From Advertising to Published Author

From Advertising to Published Author Success Story > From: Job To: Freelance From Advertising to Published Author “More and more I was finding that my heart wasn't in it, yet I was still working just as hard. Something had to change.” * From Advertising to Published Author Sometimes moving into a career you love is simply a question of following your heart. With her inspiring career-change, Emylia Hall proves that a little self-awareness and and dogged persistence can take you to exactly where you want to be. What work were you doing previously? I worked in the world of advertising, as an account handler. Firstly a five year stint in London when I was fresh out of university, and then in Bristol for a further three years. What are you doing now? I'm a full-time writer and the author of two novels: 'The Book of Summers', and 'A Heart Bent Out of Shape'. I'm currently working on my third. Why did you change? I loved a lot of things about agency life, but eventually its demands didn't suit me. It's a pretty relentless industry and can be all-consuming. It's in my nature to be conscientious, and I always give a lot of myself to whatever I'm doing. But more and more I was finding that my heart wasn't in it, yet I was still working just as hard. Something had to change, and for me that meant leaving London as a first step. When was the moment you decided to make the change? There were several defining moments for me, and all of them add up to where I am today. The first was when I quit my London job to go and live in the French Alps, working a snowboard season. One winter turned into two, and that time away from everyday responsibilities gave me the freedom to decide what I really wanted to do with my life. I returned to the UK in 2007 and settled in Bristol, determined to write my first novel and work as hard as I could to get it published. I took a job in an agency, at a deliberately more junior level, hoping that the pace would be slower than that which I was used to, thus affording me more time and headspace to write. However that wasn't really the case, and the job was still more consuming than I ever intended it to be. So I went part-time and my bosses were flexible enough to accommodate it, which was great. After about a year and a half of working four days a week I took a further step, and decided to have a self-styled sabbatical; initially for six months, then becoming twelve months, with a job in a book shop three days a week. Together with the last of my savings this just about supported me. This turned out to be the decisive year, a kind of make or break. I finished my novel, and submitted it to agents. The following spring an agent took me on, and not long afterwards I got the book deal I'd dreamt of. It was a two-book deal, so I quit my role in advertising, and settled into writing full-time. That was two years ago, and sometimes I still have to pinch myself that I'm actually doing this. Are you happy with the change? Thrilled. It took me some time to get here, but I feel as though all of my steps were moving me slowly but surely in the right direction. What do you miss and what don't you miss? I enjoy encouraging creativity in others, and that was a stimulating part of my job in an agency. It's certainly tougher when you're both motivator and motivatee. That said, I love and appreciate the autonomy of writing. I enjoy being solely responsible for my own working day and the output at the end of it. While I'm sociable and always enjoyed the dynamics of working in an office, I don't miss that side of things as much as I thought I might. I love waking up slowly! That's my greatest luxury, having always been a slave to the alarm clock in the past, and starting out my day with a coffee at my laptop in my pyjamas. As a writer, or indeed with any kind of creative pursuit, you're putting yourself out there, exposing your work to criticism and opinion, in a way that just doesn't happen in a lot of jobs. That can make you feel quite vulnerable on a very individual level. Occasionally I'll crave the simplicity (rose-tinted spectacles truly on!) of an occupation where you work as part of a team and don't get a star rating at the end of the day. But then I'll remind myself of all the wonders of my life as a writer, and really, there's no contest. How did you go about making the shift? As soon as I had the book deal, it was a relatively easy decision to leave to write full-time as I would have struggled to give my best to my second book if I didn't commit myself wholly. I was fortunate that it was a viable option financially, and again, that was down to the strength of the deal. However I probably always would have taken the plunge anyway. It felt like too good an opportunity to pass up. I had a publisher who really believed in my first book and wanted to promote it widely, along with a deadline and editorial team eagerly awaiting my second. I've quit jobs in the past with far less concrete incentive. How did you handle your finances to make your change possible? I worked out roughly how much I needed to live on per month, and did my sums accordingly. I viewed my publication advance as, quite literally, an advance on 'salary' rather than considering it as a lump sum. I worked out how long it would sustain me for, and went from there. My husband is a comic book writer, and his income is always made up of a series of much smaller projects, so it's harder for him to be certain of finances. So the day he went full-time (which was back in 2008) was truly deserving of applause. Being confident in where your money is coming from makes shifting career that much easier. What was the most difficult thing about changing? If you've thought it through, believe in what you're doing, and are pretty sure that it'll make you happy, then I don't think it is that difficult. You just have to have the self-belief. The changes I made throughout my working life (leaving for France, working part-time, taking a sabbatical) all impacted hugely on where I am now. Quite simply, I wouldn't have written a good enough first novel without them. I think you just need to keep up a dialogue with yourself, maintain your sense of reason, but allow yourself to dream a little too. 'Follow your heart, but keep your head'. If I had a motto, then that would probably be it. What help did you get? My husband and family have always been supportive of my decisions, and that makes a huge difference to me. My mum always says that health and happiness are the most important things in life, and she's right. There's luck in the first, but the second is in your own hands. What have you learnt in the process? I've learnt that persistence pays off, as does hard work. But while luck definitely plays its part in finding the right agent, the right publisher, and getting noticed, I do believe that you can stack the odds in your favour. What do you wish you'd done differently? Sometimes I wish that I'd started writing seriously much sooner. I suppose that would be the only thing. That said, I don't regret the years I spent in another career. Those jobs equipped me with a set of skills that are useful to me today, gave me some wonderful friends, and offered me great experience in the wider sense. I do think that if you're in touch with yourself, you'll make the right choices at the right times. You just have to listen to that voice inside. What would you advise others to do in the same situation? Everyone approaches writing differently, but for me writing my first novel required a lot of time and application. Simply, I felt like I needed to empty my head of other things in order to give my book space to grow. I struggled to fit writing in around my demanding day job, and was fed up of making excuses for why I wasn't doing enough, so I changed things accordingly. I'd say decide on your ambitions, understand the way you work, and adjust your life in order to make it all fit together. There are no guaranteed riches in the writing life. Many writers earn very little, so you need to be in it for the love, not the money. What resources would you recommend to others? For writers, I'd recommend an Arvon Foundation writing courseâ€" a week spent with them will inspire you for months and years to come. I'd suggest owning a copy of Stephen King's book 'On Writing: A Memoir Of The Craft' for brilliantly no-nonsense and insightful advice on getting words on a page. Read widely and read well, learning from the writers you admire and the books you love. Above all, write for pleasure, not for ideas of financial gain. Write about the things you care about. Self-expression should be an enriching experience, so the greatest resource of all is yourself; your imagination and your desire. What lessons could you take from Emylia's story to use in your own career change? Let us know in the comments below.

Work From Home Resume Writing Companies

Work From Home Resume Writing CompaniesThere are many work from home resume writing companies that will let you submit your resume on their websites. A lot of these companies have changed over the years from being websites to becoming online job placement companies. Some work from home resume writing companies even offer job-hunting services on behalf of their clients.When there is no full-time work, people tend to work from home. They do not have the time to go out and pursue a full-time career. This is where the job search comes in. People search for a job and start filling in the information about the job they want to do.The work from home writing industry has exploded. People have realized that they can make money on the internet. Some make enough money to pay the bills. However, not all the people are able to quit their day jobs and work full-time in their spare time.One easy way to make a living as a freelancer is by providing the employers with content. When employers are look ing for people to write articles or provide content for blogs or web pages, they hire writers. You can provide them with the necessary information about a company and other needed information for the employer. If you know the company, you can give the employer valuable information that they need.Work from home resume writing companies also provide marketing materials such as newsletters and manuals. These types of documents will help a company sell its products. They also help the company to market their company. These materials will boost sales of the products and get more customers.It is very easy to work from home. There are many online jobs that are available all over the internet. Companies that offer such jobs are getting popular because of the great opportunity that they offer.There are many people who don't need to work a full-time job and can only be self-employed. Sometimes these people become consultants. Another advantage of this type of business is that you can work fro m home as much as you want. You can do whatever you want and the only requirement that you need is to have an internet connection.There are some companies that provide only freelance jobs. This means that you won't be working for a particular company and therefore the clients won't know who you are. As a freelancer, you can be anyone you want to be. You can be an employee of one company and a freelancer of another.

Career adjustments Tips from Liz Phair

Career adjustments Tips from Liz Phair Liz Phair has just released a new CD, titled Somebodys Miracle. Im not saying you should go out and buy it, but you have to respect Liz Phairs ability to manage her career. For those of you who did not spend 1991 listening to her widely touted CD Exile in Guyville, go buy that CD now. It is about mainstream, upper-middle class women who wish they were beautiful and fun and loved by people much cooler than they are. For men who worry that the album is like a chick-flick, no worries: You can skip to track 14 where she sings about being a sex goddess. The latest CD is an expression of the fact that Phair never did make it to the mainstream, but she really wants to. And, in a rare moment of reality from a musician, she has confessed to needing to make enough money to support her son. Thats when I started thinking about her CD releases like a career path instead of a pop-rock event. Her last CD, released in 2003 and ominously titled Liz Phair, was a disaster, trashed by music reviewers across the country. Not trashed like, track two is insufferable but trashed like this CD will kill her career. Diehard fans were upset that she was giving up her edgy self to make as much money as Britney Spears. And now, heres another CD, in the same genre that people hated. I give her a lot of credit for doing it again. The difference between people who have huge success and people who do not is ability to cope with failure. People with huge success are more able to take risks because they have less fear of failure. And then, when this type of person does fail, like Liz Phair, she tries again. Dont misunderstand. I dont like the new Liz Phair music. But I like watching her perform what was basically a career change or at least a shift. And theres a bit we can learn from her about career shifts for non-rock stars. 1. Dont let other people steer your career No one wants to see Liz Phair selling out. But she ignores that. She has the maturity to decide that she knows whats best for her life, and she has faith in herself to execute a vision, even if people around her dont like it. At some point or another you are going to want to change what youre doing in your work. Youll have to put up with people around you saying you shouldnt change. (Why go into marketing? Youre a great programmer.) And then youll have to put up with people denying that youve changed. (Even though you got promoted out of your horrid assistant job, can you get me some coffee?) These will be good times to remember how strong Liz Phair is about sticking to her new vision of herself and forcing us to see it. 2. Be true to yourself Liz is not, in fact, an indie queen, but rather, an accidental tourist on the indie road. Even on her indie CDs she sings about wanting to be rich and famous. So she had to ditch the indie crowd and become her rendition of girl-pop-star because thats really what shes about. Its much more important for you to figure out whats right for you than for you to act out a rendition of what someone else thinks you should be your mom, your friends, your mentors. They cant know whats best for you. Be honest with yourself and have the strength to disappoint your fans. 3. Find a new mentor to help you change Phair is known for her spare recordings that have a tiny-recording-studio feel. (Quote from my mass-market brother: Couldnt she afford some recording equipment?) For her recent CDs, Phair enlisted people who could get her a more polished, mass-market feel. Part of taking yourself seriously in a new position is getting people to give you coaching on how to look like the new part youre taking on. Maybe this means bringing your friends girlfriend to go shopping with you for new work clothes. Or maybe it means getting coaching on how to speak with more authority. The more you start looking and sounding like the new you, the more people will believe you have changed.

Build Your Personal Brand with a LinkedIn Blog - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Build Your Personal Brand with a LinkedIn Blog - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Having an account, or a presence, LinkedIn is just the beginning to building a strong personal brand on this social network. Engaging in places like the many groups and posting on a Company Page are also good practices. But there is also another powerful tool to use, and that is publishing a blog on LinkedIn. Having your own LinkedIn Blog is a great way to create a personal narrative and identity to grow your community. LinkedIn blogs are also a powerful branding building tool that is often overlooked. Nows the time to act. Not only can you show your expertise, but also create a high level of influence. At this point, you may be thinking, How does LinkedIn allow users to post their own content? The process is simple once your brand applies to the Publishing Platform and LinkedIn says, Yes! How to make the most out of LinkedIn Blogs Here are several ways you can use LinkedIn Blogs to effectively build your personal brand. • Become an expert in your niche Think ahead of the game and post content that you want to establish for your mission and the future. Know who your target audience is and appeal to their needs. • Show your best LinkedIn provides a great way to see the highlights of a personal brand. Why not focus on the strengths of your company and take advantage of this highly visible network? Your content can reflect new ideas, services and projects that stand out from the rest. • Write about your next event Is your brand giving a special presentation? Or perhaps it is hosting an event? Consider writing an article about this, and include the highlights of what will be covered. • Create a topic series While many personal brands have their own websites with blogs that include a series of posts, include these as well on LinkedIn. Conducting an interview or study is a great way to draw visitors into your content. • Post content on other social networks When publishing on LinkedIn you can cross-post your articles on other social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus. This is a good way to increase exposure as well as encourage engagement on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a place you do not want to miss out when it comes to publishing for our personal brand. It is a win-win situation where you can not only attract more visitors to your website, but grow your social influence in multiple networks.

Tips to Use Language Writing For Resume

Tips to Use Language Writing For ResumeLanguage writing for resume is a part of the entire job description. The English language is indeed an attractive one and makes every job seeker to look interesting. When job seekers try to impress the employers with impressive resumes, they mostly make use of resume writing in English.The basic reason for using language writing in English is that it is a common one and is used almost everywhere. This is the reason why it can be considered a language. To give your resume an edge, you should have a well-organized document that contains only the most important details about your experiences. Not only this, English language writing can also help you impress the employers. Here are some of the tips to follow when using language writing for resume.Make your resume look impressive - Firstly, you must understand the purpose of using language. You must have an idea of what you want to get out of the resume. English language writing can be used for gener al purpose, specific purpose, or an excellent presentation of the entire picture. It can even help you discuss certain issues in your resume.The first thing that you need to keep in mind is to use employable skills and expertise. Always keep in mind that you are trying to make the company understand your skill and abilities. You do not want your employer to think that you are not able to fulfill the needs of the company. If you are aware of this, you will see that language writing for resume will be a wise decision. Remember that it is important to make the employer understand that you are capable of handling the job.Keep the language interesting - It is important to make the resume as interesting as possible. If you cannot think of something that will catch the eye of the employer, it is better to take help from your friends. You can also read about the companies and try to remember the unique points. This is important because when your employer sees the resume, he can get the righ t idea. You can make sure that your employer does not find out that you use a translator to write your resume.Choose the right usage of language - In order to avoid the fact that your resume looks like a translation, you should know how to use English language writing in your resume in the right way. When you will be using language writing for resume, do not limit yourself. You can also use words that are interesting to read. Do not just use the words that are commonly used. Of course, you can include some slang or abbreviations in the resume but you should still keep the English language writing for resume as the ultimate goal.Use of language - Now, you can start writing in English language. It is a good idea to give a brief introduction to the job and then switch to writing in English. When the employer understands that you are capable of doing the job, he will be impressed and will have a more positive attitude towards your resume. There are certain other things that you can do t hat will make your resume look great and impress the employer more.Use of language is all about making the employer feel that you are capable of doing the job. There are many more tips but the basic concept is important to follow.

3 secrets for applying to advertised jobs - Hire Imaging

3 secrets for applying to advertised jobs - Hire Imaging In my last post, I gave you two ways to stretch outside your comfort zone when applying to advertised jobs. There are also three things you can do within the application process itself that will enhance your chances of making it to the top of the pile. Customize your fit to the job. Fine-tune your cover letter and resume for every application. Look carefully at the posting and mine for the required and preferred criteria; and within the description of the job itself. Pull out unique words you find. Look particularly for nouns and phrases. For example, a posting for a Graphics Designer in packaging might state “file transfer of package design files.” An opening for a Retail Distribution Manager might refer to “capital investment plans”. An ad for an Executive Assistant might include “Kronos time management systems for several departments.” Dont overlook verbs and other word forms. Todays ATS screeners are sophisticated! Pluck your matching qualifications out and put them in your resume. Resumes get separated from cover letters, so make sure that anything important is in your résumé itself.  And take it beyond plugging in the word or phrases. Show the metrics and success story behind it in a brief one to two-sentence b ullet. Once you have tweaked to add these words and phrases into your branding and top section, as well as your experience and education where applicable, save the resume as a separate document with that job/company name. Competition name drop. Employers search for resumes with their competitors’ names in them. Consider these to be secondary resume keywords or phrases. It might be the companies’ actual names that you worked for, their products or brands, notable industry qualifications, training associations etc. It might be that you were their customer or vice versa. Be creative but truthful; and weave! This is also a good reason to narrow your targets to companies  within a certain market or industry niche as those you’ve worked for. You’re right there. If the job is in San Francisco, put San Francisco on your résumé heading. Omit the rest of the regular contact heading information that shows you’re living in Minneapolis, Minnesota. You can omit street address, city, state and zip code. If your phone number is a particular area code, you can omit that as well, but people often use mobile phones with the same trailing number. So, area codes are not a dead give-away. However, to really zone in on the targeted locale match, giving your name, city, state (of the job) and email is appropriate. Barb Poole | San Francisco | barb.poole@gmail.com Obviously, you had better be ready and able to move to San Francisco quickly! Then you can truthfully position yourself as an up-and-coming or new local! Bonus Tips: Be prepared for intrusion with online applications and profiles that you’ll often be asked to complete on company websites. Their HR may ask you for work background, bosses, references, phone numbers, reasons for having leftâ€"a myriad of information you don’t wish to give out to strangers. Skip windows requesting particularly private information if the program will let you (it won’t always). Try substituting nonsense, i.e. #willsharelater or similar. And never, ever give out information that might be used to scam you, particularly your social security number and date of birth. Be persistent. Companies are fickle in hiring practices, for many reasons as unique as the situations. They can take weeks or months to make decisions. They may freeze things. They may shift agendas. They may be overloaded. If you don’t hear anything, follow up within a week of your application (if you can get through and have not been instructed to not email or phone). If you hear nothing, send a follow-up email or snail mail note (if you can). Reach back to an inside contact if you can. And start over until you hear “No” or “It’s been filled.” Then tick that box off your list. BUT not the company. There may be another opportunity around the corner! Photo credit: Lisa Padilla

The Art of Promoting Yourself Without Bragging (part 2)

The Art of Promoting Yourself Without Bragging (part 2) The Art of Promoting Yourself Without Bragging (part 2) The Art of Promoting Yourself Without Bragging (part 2) August 21, 2009 by Career Coach Sherri Thomas 1 Comment Here is another great tip for tactfully tooting your own horn without sounding cheesy. Attitude is the key ingredient! Ive found that getting a new job really boils down to two things: confidence and passion. To get the job offer at the NBC-TV station in Monterey and beat out the other 100 job candidates, I was passionate about the company AND the position. Even though I didnt have the kind of experience that was required, I told the hiring manager that I absolutely knew that I could do the job. Theres a kind of quiet confidence that we all have down deep inside. A confidence that comes from knowing what were capable of doing. When you transition into a new job role or a new company, you need to show the hiring manager that you have confidence in yourself and know that youll be successful in the job. Great companies are ALWAYS looking to hire great talent and that means you! So, if youre serious about getting into a new career, then