When you begin your job hunt and successfully pass the various stages of an interview to the point when you are asked to quote the expected salary, most of the job seekers get confused and end up asking for too little or too much.  While it is true that a job opportunity is seen as a career growth opportunity for a brighter future, it is also a fact that we wish to receive the pay which is according to our skills and experience level. A job opportunity with a good salary package is bound to attract the best candidates from the crop as job seekers are naturally interested in their financial well being as well as professional growth.

Many job seekers have no idea how they should negotiate the salary demands and often end up getting far less than what they had been hoping for.  Smart salary negotiation is an art which can be learnt by practicing and researching. Read More »

In last week’s article, we highlighted the top 10 signs of job related stress which not only affect a person’s performance at work but also has a negative impact on his physical and mental health. Many readers requested that we also share the ways to deal with this job related stress effectively. There are a lot of methods and techniques which when adopted by the employees can reduce the stress to a great level and improve the overall performance.

Stress management is the key to long term career success and professional growth. When an employee is stressed out, he or she cannot perform to the best of his capabilities, and in the end, the frustration of failure leads to a burnt out very early in life. Once you have identified the symptoms of stress appearing in your everyday life, it is time to address the problem and try out the various techniques mentioned in this article to eliminate stress from your daily routine. Read More »

When we arrive at our work station in the morning, there are many things which distract us from performing the tasks at hand. We often start checking emails, visiting social networking site etc and end up wasting a lot of time. Distractions and lack of focus contribute towards lower performance level and the quality of work also goes down.

Many employees are not even aware of the fact that they often waste hours in chatting with coworkers, checking emails and news websites, sending messages on the phone, arranging folders in the computer etc. All these distractions reduce the efficiency of the employee as he or she ends up working to a maximum of 5 hours whereas they stay at work for at least 8 hours or more. Read More »

Target Your Job Search for Effective Results

When you are job hunting, there are a lot of factors which affect the outcome of your job search. If you are constantly being unsuccessful in your job hunt, it might be that you are doing it the wrong way. There are many job seekers who have no idea of how one should begin or conduct a job hunt. The result is that even after spending weeks and months applying to hundreds of job opening, the person is still jobless.

Job hunt needs to be a properly organized and managed process which helps in getting results by clearing the problems and minor glitches that any job seeker has to face when he is on a job hunt. The most important thing to remember when you are job hunting is to make sure that you have a properly targeted and streamlined job hunting process. Having a proper job search strategy maximizes the output for the effort you put into the job hunt and increases your chances of getting a better job at a fast rate.

For a successful job hunt, you need to run a targeted job search campaign which means you should apply to jobs that best suit your qualifications and job descriptions. Applying to random job openings serves no purpose other than detracting you from your job search. Read More »

Being able to communicate effectively at work is essential to any professional’s success regardless of which department he is working in. Most people do not pay much attention to their communication skills and as a result get easily overlooked at the time of annual promotions. Communication skills are not only important for interacting with the clients but also when interacting with co-workers and the boss.

Each and every day an employee has to interact with dozens of people, both inside the office and out of it. These people might be clients, colleagues, superiors, juniors, vendors, etc. Interacting with all of these people requires some level of communication skills as one has to interact with each person differently in order to get the best results. Read More »

Most of the jobseekers begin the job hunt without having a proper plan in place which makes it much more difficult to find a good job opening and applying to it successfully. Listed below are some of the most common mistakes which many job seekers commit. By avoiding these common mistakes you can put your job hunt on the right path and make the best of your time.

Applying to Irrelevant Jobs:

During a job hunt, many job seekers get desperate and start applying to any and every job that is available to them. They apply to jobs which are either not relevant to their field or the level of experience and skill needed in a candidate is much above the level of the job seeker. This serves no purpose other than to irritate the employers who might add your profile to a block list which will not let you apply to any jobs in future. Avoid this conduct at all costs and only apply to jobs that are specific to your skills and education level. Read More »

As soon as we get an interview call, the first reaction is excitement and joy which is immediately followed by anxiety. There are millions of questions in our mind such as, what should be the perfect attire? What will be the interviewer like? How difficult will the questions be? The anxiety and stress a person accumulates waiting for the interview often lead to making some mistake during the interview process.

Being stressed before and during a job interview is very common and some people experience this fear of appearing in an interview even after being in the professional field for years. However, different people feel this anxiety at different levels as some only feel slight anxiety while others feel panicked and completely out of sorts. People who face mild anxiety can easily hide it and appear perfectly composed during the interview but those who face extreme cases of anxiety before the interview, often end up creating a poor impression on the interviewer.

Signs Of Extreme Job Interview Stress:

There are a few signs which can clearly indicate if you are suffering from extreme stress before or during an interview:

• Sweating profusely, so much so that even the palms of your hands are wet
• Dry and scratchy throat Read More »

Finding the career that is perfect for you is not as easy or simple as most of us expect it to be. Some have to switch from one career to another in search of the profession of their choice. Being stuck in a job which is not in accordance with your natural capabilities can lead to a burn out very soon in the professional life.

A person can only perform his tasks well if he is good at the job, which means possessing the skills and natural inclination towards that job. The dilemma in Pakistan is that students are not provided any proper counseling which can help them in finding which career will be right for them. Most youngsters get enrolled into Medical and Engineering because their parents want them to enter the specific field and others get enrolled wherever they can. The limited educational opportunities available in Pakistan do not allow these students the luxury of choosing a vocation of their choice.

Still, it is never too late to get on the right track and self assessment is the most important tool that can help in getting this done. Read More »

Once a person has completed his college education, all he can think about is getting a job and making the most of the experience he can gain in practical life. There are many who become successful in professional life as soon as they set foot in their industry but for others professional life is a continuous battle. They have to work very hard and attain all the potential skills which can help in securing a better job and strengthening their career in the long run. Continuing your education even after being in the practical field for years is the most significant factor in improving your performance at work by simply enhancing your skill set.

Why Advanced Education Is Important?

Since the economic recession has affected the job markets and companies have terminated millions of employees, survival of the fittest has become the rule of the day. If you want to survive in the corporate culture you need to be the best at your job otherwise those who are better will take your position and you’ll end up taking the axe. Read More »

Many of us face problems at work as we often fail to meet the deadlines or panic when we have too much work on our hands. Yet there are those who seem to be handling every task efficiently and never fail to meet a deadline. We often feel envious of such individuals and wonder why these people are always ahead of us and are able to complete their tasks with such efficiency and enthusiasm.

Ever wonder what their secret is? The answer is simple: multitasking. Anyone who is good at multitasking can increase his work efficiency by almost a hundred percent. Many people have the inborn talent for multitasking while others have to learn this art through trial and error. Whatever the case may be, multitasking at work can save a lot of time and energy and help you in achieving better results.

What Is Multitasking?

In very simple words, multitasking is handling multiple tasks at the same time without compromising on a single task. The ability of handling multiple tasks at the same time makes you more efficient and productive at work. Read More »