Would you study and memorize all of your friends' contact information even though you had a working smartphone? How about doing the dishes by hand despite an operational dishwasher in your kitchen? Of course you wouldn't, because both of those devices make life exponentially easier and more efficent.Which is why taking a traditional approach to job-hunting when a host of social networking tools are at your fingertips doesn't make any sense.So says Miriam Salpeter -- a career coach, Salary.com blogger, and author of 'Social Networking for Career Success: Using Online Tools to Create a Personal ... view article details

Dear Annette,How do I know whether I'm the one with bad breath? And if it's me, what can I do about it?Minty in MontanaDear Minty,On the Internet no one knows what you smell like, although my dog Dickie is eagerly awaiting the day he can introduce the line of downloadable fragrances he's been working on ever since the lawn started to thaw. But if your business is in the realm of Atoms, rather than Bits, it's reasonable to want to present yourself in the best light and the freshest air.How Sexy is the Sexiest Man Alive if he turns heads in the other direction when he opens his mouth to speak? H... view article details

So you've got a job interview. The only problem is hundreds of other people are going for the same position. So how do you stand out?William Arruda says the answer is personal branding.Arruda, a personal branding expert and author of Career Distinction: Stand Out By Building Your Brand, is this week's guest on Salary Talk, and tells Aaron and Wendy the fastest way to separate yourself from the pack is to figure out who you are, what you're good at and maximize your strengths. While most people think of branding as creating a fake image, Arruda says the key to personal branding is 'permission t... view article details

Q:  My title is Senior Web Editor at a growing Internet company in New Jersey. With a nearly exact match in responsibilities as indicated for this position in your Salary Wizard, my total compensation falls short of the median by $25,000. I have presented this information to my bosses who assured me they cannot match the Salary Wizard figures and told me I can go elsewhere if I need more money. But my question is, where are these places that are paying $75,000 for my skills? Nobody who I have spoken to in the industry is being paid that well. Are these the companies that are now out of busines... view article details

Develop & Maintain a Communication Strategy to Keep Your Workers Fully Engaged Effective communication in the workplace is arguably the most important factor in the success of a company. Even so, many companies don’t take necessary steps to make sure their communication strategy is well-thought-out and flexible. Here are eight suggestions to improve communication by taking down barriers that tend to exist in many businesses: 1. Create an environment of open communication where opinions are valued and not judged or punished. In many cases, employees don't communicate honest information t... view article details

Let’s face it. People get to a point in their careers when they want to see more dollar signs. If your chosen profession isn’t paying as handsomely as you’d like, it might be time to consider a career change. This kind of professional shift typically means going back to school, but the return on investment may be worth your time. Based on Salary.com data, we've provided 10 jobs that tend to pay out over $75,000. We’ve also included job descriptions for each one so you can start to evaluate whether a career change may be right for you. 1) Web Software Developer: $78,653 A Web Software Develop... view article details

Symptoms of infection with coronavirus Coronavirus has developed so rapidly that it can take people by surprise, but people who travel to work are at greater risk. Workers are exposed to more people on their commute and in the office, resulting in a greater chance of infection. If you are an office worker, don't panic too much. The following information about symptoms of coronavirus infection can help you a lot. 1. Incubation period The incubation period of COVID-19 is relatively long, ranging from 2 to 14 days, with an average of 7 days. During this period... view article details

Where's the Beach? There’s a radio advertisement running on one of the stations I listen to regularly. It’s an ad for “the beaches of South Walton” and hopes to inspire listeners to vacation there. The problem is, the ad's writers assumed a lot about the audience when they created their piece. They barely mention the beaches are in Florida and allude to the 'white sands,' which requires some knowledge about Florida to conclude the beach must be on the Gulf coast -- because the Atlantic Ocean’s beaches don’t have white sand.Unless the goal was to specifically target people who already ... view article details

Before negotiating an executive salary with a current or new employer, take some time to reflect on where your pay falls given the market data, the opportunities you face, and your current compensation.How little is too little?If you are making too little, assess yourself and your performance as honestly as possible. If you discover that your data is accurate, but you're underpaid - and that there are good reasons why you are underpaid - determine how to remedy it and create a plan with your current employer, or figure out what to do differently in your next post.Perhaps it's that someone else... view article details

As we all know, the economic picture is and has been rather bleak the last few years. And with unemployment still far too close to 10 percent for anyone's liking, we can't tell you it's going to get better any time soon. But while you can't magically predict whether or not you'll join the ranks of the unemployed someday soon, you can be prepared for it. And we can help.These tips are good habits to get into to manage your career even in boom times. So even if you're one of the lucky ones who aren't concerned about being laid off, put the economy to work for you. Let it motivate you to g... view article details