Friday, November 29, 2019

Letter of Resignation During or After Maternity Leave

Letter of Resignation During or After Maternity LeaveLetter of Resignation During or After Maternity LeaveDo you wish to resign rather than return to work after maternity leave? For many mothers (or aspiring stay-at-home fathers), the first few months after the birth of a child have a way of reorienting ones priorities. A U.S. Censuspublished in 2011 reported that one out of five mothers leaves the workforce either before or after giving birth. There are several reasons why you might decide to quit your job during maternity leave or afterward. You may feel sleep-deprived and overwhelmed even as youre over-the-moon joyous, wondering how you are ever going to balance the conflicting responsibilities of parenthood and your job. Your salary might not be enough to finance the childcare costs youd incur should you return to work. Or, you may simply have realized that theres nowhere you would rather be than at home with your child or children. If, after evaluating the pros and cons of quitt ing your job, youve decided thats the best path to take, you can customize this resignation letter example to announce your decision to your employer. If you prefer to use email, see what to include in an email message to resign while you are on maternity leave. Resigning While You Are on Maternity Leave Quitting during your maternity leave presents a logistical challenge. Since you are not in the office, an in-person conversation may not be possible, and you may need toresign over emailor send a printed letter. Even if you tell your boss through a phone call that you plan to resign, you will still probably need to formalize your resignation with a written communication. In general, resignation letters are best kept short. This holds true forresigning during maternity leave, too. The most important information to communicate is Your official brde day with the companyWhy you are resigningAny help you want to offer during the transitionA thank-you to the manager and company Resign ation Dos and Donts Youve decided to resign, but what else do you have to do (or not do) that you might not have considered when you went on maternity leave? Did you remember to clean up your desk and computer? What about insurance and benefits? Resignation Letter During / After Maternity Leave Example NameAddressCity, State Zip CodeDateNameTitleCompanyAddressCity, State Zip CodeDear Ms. Manager,Please accept my resignation effective September 30, 2018. As you know, I had my second child in August, and I have decided that I will not be returning to work after my maternity leave. I plan on staying home with my children for the foreseeable future.Thank you for your understanding. Please let me know if I can be of any assistance during this transitional time.I am available over (phone, email) and would also be happy to come into the office for a day to pass off any contacts, emails, or information that you need.Sincerely,Your Signature(hard copy letter)Firstname Lastname ExpandSample E mail for Resigning During Maternity Leave SubjectMaternity Leave Your NameDear Jane,During these past two months on maternity leave, Ive spent a lot of time thinking through my next steps. After much debate, Ive decided to stay home with my children, and not return to full-time work. Please accept my resignation effective February 10, 2019.Its been a pleasure working with you and being part of ABC Company. I have learned so much during my four years working here.Please let me know if I can offer any help during this transitional time I am available over email, and would also be happy to come into the office for a day to pass off any contacts, emails, or information that you need.Sincerely,Firstname Lastname Expand Sending an Email Message You may be a pro or a novice at sending email to your employer from home. When sending an important communication such as a resignation letter, you will want to ensure it is received and acted upon. If youre emailing your resignation letter, h ereshow to send your email message, including what information to include, proofing, and double-checking that you have all the information you need.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

How to Write an Entry-Level Resume for Your First Post-College Job

How to Write an Entry-Level Resume for Your First Post-College JobHow to Write an Entry-Level Resume for Your First Post-College JobHow to Write an Entry-Level Resume for Your First Post-College JobIf building your first post-college resume has you feeling under qualified, heres what you need to know.Its the classic post-college dilemma You apply for an entry-level job that could start you on the path to the career you really want. However, during your interview you are told that you do leid have enough experience for the position.So, you need experience to get an entry-level job, but without the job, you cant gain experience. That makes sense, right?The key is to broaden your scope a little when it comes to the term experience. You went to college, you got your degree, and you did things that have helped you grow and learn its not like youve been hiding under a rock. You are a graduate who is full of potential. As you think about your resume, focus on that word potential. Its the key to building a great recent-graduate resume.Heres how you put that to work for you on your entry-level resume.Professional summaryThis space used to belong to the objective statement, which quickly spoke to what you were looking for in your career. The problem with that concept is that its telling prospective employers what you want, not what you have to offer.Enter the professional summary. The professional summary in your entry-level resume should be short and sweet, and it should tell the hiring manager what kind of employee you are by highlighting your best qualities. Thats that hard part. You need to be able to brag a little here. Are you a good leader? Do you have exceptional computer skills? Maybe you are a creative problem solver. Think about the things that you do best and how those skills will make you good at your job.Keep your professional summary to one or two sentences. For exampleCreative problem solver with a focus on goals and exceeding them. Able to communicate well with teams and provide motivation.Dont use a lot of buzzwords or try to pack this part with information. Just write a couple of quick sentences that you believe sum up your best skills.Tip Avoid using words like punctual on your resume. Punctuality is not a skill, its an expected behavior. Emphasize skills that you have developed over recent years.EducationYou may not want to hear this, but once youve entered the workforce in the adult world, your education will continually diminish in importance on your resume. It may be important on your recent-graduate resume, but once youve been building your career for 10 years, employers arent concerned about what you did in college or even if you got good grades.Thats the badeanstalt news. The good news is that for your first entry-level resume after college, it is still very relevant. List out your school, degree, and GPA. You dont need to list your coursework, but be ready to discuss it in an interview.Relevant experienceYou may think that you need to have a portion of your entry-level resume dedicated to work history. In most cases, thats true. However, if you dont have a real work history or have only held one job, you can shift the focus to your relevant experience.Heres where you really need to think about the last few years and what youve done to prepare yourself for a careerDid you work part-time while you were in college? Even if it was cashiering at a department store or waitressing at a caf, you gained experience. Think about the things you learned and how they are relevant to the job you want.Did you have an internship? If so, thats great List it and describe what you learned and accomplished while you were there.Were you a part of any clubs or organizations? What kind of work did you do? Did you hold a leadership position?Did you do any volunteering? Volunteering is a great way to utilize your skills and build experience, and it displays character.While you may not have an extensive work history, that doesnt mean you dont have relevant experience. Think carefully about what you can include in this section to make it shine.Tip The key word here is relevant. If you are looking for a job in sales and your baking club taught you how to make a mean cupcake, thats not relevant. Did you sell more cupcakes than anyone else? Now youre talking.SkillsHeres the section of an entry-level resume that can really do the heavy lifting for you. What were you doing in all of those classes? You were learning skills. Fill this section and show prospective employers what kind of potential you have. Dont talk about your classes or worry about examples, just list out the skills that youve developed over recent years.Computer skills Programs, languages, etc. List them all out.Foreign languages Having a second language under your belt is a huge plus in todays job market.Communication Believe it or not, communication skills are frequently lacking in job applicants. If you have done public speaking, group e mailing, etc., make sure youre displaying that ability.Trade skills Hopefully your education helped you learn some skills that are specific to the career field you want to enter.Problem solvingTime managementLeadershipYou dont want to go into how you gained each skill on your resume. This is a quick review of what you are bringing to the table. Be ready to discuss these skills and how you obtained them if you should get an interview.Tip While hard skills like being fluent in Spanish and being an expert HTML coder are fantastic, dont overlook soft skills. The abilities to communicate, manage your time, and lead others are harder for employers to teach, so they want to see that you are already proficient in these areas.RelatedAsk Amanda How Do I Create a Skills Section for My Resume?Sell yourselfAs your career grows, it will become easier to sell yourself and your experience. The first job out of college, while you battle the experience catch-22, is tougher and requires some creative thinking. Remember, employers arent necessarily looking to help you build a career. Theyre trying to fill a job and hire an employee that will make their company better.You do have skills. You do have experiences. If you want to get a foot in the door at your first entry-level job, you need to convince employers that the skills and experiences that you acquired during your time in school will help you become a star employee for them. If you dont have the experience they want, focus on the potential and show them that you can do this job and grow beyond. A well-written entry-level resume is the first step to launching your new career and building exciting new experiences.Click on the following link for more resume advice.Enter the workforce with a splash with a resume that impresses employers. Learn more about working with a professional resume writer from TopResume.Recommended Reading6 Ways to Rock Your First Entry-Level Job After GraduationTop Entry-Level Jobs for Recent College Gr ads14 Reasons This is the Perfect College Grad Resume

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Heres how you can change your life every 90 days

Heres how you can change your life every 90 daysHeres how you can change your life every 90 daysMost people are going to be in the same place in 90 days as they are right now. In fact, most people will be in nearly the same place in 1, 3, and 5 years.Most people are living day-to-day.They arent actively sprinting toward new and exciting futures.They arent looking back and being blown away by all that has recently happened.They arent becoming mora and more confident by the evidence all around them that they are powerfully designing their ideal life.You can do this, though.Every 90 days, you can watch as your life expands and transforms before your eyes.You can watch as your health, income, relationships, time, and happiness all improve.This is the best way to live. Its why you are here and what will bring you joy.- - - Dan Sullivan, the founder of Strategic Coach, has a simple 4-question exercise thatGives you a sense of joy and pride for what youve accomplishedConfidence about what youre currently focusing onExcitement about what your future holdsClarity about the few things that really matterHere are the 4 questions, and how you can use themLast 90 daysWinning Achievements? Looking back over the past quarter, what are the things that make you the proudest about what you have achieved? - Dan SullivanTake 2 minutes and write down all of the things that have happened in your life over the past 90 days.What are the personal and professional goals youve accomplished?Its crazy, but if you take a few minutes to simply reflect on what has happened in your life, youll realize that far more has happened than you remember.Its easy to get caught-up in the day-to-day.Its easy to be focused on the here and now.But taking just 2 minutes to reflect on the past 90 days will blow your mind by all that has happened.Even more, when you get better at structuring your time and focusing on only those things which matter to you, you will get better at accomplishing HUGE goals ever y 90 days.90-day goal cycles are perfect for making huge progress and then reflecting on what you did, and then making better plans for the following 90 days.You can get to the point where every 90 days youre achieving more than most people achieve in a year. Or 5 years.Right nowWhats Hot? When you look at everything thats going on today, which areas of focus and progress are making you the most confident? - Dan SullivanConfidence is a byproduct of having a life youre proud of and excited about.Take 2 minutes and make a list of the things in your life that give you confidence about what youre doing right now.Dont filter or edit yourself.If youre continuously moving forward in your life, then the things youre focused on RIGHT NOW should be quite different from the things you were focused on 36 months ago.You should have made some huge progress in the past 90 days, which opened up new doors.Every 90 days, you could be focusing on bigger and more interesting projects.Your life can con tinuously look different and better.Your workouts could be different and more powerful.Your health and fitness could be better - allowing you to feel better and have more energy.You could be making more money.You could have deeper and more profound connections and relationships.These things give you a sense of confidence, because you can see by your current reality that youve made progress. Indeed, without progress, you cant have confidence.But if youre continually stretching and creating bigger and better future, then youll be in a constant space of growth.If youre growing and stretching, then your life will continue to get better.Your present reality will look quite different every 3, 6, 9, and 12 months.The quality of your life and your time will be different.The quality of your thoughts and habits will be better.Youll be able to look at your current life, work, projects, health, income, routines, relationships, emotions and feel a huge sense of accomplishment.You can feel confi dent by the life you have.This confidence, coupled with the increased sense of morale youll have gained by reflecting on the achievements of the prior 90 days will be a huge boost.Youll begin feeling amazing.Next 90 daysBigger and Better? Now, looking ahead at the next quarter, what new things are giving you the greatest sense of excitement? - Dan SullivanIs the future youre sprinting toward exciting for you?It should and could be.Its exciting to pursue greater growth and possibilities than youve ever had before.According to Dan Sullivan, If you are constantly making your life busier, 10 you are avoiding the future. If you are bored, then youve run out of future.How big is your current future?How big are the next 90 days?Do they excite you with all youre going to experience and achieve?Will you have to step way outside your current comfort zone to achieve all you want to?Will you have to learn an enormous amount?Take 2 minutes to write down all of the things youre currently excited about. These should be both personal and professional.What are the experiences youre going to create?What are you going to learn and master?What are the achievements youre going to have?What are the doors that are going to open?90-day jumpsWhat are the five new jumps you can now achieve that will make your next 90 days a great quarter regardless of what else happens? - Dan SullivanTake 2- minutes to list 5 new jumps that if you achieved in the next 90 days, youd be happy with your progress.What five things would make the biggest impact on your future?What five accomplishments would be the most thrilling and exciting to pursue?ConclusionYouve just taken 10 minutes to reflect on the previous 90 days, right now, and the next 90 days.What would happen in your life if you did this every 90 days?What would happen for you if you set HUGE ambitions and built your life around making those things real?How much could your life change every 90 days?If you did this consistently, how wildly dif ferent could your life be in 12 months?Or 24 months?Or 5 years?Success isnt rocket-science. Its about getting really clear on what you want, and pursuing only those things.Its about feeling a sense of accomplishment and confidence about what youve done, and using that confidence to create motivation to pursue bigger and better futures.Ready toupgrade?Ive created a cheat sheet for putting yourself into a PEAK-STATE, immediately. You follow this daily, your life will change very quickly.Get the cheat sheet hereThis article first appeared on Medium.