The Contest (And A Teleseminar Recording)

The Contest (And A Teleseminar Recording) I got my webmonkey account and am compiling the submissions. Its kind of hard because some people gave one-liner tag lines, and others wrote long e-mails with a lot of rich information. Its coming, I promise! For now, let me share a recording from a teleseminar I did yesterday to a few hundred people. I didnt advertise here (sorry guys!) because they only had room for 200 people, and last I heard there were over 300 registered. Whod-a-thunk I could draw a crowd, eh? Anyway, go check out the teleseminar recording (scroll down on this page). It was on Facebook and LinkedIn and personal branding how cool is that? In about an hour I share all of my secrets. Well, almost all of my secrets The Contest (And A Teleseminar Recording) I got my webmonkey account and am compiling the submissions. Its kind of hard because some people gave one-liner tag lines, and others wrote long e-mails with a lot of rich information. Its coming, I promise! For now, let me share a recording from a teleseminar I did yesterday to a few hundred people. I didnt advertise here (sorry guys!) because they only had room for 200 people, and last I heard there were over 300 registered. Whod-a-thunk I could draw a crowd, eh? Anyway, go check out the teleseminar recording (scroll down on this page). It was on Facebook and LinkedIn and personal branding how cool is that? In about an hour I share all of my secrets. Well, almost all of my secrets

Why Apprenticeships and Youth are Important to EY

Why Apprenticeships and Youth are Important to EY One of the Big Four, EY is among the biggest global professional service firms in the world, so recruiting young talent is a must-do in order to maintain a real consistent stream of talent. Jorgen Sundberg sits down with Steve Keith, Marketing and Communications Lead for Apprenticeships at EY,  who  spills the beans on their award-winning approach to attracting school leavers in the UK. Have a listen to the interview below, keep reading for a summary and be sure to subscribe to the  Employer Branding Podcast. In this episode youll learn: About the corporate culture at EY What talent challenges the company faces Why apprenticeships are so important and what the UK government has to do with it How important  employer branding is to recruiting top young talent at EY What EYs EVP is and how it is communicated and activated Why face-to-face interaction is their best source of hire Why a parental advice campaign EY ran is Steves favorite initiative What Steves top 3 tips for employer branding managers are. Connect with Steve on Linkedin.

Authority isnt what it used to be

Authority isnt what it used to be It used to be that authority only came after years of experience. Even then, someone older had to annoint you before you could begin spouting your opinions and advice from a place of authority. For instance, I climbed the corporate ladder very fast when I was in my 20s, and had a hard time maintaining my authority among people older than me. So my boss became convinced that I needed a coach in order to acquire the trappings of established authority. The coaching was only moderately successful. But I did learn that authority has a lot to do with having self-confidence in your strengths, and little to do with other peoples preconceptions about you. Today the Internet democratizes authority, and people are judged not by their age or experience but by the quality of what they have to say. This is great for 20-somethings, especially those who give advice about or discuss their own careers online. As Marci Alboher pointed out in the New York Times, its all about figuring out what you can bring to the table that others cannot. In the case of young bloggers, their tips and opinions are quirky, fresh, and interesting, even if you dont always agree with them. Online, much more so than in print, authority is about voice. Can you tell that a real person is behind the ideas? Do you feel like you know him or her? A strong voice is more engaging, and once youre engaged with someone youre more willing to listen to her whether or not you agree. In this way, voice begets authority. With that in mind, heres a selection of 20-something bloggers I find irresistible, both in the intelligence of their ideas and the temerity it takes to post them. Most of them write about careers either directly or tangentially, and all of them give people a new way to look at issues we face every day. Legal Andrew is by Andrew Flusche, the consummate 20-something who focuses on following his passions rather than climbing ladders. Hes got a degree from University of Virginia law school, but is also proficient in the PHP and SQL programming languages. Andrew recognizes that todays law career isnt a single slide into long hours for lame partnerships. Its something bigger, and hes going to find it. Kate, whos between jobs, and her blog, From Boston with Love, have become symbols of the new unemployment as a time for growth. Kate blogs with intelligence and wit about diverse topics, all to show that unemployment actually offers some breathing room to collect ideas, form opinions, and share them in a way that only todays young people would think of doing. Nathan Snell takes on tough topics surrounding social media, ranging from which online business models work well to which things you can buy on Second Life if you dont have any money. He has a distinctive voice, and peppers his blog with Im-still-in-college reminders, like the post celebrating no homework over Thanksgiving break. Elysa Rice writes about work and life in her blog GenPink, and even invites boys into the pages as long as they promise to play nice. Elysas most popular post gives advice to her fellow millennials that they shouldnt plan their lives based on other peoples expectations. Wouldnt you know, 10 people jumped into the conversation. This shows, perhaps, the main leadership quality of these young people: Theyre great at creating a network of people who want to talk about similar issues, and theyre great at asking the questions that matter right now. And what is authority but the intelligence and knowledge to ask the best questions? Because no one really has all the answers on subjects like work-life balance and careers. So maybe the people who deserve the most authority are simply those who force us to ask sharper questions. You can keep talking about old measures of authority, or you can take a cue from these Gen Yers and measure authority by how much someone teaches you about seeing the world in a new and useful way.

Your Evil Twin

Your Evil Twin A goatee is almost always a sure sign that youre dealing with the Evil Twin. Many thanks to Jill Geisler whose post on managers’ “Evil Twins” inspired this post.   From Wikipedia: [a warning about] Evil Twins: Not to be confused with a single character who has a secret identity. (Good to know.) Jill Geisler’s management consulting and writing always includes her take on managers’ “evil twins.” I love the evil twin concept, and hope it doesn’t die with the soap operas that were my first exposure to them. Geisler describes the evil twin phenomenon as a common occurrence “for skilled supervisors, trying to do something positive, but their actions are misread by those they manage.” Geisler cites an example: suppose you’re a manager who believes in rolling up your sleeves and working alongside the staff. You happily pitch in on a project and give helpful feedback along the way. You see this as an egalitarian ‘Boss of the Year’ moment; your staff sees micromanaging interference. I’ve seen it myself; a boss who thinks he’s being deliberate and judicious in his decision making is perceived as dithering and indecisive by his staff. What’s a leader to do? You’re not immune as a worker bee, either. What you see as your team-building daily pep talks and check-ins may be seen as frivolous time-wasting by management. When you helpfully point out potential pitfalls in the latest plan, your boss may be rolling her eyes at yet another wet blanket moment. Geisler writes: “’Evil twins’ are often the result of good ideas poorly executed and positive intentions inadequately expressed. Under these circumstances, forthrightness can come across as tactlessness, consensus building as indecisiveness, or positive feedback as puffery.” She suggests some steps for preventing your Evil Twin from taking the stage at work. One is to talk about your values often. In my experience, this is not something people do easily at the office; many don’t even think in terms of “values.” Simply put, values are your personal beliefs about the ideas you think are most important as a course of action or an outcome. So if you talk often about your belief that letting a person make her own mistakes is the best way to grow, your team will be less likely to interpret your non-interference as cold and unsupportive. If you talk about your commitment to your elderly parents with health issues, they will be more tolerant when you take a quick call from your mom during work. That’s not to say that oversharing is the solution; details aren’t always necessary. Simple statements about what you believe and what works for you may be enough. I take a long lunch twice a week and attend a yoga class. My team is supportive because I’ve talked to them about my commitment to healthier and more mindful living. They might react differently if I simply disappeared for long periods. Geisler cites research that indicates that people will be more tolerant of behavior â€" even if they dislike it â€" when they believe that someone has good intentions. She writes: “People appreciate more deeply and forgive more easily when they believe that the other person means well.” So your intent matters. Let people know you care. Talk to them about what matters to you â€" and ask them what matters to them. If their behavior surprises â€" or dismays you, ask a neutral question to start a conversation. “I saw you (do something / choose something.) Tell me about your thinking on that.” You never know what you’ll hear. And you just might banish an Evil Twin forever.

5 Creative Ideas on How to Increase Your Income as a Freelancer CareerMetis.com

5 Creative Ideas on How to Increase Your Income as a Freelancer â€" CareerMetis.com As the world is stepping into a digital revolution, many people are switching their regular day jobs and working as a freelancer or independent researchers. The flexibility of working from a remote location instead of going to the office and the opportunity to increase the client base without leaving the comfort zone makes the whole concept of freelancing appealing. With the number of perks that come along with freelancing, 45% of freelancers feel secure with their career choice.However, the freelancing journey isn’t that easy for a new freelancer. While building up a good client base and a steady income seems to be daunting in the initial year, with proper use of time and by implementing a few proven strategies any freelancer can generate stable revenue. Thus, we have compiled a list of five creative ideas which will help you increase your income as a freelancer.1) Build Your Client Base:evalevalBuilding a strong client base is the first step to become a successful freelancer. The more customers you make, the more experience you will gain. Many freelancers work on a subscription model where the clients subscribe to a freelancer’s services by paying a minimum monthly fee based on mutual understanding. While this kind of model helps the customers to control their expenditure, it provides freelancers with a base income to count on.If you are a new freelancer and want to attract more customers, you can offer complimentary trial services to your subscribers for either an essential service or for the first few days. This will be helpful in gaining the trust of the new customers and will encourage them in using your services. Keeping your entry-level prices lower than the traditional prices is also useful in catching the attention of new customers.2) Offer Comprehensive Services:Although demonstrating your skills in your predefined niche plays a considerable role in the success of your freelance business, offering services different from your domain will bring mo re feathers to your cap. You can expand your services by either learning the fastest growing skills or by collaborating with other freelancers who hold different specialties and the desired expertise.By offering a variety of services to your clients, you will be able to charge your client for the full services and pay the approved share to your partner. To collaborate with a right partner, make sure to bring along a freelancer who is affordable yet reliable. An agreement with your partner where the partner will share work based on your proficiency will help you generate some bonus income. Such kind of a set up will both add value to your business and boost your income even in the not so sunny days.3) Upsell to Existing ClientsAs most of the freelancers run behind new clients to increase their income, they tend to overlook their services which can be easily offered to existing clients. While the chances of selling services to new clients remain between 5-20%, the chances of selling s ervices or products to a current client are between 60-70%. As existing clients can offer excellent income opportunity, it is always advisable to persuade existing clients for more orders.Extending your contract or services and offering new products to your existing clients will also be beneficial in strengthening your relationships. However, while upselling your services, refrain from forcing your clients into an uncomfortable situation.Try to get an insight into your client’s needs before offering services and make more practical proposals. The best way to learn about your customer’s requirements is to check about the next steps after finishing an existing project.4) Get Paid Up-front:eval50% of freelancers have at least once in their career experienced a situation where the client failed to pay for the work done. Boosting your income does not only mean to get paid more, but it also means to get paid at the appointed time.To gain more experience and make more clients, many fre elancers often agree on the payment terms of their client, no matter if the payment is even after a gap of a few months after the submission of the final work. The piling up of invoices can sometimes result in either overlooking of a few payments or endless follow-ups with clients resulting in a waste of time and money.If you have successfully executed a project and built a good rapport with your clients, it is better to renegotiate the payment terms and get paid for aging invoices before starting a new project. Most of the successful freelancers negotiate the payment terms before initiating a new project, and even clients prefer a mutual payment set-up which is free from misunderstandings.eval5) Work Smart:The main advantage of working as a freelancer is you can set your own goals and achieve them on your terms. For generating an extra income, it is not necessary that you work hard, a little bit of smart work will help you in the long run. Once you have succeeded in building a stro ng client base, you can set your strategies and ditch your low paying clients or sub-contract unwanted work to a junior freelancer. This will help you focus more on projects which are more rewarding and which you want to do by yourself.evalUsing time management software will help you in utilizing your time more efficiently. By tracking the actual time invested in a project versus expected time for completion, you can make a hassle-free schedule for your future plans. This will also help you in evaluating your distractions and rectifying them to make your work more profitable.Establishing a strong client base and growing your earning probability will be one of the biggest challenges in your freelance career. However, implementation of one or more of the above ideas at a time will eventually help you in overcoming your problems. These ideas will not only boost your income but also help you in making a good reputation and strengthen your relationships with clients.