10.5.2003

Wisdom from elsewhere:

(From Bob Lewis' Advice Line from InfoWorld)
Readers Doug Schulek-Miller and Marilyn Kennedy provide the following test:

"Are the following "true" or "false" with respect to your company?

1. In the past six months, management has made a series of decisions so inexplicable that most of us have no idea what the organization is trying to do.
2. My boss often makes a decision and after everyone is working on implementation, reverses it.
3. In the past year, several top performers have quit without first getting new jobs.
4. As I look at my co-workers, I see many of them on the verge of burnout and some are constantly on the edge of hysteria.
5. I have serious doubts that the organization will survive.  I can see it being bought or merged.
6. The grapevine is always active.  There are no quiet periods but each new outrage excites the troops less.
7. If I were asked to explain why we do something in a particular way, I'd say that I don't know.
8. Most of the long-time employees in my area would be unemployable elsewhere.
9. My boss would not be able to get the same kind of job elsewhere.
10. We are sitting on a time bomb.  The organization's most important product/service is not competitive.  Management now puts more emphasis on individual style.
11. Productivity is gradually declining everywhere.  There used to be a few highly productive areas but they've given up.
12. Management has made gurus of its least productive but longest-term employees.
13. Punishment for asking "why" and "how" questions is swift and certain.

If you were to answer "True" to 8 or more of these questions, one might ask why you are still working where you are, or why your company hasn't called in outside help."

"So you want to find resumes in Google. You're probably aware of the intitle: tag - you use it to specify words in titles that you'd like to see in your results. intitle:resume Unix picks up all documents that contain the word 'Unix' in the file and 'resume' in the title. Let's go beyond that. You can target your search by subtracting off the word 'submit' from your query (as in, you don't want pages that ask for Unix resumes to be submitted!). intitle:resume Unix -submit http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=intitle%3Aresume+unix+-submit What do resumes sometimes contain?  The word 'objective'. intitle:resume unix objective -submit http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=intitle%3Aresume+unix+objective+-submit Did you know that some people prefer to put up their resumes in pdf format?  You can go to the Advanced search like so: http://www.google.com/advanced_search?q=intitle:resume+unix+objective+-submit&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8 and select Only files in pdf format like so: http://www.google.com/search?as_q=intitle%3Aresume+unix+objective&num=10&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=&a_oq=&as_eq=submit&lr=
&as_ft=i&as_filetype=pdf&as_qdr=all&as_occt=any&as_dt=i&as_sitesearch=&safe=images Try it!  Be sure to copy/paste the above URL if it's broken up into two lines. When searching for resumes online, always approach the process methodically.  What words would likely be included?  What would likely be left out?  By taking your time to build your Internet recruiting approach, you might save days if not weeks on uncovering exactly the candidate you need.  Take advantage of that." - from the Barbara Ling Newsletter

<Note from JobFairy.com: You have to know how they are trying to find you before you can be located. Keywords rule.>

PC Technicians and Auto Mechanics

"Who hasn't heard horror stories about unscrupulous auto repair shops that, when you take your car in, create more problems so you'll have to come back and have more repairs done? Unfortunately, we're hearing more and more tales of PC shops that are engaging in similar tactics. Several friends of ours who live in other cities (too far away for them to bring their computers to us) have reported such experiences. In the most recent case, the friend managed to contract the Blaster worm. He took his computer to a local shop and, rather than running the removal tool, the tech told him that his system would have to be reformatted and reinstalled. Not knowing any better, my friend okayed the procedure (akin to amputating a finger to cure a hangnail).

But it didn't stop there. Later, the technician phoned my friend and told him that he had a pirated copy of XP, and he would need to buy a copy from them for the reinstallation. Say what? As the person who originally installed XP on his computer, I know that it wasn't a pirated copy, but my poor friend had to shell out the money anyway, since his system was being held hostage with no operating system installed until he did.

Consequently, he ended up paying well over $300 to get rid of his worm on an old, outdated Pentium 2 computer, when he could have bought a new one that was twice as powerful for about a hundred bucks more. He lost all his previous settings and had to spend hours reconfiguring his DSL modem and other hardware. The tech did back up his data files - along with a backed up copy of the infected file that had started the whole mess.

This seems to be happening far too often lately. I keep hearing from those who take their computers to repair shops that the only solution offered for their problems is to reformat the disk and reinstall the operating system. Well, sure; that will usually fix the problem. But techs choose that route because it's quick and easy and they can charge big bucks for it, and they don't want to actually track down the problem and fix it."  - From WinXP News

Thank you notes.  More powerful than you think!

Thank you notes shouldn't just be sent to the people who interview you.  Rather, you should say thank you, in writing, to everyone who helps with your job search - from the people who give you advice to the people who provide you with job leads.  It's amazing how much momentum thank you notes can create.  People really appreciate them, and often upon receiving one, go the extra mile and take some additional action to help you in your job search (such as contact someone on your behalf and make a connection). Try to send your thank-you note within 24-48 hours of any conversation.  The note may be handwritten on a small, professional, thank-you note card (if you have extremely neat handwriting and only a brief message to convey), word-processed, or emailed.  We recommend a card sent by regular mail.  They take more work, and as a result are usually more appreciated and effective.  Don't forget to include your e-mail address and phone number so the recipient can pass it along!

"Chinese can wed without bosses' OK

By Christopher Bodeen
Associated Press

BEIJING - Marriage in China used to be a matter for a man, a woman - and the couple's employers. No longer.

Yesterday, China eliminated a much-resented requirement for couples to obtain their bosses' approval before tying the knot, prompting thousands of couples to wed in what, for some, was also a celebration of the retreat of outside interference in their private lives.

Couples lined up as early as 5 a.m. outside marriage registration offices. Restaurants and hotel banquet halls were booked solid in major cities, and Beijing's streets were clogged with flower-bedecked motorcades.

"Employers in work units used to have a lot of power over people, but now there's no need," said Wen Ying, who was having a late-night snack with her new husband and friends at a small restaurant near the Forbidden City, Beijing's ancient imperial palace.

"We're really glad that this rule was canceled because it was a real hassle," said Wen's husband, Liu Ping. "It makes getting married feel even better."

Liu said the couple had planned to throw a formal banquet for their families but were forced to postpone because restaurants were all reserved.

Couples said "I do" yesterday at mass ceremonies in city squares, at tree-planting ceremonies, and even at a Beijing drive-in theater, which transported brides to the ceremony on horseback. One couple exchanged vows submerged in an aquarium while tropical fish swam past.

Many couples held off registering their weddings until the change took effect, and long lines formed at government offices around the country, China Central Television reported. The official Xinhua News Agency said tens of thousands of couples had registered their marriages.

The new rules are among social reforms that are freeing private lives from unpopular government controls. Also beginning yesterday, couples are not required to get health checks to marry, and those wishing to divorce can do so without attending lengthy government mediation sessions.

Last month, the government also said Chinese citzens could apply for passports without approval from their employers."

<Note from JobFairy.com: Now that is too much!!! It's bad enough that they have such influence on your wallet, but over every other aspect of your life as well? What sadistic wretch thought this was a good idea in the first place? And I thought having served in the military had been an exercise into the depths of intrusive behavior...!>