The latest update to Cover Letters From Hell is out and it is quite entertaining. The cover letter errors will make you laugh along with the snarky commentary from Killian’s people. One of my personal favorites this time (Killian’s comments in italics): “i am a freeelance writer and have worked with a magazine for almost three years before. i came across ur advertisement in [name of magazine]. if you wish i can send you my cv along with some sample writings.” “To seek career in a dynamic & well Organization which offer Good oppertunities & challenging revelant exposure, self enchancement & growth…” While we have no idea what this means,… Read More
Continue ReadingThermostat Wars
I was reading through the latest Herman Trend Report this morning about the new souped up cubicles that are being developed by IBM and Steelcase. Yes, it sounds similar to customizing a Yugo, but there actually are some interesting ideas geared towards Millennial workers. For instance: Two new technologies facilitate people working in collaboration: “MyTeam” uses sensor data to connect team members and to broadcast availability awareness. One touch opens the preferred communication channel, whether it is e-mail, phone, or instant message. Their Everywhere Displays projector transforms any surface into a touch-screen. Rather than gathering around a monitor, participants working together may project their work onto tables or walls. Users may… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Most Annoying Coworker
It’s me. Well, I didn’t make the list, but I think I could have won it (Lee will confirm it). But this article in CareerJournal.com reports that SnagAJob.com went with their own list and came up with these answers: According to the 7,000 people who responded to the poll last month, the “slacker” and the “kiss-up” tied for the most annoying person to work with. Each type was selected as most annoying by 32.6% of those who responded to the one-question survey. … Third on the list of annoying co-workers was the “gossip hound,” which 18.4% said was the most annoying co-worker. The “loud talker” was deemed most annoying by… Read More
Continue ReadingDumb And Dumber Interview Moves
I have a weakness for lists -they make good link bait, too. CNNMoney.com offers up 10 dumbest job-interview moves. It is a quick, entertaining read. A sample: The job hunter… 5. “… drafted a press release announcing that we had hired him.” 7. “… delivered his entire cover letter in the form of a rap song.” 9. “…brought his mother to the interview and let her do all the talking.” My mouth is still agape after reading number 9.
Continue ReadingCrackBerry DTs
Honestly, I thought this was a joke – Is that your phone or your imagination? From the article: Many mobile phone addicts and BlackBerry junkies report feeling vibrations when there are none, or feeling as if they’re wearing a cell phone when they’re not. … Research in the area is scant, but theories abound about the phenomenon, which has been termed “ringxiety” or “fauxcellarm.” The article is obviously a bit tongue-in-cheek and there are some good lines in it including this one: He also claims to “pre-feel” a new message or call. “I’ll feel it, look at it. It’s not vibrating. Then it starts vibrating,” he said. “I am one… Read More
Continue ReadingWhat Not To Do At Work
Ok, I have a weakness for these types of surveys. From CareerBuilder: “Workplace Taboos” is a new CareerBuilder.com survey, conducted by Harris Interactive of more than 5,700 workers. The most common workplace taboos that workers admitted to taking part in include: Falling asleep at work (45 percent) Kissing a co-worker (39 percent) Stealing from the office (22 percent) Spreading a rumor about a co-worker (22 percent) Consuming alcoholic beverages while on the job (21 percent) Snooping after hours (18 percent) Lying about an academic background (4 percent) Taking credit for someone else’s work (2 percent) I laughed at number 1 since I used to work at a company where the… Read More
Continue Reading3 Words You Don’t Want To Hear In Voicemail
I just listened to a sales candidate’s initial message in response to one of our ads. He described his experience by saying: I’ve been in the _______ business for 20 years. Yada, yada, yada. Funny on Seinfeld, painfully bad on an approach call.
Continue ReadingLawyers, iPhones and Money
In case you haven’t noticed, senseless lawsuits absolutely push my buttons. So now this comes along – Woman sues Apple for $1M over iPhone price cut. The gist of her complaint: A New York woman is so angry at Apple Inc. for lopping $200 off the price of the iPhone that she’s filed a lawsuit seeking $1 million in damages. Dongmei Li of Queens, N.Y., claimed the company violated price discrimination laws when it slashed the price of the 8-gigabyte iPhone by a third, from $599 to $399, within two months of the gadget’s June debut. … According to Li’s lawsuit, filed on Sept. 24 in the U.S. District Court,… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Lefty Rebound
From the “this may only interest me” file – Yahoo offers Number of Lefties Bounces Back: While lefties currently make up about 11 percent of the population, earlier studies found only 3 percent of those born in 1900 were left-handed. … “Left-handedness is important because more than 10 percent of people have their brains organized in a qualitatively different way to other people,” McManus said. Half my family is left-handed so I am always keen to these articles. And I can confirm that left-handers have a completely different way of thinking. I often tease my left-handed wife that she has laid out a left-handed kitchen since I often get confused about where… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Web Is Watching You
I’m a big fan of online purchases mainly because I can get exactly what I want, click to order and forget about it. I’m not a big tracking guy either – I pick the slowest, cheapest method for shipping and the stuff usually arrives within 1 week. Fire and forget. Now Inc.com offers up Ever Wish You Could Read Your Customers’ Minds? Get a load of this new software: Proclivity is a consumer predictive engine technology that is able to analyze a customer’s online activity and identify their interest in certain types of merchandise. … For example, if an online clothing retailer wants to launch a campaign around jeans, Proclivity… Read More
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