Articles - The Voice of Job Seekers

How Will Volunteer Work Enhance Your Career

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

I think there are enough stories of the web where someone starts out volunteering, and because of the experience it provided a bridge for a new career. Or it enhanced their current career by adding value or inspired them to change from a corporation to a non-profit organization. Antonio Boyd has seen everything in his 20 years in leadership positions with HOPE Worldwide.

Here’s how you can participate in the discussion:

Call and leave a voicemail or text me at 708-365-9822
Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message
Send email feedback to mark@thevoiceofjobseekers.com

Antonio is the CEO and President of The Think Tank Consulting Group, LLC. It is an international management, development, and public affairs company, specializing in the non-profit, government, and entertainment sectors. Antonio spent most of his career with HOPE worldwide Ltd. His last role as Vice President of Community Outreach, he supervised and trained 10 Headquarters staff, and 125 Volunteer Directors. He was also responsible for the development and deployment of the AmeriCorps and other organizations. Direct and plan implementation and development of the programs for the 240 communities across the United States Canada, and the Caribbean utilizing of 33,031 faith-based volunteers from 157 churches.

His wife encouraged his involvement in volunteer work
People find that volunteer work energizes them and their career
Antonio shared two dynamics in his experience
Millenials desire to do something meaningful—to go change the world
200 college students every summer volunteer to direct volunteer events on campus
Executives often found after volunteering non-profit leadership is more meaningful
Boards are great for the transferable skill, small non-profit boards are likely easier to join
Volunteer work always have needs to fill, most boards need 12
Corporation usually give time to employees to volunteer
You become a “brand ambassador” when volunteering because you represent the company brand
Creates humanity, enhances your understanding of people, adds value
Volunteer work speaks to your character in your high school junior and senior year, adds to your college application
College volunteer work can substantiate and add balance when seeking internships

Need help with your career goals, directions, or efforts? Do you need coaching or instruction? I am here for it!Also, join our Linkedin community! You’ll enjoy some of the insights shared by community members and other career pros!

I would still like to help self-published career professionals promote their books. If you’re interested, find more info here.

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Career Clarity for Military to Civilian Transitioners

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

This week’s show is special because we are digging deeper into the military to civilian career transition experience. Kevin Kermes was a lieutenant in the Army and worked as a headhunter for ten years before founding All Things Career. Clarity is essential for your job search. Kevin’s advice and story is paramount to understanding why. I want to thank our mutual friend Michelle Lederman for introducing us and suggesting him as a potential guest.

I would love to hear about your military to civilian transition if this show resonates with you:

Call and leave a voicemail or text me at 708-365-9822
Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message
Send email feedback to mark@thevoiceofjobseekers.com

Kevin founded All Things Career in 2008. He has also founded the sites Career Attraction,Every Veteran Hired, and CareerMeh. They have been featured in major sites such as Forbes, CareerBuilder, and the Wall Street Journal.

Here are a few highlights from our discussion:

Kevin shares about his transition from military to civilian experience
Transition back to civilian life is on going. There are “landmines” on the road to finding work that you love
Kevin and many other military veterans are”…crystal clear about what they are moving away from but not what you’re moving towards.”
“It’s a little bit of a calibration process…because something doesn’t work doesn’t mean that you’ve failed.”
Working with a headhunter only presented opportunities available through them, not the whole career landscape
Before getting out beef up your civilian network to gather wider job market intelligence
Going back to school is not always the answer
The cultural shift is huge and thinking everyone has the same background as yours is a major adjustment
Finding what you are looking for in a culture is important, perhaps even longevity. Working with a team with the same goals and objectives
Your military unit and its value is difficult to find in a company
Finding purpose is a journey, takes sorting out beyond salary
In finding your purpose and work you love, Kevin suggests you go back to people you’ve worked with and ask, “What did I do to make your life easier?”
Listen to how you made people feel

I would still like to help self-published career professionals promote their books. If you’re interested, find more info here.

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Giving Women The Courage to Negotiate Salary

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

I am happy to continue this dialogue on the gender pay gap to empower women to be informed and inspired to seek better salary and compensation. Whether you are a woman mustering the courage to ask for a raise or looking to negotiation for better pay this episode. I encourage both men and women to listen to this episode to universally make the most out of your career trajectory.

Have you ever asked an employer for more money?

Here’s how you can participate in the discussion:

Call and leave a voicemail or text me at 708-365-9822
Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message
Send email feedback to mark@thevoiceofjobseekers.com

Aubrey Bach (@aubreybach) is the Senior Manager, Editorial and Marketing at PayScale and we are going to dive deep into Payscale’s 2016 Salary Negotiation Report. Although we discussed a few points with Lydia Frank two three episodes ago, we will attempt to parse parts of the report to provide help women particularly make gains in their salary negotiation strategy.

Here are some highlights from our discussion:

43 percent of PayScale users say they have ever asked for a raise or promotion during their career
Payscale surveyed 31,000 to benchmark their pay to help you ask for a raise
Aubrey cited the site She Negotiates stating that men are four times as likely to negotiate than women
Men and women are split on researching to negotiate. Women are likely not to
Millenial women express being uncomfortable in talking about money
Aubrey refers to an article she wrote about a Kate Winslet stating being uncomfortable about discussing salary
We talked about the negative stigma given to women when they negotiate. Or managers feeling OK when men negotiate and feel different when asks for more money
Aubrey mentioned the Seattle company Textio CEO Kieran Synder, who put statistical data around “aggressive” on a woman’s performance review would lead to more negative readings compared to men
Perception of “unconscious bias” is affecting men and women’s behavior
Women statistically initiate negotiations less often than their male counterparts and ask for about 30% less
When men see that they meet 50% of the job requirements they will apply vs. women needing to see 100% to think about it
75% of people who ask will likely get a raise
One million dollars is what many job seekers leave on the table in a lifetime because he or she never asked for a better salary and compensation package
Negotiate paid time off, education, and flexible work—not just salary. Consider time to relax and consider your career trajectory. Consider your lifestyle desires

I would still like to help self-published career professionals promote their books. If you’re interested, find more info here.