Change is stressful. Changing jobs (or being unemployed and job searching) can be even more stressful, particularly if you have major responsibilities in your life such as a mortgage to pay for or children to feed. The emotional toll of joblessness can weigh heavily upon a person’s shoulders and this can deeply affect a person’s ability to obtain new employment. . There is an old expression that in my experience rings true: Moods are contagious. For those of you, who are unfamiliar with this concept, allow me to briefly explain the theory. A person who is in a good mood will give off...

If you work long enough, you may someday find yourself unemployed. It happens. In fact, it has happened to ‘Yours Truly’ on more than one occasion and I will attest that it is no fun at all. In fact – it downright sucks. You don’t need me to tell you that we are living in tough economic times. Everyone knows that – especially those that are either unemployed or underemployed (working, but not earning enough to sustain an enjoyable/affordable lifestyle). According to mainstream media, these numbers are growing by the thousands each and every day (at least, in North America). Personally,...

As a teacher and counsellor, one of my main responsibilities is to always offer whatever level of service and guidance that I can to young adults who constantly struggle to choose the right career path that best suits their personal life goals and interests (and in some cases, their dreams). Of course, it always helps that I went through a very similar process myself. Like many before me and many since, I too went through my own personal version of a mid-twenties crisis, where I strenuously deliberated on the next major step in my pursuit of a career worthy of a modern-day adult. As a proud...

Welcome, The following is the resulting conversation from an assignment that was given out on September 2, 2009 between my students (and myself) to help add clarity to the definitions of “Soft Skills” and “Hard Skills” – but more specifically, the classification of “reading and writing” within those skills. The instructions were for my students to visit 3 other random websites and then come back with their own determination/opinion. . . . http://searchcio.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid182_gci1314710,00.html. http://www.2020insight.net/Docs4/PeopleSkills.pdf http://www.linkedin.com/answers/hiring-human-resources/staffing-recruiting/HRH_SFF/531813-34024960?browseCategory=HRH_SFF . Please...