Antoinette Choate was elected President of the National Employment Lawyer's Association Illinois chapter (NELA-IL) on Thursday, December 14. Congratulations to her and the other new officers. Likewise, a hearty thanks to the previous offers and board members for all of their work on behalf of Illinois employees.
With high levels of unemployment, you need to make sure that your applications stand out from the crowd - in a good way - not because of a glaring problem. Be sure to avoid these issues:
1. Honest Content. You may have an employment gap. You may have some other concern. Regardless, you should be honest about your background and experience. Do not overstate your qualifications or positions.
2. Spelling & Grammatical Errors. Have a friend proof read your resume! Asking a friend to review your resume means you are less likely to have spelling or grammatical errors. Employers only have moments to make determinations about you and will make snap decisions based on these errors.
3. Visually Complicated. You want to limit the number fonts you use, multiple sizes of fonts, borders, or long blocks of texts. Make sure that your resume appears professional. Use standard colors for your ink and paper.
4. Focus Content. Not only does the layout help convey information quickly, but the content needs to be focused so that employers can gather the important information first. Employers pour over numerous applications and you need the important information to stand out quickly.
5. Too General. Not personalizing your resume for each employer can reduce your changes of getting the job. Research the employer and reference goals and values that are important to that employer. This research shows the prospective employer that you took the time and effort to focus on the particular position.
It is that time of year again - the time when your company throws a holiday party. These parties can be enjoyable but it will only be remembered as enjoyable if you follow a few basic tips.
1. Attend! It isn't mandatory, but people will notice your absence and you don't want to appear like you are not a team player. It also is an opportunity to network and be noticed by supervisors in a good way.
2. Moderation in food and drink. This is an office party. You don't want your supervisor to remember you as the one who got sick. Even in less extreme situations, you don't want to be the buzzed employee who starts gossiping. Any way you slice it, you can have a drink, just don't become impaired.
3. Dress appropriately. You aren't going to a club or on a date. Don't dress in something flashy or reveling. Try to make an effort to look good to convey that the party is important to you.
4. Conversation. Be prepared with appropriate subjects of conversation. While you should feel free to share some aspects of your personal life (perhaps about a hobby), do no over-share (such as details of your romantic life). Further, indulging in gossip can also come back to bite you. The flip side of the coin - be sure to let you co-workers and boss talk. It is a good time to build relationships and show that you listened when you ask your boss about how her/his parent is doing after surgery.
5. Follow business rules. Even if there is mistletoe, don't kiss or touch your co-workers. You don't want to be the one everyone is gossiping about and you don't want to jeopardize your job for the office party.
Enjoy yourself! Ultimately, the company is thanking you for your service for the year. This is the time to enjoy the company of your co-workers, eat, drink (moderately), and be merry!
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