Thursday, December 10, 2009

Last Week of Class!


Get Ready for Finals
Nine Tricks if You're Bad With Names
Filed under: Make an Impression Print Article
Posted Oct 16th 2009 3:14PM
CareerBuilder.com
Two strangers meet at a networking function. One person speaks up first. "Hi, I'm Laura Mulford," she says, offering her hand to her partner.

"Raj Babu," he responds with a handshake. "Nice to meet you." The whole exchange takes less than four seconds. Ten minutes later, neither person can remember the other's name.

Ah, names. Some people have gift for remembering them. But for far too many of us, they go in one ear and right out the other. Unfortunately, referring to everyone as "hey" or "you" can be suicide when it comes to networking.

"In networking, names are the good stuff," say Anne Barber and Lynne Waymon, co-authors of 'Make Your Contacts Count' (Amacom). "It will be mighty difficult for you to initiate a relationship with someone if you don't know that person's name."
If remembering others' names is downright impossible for you, try out these tips from Barber and Waymon:

1. Repeat the first name or confirm the last name.
Simply saying, "It's nice to meet you, Chuck" or "and your last name was...?" will help you register the name and give it a better chance to implant itself into your memory.

2. Ask a question or make a comment about the person's name.
"Nice to meet you, Julia. My college roommate's name was Julia, so I'll have no problem remembering you."

3. Ask the person to spell his or her name.
"Abby, do you spell your name with a 'y' or with an 'ie'?"

4. Associate the name with a picture in your mind.
If you meet a CEO named Arthur, visualize him as King Arthur with the knights of the Round Table. "Some people like this technique; others say it confuses them," warn Barber and Waymon. "Only use it if it's helpful."

5. Ask how the person got his name.
"Savannah, were you named after the city?"

6. Tell the person what you have heard about him.
"I heard you organized this whole event, Peter."

7. Keep your energy level high.
Let your body language and tone of voice signal that you are honestly trying to learn the other person's name and teach her yours. According to Barber and Waymon, people say this is flattering.

8. Always say the person's name again as you leave her.
"It was good to meet you, Jen."

9. Handle forgotten names with grace.
No, whining about how bad you are with names is not graceful. Instead, ask a friend to remind you, or if you can recall where you met that person, say "I remember meeting you at the conference in Seattle. I'm Sarah Ansari. Will you tell me your name again?" The person may have forgotten your name too, and will be grateful for your reintroduction.

Always remember: making small talk about a person's name may take time, but it could save you embarrassment later on!

Something New Called Focus 2!
Focus 2 is a new program here with Career Services! We are very excited about it.
It helps you decide what your major should be!
OR if you have a job you want it tells you what major would be best!
FOCUS-2 is a self-guided, online career and education planning tool for use by college students.  It will enable you to assess your interests, values, skills, personality, and aspirations as they relate to careers and college majors.  FOCUS-2 is designed to help you choose the best major for you and explore occupations that match your profile.  Students who use FOCUS-2 make better decisions about their goals and plans and learn how to manage their careers.
Be sure to check it out today!

Etiquette Tip of the Week:
When invited to someone's home for dinner or for a party, bring a hostess (or host) gift, such as a small box of quality chocolates, attractive note cards or anything you know your host or hostess has an interest in, such as a book, DVD, kitchen gadget or gourmet coffee. Send flowers ahead of time, such as earlier that afternoon.  Bringing flowers with you may impose on an already busy hostess, who must find a vase and get the flowers into water.  And she may already have flowers or a centerpiece on the table. 

A hostess gift of food or alcohol is to be enjoyed by the hostess and host at a later time or served at the hostess's discretion.  Do not bring a food gift with the intent of sampling it yourself.

As you know, it’s polite to give credit where credit is due. Thus these tips are from www.cultureandmanners.com

Quote from the Office:
“Cause he plays the tuba ………..and I play the tuba.” -Eli



Thursday, December 3, 2009

Are You Ready!


It’s the Homestretch!
Tips for Building a
Development Network
In years past, it was much easier for employees
to find a mentor – it was an older, tenured
person at their organization who
seemed to ooze experience and wisdom.
These days, it’s tough to retain an employee
for more than 3-5 years, so finding a mentor
takes more work! A recent Wall Street Journal
article suggested that those seeking guidance
in their careers should build a team of
mentors in their field, otherwise known as a
development network. The concept of development
networks is easy to grasp; many
find the actual relationship building part to
be difficult.
Tips for building a team of mentors
1. Develop a list. Although some of your
mentors will naturally want to help you, it is
your job to come up with a list of individuals
who would be a good addition to your mentoring
team. Select a variety of people to add
to your network—both in and outside your
department/organization— so you have
different viewpoints to learn from.
2. Be the one to reach out, and do so
often. Top-notch protégés are not shy to
ask for guidance. You must be able to do the
initial ask and keep in regular contact with
your development network.
When a mentor offers a suggestion, keep
him/her posted on how the advice worked.
3. Come to meetings prepared. Now that
you’ve gotten a mentor’s attention, it’s time
to do some homework. Know some basics
about his/her background and have applicable
questions to ask when you get together.
4. Make it mutual. No one likes a person
who only talks about his/herself. The same
goes for mentoring relationships! Don’t
make every interaction with your mentors
about you. Be sure to offer help on a special
project or share some knowledge that you
might be able to impart to him/her.
5. Be personable and have a positive attitude.
We have yet to hear someone say,
“Gosh, I would love to mentor someone
who’s incredibly negative and not fun to be
around.” Not everyone is the most charismatic
person at their office, but it helps to
be a positive, upbeat version of yourself
when working with your development network.
Mentors are supposed to talk you
down from a workplace ledge every now and
then, but don’t make it a regular pastime.
                        From: Staffing Solutions Inc.
                                www.staffingsolutionsinc.com
Something New Called Focus 2!
Focus 2 is a new program here with Career Services! We are very excited about it.
It helps you decide what your major should be!
OR if you have a job you want it tells you what major would be best!
FOCUS-2 is a self-guided, online career and education planning tool for use by college students.  It will enable you to assess your interests, values, skills, personality, and aspirations as they relate to careers and college majors.  FOCUS-2 is designed to help you choose the best major for you and explore occupations that match your profile.  Students who use FOCUS-2 make better decisions about their goals and plans and learn how to manage their careers.
Be sure to check it out today!

Events for the Week:
12/7-8
Vector Marketing (Sales)

10-2 Mon 11-2 Tues Union
12/10
Marines Pull Up Challenge

10-2 Union


Etiquette Tip of the Week:
The best conversationalists are good listeners.  When you meet new people, ask them questions about themselves to keep the conversation going.  Are you a native of this place?  Where are you from originally?  What do you do for a living?  How did you get into that line of work?  What do you like best about your job?  Listen to their answers and ask them questions based on their answers. 

It is easier to get into trouble by talking too much.  Very few get into trouble from listening too much.
As you know, it’s polite to give credit where credit is due. Thus these tips are from www.cultureandmanners.com

Quote from the Office:
“What are you doing?” – The Whole Office