Alexandra Levits Water Cooler Wisdom Are You Leveraging Big Data Effectively

Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom Are You Leveraging Big Data Effectively The data deluge has arrived, and the world is overflowing with new and potentially valuable information. Yet, we are at a crossroads. Organizations have access to big data that can transform their cultures for the better, but they don’t know what to do with it. Far too often, potentially insightful data is ignored out of fear, ego or pure disorganization. Data doesn’t lie and tends to reveal unpopular truths. Humans performing the analysis often pass over what they don’t want to see. Before we go further, let’s define big data. According to David McJannet, vice president of marketing for Hortonworks, in an article for Information Week, here’s a practical take: “Big data is about building new analytic applications based on new types of data in order to better serve your customers and drive a better competitive advantage.” McJannet doesn’t mention company culture, but it’s as critical a business benefit of big data as any. Businesses have access to more data about their operations than ever before, but most organizations use only a fraction of it to achieve tangible business results.The primary reason for this is that data doesn’t lie and tends to reveal unpopular truths. Humans performing the analysis often pass over what they don’t want to see and select data that supports a favored direction. Whether your analytics technology touches every aspect of your business or youre limited to the free version of Google Analytics, here are six ways you can leverage your data to enhance your culture by leaps and bounds: 1. Target and share. The questions we ask our analytics program are often numbers-focused, and it’s all about the formulas. But measurement for the sake of measurement won’t do you a drop of good. As with any major strategy, your analytics approach should begin with the important cultural question you want to answer. Then you can effectively devise an analytical methodology that will address this issue. Once the data starts to come in, don’t hoard it. Distribute it to different departments and individuals so that a richer picture of the results emerges. 2. Let go of hierarchy. In his recent article for the Financial Times, Richard Walters says that in order to take full advantage of big data, personal working styles have to be overhauledâ€"starting at the top. Managers accustomed to making gut decisions have to learn the humility that comes from being led by the data. This might mean that a junior analyst has a better handle on the best solution than a senior manager does. To ease the ego blows, reiterate big data’s benefits to your senior team. For instance, it relieves uncertainty and allows an organization to be more competitive. For more advice, check out the full post at the AMEX Open Forum.

Premium Resume Package - Earthy Tones

Premium Resume Package - Earthy Tones Premium Resume Package Earthy Tones This is a great one page MS Word resume template to showcase your skills and experience in a subtle yet sharp manner. This premium resume package uses strong earth tones to convey a feeling of solidity and trust. It will deliver your key information in a subtle yet efficient way with clearly defined sections to display your experiences and skills.Each of the well-defined sections can easily be edited in MS Word so you can adapt the resume to fit your profile perfectly. This is a clean-cut and well defined style of resume that is both striking and eye-catching in equal measure.Your matching cover letter will help to convey a great sense of gravitas that comes with this resume pack style. Given that your average recruiter spends about 15 seconds looking over your resume and cover letter to get a first impression, the continuation of this strong theme from letter to resume will help to keep their concentration levels consistent. There will be less to distract with a sudden change of the me or colour scheme.Each premium resume pack includes:A professionally designed and striking resume template in Word format (US letter size)A matching cover letter in Word format to go with your resumeA job interview tracker in print-ready PDF format Buy Now $14True design is our passion, so you will be able to make the best first impression with our striking Earthy Tones premium resume package.You can save your resume template and cover letter in Word and it will always be there ready for you to edit and amend should you need to tweak it again in future while applying for different jobs or adding new skills, qualifications or work experience. Nothing could be simpler! Buy your resume template today. previous article Ocean Breeze Premium Resume Package next article Celebrating 20,000 Downloads a Key Moment on Freesumes.com! you might also likeSmart Portfolio Complete Resume Pack

Tips For Creating Your Brand

Tips For Creating Your Brand When it comes to your business’s image one of the most important things to focus on is honing in on exactly what your brand is.   Your brand is the overall vibe and message of your product and how you want to portray yourself. Without a brand you don’t stand for anything.   Think of your brand as your trademark stamp that you leave on everything that you do which makes your customers know without a doubt that it is you. Here are some of the best tips for creating a brand made just for you. Decide What Your Niche Is Your brand should be something unique which hasn’t been done before.   Why would you opt to imitate all of the other brands that are already out there when you can stand out and be something incomparable. You should first decide what your niche is going to be and from there pave your own way in creating your brand.   Once you find your inspiration do not waver or fear that you are doing something wrong.   One of the best things that you can do for your brand is to stay true to yourself and your unique approach.   So try to tune out the feelings of self-doubt when you allow yourself to be compared to others. Study Your Competitors You have to be able to know what your competitors are doing if you want to be able to stay at the edge of your market.   If you only focus on yourself and turn a blind eye to what your competition is doing then you are only doing yourself a disservice. Staying aware of competition means that you are one step ahead of the game and always ready to innovate. Don’t allow yourself to get comfortable by failing to see your competition as a threat.   The mark of a truly successful brand is one that never stops innovating. Make Yourself Visible Your brand should be all over the place on social media.   Make sure that you have a very visible brand on every platform that you can get your hands on and stay active!   Social media presence is a must-have when it comes to creating a brand in this day and age. Therefore, if you don’t have the time to put in a few hours of social media time each day, you will want to consider outsourcing this job to someone else to make sure that it gets done. Stay True To Yourself The most important thing of all is to be confident and don’t waver in your vision.   It may be daunting to create something that no one has done before out of fear of failure or judgment. However let your willingness to stand out motivate you instead of deter you.

New guest blogger A.J. Jacobs, from Esquire magazine

New guest blogger A.J. Jacobs, from Esquire magazine Theres a new guest blogger on Brazen Careerist: A.J. Jacobs. He is an editor-at-large at Esquire, and from what I can tell, its one of the cushiest jobs in the world. He doesnt go to meetings, he seems to have some sort of tenure-track thing where he would never be fired, and he doesnt even have to write for every issue. So you want to know how he got such a great job, right? He specializes. Which you need to do, by the way, if you want to have control over your career. And one of the best ways to find a specialty is to find what area you excel at that pays well, and find what personality traits of yours make you quirky. If you can place your career at the intersection of those two things, youll have a successful, specialized career. So anyway, about A.J.s specialty. Hes a great writer. But there are plenty of great writers who dont have great careers. Surely A.J. could write well in a lot of situations. Like, he would be great at writing ads for used microwaves in fact, I might even subscribe to a daily dose of those ads from AJ because theyd be so funny. But the market for this would be very small. Instead, A.J. decided to go the route of immersion journalism. The immersion journalist that you probably know is Barbara Ehrenreich. She does things like work in menial job for a year in order to write about how hard it is to live like that. Ehrereich does important work, to be sure, but I dont think anyone would call her fun. Though A.J. has never worked as a hotel maid like Ehrenreich, he wrote about outsourcing his life to a team of people in Bangalore, India, (reprinted in the 4-Hour Workweek), and he spent a year reading the encyclopedia and writing about it in his book titled, The Know It All. This book is hilarious and endearing, and every time I go to the book store I pick up a copy and read a few pages as a pick-me-up. What I love about A.J.s writing is that he is immersing himself in something crazy but he does not sound like a crazy person. His book reads like hanging out with a good friend. Who happens to read the encyclopedia for a living. He is working at the intersection of what he is great at (writing) and what makes him quirky (his ability to create a weird life for himself and write about it in a way we can all relate to). No one with A.J.s great sense of career management would be blogging without a purpose. This week hes blogging about the encyclopedia, but in the coming weeks, itll be the Bible. Thats his new book, A Year of Living Biblically, which he is promoting, of course. He spent a year living according to the Bible. Literally. So he followed the Ten Commandments, but also the lesser known laws of the Bible, like dont wear clothes of mixed fibers. And stone adulterers. Sometimes I read A.J. to remind myself what is important about work. What A.J. does that no one else can do is write on insane topics with sentences full of joy. He is smart and funny but the thing that makes me absolutely adore his work is that everything he churns out is bubbling with enthusiasm and fun. And I think that, on some level, this is what we all want our career to be about.

Writing Your Summary in Your Resume

Writing Your Summary in Your ResumeWriting your summary in your resume can be an important part of your resume. Not only does it show that you have read and understood the material being provided to you, but it can also be a tool for getting your foot in the door. This guide will help you write your summary.There are different types of writing your summary in your resume, and depending on your situation, you may have to do them differently. If you're just starting out in the world of business, it's good to go with a short yet informative summary. There are lots of interesting points you can get across in a few sentences. For example, you can tell your story from your start to present.If you're more the type who has a short attention span, go for a brief summary. For example, 'Best Education, Technical Communication, Computer Science'. You can also use this method for people who are just looking for a job.Summary in your resume is also important for someone who is already employed. Th ey don't want to miss out on a great opportunity because they didn't learn how to summarize properly.When you're a graduate student, you don't want to completely neglect your summary, so you may want to go for a little bit longer than others. It's best to have enough information to get you across without going on for too long.Summary in your resume is also important for those looking for entry level jobs. Even if you don't get a job straight away, you'll have lots of experience and will be on your way up the ladder, eventually. This will help you get on with the rest of your life and give you a head start on your future.Whether you're writing your summary in your resume or summarizing the info in a resume, it's important to remember that you don't need to be too fancy. You can even use a bit of Google Translate to make it a little more meaningful. You don't want to overdo it though!Summary in your resume is one of the easiest parts of a resume to write. You should always have a good eye for grammar and spelling, and ensure that you're using the right format. This will ensure that your summary in your resume is well organized and is able to stand out amongst the rest of the pages.

5 Steps to Raise Your Emotional Intelligence - Jane Jackson Career

5 Steps to Raise Your Emotional Intelligence - Jane Jackson Career Emotional intelligence (EQ) matters just as much as intellectual ability (IQ) when it comes to personal and professional relationships and leadership capabilities. A high level of emotional intelligence helps you to build stronger relationships, create success at work, and achieve your career and personal goals. Learn more about why emotional intelligence is so important and how you can boost your own EQ by mastering these key skills.What is emotional intelligence?Emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to identify, use, understand, and manage emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges, and defuse conflict. Emotional intelligence impacts many different aspects of your daily life, such as the way you behave and the way you interact with others.If you have high emotional intelligence you are able to recognize your own emotional state and the emotional states of others, and engage with people in a way that draws th em to you. You can use this understanding of emotions to relate better to other people, form healthier relationships, achieve greater success at work, and lead a more fulfilling life.Emotional intelligence consists of four attributes:Self-awareness â€" You recognize your own emotions and how they affect your thoughts and behaviour, know your strengths and weaknesses, and have self-confidence.Self-management â€" You’re able to control impulsive feelings and behaviours, manage your emotions in healthy ways, take initiative, follow through on commitments, and adapt to changing circumstances.Social awareness â€" You can understand the emotions, needs, and concerns of other people, pick up on emotional cues, feel comfortable socially, and recognize the power dynamics in a group or organization.Relationship management â€" You know how to develop and maintain good relationships, communicate clearly, inspire and influence others, work well in a team, and manage conflict.Why is emotional i ntelligence (EQ) so important?As we know, it’s not the smartest people that are the most successful or the most fulfilled in life. You probably know people who are academically brilliant and yet are socially inept and unsuccessful at work or in their personal relationships. Intellectual intelligence (IQ) isn’t enough on its own to be successful in life. Yes, your IQ can help you get into college, but it’s your EQ that will help you manage the stress and emotions when facing your final exams.Emotional intelligence affects:Your performance at work. Emotional intelligence can help you navigate the social complexities of the workplace, lead and motivate others, and excel in your career. In fact, when it comes to gauging job candidates, many companies now view emotional intelligence as being as important as technical ability and require EQ testing before hiring.Your physical health. If you’re unable to manage your stress levels, it can lead to serious health problems. Uncontrolle d stress can raise blood pressure, suppress the immune system, increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, contribute to infertility, and speed up the aging process. The first step to improving emotional intelligence is to learn how to relieve stress.Your mental health. Uncontrolled stress can also impact your mental health, making you vulnerable to anxiety and depression. If you are unable to understand and manage your emotions, you’ll also be open to mood swings, while an inability to form strong relationships can leave you feeling lonely and isolated.Your relationships. By understanding your emotions and how to control them, you’re better able to express how you feel and understand how others are feeling. This allows you to communicate more effectively and forge stronger relationships, both at work and in your personal life.How to raise your emotional intelligenceAll information to the brain comes through our senses, and when this information is overwhelmingly stressful or emotional, instinct will take over and our ability to act will be limited to the flight, fight, or freeze response. Therefore, to have access to the wide range of choices and the ability to make good decisions, we need to be able to bring our emotions into balance at will.Memory is also strongly linked to emotion. By learning to stay connected to the emotional part of your brain, as well as the rational, you’ll not only expand your range of choices when it comes to responding to a new event, but you’ll also factor emotional memory into your decision-making process. This will help prevent you from continually repeating earlier mistakes.To improve your emotional intelligenceâ€"and your decision-making abilitiesâ€"you need to understand and manage your emotions. This is accomplished by developing key skills for controlling and managing overwhelming stress and becoming an effective communicator.Developing emotional intelligence through a few key skillsEmotional intelligence (EQ) is built by reducing stress, remaining focused, and staying connected to yourself and others. You can do this by learning key skills. The first two skills are essential for controlling and managing overwhelming stress and the last three skills greatly improve communication. Each skill builds on the lessons learned in practicing the earlier skills and include:The ability to quickly reduce stress in the moment in a variety of settingsThe ability to recognize your emotions and keep them from overwhelming youThe ability to connect emotionally with others by using nonverbal communicationThe ability to use humour and play to stay connected in challenging situationsThe ability to resolve conflicts positively and with confidenceHow to learn the key skills that build emotional intelligenceThe key skills of emotional intelligence can be learned by anyone, at any time. There is a difference, however, between learning about emotional intelligence and applying that knowledge to your life. Just beca use you know you should do something doesn’t mean you willâ€"especially when you become overwhelmed by stress, which can hijack your best intentions.In order to permanently change behaviour in ways that stand up under pressure, you need to learn how to overcome stress in the moment, and in your relationships, by remaining emotionally aware. This means that you can’t simply read about emotional intelligence in order to master it. You have to experience and practice the skills in your everyday life.Step 1: Learn how to gauge situations accurately by managing stressHigh levels of stress can overwhelm the mind and body, getting in the way of your ability to accurately “read” a situation, hear what someone else is saying, be aware of your own feelings and needs, and communicate clearly.Being able to quickly calm yourself down and relieve stress helps you stay balanced, focused, and in controlâ€"no matter what challenges you face or how stressful a situation becomes.How to functio n well in the heat of the momentRealize when you’re stressed â€" The first step to reducing stress is recognizing what stress feels like. How does your body feel when you’re stressed? Are your muscles or stomach tight or sore? Are your hands clenched? Is your breath shallow? Being aware of your physical response to stress will help regulate tension when it occurs.Identify your stress response â€" Everyone reacts differently to stress. If you tend to become depressed or withdrawn, you will respond best to stress-relieving activities that are stimulating. If you tend to become angry or agitated under stress, you will respond best to stress-relieving activities that quiet you down. If you tend to freeze, you need stress-relieving activities that provide both comfort and stimulation.Find the stress management techniques that work for you â€" The best way to reduce stress quickly is by engaging one or more of your senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. Each person responds di fferently to sensory input, so you need to find things that are soothing and/or energizing to you. For example, if you’re a visual person you can relieve stress by surrounding yourself with uplifting images. If you respond more to sound, you may find a wind chime, a favourite piece of music, or the sound of a water fountain helps to quickly reduce your stress levels.Step 2: Reduce relationship stress with emotional awarenessBeing able to connect to your emotionsâ€"having a moment-to-moment awareness of your emotions and how they influence your thoughts and actionsâ€"is the key to understanding yourself and remaining calm and focused in tense situations with others.Many people are disconnected from their emotionsâ€"especially strong core emotions such as anger, sadness, fear, and joy. This may be the result of negative childhood experiences that taught you to try to shut off your feelings. But although we can distort, deny, or numb our feelings, we can’t eliminate them. They’re still there, whether we’re aware of them or not.Unfortunately, without emotional awareness, we are unable to fully understand our own motivations and needs, or to communicate effectively with others. We are also at far greater risk for becoming overwhelmed in situations that appear threatening.What relationship do you have with your emotions?Do you experience feelings that flow, encountering one emotion after another as your experiences change from moment to moment?Are your emotions accompanied by physical sensations that you experience in places like your stomach or chest?Do you experience discrete feelings and emotions, such as anger, sadness, fear, joy, each of which is evident in subtle facial expressions?Can you experience intense feelings that are strong enough to capture both your attention and that of others?Do you pay attention to your emotions? Do they factor into your decision-making?If any of these experiences are unfamiliar, your emotions may be turned down or turned off. In order to be emotionally healthy and emotionally intelligent, you must reconnect to your core emotions, accept them, and become comfortable with them.Developing emotional awarenessEmotional awareness can be learned at any time of life. If you haven’t learned how to manage stress, it’s important to do so first. When you can manage stress, you’ll feel more comfortable reconnecting to strong or unpleasant emotions and changing the way you experience and respond to your feelings.You can develop your emotional awareness by learning the mindfulness meditation.Listen to my free guided visualisation and meditation here.Step 3: Improve your non-verbal communicationBeing a good communicator requires more than just verbal skills and the ability to manage stress. Often, what you say is less important than how you say it, or the other nonverbal signals you send outâ€"the gestures you make, the way you sit, how fast or how loud you talk, how close you stand, or how much eye contact you make. In order to hold the attention of others and build connection and trust, you need to be aware of, and in control of, this body language. You also need to be able to accurately read and respond to the nonverbal cues that other people send you.These messages don’t stop when someone stops speaking. Even when you’re silent, you’re still communicating nonverbally. Think about what you are transmitting as well, and if what you say matches what you feel. If you insist, “I’m fine, while clenching your teeth and looking away, your body is clearly signalling the opposite. Your nonverbal messages can produce a sense of interest, trust, excitement, and desire for connectionâ€"or they can generate fear, confusion, distrust, and disinterest.Tips for improving nonverbal communicationSuccessful nonverbal communication depends on your ability to manage stress, recognize your own emotions, and understand the signals you’re sending and receiving. When communicating:Focus on the o ther person. If you are planning what you’re going to say next, daydreaming, or thinking about something else, you are almost certain to miss nonverbal cues and other subtleties in the conversation.Make eye contact. Eye contact can communicate interest, maintain the flow of a conversation, and help gauge the other person’s response.Pay attention to nonverbal cues you’re sending and receiving, such as facial expression, tone of voice, posture and gestures, touch, and the timing and pace of the conversation.Step 4: How to use humour and play to deal with challengesHumour, laughter, and play are natural antidotes to life’s difficulties; they lighten your burdens and help you keep things in perspective. A good hearty laugh reduces stress, elevates mood, and brings your nervous system back into balance.Playful communication broadens your emotional intelligence and helps you:Take hardships in stride. By allowing you to view your frustrations and disappointments from new perspectiv es, laughter and play enable you to survive annoyances, hard times, and setbacks.Smooth over differences. Using gentle humour often helps you say things that might be otherwise difficult to express without creating a flap.Simultaneously relax and energize yourself. Playful communication relieves fatigue and relaxes your body, which allows you to recharge and accomplish more.Become more creative. When you loosen up, you free yourself of rigid ways of thinking and being, allowing you to get creative and see things in new ways.How to develop playful communication:It’s never too late to develop and embrace your playful, humorous side.Try setting aside regular, quality playtime. The more you joke, play, and laughâ€"the easier it becomes.Find enjoyable activities that loosen you up and help you embrace your playful nature.Practice by playing with animals, babies, young children, and outgoing people who appreciate playful banter.Step 5: How to resolve conflict positivelyConflict and disa greements are inevitable in relationships. Two people can’t possibly have the same needs, opinions, and expectations at all times. However, that needn’t be a bad thing. Resolving conflict in healthy, constructive ways can strengthen trust between people. When conflict isn’t perceived as threatening or punishing, it fosters freedom, creativity, and safety in relationships.The ability to manage conflicts in a positive, trust-building way is supported by the previous four skills. Once you know how to manage stress, stay emotionally present and aware, communicate nonverbally, and use humour and play, you’ll be better equipped to handle emotionally charged situations and catch and defuse many issues before they escalate.Tips for resolving conflict in a trust-building wayStay focused in the present. When you are not holding on to old hurts and resentments, you can recognize the reality of a current situation and view it as a new opportunity for resolving old feelings about conflic ts.Choose your arguments. Arguments take time and energy, especially if you want to resolve them in a positive way. Consider what is worth arguing about and what is not.Forgive. Other people’s hurtful behaviour is in the past. To resolve conflict, you need to give up the urge to punish or seek revenge.End conflicts that cant be resolved. It takes two people to keep an argument going. You can choose to disengage from a conflict, even if you still disagree.References:The Language of Emotional Intelligence â€" Dr. Jeanne Segal’s latest book offers specific methods to improve your emotional Intelligence skills. (PsychCentral)Emotional Intelligence â€" How to improve your emotional intelligence and “people skills.” (MindTools)10 Ways to Enhance Your Emotional Intelligence â€" Tips to improve your EQ. (Psychology Today)Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace (PDF) â€" How to build and practice EQ to improve your success at work. (USF)What is Emotional Intelligence and How to Impro ve It? Zoey Miller (The Babble Out)

Tips For Writing About Research Experience In Resume

Tips For Writing About Research Experience In ResumeWhen you're trying to write about research experience in resume, it's important to make sure that the information you provide is completely accurate. It can seem overwhelming to try to include all of the details about the course or the experience. However, the job-search process is a fast-paced one, and you need to focus on being able to demonstrate your skills and experience in your application. For this reason, it's important to list all of the relevant details.One thing that you should do when writing about your employment background is to include all of the degrees and diplomas that you have earned, including part-time and online courses. This can help potential employers see the breadth of your expertise. Also, if you attended a degree program that was part of a larger university, list the name of the school as well.You can then go into great detail about the skills and experience that you gained by working at a number of diffe rent positions. You can also list your highest position that you held. The most relevant thing to include in this section is your professional training in communications, programming, or business administration.Other information that you should include is the type of training that you received, and whether or not you received formal training. You can also provide an explanation for how your communication and computer skills improved and describe how the learning environment influenced you. Writing about your research experience in resume should include a more specific description of the specific experiences you had, and also your methodology.Describe what challenges you faced, and what skills you learned in order to overcome those challenges. In addition, you should list a few examples of projects you worked on with your supervisor, along with any references you might have provided. This is an important step that helps your potential employer to understand your capabilities.There ar e a number of additional things that you can include in your information about your research experience in resume. For example, you can provide a list of all of the awards and recognitions that you have received for your work. Additionally, you can provide the names of the institutions that you have worked at, including names of the supervisors, instructors, and even the people who were involved in the research that you did.Finally, you should not forget to list the types of research that you have performed, as well as the dates that these were performed. If there are others involved in your work, you should mention this as well. The types of projects that you have worked on may include clinical trials, experiments, field studies, or general laboratory investigations.Writing about research experience in resume should include all of the details about the field of study, and even the direction that you worked in. The key to making sure that your research experience is included is to w rite in the form of a resume, and to outline the positions that you worked in, the procedures that you completed, and any other relevant information. Doing this can help potential employers to determine how serious you are about the career path that you're embarking on.