Summer Presents Unique Opportunities for You to Advance Your Career Summer is No Time to Slack Off at Work And suddenly, Summer. Coats go into storage, you’re buying sunscreen by the gallon, and your mind instantly shifts from spreadsheets and status meetings to suntans and sandy beaches. However, while kids might be screaming "school's out for summer" and racing for the playground, things don't quite work that way as an adult in the business world. But don't worry, the tips below won't be as painful as summer school. So here are 5 ways you can use summer to your advantage professionally. ... view article details

The Only Thing Worse Than Making a Hiring Mistake Is Not Catching It In Time Getting through the hiring process can be exhausting and time-consuming. We’ve been there and we get it. You found someone with a great resume, who has most of the skills needed, and seems like he’d be a good fit with your company culture. Yet once he starts work, you notice things are…off. The harsh reality is sometimes the person you saw in the job interviews isn’t the same person who ends up working for you. Granted, it’s important to recognize the learning curve in effect and everyone deserves a fair shake. But at... view article details

Jobs that pay $50K or more You Can Have a Job You Love AND a Nice Paycheck How do you define success? Do you want a job that you love, or a paycheck that satisfies you? In a tough economy where jobs are scarce, many of us believe that we must, to some degree, choose between one and the other. The reality is, lack of money is one of the top causes of stress in the United States. According to the American Psychological Association’s most recent annual Stress in America survey, 75 percent of those surveyed said money was a significant source of stress in their lives, while another 70 percent cite... view article details

Jobs that pay $50K or more You Can Have a Job You Love AND a Nice Paycheck How do you define success? Do you want a job that you love, or a paycheck that satisfies you? In a tough economy where jobs are scarce, many of us believe that we must, to some degree, choose between one and the other. The reality is, lack of money is one of the top causes of stress in the United States. According to the American Psychological Association’s most recent annual Stress in America survey, 75 percent of those surveyed said money was a significant source of stress in their lives, while another 70 percent cite... view article details

Not Using Company Medical Benefits? Negotiate Other Perks Instead When it comes to the topic of negotiation, most people's main focus is on salary. As David Lee Roth reportedly once said, "Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you a yacht big enough to pull up right alongside it." However, an increasingly important factor in an overall compensation package is health benefits. According to a 2007 study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, since 2001 premiums for family coverage have increased 78%, while wages have risen 19% and inflation has risen 17%. In 2010 the OECD ranked the US #1 in t... view article details

Weigh 'Need vs Greed' When Negotiating Salary at a Nonprofit Nonprofits are a Different Animal When you’re an employee at MegaCorp and the CEO travels to the shareholder meeting in his private jet to announce that they’ve exceeded Q4 revenue predictions by $200 million, it’s not too difficult to look at the company’s success, negotiate hard for a raise, and say “How about a little something for me?” But what happens when you work for a nonprofit and you’re not dealing with mergers and acquisitions, but rather microfinance loans to empower women or access to clean drinking water in developin... view article details

Over the last two years you've heard it: "Consider yourself lucky to have a job." Whether coming from the manager sugar-coating furloughs and four-day work weeks, or the family member who needs help with the rent -- again! -- going through the same routines, when what you really want is to move on, can be soul-destroying. But on balance, are things so bad? Does leaving really make sense? You decide… This job doesn’t challenge me anymore Stay: In today’s job market, it is unlikely your boss is concerned that you might walk, so why should you? Keep plugging away and allow yourself the time and s... view article details

Historically, there tends to be increased interest in returning to school during an economic downturn. Many laid off workers may choose to complete a degree program, pursue a new course of study, or perhaps attain an advanced degree. Current students may choose to remain in school to further their studies while they wait out the current economic storm. Choosing to return to school, regardless of the reason, is a big decision for adult learners and a practical way for some to help survive a recession. Continuing personal development is always a smart choice regardless of the economic environmen... view article details

From CNN Money and the compensation experts at Salary.com MONEY Magazine and Salary.com have unveiled an exclusive list of the 50 Best Jobs in America. MONEY and Salary.com started by analyzing government and private data on industry growth and compensation levels. But in an improving employment market in which workers are looking for more than just a paycheck, MONEY and Salary.com dug deeper, surveying 26,000 workers about their job satisfaction and grading careers based on factors such as stress level, flexibility, creativity and ease of entry into and advancement within the field. These ca... view article details

How to answer the question "what are your strengths and weaknesses" in an interview No matter how perfectly you answer the other job interview questions from your interviewer, the question "tell me about your greatest strengths/weaknesses" can usually be a hot potato for a candidate in an interview. It's a common interview question but a puzzling one as well, which most candidates don't get right and may even panic and respond with something odd. Their answers may make them sound conceited, or not qualified for the role. This is a common mistake many job applicants make. You... view article details