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6 Surefire Ways To Ace A First Impression

Present yourself in the right light with the help of these tips.

#1: BE PUNCTUAL

The fine strokes of impression starts as soon as you walk the room. In Japan, they have mastered the management of time. Most Japanese naturally acquired the habit of punctuality. Showing up early or on time displays their respect for other people. Nothing is more disrespectful than having your interviewer or potential client wait for you for 30 minutes.

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If you are running late due to unforeseen circumstances, it is best to let the people know. Call the interviewer or the client as soon as possible. He or she will appreciate this gesture more than hearing a lame excuse upon your arrival.

#2: DRESS THE PART

Who does not want to be seen as well put-together during the first meeting?

It goes without saying that the quickest elements of impression formation include the physical appearance. It does not matter whether you are interviewing for a modelling gig or not. You will be judged with thru way you look. Showing up in a neatly pressed suit or a tailored dress comes across as professional and organized.

#3: RELAX THE FACE

When you are nervous or lying, your autonomic nervous system goes into an overdrive. You will unconsciously make significant movements such as scratching your nose, pulling your hair, or touching your cheeks. Some may even chew the pen’s cap during written assessments. These body movements give off a sense of judgment and lack of confidence.

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Be mindful about your actions during the interview or the product proposal!

#4: PAY ATTENTION

As obvious as this may seem, shaping a stellar impression includes being present at the given moment. Physical presence does not stop at the face-to-face interactions. You must be mentally active during the conversation too! Ensure that you are coming across as someone who is interested and engaged with the other person.

Start by calling the interviewer or the client using their name during the entire conversation then, you may paraphrase their thoughts from time to time. Listen to what the other person is saying and tailor your responses accordingly.

#5: TOSS THE PHONE

Putting your devices and smartphone away is primarily applicable in this modern age. Do not immediately turn to your phone while waiting in the lobby. Use this time to double-check your CV or to contemplate on the proposal topics.

When the interviewer or the boss comes, you will appear prepared for the task at hand!

#6: BE POSITIVE

A person with a pleasing personality is hard to find. This is why positive people give a lasting impression. It is easy to connect to a person who portrays a friendly attitude through his or her command of words and body language.

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So, greet the interviewer or the potential client with a genuine smile. Then, ensure that the topics that you will discuss are on the neutral ground. Showing a hint of your sense of humor would not hurt too (i.e., during appropriate instances)!

Sources: 1 & 2

Tips On Balancing 2 Jobs While Maintaining Sanity

In Singapore, it is not uncommon to hold two or more jobs. You may quickly browse thru your social media profiles to observe how some people seem to do it all. What you do not see behind the lenses is its challenging nature. It is difficult to balance several fulfilling commitments while maintaining your sanity!

On that note, here are some sensible tips that may help:

#1: ACCEPTANCE

Whatever career path you may take, your mindset echoes the way you act and feel. Start by accepting that you will acquire multiple jobs to cover your needs. Realize that the compact schedule will be a norm for you for the next couple of months or years.

#2: ORGANIZATION

Foresee how the upcoming weeks will pan out by having an organized planner. List down the priorities, tasks, or assignments that you need to accomplish next week. Distribute the week’s load as evenly as possible. Keep track of important appointments as well! Then, make smart decisions about social gatherings based on your schedule.

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#3: SELF-CARE

Are you coughing intensely during your second shift? A healthy well-being is essential to juggle multiple jobs in a day. Self-care boils down to the basic needs: quality sleep and balanced diet. Combining these two with regular exercise and social support will help you reach your goal without experiencing burnout.

#4: AVOIDANCE

Transparency is a precautionary factor to avoid “conflict of interest” and other issues. If you are thinking of mainting two or more position for a long period of time, keep the communication lines open. Your primary employer must be aware that you are committing yourself to a second job.

#5: RELAX

Many people choose to block a day off during the week to replenish their strength. While we may not have the luxury of blocking an entire day, we can settle for a break of several hours. Take your mind on a pleasant ride by doing the activities that surround your passion/s.

#6: FOCUS

Focus on the task at hand! Completely surrendering yourself to one tasks enables you to accomplish it faster. Work at a conducive space that eliminates distractions, ignites relaxing music, and inspires you to think.

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#7: END GOAL

Let us face it! You are not exhausting your physical and mental efforts for nothing. You are accepting these multiple jobs with an end goal in mind. Hold that goal dear to your heart and never lose sight of it.

Sources: 1 &2

Beat The Rushed Deadlines With These 4 Tips

Singapore’s highly competitive society values the ability to work at a faster rate. The problem with focusing on urgency is the maintenance of quality. You may question whether there are smarter ways to get things done quickly without sacrificing premium standards. For starters, you can consider adding these four tips to your work or academic routine.

#1: THE ENERGIZING HOUR

Be honest with yourself! Are you an early bird or a nocturnal owl? The good news is, either of these personas can work to your favor. Determine the specific time of the day when you are most productive. Exhaust your creative juices to the important tasks and use your “low-energy hours” to fulfill less essential tasks such as household chores.

#2: TIME IS GOLD

Parkinson’s Law is among the most relevant concepts in business. It highlights that “work expands to fill the time available for its completion”. In other words, the effort you exert on a task stretches to suit the allotted time. Work at a quicker pace by setting a clear schedule. Doing this will motivate you to beat the clock!

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#3: CRUSH THE DISTRACTIONS

It goes without saying that procrastination is an enemy during crunch time. It is best to eliminate all the possible distractions that are within your reach. Please toss your handphone and other electronics on the side. To power through a long period of concentration, you may increase the volume of your preferred music. Jazz and classical tracks may soothe your mood to focus better on the tasks.

#4: ONE STEP DOWN

No matter what you are working on, you can always breakdown the process into smaller chunks. Examining each step aims to make an efficient progress. Furthermore, your “mini victories” will motivate you along the way.

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Imagine that you have to write an essay as a Poly student. The first step is to choose an interesting topic. Secondly, you need to do an extensive research and make a rough outline. Thirdly, you must accomplish a draft. The fourth step is to edit and review your draft. Lastly, you must proofread and print your assignment. Tackle the task…one step at a time!

Sources: 1 & 2

4 Time Management Tips To Help You Work Smart

We all posses a set of (or at least one) positive traits useful in the workplace. Mine just happens to surround time management. Time is a finite commodity that you cannot take back! Thus, I make it a point to strategically exhaust it.

Managing time is not about squeezing as many tasks as you can within 24 hours. Instead, it is about carefully choosing which tasks you can fulfill to alleviate stress and which tasks you can leave behind. Simplify your operations in order to accomplish your tasks at a faster pace. Consider these tips to work smarter:

FIRST THINGS FIRST

As much as I want to discuss about the catchy Iggy Azalea song, I am going to expound on the seemingly unfamiliar territory of prioritizing. Prioritizing focuses on determining the order of the items in your to-do list. Stephen Covey, the co-author of “First Things First”, introduced four categorizations for one’s tasks. The categories are:

a. Important and Urgent,
b. Important and Not Urgent,
c. Urgent and Not Important, as well as
d. Not Urgent and Not Important.

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Write down at least three “Important and Urgent” tasks that you must accomplish by today. Waste no time in addressing each one. Reap the sense of accomplishment as you fulfill each one of them. Use this motivation to tackle the less vital items.

USE SPARE TIME WISELY

No matter how busy your weekday can get, you still have a decent amount of down-time. Use your waiting time wisely by completing simple tasks such as calling possible sponsors for your company event. While you are waiting to board the next bus, you can answer important emails with your mobile applications.

As a pre-school teacher, I envision my lesson plans whenever I have idle moments. My finest thoughts spark when I am relaxing in the shower or when I am running a mile in the town stadium. Maximizing my spare time allows me to push my creativity beyond limits.

ELIMINATE THE UNNECESSARY

Taking a series of commitments can be detrimental to your schedule. Whenever you agree to help out a co-worker, you are increasing your personal workload. You may not be able to immediately tackle the tasks assigned to you!

It is hard to refuse to friendly requests from colleagues especially if you are the type of person who loves lending a hand. However, if you want to jump-start your productivity, it is important to learn to say “NO” or “not at this moment”.

ABSORB FUTURE’S ESSENCE

It is no secret that I am an avid people watcher! Not to sound creepy, but it comes from my background in Psychology. Let us move on to the anecdote. As I was sipping my hot mocha, I overheard two women talking about their careers. One seems to be the other’s mentor. I realized that they were both dancing instructors as the discussion went on. The “mentor” shared valuable tips such as preparing an overall timeline and strict goals for each day. She said that it was better to record one’s routine to record any flaws, before the presentation comes. She made some valid points!

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Having a realistic plan eases the tension of the coming days. You know your glistening target and the corresponding moves to achieve it. Now, you do not have to be prudent to absorb the future’s essence. Start by sparing at least 10 minutes before your shift ends to clear out your desk and to prepare your task for tomorrow. Alternatively, you may clear your desk as you arrive to the office. Allot the first 10 minutes to prioritizing your to-do list.

Sources: 1, 2, & 3

6 Annoying Things That People Put In Their CV

Crafting a Curriculum Vitae (CV) or Resume urges you to select the type of information that you need to put in or throw behind. You are in luck! You live in an era where vast career articles can readily be pull out for you to use at any time. You may even ask your parents, co-workers, and other people surrounding you to help you with your CV.

Mistakes can be made in the actual writing of your CV,. While it is impossible to pick the brain of every hiring manager in Singapore, you can still avoid causing irritation!

KILL THE BUZZWORDS

As a budding candidate, your top priority is to impress your potential employer. I completely understand that you want to display your grammar proficiency and vocabulary prowess. However, you do not need to throw a bunch of buzzwords to shine. Do you really know the meaning of synergy and “best of bread”?

This type of words or terms will make hiring managers roll their eyes! Opt for words that highlight what you actually did such as created, managed, achieved, negotiated, and launched. Action words will show off your skills and provide weight to your profile.

STEER AWAY FROM CLICHES

Catch the recruiter’s attention without sounding too annoying by avoiding unimpressive cliches. These are either too vague or repetitive. Using flowery phrases such as “people person” and “hard worker” are difficult to prove. It is better to provide concrete examples to present your accomplishments.

Remember, much like in courtship, it is better to get creative and straight to the point!

BE CAREFUL WITH THE LABELS

I know how efficient it is to send a generic CV to all the possible employers. As an unemployed fresh graduate, this is one of the strategies that I used to partake on. If you are as guilty as I was, you must ensure that you edit the company or institution to which you are addressing the document to.

Attention to the slightest details goes beyond proofreading. It sends out a message that you are customizing your CV to the right companies. Start by labelling the file with your surname and the company’s name (e.g., Wee_Google.pdf).

REVAMP YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS

You can learn a lot from a person by merely checking out his or her email handle. Well, when was the last time you’ve changed yours? Answering “while in secondary school” may not be good. Chances are, your email may be something along the lines of [email protected] or [email protected]. You do not want to get flagged by tech-savvy companies just because of your humorous email address!

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Upgrade your profile by setting up a separate email for work. Choose a handle that is as similar to your name as possible. Gmail is highly recommended as it includes document sharing and group chat applications, which are helpful in the workplace.

TONE DOWN THE FONTS

Outward appearance or “face value” shapes the first impression. Recruiters and potential employers are bound to notice the document’s font and formatting before they read the contents of your CV. Thus, it is essential to keep things neat and professional.

The most acceptable fonts include Times New Roman and Arial, in font size 12 and color black. You may also apply Tahoma, Goudy Old Style, Lucida Sans, Garamond, and Century Gothic. It goes without saying that Comic Sans MS and Chiller are not welcomed in this club!

DO NOT INCLUDE EVERYTHING

The rise of modern technology urged us to evolve our technical skills. It is a common thing for recruiters to browse through a list of software that the candidate is familiar with. At this point, all of us are expected to be familiar with the Microsoft Office products (i.e., particularly Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel). Including other programs can boost your job profile. However, you do not have to add every piece of technology that you came in contact with!

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You need to be confident with your experience and skills in that area before adding it in. For instance, it is best to write “Final Cut Pro” to your CV after editing videos extensively. The same idea applies for the languages that you speak. Being part Mexican does not guarantee your proficiency in Español!

Sources: 1 & 2

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