Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about gauging relationships, your name in personal branding, how to get the most from an awful job, making the most of losing your job, and cool jobs.

From All Things Workplace: How To Measure Relationships
“Do you want to know a way to check the depth of how someone is relating to you at a given moment? Just listen and check out their language. You’ll be fascinated at how revealing it will be. ”

Wally’s Comment: Gauging relationships at work can be tricky. Steve Roesler outlines some cues that can tip you to how the other person understands your relationship.

From the Personal Branding Blog: The Power of Your Name in Personal Branding
“Your name is the single most important factor in your enterprise, whether you introduce and represent your company by speaking your name loudly and clearly while offering a hearty handshake – or write an equally hearty introductory post on a discussion thread.”

Wally’s Comment: Seems simple enough. You have a personal name and you have a personal brand, how could you mess things up? Even if you think you know it all, read this post by Nance Rosen. You’re bound to pick up at least one tip that will make your personal branding more effective.

From Forbes: How To Make The Most Of The Job You’re Stuck In
“January is supposed to be the month of fresh starts, but changing jobs is almost always harder than getting to the gym, socking away money or kicking a habit. Yet many people feel truly trapped in their jobs right now, what with the anemic employment market and the damage to their 401(k)s. They feel they’ve not only got to stay where they are, but they’ve got to work harder for less money while doing so. Without new challenges or the prospect of a raise or a promotion, anyone can lose motivation and feel frozen in place.”

Wally’s Comment: Yep, there you are in what Shaun Kieran calls a “desert island job.” Here are some ideas about what else you can do while you’re building your raft and plotting your escape.

From Satisfying Career – Happier Life: Losing Your Job May Be The Best Thing That Ever Happened To You
“You have heard the story many times. What seems to be a tragedy, such as in an illness, job loss or divorce ends up turning to triumph when the person ends up making drastic positive changes through their forced set of circumstances. Many have found themselves jobless in these trying times, frightened and wondering what to do next. The interesting twist is that a large percentage of those laid off have often said that they did not “love” their job. The job has represented security, which is of prime importance, however, in many cases, their work was not completely satisfying or fulfilling. In fact, a study prior to this economic downturn showed that 87% of people polled disliked their jobs. Since we spend approximately 75,000 hours at work from age 25 to 65, this seems to be an even sadder circumstance than a difficult job market.”

Wally’s Comment: Even if it turns out to be the best thing that ever happened to you, losing your job sucks. I know. It happened to me. But the facts are clear. Once you’re fired you rarely get un-fired. So you’ve got two choices about how to spend your time. You can pour ashes on your head and shake your fist at the sky, or you can get on with life. I suggest Option B.

From About.com: Jobs Tracking Santa
“This time of year, the people who are involved in tracking Santa as he leaves the North Pole and makes his way around the world, are very high on my list of those with cool jobs. ”

Wally’s Comment: I just had to have a Christmas post in here and this one is simply delightful. It might prove helpful, too.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 24th, 2009 at 6:27 am and is filed under Tools and Strategies for Success. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.