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Rachel Zupek, CareerBuilder.com writer

When Nicholas Richardson was laid off in February, he was blindsided. He quickly realized there weren’t many firms looking to increase their payrolls, so he took matters into his own hands: He hired himself.

With a lot of help and support from his friends, family and his professional network, Richardson is slowly but surely making his dreams a reality. The best part of his new situation? He is his own boss.

“Opening my own [law-firm] practice was always a long-term goal, but I hadn’t done any of the groundwork to make my startup feasible because it wasn’t a plan for 2009 or in this economy,” Richardson says. “I spent a lot of time researching what I needed to do, and then made a list that’s slowly getting checked off.”

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Robert Half International
In today’s economy, reorganizations are common, and you may find yourself suddenly overseeing employees who were once at the same level as you. While transitioning into a supervisory role can be exciting — and possibly signal a new phase in your career — it also means a shift in dynamics with colleagues, especially those who will now be reporting to you.

Your success taking on a leadership role is dependent on building positive working relationships with direct reports, and being able to exercise authority when necessary. Following are some steps to help make the switch from peer to manager as smooth as possible:

Meet with your team
One of the first items on your agenda should be to meet with those you will oversee. Arrange one-on-one conversations to make sure everyone understands the following: continue reading…

Selena Dehne, JIST Publishing

The stress, change and flood of emotions associated with unemployment are not limited to those who have lost their jobs. Often, families and significant others experience their own sense of turbulence when loved ones have been downsized.

This reaction is common but sometimes problematic for job seekers in the midst of their transition, warns Lisa Caldas Kappesser, an emotional intelligence expert and author of “The Smart New Way to Get Hired: Use Emotional Intelligence and Land the Right Job.”

“Although family members and loved ones often mean well, they can be an obstacle during the job search. They want to support you, but their actions do not always turn out to be supportive,” Kappesser explains. “For example, if Mom loses her job, a teenager’s main concern may be that Mom won’t have the money to buy her a prom dress. Such situations are difficult for both the family and the job seeker, all of whom are trying to cope with the changes in the financial situation and lifestyle.”

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As a senior SAP Consultant working on your own, it always comes down to the same question when you start a new project. How reliable is the agency or consulting firm I work for? Will I be paid fairly and on time for my work? You are your own boss and need to make sure that you can plan your finances & professional life accordingly.

Many times, you have to work through multiple layers of agencies and each layer takes a large portion out of the rate the client is paying. When you open the envelope, you get frustrated to work so hard for what you get. On the other hand, the client may be paying a fairly high rate for you and may expect more than they pay for. continue reading…

by Robert Half International

Your résumé is designed to communicate your accomplishments and distinguish you from other job seekers, but there are certain words and phrases that can actually disguise your qualifications. For example, if an applicant writes, “Assisted manager in optimizing marketing campaigns,” it’s difficult to determine exactly what the person did or how he or she did it.

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Anthony Balderrama, CareerBuilder.com writer

If you’ve watched the news lately, you’ve seen a reporter standing at a job fair and a line of job seekers winding out the door. Inevitably the reporter interviews an employer who says that for a few open positions, hundreds of applicants have submitted résumés.

You immediately wonder: How many of those applications actually get read?

In a perfect world, hiring managers would have plenty of time to thoroughly read every single résumé that comes across their desks and contact each person to explain why the company is choosing someone else. In reality, the job seekers outnumber available positions in today’s job market, and hiring managers are too busy to hold your hand through every step of the process. continue reading…

Duncan Mathison and Martha I. Finney, co-authors of “Unlock the Hidden Job Market”

Are you sick of the word “networking” yet? It seems to be on everyone’s lips — all those millions of people just like you who are looking for a new job. Networking is a lot of work. And if everyone is doing it, where’s the competitive advantage? continue reading…