From Journalism to Property

From Journalism to Property Success Story > From: Freelance To: Job From Journalism to Property “It was the only career I'd ever known. It was a hard decision to leave.” * From Journalism to Property Daniel Freeman had an exciting career, but the lack of security and reward left him frustrated. Now he's found a job that looks less glamorous from the outside, but feels infinitely better on the inside. This is his story. What were you doing previously? I was a broadcast journalist working in radio and TV. I covered mostly sport (mainly football) and some news as well. There was quite a lot of variety. What are you doing now? I'm a lettings agent for the Chancellors group. Why did you change? I needed a change, to do something different in my life. I wanted a clear pathway where I could I see what I could achieve. I liked the idea of going into a role knowing that if I worked hard and was good at it, that I'd be rewarded for it, as opposed to being in a role where the level of reward would never change. My old job was exciting â€" no two days were the same â€" but I'd been doing it for 16 years. It was the only career I'd ever known. It was a hard decision to leave. But I knew that I'd probably gone as far with it as I could without uprooting my family and moving away to Manchester, where there are lots more opportunities in sports journalism, but which I wasn't prepared to do. I needed a new challenge. I also needed more job security. I was self-employed before with no fixed contract. Earlier this year I had a health issue which meant that I needed roughly six weeks off work. Being self-employed meant I didn't get any sick pay and this was just too tough on the bank balance. I've got two little girls to think about and I wanted to do the right thing by my family. I had to make a change. When was the moment you decided to make the change? I'd just found out that I didn't get a news reading job I'd gone for. It was a job that I don't think I really wanted. It was full time and local, which would have been great, but it was in news rather than sport, which felt like a step away from what I really enjoyed. Anyway, I gave it a good go, but didn't get it. And at the interview stage it had felt like I was quite a way off getting the job, or one like it. It was a bit of a reality check. I realised that I needed to do something about it. I needed to find a role where I could progress as a result of my hard work. Are you happy with the change? Yes. Now, I go into work each day relishing the challenge. I don't take the work home with me, but I find I'm thinking about it even when I'm not at the office, and it excites me. I can see areas of growth and opportunities I can go for where I think I can really make a difference. The incentives are there too. I'm really enjoying it. What do you miss and what don't you miss? I miss a few of the friendships I'd built up over the years. I miss being involved in sport. I miss being able to spend time on social media, or interviewing footballers or managers, stuff like that. But there were also days that dragged on and on, where I didn't have much to do. Whereas now I know that every single call I make, everything I do, is contributing towards something. It didn't feel that way before. I love sport, but it's always been a hobby first and foremost: from playing sports when I was younger, to going to sports events as a spectator as I grew older. Now I've started taking my oldest daughter to see her first football matches. That's the side of it that I find I'm looking forward to doing more now, instead of worrying about the work aspects of it. I feel very privileged to have been involved in sport the way I have. However, now I just want to be a normal fan now, who can say what he wants on social media instead of wondering whether it's being scrutinised. I don't miss the lack of benefits that come with being self-employed. When our first child was born I had no real time off to spend at home. Now, we've just had our second child and, while I haven't been in the role long enough to qualify for paternity leave, I have been able to take some paid holiday in order to have some family time. That's been a huge benefit! How did you go about making the shift? I'd been thinking about it for a while, but there was a particular day when it all clicked into place. I was sat in a cafe with my mum. We were in the middle of a town where there were quite a few estate agents. There was a bit of a magic moment, where mum said she'd always seen me doing something like being an estate agent. And I said I'd been thinking exactly the same thing. So I went into one of the estate agents that day and asked them about working there. That got the ball rolling. They didn't have any posts available in that branch, but it turned out the wider company was recruiting. I applied for a role soon after and got it. I had a friend who'd set up his own business as an estate agent. I knew from him that if you're the sort of person who's happy speaking to people and can do so in a way that shows you know what you're talking about, then that's a great foundation for working in the industry. That's one of the things that led me towards wanting to do it. I liked the idea of having the opportunity to meet people, to go out and speak to them in their homes and to build relationships with them. That bit is very similar to journalism in many ways, in terms of relating with people you've never met before. I knew that that part of it wouldn't faze me. Getting to know the industry in terms of how it actually works has been a bit of a different matter. There are certain areas that you have to be very sure of, but that's where good training comes into it. That's another reason I liked the industry; I knew it was something I could go into without having to have another qualification â€" you can learn on the job. Sometimes it seems like there aren't many jobs around these days where you can do that! I've bought and sold a couple of houses in the past and although it was stressful it was really interesting. I'm not massively into finance or investment, that kind of thing, but I am really interested in the reasons why people move, what they're looking for, and putting two and two together to (hopefully) help them find their ideal place. The journalism skills really help there: being aware of the individual you're speaking to and the fact that sometimes you have to draw out of them what they're really looking for. What didn't go well? What 'wrong turns' did you take? Going into the industry at 32 has been a challenge. It's generally viewed as a young person's industry, and I'm the oldest person doing what I'm doing in the office. Management are a little bit older, but not much. Then again, I'm in a different place to a typical 21 year old coming into the industry. I've got a family to prioritise and I'm motivated by that. With my maturity and relative experience, there's definitely an opportunity to 'fast track'. How did you handle your finances to make your change possible? I was fairly lucky in that respect. In the old role I wasn't in a situation where I was living hand to mouth. So, even during the transition I still had money coming in from work I'd already done. There were a couple of weeks where there was a bit of a lull, but then I got my first pay packet. In that respect the shift was relatively stress free, which I feel very grateful for as I know many don't have that luxury! I guess that's one of the benefits of going from self-employed to employed work. What was the most difficult thing about changing? I think it was probably getting comfortable with the fact that I was essentially going to become a salesman. The approach that I use, and the ethos of the company I work for, is not about being sales focused. I definitely don't want to come across as a pushy salesman! So, reconciling the role I was stepping into, with how I (and the company) wanted to go about it, was definitely something I had to overcome. To do that, I've had to try things out, and a few times I've got the balance wrong, been too sales-y and been pulled up because of it. I'm glad, because some of those things I was doing because I thought I had to in order to do the job, even though they didn't feel that good or natural. It's been a case of trial and error. That process of correction was actually a relief, and since then it's all felt much more positive. What help did you get? I had a couple of friends I already knew in the industry who I spoke to about what it was all like. They certainly helped. I also had another conversation with a woman who'd approached me about another job. She'd been an estate agent and she helped me by telling me about the parts of the role that an outsider wouldn't otherwise know about. At home the support was great too. My family could see that the role was absolutely ideal and exactly what I needed â€" they were behind me 100%. What resources would you recommend to others? The most useful resources for me were people â€" conversations that gave me the inside track, and taught me what to expect from the industry. So, I'd recommend putting out feelers in your personal networks for people who you could talk to about the line of work you're interested in. Chances are that you have a friend, or that one of your friends has a friend, who is connected to the field you want to get into. Make the most of them! What have you learnt in the process? I've learnt that it's important to go with my instincts. I had to trust that it was the right time to leave and do something different. And I had to then make it happen. And I learned that speaking to people was the way to sort out the things I was worried about. It's important to find people who can help you out in that process. What would you advise others to do in the same situation? Go with your heart. You don't have to do the first thing that comes up. If you're unhappy at work, it doesn't matter how much you earn, your home life is still going to bear the brunt of that negativity. Whereas if you're happy at work, then it spills over into home in a good way. That's worth it and the right move to make, even if you have to take a backwards step in income for a while. What lessons could you take from Daniel's story to use in your own career change? Let us know in the comments below.

Mechanical Engineer Job Description Sample - Algrim.co

Mechanical Engineer Job Description Sample - Algrim.co Mechanical Engineer Job Description Template Download our job description template in Word or PDF format. Instant download. No email required. Download Template Using Your Template Follow these instructions to use your new job description template Step one: Fill out all details in your job description template using the provided sample on this page. Step two: Customize your requirements or duties to anything special to your workplace. Be sure to speak with team members and managers to gauge what's required of the position. Step three: When the census of the team has agreed on the description of the work, add in a Equal Employment Opportunity statement to the bottom of your job description. Step four: Check with your legal department, management team, and other team members to ensure the job description looks correct before creating a job advertisement. Choose a job board that's specific to your needs. Related Hiring Resources Mechanical Engineer Resume Example 15+ Mechanical Engineering Skills for the Resume

30 Thoughts on the Power of Personal Branding - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

30 Thoughts on the Power of Personal Branding - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Keeping true to the nature of the way we consume content in bite sized pieces, here is a list of 30 thoughts on the power of personal branding, why it is important, and the affect it has on the world around you. The content you create influences your perceived value The content you create in sum is your economic value Your personal brand will be graded and rated by others You control the content you create, others control their opinion The first page on a search engine is the only page that matters Search is a zero sum game, to rank you need to boot someone off We meet more digitally than we do physically To scale your personal brand you need to take risks, be edgy Content, search and social networking is the new frontier of capitalism Time is not an excuse, find time or your competition will Your blog is an economic asset that has value Your personal brand opens doors and attracts opportunity Your personal brand is location based You need to read and be read Your blog posts are the road to your first book Inbound links are the currency of the web get more The social graph is becoming the infrastructure of the web Your reach is measured in your RSS and email subscribers Your email subscriber list is your most lucrative asset Your personal brand gives you leverage in life Content is the new competition and both are increasing An authoritative blog in the niche you work in can be a goldmine Not everyone will agree with what you write thats a good sign Most people are average, strive for excellence Fine is not excellent Push the envelope, takes risks and fail a lot Learn from the failures and accelerate Your ideas are the hidden roots of your success When you blog you influence the opinion of others Influence equals power What do you think? Do you have any personal branding thoughts you would like to share? Please leave your thoughts in a comment it will help to create your personal brand. Have a great weekend! Author: Chad Levitt is the author of the New Sales Economy blog, which focuses on how Sales 2.0 Social Media can help you connect, create more opportunities and increase your business. Chad is also the featured Sales 2.0 blogger at SalesGravy.com, the number one web portal for sales pros, the professional athletes of the business world. Make sure to connect with him on Twitter @chadalevitt.

Corporate Recruiters Use Social Networks to Conduct Background Checks - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Corporate Recruiters Use Social Networks to Conduct Background Checks - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career A lot has been on my mind this week, including a research report by Careerbuilder.com that just came out stating that One-in-Five Employers Use Social Networking Sites to Research Job Candidates. In the UK, this number is One-in-Four, which is only 3% more. Everyone started blogging and writing about this report. When this press release first came out, I thought to myself nice, this is more evidence for why people need to care about the existence of their personal brand on social networks. Then I took my nightly run around my apartment complex and started to think hard about this. First, I will cite the key take-aways from this report and let you analyze it for yourself. Second, I will give you my thoughts. Third, Ill give you a few tips. The research Major points 22% of hiring managers use social networks to research profiles (+11% from 2006) 34% of hiring managers dismissed a candidate based on what they found (out of the 22%) 24% of hiring managers found information that was used to hire a candidate Top 3 things that turned hiring managers away 41% of candidates posted information about them drinking or using drugs 40% of candidates posted provocative or inappropriate photographs or information 29% of candidates had poor communication skills Top 3 things that help candidates out 48% of candidates background supported their qualifications for the job 43% of candidates had great communication skills 40% of candidates was a good fit for the companys culture My thoughts First off, this research isnt groundbreaking. I think everyone can assume that employers are viewing your profiles on social networks. The social network tends to be the destination after an employer Googles your name. Ive seen reports like this one in the past year or so and they all forget to break down the research by demographic. I want to know what age groups they are recruiting for when they did the survey. Im looking for something like this: 75% of Gen-Yers lose opportunities based on their Facebook profile. To me, when it comes to social media, demographic matters a lot. In the future, say 2 years from now, it wont matter, but while it does, I want to know the split. Secondly, even if the numbers were dimmed down, to 5%, it would still be a big deal. I say this because as long as any recruiter is using social networks to research candidates, then it matters! I believe more recruiters wont admit they are going through this routine because their company doesnt embrace social networking in the workplace. A lot of companies think that their employees use them to play games or get distracted. Lastly, lets quickly compare this survey to ExecuNets digital dirt survey of 2006. We can only assume from the Careerbuilder.com survey that it is a diverse audience (see my first point). ExecuNet is strickly executives, hence the name. The ExecuNet survey said 77% of executives are googled and 35% are eliminated based on what they find. Its 2008 (almost 2009 now) and I bet that 77% is up to 90% and that 35% is up to 50%. Either way, the more a company is investing in human capital, the better the chances are that they will use Google/social networks to conduct background checks. Personal branding tips Be a content producer, not just a consumer, in order to be visible to recruiters. Review your Google results on a regular basis, with a laser eye on the top 10 results for your name. Pass this post onto your friends immediately or you arent a friend. Use privacy options as much as you can on social networks and treat your profile, even if its private, as a public place.

A Nifty Personal Brand Writing Tool Wordnik - Executive Career Brandâ„¢

A Nifty Personal Brand Writing Tool Wordnik Most of my work day is spent writing  â€" creating personal marketing communications for my executive clients, blog posts for my 2 blogs, guest-blogs and articles for various other blogs and websites, and my own business and career marketing materials. I love words and Im always interested in resources to improve my writing. Recently I came across Wordnik. According to their site, Wordnik is billions of words, 300 million example sentences, 4.7 million unique words, and over 180,000 comments, 87,000 tags, 74,000 pronunciations, 22,259 favorites and 22,819 lists created by 29,177 Wordniks. My mouth was watering after reading that. In a NY Times Sunday Magazine On Language article in December, Erin McKean, chief executive and founder of Wordnik, explained what their online dictionary is trying to accomplish: Were using text-mining techniques and the unlimited space of the Internet to show as many real examples of word use as we can, as fast as we can. This approach is especially useful for grasping new words and uses: if you look up tweet  on a site like mine, for example, you understand that the word is used to refer to messages sent via Twitter; theres no waiting for an editor to write you a definition; plus there are examples of tweets right on the page. A word is so much more than its meaning: its also who uses it, when it was used, what words appear alongside it and what kinds of texts it appears in. Wordnik includes definitions, examples, pronounciations, etymologies, and statistics. It also has a fun and helpful blog, and a word of the day. On February 8, the word was eldritch. Know what it means? Get the answer.   Related post: 65 Power Personal Branding Verbs to Nail Your Executive Value Proposition 00 0

Becoming A Land Surveyor This Year - CareerAlley

Becoming A Land Surveyor This Year - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. If you are searching for a new career path this year and you are looking to try something other than sitting in an office 9-5 every day, becoming a land surveyor could be an interesting job choice. A land surveyor will inspect an area of land and ensure that it is structurally sound and safe before and construction work is carried out. They are an integral part of the building process and their job can be interesting and fun. If you are searching for a new career path this year and you are looking to try something other than sitting in an office 9-5 every day, becoming a land surveyor could be an interesting job choice. Tweet This If you are looking to get into this kind of trade in 2019, we are here to tell you some of the steps you will need to take to get to this career. Image by Karolina Grabowska from Pixabay Select a field of study Once you have taken a degree at university in this area of study, you will want to narrow down your search and start to specific into one area or another with land surveying. There are a lot of different elements to this job so you can get to work looking into the following: Geomatics this is a science which largely involves the collection of geographical data and then the interpretation and reporting of that data. Geodesy this science is one which is a little more complex as it looks at the measurements of the magnetic fields surrounding the earth, gravitational fields, tectonic plates and polar ice shifts too. Photogrammetry this is where you will use photographs to take stock of the land around you and make interpretations and take data using photographs of a landscape. Land management this is the general study of looking at a piece of land and working out how to take advantage of the natural structures and featured within it. Take an internship Every skill can be learned in a study hall however you will never truly get a feel for the subject as a whole until you are in the workplace learning from someone who has the experience of this job already. The best way for you to learn and gain confidence is to find an internship with a current surveyor and youll be able to go around with them and learn the ropes of surveying in a practical way. Land surveyors help determine boundaries for land plots. As part of your career as a land surveyor you will create accurate maps of the land surface to help decide where roads and buildings should go, making topography a skill that is crucial to your job. Reading the Map: 6 Careers That Let You Show Off Your Topography Skills Pass the licensing exam This is an exam you will have to do to be legally allowed to do any surveying on the land once you are out into the world. The exam should be simple enough for you to do just make sure that you take your time to study hard for it and make sure that you really know what you are doing when you start. Image by Chuk Yong from Pixabay Pass the FS exam Now for the hard part: the FS exam will take around 6 hours to complete and it will involve using a computer to analyse and interpret data and you will be tested on a lot of the ins and its of surveying land. It is a good idea to get fundamentals of surveying practice exam to try and make sure you ask a professional or a study group to help you prepare for the test. What's next? Ready to take action? Choose the right tools to help you build your career. Looking for related topics? Find out how to find the opportunities that help you grow your best career. Subscribe and make meaningful progress on your career. It’s about time you focused on your career. Get Educated Contact Us Advertise Copyright 2020 CareerAlley. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy + Disclosure home popular resources subscribe search

Action Word Resume Format

Action Word Resume FormatAn action word resume format is one that tries to highlight the candidate's talents, skills and experience. But in addition to this, the Action Word resume format will also highlight the candidate's qualifications for the position they are applying for.Action word resumes will be found that display many different facets of the applicant, including their hobbies, interests, ambitions, dreams and aspirations. These details are crucial to the application process.The first thing that an Action Word resume format will do is help the employer to assess the candidate for the job. While some employers may use an objective to help them in this process, others will use a list or something similar to help them do their assessment. By showing these things, the Action Word resumes format shows off the individual and makes it easier for the employer to assess the individual.The next thing that an Action Word resume format will show off is the job duties of the applicant. M any employers look for those who show evidence of self-discipline and goal setting skills. By listing these things, they will know that the applicant has the potential to reach their career goals. This is the only way that the applicant can prove themselves and prove that they deserve the job.A very common idea in an Action Word resume format is to list the career history of the applicant. Since so many people don't write everything down or even list all of their job responsibilities, they will need the Action Word resumes format to help them do so. By listing these things, the applicant will have a history of how they fit into the organization, which could be a great way to show them why they should be hired.The Action Word resume format will also feature the overall organizational skills of the individual. Since so many jobs are multi-tiered, being able to keep up with the details of the organization will be necessary. An Action Word resume format will show the employer that the c andidate is detail oriented and shows that they are detail orientated, so employers will trust that the applicant will keep up with details.Lastly, an Action Word resume format will highlight the candidates personal qualities that could help them move on to the next level. By putting up a picture of themselves, these qualities are shown to the employer.To use this format, you simply place a picture of yourself on your job board and it will display to all of your network that you are looking for a job. You can either have pictures of you from years ago, you can put a picture of you at the workplace, you can use a picture from when you were still in school and you can use a picture of yourself right now.