Get to Where You Want to Be Create a Career Development Plan - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / Get to Where You Want to Be Create a Career Development Plan - Introvert Whisperer Get to Where You Want to Be: Create a Career Development Plan If you’re pondering your career direction and how to get where you want to be, there are some simple steps you can take that will help you come up with a plan. Let’s not be confused by the word “simple.” Sometimes the simplest of concepts or steps can be tough to do, because they require some thinking and some effort. Yet your thinking time and effort are an investment in your future and happiness, which make it all very worthwhile. Step 1: Figure Out Your Destination As with all efforts, you must be clear about your direction. You don’t take a road trip without knowing where you want to end up. You also don’t need to overly complicate this task. The following questions are helpful in thinking out your destination: Where do you want your career to be in 2 years? I like this question because this window is close enough to your current reality that it’s easy to visualize. Where do you want your career to be in 5 years? If you see that your 2-year goal is merely a step in an overall direction, then this question helps you define a longer-term goal. Sometimes it’s difficult to see that far out in time, as life and opportunities present themselves and can cause you to reset your plans. That’s okay, but it’s good to be looking “2 steps ahead.” What makes these targets resonant for you? Don’t make a goal just for the sake of making one. You need a goal that really rings your chimes and helps motivate you into action. If you’re making a goal based on what someone else wants, it won’t be that compelling for you. Being clear on your direction means being clear that this direction is inspiring and motivational and knowing what’s driving you to it. Step 2: Do a Gap Analysis A gap analysis is where you figure out the differences in the qualifications between where you are right now and your 2-year goal or next step. Using a job posting or job description for the position you’re aiming at is a good way to get specific information about the skills and experience that are expected. It’s good to look at more than one job description (perhaps one with your company and one with a competitor) in order to ensure you aren’t missing any key items during your analysis. Go through the job description line item by line item and rate your current state of skills, education or experience against what’s listed. Your rating system can be as simple as 1-10, with 10 being a perfect match and 1 being completely missing. As you rate, make notes about your thinking for future reference. Once you’ve completed this exercise, identify all of the items where you need anywhere from a fair amount to a substantial amount of development. Look for commonalities and clump those together as a category. You’ll discover that there will be themes to your gaps. Also, don’t get too compulsive about where you think you’re not a perfect match, but you have fairly developed skills. If these skills are mostly present, they will make you a competitive candidate and shouldn’t require too much development attention. You now have a list of development items. Step 3: Create Your Development Plan You are now fully armed with a clear 2-year goal and all the details of where and what you need to develop to get you where you want to go. Your plan will be its best if you can consult with your boss and/or mentor to help you with ideas for how to get the skills you need to add. Some key things to keep in mind: There may need to be some logical order to a few of the items on your list.  Sometimes you need to do X before you can do Y. Make these among the highest-priority items so you can accomplish these things and move on to others. There are often multiple ways of accumulating needed skills. You may also want to have multiple ways of beefing up your skill set to add depth to it. An example is if you want to move to a project management position; you may want to get certification and also to ask for project responsibilities. Initially, these may be small, which is fine they will give you an opportunity to grow and learn. You may need to research various ways to get the skills you need. Once done, this will give you ideas of how you can approach these items. You need dates. You need to keep yourself accountable to your plan, and the best way to do that is to give yourself a “start by” date. You can’t predict how long it will take or how much work you will have to do in order to develop the skill at the level you need, but you do have control over the action you take to get started. Keep track. You need to pay attention to your plan a minimum of twice per year. This will allow you to stay focused on your progress and remind you of next steps. Career development is the sort of thing you can easily forget about until you wake up one day to realize you’ve gone nowhere and aren’t having fun. You are responsible for where you go in your career. (Like this thought? Tweet it!) With a little bit of planning, you can accomplish great things. Go to top Do you know what your next career step is?   Many people don’t. I want to help you accelerate your career by connecting you with your Free Instant Access to my eBook on how to construct your Career SMART Goals â€" that will help you put together your actions and keep you accountable.   Get your copy now and start your action plan today: CLICK HERE Brought to you by Dorothy Tannahill-Moran â€" dedicated to unleash your professional potential. Where do you want to go in your career, and what steps can you take to get there? Share your thoughts in the comments! Image: Flickr

5 Killer Tips for Mastering Guitar Chords

5 Killer Tips for Mastering Guitar Chords Suzy S. Last week, TakeLessons teacher Kevin B. showed us how to play 5 easy guitar chords that allow you to play tons of easy songs.   Have you been practicing? Just as pianists should learn the theory behind scales, beginner guitar players should review individual chords to ensure a well-rounded foundation.   After all, chords are the basis of guitar playing, so the more you know, the easier time youll have learning songs.   Instead of just memorizing each chord, go the extra mile to really understand which notes are involved and why. Check out a few of these great tips from the Not Playing Guitar blog and youll be dominating those guitar chords in no time: 1. Become an expert. Your love of chords and what they can do for you should push you to learn as much as you can about them. For example, learn all about chord inversions and extensions, or how to alter chords by moving just one note. 2. Learn how chords are made. Your first step to becoming a chord expert should be to learn how chords are made. You can learn the notes of each chord and their relative scale positions. Your knowledge will help you learn how to find or create fingerings for any chord, play chord extensions and inversions and enrich your playing. 3. Practice in all keys. Whenever you learn a new chord progression or a song, practice it in as many keys as possible. 4. Integrate each chord you learn with those you know already. Make sure you understand how each new chord you learn relates to the others you already know. What is its place in progressions and songs? What other chords does it work well with?   Remember to practice the new chord with the chords you know already, and learn how to change to and from all of them with the new chord. 5. Integrate new chords into your repertoire. When you learn a new way to play a chord, try out the new form in your existing songs and progressions. This will grow your playing options and also allow you to hear how different chord forms sound. Ready to take your guitar playing to the next level?   Find a private teacher near you and sign up for music lessons here! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher You might also like Watch Now: How to Tune a Guitar 5 Common Mistakes of Beginner Guitarists Purchase the Perfect Beginner Guitar With These Easy Steps Photo by rockmixer

How to Get Experience When You Have No Experience (Infographic) - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / How to Get Experience When You Have No Experience (Infographic) - Introvert Whisperer How to Get Experience When You Have No Experience (Infographic) As an introvert, one of the most daunting challenges you can face in your career is your first job hunt. Most people will agree that your first job search is often the toughest and this can be even harder when you lack professional experience. This infographic from Trainwest offers some ideas on what you can do to get around the experience issue at the start of your career. 1. Internships Providing a crucial stepping-stone into the working world, an internship is a paid or unpaid position within an organization of which the primary aim is to build work experience. Internships are a great way to develop valuable skills, build a professional network, and to learn how to act within a workplace. An internship may result in a permanent salaried role within the company and it may also give you a better chance of securing employment that is directly related to your studies.   2. Apprenticeships If you wish to have a trade-based occupation, then you may want to consider completing an apprenticeship programme during which you will be employed while also studying. Upon completion, you will receive a recognized qualification and will have built up a substantial amount of work experience. 3. Volunteer Alternatively, you could volunteer for a cause that you care about. Voluntary work is ideal for those who wish to build a career in certain areas e.g. medicine, caring, animal work, politics etc. Not only will volunteering allow you to build practical skills and knowledge, but it will also let you demonstrate your passion and drive to potential employers.   4. Start Your Own Project If you are more of a self-starter, than you may want to look into undertaking a project of your own. With the internet, this has never been easier! You could start an online business, a blog, or even look into remote freelancing.

4 Smart Reasons to Take AP Classes

4 Smart Reasons to Take AP Classes Improving Academic Performance Taking AP classes is almost never a bad idea. While, some AP classes require you to have a particular aptitude in a subject (for example, you can’t just decide to take AP BC Calculus without taking all the pre-requisites), other AP classes, like AP US History, don’t really have pre-requisites at most high schools â€" you simply can elect to take AP US History. The list of AP classes offered by the College Board, by my count, stands at 30. Furthermore, of those 30, I count 13 that probably don’t have too many pre-requisites. Sure, AP classes are harder (sometimes much harder), and require more work, and therefore there are some reasons to decide against taking them. But, we believe that there are three major reasons to take AP classes which overpower any downsides. Earn College Credit AP classes earn you college credit. Armed with that college credit, you may not have to take a given course in college. At my alma mater, Indiana University, it costs an out of state student about $3,000 per course. An AP test costs $89.00. I’m not making this up. Boost Your GPA The second reason to take an AP class is that, generally, it actually provides you with the opportunity to boost your GPA. If you are on a 4-point scale in high school, meaning straight A's = 4.0, often times an AP class will count as 5, so you have the opportunity to throw an average of 5 into the mix, boosting your GPA. Sure, the class may be harder, but at the end of the day, the potential is certainly there to give your GPA a boost. Improve Your College Applications The third reason to take an AP class is that you can improve your college applications by showing colleges that you have taken some of the most difficult classes available. The difficulty of these classes suggests that you are both intelligent and have key critical thinking skills. It also shows a willingness to push yourself. Learn Something Completely New The fourth and final reason to take AP classes is that they provide the opportunity to try something new. For example, high schools don't have an economics track, where you are taking economics freshman, sophomore and junior year. There aren’t too many Psychology courses either. These are two subject to which you probably haven’t been exposed, but you may learn that you really enjoy them (vs. math, physics, biology, etc. which you’ve been taking for years). What are your thoughts on AP classes? hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(215486, '6baac2ae-05a3-4610-9d1f-265c8cbd809f', {});

How to Use Divergent Thinking to Succeed at School

How to Use Divergent Thinking to Succeed at School As a University writing tutor, the most common thing I hear from my students is, “I’m just not good at this.” At some point in the writing process they ask me to accept their apparently fatal (academic) flaws and move on. They try to tell me, as they were once told, that they simply aren’t smart enough to complete their essay. My students’ doubts reflect a history of education that buys into the myth of innate academic ability as the sole predictor of success at school. It’s an idea that has been criticized over and over againâ€"perhaps most famously by education adviser Sir Ken Robinson in the most viewed TED Talk of all timeâ€"but that still rings true for many students. Part of the problem is that students are often told that there is only one right answer, only one right way to get to that answer, and if you’re doing it wrong then it’s game over. In tandem with exam anxiety, this pressure paralyzes students to the point where they’re afraid to suggest any answer for fear of looking stupid. One solution is to do away with the pressure of the perfect, singular answer with divergent thinking. In the words of Ken Robinson, “Divergent thinking is an essential capacity for creativity.” When using divergent thinking methods, the number of interpretations of and solutions for any given problem are endless. Instead of stressing about writing the perfect thesis  or solving the equation in one try, divergent thinking encourages students to explore and record as many options as possible without judgement. Only once every possibility has been delved into is it time to start asking questions and using reason to narrow your focus to the best choices. While this sounds like a simple concept, divergent thinking goes beyond coddling students who don’t like being wrong. Statistically, students who are encouraged to use divergent thinking methods demonstrate greater confidence, improved mood, stronger academic ability, and a penchant for entrepreneurship. According to intelligence scholar  James Flynn, the effect of divergent thinking also reads  on a standardized scale. Since 1930, average IQ scores across the globe have consistently increased. One explanation links this improvement to upgrades in human “mental artillery:” the ability to classify, to use logic on abstractions, and to take the hypothetical seriously. In other words, the ability to produce and analyze hypotheticals, to use divergent thinking, has helped  people become better thinkers. So, how do we teach divergent thinking? Encourage Questions. Instead of evaluating ideas as good or bad, distill the strongest solutions by asking questions about their effectiveness, their relevance to the problem, and their shortcomings. Reframe Failure. Treat failure as the middle of a healthy process, rather than the catastrophic end. As Robinson said, “If you’re not prepared to be wrong, you’ll never come up with anything original.” Collaborate. Allow students to build off each other, combine their ideas, and foster a creative community. Think Strange. This exercise is popular amongst interviewers. Take an everyday object like a stapler or a paperclip, and ask students to think of as many unconventional uses for that object as possible. Go for quantity: nothing is too strange! Start at the End. Instead of asking students to brainstorm solutions, ask them to formulate a problem. This can be framed however you’d likeâ€"by location, demographic, subject, etc.â€"but work towards problems that are clear, concise and purposeful. Good luck! To learn more about the benefits of divergent thinking, start here: Edutopia’s “Fuel Creativity in the Classroom With Divergent Thinking” InformED’s “30 Ways to Inspire Divergent Thinking” Ken Robinson’s TED Talk, “Changing Education Paradigms” The Creative Education Foundation’s “Divergent Thinking”

GCSE exam results 2017

GCSE exam results 2017 We would like to wish all our tutees the best of luck today as they receive their GCSE exam results. Our tutors no doubt will also be anxious to hear from parents and students with their good news - hopefully! The team at First Tutors love watching the amazing feedback pouring in from students and parents, whilst many tutors update their tutor profiles with their pupil's results. In a few days time we will be posting some of the best summer feedback comments from happy students this year. Due to the changes in this year's GCSE grading system, this year's results can't be compared with those of previous years according to headteachers. There are now three top grades - 7, 8 and 9 - compared to two under the old system - A* and A - with A* results now split into 8s and 9s. This needs to be taken into consideration when interpreting this year's GCSE national data which reveal: The proportion of GCSE entries receiving grade A/7 or above has fallen 0.5% to 20% compared with last year. Overall in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, passes (grades C/4 and above) dropped 0.6 percentage points to 66.3%. In England, the English literature pass-rate fell 2.5 percentage points to 72%, but in maths it rose from 61.5% to 68.9%. Both are the new, tougher exams. Exam boards revealed that 2,000 extremely able candidates got a 9 in all three new exams. There were 50,000 grade 9s overall - two-thirds of which were girls. For those of you who haven't received the grades they were hoping for, we advise being at the school on results day so that you can talk to your teachers for the best advice. If you need to resit GCSE maths or English these exams are available in November but if you need to resit several subjects you may have to wait until June 2018. If you don't get into sixth form or college perhaps studying A-levels isn't for you but there are other types of qualifications available such as BTECs or City Guilds. If you are thinking of finding a private tutor we are here to help. Now, it's easier than ever to register and create a request to contact as many tutors you wish within in few minutes.

How can I help my child transition to secondary school

How can I help my child transition to secondary school The summer holidays always go by faster than any of us would like, so we thought there was no time like the present to consider how you can help your child be both physically and mentally prepared for secondary school. No doubt they have already been thinking about going up to big school! Induction days Hopefully in the summer term Year 6 have been on an induction day (or two) to the secondary school they will be attending. This will have given them a 'day in the life' allowing them to experience the new timetable, longer days and meet lots of new friends and teachers. Schools put a lot of effort into these as they want pupils to get excited about their first day and know what to expect when they arrive. Sit down for a chat Secondary school can be a nerve-wracking time for both you and your child. Sitting down for a chat with them is a good way to explain what they might expect and find out if they have any questions. It's a time of big change, with larger class sizes, more homework and greater importance put on education. Assure them that everyone else going into year 7 is in the same boat. Try to be upbeat and positive, as you don't want any anxiety to pass on to your child. Consider what you need to buy There's nothing worse than being in a rush before the new school term so don't leave it until the last minute to purchase new school uniform and sports kit. It might need adjusting and labelling everything takes time to ensure clothes don't got lost. Think about making a day out of it, allowing your child to choose their school bag and get any stationery they will need (e.g. pencil case, pens, pencils, eraser, ruler and geometry set). Plan the journey A new school means a new route to get there. If your child is going to be travelling on their own do a mock journey with them. This allows you to check they are aware of road safety and can read timetables if required. Having done it once they will feel more confident about it on the day although do expect them to want you to accompany them for the first few days. The day before Make sure everyone gets to bed early the night before, alarms are set and uniform laid out. Pack their school bag with their pencil case and anything else they might need e.g. lunch money or healthy packed lunch and sports kit. If you have time putting the breakfast out for the morning is a good idea to ensure getting everyone to school in the morning will be as stress free as possible. Then all that's left is for you to get up and go in the morning.