Saturday, November 24, 2012

Job Candidates and Coffee: Mediocre, Good, or Great?

 By Mary Salvino



As a connoisseur of a good cup of java, I have always wondered what distinguishes a good cup of coffee from one that is great.  In one of my caffeine induced thought frenzies, my ‘java buzz’ wandered to that which distinguishes a good cup of coffee, i.e. mediocre  job candidate, from one that is good or even great.



The first thing that needs to be considering when making a purchase, i.e. hiring a new employee is that different types of coffee makes (hiring managers/recruiters) will produce different albeit very similar products.  The product that is best for you (your organization) will depend upon your budget and preferred taste,



Types of coffee makers (Hiring managers/Recruiters):

  • Percolator – Taste tends to be bitter because the brewing system recycles the coffee over and over to keep brewing. 
    • HINT:  If you don’t want to keep getting what you are getting, change something. 
  • French Press – This method of making coffee requires that the coffee grounds be soaked in hot water and then a meshed piston is used to press the coffee to the bottom of the circular carafe.
    • N.B. The degree to which the coffee is strong and bitter is directly proportional to the length of time it remains in contact with the water.
  • Automatic Drip – This style of making coffee, i.e. using gravity to extract the coffee flavor from the ground beans is perfect for making many cups of coffee at one once. This type of coffee is served everywhere. 
    • N.B. Most people put milk and/or sugar in it to improve the taste.
  • Stovetop Espresso maker ( a.k.a. Moka Pot)– This is the most affordable kind of espresso maker.  It extracts coffee under the pressure of water vapor and produces coffee that is less bitter, as long as you decant the coffee as soon as it collects in the top part of the machine, and has more aroma than coffee that is made using a percolator, French Press, or automatic drip machine.
  • Pump espresso machine – This rather expensive machine ($1,000 – several thousands of dollars) is found is all high-end coffee shops and restaurants.  The presence of the pump makes it possible to build up enough pressure to brew the coffee in its ideal time.  These machines almost always brew only one or two cups at a time. 
    • N.B.  A good barista (hiring manager/recruiter) will be able to produce a nice layer of ‘crema’ on the top of every coffee shot ( job candidate). Crema is the golden layer of foam that you get on top of your cup when you order an espresso in a restaurant. It adds texture and extra aroma to the espresso.





The Coffee (Job candidate)

  • Always use the freshest and best quality beans you can afford – the better the ingredients, the more flavor you will have in your cup
  • Find a good roaster (hiring manager)– A roast master will be able to give you the ideal roast for your needs and beans
  • The grinding process – Once you have chosen your beans, the roast master will ask you if you want them to grind your beans and if the answer is yes, you will have to decide on the size you want
    • N.B. If you don’t know the size you want, tell the roast master which kind of machine you are using and they, being the professionals that they are, will know which degree of coarseness (read vetting process) is appropriate
    • HINT If the grind is too coarse, your coffee will be watery, if the grind is too fine, it will clog up your machine
    • HINT the longer the coffee is cooked the higher the caffeine content



Admittedly, this comparison for finding suitable candidates for your business may a bit strained, but caffeine induced thought frenzies have that kind of effect on some people. 





Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. All Rights Reserved. Permission to Reprint: This article may be reprinted, provided it appears in its entirety with the following attribution: Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. Reprinted by permission of the author, Mary Salvino. “Career Matters” is a blog authored by Mary Salvino, Senior Consultant for SMART Career Planning.com that is dedicated to those who are seeking advice on managing their career and future job opportunities. We welcome readers to share their experiences, post their comments or ask questions about career related matters. This blog is also dedicated to those who stand a little taller each time they picked themselves up after failing and those who gained the wisdom and humility from those experiences to help others do the same. For any questions or comments that are better addressed privately, please feel free to e-mail Mary directly at Mary.Salvino@shaw.ca

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Searching for a New Job Is a Lot like Swimming





There is no doubt around the fact that unemployment is not fun.  Looking for a job is not part of any education system’s standard curriculum.  I liken unemployment to learning or re-learning how to swim. 

  1. Let go of the fear.  Trust that you will not drown.  While drowning does occur, it can be prevented by following a few simple safety measures:
    1. Never swim “conduct your job search” alone
    2. Don’t be afraid to get help/take lessons from a pro
    3. Always be aware of your surroundings – tides, depth of the pool, etc.
    4. Keep moving
  2. Don’t panic
  3. Know that everyone will  relax and just float around for a while when they find that they are disoriented or feel like they are ‘in over their head’
  4. It is always okay to tread water when you are tired
  5. Practice breathing at a steady pace
  6. Rest when you need to rest
  7. Vary the types of strokes you use to get you from where you are to where you want to be – Varying the types of strokes you have in your repertoire will make you stronger
  8. Stay focused  - Wear goggles to help you focus if you have the need to do so
  9. Use a variety of techniques to help you propel yourself forward
  10. Heed the ‘Dangerous’  and ‘Caution – Lifeguard not on duty’ warnings signs posted by others
  11. Learn to swim widths before you try swimming lengths - Successful job searches are marathons, not sprints
  12. Try diving into the deep end once you get the basics
  13. The sport can be very competitive

At the end of the day, either you will learn how to swim or you will drown. No ‘ifs’; no ‘buts’ and certainly no ‘do overs’.

 




Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. All Rights Reserved. Permission to Reprint: This article may be reprinted, provided it appears in its entirety with the following attribution: Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. Reprinted by permission of the author, Mary Salvino. “Career Matters” is a blog authored by Mary Salvino, Senior Consultant for SMART Career Planning.com that is dedicated to those who are seeking advice on managing their career and future job opportunities. We welcome readers to share their experiences, post their comments or ask questions about career related matters. This blog is also dedicated to those who stand a little taller each time they picked themselves up after failing and those who gained the wisdom and humility from those experiences to help others do the same. For any questions or comments that are better addressed privately, please feel free to e-mail Mary directly at Mary.Salvino@shaw.ca

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Life and Career: Too Short


 By Mary Salvino


“This is not a dress rehearsal.”~ Rose Tremain

Tolerating, enduring, and allowing yourself to be subjugated to unsavoury environmental conditions in either your personal or professional life without reacting is not living.   Living is about choices that you make on a day-to-day and moment-to-moment.   If you feel like a hamster madly running in your own little exercise wheel that isn’t going anywhere, know that it is never too late to reclaim your life.  Make no mistake; reclaiming your life is fraught with obstacles some of which are quite real while others exist only in your mind.  Some actions are doable while others are unrealistic and one of the first steps to living your life is to recognize the elements in your environment that clog, clutter and keep you from moving forward.   The bullets that follow may help you recognize the toxins around you and give you suggestions on how to address them.

Remove the environmental toxins that are slowly choking the life out of you.   These toxins come in many forms. They can most easily be identified as those people in your life who do not support your goals personal and professional goals.  Both personal and professional relationships should help you celebrate your growth, not hinder it.  Spend time with people whose company you enjoy, who are smarter than you are and who have the same goals. 

Keep your end goals in mind.  When living your life on a day-to-day/moment-to-moment basis take steps to ensure that your actions will get you closer to your end goals.   Plan the work; work the plan.

Say what you mean and mean what you say.  The only way to avoid miscommunication is to speak clearly and/or ask questions that will add clarity to your desired goals.

Be aware of your mental self-talk.  Know that everyone has demotivating thoughts from time to time.  If you must dwell in unpleasant thoughts, allow yourself to do so only for short periods.  Managing your time effectively is critical to success.  

The only certainties in life are death and taxesLive life so completely that when death comes to you like a thief in the night, there will be nothing left for him to steal.” ~ Kahlil Gibran

“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day, you shall begin it well and serenely...” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson


Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. All Rights Reserved. Permission to Reprint: This article may be reprinted, provided it appears in its entirety with the following attribution: Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. Reprinted by permission of the author, Mary Salvino. “Career Matters” is a blog authored by Mary Salvino, Senior Consultant for SMART Career Planning.com that is dedicated to those who are seeking advice on managing their career and future job opportunities. We welcome readers to share their experiences, post their comments or ask questions about career related matters. This blog is also dedicated to those who stand a little taller each time they picked themselves up after failing and those who gained the wisdom and humility from those experiences to help others do the same. For any questions or comments that are better addressed privately, please feel free to e-mail Mary directly at Mary.Salvino@shaw.ca

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Optimal Time for Applying for a Job On-line

 By Mary Salvino


Dear Mary,


I have been applying for jobs, mostly via email and I am beginning to wonder if there is an optimal time for applying for the position. Is applying for a job on the weekend good, or bad? Is sending an in an application more than once a good idea?

Sincerely,

Job Seeker



Dear Job Seeker,

The subject of there being an optimal time to send job applications via e-mail is indeed a good one.  The short answer is that there is no ‘ideal’ time to send in a job application.   There are many factors to consider.  Some of the factors are within your control while others are not.  

Factors over which you have no control include the following:

  • How the person who will be receiving the email has set up their account, i.e. ascending, descending, threaded/unthreaded, or whether or not the company uses Applicant Tracking Software [ATS]
 
  • The size of the company – Large companies who have dedicated personal to vet résumés, i.e. an HR person or department, VS a smaller company wherein everyone who works there wears more than one hat.
    • In the case of a large company, it makes more sense to send in your application on a Tuesday or Wednesday as their Monday morning inbox will likely full of email that will need to be reviewed before they get on with their day.
    • In the case of smaller companies, it is likely that a great many of the decision makers work at least part of the weekend, if not all of it and will take advantage of the non-traditional business week/hours to review the job applications of candidates.

  • The job itself – Job postings for entry-level positions remain active for very short periods of time wherein middle to executive level career opportunities will leave a longer period of time for candidates to apply.
HINT: Job candidates should REFRAIN from sending in more than one application per job, but, they should be sure to follow-up on all applications.  

HINT: If the job opportunity is re-posted, send an email to the company’s hiring manger to reiterate that you are still interested in the opportunity and that you would be happy to reapply for the position, if necessary.

HINT:  Sending applications and supporting documents to real people will be far effective than filling in on-line forms.

HINT:  Nothing will tell the employer more than having a face-to-face meeting to indicate your interest in the opportunity. If you have the chance to drop off a résumé in person, even if your only contact is with the receptionist, it is better than sending an e-mail.  *While at the office, ask for a card.  Those business cards will have the name of the person to whom you should be addressing your electronic correspondence.  At the very minimum, you will have the e-mail format used by the company so you can guess what the correct e-mail address you need will be.  This information will then enable you to send your documents to the hiring manager directly.

HINT: For additional information and strategies, you can also look at   How to Reapply for a Job After Rejection



Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. All Rights Reserved. Permission to Reprint: This article may be reprinted, provided it appears in its entirety with the following attribution: Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. Reprinted by permission of the author, Mary Salvino. “Career Matters” is a blog authored by Mary Salvino, Senior Consultant for SMART Career Planning.com that is dedicated to those who are seeking advice on managing their career and future job opportunities. We welcome readers to share their experiences, post their comments or ask questions about career related matters. This blog is also dedicated to those who stand a little taller each time they picked themselves up after failing and those who gained the wisdom and humility from those experiences to help others do the same. For any questions or comments that are better addressed privately, please feel free to e-mail Mary directly at Mary.Salvino@shaw.ca