Feature Article: Consider the Nonprofit Sector to Expand Your Employment Options
Special Feature: Community Trusteeship Can Add Value, Purpose to Your Career Path
Quintessential Site: Featured Career Web Site of this Issue
What's New on Quintessential Careers
The Career Doctor: Answering Your Questions
Q TIPS: Quick and Quintessential Tips to Guide Your Job Search
Notes from the Editor: About this Issue...
In this issue, we look outside the box at two different -- but related -- paths to
personal and professional growth: Working for a nonprofit and volunteering to
perform community service.
Both of these paths can open up new career and personal options that you may not have thought
about before.
We hope you find this an eye-opening issue.
--Katharine Hansen, Credentialed Career Master, Certified Electronic Career Coach,
and editor at
kathy@quintcareers.com
Feature Article: Consider the Nonprofit Sector
Consider the Nonprofit Sector to Expand Your Employment Options
by Maureen Crawford Hentz
At a large national environmental conference, I was presenting a workshop for career changers. After the
workshop, a woman approached me and said she was interested
in breaking into the environmental nonprofit field, but didn't have any experience. When I inquired as to what
she'd been doing, she told me she had been working in public
relations for a well-known company for a number of years. As an environmental nonprofit professional at that time, I
was shocked that this woman would think she had no skills to
bring. Too often, people making the transition from for-profits to nonprofits assume that they have nothing to bring to the table
but an interest in the nonprofit's mission. I tried to dissuade her of this notion.
As we spoke, it seemed to dawn on her that
her current skill set would be amazingly valuable for a nonprofit organization. That skill coupled with her passion for the environment
made her a great candidate for nonprofit work.
Recently, I have been thinking deeply about work in the nonprofit
sector. I have taken a position at a technical college where
nonprofits are not on the radar screen as employment alternatives.
As I try to expand the base of available jobs for graduates, I
encourage students to consider the nonprofit sector. Reaction
has been mixed. Students seem to share similar concerns: How
do a find a job in a nonprofit? Can they pay well? Do I have
to be an expert in the issue the nonprofit works on? What can
I do at a nonprofit?
To maximize your job opportunities, you'll need to cover a lot of ground. One way to do that is to post your resume
on all the best job boards, large and small. It may take some time, but it's well worth the effort. If you want
to save 60 hours of research and data entry, consider using professional resume-posting service like
ResumeRabbit.com.
After filling in one simple online form, they'll instantly post your resume on up to 85 of the top career sites at once.
Within minutes you'll be seen on Monster, HotJobs, FlipDog, Dice, CareerBuilder and more, where 1.5 million employers
and recruiters search for candidates daily.
Community Trusteeship Can Add Value, Purpose to Your Career Path
by Carol A. Poore
Within the next decade, community volunteerism -- the practice of being a servant leader, holding our community
in trusteeship -- will be one of the most valuable character-building, career-enhancing investments made
by professionals.
Community volunteerism is key for people who not only desire successful lifework, but hunger to reap the rewards
of living purposefully.
Volunteerism is a career investment that enables the community trustee to gain new skills and add a passionate
cadre of focused, caring, committed people into his or her professional network. The idea of building a portfolio of
career investments, similar to building a financial portfolio, is central to minimizing career risk and maximizing one's ability
to live and work purposefully.
More than you might ever imagine, you could be the only source of community mentorship in the lives of those with
whom you interact each day. You have an opportunity to encourage
your employees and colleagues to gain lasting leadership skills by making a difference in their community.
We now offer two types of career-coaching services!
Are you...
feeling stuck in an unsatisfying job?
facing a major change in career or job status?
searching for your ideal career or job?
seeking help in developing a job-search plan?
looking for a solution to job-search obstacles?
desiring to bounce ideas off of a career expert?
trying to discover the keys to career success?
Let Dr. Randall S. Hansen, The Career Doctor, help you work through all your college, career, and job-search concerns,
issues, and problems. He has helped hundreds of teens, college students, and experienced job-seekers identify obstacles, develop
action plans, and achieve success -- and he can help you!
In our feature article in this issue, QuintZine Contributor Maureen Crawford Hentz cites Idealist.org as the best online
resource for finding jobs in the nonprofit sector, as well as volunteer opportunities.
Idealist.org lists more than 35,000 nonprofit and community organizations in 165 countries, which you can search or
browse by name, location, or mission for hundreds of job and internship listings. You can also find thousands of
volunteer opportunities in your community and around the world, and a list of organizations that can help you
volunteer abroad.
Individuals can also use Idealist to define what information you'd like to receive by email from among the job openings,
volunteer opportunities, internships, events, and resources posted at the site by organizations all over the world.
You can design the perfect volunteer opportunity for yourself by setting up one or more Volunteer Profiles with your interests,
skills, and schedule. These Profiles can then be searched by organizations in Idealist.
You can also find people around the world who share your interests, goals, and ideas.
Instantly email your resume to 1000s of recruiters,
headhunters, and direct hiring companies! With the most
comprehensive and targeted network of recruiters on the
net, you can rest assured you have taken the steps
necessary to jump start your search. We are so sure
you will be happy that we guarantee our service!
ItsNotWhatYouKnow -- a networking site
that offers users the ability to create, build, and manage your personal network of both professional
and personal contacts. Numerous tools for networking. Basic membership is free and upgrades are available
for a nominal charge.
NonprofitOyster.com -- for job-seekers searching for
jobs in the nonprofit sector. Search nonprofit job listings (by job function, area of focus, and location),
post your resume, store jobs of interest, and create a job search agent. Free to job-seekers.
Superjobs.com -- a job site for job-seekers interested in
finding employment in the Greater Cincinnati, Ohio, area. You can post search job openings,
post your resume, view company profiles, and find other career and job resources for the region.
Registration required. Free to job-seekers.
USA Freedom Corps -- a great resource for
finding volunteer service opportunities of interest to you in your hometown, the U.S., internationally, and
even virtually. Volunteering options come from thousands of organizations that need help. You can also keep
an online journal, keep track of your volunteering efforts, and find all sorts of great resources and
advice for volunteer. Free to job-seekers.
Find even more career and job site additions to Quintessential Careers by visiting our
Latest Additions section.
Ad: New Professional Certificate Programs Online
Advance your career in just 8 weeks with Villanova
University's Online Professional Certificates. Earn
valuable credentials in high-demand areas such as
Six Sigma (Green & Black Belts), Project Management,
Human Resources and Essentials of Finance & Accounting.
100% online from the school ranked #1 in the North by
US News and World Report. Villanova is a member of the University Alliance.
Darby writes: "I just had an over-the-phone job interview with a children's museum. I felt the interview
did not go as well as I would have liked. The interviewer was rather rigid, and I felt the questions he asked did not
probe into my strong points very well. I have a feeling they may be 'using' me to show they are looking for a
candidate 'far and wide,' when in reality, they have people from within that are applying for the job.
I would like to make a trip up to the museum to look around, and also to prove my sincerity.
1) But am I wasting my time? (It would be a six-hour drive each way; I'd have to take off work, etc.)
2) I am going to send a "thank you for the interview" email, and what can I do to emphasize my competency in
management at that time? I am pretty sure the interviewer and I did not get into sync in that matter. (I had just
had an interview with another employer that did not focus as much on management skills [instead, more about ME],
and it was more off-the-cuff. I was offered the job, but the logistics of relocating there weren't ideal,
so I turned it down. I think I was drawing too much from that interview during the recent children's museum
interview.)"
Karen writes: "I was offered a job that requires a high-school diploma/GED for the job. I put on my
application that I went to high school and graduated. I have an associate of applied sciences degree in
computer science and a GED. I was told that the GED is equivalent to a high-school diploma, so I listed it
that way. They want to see a high-school diploma. I also got the date wrong by a year. I thought
it was 1987, but it was 1988. I don't want them to think I lied on the application. What should I do?"
Dan writes: "I am an architect in my late 50s who is finding it exceedingly difficult -- even with an
exceptional work history -- to get any response to resumes sent to executive-search firms. This is true
even when:
it would seem my background would match perfectly with senior-management position requirements advertised,
I state my salary is negotiable, and
when asked, I respond that I am open to relocating if necessary. In a youth-oriented profession such as
architecture, is there a certain approach that I should be following in seeking a position or
in the job-hunting process in general?"
Denise writes: "I've been in high-tech sales now for six years. I do enjoy sales and technology; however
I'm honestly looking for a career change -- but just don't know what I'm wanting to do. It seems as if
I want to do so many things, I can't make up my mind. My question to you is do you know of any
good career-change Web sites -- and also some good online learning schools?"
Based on years of research, the Jackson Vocational Interest
Survey (JVIS) accurately measures your interests, showing how
they relate to the worlds of study and work, and mapping out
your route to an interesting career.
The Professional Resume Writing and Research Association (PRWRA) has proclaimed September
the official Update Your Resume Month.
"Too often job seekers avoid taking this crucial step until the last minute, when they need their resume yesterday,"
explains Laurie J. Roy, PRWRA president, who points out that the awareness generated declaring September
as the official update month will give people "the opportunity to better control and champion
their own futures."
During Update Your Resume Month, members of PRWRA, including Quintessential Resumes and
Cover Letters, are reminding job-seekers of the value of taking this important step
in their career development.
Members of PRWRA have written helpful articles that
will help in the job-search process.
Check them out.
Q TIPS: Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips
Our special feature on volunteering in this issue talks about community service as a way to build skills. That strategy
may be timely because DBM, a global human-resources consulting firm, has found that 94 percent of HR professionals polled in
a recent survey feel their organizations have not adequately prepared younger generations to step into senior-leadership
positions. The findings indicate that most North American organizations are not prepared for the exodus of the approximately
60 million baby boomers who will be leaving the workforce over the next 15 years, creating severe human-resource
shortages and senior-leadership gaps. Read more about
the study.
There's both good news and bad news for workers/job-seekers about the post-Labor Day period. The early fall begins a healthy
hiring cycle, says Michael O'Connor, president of back-office service provider Iprofessional.com, in an article on hiring
seasonality on the Net-Temps Web site.
(Read more.)
"The second best hiring period is mid-September through mid-October, "O'Connor says. "People get back
to work and things begin to crank again." Unfortunately, workers are also 25 percent more likely to lose a
job after Labor Day than in the preceding eight months, according to the outplacement firm Challenger, Gray &
Christmas. Employers are finalizing budgets and business plans for the coming year, and payroll levels are heavily
impacted by both.
So, if you're currently unemployed, now's the time to crank your job search up a notch in anticipation
of a good hiring season. Challenger, Gray & Christmas also note that the average job search fell from 4.2 months in
the first three months of this year to 3.4 months in the second quarter. And if you're working currently, be prepared
in case the worst happens in the last months of the year.
Will you be ready if the axe does fall in the final four months of the year? If there's one lesson workers
have learned during the recession, it's this: Be prepared. Thirty-nine percent of workers polled said they are very
prepared to conduct a job search if they were to lose their job suddenly, according to a survey developed by
OfficeTeam, a staffing service specializing in highly skilled administrative professionals. Another 41 percent
said they are somewhat ready.
Liz Hughes, vice president of OfficeTeam, suggests focusing on the following four areas to be more prepared:
Your resume. Don't stop at updating the content. Share the document with trusted friends and ask for their feedback. Is
the document error-free? Does it speak to your greatest strengths? Is it compelling enough to cause a hiring manager to call for an
interview? Keep working on it until you get a "yes" response to all three questions.
Your references. Do you know whom you would tap for your reference list? Call these individuals now so you can update
their contact information and gauge their interest. Tell them what type of opportunities you may be targeting. Give
them a copy of your resume.
Your network. It's much easier to ask for advice when you keep in touch with your contacts. If you've dropped out of
sight from professional organizations, volunteer groups, and social circles, make an effort to reconnect.
Your skills. Is your skill set in strong demand right now? Check with your contacts and review current job postings
to find out. You may discover that additional training in a certain area would boost your marketability.
College students and new grads should check out this e-book,
The Last Job Search Guide You'll Ever Need:
How to Find -- and Get -- The Job or Internship of Your Dreams!
The book contains must-read contributions from 149 of North America's top employment experts
and is available risk-free for 90 days.
If your school, organization, business or other
entity has a Web site, we welcome you to link to Quintessential Careers.
If you already have a link from your site, we want you to know we
appreciate it. If you don't have a link to us, please
send a request to your site's Webmaster to establish a
link to Quintessential Careers. Thanks so much!
For more details (including sample HTML copy), see our
Link to Us page.
QuintZine: Topics in Upcoming Issues
WATCH FOR feature articles on these topics in upcoming
issues of QuintZine:
* Answers to common college admissions questions
* Letters of recommendation
* Dealing with a bad boss
* Don't wait by the phone: Following up on all job leads
* Dining etiquette
* What employers are really looking for
* New series: 10 mistakes to avoid in: resumes, cover letters, interviews, salary
negotiation, career change, networking, job-search
* Quintessential Career Profiles of YOU, our readers
* Q&As with well-known career experts
* Book reviews
. . . and much, much more!
Don't ever want to miss another issue of QuintZine? Get a free subscription to
the email version of QuintZine by completing our
subscription form.
Quintessential Careers Advertisements
Quintessential CVs is Your North American Headquarters for CVs
We produce professional quality career marketing correspondence -- Curriculum Vitae (CVs), cover letters,
resumes, and more -- for job-seekers in all industries at all levels from all over the world. Quintessential CVs
is your premier North American source for:
Curriculum Vita (CVs) for Academic jobs: College/university teaching and administrative positions.
CVs for Scientific jobs: Research and all types of science-oriented jobs.
CVs for Medical jobs: Physicians, nurses, and more.
CVs for International jobs: Whether you seek a position in your own country or any other country around the world,
we can prepare an English-language CV for you that conforms to the CV traditions of your target country or countries.
Quintessential Careers also offers writing services
for those who have been asked to give a speech and
need assistance in researching and writing their
remarks.
Need a speaker for your career-oriented conference or
event at your college or organization? The Quintessential
Careers Speakers Bureau can help! Our quintessential experts
can provide presentations/workshops on a variety of
career-related topics.
The Professional Resume Writing and Research Association (PRWRA) has proclaimed September
the official Update Your Resume Month.
