Reality has finally set in and I think I am over the vacation series I have been writing for the last week. It was actually fun writing the series and I definitely enjoyed my vacation. It has been a few years since I actually took a vacation, and I am glad that I did. The biggest benefit I got from going on vacation is REFRESHING! I feel refreshed after getting away for a few days. As a general rule, I am very creative. I love getting ideas and making them happen. As I have transitioned back to my work life, …read more

Do you know how many things happen over the course of a day that can just make you angry? Did you know the same things that happen during the course of a regular work day, can happen when you are on vacation? Of course you know. I am sure of it! But do you realize we get to choose our response to what happens to us? The good, the bad and the ugly. I have completed day 4 of this vacation of mine and stuff is happening, but I choose joy and laughter. I don’t like everything that happened to …read more

Today is the first day of my vacation from work. WOW! I am actually excited, and I actually have plans to do other things besides working. I actually love my job and I love having my own business. I do both. I have a business as a career coach, blogger. And I work full time. I am busy 7 days a week, doing what I enjoy doing. If I hadn’t been talked into it, I probably wouldn’t be on vacation. But a friend of my, a coworker convinced me to go on vacation a few weeks ago and I finally …read more

“I didn’t do it. He did it!” “I don’t know why they fired me! All I did was what they asked me to do.” “It’s not my fault. I’m just the…” You’re just the what? Just the manager? Just the secretary? Just the … Accountability in a word is OWNERSHIP. With ownership of the organization comes great responsibility. Do you know the owner looks at his business with a different lens than the people who see them self as “just employees”.
Every single day of the week including Saturdays and Sundays, an employee gets fired! Every day! But the same holds …read more

Yesterday I had an opportunity to speak to one of my readers who is struggling to get a job in this crazy economy. As we spoke, I began to understand what was getting in her way – Here issue: She is playing the blame and shame game. The blame and shame game is when you blame someone else for your situation. In this case it was someone else’s fault for why was terminated. When I asked why? I began to hear about the supervisor and the environment in the organization. She wasn’t happy there and they, the supervisor and fellow …read more

Here is a question asked by Drew Williams, one of my readers here at Interview Chatter:
The problem I’m having is that question is asked on the application, usually an online one, and you are screened out automatically. Do I answer “no” so I can get an interview and then explain everything then? I will have already been dishonest but I have to answer question or I won’t be able to finish application?
The the simple answer is to answer “yes” to this question on an application if you have been fired. Honesty is critical to you successfully navigating the hiring process. But …read more

When is the perfect time to change jobs? The question below was posed to one of the many groups I belong to as a blogger. I truly felt it was an appropriate question to share here at Interview Chatter. I will also share my response to the question and some additional information shared by another member.  
I’m in a job where I’m not satisfied, and I want to find a new job where I will feel more fulfilled and I will be more fulfilling. BUT, fear is always there. It never feels like the right time to put in my two weeks (one month) …read more

How important is individual accountability to your success in the workplace? Before you answer, let’s talk about what accountability means. By definition accountability means: an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one’s actions. That is a powerful definition in our day and age. How many people are willing to accept responsibility for their actions in the day to day decisions, tasks, behaviors exhibited in the workplace? In my effort to highlight core competencies for those of you in search of employment, I want to lay a foundation to build this information on. Individual accountability is a foundational …read more

Do you know who you are and what you bring to the table? Part 2
This morning I met the new President for the division I work for in my day job. This man, I will call him Steve, knows who he is and what he brings to the table. The table I am speaking about is a metaphor for the hiring discussion. But it can also be a metaphor for the job itself once you are hired.
Steve is new, two weeks in this organization and he is out meeting the customers and employees so that he can have …read more