Nine Things That Make You Unproductive At Work

You have eight hours a day, sometimes even nine, and you still cannot finish half of the tasks you need to get done. What is making you unproductive at work? Let us get to the nitty-gritty and nip in the bud the things that are hindering you from being a productive professional.

The absence of a to-do list. If you have a list of the things you need to accomplish in a day, you will be more focused. You will have a clearer direction for the rest of the day.

Emails, emails, emails. Checking your inbox every 10 minutes will make you an expert in sending emails and replying to messages fast. However, you will not be able to achieve anything else other than that. Designate a time when you will reply to emails, and stick to it. Resist the urge to reply to messages for the rest of the day.

Zero breaks. If you think that you will be able to accomplish more when you choose to stay at your desk the whole day, you’re mistaken. Regular breaks help you refuel and refocus, and they boost your efficiency.

Read the rest of the article here. 

Are Salaries Really Negotiable?

When you receive a job offer and you’re offered a salary, do you feel that you deserve more? If so, do you negotiate for a higher salary? And what if you already feel satisfied with the salary given? Will you settle and accept the job offer, or can you still negotiate?

The biggest truth you need to know about salary is that it is negotiable, but only within a certain range. In fact, in most cases, the first amount that you will be offered is the lowest the company can give you. How can you make sure that you’re negotiating for the right amount? How can you set your salary expectations right?

Mid-level and executive positions are more negotiable than entry-level positions. This should bring you more confidence in knowing that you can discuss your salary and pitch for a higher value, given your skills and competencies. The higher the position, the more opportunity for you to negotiate.

There is a certain salary range that companies are wiling to work around.There is a low limit and a ceiling for a salary range. If you negotiate for a salary too low, the employer might think that you have very little idea about the position and that you may be less competent than how much they think you’re worth. On the other hand, negotiating for a salary that is too high might throw you out of the position you want to get.

Read the rest of the article here. 

How To Negotiate Your Salary Like A Pro

Salary is one of the toughest matters to deal with when applying for a job. A lot of times it is hard to weigh whether the answers you give will work to your advantage or not, or if the values you give are too low or too outrageous.

Questions on salary are the most crucial ones you would have to answer during an interview. You can get a job and get paid less than how much you are truly worth; or you can lose a job because your expected salary is too high. Clearly, there are just so many possibilities.

So how can you negotiate like a pro? How can you make sure that you will not only get the best job, but you will also get the job that pays you right?

• Research on the salary range. If you don’t have any idea about the salary range you can expect for the job that you are applying for, you are in great risk of being dismissed as being too demanding or you may sell yourself short. To find out about your salary range, you can check the Internet for posted job listings indicating the remuneration. You can also ask friends or former colleagues from the same industry and hold the same position as the one you are applying for.
• Be ready for an explanation. If the company asks you why you are asking for such value, you should be able to supply an answer that will be convincing enough. Aside from saying that the figure you gave is based on the salary range, you should also be able to back it up with reasons why you will be an asset to the company. For instance, if you are applying for top banking jobs in Singapore, be more specific by providing details about your previous employment and how you introduced new high net worth clients to the company.

Read the rest of the article here. 

Job Hunting While Employed? Keep It Safe

While it is every professional’s goal to move to the next best job, it is something that should be done discreetly, especially if you want to conduct your job search during company hours. And it is completely understandable. You’re available for calls and interviews during business hours, and the companies that might want to hire you are the same.

But just how can you conduct a job search while you’re in the office? Here are the things you need to remember so that you will not be dismissed as the careless, selfish job seeker.

• Use your own email address. For one, emails in the office can easily be monitored and read by company staff. Moreover, it’s simply unprofessional to send out applications with an “@CompanyName.com” address. Use your personal email address, one that is professional-sounding, preferably with your first and last name in it.
• Don’t tap your colleagues as a network for your job search. You do not want information to leak out, so keep mum about your job search and tap your personal networks instead. Talk with previous coworkers, friends from college or relatives.

Read the rest of the article here. 

Best Practices For Leading Your Employees To Company Changes

As the leader of your team, you have the responsibility of carrying out news and helping your team deal with whatever consequence or effect that news has. Changes in the workplace are very unpopular among employees. After all, they are so used to an everyday routine that breaking it even in a little way can create chaos and decrease productivity. Will you allow that to happen?

You need to be able to effectively guide your team through the change so that they can adjust to it as soon as possible. Here are some of the best practices that will help you lead your team through the changes in the workplace.

• Take responsibility. Whether the change came from the higher-ups, or it came as your own mandate, you need to take responsibility. Don’t tell your team that you had no choice or that the change was inevitable, as if you’re washing your hands of it. There is no way you will be able to lead your team if your attitude is dismissive of the change.
• Create a plan. Change needs to be introduced properly. At the extent that you can control it, do your best to carefully guide your team through whatever change is happening. Create a strategy that will make it easier for everybody to cope.

Read the rest of the article here. 

The ABC’s Of Effective Resume Writing

Your resume can make or break your career. It is such an important job search tool and crafting the perfect one should be a continuous goal for you. After all, you need it not only after you graduate and when you’re looking for a job, but every time an opportunity comes your way as well. It needs to be updated because you gain experience, some of your skills become irrelevant, and the trends in job search and resume writing change too.

Here is an updated list of the important things you need to remember when writing your resume. The competition for jobs in Singapore is only getting tougher, so brush up on your resume writing skills now.

Achievements

• Don’t simply cut and paste your previous job descriptions. Go into details and word your achievements in a way that is relevant to the job you’re applying for.
• Ditch the clichés. The words “hardworking” and “team player” do not have any bearing anymore on your resume or on your success in a job search. Employers are after specifics. If you want to show that you’re hardworking, list a specific accomplishment that reflects how you worked hard and exerted all efforts to finish a project.

Read the rest of the article here. 

How To Address A Layoff On Your Resume

No employee in this day and age will stay in a company for years. Professionals know that career advancement is achievable not by staying loyal to a company, but by staying loyal to your career goals and jumping ship if that is more advantageous.

However, there are times when leaving a company isn’t by will, but because of a layoff. Aside from thinking of how you can recover from suddenly losing a job, you also need to deal with having to explain the situation to your future employer. Here are some tips to address a layoff in your resume:

• Be honest about it. One major indicator of a layoff is the gap between two jobs, or the fact that you do not have a job while you’re on a job search. If an interviewer asks you in the future if the cause of the gap between jobs is a layoff, there is no need to lie. Simply state that the company downsized and unfortunately, you were one of those who had to go. It happens. And if the company you are applying into does not understand that, then you’re better off with another company.
• Indicate temp jobs and projects you had while you were looking for a job. If you volunteered, worked as a consultant, or took part-time banking jobs while you were looking for a permanent job, the prospective employer will see some positivity in your being laid off. You were productive and gained some additional work experience even when you lost your job.

• Use positive terms. For instance, instead of indicating that your job was terminated, you can simply put the number of years that you spent working for the company. Now if you’re asked if you were ever terminated, then that’s the time to talk about it.

Read the rest of the article here.

Name Dropping During Interviews – Does It Work?

Should you or shouldn’t you? And if you should, how do you do it? A lot of job applicants’ way of small talk with the interviewer is by dropping names. For instance, if they found out that the interviewer used to work in a company where he or she knows somebody, the namedropping may go something like “Oh, you worked at [company name]? Maybe you know [friend’s name]?”

While it is nice and may make you more comfortable during an interview, name dropping actually has some disadvantages, and it may not work for you to get the job. Here are some reasons why.

• The interviewer might actually not know the person you know. That will be too awkward and tough to recover from. And among all the people in the universe, it is your interviewer that you do not want to place in an awkward position. After all, he will decide whether or not you pass the interview.
• The person you know may not really know you. If your interviewer says that he, in fact, knows the person you’re talking about, he might go and ask that person. Now if the person you mentioned is a senior and you know him by name and not on a more personal basis, then you will just place yourself in another awkward position.

• The interviewer might know the person, but not in a very good way. So if you speak highly of the person, you might be dismissed as somebody who is unable to judge a person’s character correctly.
• The person might be working in the company, and he might have a not-so-good performance and reputation. It is much better to speak about a person who’s doing well with his job, instead of having to go through an awkward minute of hearing statements like “Yeah, well she got fired last month.”

Read the rest of the article here.

Building Rapport With People At Your Workplace

No man is an island. Even software engineers who seem to face their computers all day every day, need to face the fact that they have to interact with their colleagues. Professionals in sales jobs are not the only ones who should learn how to build rapport since they deal with clients, suppliers, and other stakeholders.

Establishing rapport, therefore, is an integral part of anybody’s career. You need to embrace social interaction, and you need to make it easier for yourself and for your coworkers to work together. There is no job that does not require interpersonal communication. Here are some tips that will help you build rapport in the workplace.

• Why so serious? Joker in Batman said that, and maybe for a good reason. Being a manager does not mean that you should be dead serious all the time. You have to loosen up and let go of your crisp suit sometimes. Have light conversations with your coworkers. You do not want to be the manager who only talks to his staff when there are work issues and urgent projects.
• Maintain eye contact. Whenever you talk to somebody in person, make sure that you maintain good eye contact. Doing this shows that you’re interested in what the other person has to say. You may be an introvert, but rapport is a skill that can be learned, not a talent that you’re simply born with.

Read the rest of the article here. 

The Truth About Top-Level Posts And Six Ways To Get There

You want to know the truth about top-level positions? Getting there is a different process altogether – it requires a different set of strategies. If you think you’ve already brushed up on your job search skills and that you’re ready to take your search to a higher level, you might be wrong.

From the use of achievement statements to describe your job responsibilities to creating an executive profile that’s tailored for the position, there are just so many things you need to revamp on your existing resume and new approaches to adopt. Here are ways to help you land a top position in a company:

• Detailed list of accomplishments. You simply can’t say that you’re an expert in the finance industry. You need to have some proof in your resume. List your achievements and contributions to your previous companies. Use achievement statements to highlight, for instance, your experience in managing high net worth clients as a wealth management advisor. You can describe your main responsibility by saying something like: “Managed a team of accomplished wealth management professionals who delivered the full range of investment and private banking to high net worth clients.” This achievement statement will convince an employer that you can do the same for their company.

• Highlights of technical and soft skills. You need to be able to show that you’re the complete package. Emphasise both your accomplishments as a technical professional and your achievements as a hardworking sales manager.  For instance, if you’re applying for a sales director job, you need to highlight related experiences and achievements, such as leading a team of 10 sales representatives who always exceeded the quota set by the company.

Read the rest of the article here.

Does Working With A Team Result In Greater Productivity?

Almost all job applicants are keen on informing the prospective employer that they have the ability to work in a team. And while it is of utmost importance that you know how to blend in and collaborate with a group of professionals, you also need to know whether you thrive in a group setting or if you’re more productive working on your own.

If you’re a team leader, you also need to determine which work setup suits your team and your nature of work. This also includes identifying the working style of every member in your team. Some personalities are best placed in a group setting, while others are more productive working alone.

Tough job? Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of working in a team and of working solo. They will guide you in determining which to implement in your team.

Advantages of working in a team

• More minds mean a more efficient way to solve problems.
• More minds mean more creativity and innovation, allowing for the best strategies and output. It’s amazing how a group can come up with the best strategies in an hour.

Read more by clicking here. 

How to Stick to Your Career Objective Timeline

Without a target, an arrow released from a strong bow is useless. Same goes with your career – it should have a path that leads to a goal. Without it, you will easily get demotivated, the quality of your work will suffer, and before you know it, you’re stuck in a rut without anywhere to go.

Your career objective should be clear to yourself, your family, and employers. It should be clearly defined so you yourself know where you’re going and what you can do to reach it.

Sometimes, a career objective seems too far away. This may lead you to lose your focus and simply live for the moment – doing your tasks and nothing more. You might also get derailed and put your goals at the bottom of your list of priorities. But you don’t want to waste your time and energy without achieving anything significant for your future. Below are some tips that can help you stick to your career objective and accomplish it within a time frame that you yourself set.

Be intentional. A career objective is attainable through small and big steps. If your career objective is to be the CEO of your company in five years, you need to brush up on a wide range of technical and soft skills. A huge step may be enrolling in a master’s degree or getting a PhD, while meeting with your employees one by one every month is a good starting point.

Set little goals. If you want to be visible in the industry, for instance, you need to work on it through little goals. Build a LinkedIn profile and spend 30 minutes on it every day. Such a small step will go a long way, but you have to start today and you have to follow through.

Read more by clicking here.

Take Stock Of Your Skills And Get Promoted

When was the last time you did an inventory of your skills and accomplishments? You might not know it, but you may already be eligible for a promotion. It is up to you to gather all your accomplishments, achievements, and completed projects to show and prove to your boss that you have indeed already upskilled.

How can you maximise your current skills and use them to make you eligible for a higher position in your current company? Here are some tips that will help you move up the corporate ladder without having to go through a job search in Singapore.

• Align your skills with the job opening. It is not enough that you have excellent skills. You need to be able to prove to the hiring manager that what you know and what you can do perfectly fit the vacant post. Take time to trim down your list of skills and familiarise yourself with it. This way, when it is time for the interview, you can confidently assert yourself as a worthy candidate.
• Be specific. It isn’t enough to have a list of accomplishments that prove your new and upgraded skills. You need to have a detailed description of each accomplished project. List the problems you encountered, the strategies and actions you undertook, as well as the positive results.
• Look everywhere. You may have accepted a project that was not directly related to your current position, or you might have volunteered for a non-profit organisation during your free time. These opportunities certainly helped increase your skills, and may even serve as the training ground on which you acquired the skills required for the promotion. You can cite this additional information when the time comes for the management to evaluate your application.
• Ask other people. Have your team give you a brief evaluation of your skills and what you can do. This way, you get a clearer picture of how much you have grown, and whether or not you are indeed qualified for a promotion. The opinions of your colleagues can also support your application for promotion.

If you are uncertain about how your skills can land you that promotion, then it means that you need to be on your feet and start working toward growth. You can update your skills by following these pointers:

• Shadow for a colleague in a higher position. He doesn’t necessarily have to be in the position you are eyeing for. If you have extra time, offer to help with any pending projects so you can learn from him. Also, if you have friends who just landed a job similar to the position you want, interview them and find out how they got promoted.
• Get a mentor. Ask somebody you look up to for an hour of exchanging ideas and insight. Don’t underestimate the power of having somebody who can pass on valuable information and knowledge to you.

Read the rest of the article here.

What HR Managers Want To See In Your CV

HR managers spend a significant amount of time reading resumes, evaluating applicants, throwing resumes in the trash, and calling qualified applicants. Their job is no mean feat – just imagine the sheer number of professionals looking for jobs in Singapore. It is safe to assume that they know when a CV owner is worth calling or if he will just be a waste of time.
The opinion that matters the most is that of an HR manager, especially when it comes to creating your resume. After all, your CV is the first thing that a potential employer will see. How do you make sure that your resume creates a good first impression enough to get past the HR manager? Here’s a list of what they are looking for in a CV:

• A clean layout. You wouldn’t want to read a document full of blocks of words. You want an easy-to-read, clean-looking CV. So mind the font you use (Arial or Verdana), the spacing and margins, and your use of bullet points. Preserve your document’s layout by converting it to PDF.
• Highlighted elements that contribute to the job description. The HR manager is looking for a perfect fit in their company. Hence, you want your CV to shine with words and details that will convince him that you are indeed a great fit. Place these important details on the first page of the document, or bold them so they can easily be seen.
• Short and sweet. If you have to go over one page, go ahead. However, three pages can be too long for an application. Unless you’re applying for a job that has three different sets of responsibilities, keep words to a minimum – just what the HR manager needs to hear.
• A professional email address. The HR manager will immediately have a bad impression about you if you have an email address like cuteandcuddly@gmail.com. Use your nickname and surname with a reputable email platform such as Gmail. And of course, don’t use your current company email address when sending your CV.
• Answers to questions. For instance, if you are applying for a job in another location, indicate in your resume that you are willing to move. You don’t want the HR manager to wonder whether to call you or not just because your home address is far from his office. You want to be proactive through your CV, so answer questions and address any concerns that the HR manager may have in mind.
• A killer cover letter. In all honesty, HR managers aren’t very excited about cover letters. They may just browse through it or skip it altogether and just download your CV. So you have to make sure that your cover letter is well-written, with a brief summary of your qualifications and experience that make you the ideal candidate for the job. Make it seem like it is communicating to the employer, and that it does not look like a general e-mail message.

Read the rest of the article here.

Why Redundancy Isn’t So Bad

Being made redundant is a tough situation. The moment you hear of the news, your self-confidence goes down the drain, and your doubts and worry surface like they’re your old friends. The truth is redundancy isn’t really as bad as you think it is. It’s up to you how you will look at it because there is life after redundancy after all.

• Redundancy happens because there is a need to change. Your company may be undergoing loads of different changes, which include having to reallocate resources. As a resource, this will affect you. The only thing that you see is how you lost a job when the fact is it’s the whole company going through a merger, changing leaders, cost-cutting, or coping with an economic difficulty.
• It isn’t about you. You’ll only waste your time thinking about what you did wrong to be made redundant. Don’t feel sorry for yourself because it’s not your fault. There’s nothing you can do about it, so look around and see what else there is.

• You’re not in control about a lot of things. While you can take control of your career by working smart, there are some things that are just beyond your control. For instance, government regulations may affect your employment, as well as management decisions that call for restructuring of your organisation.
• You can leave your company with great relationships. The time you spent in your previous company is not time wasted because you were able to form good relationships with your colleagues. Leave the company with a network so strong that you can use it in the near future to build your career and rise to the top.
• You can reflect and think of the things you want to do. Redundancy is the perfect time to recalibrate yourself. Maybe you have years of experience in a finance job and you want to occupy a high-paying banking job? You can use this downtime to reposition yourself in the industry you want to be in, and start anew.
• You can spend time upgrading your skills. While you apply for the jobs that you want, you can use your available time to upgrade your skills. You can enroll in a special class, learn a new skill, watch helpful career videos, and read on the latest industry news and developments.
• There are a lot of opportunities ahead. Understandably, it feels horrible to be laid off with all your financial obligations. However, you can be grateful later on for that one great opportunity you wouldn’t take if you had your previous job. All is well that ends well, so they say.

Read the rest of the article here.

Managing Your Boss

In the middle of a long list of tasks, networking strategies, looking for new executive jobs, and other things that go into your daily grind, you sometimes have to manage your boss too. Yes, your boss manages you and the team you belong to, but you also need to adjust and do your part in helping him do his job. And honestly, if you think about it, it seldom happens that you have a great boss who does a great job and makes life so much easier for you. So how do you manage your own boss?

• Build trust. Volunteer to work on little projects and do your best in them. The goal is to make your boss feel that there is no need to micromanage you. And as you progress on the project, give updates to your boss so he wouldn’t have to follow up with you on its status. Before it even crosses his mind to check up on you, you should have already submitted a report.

• Ask questions. Oftentimes, your boss has a lot of tasks on his plate. Aside from that, he also assumes that you know what he means, and he expects you to understand from his level of understanding. Of course, this isn’t the case. This can cause a deluge of problems if not dealt with properly. Ask questions and don’t hold back on them until you get a clear picture of what he wants you to do. You don’t want to be in a situation where you fail to accomplish a task because of unclear instructions. When that happens, will you be able to blame your boss?
• Ask for clear and comfortable deadlines. Some bosses just throw tasks at you like you’re somebody with great powers. While it can be flattering that your boss trusts your capabilities, it can also be tiring if you always have to juggle so many tasks all at the same time. The quality of your work may be compromised. So, every time your boss gives you a new task, make sure that all deadlines are clear and well-planned so that you can manage your time more effectively.
• Ask your boss to mentor you. Being an apprentice will allow you to progress faster than any other method, so take every opportunity to learn from your boss. Ask him for step-by-step instructions every time there is a new task, discuss issues and resolve problems with him. Sure, there are many accounting jobs in Singapore, but you can get the best one if you capitalise on the knowledge you acquired from your boss and put them into practice when the time comes for you to manage your own team.

Read the rest of the article here.

Invest In Your Career Today

Invest: such a big word that excites most of us but frightens the few who would rather spend their money, time, and effort in the present. An investment has many returns, and if you know which investments can reward you with good potential returns, then you will be able to reap the benefits in no time.

Your career is not only a source of income but also of your self-confidence and value. Why shouldn’t you invest in it? There are a lot of ways through which you can invest in your career. Consider the following and take stock of your career.

• Certification. Depending on your field, obtaining a certification may increase your market value. For instance, professionals with high-paying finance jobs in Singapore obtain licenses such as the Financial Advisers License in order to conduct one or more financial services as regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The licensure exams are very tough and expensive, but investing in this is well worth it given how lucrative and financially rewarding finance jobs are.

• Degree. Get a master’s degree or a doctorate degree. This will definitely take a lot of your time, energy, and money, but it will improve your capabilities and increase your market value. The moment you receive a higher degree, you will automatically be eligible for higher positions and bigger responsibilities. Try asking your company for a scholarship or an academic grant.
• An online brand. Do you have a professional website that highlights your skills and accomplishments? You should consider having one. You only have to pay yearly for the web hosting and the URL of your site, and shell out a one-time payment for a team who will create your website. This is a great way to look more professional and to promote your personal brand. Also, make sure that your Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn profiles are updated and active.
• Communication skills. Invest in learning how to improve your communication skills. You can even learn another language. Since competition is global, you need to learn how to interact with people outside of your country. Enroll in classes that will teach you business etiquette that transcends different cultures. Remember, a successful career is more than just knowing how to excel in different banking jobs. You have to know how to communicate and work with people at all levels.

Read the rest of the article here.

Reasons To Accept A Job Offer

Ah, getting a job offer for an executive job you’ve been dreaming of. It’s a rare moment in one’s life, and it can make your self-esteem and confidence soar up high. But after feeling ecstatic about how a company wants you to be in their team, what do you do next? Do you accept the offer? If yes, based on what? Here are some of the most valid reasons to make you say “Yes” to a job offer.

New learning
A lot of professionals quit their jobs because they already stopped learning. If you’re looking for a new accounting job and you were offered a position that will entail basically the same things and tasks as your former job, then you need to think twice about that offer. Sure, the pay check may be better and the benefits great, but your time wasted on the same old job is worth more.

Think proactively and consider how your career will progress when evaluating an offer. A challenging job that comes with perks such as good salary and employee benefits is a winner job.

Benefits
Who wouldn’t be attracted to a generous benefits package that includes a wide range of perks – from medical insurance to gym membership? If a company offers you paid time offs, income protection and other bonuses, it will be difficult to say no to the offer.

An attractive benefits package is also proof that a company considers its employees’ welfare. It is also a good sign that you will be working in a good company that supports talent retention and care.

A routine schedule and pay
Although there are still a number of professionals who prefer flexible work schedules, this can also become downright tiring. A set schedule will enable you to plan your life well in such a way that it doesn’t depend on your career and the things you need to do for it.

It can be hard for an executive position to be free from unplanned overtimes, so if you were offered a job with a more fixed schedule, it would be too difficult to say no.

An easy travel
With the stress your job entails, you don’t want your travel to and from the office to be even more difficult. You don’t want to take so long a time in commuting. You should be able to preserve your physical energy for work and for personal time afterwards.

Aside from an easy commute, another big factor is if you can walk or ride a bike to and from work. It means that you can save on travel costs!

Read the rest of the article here.

Salary Renegotiation 101

You’re not alone in thinking that you are worth more than the salary you get every month. You’re also not alone in doing nothing about it. There are but a handful of assertive executives who stand up and renegotiate their salaries. They are the ones who are successful in their careers and happy with how much they’re getting.

Are you ready to renegotiate? Here are some tips:

Know your worth. Sure, you want to enjoy a higher salary. But do you have an idea about your real value? Will you be able to quantify your skills and accomplishments? List them all down so that you have basis for renegotiating your salary. If you can come up with substantial figures, such as how much money the company saved because of the process you introduced to streamline operations, then you will be able to better support your case.

No begging. You’re not a beggar; you’re an executive. Don’t come into your boss’s office with a sad face and a “pity party” waiting to happen. Your boss will not see it the way you want him to see it. Many employees think that having worked in a company for many years will automatically entitle them to a salary increase. You should remember that your work performance, accomplishments, and contributions to the company will weigh more than the length of time you clocked in and out of the office.

Don’t sound so entitled. This is the opposite of begging. Don’t go complaining to your boss about how you haven’t had any salary increase in a long time, while you worked as hard as everybody in your team and also contributed to the company’s growth. When renegotiating your salary, you should talk about your value and contributions to the company instead of questioning why you haven’t received any increment at all.

Present options to your boss. You might want to present options just to show that more than the salary, you care for the company and you want your career to grow. You may choose to volunteer for some extra work, or you can ask your boss to allocate the increase to your skills training instead. This will send a good message to your boss and can help build your reputation in the office. It can also be a good time to ask not just for a raise, but also for that promotion to a manager’s job which you’ve been eyeing on for months.

Negotiate at the right time. When is the right time? There are a lot of factors to consider. For instance, you should pay attention to the company’s current situation. Is it going through a crisis? Has the management just announced its efforts to restructure the business in order to cut operational costs? Or maybe everybody is busy because it’s that time of the year when customers are streaming in? If that’s the case, then you should consider postponing your renegotiation for another month or two. In the meantime, focus on becoming ready for that director job you’ve been eyeing.

Read the rest of the article here.

Do You Have A Healthy Network?

If you suddenly find yourself searching for one among the different executive jobs in Singapore, do you have a strong network you can turn to for help?

Building your network should be a continuous process. It shouldn’t be something that you do only because you’re in between jobs. In fact, maintaining your network should be an integral part of your overall career strategy, alongside working hard and impressing your boss. This applies to whether you have an accounting job, a position in a media firm, or a freelance finance professional.

So do you have a strong and healthy network? Here are some indicators:

• You have the contact information of your former colleagues. The more contacts you have, the better. You can also expand your professional contacts by browsing through LinkedIn and connecting with your former colleagues. With the Internet, it is easy to re-establish your connections with those people you’ve worked with – all with a simple click of the mouse.
• You communicate with your contacts. It’s not enough that you have their contact details and you’re friends with them on Facebook. How can your contacts recommend you if you seldom communicate with them (even if it’s online only)? You should spend some time to catch up with them, find out what they have been doing since the last time you saw them. That should get the ball rolling to beef up your network.
• You have a contact who can refer you. You need to have a handful of people you can write as your references when applying for a job. There should be at least six of them. So if you only have one, then you need to brush up on your networking skills.
• You attend professional events. Networking doesn’t happen online only. You need to suit up and be present in professional and other industry events. If you’re a PR director, you should attend local and international PR and Media Relations forums which are regularly held in Singapore. You can learn a lot from attending these events. Moreover, it is a great opportunity to be seen and to build a healthy network of other professionals working in your industry.
• You get to have lunch with somebody from your network. Now, this one’s a toughie. Why would you have coffee with someone who isn’t even your friend? Well, networking is all about reaching out to the people who matter to you as far as your career is concerned. So, go ahead and invite your former client to coffee. You’ll never know what’s waiting for you after you finish exchanging pleasantries.
• Other professionals contact you. This means that you’re within the “radar” of their network. If you are often asked to give reference, it means that you have a healthy network of executives whom you can turn to for help when you need it. Make sure you answer calls and you give worthwhile feedback about your contacts.

Read the rest of the article here.

What to Do When You Lose Your Job

After you cry, eat a bucket of ice cream and watch a movie marathon, it’s time to hustle up and rise from the ashes. Here are the things you need to do when you lose your job. And before you say you will never lose your job, here’s the thing: Nothing is impossible. Better be prepared.

Don’t immediately sign anything.
When the HR Department asks you to sign something, don’t. Yet. Read everything and if you feel the need, seek the help of a lawyer. You don’t want to be shortchanged when you leave. Review your compensation and benefits package and make sure that you will be getting what is stated in your hire contract.

Pay attention to when you are being debriefed by the HR representative.
You might think that your meeting with the HR rep is just standard procedure, but a conversation might help you understand your status better. Were you laid off along with hundreds of other employees? Or is it because of your poor performance? This can be a slap on the face, exactly what you need.

Pay attention to your health insurance.
Will you stay covered even after your termination? If not, what are the benefits that you can claim before your contract ends? And should you stay jobless for a quite a time, what are the provisions that may be given to you by the government?

Update your resume.
You may be surprised at how outdated your resume is. As you update your resume, look at different resources online that will tell you how your resume should look like. Make sure that aside from its content, you also pay attention to its appearance such as the fonts that you use and the layout of the whole document.

Create an online presence.
Upload your freshly updated resume in the Internet. Look for job sites where you can start searching for a job, and make sure you have a LinkedIn profile to back it up. LinkedIn is the Facebook of the professional arena, so make sure your name can be seen there. Connect with your colleagues and subscribe to pages of companies you want to work in.

Read the rest of the article here.

Hard Lessons You Will Learn in Your Career

They say experience is the best teacher, but we’re rounding up what executives say are the most difficult lessons experience taught them. These things are learned in school, and it might come as a shock to new graduates. But to those in executive jobs such as accounting jobs and manager jobs, all they need is a little reminder that these lessons are ones that they have already learned along the way.

Your reputation matters.
And it matters a lot. If you think that it is okay to slack off in a job because you’re leaving soon anyway, you’re thinking wrong. Your future employer can easily review your performance in one company.
Think if your job as your business. You call the shots, and you will be the one to raise its profits. This mindset will help you know that you are actually doing your job for yourself, and not for anybody else.

You are your own advocate.
Although some people will vouch for you, don’t count on it. Take it upon yourself to build your reputation as a skilled and valuable talent. Learn how to speak up and let others know about your accomplishments. Just learn how to do it without sounding too arrogant and pushy.

There is no dream job.
The person who dreamt of doing nothing aside from watching TV is now complaining that he isn’t able to do anything else anymore. Your dream job is in the clouds, and it is just not possible to reach it. You may reach your dream position, your dream set of responsibilities, and your dream pay, but these are all not without challenges and constant hurdles. You have to learn how to roll with the punches.

The boss is really important.
He is important because he leads your team, but he is also important because he has great impact on you and on the way you work. You may be the most passionate employee and everybody may love you, but if you have a horrible boss, all these things won’t matter. Your direct supervisor can make or break the way you go from your day-to-day work. Make sure that before you accept a job offer, you have first evaluated the management you will be working under.

Read the rest of the article here.

Questions to Ask before You Pursue an Industry

ou have your reasons: the industry is hot, you think you will do well in it, you just have that gut feel that it is the perfect industry to chase. But take note that times are changing, and really fast. Today’s hot industry might not be tomorrow’s best one. Today banking jobs may be big, tomorrow other finance jobs will take over.
The point is, there is no sense in pursuing an industry just because it’s where the money is.  And while there is completely nothing wrong with chasing after a career in the industry that is the most in today, you need to be more critical. Remember, your future depends on your decision today. So here are questions you need to ask before you jump on the bandwagon of whatever industry you feel is scorching hot today.


What does it take to succeed in the industry?

Not because an industry is booming means that everybody who works there is successful. That’s just plain delusional. Identify the necessary skills required for one to be successful in an industry. You have to be aware that your current skillset might be too far from what is required in the job you want to apply for.

Why is an industry booming?

You need to get really critical about it. In between being excited about the opportunities that come your way and entertaining phone calls from interested recruiters, you need to see through all the awesome things and have a reality check. Maybe the industry is hot because of high turnover or because of poor working conditions. The compensation and benefits packages might be enticing, but there must be a reason why a lot of people still choose to leave.

Can I really do the job?

Aside from your skills and capabilities, you also need to take into consideration your soft skills. For instance, if you’ve been in the IT industry for a long time and you’ve become very comfortable working by yourself and in front of a computer all day, you might encounter problems when you shift to a job that will require you to interact with people constantly. Be honest to yourself and really evaluate whether or not you can do the job. You do not want to be earning big bucks yet feeling really low about your performance.

Read the rest of the article here.

Things to Consider before Signing an Employment Contract

So, after a long time of looking, you finally see yourself with an offer for a Singapore executive job that you feel will suit you best. Is it happy ever after from then on? Not really. Aside from workplace woes, you first need to make sure that what you’re signing into will really work towards the advancement of your career. Here are the things you need to consider before you put your precious signature on all pages of the contract. And yes, you need to read it thoroughly.

Start dates and end dates

You might think that a start date is important but an end date is as open as the sea. While there is no need to indicate an exact date for your last day, there should be specific provisions for when you need to leave. For instance, your contract should indicate the number of days your resignation letter should be signed and acknowledged before you leave the company.



Is the job secure enough?

Read through the contract and look for any indication that your security might be at risk in the company. While it is true that no job can give you enough security, the contract should at least give you peace of mind when you read through it.

Compensation and benefits

What is your basic salary? If you are applying for a high position accounting job, are you being offered a competitive amount? If there are provisions for bonuses and other rewards, how does the evaluation process go? Who will decide whether or not you will get a bonus? Are the benefits fixed or can they be changed by the HR or your boss? This is a very important part of the contract, so if you want some concrete details, ask for them to be included in writing.

Termination

The contract should specify the causes for termination. This will protect you from being thrown away for reasons as wide as the sea.

Freelancing

Is your contract restrictive, or will you be able to do some moonlighting on the side? The corporate landscape today is very permissive of freelancing and flexible work hours, so a restrictive employer is a big turn-off, and it can be a sign that the company is backwards in a lot of issues regarding employment.

Job description

Is the job description in synch with your skills and with the one discussed during your interviews with the company? Ask for specifics; you want your contract to protect you from unnecessary tasks that are not included in your tasks list.

Read the rest of the article here.

Handling an Interview When You’re Overqualified

So you have an MBA, you’re a member of several professional organizations, you’ve published articles, and you’re just really good at what you do. You would think that there is no drawback, but one of the most common complaints of such kinds of people is that they have a very limited range of positions, not because they wouldn’t do well on other jobs, but because they are always looked at as overqualified.
So what should you do when you are seeking employment and are willing to take on lower positions? Here are some tips.

• Show genuine interest on the job. The reason why employers hesitate to hire experienced employees is that they worry that such professionals may become unhappy and hence leave the company prematurely. If you send a message that you just need a darn finance job, you will most likely be rejected. So show to your interviewer that you would really want to get the position for reasons other than money.

• Do not compromise your true skillset. You might be tempted to pretend that you are really inexperienced, even editing your resume and scrapping essential parts. You might get hired, sure, but you might also end up frustrated and disappointed with the tasks that you will be assigned with. So be honest with yourself and to the employer.
• Keep looking. You will most likely have a feel of the job that you are applying for even at the interview level. If you sense that the position will not be contributive to your career progress, then keep looking.
• Don’t sound desperate. This is an age-old trick that just doesn’t work anymore. Employers look for competent people who will perform well on the job, not desperate folks who are only after a job and nothing beyond that.
• Keep on networking. Everybody has benefited from networking at one point or another. Harness your network by asking contacts if they know any job that may fit you. Let them know that you are open to a myriad of opportunities. You might be a CEO in a startup company and you might be qualified for a lower level position in a huge multinational firm.

Looking for jobs at the lower levels has become a usual practice of executives. Blame it on the recession that happened the past years, or on the ever-changing landscape of the corporate world. Lateral moves are strategic and wise, and applying for different positions isn’t a stupid career move anymore. You might even see yourself shifting from a career in IT to succeeding in banking jobs!

Read the rest of the article here.

Interesting Answers to Introductory Interview Questions

Doing a job interview is almost always scary, although you already know the type of questions that will be asked. Take for example the perennial opening question “Can you tell me more about yourself?” A lot of people will start by saying their name, which would automatically lessen their chances of getting accepted for the job. Because hello, the interviewer already knows your name of course!
So instead of buckling and regretting that you didn’t prepare an answer, make a good impression by trying out these interesting and funny answers that will surely break the ice.

• Your favorite quote. If you still do not have one, this is the best time to look for a quote that perfectly says what you believe in and how you look at life, especially your career.
• Three words that best describe you. This is so interesting! Try hardworker, TV junkie and newlywed. They do not mesh together, and so it makes for a curious conversation that can take your interview to a lighter pace and more conversational, easier flow.

• What people say about you. What does your husband say about you when it comes to your work ethics? What does your mom say about your drive? The people who know you well will give you and your potential employer a nice insight about you.
• Your personal philosophy. This is a no-fail impression improver. Companies like thinkers who are also set on their life goals. It shows that you are a driven individual with a guiding principle.
• Your passion. An employer will be impressed if you let him know who you are instead of what you do. And your passion can be anything. It can be motorcycles, and it will still make a good impression on your interviewer.
• The results of a Google search. Try Googling yourself. What results came up? Mentioning it to your interviewer automatically lightens the conversation and will also give you a good idea about whether or not you need to clean up your online presence.
• The title of your life movie. This sounds a bit like an answer to a Miss Universe question, but nevertheless will offer great insight on how you are as a person. It effectively opens you up in an interesting way, that the interviewer would want to know you more. Just don’t give too cheesy answers like My Best Friend’s Wedding – that’s just spilling the beans on your personal life.
• What you wanted to become when you were growing up. Are you like the other kids who wanted to be a doctor, or did you want to have executive jobs or accounting jobs ever since? Most likely, you’re somewhere different from how you imagined yourself to be when you were six.

Read the rest of the article here.