The Shimmering Careers Blog

Book excerpt: There must be some people who enjoy the job search. After all, there are people who wait with gleeful anticipation for the chance to dive into their income taxes every year. In the end, though, you don’t have to love the search. You do, however, have to be good at it. STEP 1: DECIDE TO DECIDE Before you make any first step, you make the decision to move your foot. The same thing happens here. You can spend a lot of time dreaming about your dream job, but that ge

Guest post by Ashley Lipman Good news: the healthcare industry is expected to grow almost 20% by 2024. That makes health care one of the fastest growing industries in the country, and it’s a great way to make a living while helping others. As the population continues to age, we need more qualified health care workers to meet this demand for care. Working in this health field is becoming a popular choice since you don’t need years of education or experience to get started at

Not every interview in your job search is a job interview. Consider the informational interview. An informational interview is a chance to meet briefly with someone in your field and talk about that person’s company, her career, and the industry as a whole. It’s as simple as that. It’s also a crucial facet of a best practice job search. Unlike a job interview, the informational interview lacks a predetermined structure. In most job interviews, you can expect to be asked a ser

What to do before accepting the job You’ve run the gauntlet of the job search and come out in one piece. In fact, everything has gone so well that an offer is on the way. All that’s needed is the quick finalization of a few details, and you’ll have the offer in hand. What should you expect to see? The first and most important answer to that question is contained in the question itself. What should you expect to see? For it to be real, an offer has to be in writing. Nothing el

How Good Deeds Help Your Cause, Boost Your Skills and Add a Spark to Your LinkedIn Profile Volunteer work often involves skills and responsibilities that translate nicely to the workplace, but people tend to neglect those activities and say “it wasn’t a real job.” Volunteering as a Big Brother was challenging and satisfying for me. I connected with a delightful young man and watched him grow. In addition, this activity led to unanticipated opportunities including a board of d

Guest post by Ashley Lipman Career change is rarely simple. While the fantasy of what a new career entails can make the change seem awfully easy, the reality is often different, and how different fantasy and reality are depends on the person making the change and on the career option that person has chosen. One option that has become surprisingly attractive in recent years is the chance to live life as a chef. What’s behind that choice? For one thing, quite a few of us can co

A job search is an exercise in analysis. You must analyze yourself and also the employer you hope will hire you. Ask not what the employer can do for you; ask what you can do for the employer. Keep that thought in mind throughout your job search, especially during interviews. The better you know yourself, the easier it will be to figure out what’s right for you. A useful piece of advice comes from a man who managed to make a successful career in theater and never had to resor

Whether you’re looking for your first job or trying to find a new job, the process might be as consuming as a full-time job. In fact, if you’re currently unemployed, you could find yourself spending as much as 30 or more hours a week on job search-related activities. If you’re already working, you might only have 5 to 10 hours to spare. No matter how much time you have to devote to the process, you can streamline and simplify by using good time management skills. As an added