Skills to writing a perfect Curriculum Vitae (CV)

7 Ways to Make an Impact With Your Cover Letter

Job hunting today is a tedious process due to high competition in the job market. But even with so many applications; do you ever wonder why you never seem to receive calls from employers? The success or failure in a job hunting process is contingent upon the way one someone writes his or her cover letter.

Writing a good cover letter is sometimes more important than writing a resume. I say this because the bearing of the letter is definitely heavier than that of the resume. It is the first thing that your prospective employers read about you.  The assertiveness and the command of your letter make them think twice before sending your portfolio to the paper shredder.

Most recruiters spend less than a 60 seconds going through your CV. Therefore, you have a very limited amount of time to arouse enough curiosity (in the mind of the employer) to warrant a look at your resume. A catchy cover letter is what drives the hiring manager to go through your CV.

How do you create a cover letter that employers find genuinely interesting?

1. Avoid verbosity – Don't use two words when one will do, in short, avoid too many unnecessary verbs in your sentences. Remember you have limited space to make an impact; therefore you need to choose your words carefully.

2. Write to sell - Every word you use in your cover letter needs to be focused on four things: the position for which you are applying, the organization in which you will work, your ability to meet (and exceed) the needs of the employer as well as your desire to work for the company.

3. Be personable, professional and persuasive - Address your letter to an individual (the contact person) and use the organization's name in the text at least one time. If you do not have the name of a person to reference, use the internet or the phone and find out who is handling that vacancy. Get creative if you have to, but never use "To Whom it May Concern".

4. Be relevant - Write anything that may be of relevance to your desired and highlight capabilities that are important and related to the job position you're applying for.  Remember to match your accomplishments and abilities with the needs of the company (specifically the expectations for the open position).

5. Focus on your achievements and not on the tasks you were assigned to perform. Majority of people do the mistake of filling up their cover letters with all the responsibilities they were assigned to work on which back fires them in the interview sessions as the employers are interested in what you have accomplished and not on what you were assigned to accomplish.

6. Let the employer know you want to work for them and state specific reasons for your conclusion. Hopefully, you will have done enough research about the organization to know why you would want to be a part of their team.

7. Proofread. Check for any grammatical errors before you send your cover letter. Nothing will work against you faster than a misspelled word. In fact, that is often one of the first screening measures taken in identifying which job candidates make it to the next level. If your materials are not perfect, they may be the first to end up in the trash can.

Positive Thinking in the workplace

How to Stay Positive Thinking in the Workplace 

“A man is but the product of his thoughts; what he thinks, he becomes”. Mahatma Gandhi

Positive thinking is expecting, talking and visualizing with certainty what you want to achieve, as an accomplished fact. A positive attitude brings strength, energy and initiative. The positive thinker sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible.

Workplace diversity is one thing that should be appreciated. We are all different in various dimensions; in age, ethnicity, gender, physical abilities / qualities, race, educational background, geographic location, income, marital status, military experience, parental status, religious beliefs, work experience, and job classification.

Some of us do not like the work/ job that you do, a colleague at work, the environment at work, stressful workloads, the deadlines to beat, the pressure to perform, your boss e.tc. In a way keep in mind the 90/10 Principle. 10% of life is made up of what happens to you …90% of life is decided by how you react…… Having a positive attitude at work makes the time you spend at work more pleasant and calm, but staying positive is sometimes difficult. In fact, sometimes it can seem like Mission Impossible. Instead of falling victim to the negative work attitudes that surround you, make an effort to buck the trend.

Look for the good in your co-workers and your workplace. By learning how to communicate with co-workers effectively, you will gain recognition as a force of positive attitude in the workplace.

Be Appreciative

It is always nicer to get a pat on the back rather than to get stabbed in the back. If you're wondering "how do I change my negative attitude," start by observing how you communicate with co-workers. If you practice asking useful questions, giving accolades and being gracious at work for two weeks, you'll notice a difference in the people you work with and in your own feelings about work

How to Communicate With Co-workers Effectively:

1. Give thanks. Thank co-workers for the work they do that makes your job easier - including the peers, managers and office assistants. Even thank the security guard for making you feel safe at work. Cultivate a thankful, positive attitude in the workplace, and in return you'll notice a change in how co-workers treat you.

2. Acknowledge a job well done. One of our favourite ways to create positive energy at work is to give a "Most Valuable Player" award. Once a month, stage a vote for the office MVP - asking each voter to include why their nominee should get the award. You can even have employees vote on what the award will be, from premium parking to a tiara or crown.

3. Celebrate. Take the time to celebrate birthdays, holidays, life changes and achievements. Not sure how to celebrate? Bring in a Nerf football; bake cookies and bring them to work; or put up a graffiti poster where people can leave positive comments.

Recharge Yourself

A favourite quote of ours is "A dead battery can't charge a dead battery." Stop complaining about negative work attitudes and lend your own energy to creating a more positive attitude in the workplace. Be the office live wire! How to Communicate with Co-workers Effectively:

1. Be enthusiastic. Enthusiasm is infectious. If you're going to spend eight hours a day at work, why not make it more than just tolerable. Make an effort to smile, laugh, and enjoy your job. If you work to create a more positive attitude in the workplace, others will follow.

2. Practice random acts of kindness. Each day try to do something kind and helpful. Offer to cover for a co-worker so they can attend their kid's soccer game, bring a busy colleague a cup of coffee, or volunteer for a project. You don't have to create elaborate situations, just keep your eyes out for opportunities to do a good deed.

3.  Look for opportunities to have fun. We all know someone who can make anything fun--and make time fly. Be that person. It's amazing how a joke here and a silly celebration there can breathe life into a stale office. Before you know it, other people will start coming to work with more bounce in their step.

Avoid Negative Work Attitudes

Negative work attitudes create a vicious cycle that can rob energy from an organization. If you're famous for your awful moods and stinging commentary, try something new.

How to communicate with Co-workers Effectively:

1.  Resist sarcasm. One of us grew up on the East Coast where sarcasm seems to be as natural as breathing. It's tough to break the cycle of sarcasm, but it's worth the trouble. If you're feeling sarcastic, challenge yourself to come up with something clever to say that energizes the positive attitude in the workplace, rather than depleting your co-worker’s energy.

2. Look for the good. It's easy to get caught in an office drama trap. Instead of blaming and gossiping, focus on the good qualities of your co-workers. You'll be surprised by how much of a positive attitude in the workplace this will create and how much more productive you and your co-workers will be.

3. Stab 'em in the front. This came from one of our uncles. He was fond of saying, "Friends stab friends in the front." Again, resist the temptation to stab co-workers in the back. Instead, challenge yourself to be honest with co-workers without being mean.

There are times when we must go through negative situations. Maybe people say something negative about us, or they show rejection or even resentment against us. In such situations, it may be difficult to stay positive. We may be inclined to react negatively to them. That won’t do us any good though; doing so will just make the situation worse. People may behave even more negatively to us. Our day would be filled with anger and disappointment. At the end, nobody wins.

Staying Positive in Negative Situations

Staying Positive in Negative Situations

There are times when we must go through negative situations. Maybe people say something negative about us, or they show rejection or even resentment against us. In such situations, it may be difficult to stay positive. We may be inclined to react negatively to them. That won’t do us any good though; doing so will just make the situation worse. People may behave even more negatively to us. Our day would be filled with anger and disappointment. At the end, nobody wins.

Though it’s not easy, it’s important to stay positive in negative situations. Beat the negative situations by staying positive. Here are 15 tips on how to do it; pick the ones that work for you:

1. Never respond when you are not calm. If you are not sure that you are calm, don’t respond. Take time to calm yourself down first.
2. Take a deep breath as a first step to calm yourself down.
3. Speak in gentle tone to reduce the tension of the situation.
4. Realize that you can find opportunities in negative situations. Albert Einstein said: “In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.”
5. Look at the content of what people say to you for something positive that you can act upon to improve yourself. Don’t just reject the whole messages.
6. For the rest of the messages which is negative, simply ignore it.
7. Maintain positive view of the people. Maybe you don’t like their messages or behavior, but that doesn’t mean that you can hate them personally.
8. Realize that having negative feelings will just hurt you, not them. So there is no reason for you to have any negative feeling.
9. If you make mistakes, be open to admit it.
10. If you make mistakes, remember this quote by George Bernard Shaw: “A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing.”
11. If you can, listen to motivational audio program to feed positive thoughts into your mind.
12. Talk to a positive friend who can encourage you.
13. Remember your favourite quotes to give you inspiration and motivation. This is one reason why you should have quote of the day.
14. Look at the negative situations as your training sessions for real life. The higher you climb in life, the worse the negative situations would be, so you’d better be prepared for them.
15. Realize that you can’t please everyone. In fact, nobody can. Sometimes you need to just let some people go. Realizing this will relieve you from a lot of unnecessary burden so that you can focus on the people that you can positively interact with.

What new in communication

What's new in Communication?

The world today is a quickly changing world. There are various innovations that occur daily and the environment is fast changing.

This kind of environment is what can be refered to as a datasphere being composed of television, radio, newspapers, magazines and now, of course, cell phones, the internet, voice mail, email, and all the newly exploding forms of communication. This datasphere can instantly transmit information anywhere around the world in seconds. This is a great thing. But it results in quick, constant change. Some people predict that entire industries, such as travel agencies and stock brokerages, will disappear and be replaced by the internet. Because of the speed of change, the number of jobs eliminated from the traditional market is probably going to grow exponentially. In the U.S. alone we are currently losing 500,000 jobs a year which are replaced by technology, and some predict that by 2004 or 2005, this might grow to a million jobs a year.

There is little we can count on remaining the same today, except for the Rules of Chocolate, and today's communication needs remind me a little of Rule #1 for chocolate: if you've got melted chocolate all over your hands, you're eating it too slowly.

Likewise, if you're not constantly updating your methods of communication, you no doubt are communicating too slowly.

We're going to be discussing recent innovations in communications -- from print to audio and video, to the constantly new forms available through the internet. My hope is to give you the information you need to successfully move yourself and your company into the 21st Century. Let's begin by looking at what's new in communications. Many of the more recent innovations in communications are net-based:

1. There are over 20,000 news and discussion groups (usenet) on the net, covering almost any subject you can think of. These groups allow you to search for information, get help, swap ideas, join in discussions.
   
   
2. I-net chats (IRC) allow you to chat with people from all over the world through your computer keyboard
   
   
3. I-net phone Using your sound card and a microphone, you can speak to people around the world in real time.
   
   
4. Internet video conferencing is still in its infancy but this is developing rapidly, as communications become faster. Using a small camera (just larger than a golf ball) you can see and speak to people around the world in real time.
   
   
5. Real audio You can now listen to hundreds of radio stations from all over the world transmitting worldwide
   
   On the lighter side, there is:
6. Streaming video (audio/video combination that lets you watch the latest music video and other film clips as they are released by major artists and film companies. You can now even make a streaming audio/video info-mercial on the net.
   
   
7. Multi-player games allow you to play a variety of games with people all over the world, from bridge to the latest interactive driving and "shoot em up" games.
   
   
8. Online shopping. Lets you order goods/services worldwide, to be delivered to your door

Growth. Change. Rapid world-wide communication. Are you and your company ready? Here are questions to ask yourself to find out:

Life or Livelihood

What a narrow escape!

David, a 14 year old boy from Turkana shocked many with his story of how he survived the scare of a cobra by a whisker. Together with his other friends, David had been on a day to day routine of herding his father’s cattle.

The day went on well not until evening when David realised that some cattle were missing from his father’s herd. Knowing how valuable the animals were to the father and the entire family, David set out to search for the missing cattle.

His friend’s cautioned him about going back to the wilderness to look for the animals but he could not listen to the. “This is the source of our livelihood,” sighed David. David decided to leave the rest of the herd with his colleagues to take home.

The sun was already setting when the ordeal happened.  David went on and on but was not seeing the signs of finding the animals soon. It was already very dark and he could no longer see where he was going or coming from. He was not aware of what he could do. The animals are nowhere and he is also not sure where he was.

“I thought again and again on what to do but I had no idea”, says David. Immediately he remembered a story he was once told by his grandfather about the same grazing field. “My grandfather had narrated to us about this field. It was so easy for animals to disappear and once gone, it would be so hard to trace them,” I recall him say.

“Since it was late, I decided to remain where I was. Thoughts came to me but I did not know what to do,” he says with tears rolling down his cheek.

“I don’t recall what happened afterwards. I touched something very cold and then woke up. It was in the morning, the sun was up and I could hear birds sing,” he poses. The young boy can not recall exactly how possible it was. A big snake (a cobra according to his description) coiled down where he was standing. It slowly crawled away and disappeared into the thicket.

“I wanted to scream but I could not. It was like my whole body was frozen. I closed my eyes and run away not knowing where I was headed. All I wanted to avoid was the sight of what I saw.” He remarks.

David went away and on tracing his route home, came across the animals that had gone missing. What a sad turn of events to him. After surviving the scare of the snake, he finds the animals.

“I have never forgotten about what I saw and I don’t know whether I will even on my deathbed,” concluded David.

Lion Killer Turns Saviour!

Lion killer turns Saviour!

Born in the native Maasai Community in Kenya, Antony Kasanga grew up with wildlife as part and parcel of the ecosystem. As is expected in the Maasai rituals, a boy child has to ensue and kill a lion before being recognised as a man in the society.

When the season approaches for passage from boyhood to manhood in the Maasai community, lions are always at risk. I wonder what they could do if they would reckon the season fast approaching. However, this is never the case and young Maasai men on a yearly basis set out to go hunt the lions and the first to put his spear on the lion is always the hero.

Antony Kasanga after growing and seeing the lions killed developed an interest to save the lions from the killers; of whom he was once one.

Antony grew up in the southern part of Kenya and only attended secondary school up to 2003. After his secondary school, Antony developed the interest to save lions even more; he joined the Living with Lions project. Though he had interest in further education, the chance was not there for him until WildCRU accepted him and admitted him to one of their new course, International Wildlife Conservation Practice. With just the secondary education, Antony worked as a research assistant and an assistant director for Lion Guardian Program at Living with Lions organization; being part of Master of Science thesis of one student, Leela Hazzah who still runs the Lion Guardians to date.
 

Antony got scholarship to study at the Oxford University and this even opened his eyes to wildlife conservation more. “Attending the course has really enlightened me on how to carry out research. This is something I struggled with before. I have worked in wildlife issues before, but didn't get a chance to explore the scientific part. As such being part of the WildCRU has helped nurture my young mind to understand conservation through a scientific perspective,” says Antony.

Antony now works with Maasailand conservation Trust to save lions. This is something that is unheard of. Furthermore, Antony wants her sister to join him in the work of saving lions.

“One of the most important things to me was to make sure that my sister was still going to school while I was further studying conservation. Perhaps she will one day be able to follow in my footsteps to become a Maasai wildlife conservationist, which would be a great achievement, even more so because she is female. Maasai do not recognize any role played by women in society, and this why I want my younger sister to become one of the pioneers in a field dominated by men. “

Antony’s work is highly welcomed by the community and now he has rallied many Maasai men into wildlife conservation; especially the Big Five.

Antony now a renowned wildlife conservationist has proved that change begins with an individual.

He has trounced the odds of being just a Secondary School graduate and a Maasai Moran to become an expert in Lion conservation and a champion for saving Lions!