So I recently finished reading this book, Blog Schmog by Bob Bly. I initially picked it up because I have been entertaining the idea of starting a business and wanted to understand how blogging could or could not help my business. After reading the book I am still on the fence. I’m undecided as to whether the intangible benefits of a blog are worth the time and money investment. But that’s my dilemma and not really for this post.
What this book has got me thinking about is the benefits blogging can bring to careerists, like you and me. The questions are these: How can careerists leverage the benefits of blogging to their advantage? What can blogs help us achieve in building our careers? What are unrealistic expectations of the benefits blogs can have on our careers? Can we gain an edge through this social media tool? Continue Reading
You aren’t sure what you want to do and you don’t really know where you would best fit in; what the best role for you would be? It’s tough. New grads don’t really have a reference point for gauging what jobs they would be good at or would even enjoy doing. On top of that, a lot of entry level positions don’t sound very interesting. So where are you supposed to start in your job search? What should you be looking for?
As a new grad looking for your first job, I believe, you should be looking for a job that enables you to try many different things. You don’t want to focus yourself too much at first…unless you are absolutely dead set on a certain job or career from the get go. I personally believe that diversifying yourself at first will serve you far better than trying to specialize too early. You have your whole career to find your niche!
The best advice I have for new grads, especially for you careerists out there reading this, is to Continue Reading
I get this question a lot. More specifically, I get asked “Do engineers necessarily need to start in a technical field to succeed?”
I don’t particularly like that question…because the obvious answer is no. Millions of people have succeeded through an infinite number of different paths and directions. There is no one right approach for anyone, not even engineers…despite the fact that we have this desire to control every aspect of our lives…
My interpretation of this question, and how I think everyone should really ask it, is: “As an engineer, will Continue Reading
This is the best idea EVER and not many students do it. Yes, it’s volunteer work, so if you’re looking for instant financial remuneration, this probably isn’t the job for you. But if you want to secure for yourself a future revenue stream, there is no better place to start! All it takes is a couple of hours a week. You can mentor students, you can contribute to special projects within the career center that will help boost your exposure (remember: exposure = networking = contacts = opportunities) or you can form part of the career fair organizing committee. Whatever you decide to do, being involved with your school’s career center means you’ll hear the latest career buzz first; you’ll be the first to know of any new seminars, panels, job openings and resources…keeping you up to date on the latest job-hunting news. However, if you want the most value for your time, I would focus on doing the latter: join the organizing committee of your career center’s annual or bi-annual career fairs.
Why you need to join the career fair organizing committee at your school: Continue Reading
So I recently finished reading this book, Blog Schmog by Bob Bly. I initially picked it up because I have been entertaining the idea of starting a business and wanted to understand how blogging could or could not help my business. After reading the book I am still on the fence. I’m undecided as to whether the intangible benefits of a blog are worth the time and money investment. But that’s my dilemma and not really for this post. 
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