This issue of QuintZine has a special
slant toward jobseekers who are looking to
change careers.
WE WANT TO PROFILE YOU...
We plan to launch a new feature to
coincide with the first anniversary
of QuintZine in March. "Quintessential
Career Profiles" will feature readers
of QuintZine who have interesting
career stories to tell. Did you obtain
a job in an unusual way? Has your career
path been out of the ordinary? Have you held
one or more unusual jobs? Has your job search been
especially troublesome, inspirational, or
remarkable? We want to hear from you! Tell
us a little about your career story, and
we may contact you for a full profile. Write us
at quintzine@quintcareers.com
and let us know about you.
The Quintessential Directory of Company Career Centers
Because more and more companies are launching career
centers on their corporate Web sites, Quintessential Careers
developed a directory that links you directly to the
employment sections of the Web sites of major companies
where you might like to work.
Unlike job boards, these corporate sites list ALL current job
openings -- as well as providing company-specific
requirements for how you should respond to job postings.
Feature Article: The 10-Step Plan to Career Change
How does it happen? Perhaps you just begin
to lose interest. Perhaps you find something
that interests you more. Perhaps your company
is downsizing. These are just a few of the numerous
reasons people find themselves on that precipitous
cliff looking back on their career just as the
dirt begins to crumble beneath them.
Are you facing that career change plunge?
Do you wish you were? Take it slowly and make
sure what you really want to do is change careers.
Check out Dr. Randall Hansen's 10-step plan,
and you will be on much more sure footing -- and on
a path toward career-change success.
We got a little lost on this site, and not because navigation is difficult, but because
there's so much interesting stuff here to check out. Richard Nelson Bolles, guru behind the
phenomenally popular What Color is Your Parachute?, is also the brains behind this
helpful Web site.
We've always felt that Bolles' approach in "Parachute" was particularly well suited
to career changers, perhaps even more than
to entry-level jobseekers. And JobHuntersBible.com is true to form, offering abundant
information to those seeking to leave one career for another.
The site consists of Bolles' guide to jobhunting on the Internet along with a collection
of articles written by Bolles and two other experts. Many of the articles are
excellent for career-changers, and the site also offers an advice column by Bob
Rosner called "The Working Wounded" to help people better cope with the problems
they face in their current jobs.
Few experts are as uniquely qualified to offer career guidance as Bolles is,
so his site is a "must-see" for career-changers and, indeed, all jobseekers.
Karen Chopra is a career consultant in private practice in the Washington, D.C., area.
"If you are contemplating a career change,
find someone else who has made a career change
and talk to them about your fears and hopes,"
advises Chopra. "Having been through it, they will be able to
share their experiences, and you won't feel
so lonely as you start out on a new career path."
Chopra also offers some exercises for helping career
transitioners determine what career they want to change to.
She discusses some of the common factors that keep
people from changing their careers even when they're
unhappy in their jobs. As a former government
worker herself, she has advice for those seeking to
leave government for the private sector. Chopra also
offers her view on the most disturbing trend in
job-hunting and the biggest reality check her clients
face once they obtain a new job.
BrassRing.com
-- a great job site for high-tech professionals. Job-seekers can post your resume or a skills summary resume,
search for high-tech jobs, and get lots of career advice. Free to job-seekers.
bullhorn.com
-- where creative professionals looking for freelance work can connect with small-to-medium sized businesses
looking for freelance or full-time creative talent. All administrative tasks are handled by the site. Membership
is free, but there is a 5% transaction fee for each project negotiated on the site.
EduPoint.com
-- information and resources for continuing education, an online marketplace for continuing education,
providing centralized access to more than 1.5 million learning opportunities through more than 4,000
learning providers -- providing college degrees, certificates, training programs, and classes. Free to job-seekers.
MBAFreeAgents.com
-- an interactive network of experienced MBAs looking for high-profile full-time and project positions. Through
innovative programs and techniques, members are showcased. Members post your bios and a cover letter, as well as
gain access to job listings and other resources. Free to job-seekers.
Find even more additions to Quintessential Careers by visiting our
Latest
Additions section.
Jim writes: "I have been a high school biology
teacher for 12 years and am extremely interested
in changing careers. I have a Master's in Education (biology).
I am willing to move just about anywhere and am extremely
flexible and quick to learn new concepts.
I am looking for something in the $40K range.
"Could you help me find out what kind of
job I qualify for and what kind of companies
or businesses are interested in individuals
such as myself?"
Mark, who feels he is not attaining the kind of
raises and promotions he should be, writes:
"My resume has been on the Internet in several
well-known sites and I have not gotten very many
responses.I would like to get out there and start
interviewing. Do you have any suggestions?"
Tiffany is interested in starting a career in the advertising field
but has no idea where to start with her education.
She wants to know what schools could help her or what other
suggestions the Career Doc might have.
Q TIPS: Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips
If you have career change on your mind, you're
probably not too happy with your current job. While
you're waiting to find that new job or career, you
can blow off steam.
This unique Web site offers people the opportunity
to relieve stress by ranting about their job/boss
or co-workers in a safe environment.
Visitors can also view other people's gripes
about their jobs and sign up for a newsletter
that publishes the three best rants of the week.
They can also purchase T-shirts and
mugs and send messages to their friends about the site.
Loyalty to your employer doesn't pay, reported
US News and World Report not long ago. While
merit raises have hovered around 4 percent in
the past decade, corporate profits have risen 9
percent, and executive salaries are up 13 percent.
The older you are, too, the smaller percentage raise
you can expect. It often pays to look for greener
pastures, especially in an economy where employers
may be offering big incentives to lure warm bodies.
Working for a dot-com? You might want to be
especially poised for a job or career change.
Job losses in the U.S. Internet sector reached
record levels this fall, when almost 5,700
workers were downsized. According to a report
from recruitment firm Challenger, Gray &
Christmas, the number of dot-com layoffs has
increased monthly.
U.S. Internet companies have laid off more than
22,000 employees since last December, as young
Internet companies struggle under pressure to show
profitability. The dramatic drop in the value of
technology stocks has also affected the level of layoffs.
Most layoffs have occurred in companies focusing
on consulting, financial, and information services,
while the retail sector saw the
second highest number of job losses.
The report predicts that this holiday season
will provoke a shakeout in the business-to-consumer
sector, leaving many dot-coms, and their employees, by the
wayside. Read the full story on C-Net.
Win Fame, Recognition, and a Teeny-Tiny Prize!
We are beta testing an exciting new Job Interview
Response Composition Exercise. Test it out by responding to as many job-interview questions as you wish.
The author of each BEST response will be permanently
credited in a "Best Response" e-mail reply
that will guide jobseekers in composing optimal
responses to interview questions. Each Best Response
author will also receive a small, token
Quintessential Careers gift.
Career counselors, try your hand at responding
to these questions, and encourage your students to try!
Looking for a Unique Holiday Gift Idea?
How 'bout giving a resume/cover letter
gift package to a job-seeking loved one?
Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters
provides quality job-search correspondence at some of
the lowest prices on the Web, and now
we offer gift certificates for Unique
Gift Packages. Credit cards accepted.
WATCH FOR feature articles on these topics in upcoming
issues of QuintZine:
* Case-based and behavior-based interviews
* Online Assessments
* Graduate school for working professionals
* Phone etiquette in the job hunt
* Guide to the company visit
* Letters of recommendation and references
* Completing a job application
* How to land an internship
* Temping
* Hot jobs for 2001
* Quintessential Career Profiles of YOU, our readers
* Q&As with well-known career experts
. . . and much, much more!
Advertisements
RESUMES * JOB SEARCH CORRESPONDENCE FROM TRUSTED EXPERTS * COVER LETTERS
Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters is up and running,
providing quality job-search correspondence at some of
the lowest prices on the Web.
We create resumes,
cover letters, curriculum vitae, thank-you and
follow-up letters, and list-formatted documents,
such as salary histories and reference lists.
We also can provide critiques and makeovers of
your resume or cover letter. Credit cards accepted.
Check out Quintessential Resumes
and Cover Letters!
QuintZine
A publication of
Quintessential Careers
Publisher: Dr. Randall S. Hansen
Editor: Katharine Hansen
ISSN: 1528-9443
