The Early Bird Gets Ahead.
Getting a job after graduation is really exciting. But when the initial adrenaline wears off and the reality sinks in, you probably realize that you haven’t got up before 8am for more than two days in a row since high school.
For all of us, getting up early will be part of the job from now until retirement. So, what is the late-rising, recent college grad to do?
Waking Up Early – 15 Tips That Work by blogger Dave Cheong explores the best recomendations for greeting the day early enough to catch the witty banter on first hour of the Today Show. Here are the five best tips.
1. Have a good reason to get up. Remind yourself why you’re getting up earlier. Is the corner coffee shop an option with your extra time? Will you be able to get in a morning workout? Or could leaving earlier help you avoid heavy AM traffic? Whatever your reason, remember it before you go to bed.
2. Get enough sleep. Being productive is much harder when you’re exhausted. So, go to bed earlier to make sure you feel rested the next day.
3. No more another 10 minutes. It’s never just 10 minutes because 10 becomes 20, which becomes 30, and before you know it, you’re late. No more snooze. Try to get up when the alarm goes off the first time.
4. Establish a stable routine. Consistency is key to getting your body accustomed to rising early. Try not to spoil your hard work from the week before by sleeping in until noon on Saturday.
5. Be aware of the consequences. If you’re late to work, you lose credibility with your team, and you might even have to stay later to make up for your extra Zs. If your boss is an morning person, you might be missing out by not getting to the office early.
Good luck! And good morning.
photo from tripadvisor.com
Tiger’s Tips FORE Life.
I can’t think of anything better than getting life advice from Tiger Woods. Anyone who knows me is all too aware of my passion for golf (both the game and the adorable outfits). And although I haven’t been playing long, I think that there are a lot of life lessons that we can learn from golf. My buddy Tiger agrees with me. Tiger Woods Rulebook to Being a Huge Success from the blog Dumb Little Man offers some of the golf great’s tips for life. Before I hyperventilate from excitement, let’s continue.
1. Constant and never ending improvement. Never settle for good enough, not when you can always be better tomorrow. That’s what keeps life exciting.
2. A bigger plan. Try to look at the bigger picture – this is often bigger than your own success and accomplishments.
3. Embrace defeat. And move on. Don’t hold on to your mistakes. Pick yourself up and face your next challenge.
4. Take life lightly. “If you can’t laugh at yourself, then who can you laugh at?” -Tiger Woods
5. Don’t stop. Clearly Tiger took his own advice at the Open a couple of weeks ago.
6. Live your own expectations. Don’t get tied up with what other people want.
7. Do what you love. You’re going to spend your entire life working, so why not find something that you love to do.
8. Focus. Have a goal, focus on what’s important and put all your energy toward reaching it.
9. Pay it forward. Give your time and talents to others.
10. Learn from all mistakes. Life’s challenges are there for us to learn from, so take advantage.
11. Celebrate your victories. Positive reinforcement comes when you treat each of your successes as special. Don’t feel bad when you feel good about your accomplishments.
12. Pay no attention to naysayers. What do they know anyway?
adorable picture of Tiger from news.bbc.co.uk.
Dear Webmaster. I suck.
With the rapid growth of social media, bloggers are now a huge subsection of the media to whom we public
relations people are pitching stories. Here’s a couple of quick tips on pitching bloggers from The New PR.
1. Don’t begin with “Dear Webmaster.”
2. Don’t talk to bloggers like they’re stupid.
3. Don’t pitch blogs that are clearly unrelated to your content.
4. When you have the blogger’s name, use it. And make sure to spell it correctly.
Also, do your homework on the blogger, so you don’t say something completely off-base or just plain stupid. Unlike traditional media, bloggers control a medium with which they can tag you publicly as a loser by blacklisting you or your company. Good luck and pitch wisely.
image from insurancetechguru.com
LinkedIn: Facebook for Grown-Ups.
So, I’ve been on Facebook for nearly four years now, and I am sorry to admit it, but the online community is losing its luster. Gone are the days of excitedly adding everyone I encounter or enthusiastically skimming through spring break photos of random people on my friends list. It just doesn’t do it for me anymore.
Now that I’m in the recovery stage of my Facebook addiction, I find that I have more time in the day. Apparently, Facebook is a combination of a black hole and a break in the space/time continuum. When on Facebook, productivity mysteriously vanishes and in an instant you’ve traveled two hours forward in time. Is it just me, or does that make surfing Facebook sound like a bad episode of the Twilight Zone?
The frightening realities of Facebook aside, even with all my newly discovered free time, I still feel like something is missing.
The remedy? LinkedIn. This social networking site was created for finding and building business relationships online. It’s basically Facebook, but your friends aren’t the group of random guys you met at a fraternity party freshman year and never talked to again.
I know it’s a scary transition. Instead of posting pictures of yourself soused at the bar last weekend, you can post industry questions for established professionals. It doesn’t sound like as much fun, and it isn’t but it can be a useful tool for networking. You just have to know how to use it.
Ten Ways to Use LinkedIn by blogger Guy Kawasaki explains to those in the Facebook generation exactly how to get more from the site. Here are some of the highlights of how you can best use LinkedIn.
1. Integrate into a new job. It can help you connect more quickly with your peers by providing you the opportunity to learn about them through their profiles and connections.
2. Ask for advice. LinkedIn Answers allows you to post business-related questions to the entire LinkedIn community.
3. Gauge the health of a company. You can check out former employees and find out what they thought about the previous company they worked for. Uncheck the “current employees only” box, and you can search the listed names to guesstimate turnover rates etc. Did most of the former employees only stay with the company a year? What does that mean for the organization or the industry?
4. Make your interview go smoother. Find out about the person who is interviewing you. Did you go to the same school, volunteer at similar programs, or share connections? These might be good topics to break the ice.
5. Improve your Google PageRank. Ever since the Sex and the City girls began Googling their men, we’ve all been curious about our own Google name search. Making your profile available for search engines to index allows your LinkedIn profile to appear high your name’s search results.
UPDATE: Last week I accepted a position with one of the largest and best PR agencies in Portland. PR job of my dreams? Check.
R.E.S.P.E.C.T. Find out what it really means.
Working well in a team is a huge part of PR. But in a new job, how do you earn the oh-so-important respect of your co-workers?
5 Ways to Earn Respect from Your Co-workers posted on the blog Movin’ On Up provides some valuable tips to consider when attempting to build respect between you and your peers.
1. Have a great attitude. Be optimistic, regardless of the situation. Part of this involves showing gratitude for your coworkers’ help and talking positively about others.
2. Develop a strong work ethic. Finishing your tasks on-time and putting your best foot forward every day shows that you are a person that your co-workers can depend on.
3. Demonstrate integrity. Be honest with your peers and act in a way that shows your genuine character. Follow company procedures and policies and make decisions that make it easy for people to want to trust you.
4. Embody professionalism. Dress appropriately and be aware of your behavior. Prove to your co-workers that you are a professional.
5. Respect others. Be polite and courteous. Respect their personal space, opinions and work. Your mom was right: treat others like you’d want to be treated.
Keep in mind: earning respect takes time, so be patient.
image from spotlights.com
Real World Advice (the actual real world, not the show)
A couple of days ago I had the opportunity to chat with a young PR professional who works at a highly regarded boutique firm in Portland, Oregon. I asked her if she had any tips for recent grads who are trying to get jobs in PR. Here’s some of the advice she offered.
1. Take time off before you jump in. Agency PR is really demanding. And if you’re not mentally prepared, you’ll burn out. (I hope my dad is reading this)
2. NETWORK! Meet people through PROpenMic, LinkedIn, Facebook, PRSA chapter meetings or wherever. Build relationships and ask for advice.
3. Do your research and narrow your prospects. Blanketing your resume to every organization in the google search for “PR” in your town usually doesn’t work.
4. Once you create your short list, get connected with someone who works there. Keep an eye on the agency’s clients and keep a conversation going by referencing publicity they generated or interesting trends you see in the industry.
I’m off to enjoy the last week of my college life. Cheers!
It’s Graduation Day. Try Not to Throw Up.
Hello world! Again. You know that feeling when you get to the airport before a big trip? You’re really excited, but you can’t help but think you forgot something? That’s how I’ve been feeling the last couple of weeks months. In the hustle and bustle of PReparing for my life, I forgot one little thing: blogging. Oops.
In the interest of moving forward (and trying to forget the fact that this is my first post in nearly a decade), let’s talk about graduation. Pat yourself on the back. You made it, or at the very least, you tricked the registrar’s office into believing you already finished those online classes so you can graduate with your friends in June – nobody wants to walk alone in September.
I hope you’ve sent out your announcements. Unfortunately, if you don’t already know, our country is currently in what the people in charge call a “slow down” (aka devastating economic recession). What does that mean for us? A crap job market, a gallon of gas costing more than a pint of good beer, a pint of good beer costing so much you might actually just have one and the majority of graduation cards containing ONLY words of congratulations and wisdom. Hey, everybody’s hurting.
So, in lieu of cash from your Uncle Randy and Aunt Vi, I’ve found some practical ideas for how to make a little money, let’s just say, the old fashioned way. Here are some moneyinstructer.com tips.
1. Reconsider babysitting. I’m sure not all kids hate you.
2. Become a parent’s helper. Get paid to do all the lame tasks real adults don’t want to do.
3. House cleaning. You still have that Swiffer from freshman year, right?
4. Lemonade stand. On the rocks with a shot of vodka, perhaps?
The article goes on to list car washing, house and pet sitting and landscaping. Ok, joke’s over. If you didn’t already realize, those are tips for how kids can make extra money. In times like these, though, you never know what you’ll do for a little cash in hand. See you on the sidewalk! Fresh squeezed lemonade only $5 a glass. Liquor not included.
Image from art.com.
