdSr-Hyp1R_aQpdXRGR9q6YvE1G2t9gsz5VyHzFyRJAmLDrFTxKTtL1vqTwoYABbuByjFpkcBexeFG/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07389" width="404" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCC3A3xg0PdmX3Zq5LFJPEvFLAIhIa8aDVzpqRZ77lU31zsn5T88fJSQJ_NNyAgk8MQKsdqCPUc_madLvn4Kta6m0rcybmEYNFM58WnKnk-gq_i4VAEO7c-1kCIMT7rugxxHBn08zAR9Z6/s1600-h/DSC07390%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07390" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJYexBXSvHx8dL-c55c8n1WW6vO9ayDv5hjS8_fUNMWtnOoNOTn2RMlF4DAFxrerISCPA78vXZwLRKQOCkpAQVstqdP5hLPrsVXLJ4uvSa3ELLkZnvrF6IcQaJ__2ZlIPKDZgdqPsRQkf7/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07390" width="404" /></a></p> <p>I had a great afternoon at work! Oh and how could I forget….my sister started a new job today [she moved home from Florida last week]…at the same place I work!! So not only are we <strong><u>sisters</u></strong>, but now we’re<strong><u> co-workers</u></strong>!</p> <p>When we got off work we came home and made supper right away so we could get settled in to watch the Biggest Loser finale!!</p> <p>My supper was a <strong><u>great mix</u></strong>, <strong>2oz whole wheat pasta</strong>, <strong>3oz chicken</strong>, <strong>1/4 ff mozzarella shredded cheese</strong>, and <strong>zucchini squash</strong> for a total of <strong>7 points</strong>. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX14l-5aOi1D-NFA1ibLKrLJpOZvGf4st0foBNTi3IA5SA5V-OP-rJkDf65KdSndrnDbjJwwqDWATFzC2TdXLQcpRYhXvPO09qoAUPVzEYf2IqPUXTfRMzIvVpwgC_8ff_-kxiodVzxwyw/s1600-h/DSC07391%5B3%5D.jpg"><img alt="DSC07391" border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi57uN85hJWQ3uKGdsYkWePx71f0zyF_4yUQOekE9RaKQ_FK85QSe23WZ5El4PrhhBZ7IYaUwY3b4cy_344geFYDYBnpfQisEtsI-xkVVQ1ijFR62Xv00SYiZaGOXObN2TPJ5VNCkeBt41K/?imgmax=800" style="border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-left: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-bottom: 0px" title="DSC07391" width="404" /></a></p> <p>Tuesday’s are my WI day. I stepped on the scale this morning and was SO scared at what it was going to say. It wasn’t pretty, but I need to be accountable so I’m going to tell you guys! The scale said 173. Yuck! But not for long….it’s going to go down, down, down!!</p> <p>Wish me luck guys!!</p> <p><strong>TUESDAY’S STATS</strong></p> <p>POINTS = 19/23 <br />WEEKLY ALLOWANCE POINTS = 0 used/35 remaining <br />ACTIVITY POINTS EARNED =    0 today/0 week <br />WATER =  120 oz <br />EXERCISE = none</p> <p>One more thing…I’ve been catching up in blog land and it seems like a lot of people have also had a rough few weeks! Well I don’t think <a href="http://www.bobbimccormick.com/">Bobbi’s</a> post yesterday could have come at a better time! <a href="http://www.bobbimccormick.com/?p=7706">Check it out!</a></p>

Facing the Scale

I have to start my post out today by saying THANK YOU guys SO much for all the encouraging comments from my post yesterday . You guys are ...

Read more »

What's the Big Deal About Being Overqualified?

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/hs/ar5m3x9763ydx0vhd9hs.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/hs/ar5m3x9763ydx0vhd9hs.gif" /></a></div>Scouting through job listings, you spot a position in your field. The prospective employer is looking for somebody with a bachelor's degree and four years of relevant experience. Having a master's degree and seven years under your belt, you hurry to apply, figuring that your higher credentials will at least score an interview.<br /><br />But your phone never rings.<br /><br />Instead of working to your advantage, being overqualified for a job can be a red flag that keeps employers from wanting to know you better. While it may be difficult to overcome their objectives, knowing the basis for their concerns can help make your job search more fruitful (and perhaps make rejection more palatable).<br /><br />The money issue<br /><br />When Charlotte Tomic moved to Florida about three years ago, she applied for various junior public-relations positions because of the lack of openings for senior professionals in her field. Due to the experience shown on her résumé, she found employers weren't interested.<br /><br />"There's never even been a discussion except for one job where I was actually offered the position," Tomic says. "They said they knew I was overqualified, but they needed help. I was willing to take the job, but it made no sense because of the salary. It wasn't paying enough to leave my freelance solo practice."<br /><br />Money is a key reason people work. Even if you are willing to settle for a lower salary because of the tough economy, employers worry that you will jump ship as soon as you find another position offering compensation more in line with what you are used to earning.<br /><br />Other strikes against the overqualified<br /><br />According to Duncan Mathison, co-author of "Unlock the Hidden Job Market: Six Steps to a Successful Search When Times Are Tough," hiring managers ask themselves three questions:<br /><br />1. Does the person have the ability and skills to do the job? <br /><br />2. Is the applicant motivated to do the job in that it meets her needs, interests and values? <br /><br />3. How will this candidate fit into the group, the organizational structure and culture? <br /><br />While you clearly may have the skills, a lower job means that the number of competitors who are also qualified is greater than if you were applying for a higher position. The sheer number in the applicant pool can work against you.<br /><br />Likewise, Mathison says, "Questions two and three could work against you because the hiring manager will assume on the long term the lower-level job will not meet your needs or you won't fit into the structure. The manager might also feel threatened if you are qualified to do his job."<br /><br />Easing fears -- and getting hired<br /><br />Ford Kanzler of El Granada, Calif., has been told that he was overqualified many times during his 30-plus years in technology public-relations management. In one instance, though, he was able to turn that potential negative to his advantage.<br /><br />"I told the hiring manager, 'I agree. I'm more than qualified for the job, but that means I'll be able to come in, hit the ground running, create desired results in a short time and require virtually zero management. I can operate as your wing man, and together we can really get the job done fast and well.'" Kanzler landed the job and worked for the company for several years.<br /><br />Mathison agrees that sometimes it pays to get the issue on the table and ask the prospective employers if they see any pluses to your candidacy based on your higher qualifications. "Tell them that you too had concerns that the job might not be a fit but applied because factors beyond the title were important to you. Promise that if at any point you feel the job appears too low or not one where you will bring the full engagement needed to excel in the position, you will withdraw your candidacy. Your willingness to walk away tells them you are motivated if you stay in the game."<br /><br />Tailor your résumé<br /><br />Finally, remember that a good application for any position should be created to match the employer's needs as closely as possible. While experts generally don't recommend lying or "dumbing down" a résumé, simple (yet truthful) changes can make you a more desirable candidate.<br /><br />A few edits to consider:<br /><br /><ul><li>Changing terminology, if appropriate (for example, "manager" can become "project team leader" to match the language of the job description).</li><li>Shortening years of service by dropping early jobs if the years sound too long.</li><li>Toning down executive-sounding titles, especially if inflated (for example, calling yourself by a managerial title rather than showcasing that you were vice president in a company with only five employees).</li><li>Dropping a degree in favor of an "Additional Professional Training" statement describing topics on which you have advanced knowledge.</li></ul>Hopefully, the result will be the greatest change of all -- a foot in the door.<br /><br />Get the latest job search news and advice on CareerBuilder.com's job blog, "The Work Buzz," and follow us on Twitter @CBforJobSeekers.<br /><br />By Beth Braccio Hering, CareerBuilder Writer<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

What's the Big Deal About Being Overqualified?

Scouting through job listings, you spot a position in your field. The prospective employer is looking for somebody with a bachelor's deg...

Read more »

Developing Your Selling Points

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/my/ar5m388745lps4nnp3my.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/my/ar5m388745lps4nnp3my.gif" /></a></div>Imagine you are an advertising executive assigned the task of getting people to try a new soft drink. Before you pitched the product to consumers, chances are you'd examine the item carefully. How does it taste? Is it lower in calories than other beverages? What features distinguish it from other drinks?<br /><br />The process is much the same for job seekers -- only this time you are both the marketer and the product being peddled. Before trying to "sell" yourself to prospective employers, it is worth taking time to evaluate your attributes and the best ways they can be presented.<br /><br />Pinpointing strengths<br />Experts agree that honest self-assessment is paramount when seeking to identify your selling points. Enlisting the help of a few trusted friends and colleagues who know you well also can be helpful, but ask them to give specific examples to back up the strengths they list. (Evidence will help keep the comments truthful rather than just supportive or nice.)<br /><br />Paul Klein, director of the career services center at Cleveland State University in Cleveland, Ohio, suggests making a list of all the job responsibilities that you've had, no matter how many or few times you've done them. "For example, if you work at a fast food restaurant and spend 99 percent of your time flipping burgers, it's still very important to include the other 1 percent of your job, which might entail opening or closing the store or taking money from the cash register to the bank. Although this only counts for 1 percent of your job, it's extremely important, as it indicates a level of management skills, trust and responsibility."<br /><br />Presenting your information<br />While you might be an excellent typist, an employer looking for an experienced cook is probably not going to care. Worse yet, skills that would have made a hiring manager take notice may be lost within a sea of information.<br /><br />Instead of a cover letter that could be used for 25 different jobs or a résumé detailing every experience you've ever had, focus on the skills that pertain to the job in question. Take cues from the job ad as to what might be important, and show with positive language and concrete examples how your strengths match the employer's needs. To say you have great writing skills is one thing. To state that you helped your last employer achieve greater communication between departments by creating a monthly newsletter is another.<br /><br />Klein offers these tips to further help job seekers trying to decide what to include:<br /><br /><br /><br />If you work for a name brand employer (IBM, Microsoft) that should get highlighted on your résumé. <br /><br />If you work for a solid employer with a great reputation in the field that you're going into, that should be highlighted. <br /><br />If you're working for an organization that no one's heard of, emphasize the position, its responsibilities and your accomplishments. <br /><br /><br /><br />Selling yourself at the interview<br />Sara LaForest, co-founder of Kubica LaForest Consulting (a management consulting and performance improvement company serving clients nationwide), notes that when your application leads to an interview, consistency across your verbal and written presentation is essential. She recommends seeking a trusted friend or coach to help with a practice interview in which you "articulate your strengths as aligned to the prospective role and use specific evidence (behaviorally-based examples) that demonstrate the outcomes of your skill strengths."<br /><br />"Practice responding to questions that focus on your strengths, why you would be good for this job and 'why should we select you'- type questions," LaForest says. "Practice responding in a conversational tone -- even if the question surprises you. Exuding a calm confidence, discussing your strengths and reinforcing them in a matter-of-fact way with evidence to support your statements is powerful."<br /><br />Making the sale<br />A last thought to consider: Just as you would be leery about a product making too many claims, so might a person making hiring decisions.<br /><br />"Sell yourself responsibly," LaForest cautions. "Nobody likes a pusher. Specific to selling yourself to prospective employers, ensure you clearly understand their needs and priorities. Do this by listening sincerely and asking clarifying questions. Listen first -- and more than you talk."<br /><br />By Beth Braccio Hering, CareerBuilder Writer <br /><br />Get the latest job search news and advice on CareerBuilder.com's job seeker blog http://www.theworkbuzz.com/ and follow us on Twitter @CBforJobSeekers.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

Developing Your Selling Points

Imagine you are an advertising executive assigned the task of getting people to try a new soft drink. Before you pitched the product to cons...

Read more »

Why Your Job Search Is Not All About You

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/mq/ar5f2sf6s55tjtdfd6mq.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/mq/ar5f2sf6s55tjtdfd6mq.gif" /></a></div>We all get calls from telemarketers. Their generic, impersonal sales pitches typically yield responses like: "Really? Why would I let you spend 10 minutes telling me about your vacuuming services? I have a vacuum cleaner in the closet." Click. <br /><br />Chances are you have received this type of call. And chances are you have hung up before you even know what the caller has to offer. <br /><br />Were the vacuum company to peek in your window for a few hours (creepy -- but go with me here) they'd find out you were a single parent with three kids, two shedding cats and a bad case of seasonal allergies. With this new background information, the call might go something like: <br /><br />"Hello Ms. Murphy! Since you're so busy you barely have time to vacuum these days, I'll send my professional cleaning service to your home. In addition to saving you time, our filter-equipped vacuums will get rid of the pet hair on your furniture and decrease the amount of airborne allergens in your home!" Since the telemarketer just solved three of your most pestering problems, you're probably more inclined to listen to his or her sales pitch. <br /><br />Vacuum cleaners and allergies aside, applying to a company without targeting your application to its needs is a lot like making a random courtesy call. Employers aren't going to pay attention to you unless they know what you can do for them. <br /><br />Solve a problem, land a job<br /><br />"You have a job for one reason: to solve a company's problem," says Debra Benton, author of "Lions Don't Need To Roar" and "The $100,000 Club." "You do not have a job because you need or want one; that is irrelevant to the marketplace." That means you need to stop focusing on what your strengths are and start focusing on how your strengths can help the company you'd like to work for, Benton suggests. <br /><br />Putting it all out there -- strategically <br /><br />Rich Dukas, president and CEO of Dukas Public Relations, says that targeting your cover letter to address the needs of each company you apply to is the only way to get noticed. "Specificity rules," he says. "I am impressed when a candidate spends the time to learn about our firm and tells me in a cover letter and interview how they would directly contribute to our business. Generic cover letters don't cut it." <br /><br />Using employer-centric language when applying to a position can also help, Benton advises. "Every part of your communication should be them-oriented instead of you-oriented, from the first word in your cover letter," she says. "Instead of writing, 'Dear Mr. Smith, I'm interested in a job at XYZ ...' your letter should start with 'Dear Mr. Smith, You have an exciting position at XYZ that I'm interested in ...'. Just making the first word 'you' versus 'I' is the start of a myriad of ways to be company-oriented." <br /><br />Tina Chen, director of operations at Carlisle Staffing in Illinois, says today's tough job competition makes it especially necessary to focus your job search on the needs of employers and how you can make their organization a better one. "Employers are no longer just looking for 'qualified candidates' but rather those who will go above and beyond to justify their seat, so job seekers really need to stay ahead of the curve and lay their best assets on the table," Chen says. <br /><br />The bottom line: Employment is a relationship<br /><br />Although it is important for your communication with a prospective employer to stress how your skills can meet its needs; employment is ultimately a relationship, and you still need to keep your own interests in mind. <br /><br />"Take a step back, assess the potential employers that you would like to work for, do your homework and decide if there could be a long-term, mutually beneficial relationship. Look at it as 'job dating.' In order for the relationship to work, both parties have to bring something to the table," Chen advises. <br /><br />Kurt Weyerhauser, managing partner at Kensington Stone, an international search firm in California, also compares employment to a long-term relationship. "It's like a marriage of sorts," he says. "Most of us who are married realize that we wouldn't be married if leading up to the wedding it had been all about –'me' or, for that matter, all about my spouse's interests. The key is to understand that while your primary interest is you, it's not your sole interest." <br /><br />By Kaitlin Madden writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com and its job blog, "The Work Buzz." She researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

Why Your Job Search Is Not All About You

We all get calls from telemarketers. Their generic, impersonal sales pitches typically yield responses like: "Really? Why would I let y...

Read more »

Should You Leave Your Cell at Home During an Interview?

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/bg/ar5f8h05zm2pchsthhbg.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" gu="true" src="http://emj.icbdr.com/artieimages/bg/ar5f8h05zm2pchsthhbg.gif" /></a></div>True story: <br /><br />After a move to a new city, I finally land a job interview after weeks of sending out résumés. The company offers good pay and great benefits -- not to mention that the job is right up my alley and right down the street from my apartment. <br /><br />The interview is humming along nicely, when "BLEEP BLEEP BLEEEEP! ... BLEEP BLEEP BLEEEEP!" My interviewer is mid-question when she jumps out of her skin at the sound of my cell phone loudly ringing from my purse. I could have sworn I'd shut it off. <br /><br />I spend the next 20 seconds rifling through my bag to find the offending device and another 10 seconds powering it off. As I apologize and refocus my attention on the interviewer, I can tell our whole vibe is off balance. She is clearly annoyed and I feel like a fool (both of which are total confidence killers). In case I left any doubt in your mind, I was not called back for a second interview. <br /><br />Lesson learned: Don't let your cell phone get the best of you. <br /><br />"In many cases, attitude trumps aptitude when it comes to candidate selection. Bringing a cell phone with you says a lot about your attitude," says Laurent Duperval, president of Duperval Consulting in Montreal. "It sends the message that your focus will not be on your job. If I, as an interviewer, can't get your full attention for a few minutes, what will it be like once you have the job? "<br /><br />Chris Laggini, vice president of human resources for information-technology service provider DLT Solutions, echoes Duperval's sentiment, saying, "Bringing or using a cell phone or BlackBerry during an interview would only indicate to the interviewer a general lack of respect and good judgment, and would indicate that they would exhibit the same behavior during working hours if they were to be hired." <br /><br />Laggini adds that the only acceptable reason for bringing a cell phone to an interview is if you need to be connected to receive an emergency call of some kind. In that case, he suggests that you discuss the matter with the interviewer beforehand. <br /><br />So what's the best way to make sure your phone doesn't interrupt your interview? Leave it at home or in your car. That way, you'll be assured that your phone won't disrupt your interview. <br /><br />If you have other obligations that day and can't leave your phone at home, or if you take public transportation and can't leave it in the car, at least make sure you turn your phone off before going into the interview. Sue Thompson, a career consultant and founder of Set Life Free Seminars, provides the following advice to her clients: "Become proficient with your phone's voice mail setup so you are able to quickly record a new voice mail [greeting] as you go into a meeting or interview, something along the lines of, 'I'm about to go into a meeting. I will return your call by 4 p.m.' Then turn it off."<br /><br />Despite our best intentions, though, sometimes -- like in my own interview -- plans go awry. Should your cell phone unexpectedly ring in the middle of your conversation, Duperval advises that you apologize and quickly silence the phone or turn it off. "Most phones have a button that allows you to send the caller to voice mail or to silence the phone immediately. As long as you don't answer the phone or say, 'Oh! I have to take this,' the interviewer should understand," he says.<br /><br />By Kaitlin Madden writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com and its job blog, "The Work Buzz." She researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues.<br /><br /><a class="addthis_button" href="http://addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&username=rockfordlink"><img alt="Bookmark and Share" height="16" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/v2/lg-share-en.gif" style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" width="125" /></a><script src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=rockfordlink" type="text/javascript"></script>

Should You Leave Your Cell at Home During an Interview?

True story: After a move to a new city, I finally land a job interview after weeks of sending out résumés. The company offers good pay and g...

Read more »