Market Your Construction Business with Business Cards

www.markupandprofit.com: Some people consider business cards outdated. It's true that they've been around for ages, but they still have value. They are a simple, inexpensive way to provide everyone you come in contact with the information they need to reach you.

Don't make these 3 mistakes with your LinkedIn profile

www.fastcompany.com: If a picture is worth a thousand words, your LinkedIn profile picture is worth a lot.

Sure, you may have invested a lot of time capturing job descriptions, collecting solid recommendations, and identified tangible (and impressive) professional achievements. Those things are all critical and definitely showcase your professional track record. However, your profile photo also contributes to the first impression you make on a potential employer, recruiter, investor, or partner.

This is what you're getting wrong about the negotiation process

www.fastcompany.com: Most of us, regardless of what type of negotiation we are in, have the same assumption about how it should go: We want to maximize what we get while minimizing what the other person gets. But that’s all wrong, says Art Markman, psychology professor and Fast Company contributor.

How to stand out at a networking event

www.fastcompany.com: No one is born a natural networker. But when you think about someone you’ve met networking who impressed you, I’d challenge you to consider what you talked about.

The best networkers view connecting as part and parcel to life: not just something they do when they need a job or a favor. To up your game as a networker, you may need to change your game entirely.

10 Things Not To Say During A Job Interview

collegecandy.com: When it comes time to start interviewing for the job of your dreams it can be totally intimidating. Knowing the fate of your career relies on how well you can talk about yourself and your skills to a vital individual can really run you for a loop.

How To Calculate Your Freelance Hourly Rate

Daily Infographic: So you’ve decided to take the leap and become a full-time freelancer. Here’s how to figure out how to charge what you’re actually worth and earn the money you deserve.

What Recruiters Are Really Thinking In These 8 Scenarios

www.fastcompany.com: For many job seekers, it can be confusing and downright frustrating to try to understand what a recruiter is thinking when he or she reviews a resume, or is evaluating a candidate post-interview. Most recruiters would like to speak with everyone personally, but some of their job postings have so many people applying that they often have to rely on form letters.

5 Methods To Make Your Cover Letter Irresistible To Hiring Managers

www.fastcompany.com: You’ve probably heard that many recruiters don’t always read cover letters when they review applications. Unfortunately, despite some grumblings about it being an antiquated practice, many companies still include it as part of their application process. Sure, sometimes they make it optional, but do you really want to risk getting put in the “no” pile because most of the applicants included a cover letter?

Recruiters Look At This More Than Your LinkedIn

www.fastcompany.com: When it comes to getting your online profiles ready for a job search, you probably focus your attention on LinkedIn. However, a study by the job search website Simply Hired found that hiring managers are more likely to check your Instagram account.

How To Make Your Creative Team Thrive

TheatreArtLife: Uncovering the vast and untouchable realm of creativity is perhaps our final frontier. As the mother of all invention, creativity is rarely underestimated and its significance evident. The ability to create, to innovate, to find hidden patterns, to connect the unconnected or to perceive the world around us in new ways is what makes us human. Creativity is what sets us apart…

I Used This Simple Chart To Prioritize My Crazy Busy Work Life

www.fastcompany.com: I was a few weeks into my maternity leave when I heard that my company named a new CEO. Several of my colleagues emailed me saying, “You’d better get in here; she’s developing relationships with the key people, and you’re missing out.” Anxious and fearful of missing out on making a connection with the new CEO, I cut my maternity leave short and went back to work. Several months later, I found myself operating on “Transactional Mode.” I so badly wanted to feel accomplished by checking things off my to-do list that I spent all my time attacking small tasks and let the big ones slide.

Is social anxiety holding you back? Here’s how to overcome it

Big Think: Have you ever called someone by the wrong name and they called you out on it, publically? Such an incident can be mortifying. Most of us get over it fairly quickly. But some people have such a fear of embarrassment that it stops them in their tracks. It's called katagelophobia, and it's more common than you might think.

Tax Tips for Freelance Creatives: Debunking Common Myths

99U: Does the thought of doing your taxes make you want to cry? For many in the design industry, including myself, the answer is a resounding yes. But a solid grasp of figures and finances is the equivalent to building the strong foundation to a building. If you can shore up the money part of your business, you can spend more time doing what you really love—the creative part of the job.

Why Practical Skills Will Matter More Than Your Degree In The New Econ

www.fastcompany.com: When Giancarlo Martinez applied a few years ago to be a web developer at Genome, a digital marketing firm in New York, he was confident that he had the ability. But he couldn’t help but wonder whether company recruiters would be able to recognize his chops—and even if they did, he worried that they still might not give him a chance.

How to Transition from Employee to Effective Owner-Leader

Remodeling | Management, Leadership, Training: With many baby boomer business owners looking to be living the next stage of their lives, there are a number of companies with one or more employees moving into the owner-leader role.

Over the last few years, I have worked with several companies going through this phase. Recently, while talking with an owner and the designated future president of the company, I offered some advice about how to grow into what the company needs. Here is what I suggested to the employee who is to become the leader.

10 Email Phrases That Make You Sound Unprofessional

www.fastcompany.com: There are some things you already know not to mention via email; political opinions, anything that could be considered sexual harassment, and office gossip are among the no-brainers. But there are also some less obvious topics and phrases you’d do well to stay away from, particularly if you want to come off as professional, competent, and on top of your workload. After all, emails can stick around for a long time, and you never know what might get dug up down the road.

What Recruiters Pay Attention To When They Look At Your Social Media

www.fastcompany.com: You probably already know recruiters are looking at your LinkedIn page, but what about your other social media platforms? You know, the ones where you post pictures of your latest vacation, share what you had for dinner and occasionally tag your friends in memes. Why, you might wonder, would a recruiter possibly be interested in viewing things like that?

Game developers push for unionization amid insecure positions, excessive OT

Ars Technica: Going into the Game Developers Conference this week, you could foresee some of the hot topics that would be consuming the world’s largest gathering of game makers: stuff like real-time raytraced graphics, fantastical blockchain-based business schemes, and how to design games for augmented reality. But another surprising issue has overtaken many of the discussions in the Moscone Center hallways this week: that of unionization.

Two approaches to leading meetings

ThoughtForm, Inc.: No matter your company’s size, industry, or location, chances are that meetings are at least a small part of your work life—or more likely, a huge part. And unfortunately, the reality is that a lot of those meetings aren’t as effective as they could be. Bad meetings come in all shapes and sizes.

This Is How To End Conversations At Networking Events

www.fastcompany.com: Here’s the thing: I don’t really struggle to start conversations with people. But, I’ll be the first to admit that I find it challenging to end them.

This is especially true in networking situations when my nerves are already a little high and I’m concerned with leaving on a positive note.