From Visual Effects to Kitesurfing

From Visual Effects to Kitesurfing Success Story > From: Job To: Solopreneur From Visual Effects to Kitesurfing “I figured there was more to life than working 70-hour weeks, and climbing the ladder towards a higher salary.” * From Visual Effects to Kitesurfing Think a career-change takes a long time? Within just three months of leaving his job in London, Oliver Dadswell qualified as a kitesurfing instructor in Australia. Now he gets paid to hang out in incredible locations all over the world. Read on to find out how he did it. What work were you doing previously? I was working in London as a Junior VFX artist,working on Post-production of TV Commercials, Music Videos, things like that. What are you doing now? Now I work around the world as a Kitesurf Instructor! I'm currently teaching in Cabarete, Dominican Republic. Why did you change? In short, because I figured there was more to life than working 70-hour weeks, climbing the ladder toward higher salaries, and living in an unfriendly city, where the majority of people don't even know their neighbours. When was the moment you decided to make the change? I embarked on a year-out to travel around Australia, the South Pacificand South East Asia. Almost as soon as I arrived in Melbourne, Australia, I realised I never wanted to go back and live in London, or even England, again. So I decided to qualify as a Kitesurf Instructor and continue to work while I travelled the world. Are you happy with the change? Very happy! :) What do you miss and what don't you miss? I do occasionally miss the VFX work:spending time building and creating something wonderful and complex, and then sitting at home watching TV, and seeing your hard work broadcast on national TV… or in the cinema. I definitely do not miss living in London,especially the commute to and from work every day on public transport. I actually returned to London a couple of years ago for a visit, and it really helped to reinforce my feeling that I never want to go back to that lifestyle. After my flight I found myself on a packed commuter train into London; the sight of all those grey and unhappy-looking people on that train was a powerful image that I won't forget. How did you go about making the shift? I was already a very keen Kitesurfer for several years, so I just found a Kitesurf School in Melbourne where I could train to be an Instructor,qualified by the IKO. I passed the courseand was working as a qualified instructor about 2 weeks later. How did you handle your finances to make your change possible? I had saved some money while I was working in London, and this gave me a little safety net so that I could travel for at least a year, but in reality I was working in my new career within the first three months of travelling. What was the most difficult thing about changing? The most difficult thing was leaving behind my friends and family in the UK. What help did you get? I didn't really need any help.It was pretty easy as soon as I took the first step. What have you learnt in the process? I have learnt that I am all-powerful and can effect any change in my life that I want to. I feel like I could go to pretty much any place in the world that I choose and set up a new life there -- find work, and make new relationships. I am a citizen of the world rather than any one country. Fear of change is irrational and crippling. As soon as you take the first real steps toward your new life, you realise that anything is possible. What do you wish you'd done differently? Nothing. I have no regrets, as everything in my life that I have been through helps to shape who I am to this day. What would you advise others to do in the same situation? I would advise others to just take that first step. That's by far the most difficult thing to do. After that everything else will fall into place. What lessons could you take from Oliver's story to use in your own career change? Let us know in the comments below.

5 Cover Letter Mistakes to Avoid

5 Cover Letter Mistakes to Avoid If you are familiar with filling out job applications, you are probably wondering if writing a professional cover letter is even necessary. Online job applications have been killing off cover letters for years. But companies still ask for them, so you should know these cover letter mistakes to avoid.1. Spelling Mistakes and Poor GrammarThis always tops the list of what not to put in a cover letter. There are apps like Grammar.lythat help to point out spelling and grammar errors or at least warn you when something needs checking.Get a professional colleague or English teacher to scrutinize your grammar. The extra pair of eyes to check your work will help you avoid any common cover letter mistakes.Poor grammar and spelling are some of the biggest cover letter mistakes to avoid. Why? Your grammar and spelling are indicative of your level of written, verbal, and communication skills.2. Covering Topics That Make Others UncomfortableAt your last job, you may have had some uncomfortable sce narios that required an amazing effort on your part. Still, writing about uncomfortable situations is a common cover letter mistake you want to avoid.For example, a Vice President at an insurance company sets up a claims processing unit due to a hurricane that costs billions of dollars in property loss. She dealt with an overwhelming amount of work under very sensitive circumstances. It was a PR disaster because her office denied hundreds of claims and it made the news. As a professional, she handled it with grace and professionalism.The example above is a true story. If it made you uncomfortable, perhaps you feel why writing about it is a cover letter mistake to avoid. Keep the uncomfortable stories of trials and tribulations out of the professional cover letter. Stick to brief facts and numbers.3. Making It All About You and No One ElseOne of the best pieces of career advice I received for writing a professional cover letter was this: Instead of writing about, ‘Here I am!’ wri te about ‘There you are!’ A common cover letter mistake is to write “all about you and what you do”. That is definitely what NOT to put in a cover letter. The company reading your cover letter needs to know what you can do for them. They have your resume and know your experience already.4. Writing a Professional Cover Letter and AutobiographyA big cover letter mistake to avoid is writing a cover letter that turns into an autobiography. If you have more than a decade’s worth of work experience, at some point, the earlier experience becomes anecdotal. A job description of every single job you had since high school is too much.Everyone at some point in their career had an entry-level admin job, worked in a retail store, or flipped a burger. This all qualifies as “what not to put on your cover letter”. It is irrelevant career experience, especially if you are applying for six-figure jobs at a VP or director level.5. Starting with “My Name Is…”The simplest and most co mmon cover letter mistake is using the first sentence to announce your name. “My name is [insert name] and I am applying for the position of...” Think about it: Why announce your name when it appears on your resume, cover letter heading, most likely the file name attached in an email, and the email itself? It is really just a waste of cover letter realty, and if you have a limited amount of time before someone stops reading your cover letter, it is best to use that time and space wisely.

5 Tricks to Stay Motivated When Working at Home - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

5 Tricks to Stay Motivated When Working at Home - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Staying motivated at work can be hard but for remote employees it can be downright impossible. Unlike an office environment, at home there are a ton of temptations and distractions that can easily sap your productivity and your career trajectory. Working from home is essentially an independent way of working. Even if you have managers and coworkers to be accountable to, youre still responsible for motivating yourself, says Sara Sutton Fell, CEO of  FlexJobs. And because our houses have all sorts of distractions (Ill just throw in one load of laundry, or do these dishes quickly), it can be hard to stay motivated. But you dont have to let it hurt your career. There are ways to keep your motivation and productivity high. Heres how. Have a dedicated office space Some of the most productive remote workers are the ones that have a dedicated office space in their home that they go to each morning. The ones that tend to easily lose motivation are the workers that open their laptop, plop down on the couch and think they can work with life going on around them.    â€œYou have to have an organized space in your home so that you can work in that space with limited distractions,” says Paul McDonald, senior executive director of Robert Half International. Hand in hand with having a dedicated office is setting boundaries for when family members can enter the office. If you want to keep your office void of distractions close your door during work hours, get rid of any toys or entertainment that will lure the kids or roommates and establish rules of engagement during work hours, Be organized and layout your work week Organization is imperative in any job, but for remote workers it is a necessity, especially because you wont have a boss breathing down your neck making sure your work is getting done. According to Sara Caputo, founder and principal of RADIANT,   a professional organizing and productivity consulting company, make sure you layout the work you plan to tackle during the week and update that list daily. “At the end of the week, I like the Friday 45, which is taking 45 minutes and planning ahead for next week so you can more easily leave work alone through the weekend and hit the ground running on Monday, says Caputo. Create a regular routine Humans are creatures of habit, which is why establishing a routine and sticking to it when you work at home is a great way to keep your motivation and productivity on overdrive. “We’ve found that people who establish a routine and establish check lists are very productive and motivated,” says McDonald. That means getting up at the same time during the work week as if you were going to an office, having predetermined break times and blocking off times to get up from your desk every now and then. For some people staying in their PJs all day works for them while others will take a shower and get dressed before heading to their home office. Either is fine as long as it’s part of the established routine. Find your secret sauce Perhaps its a particular song, a comfy office setting or time of day, either way Sutton Fell says you want to figure out what gets you in a work groove and run with it. For some people it could also mean changing the scenery every once awhile. It’s no accident that coffee shops like Starbucks are filled with people typing away on their computers during office hours. There are so many ways to get and stay motivated, but you are responsible for motivating yourself as a telecommuter, say Sutton Fell. Get in the right mindset for work Life happens, but chances are you are going to hear all about it as it’s happening when you work from home. A great way to prevent life’s distractions is to have weekly meetings with your partner to prevent the personal portions of life from impacting productivity during work hours, says Caputo. Cover all the home issues during those meetings so you won’t be interrupted with questions during work hours, she says. Working at home is hard so it’s a good idea to cut yourself some slack as you figure it out. Nothing can be more demoralizing and thus productivity sapping then beating yourself up because you didn’t cross off everything on your checklist or you ended up working all weekend because you couldn’t get motivated. “Remember it takes more discipline to work at home than it does working in an office,” says McDonald. “It’s up to you to know what your productivity triggers are and be patient with yourself as adjust to what’s happening.”

Five Ways to Fight the Workplace Divide And Gender Discrimination

Five Ways to Fight the Workplace Divide And Gender Discrimination Whether you’re reading about the countless stories of sexual harassment in Hollywood, researching the wage gap or simply talking to your favourite female, it’s obvious women still suffer in the workplace. According to  The Telegraph  1 in 5 women have been sexually harassed in the workplace.  The Guardian  say there’s still a 9.1% gap between what male and female workers earn. So how can women fight against this ever-present workplace divide, or whats often called gender discrimination? Demand what you’re owed Fight the wage gap and ensure you get paid what you deserve.  Sonya Rhodes  claims, “Women undersell themselves, and people undersell women.” For this reason, it’s important women challenge workplace expectations and settle for nothing less than fair. Otegha Uwagba  suggests women should ask for 20 per cent more than they’d “instinctively judge to be fair” when it comes to money. This way a fair amount should be reached; an amount that could even turn out to be “more than you thought.” Uwagba highlights that women expect less. In asking and campaigning for more, the workplace divide could lessen. As soon as men realise women  insist  they are to be taken seriously, women can’t be ignored for much longer. Be unapologetic It’s crucial that women in the workplace are unapologetic. Modesty should take a backseat while women navigate the workplace unapologetically. How can women do this? Promote their ideas- and frequently too! Put themselves forward for promotions. Put themselves forward for leading important projects. Make suggestions for company improvements. Make complaints about inappropriate behaviour. Blow your own trumpet Huffington Post  consider “blowing your own trumpet” as a form of self-promotion. Huffington Post explain that if you don’t do it, how will people hear about you? If you don’t boast about your talents, other people won’t either. It’s particularly important to blow your own trumpet in the workplace. It’s your work so take ownership of it! Maybe shouting about your achievements will get you that project you want to work on or that promotion you’ve been after. The more women sing their own praises, the more likely they’ll be listened to. Women should be proud of their achievements, shout above the noise, and make certain they’re heard. Choose confidence Historically, men are praised for being confident and assertive; a confident and assertive woman, however, is likely to be heavily criticised. It’s important to radiate confidence in the workplace, whether you’re naturally confident or not. Fake it until you make it! Women are a force to be reckoned with.  Allie Halter encourages  women to feel confident in their work; women “work just as hard as our male colleagues and can handle the same challenges they can.” If women stop questioning their abilities and instead depict their inner confidence, women can breakdown the workplace divide. Tackle sexual harassment It’s easy to sweep questionable comments or behaviour under the carpet. It can even feel impossible to report sexual harassment in the workplace.  The Equality and Human Rights Commission  explain that employers are responsible for ensuring that employees do not face harassment in their workplace. If your workplace doesnt hold sexual harassment accountable, suggest  there should be a safe place for all employees to voice their concerns. In choosing to report unwanted behaviour, women can confront the workplace divide. It’s now generally accepted that the workplace doesn’t welcome sexism. That doesn’t mean it’s not still prominent. Sexism even exists in offhand comments and lazy jokes. It’s important not to shrug off casual sexism and, to instead, call it out.  Jessica Bennett explains  that “recognising sexism is harder than it once was.” It can even be disguised as “friendly.” Even so, you need to question even the seemingly “innocent” comments and put sexism in its place. Maybe you’re told you’re “too aggressive” even though your male counterpart is respected for presenting points in the exact same way you do. Maybe your boss has overstepped a line they should never even have come close to. It’s certainly Time’s Up for sexual harassment. It’s important to ensure it’s eliminated in the workplace. It is crucial that women keep fighting against workplace struggles. Women are not yet equal in the working world and the workplace is still hostile towards their presence. There’s still an unspoken-and sometimes spoken-divide between men and women. It’s about time the workplace welcomes women with open arms. Kathryn Terry writes for Inspiring Interns, which specialises in finding candidates their perfect  internship. To browse our  graduate jobs London listings, visit our website.

6 Signs That Your Boss Doesnt Really Like You

6 Signs That Your Boss Doesn’t Really Like You Ever have the feeling that your boss doesn’t care for you that much? You might be imagining things, but in most cases, you can trust your intuition. It could actually be true.And while being tight with your boss isn’t mandatory for being happy at your job, feeling like your superiors at work openly dislike you can’t be fun.evalAre you just being paranoid, or does your boss really not like you? Here are some signs to be on the lookout for.1) Never Available for YouevalCredit â€" Giphy.comYou: Hi, do you have a minute?Your Boss: No, not really.Is this happening to you a lot? Does it feel like your boss is avoiding you? This is a clear sign that he or she isn’t interested in your thoughts and concerns.Bosses that make an effort to appear truly likable to their employees should be able to make time to talk to staff about their issues and questions, no matter how busy they are.Good managers and bosses will always have time to listen to the ideas and concerns of their employees, no matter how trivial they might be.If you are in a situation in which you feel as if you are being utterly ignored and avoided, then there’s a very good chance that your boss simply doesn’t want anything to do with you, for whatever reason.2) Scolds You In PublicCredit â€" Giphy.comevalIf a boss is reprimanding you and criticizing you constantly in front of coworkers or even guests, then you can be pretty sure that he or she does not like you.It’s a terrible management technique and it also means that he or she has zero respect for you as a person and employee.There’s nothing more uncomfortable and embarrassing than being reprimanded in public at work.A boss that has respect for his or her employees knows that if there is ever a problem that needs to be discussed, it’s best to make time to talk to that employee in private and hash out their differences or come to a solution that will work for everyone involved.evalMaking mistakes on the job is an inevitable part of the work place dynamic, but the way in which your boss or manager goes about letting you know about those mistakes can say a lot about how he or she feels about you as an employee and person.3) Never Acknowledges YouCredit â€" Giphy.comAre all of the people who have been working as long as you get promotions while you’re being left behind? Does your boss offer positive feedback to everyone but you? If so, there’s a good chance that he or she doesn’t like you.If you see that your boss refuses to offer you a pat on the pack, even when you’re obviously doing good things, it’s safe to assume that your boss doesn’t have much of an opinion of you.Positive reinforcement is very important in the workplace and it’s one of the greatest motivators that bosses can use in order to increase employee satisfaction and engagement.If you’re doing good things day in and day out and never get commended for them, then it’s obvious that your boss doesn’t appreciate you in the slightest.4) Excl udes YouCredit â€" Giphy.comWhere is everyone?Have you noticed that your boss is organizing staff meetings and not inviting you? There could be two reasons for that, and both of them are bad.Either your boss regularly forgets that you exist or he or she genuinely doesn’t want you around.Pick your poison.evalOne of the most important aspects of creating a positive workplace culture is making sure that all employees feel appreciated and involved.If your boss is behaving in a way that doesn’t enable you to feel as if you are an important staff member, your experience in that work will be anything but fulfilling.eval5) Mocks Your Ideas Credit â€" Giphy.comIf you do manage to get your boss’s ear for a second, does he or she simply dismiss or mock your ideas?Even if you really do have a dumb idea, a boss that appreciates you wouldn’t tell you so bluntly that it’s dumb.Once again, positive reinforcement needs to be practiced by all bosses who want to build a positive work culture .evalMaking fun of their employees and humiliating them for speaking their minds is the worst possible thing that an employer can do when it comes to establishing a fun and enjoyable work culture.6) Gives You Unimportant Tasks Credit â€" Giphy.comAre you always the one who is sent out for coffee? Does your boss ask you to pick up his or her dry cleaning? It’s not really a task, it’s passive-aggressive punishment.Whenever you’re the person who is getting assigned to the most menial tasks, it’s a sure-fire sign that your boss thinks you are one of the more disposal members of the team.One of the best ways to keep your employees is to encourage them to develop within your company and groom your best employees for a future managerial role.If your boss is not enabling you to grow and learn new things on the job, you can be certain that he or she doesn’t see you as a part of his long-term business plan.What Should You Do About It?Credit â€" Giphy.comObviously, you should start l ooking for a new job.But sometimes that’s just not an option. If you really need the job, but can’t go another day having to be subjected to this type of treatment, confront your boss.Don’t be defensive or confrontational, simply ask what the problem is and what you can do to solve it.Ask your boss to recommend things that you could do to improve yourself and see if something changes.Be prepared to list your boss’ behaviors that have rubbed you wrong and all of the things you have done well at work. Take a shot and see what happens.

How to Speak Up Without Risking Your Job

How to Speak Up Without Risking Your Job It’s easy to find fault with the place you work. After all, it’s “the devil you know”. And you’re not alone if you feel like the system just won’t change. With this underlying belief, when we’re unhappy at work, most of us naturally think we have two options: either leave for another job or suck it up and stay. Our natural instincts can be costly While both options are valid, they’re also costly. For you, sticking it out could be miserable and finding a better job is not always a sure thing. For the organization, a disgruntled or apathetic team member is unlikely to perform at their best, and if they quit it would leave an expensive gap to fill. Especially if the organization had invested significantly in their training. Furthermore, if everyone in the organization adopts the either/or mentality, the problem continues without ever being addressed. While our natural tendency is to think in the extremes, if you find yourself facing such a decision where you see only two polar opposite choices, the chances are that there are other options you are missing. Exit, Loyalty and Voice This is where the concept of “exit, loyalty and voice” comes in. This was originally developed by economist Albert O. Hirschman to describe the ways people can react when an organization declines: they can sell the stock (exit), do nothing (loyalty), or stay and make a fuss (voice). More recently, HBS professor Joseph Badaracco Jr. has applied the model to help people determine what to do when their personal values clash or compete with their professional responsibilities. He helps us see the option of speaking up or using your voice to influence outcomes rather than default to either quitting (the exit strategy) or sticking it out (loyalty). What I appreciate most about the model is that it helps us get beyond the either/or trap of “do I grin and bear it, or do I leave?”. It gets us to see there’s a third way, and maybe even a fourth, fifth and sixth. That’s exactly the kind of thinking that’s useful whenever we face a situation we’d like to change but don’t think we can. We don’t have to stay stuck. Why we stay “trapped” in either/or options The reason we often default to exit or loyalty is that it’s easy. These are actions we can take on our own. We don’t need senior management to buy in, we don’t need to get colleagues on board. On the other hand, using voice can be complicated. It means “rocking the boat’ when we’re not sure we can be successful. Of course, you want to choose wisely when exercising your voice â€" in particular, it needs to be something that matters to you. When it comes to change, it’s all about the how Once you decide that an issue matters enough to speak up about it, the most important thing is how you go about speaking up. Here are five steps you can take to prepare to exercise your voice without risking your job. 1. Scope out the situation It’s helpful to know what things have already been tried and to look for patterns of what’s worked in the past versus strategies to stay away from. It’s also useful to look at what other aspects at work have changed over time, and how those changes took place. Was it about new senior managers coming in with a different viewpoint? Or a small band of influential people collaborating to push for change? Or external parties such as customers demanding that management pay attention and take action? It’s also useful to identify what’s contributing to the problem. Is it driven by the incentive system? The quality of people in the organization? The lack of clarity in the mission? 2. Gather your allies Some issues are best solved when there’s a groundswell of support rather than a lone voice. So seek out your allies â€" those others who care about this issue â€" and enlist them into the effort. They may be colleagues in other departments, mentors who are in positions of influence, or fellow team members, to name a few. And recognize that you may not be the best placed to lead the effort, and your role may be to get things started. 3. Envision possible pathways The easy part is knowing the problem that exists, whether that's infighting within the team, silo behavior that prevent teams from collaborating, or toxic bosses who are unaware of their impact on others. It’s even pretty straightforward to know what the ideal outcome is â€" in essence, the opposite of what’s happening now. The magic happens when you start to envision possible pathways to get from here to there. One way to do this is to ask, “what would need to be true in order for that outcome to happen?” You could ask this of yourself, or better yet, ask others who are also interested in finding a solution. The beauty of this question is that it invites us to work back from the desired outcome to identify interim stepping stones. And that’s what can help identify a possible path forward. 4. Choose your approach The way you bring up the issue and the language you use when you exercise the voice option can make the difference between victory and defeat. Here, I’ve found it’s best to use constructive language that’s focused on forward-looking actions rather than criticizing what’s happened in the past. For example, “I’ve come across a couple of ideas that could substantially increase our visibility in the market, if you’re interested…” tends to land better than “our marketing approach is from the Dark Ages.” The former gives people something to rally around rather than risk having things degenerate into a complaints festival or a debate. It also makes you sound positive and leader-like whereas criticism tends to make people defensive, which makes them less open to change. And if you can take my father’s advice to “only use positive words”, you’ll put yourself in an even stronger position. So if you’re giving someone feedback about their bad habit (negative words) of criticizing team members in public, you could say, “I wonder if you would get more out of the team by giving feedback in private”. And when you feel like saying, “we’ve wasted too much time and money on this already”, you could say instead, “this is a good time to take what we’ve learned and focus on a new direction.” The beauty of my father’s advice is that it’s hard to sound like you’re criticizing or complaining when you’re using positive words. And that’s the first step to disarming opposition and creating an environment where change is possible. 5. Take baby steps Recognize that change is hard. And the bigger your group or organization, the harder it is to turn the ship around. So focus on getting things moving in the right direction. Once you have some positive signs, you can apply your voice to accelerate the pace of change. How will you use your voice? So, the next time you have a complaint about what’s going on at work, take a moment to think about how you could use your voice in a constructive way. You might just change things for the better. And be seen as a better leader in the process. It’s hard to sound like you’re criticizing or complaining when you’re using positive words. Now, I’d love to hear from you. What would you like to improve in your workplace, and what’s a step you could take to start using your voice? Leave a comment and let me know.

Work From Home - Higher Professional Resume Writing Services in Anchorage

Work From Home - Higher Professional Resume Writing Services in AnchorageIf you want to make a living and not work for someone else, consider hiring professional resume writing services in Anchorage. You don't have to pay a lot to get an expert resume writer to write your resume. In fact, the best way to find a good resume writer is to ask your friends who are already in the business. A few good friends can provide an incredible amount of information on this topic.They may know where to get these professionals and can direct you to the ones that are right for you. You can also look on the Internet for websites that help you locate a professional resume writer. Alaska is home to some very good freelance writers who will help you out with a professional resume. Most people choose to hire local people as they know the people in the business. They can use their knowledge and experience to help you with your resume.You don't have to wait until your job interview to have a professional res ume writer to write your resume. You can always get one on the same day or within a few days. When you get a professional resume writer, you will be able to get your resume finished much faster.Each person has a different skill set. You may not need a lot of things on your resume. Others will need a lot and it can make the task harder for you.A professional writer will help you come up with a resume that is functional and unique. After the first few drafts, they will add to your resume as you begin to fill in the blanks.If your resume needs to be edited before the job is listed for hire, a professional writer can offer you their editing services. They will help you do this with a few simple revisions. The editor can also help you make sure that your resume is what you want it to be when it is being submitted to prospective employers.You don't have to do everything yourself. However, you may find it easier to write the entire thing yourself. You can use a list to get some ideas for w hat kind of information you want on your resume. This is a way to get more detailed information without spending too much time or effort.You need to find a great resume writer to help you get your job. You don't have to hire someone that you don't really know and you don't have to pay an arm and a leg. It's easy to find a resume writer in Anchorage that will offer you professional services.