6 Jobs For a Secure Future

Posted on January 18, 2012 by meghan_ntroduction

Though it can be said the economy is on an upswing, it’s still a touch time to find work. And even if you do have work there are no guarantees that something won’t happen to the job you’re in.

Enter Laurence Shatkin’s new book 150 Best Jobs for a Secure Future. In his new book he talks about jobs that may offer just a tad bit more security than others. “During economic downturns, these fields tend not to shed workers as much as other fields do, and the overall outlook for employment in these fields is good to excellent,” Shatkin said.

So before you consider which field to search for work in consider this list of the six most secure fields and the most secure job in each, according to Shatkin’s book:

Computer Systems Design – Software Developers, Systems Software
- Annual earnings: $92,130
- Percent growth: 57.4
- Annual openings: 6,120

Educational Services – Administrative Services Managers
- Annual earnings: $74,970
- Percent growth: 19.3
- Annual openings: 3,430

Government – Social Scientists and Related Workers
- Annual earnings: $76,120
- Percent growth: 19.3
- Annual openings: 860

Health Care – Physicians and Surgeons
- Annual earnings: $153,970
- Percent growth: 26
- Annual openings: 29,480

Repair and Maintenance – Industrial Machinery Mechanics
- Annual earnings: $40,140
- Percent growth: 19.1
- Annual openings: 650

Utilities – Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay
- Annual earnings: $66,270
- Percent growth: 10.3
- Annual openings: 410

5 Tips on Turning Your Online Network Into Your Real Life Network

Posted on December 9, 2011 by meghan_ntroduction

It seems you can’t go anywhere online without reading about the importance of your online network. And while that is important, especially when trying to establish a network to build a career, change careers or even to find a job, it’s just as important to maintain your real life network.

A lot can be said for a strong and extensive online network. Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and many other sites throughout the web give us incredible opportunities to connect and network with people across the globe. But many of these sites offer you the chance to connect with people local to you as well.

Take some time to explore ways to connect your online network to your real life network and you could open up a whole new set of opportunities.

Twitter Lists: A few months back Twitter introduced a great new feature that allows you to create a list of Twitter users based on whatever category you’d like. A great way to localize your twitter stream is to use the Twitter search function to search your town or surrounding area. Add the people you find to a list you create and start interacting and Networking with people in your area.
Attend a Tweetup: Tweetups are meetups put together so that people who interact online via twitter can meet in person. These are usually great ways to network and to bring your online network offline and into your real life. Once you’ve started following folks in your area start asking around to see is anyone is putting something together.
Organize a Tweetup: If no one in your area is taking the initiative to schedule a local tweetup, do it yourself! If you have connected with people locally g for it and start planting the seed. Here are some great tips for organizing a great Tweetup.
Facebook Fan Pages: Many cities are creating fan pages for the city itself or institutions within the city. The local library, community center, Parks & recreation District and chamber of commerce in your area all may have active fan pages. Become a fan so that you not only connect with other locals who are fans but to stay abreast of any networking events or job fairs in your hometown. This is truly becoming a great way to stay connected locally and build a network of people nearby.
The Local Paper: You don’t have to have the paperboy deliver the hard copy to your door anymore to take advantage of all that a local paper has to offer. If you have a local paper, chances are they are online and you can subscribe via email, usually for free. Many groups and local clubs still religiously list their events with the local paper. This is another great way to network locally.

Hopefully these tips will just be the tip of the iceberg for you when it comes to making your online network grow and become a part of your local network. You never know what new job and career opportunities may await at your next local Tweetup.

One more reminder: When you do attend local events to meet up with online friends always remember your business card! Have a number, email, website address and of course your Twitter handle on a card ready to hand out at all times.

Good luck!

The Top 10 Best and Worst Places to Look For Work in 2011

Posted on September 27, 2011 by meghan_ntroduction

It’s not exactly a secret that right now is not the best time to be looking for a job. No matter what field your searching within. But have you ever stopped to wonder if possibly the area in which you live poses more of challenge then other metro areas in the country? That could very well be according to the job search engine Juju.com a leading search engine.

Juju recently updates their Job Search Difficulty Index, which measures the difficulty of finding employment in major cities around the country. According to Juju.com, “The Index was calculated by dividing the number of unemployed workers in each metro area, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), by the number of jobs in Juju’s comprehensive index of millions of online jobs in the United States, which is compiled and updated continuously from thousands of employer career portals, recruiter websites, and job boards all over the Internet.”

Location plays a huge part in a successful and serious job search. Thinking outside the box and looking at the place YOUR searching for a job can make a big difference.

The 2011 Top 10 “Least Difficult” Metro Areas to Find a Job
1.   Washington, DC
2.   San Jose, CA
3.   New York, NY
4.   Baltimore, MD
5.   Hartford, CT
6.   Boston, MA
7.   Cleveland, OH
8.   Salt Lake City, UT
9.   Austin, TX
10.   Milwaukee, WI

The 201 Top 10 “Most Difficult” Metro Areas to Find a Job

1.   Las Vegas, NV
2.   Miami, FL
3.   Riverside, CA
4.   Los Angeles, CA
5.   Detroit, MI
6.   Sacramento, CA
7.   St. Louis, MO
8.   Portland, OR
9.   Buffalo, NY

10. Memphis, TN

5 of the Top Careers for 2011

Posted on September 12, 2011 by meghan_ntroduction

US News and World Report released its list of the Top 50 Careers for 2011. It was an interesting list that included five categories with 10 jobs in each. The jobs were chosen based a few factors. Pay scale, growth rate and of course educational requirements. Though a few of the jobs listed were no real surprise (Biomedical, environmental and computer software engineers) there were a few that I wouldn’t have guessed.

So here are a few of the more obscure or unexpected top jobs for 2011 hand picked from US New World Report’s list of the top 50.

Meteorologist-Science & Technology – Though we all might first picture our local weatherman when we think meteorologist, the fact is the majority work for the National Weather Service. With Climate change and global warming becoming bigger issues each day it’s no surprise that jobs for meteorologists are expected to increase by about 15%. Meteorologists can move own to starting there own weather consulting firms or working in the private sector for research firms.

The median salary is $84,000 not too shabby. To be a meteorologist you need a bachelor’s degree in Meteorology or at least chemistry or physics. To focus more on the research aspect of meteorology you’ll need your PHD.

School Psychologist-Healthcare – Of the handful of healthcare positions mentioned, this one stuck out the most. School Psychologists is a career that’s expected to increase by 11%. Certainly more stressful than meteorology, becoming a school psychologist would mean obtaining a specialist degree, which most schools require. That would be on top of three years of graduate school.

The median salary is $66,040 but could rise considerably if you start your own practice. Stressful, yes, but a job that would enable to truly help many children in need.

Clergy- Social Service – This was one of the more surprising mentions on the list. And there was no real explanation as to why the growth in the Clergy. There is an expected increase of about 13% across the board. Pay, opportunities and schooling require varies heavily depending on the church. Smaller congregations have the largest need but the smallest salary. Methodists and Catholic churches have the larger salaries and career paths. The room for growth also depends on the church and congregation.

Education requirements for the clergy vary from needing a Masters in Theology to no previous education at all. Once again, depends on religion and church. Maybe the stressful economic times have created a growing need for clergy.

Logistician – So this is not usually on any list of top careers. Logisticians are the ones who manage the supply chain that includes all the raw materials that go into a finished product. They also oversee shipping and transportation, distribution to wholesalers or retailers, warehousing, and the just-in-time delivery that helps minimize costs and maximize productivity.. With an expected increase of 20% and a median salary of about 68,000, it’s not a bad choice to make.

You’ll need to start with a bachelor’s degree in a field such as business, supply-chain management, process engineering, or industrial engineering. The higher your education the more opportunities and money you have waiting for you.

Nice work if you can get it.

Actuary- Business & Finance – Many of you may be starring blankly at your computer screen wondering what the heck is an actuary? Generally actuaries are most often found working for insurance providers and their job is “use statistics and mathematics to estimate the likelihood and cost of claims related to death, illness, injury, or property damage so that the insurance company can cover its expenses and stay profitable.”

Sound a little boring? Maybe. But with a median salary of $87,210 and an expected growth rate of 21% over the next decade, it’s wouldn’t take an actuary to figure out it’s a safe career to move into. In fact most Actuaries start at 56,000 right out of college.

Casualty Actuarial Society and the Society of Actuaries offers certification programs and you would most likely need a bachelors degree in mathematics, statistics, economics or even actuarial science (if you’re local school offers it).

Maybe not the most glamorous of career choices but glamour isn’t exactly topping anyone’s list of needs as we enter the last half of 2011. Check out these careers as well as the rest of US News and World Report’s list of top careers. Maybe you’ll find the perfect match for you in 2012.

Tips on Updating Your Resume: A Handy Checklist

Posted on March 11, 2011 by meghan_ntroduction

With the New Year right around the corner, there couldn’t be a better time to go over your resume and get a jump on your 2010 job search. One of the most vital tools to any job search, whether it is online or in person, is your resume. So take a little time over the holidays to revamp your resume and make sure it’s up to date.

Here’s an easy checklist to make sure your resume is got everything you need to get the job you’re looking for.

Make Sure it’s updated. Delete any job that doesn’t have any bearing on the job you’re looking to land. Make sure you ad anything that may be missing. And don’t overlook time spent volunteering or anything else that could help boost your skills.
E.E.S. These three things should be on every resume, no matter what fields you’re looking for work in. Experience, Education, and Skills. The key pieces of information any potential employer is looking for is going to be in these three sections. If they’re missing, you just might miss out on the job.
Grammar. Always run a spell-check and take your time with easily overlooked grammatical and spelling errors. Sometimes a simple grammatical mistake can cost you.
Ask for help. A second pair of eyes is priceless! Ask a friend to take a look and proofread your resume and see of they catch anything you may have missed.
Correct the dates. Take the time to double check the beginning and end dates of your jobs to give any potential employers a correct timeline and idea of your experience.
One page wonder. One of the classic pieces of resume etiquette that still remains to be the norm is keeping your resume at one page. Though this isn’t always possible, always try to keep your resume to one page if you can.
Contact info. It may seem like a no brainer, double check that your name and contact info are correct. If you apply for a job and they can’t get a hold of you to tell you it’s yours, then what?
One thing that becoming more common in resume today’s is listing the results of jobs or projects you’ve worked on. Future employers don’t just want to see what’s you’ve done in the past, but what results you’ve had with those jobs.

Now that you’re resume is in top shape it’s time to start 2010 with the new job you’ve been searching for! Good luck in your New Years job search.