Thursday, April 28, 2016

"What not to wear to an interview"/ "My job brings me joy"

Jul. 7, 2015 "What not to wear to an interview": I cut out this article by William Wolfe- Wylie in 24 News on Aug. 30, 2011.  It's about how interviewers are judgmental about the people they hire.  If a woman wears an engagement ring, then she may be more committed to her marriage and possible family than the job.

Though it could also mean she's stable and committed to a job.  Here's the whole article:

Since the recession, it's been an employer's market. Job hunters are bending over backwards just to get an interview, and now the rules are changing for even for that process. In some online job-hunter forums, women are being told to leave their diamond engagement rings at home, sparking controversy and discussion.

A woman in the U.S. had her salary cut by $20,000 per year while she was on maternity leave. When she inquired about how she might regain her previous earnings, she was told that she didn't need it because she had a nice engagement ring.

Meanwhile, a hiring manager posted a controversial piece of advice at urbanbaby.com, urging women to leave diamond engagement rings at home during job interviews, lest they offend or give the wrong impression to would-be employers.

Penny Calhoun, a career counsellor who asked that her name be changed so as to protect the identity of her clients, says rings can mean different things to different employers. An engagement ring can mean absence from the workplace, changing priorities and a future family, notes Calhoun.

"But it can also mean stability, longevity, and dedication to a relationship - the same dedication [employers] hope for in a candidate."

It's these small details that matter a lot in a job interview, whether or not the resume is outstanding.

"Your qualifications get you into an interview, your fit gets you the job," Calhoun says. Fit, she explains, is the sum total of a job applicant's personality, goals, professionalism, style, and friendliness.

For Surranna Sandy, President of Surcorp Resume Solutions - one of Canada's largest career management companies - these distinctions is nothing new. And it's always been worse on women than it has on men.

"Depending on the role, if a woman is perceived as being aggressive, people may use that against her," says Sandy. "Whereas a male, the aggression could be a value-add for the position."

The same is true when it comes to displays of wealth or style, like engagement rings.

"If a woman shows up in a $1,000 suit for a job that pays $30,000, the may see her as above that status. If a man were to do the same thing, [interviewers] don't really draw that as an issue."

Sandy says the easiest way around the problem is to scout out the company in advance. Look them up on LinkedIn and see who you know who works there. Walk through their workspace, if it's public, or their lobby, if it's not. See how people act, how they dress and what kind of decorum is observed.

Just don't change anything about yourself based on what you learn, she says.

"You do the research not because you can become something new," Sandy stresses. "You do the research to determine if the values of the organization align with your values. You can't sustain [changing yourself]."

That's so unfair

Wearing a diamond ring can cost a job applicant everything. But, fair or not, that's the reality.

For Surranna Sandy, president of one of Canada's largest career management firms, job applicants need to decide if the company they're applying to is likely to judge them on such frivolities, and if that's something they care about as an applicant.

"We see a big diamond. We do something every human being does every moment of the day. We make judgments. We make judgments all the time."

Those factors can even extend to sex, weight, language, personality or style. An employer would never say that out loud - that is, in fact, illegal - but when 400 people are applying for one job, employers are free to pick the person who fits the company's ideals most.

"We have to be more aware. We live in a little bubble sometimes. Make adjustments as necessary, adjustments you can live with that remain true to who you are and your values."

Nothing but nails

Penny Calhoun, a career counsellor who asked that her name be changed to protect her clients, says even small cues can be enough to turn an employer off.

"I once worked with a woman who had fingernails that were about two inches long and always had sparkly diamonds stuck on them. Part of her job was data entry. You can imagine that the length of her fingernails slowed the process down to the point where I would have to manage half of her work and all of mine to complete projects on time.

"Sometimes, when I'm interviewing someone with long fingernails, I think of that woman, how ill-suited she was to her job based on her personal style, and how that personal style made her at odds with the company and its productivity."


"My job brings me joy": I cut out this article by Lisa Wright in the Metro on Jul. 28, 2014.  Here's a happy article compared to the above:

Most Canadian workers really like their jobs, and they’re proud to say so.

According to a new Capital One survey, Canadians are very satisfied employees indeed — so much so that 69 per cent say they are not only proud to work for their current employer but enjoy telling people what they do for a living and would like to stick around for few years.

Recruiters take note, though: nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) of workers say that given the choice, they would stay with their current employer for at least two or three more years, reveals the report released Thursday.

The results refute the belief that Millennials, those aged 18 to 34, lack commitment and prefer frequent job-hopping, with two-thirds of younger Canadians saying they would be more than happy to stay put for the next three years, noted Jenny Winter, who heads human resources at Capital One.

“It’s interesting and validating,” said Winter, whose firm employs a substantial number of young workers.

“With the job market looking increasingly unstable and the high Baby Boomer population struggling with job security, Millennials are clearly looking for stability and have a strong desire to stay in their jobs,” said Winter.

After being named one of the 50 best large workplaces in Canada this year by the Great Place to Work Institute, Capital One wanted to get a better sense of what Canadians value in an employer in order to attract and maintain top talent in the competitive financial services sector, Winter explained.

The survey of 1,500 people across the country found that titles are overrated. Only one in 10 people surveyed put a promotion at the top of their wish list, while regular bonuses and annual pay increases were number one with 37 per cent of respondents.

While compensation is a top priority for employees, the study found that more than half of Canadians (51 per cent) believe work/life balance is more important than money. Forty-four per cent cited flexible working hours and the ability to work remotely as one of the top three things employers can do to increase job satisfaction.

Personal and professional development were also revealed as important motivators, with 41 per cent saying they prefer having opportunities to take courses and attend conferences related to their professional development to increase job satisfaction.

Twenty-four per cent also said that mentoring from senior staff who are committed to their career growth is most likely to keep them content at work.

The top three things employers do to make workers consider quitting their job include bad workplace morale at 18 per cent, constantly increasing workload without financial reward at 17 per cent and not feeling appreciated at 13 per cent.

“People are looking to contribute and to be involved,” said Winter.


Apr. 15, 2016:

The week from Apr. 10-15.  I worked a couple of more days at the first restaurant job.

MTV Movie Awards: I saw this on Sun. and it was really fun and funny to watch.  The best part was probably Ryan Reynolds and him winning best fight for Deadpool.

The other part was when Seth Rogen and Zac Efron come on stage to present an award.

Rogen: ...with Ryan f----ing Reynolds.
Cut to Reynolds in the audience.  You see him mouth the words "What the f--- did I do?"

TV shows: I watched 3 Talking Dead episodes I recorded.  It's a show where they discuss the recent The Walking Dead episode.

Apr. 19, 2016 Shades of Blue: Over the weekend I finished watching the first season of the TV show Shades of Blue.  I saw the pilot when it came out.  It seemed to be pretty good so I recorded all the episodes.  After it ended I watched it all in a row.

I saw eps 2 and 3 and I was kind of "eh" with it.  I thought it was average.  Then I watched the rest of it and it was really good.  If you like crime- drama, then you'll like this.




Apr. 20, 2016 Containment TV show: I just finished watching the Containment pilot.  I recorded it last night and watched it early this morning.  I tweeted to the actor Chris Wood who's in it and plays the cop Jake Riley.

Tracy Au ‏@TracyAu2 1m1 minute ago
@ChristophrWood I love the Containment pilot.

The show will be available in Canada on Mon. Apr. 25 on Global.

I'm really happy and excited right now.  I'm looking forward to next week on Mon.  I saw the episode on CW.  I hope all of you guys watch it.



It starts off with Day 13 and how in Atlanta, Georgia it is complete chaos.  I like to see how it gets there.  It kind of reminds me of the TV show Between where a small town is quarantined and people older than 22 yrs old are dying off.
It stars one of my favorite Edmonton actors Kyle Mac.


Chris Wood: I love him.  When he was on The Vampire Diaries, he wasn't really built.  His character didn't have to do a lot of physical stunts.  Now he's a cop on Containment.  When I saw the promo of him in a muscle shirt (in the pilot), I thought he was really built.

Here's a 10 sec funny video:

Cut to Chris Wood sitting in a chair.

Wood: Promise me this is forever.
Camera zooms out and Hanna Mangan Lawrence is fanning him.
Wood: Do you promise?
Lawrence: I promise. 
Wood: Thank you.
He takes a sip of his coffee.
lol.



Apr. 26, 2016: I watched the second episode of Containment this morning.  I recorded it from Global.  It's really good and the tension and drama has intensified.

Apr. 28, 2016: When I watch this show, I actually feel scared.  When I read about the Zika virus in the news, it's not really scary because there is this distance from it.

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