No matter how many resumes I look at, there is always one constant problem that almost nobody can seem to get away from: Making something out of nothing. Wait a minute, isn’t that the point of a resume? To pull every last ounce of impressiveness (patent pending) out of your accomplishments? The answer is that both points are valid. Before your head explodes, let me explain.

There is a big difference between describing your accomplishments in glowing detail and attributing successes or skills where they don’t belong. Here’s an example:

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With the title of this post in mind, I’d like to address one of the largest myths that surround the act of being a “manager”: Managers have to know everything. How do we fix the server? Can I expense this? What day does that obscure holiday fall on in 2047? Pretty much any question is fair game for a manager or supervisor, and rightfully so. As the person in charge, your people are going to look to you when they have such questions. However, the important point to remember is this: Just because you’re the focal point for these questions, it doesn’t mean that you necessarily have to know the answer.

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Furthering your education can be one of the best ways to advance your career. However, many people write it off as impossible for a number of reasons. Here is the one I hear the most often: I can’t go to classes, go to my job, and take care of the rest of my life at the same time. While this is a valid concern, the advent of the internet has provided a potent cure to this ill: online degree programs.

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I came across this humorous resume on Reddit, and I thought it was a good Friday laugh for everybody. I especially like the reference to the Excel spreadsheets, as that is so damn true sometimes.

Happy Friday!

Here are three things that can cause stress on a project:

1.) Tight deadlines
2.) Long hours
3.) A struggling team member

While individually these can all lead to stress on a project team, combined they can be deadly. The first two problems mentioned above are hard to mitigate, especially when they are both occurring at the same time. However, the third one seems like an easy solution on the surface: Cut the team member loose. Unfortunately, this is a tactic that is taken much too quickly in many situations. Instead, I would counsel the following: Take the extra time to try and develop the team member. Here are a few situations in which this especially a good idea:

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Internships have been traditionally perceived as learning experiences for students in the chosen field. However, they have also come to be required on your resume if you want a good job after college. Because of this, the competition for internships has become hotter than ever. Hot enough to even warrant students paying companies to place them in unpaid internships. Hard to believe, but true.

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How to create a great Resume is a topic that triggers lots of advice and even more questions. Should you include a salary range? How many pages should it be? How many previous jobs do you list? However, while all these factors are well known, there are many others that go under the radar. They might not come immediately to mind when you think of the word “Resume”, but they are just as important as the most popular ones. That’s why I put together the following list of three resume factors that often look in the background but should definitely be considered along with the big boys:

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We’ve all heard the phrase “Living within your means”. The question is what does it actually mean? Does it mean that you only spend what you have on hand? Does it mean you can take out personal loans, secured loans, or unsecured loans as long as you think can cover them? There are many ways to approach this question, and in the end only you can make this determination. However, I’d like to give you my take on it.

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While the title of this post may not be familiar to you, here’s a saying that you might be more familiar with: You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink. In other words, you can show the horse where the water is, but the horse has to make the decision to drink or not. This saying applies to almost any workplace, as it is a basic tenet of communication. There are multiple leadership styles out there, but no matter what style you employ, if you want to get your team to do something right you need to convince them it’s the right thing to do. “Right” is highlighted there because someone can perform a task even if they don’t’ agree with it, but you most likely won’t get their best effort. This is also the point that Glenn Ray makes in his entertaining parable below. My thoughts are immediately following the article in the My Comments section.

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With the 2008 elections quickly approaching, it seems that you just can’t get away from the election coverage. Everywhere you go, you’ll hear something about the election. This includes your office. At the water cooler, right before a meeting, even just chatting in the hallway, the subject is bound to come up. The question is this: Should you discuss politics in the office? Based on my experience, the quick answer is a definite no. There are multiple reasons for this, but I’ll focus on the main one which is described below.

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