Career Development CarnivalWelcome to the Career Development Carnival. This month, we have 26 career experts sharing their tips and advice to help you advance your career.

We have eight new career experts joining our regular contributors please welcome: Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter, Kristi Enigl, Corey Harlock, Susan Heathfield, Dawn Lennon, Dan Ryan, Debra Ann Matthews and Carter Gibson.

How you can Support our Contributors

If you like what you read, show your support for each author. Spread the word because others may benefit from your online research. Use social media tools – Share it, Like it, Google+ it, email it or start a conversation by sharing your opinion.

Career Management

5 Ways to Avoid Sabotaging Your Career

Blog: Business Fitness                                                            Author:  Dawn Lennon

None of us ever sets out to make a mess of our careers. Sometimes we just do because we weren’t paying attention or had lost confidence in our ability to turn things around. By taking hold of your career, you can avoid self-sabotaging it.

Companies hire skill sets, not job titles

Blog: The Write Solution                                                          Author: Dawn Bugni

Companies hire skill sets, not job titles. Skills are transferable, but it is up to the job seeker to define their skills in relation to hiring company needs, not the confines of past job titles. Take a step back from what you were called and take a look at what you did.

Career Goals for 2013. What have your learned in 2012?

Blog: Career Pivot                                                                    Author: Marc Miller

Do you really need to set career goals at the beginning of the year? YES! Where do you want to be in 6 months? Where do you want to be in a year?

“Be Someone who Keeps resolutions for the New Year”

Blog: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle Her Rochester        Author: Beth Sears

People usually start out the New Year with the hope for it being a great year. To accomplish your goal, this article gives you simple suggestions to increase your chance of success.

Long Haired Freaks Need Not Apply (Then)

Blog: Hell in the Hallway                                                           Author: Deborah Mourey

Just because someone has a tattoo (now) or long hair (then) doesn’t mean they don’t have a lot to offer a workplace. If we are letting our personal preferences dictate our hiring… we’re going to be in trouble.

What NOT to do if you HATE your New job

Blog: Design Resumes                                                             Author: Julie Walraven

Top 4 tips: What not to do if you hate your new job.

  1. Don’t use company resources to search for the next job.
  2. Always good advice but especially if you were just hired.
  3. You have less leeway than most people.
  4. Company resources means phones, corporate cell phones, company computers, company time, company emails, and company fax or copy machines.

 My Three Words for 2013

Blog: CareerTrend                                                                  Author: Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter

What are you doing to actualize your career and life plans and goals for 2013? This post provides pragmatic inspiration and action steps to help you get the ball rolling and reach your goals!

Job Search Resources

5 quirky ways to get noticed in the job market

Blog: Mildred Talabi                                                                 Author: Mildred Talabi

If you really want to get ahead of the competition in the job market, it’s time to get creative in your approach.

7 Common Job Interview Questions That Can Trick You

Blog: JobMob                                                                           Author: Amy Chambers

Sometimes the question to answer isn’t the one that was asked.

What to do After a Bad Job Interview

Blog: HR Bartender                                                                  Author: Sharlyn Lauby

Is there any way to recover after a bad job interview? HR Bartender interviews the experts to find out.

How To Answer: What Have You Been Doing All This Time?

Blog: Acacia HR Solutions                                                        Author: Sabrina Baker

With the average length of unemployment greater than 30 weeks, job seekers are bound to be asked how they have been filling their time. Here are a few creative ways to answer.

Tools to Organize Your Job Search in 2013

Blog: Profession Direction Blog                                                Author: Kristin Johnson

If your New Year’s Resolution is to get organized, you’re in luck. This blog post will help you with staying organized and spending less on your career management or job search. Here are some great tools to help you keep your thoughts straight for little or no cost when it comes to your career.

Answering the “Tell Me about Yourself” Interview Question

Blog: A-Plus Advisory Post                                                       Author: Karen Silins

Tips on creating an answer to the “Tell Me about Yourself” question prior to ever stepping into the interview.

Over 40 and looking for a job you’re in a “shame spiral.”

Blog: Fearless Job Seeker                                                       Author: Corey Harlock

If you look at many of the current practices prescribed to people when it comes to looking for a job, much of it relies on giving your “control” to someone else. What I mean is, you are told to “be the person” a hiring manager wants to hire – not yourself.

Job Hunting Lessons: Evaluate Your Progress

Blog: Elephants at Work                                                         Author: Lynn Dessert

Job Hunting Lessons is one post in a series of personal insights shared by Kathy Marcus about her job search activities and learnings.

Personal Branding

20 Steps to a Shiny New You in the New Year

Blog: The Savvy Intern                                                           Author: Mark Babbitt

What better time to review – and upgrade – your personal branding than the New Year?

Fact is: most everyone talks about personal branding as though it has become an involuntary action, like a reflex or breathing. Not so… and mistakes abound. Often, poor branding does the exact opposite we had intended; instead of impressing a potential employer, partner or influencer… we create a bad first impression, alienate or perhaps even offend (spammer!)

Twitter Players

Blog: Arthur Catalanello Consulting                                       Author: Arthur Catalanello

If you’re using Twitter for personal branding and/or as a job search tool, you need to be aware of “Twitter Players.” My post explains what that is and how I spot them.

10 Reasons to Love Your Personal Brand

Blog: Executive Career Brand                                               Author: Meg Guiseppi

You already have a personal brand. Use it to educate people about your unique value to your target audience.

4 Ways to prepare for upcoming job fairs in Middle Tennessee

Blog: Winning Job Resumes                                                 Author: Debra Ann Matthews

Here are the steps you need to take to prepare for job fairs in the area.

Let’s talk resumes

Blog: Carter Gibson                                                              Author: Carter Gibson

When should you use an alternative resume? Should you EVER use an alternative resume? Know your audience when applying to positions.

Reputation Management

Cleaning Up & Polishing Your Online Image

Blog: Chameleon Resumes Blog                                           Author: Lisa Rangel

Employers do check the social media presence of job applicants at some point in the interview process. Some check upon stumbling onto your background when searching for talent on LinkedIn, others right before the interview and other employers do a thorough investigation before extending an offer. No matter what the employer’s process is, you have to assume, people will want to check you out online during the recruitment process.

Here are some ways to not only clean up your online image, but put forth a positive image that will leave employers wanting you on their team.

Summaries of Stuff You Share

Blog: Career Sherpa.net                                                       Author: Hannah Morgan

Wouldn’t it be nice to create a summary of the articles you like and share across your social media accounts? These tools give you control over your online reputation. Give them a try!

Networking Tips

Got a Mentor? You Are Blessed

Blog: About Human Resources                                              Author: Susan Heathfield

January is National Mentoring Month. If you’ve had a mentor, you know how important a mentor can be for continued career and professional development. Mentoring may be the most significant training method available in organizations today.

Career Exploration

Passion in your Pursuits

Blog: Ryan Search & Consulting                                           Author:  Dan Ryan

Too often I look at things from a quantitative viewpoint. By doing this it strips away the added drive, the emotion, the passion that surfaces when one is able to make a connection to a prior experience that has been beneficial or pleasant.

Live in the Moment

Blog: Coach Kristi, Insider Career Tips                                 Author: Kristi Enigl

This post reflects my thought o the passing on Dec 30th of Filip Coppens, writer, researcher, commentator, and spiritual human being. It made me think about what really matters in life, and that every day you have a chance to live passionately. Make your career a part of doing what you love.

3 Tips for Re-Entering Workplace

Blog: DeniseMpls                                                                   Author: Denise Felder

Question and answer post with a person looking for professional work for the first time in years.

What to Expect in 2013

Your hosts, Hannah Morgan @ Career Sherpa and Lynn Dessert @ Elephants at Work love to have fun so we are introducing Career Development Carnival themes during the year.

Next month, our theme will be Your Favorite Inspiration Quote and Why to be hosted by Hannah Morgan at Career Sherpa.net on February 21st.

If you have a career related post to share everything you need to know is here:

  • The Career Development Carnival 2013 Carnival
  • Career Development Carnival Post Submissions