Lake Superior University

Makeovers on television shows and in magazines are enticing for women the world over. Of course the reason they are so popular, is because the idea of getting a fresh start in life is a golden key we have all dreamt about at one time or another. No matter what their lives are like, everyone has something they wish could be different – their home, their body, their friends, and even their career.

Career makeovers are not a new concept and if you think about it, making over your career will automatically set a chain reaction in motion that will affect all aspects of your life, particularly those that are unsatisfactory. If you’ve ever changed jobs or industries, worked with a recruiter, drafted a new resume or pursued additional education to increase your job prospects or opportunities, you’ve already taken steps to improve or “make over” your career.

Here are some ideas which can take your career makeover to a whole new level!

1. Look inside yourself. How do you perceive yourself? Are you confident? Do you like yourself? Are you proud of your accomplishments? What is your attitude to life, on working, on the value that you bring to your job? How do you feel about your career? Do you feel in control of your future? Working on your “inner self” is of critical importance when it comes to creating a career makeover. If your internal thoughts are not consistent with the actions that you need to take, you’ll continually feel a sense of disconnect. Others will feel it too. All change starts on the inside. If you need support in this area, consider counseling or coaching, whichever is most appropriate for your situation. Until the inner issues are resolved or healed, it can be very challenging to take the necessary steps that lead to a fulfilling career.

2. Get balanced. A key component of effectively managing your career starts with managing your time efficiently. Do you keep your work life separate from your home life? Do you take work home in the evenings or weekends? Do you talk about work ALL THE TIME? Do you take time to recharge your batteries so that you feel refreshed? This is probably one of the most difficult areas when it comes to career makeovers. It takes a lot of courage to “draw the line” when it comes to balancing your life. Many women feel that if they don’t give everything to their job, then they won’t have a job, yet, the opposite is actually true. If you’re working for a company which does not allow you to set boundaries around your time, you WILL burn out. Before this happens it is probably best that you start looking for a new position. It’s a difficult choice to make, but ultimately it’s up to you to set boundaries around what types of treatment you will accept from others – including your employer. If you can’t achieve work/life balance in your current job, you will never be able to give it your best, simply because you will not be at your best which in turn will affect your future career prospects.

3. Get your relationships in check. They say birds of a feather flock together. Are your friends dragging you down? ( I was told my friends were holding me back by a naturopath when I was in my early 20’s I was VERY angry with him and protective of my friends – but a year later when I had taken a grip of my life and moved on, I realized he had been completely right!) Is your network of friends and associates supportive of you and your goals, or are they constantly telling you that your dreams are too lofty? Do they drag you into their gossip or do they inspire you with thoughtful conversation? In essence your ambition can be affected by the people around you and because of this your personal and professional relationships will have a tremendous influence on your career success. Therefore, to get your relationships in check, evaluate your friendships and acquaintances. It might be time to start gently letting go of some of the relationships that aren’t serving you, which will allow you to fill the empty spaces with new friends who will support you. Make sure you’re forging relationships with the people who see your value, and surround yourself with mentors who are helpful in assisting you to move forward.

4. Begin with a vision. Having an idea of where you want to go is one of the most important steps in your career makeover. Until you know where you want to be or what you want to have, it’s impossible to decide on the correct steps to get you there. How do you envision your ideal life? What type of job would make you happy? What brings you the most joy? What type of position would you like to see yourself working in 5 years time? Give yourself permission to think about what you really want, dare to dream a little. Remember what seems impossible today is only so because you haven’t had the opportunity to break the journey from here to there down into manageable chunks – now you are ready to start working on your career makeover.

5. Be the change. Once you have a vision of what you think you might want. It’s now time to assess where you are now. What are your strengths and your weaknesses? What skills do you have? Which ones will you need in order to achieve your career vision? You need to know where you are now versus where you want to be in the future. The rest is about managing the “gap” in between. Here is where the career makeover really takes place and this is the secret to making it possible…

6. Start at the end and work backwards. Imagine you have your dream job and are living your dream life. What was the final step you had to take to make this all possible, now what was the step before that? Work this process through until you arrive back at where you are today. Now you are aware of these steps, you know what you have to do to achieve your goals in manageable chunks. Your next course of action is to develop a plan for achieving these goals thereby giving each part of the process a timeline.

7. Now hone your skills. One of the most obvious ways to create a career makeover is to work on your skills. Whether you go back to school to earn an advanced degree or take training classes here and there, anything that you can do to improve yourself can benefit your career. Learn more about your industry; attend conferences where you can keep abreast of the latest trends. Network with possible mentors. Buy books written by leaders in your field. Read industry periodicals and other materials that deep your knowledge. Check with your human resources department to find out what types of internal training opportunities are available. Take advantage of your company’s tuition reimbursement programs. Continuing your education is essential no matter how you do it. Studying will not be a chore. If you are doing work you love you will be passionate about absorbing as much information about your field as you can!

And finally plan for the future.
No matter who you are or whom you know, you career will have its ups and downs. These days it’s unrealistic to think you’ll have a job for life. You might be transferred, demoted, or get a new boss that you don’t enjoy. You could even lose your job because of a downturn in your industry. These are realities of work life today. To lessen the possibility of your becoming an economic statistic it’s always a good idea to have options. This means you need to think about your exit plan. What would you do if you wanted to leave, or lost your job for whatever reason? Even the people who are happy in their jobs today should have an exit strategy, so take my advice and start working on it now. Don’t wait until it’s too late and you’re in panic mode.

In conclusion, always remember, no matter what career or life choices you make, ALL women need a strategic career plan. Your career makeover is ultimately your responsibility. You are the master of your life and it’s up to you to make a plan. Once you have a clear plan, take the steps that lead you to fulfilling your ultimate vision. One powerful way of helping you stay on track is by working with a coach who can help you make the transition more quickly. A good coach gives you support you need, helps you to stay focused and on track. With proper guidance, you will quickly find yourself achieving your career goals.

Leadership is vital for any organization’s sustained success. A great leader at top makes a big difference to his or her organization. Everyone will concur with these statements. Experts in human resources field mention the importance of leaders at all levels, and not just that of the leadership at the top. It is not without reason that companies like 3M, Proctor & Gamble, GE, Coca Cola; HSBC etc. have known to put in place processes for developing leaders continuously.

Mention this subject, however, to a line manager, or to a sales manager, or any executive in most organizations and you will probably deal with diffident responses.

Leadership development -a strategic need?

The subject of leadership is dealt with in a general way by many organizations. Leadership is usually understood in terms of personal attributes such as charisma, communication, inspiration, dynamism, toughness, instinct, etc., and not in terms what good leaders can do for their organizations.  Developing leaders falls in HR domain. Budgets are framed and outlays are used with indicators like training hours per employee per year. Whether the good intentions behind the training budgets get translated into actions or not, is not monitored.

Such leadership development outlays that are based on only good intentions and general ideas about leadership get axed in bad times and get extravagant during good times. If having great or good leaders at all levels is a strategic need, as the above top companies demonstrate and as many leading management experts assert, why do we see such a stop and go approach?

Why is there skepticism about leadership development programs?

The first reason is that expectations from good (or great) leaders are not defined in operative terms and in ways in which the outcomes can be verified. Leaders are expected to achieve’ many things. They are expected to turn laggards into high performers, turn around companies, charm customers, and dazzle media. They are expected to perform miracles. These expectations remain just wishful thinking. These desired outcomes can not be used to provide any clues about gaps in leadership skills and development needs.

Absence of a comprehensive and generic (valid in diverse industries and conditions) framework for defining leadership means that leadership development effort are scattered and inconsistent in nature. Inconsistency gives bad name to leadership development programs. This breeds cynicism (these fads come and go….) and resistance to every new initiative. This is the second reason why the objectives of leadership development are often not met.

The third reason is in the methods used for leadership development. Leadership development programs rely upon a combination of lectures (e.g. on subjects like team building, communications), case studies, and group exercises (problem solving), and some inspirational talks by top business leaders or management gurus.

Sometimes the programs consist of outdoor or adventure activities for helping people bond better with each other and build better teams. These programs generate ‘feel good’ effect and in some cases participants ‘return’ with their personal action plans. But in majority of cases they fail to capitalize on the efforts that have gone in. I must mention leadership coaching in the passing. In the hands of an expert coach a willing executive can improve his leadership skills dramatically. But leadership coaching is too expensive and inaccessible for most executives and their organizations.

Leadership -a competitive advantage

During my work as a business leader and later as a leadership coach, I found that it is useful to define leadership in operative terms. When leadership is defined in terms of what it does and in terms of capabilities of a person, it is easier to assess and develop it.

When leadership skills defined in the above manner are present at all levels, they impart a distinct capability to an organization. This capability gives a competitive advantage to the organization. Organizations with a pipeline of good leaders have competitive advantages over other organizations, even those with great leaders only at the top. The competitive advantages are:

1. They (the organizations) are able to solve problems quickly and can recover from mistakes fast.

2. They have excellent horizontal communications. Things (processes) move faster.

3. They tend to be less busy with themselves. Therefore they have ‘time’ for outside people. (Over 70% of internal communications are about reminders, error corrections etc . They are wasteful)

4. Their staff (indirect) productivity is high. This is one of the toughest management challenges.

5. They are good at heeding to signals related to quality, customer complaints, shifts in market conditions and customer preferences. This leads to good and useful bottom-up communication. Top leaders tend to have less number of blind spots in such organizations.

6. It is easier to roll out programs for strategic shift and also for improving business processes (using Six Sigma, TQM, etc.). Good bottom-up communications improve top-down communications too.

7. They require less ’supervision’, since they are strongly rooted in values.

8. They are better at preventing catastrophic failures.

Expectations from good and effective leaders should be set out clearly. The leadership development programs should be selected to develop leadership skills that can be verified in operative terms. Since leadership development is a strategic need, there is a need for clarity about the above aspects.

Hemant Karandikar advises companies on business & brand strategy, on business transformation, and for achieving breakthroughs in business processes. He leverages this expertise in product creation projects for companies along with his design associates. He coaches business leaders and executives for developing leadership skills. Hemant founded Exponient Consulting and Learning Leadership.

Previously, Hemant was Managing Director, GWT Global Weighing (now Sartorius Mechatronics) and held position of General Manager at Philips India. He is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, India.

Money For School and College for Free

As you get your college degree and move your tassel your ready to begin the next phase of your life.Visit at http://gov-debt-grantbenefit.blogspot.com

 Now you’re free to do what you want to do but before you get to excited you need to figure out a way to pay off your student loans.

Earning a college degree will help you command a higher salary; however it may take some time to benefit from the higher salary while you’re trying to pay of your student loan debt. There are several ways you can earn a college degree while avoiding the student debt that plagues so many graduates.

College grants offer students that qualify money for college that does not need to be paid back. College grants are need based money, meaning they are awarded based on financial need.

The federal government is supplies the majority of the grant money for college students. You’ll find the list below will give you the most popular need based grants available to students.

1) Pell Grant

2) Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG)

3) SMART Grants

4) Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership (LEAP)

5) Academic Competitiveness Grants

In addition to federal student grants there are also a wide variety of state grants available as well. Be sure to visit your college’s financial aid office to see what type of grant money is available to students in your state. While you’re there be sure to meet with your financial aid counselor and fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

The FAFSA application will determine if you qualify for need based college grant money. Be sure to fill out this form completely and note any recent change to your financial situation. If your past doesn’t reflect your current financial situation let them know. There may be a recent change that affects your finances like divorce, unemployment, or major medical issues, that may make you eligible for need based grant money.

Scholarships and grants differ in that scholarship money is not so much need-based as it is merit-based, meaning they are awarded based on your personal accomplishments or background.

There are scholarships available for just about anyone that wants to attend college. Whether you have good grades or bad, whether you’re an athlete or bookworm, president of the ethics club or social wallflower – there are scholarships available for you. It doesn’t matter where you are in life now either. There are scholarships available for people that are getting ready to graduate high school, in college now, or an adult looking to go back to school.

Merit-based scholarships are scholarships are based on your personal qualities and achievements. Being athletic, artistic, academic, involved with your community, or have hobbies – there are a wide variety of scholarship money available for you.

Let’s examine your scholarship potential by examining different types of students. Of course, if you were class president, were head cheerleader, have a 4.3 GPA, and actively participate in non-profit organizations – there will be a lot of scholarship money available for you. If you’re a student who scored decent on tests, have a 2.7 to 3.3 GPA, and participate in a sport, there are going to be a fair amount of scholarship money for you as well.

Now, if you’re coming out of high school with a 2.2 GPA and are on MySpace all day, scholarships will be harder to find, but they’re out there. You can increase the chances of getting a scholarship by taking some simple steps before you begin the scholarship application process. Volunteer for a non-profit organization; get involved in extra-curricular activities and you may get your share of free scholarship money for college.

You can earn scholarship money for a lot of reasons. There are location specific scholarships, national scholarships and ones that are awarded by the college that you are attending. College specific scholarships may include academic, athletic and/or departmental awards. There are many other organizations that give students scholarship money for college. These include private corporations, unions, religious organizations, non-profits organizations, chambers of commerce and a wide variety of other organizations.

The most financially beneficial options to receive money for school come from college scholarships and college grants. Both offer you ways to receive free money for school that does not need to be paid back. If you are still short money for school there are other options available to you.

Student loans offer you another resource to pay for school. You have two loan options.

1) Subsidized loans. These loans provide money to students based on need. Subsidized loans give students a break on the interest rate and payment terms. For example, the interest may not begin until after you graduate. If you’re going to get a loan for school, a subsidized loan is your best bet. Federal Perkins Loans and Federal Stafford Loans are two of the subsidized loans that may help you to finance your college education.

2) Unsubsidized loans. If you don’t have luck qualifying for subsidized loans or not enough money to cover your financial need, check into unsubsidized loans. With these loans you are paying the full interest amount, typically right after you graduate. Unsubsidized loans should be your last resort when trying to finance your schooling.

There are also alternative programs that can help you pay for college. Here are a few examples below.

1) Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program, in which you are able to go to school now with the promise of serving in the military later.

2) The Peace Corps and Americorps also allow college students to go to school now and work for their organizations later.

3) Work-study programs offered by some colleges allow you to work part-time to help pay for school.

4) HOPE scholarship tax credit that allows you to pay a reduced amount of taxes.

5) Lifetime Learning tax credit gives those that pay taxes a break.

If you feel you cannot afford college, or are already in school and see the debt starting to pile up – winning scholarship or grant money may help you out. You’ll feel great knowing your graduating and don’t have student debt tying you down. You’ll feel great knowing you’re free of student debt and able to do the things you love the most.Visit at http://gov-debt-grantbenefit.blogspot.com