Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs, looking for posts that that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here are my five picks for this week.

From Employment Digest: The Hidden Job Market

“Should you rely completely on advertising to look for jobs? Advertising can get expensive for employers if they continually had to post for openings. In large companies, the turnover rate can be high with retirement, relocation, illnesses, etc. With those kinds of vacancies companies could conceivably expect to run a continuous employment spot in the newspaper. This could take a big bite out of their budget.”

Wally’s Comment: Here’s a post that describes the “hidden job market” in the Digital Age. If you’re exploring possibilities, this post may help you find some new ones.

From Karen Burns, Working Girl: More Reasons For Getting Outta Town

“Being born, growing up, and living in the same town is nice. It can give you a sense of footedness that maybe you can’t get any other way. But you know that old cliché “travel broadens the mind”? Well, it does. And in a rapidly globalizing world, traveling abroad–better yet, living abroad–is a fab (and fun) way to give yourself a real advantage in life and at work.”

Wally’s Comment: In today’s global world, spending some time outside the US is a good educational and career strategy. Working Girl gives you several reasons why. If you can learn another language or two, even better.

From Business Pundit: Keys to Killer Presentations That Get You The Raise You Deserve

“You want a raise, you need a raise, but asking for one can be emotional. Someone else is basically putting a dollar value on your worth. The worst thing you can do is make it personal. It’s business. As with all things money, the bottom line matters most. Demonstrate with numbers (and pictures if need be) your contribution to your company’s profit. ”

Wally’s Comment: Yes, we do live in the age of the presentation. Business Pundit reminds us that if you want to get promoted, it’s just smart to concentrate your presentation on why that’s a good idea for your employer.

From Career Hub: The reality of working with a recruiter

“Many people share the misconception that, for senior level positions, contacting a headhunter is the way to find a job. To understand why this is wrong, you have to understand how headhunters work.”

Wally’s Comment: I was excited to see this because no one ever seems to describe how things work when recruiters get into the mix.

From On Balance: The So-Called Ambition Gap

“A new report from the Brookings Institution argues that there are fewer women in political office in the United States because of an “ambition gap” between men and women.

Wally’s Comment: This post is specifically about women in public life, but there’s lots of good material here if you’re a woman, employ women, or work with women in the private sector or not-for-profit world.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 29th, 2008 at 3:23 pm 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.