I’m excited to tell you that we will be holding a day-long Career Strategies Conference May 22, 2012 at the Hilton Stamford Hotel & Executive Meeting Center in Stamford, CT which is less than an hour from New York City. Over the next few months I’ll be using this blog to provide conference updates.

The Career Strategies Conference combines a day-long main conference with an early evening Grand Networking Event. As well as learning from top professionals, you’ll be able to take advantage of three networking opportunities:

•Breakfast is your chance to chat over coffee and bagels before the main conference begins.

•Lunch is a great time to relax a little and get to know some of your fellow attendees. Did one speaker catch your attention? Dine at a table with one or more of our speakers at one of our LunchWorks! roundtables. (First come, first served, available spots based on speaker participation.)

•The Grand Networking Event is your opportunity to mix and mingle with everyone who attended the conference. Share some wine with your new friends in a more social setting. You may even get to meet the speaker who inspired you the most.

Career Strategies Conference is all inclusive. No surprises, except a few of the good kind. Visit the website for more details. Contact me to get an additional 15% off!

Career Strategies Conference

Sorry for neglecting this blog. Things have been a little crazy here. After carefully analyzing the responses to our Reader Survey – I read every comment – we have decided to move forward with some new strategies. Part of the reason I’ve been so busy is that we’ve been working on a new Premium section, which we hope to launch in December.

While we’ll still be providing plenty of great content at no charge, the Premium section will have additional elements, particularly downloadable audio files and virtual networking. So If you are getting ready for a job interview you can download a copy of Interview Bootcamp and listen when you need it. All the interviews from our Meet the Recruiter series will be available as well. Boy did I learn a lot about how they find candidates and what to do when attending career fairs from talking to them.

Because you asked we’re working on a virtual networking component too. Personally, I was surprised that hardly anyone was interested in meeting IRL. I thought that would be a winner. But our goal is to bring you what is most valuable to you. We’ll also be offering discounts on our online assessments and videos too. Right now I’m working on a S.M.A.R.T. Goals video package based on our popular goals articles.

We should be putting up a “coming attractions” page for the Premium section soon. Stay tuned!

Yesterday was like Summer. Today it seems like more of the same. But according to the weather report Fall temps will roll in over the next few days. Time to say goodbye to those lazy, hazy days of Summer and get back to business.

Over the last two weeks, I conducted two sessions of my Free teleclass Interview Bootcamp. It was so successful that we plan to offer it again in October. Stay tuned for upcoming dates for that and news about other new teleclasses I’m putting together right now. Just click on our Career Tools section for updates.

In the next few months, our goal is to launch a new Member’s Only section on career-intelligence.com. One of the things we’re planning to offer is audios of our most popular Teleseminars available on demand. So if you get a call about an interview today and want to pick up a few ideas you can download a copy of Interview Bootcamp and listen to it when YOU need it.

We’ll also be offering discounts on assessments like the Strong Interest Inventory® to Members. This is still in the development stage so if there’s something you’d like to see in this new section email me at arichmond@career-intelligence.com. There will be a small monthly fee for our Member’s Only section so let me know what you’re thinking.

I can’t believe that next week, we’re sending out our second video newsletter. Although, I was nervous about creating videos – once I got used to seeing myself up close and personal it’s kind of fun. I’ve added to my Networking Nuggets series. (They’ll be living in our Career Tools section real soon.) I hope that you will find these videos helpful.

Thankfully we came through hurricane Irene virtually unscathed. We were one of the few families I know who didn’t lose power. Our trees remained intact. The worst of it was that Irene knocked over my husband’s tomato plants. But they seem to be recovering just fine.

This week brings a long holiday weekend here in the States. Sadly it’s also the unofficial end to Summer. The lovely warm weather will be leaving us soon. And it’s tough to say goodbye. But then, fall here in the Northeast is beautiful too.

Whether you’re working or unemployed try to make some time to slow down this weekend. If possible get away for a few days. I just read another article on how important it is to take a vacation. (Read the article below) It actually improves your productivity when you return.

If you’re headed for the beach this weekend think about taking along a good book. Maybe Enjoy the Ride by Steve Gilliland (one of my new favorites) or Delivering Happiness, A Path To Profits, Passion and Purpose by Tony Hsieh, CEO Zappos.com (which I am just starting). You know, something to keep you on your toes a little while you’re relaxing.

Enjoy the weekend!

FYI, our first Interview Bootcamp was such a success – that we have decided to offer it again next week Wednesday, September 7th at 8:30 pm. I decided to hold this one in the evening in response to several people who told me they couldn’t make it during the day. So it will be a different time, but the same material. (Look for the registration in our Career Tools section.)

Why Summer Vacations (and the Internet) Make You More Productive

Sadly, it’s almost the end of summer. And it looks like this weekend is going to be awash with the hurricane heading our way. At least it’s not the long holiday weekend.

The good news is that in September the networking season kicks into high gear again. While most organizations take a break during the summer, after Labor Day they’ll be back in action. It’s time to start gearing up for all those upcoming dinner events.

Over the years, I’ve written several articles on networking. Many of them appear on this site. (Use our site search to find them.) But, in an effort to further embrace social media, I decided to create a new video series – Networking Nuggets.

My goal is to turn the tips I’ve written about into video “nuggets” of information. Although they will be hosted in our Career Tools section, I’ll try to post them here as well.

Have a great weekend!

This week's Networking Nugget

Lots of new stuff here at career-intelligence.com. New series, teleseminars and video!

In September we start our new series Meet the Recruiter with Kathy Downs from Robert Half International. Over the last few weeks I’ve read that more and more recruiters are turning to social media to find candidates. I’m looking forward to asking Kathy about that. To register visit Meet the Recruiter on our Career Tools page. You still have time to take advantage of our Early Bird special.

Next week, I’m conducting a Free 30-minute teleseminar – Interview Bootcamp. It’s packed with information to help you navigate the interview process more successfully. Among other things, I’ll be talking about how to put a positive spin on “What is your greatest weakness.” No, it’s not by saying “I’m a perfectionist” or “I spend too much time at the office.” To join me for Interview Bootcamp visit our Career Tools section. You’ll find it under Workshops and Teleseminars.

This week, hopefully tomorrow, we’re sending out our first video newsletter. Although, I’ve happily tried to embrace social media I’ve held off on producing video. While I’m used to hearing the sound of my voice seeing myself up close and personal is another matter. Particularly since I still need to drop a few more pounds.

But, inspired by people like Ruth Sherman and Peter Shankman I finally decided to jump in to video with both feet. Last week I did a series of videos for career-intelligence.com. In fact, by the time you read this they may already be posted. I hope you like the first installment of my series Networking Nuggets. As an introvert I can tell you that my first tip works.

That’s it for now. Hope you’re having a good week.

Career Tools

Ah, customer service. It affects the way we think about a business. Sometimes even before we walk in the door.

Last week I had lunch with one of my friends. Since we don’t work in the same town she suggested we meet at an Asian restaurant that’s about midway. It’s someplace she goes all the time. Let’s call them Company A. After researching the menu online I quickly agreed because I love sushi. The day before we were meeting I went online and printed out the directions.

Unfortunately, that day I left the directions in my office. I wasn’t worried; I figured I'd just call from my cell for directions. Boy was I wrong. When I asked for directions from the highway, the friendly woman who answered the phone said they were next to X bank. But, since I’m not familiar with the town I didn’t know where X bank was. She put me on hold.

The next women who picked up the phone said she had only been there two days and didn’t know the directions. She did manage to give me the address. Too bad it was WRONG address, which meant I spent ten minutes driving up and down the busy downtown area.

I guess no one thought that putting directions to the restaurant by the phone was a good idea. I was annoyed before I even got there.

Then there’s my local gym. Let’s call them Company B. Every time I check in they greet me with “Hi” and “Enjoy your workout.” Every time. Everyone knows that a gym can be a breeding ground for germs. But, I don’t worry about that here because people are constantly cleaning the equipment and the locker room.

During class the instructors make a point of giving lots of encouragement and praise. Stephanie, the personal trainer I work with, is awesome. Always knows just how far she can push me without pushing me over the edge. She helped me become stronger and more confident. And the people at the desk are actually happy to help you. Imagine that.

The staff at my gym makes working out challenging, while keeping it fun. I never miss an opportunity to praise them.

So who are they? Company A will remain anonymous. Company B is Crunch Fitness here in Norwalk.

Which company are you? Are your customers eager to praise you or share a story about how you let them down? Think about it.

Crunch Fitness - Norwalk, CT

Do you follow directions? Seriously.

The other day, we posted an ad for freelance writers on craigslist. Almost as soon as it appeared, the ad was Tweeted by several “writer’s” groups. And within 15 minutes I was inundated with emails.

In less than two days, we have received almost 100 responses. And they’re still coming.

Our instructions were simple: If you’re interested, please email a resume, cover letter and a brief writing sample. Put CI Freelance in the subject line. At least it sounded simple to me.

To my surprise, only about 50% of the respondents put CI Freelance in the subject line. The rest of the subject lines included things like seeking freelance writers (our ad headline), applying for writing position, freelance writer, etc.

To their credit, many people sent exactly what we asked for – resume, cover letter and a brief writing sample. They immediately moved to the top of my list.

Some people sent me a plethora of articles. One guy sent me an attachment containing a writing sample so large I had to have my tech guy delete the file from the server because it was clogging up my inbox. Others didn’t send a sample at all.

But, my favorite bad response so far was from someone who sent me an email saying that he/she was interested in finding out more about the position and asked me to email them with more information. No cover letter, no resume, no writing sample. Yeah, OK. Delete.

While I’ll try to read every email, I will open the ones with CI Freelance in the subject line first. Even if I get to the others, I am much less likely to hire anyone who can’t follow a few simple directions. Particularly since he or she will be working remotely.

What about you? When you respond to a job post do you follow directions? Do you send a potential employer what they ask for or what you think you should send? As you know there’s a lot of competition out there, don’t give an employer a reason to instantly dismiss you.