Thursday, March 19, 2020

9 Pieces of Celebrity Advice That Will Inspire You to Succeed in 2017

9 Pieces of Celebrity Advice That Will Inspire You to Succeed in 2017 Love them, hate them, or roll your eyes when you see them make news for ridiculous things, famous people have something in common: they’re good at what they do, or you probably wouldn’t know who they are. And while you probably shouldn’t, say, take medical advice from George Clooney or legal advice from Justin Timberlake, it’s worth seeing what kind of celebrity advice they have to offer. As we look to the new year with its blank slate, let’s also look at how some household names in business, Hollywood, and politics approach career, success, and life balance. On Finding Purpose and DirectionOne of the first things you should do in the new year is figure out what you  want your  goals to be. To do that, it’s important to figure out what motivates you, and what you really want to be doing with your professional life. A new year is a chance to take a look at what motivates you now, because that may not be the same thing that motivated you in the past. Take the opportunity to look at who you are now, and what forces are moving you forward.â€Å"Stop chasing the money and start chasing the passion. - Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zapposâ€Å"’May the Force be with you’ is charming but it’s not important. What’s important is that you become the Force- for yourself and perhaps for other people.† - Harrison Ford, actorOn Being Your Own Biggest AssetNot to get all sappy on you, but your best ally in this process is, well, you. Networks are important, but as you get ready to ramp up your career in the new year, make sure you’re putting enough value and emphasis on the skills, experience, and expertise that you already have. 2017 should be a year of moving forward with confidence, not stalling out due to self-doubt.â€Å"Don’t discount yourself, no matter what you’re doing. Everyone has a unique perspective that they can bring to the world. Just have faith in yourself and trust yo urself.† - Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of FacebookOn Achieving SuccessSuccess is not an instant result, no matter who you are or what you do. People who achieve that success have gotten there because they stuck it out, and threw everything they had at the process. CEOs, entertainers, thinkers†¦the version of â€Å"success† is different for each of them, but they have one thing in common: effort + time.â€Å"When I was 15, I left school to start a magazine, and it became a success because I wouldn’t take no for an answer.† - Richard Branson, CEO of the Virgin Groupâ€Å"There’s no such thing as overnight success. That’s my concern with a show like American Idol. It encourages the false belief that there’s a kind of magic, that you can be ‘discovered.’ That may be the way television works, but it’s not the way the world works. Rising to the top of any field requires an enormous amount of dedication, focus, drive, talen t, and 99 factors that they don’t show on television. It’s not simply about being picked. Which, by the way, is why very few of the anointed winners on American Idol have gone on to true success. Most have flamed out and gone away. That should tell us something.† - Malcolm Gladwell, authorâ€Å"Success is just a war of attrition. Sure, there’s an element of talent you should probably possess. But if you just stick around long enough, eventually something is going to happen.† - Dax Shepard, actorâ€Å"Do the work. Out-work. Out-think. Out-sell your expectations. There are no shortcuts.† - Mark Cuban, entrepreneurOn Why You Should Never Give UpIf you give up on your goals because you’re seeing too many challenges or it feels too hard, no one is going to run up to you, shouting, â€Å"come back! Just kidding, here’s what you want.† Once you figure out what you want to achieve and start devising your plan to get there, itâ₠¬â„¢s crucial to stick to that, whether things get tough or are taking longer than you thought they would. You’re tougher than you think you are, so don’t let setbacks deter you from those bigger goals.â€Å"I’m very glad my mother didn’t let me quit piano lessons at age 10. She said I wasn’t old enough or good enough to make that decision, and she was right. I remember at the time I was shocked. I did not like that my mother said those things to me. But when I got a chance to play with Yo-Yo Ma or more recently with Aretha Franklin, I thought, I’m really glad she said what she did.† - Condoleezza Rice, former Secretary of StateOn Seizing OpportunitiesIn 2017, be ready to size up and grab potential opportunities. Do research, talk to people in your network, and always keep an eye out for new jobs, new skill-building opportunities, anything that can help you along the way. If you’re not proactive, you’ll either miss poten tial opportunities entirely, or watch them slip right by you and turn into someone else’s chances.â€Å"People ask, ‘What’s the best role you’ve ever played?’ The next one.† - Kevin Kline, actorâ€Å"Put your head down and work hard. Never wait for things to happen make them happen for yourself through hard graft and not giving up.† - Gordon Ramsay, chef, entrepreneur, and TV personalityâ€Å"If I can’t make it through one door, I’ll go through another door- or I’ll make a door. Something terrific will come no matter how dark the present is.† - Joan Rivers, comedianâ€Å"I feel that luck is preparation meeting opportunity.† - Oprah Winfrey, entrepreneur and world dominatorOn Why It’s Okay to FailNobody likes failure- but it’s inevitable at some point. You know that song â€Å"Everybody Hurts,† by R.E.M.? The career version of it is, â€Å"everybody flops, sometimes.† Itâ₠¬â„¢s going to happen, it’s going to hurt, and you should be ready to take that failure and learn from it so you can keep moving forward. Don’t let minor failures derail your year of progress.â€Å"Failure is not the opposite of success; it’s a stepping stone to success.† - Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Postâ€Å"Failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me. Had I really succeeded at anything else, I might never have found the determination to succeed in the one arena I believed I truly belonged.† - J.K. Rowling, authorOn Overcoming Career Obstacles2017 will have obstacles. That’s non-negotiable. But when you’re faced with those challenges, don’t let them stop your progress. Instead, ask yourself how they can factor into your journey.â€Å"When faced with sexism or ageism or lookism or even really aggressive Buddhism, ask yourself the following question, ‘Is this person between me and what I want to do?'† - Tina Fey, comedian and writerOn Why Being a Lone Wolf Doesn’t WorkIf you think your 2017 journey is all about you, you’re mistaken. You are the most important piece of it, yes. But being a good team member, and knowing when to rely on others is a skill that you should start practicing as early in the year as possible. It’s not just that others can help you directly (although many can); it’s just as much learning what you can from others to apply to your own professional life.â€Å"What I have discovered, is this: You can’t do it alone. As you navigate through the rest of your life, be open to collaboration. Other people and other people’s ideas are often better than your own. Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.† - Amy Poehler, comedian and writerâ€Å"I look for a positive attitude and are they easy to work with, are people gonna like working with them? It’s very important to like the people you work with, otherwise life [and] your job is gonna be quite miserable.† - Elon Musk, entrepreneur and CEO of Tesla Motors and SpaceXâ€Å"The best advice I ever got is: You’re the average of the five people you associate with the most.† - Tim Ferriss, author and entrepreneurOn Achieving Balance While Pursuing Your GoalsIf you have some aggressive professional goals in 2017 (new job, promotion, new approach to your existing job), don’t let those crowd out everything in your life. Making room for your personal growth, development, and happiness is just as essential. This may involve some creative thinking and sacrifices, but when you get to the other side of 2017, you don’t want to be thinking, â€Å"I wish I’d made time for thi ngs that make me happy.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Believe you can do anything. This is important for everyone and especially for women. Don’t let anyone tell you can’t have both a meaningful professional career and a fulfilling personal life. When you hear someone say you can’t do something, know that you can and start figuring out how. Ask yourself, ‘What would I do if I weren’t afraid?’† - Sheryl Sandberg, COO of FacebookAs you gear up for 2017 and the banner career year you’re going to have (whether you’re looking for new opportunities or working on growing in the role you already have), think about these bits of advice given by people who’ve reached the top of their fields. And more importantly, think about how you can make these recommendations work for you, and seize your next great opportunity!

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

Top 10 Grammatical and Spelling Errors of 2013

Top 10 Grammatical and Spelling Errors of 2013 It’s that time of year again! This year I will address some of the top grammatical and spelling errors specifically found on resumes and business documents, both of which constitute a large portion of what I read. Here’s the list: #10 Inconsistencies in Bulleted Lists If you make a list of bulleted items, whether it be on a resume or on a website, make them consistent in terms of the part of speech you start with. Bullets that start with the words Provide, Assess, Ensure, and Designing are not parallel; nor are bullets that start with Creates, Teaches, Organized, and Fulfills. Perhaps the inconsistent word jumps off the page when listed this way, but I see mismatched bullets in many types of documents every day. Check your bulleted lists carefully! #9 Manager/Manger According to Wikipedia, a â€Å"manger† is â€Å"a feeder that is made of carved stone, wood, or metal construction and is used to hold food for animals (as in a stable).† A â€Å"manager,† in contrast, is a person in a professional setting who supervises a person or team. Don’t mix them up on your resume, or in your Christmas greetings ;-). #8 Principal/Principle â€Å"Principal† is an adjective meaning first, highest, or foremost in importance, rank, worth, or degree; or of, relating to, or being financial principal, or a principal in a financial transaction. It can also be a noun meaning a person with a leading role, or one who holds a position of presiding rank or who is a main participant in a situation. â€Å"Principle,† in contrast, is a basic truth, tenet or assumption. I realize this spelling distinction can be hard to remember. One trick I use to keep them straight is to think, â€Å"You’re my #1 pal† and know that the word ending in â€Å"pal† relates to someone or something that is #1. #7 PowerPoint/Powerpoint It’s a common error to miss the capital P in the middle of PowerPoint. Be careful when listing any computer programs on your resume to spell them correctly! #6 Set up/Setup â€Å"Set up† is a verb meaning to set something up or put something in a specified state. Notice that there is a word in between â€Å"set† and â€Å"up† in the definition of â€Å"set up,† which you can think of as being substituted with a space. You must set *something* (_) up. â€Å"Setup,† however, is a noun meaning the process of preparing something to be used. You might set up the menus in a restaurant if you work there, but you would go to a setup menu to get a computer program ready for use. #5 Inconsistent Dashes If you use dashes in between start and end dates on your resume, or between any items in a document, use the same length dash for every similar set of text! I almost always see inconsistencies, especially on resumes, and they appear unprofessional. Don’t write June 2011-July 2013 in one spot and August 2010- June 2011 in another. #4 Apostrophes This issue makes the list for the third year in a row. Main point: Creating a plural doesn’t require an apostrophe. One client, two clients. To make a singular word possessive, add an apostrophe ‘s’: e.g., I wrote one client’s resume today. To make a plural word possessive, add an apostrophe after the ‘s’: e.g., I reviewed 5 clients’ records and discovered errors in 3 of them. See Top 7 Grammatical and Spelling Errors of 2012 and Top 10 Grammatical and Spelling Errors of 2011 for more on this topic. #3 Everyday/Every day This is a repeat topic as well. Everyday is an adjective meaning â€Å"common† or â€Å"day-to-day.† Every day means â€Å"daily† or â€Å"each and every day.† Want to learn a trick to remember which is which? See Common Grammatical Errors: Everyday vs. Every Day. #2 Lead/Led The absolute most common spelling error on resumes is the use of â€Å"lead,† meant to be the past tense of â€Å"lead.† The past tense of the verb â€Å"to lead† is â€Å"led†! I would love to see this error disappear from the resume writing world. #1 Two spaces after a period! Sure there are people who still argue that two spaces after a period is acceptable, but I have been fully converted! I have trained my fingers and my eyes to put one space after each period, and I’m attempting to train my clients to â€Å"get with the program† as well. If it’s good enough for the Chicago Manual of Style, it’s good enough for me! Have a happy, healthy, and grammatically correct new year. And remember, I’m always open to hearing your suggestions for my 2014 list!