Paris Terrorist Attack Puts Life in Perspective

paris terrorist attack puts life in perspective

It was our team’s assistant who told me about the Paris terrorist attack on Friday afternoon.   Right before, I was busy updating a presentation and worrying about something I don’t even remember now.  I quickly halted both to follow what was going on in Paris and contacted our neighbor to find out if his daughter and son are okay in Paris.  I have yet to hear back. ...  read more

Less than Ideal Job? Go Beyond Your Job Description

go beyond your job description

In part 1 and 2 of our talk with Executive Author, Jane Lin, we discussed the

  1. Best Secret to Finding Your Dream Job.
  2. Negotiating Job Offer – What 70% of People Fail to Do

In this final part, we migrated our conversation from job search to on the job success.   We don’t always have the ideal job.  Sometimes we have to take jobs just to make sure we can pay the mortgage or rent.   In these cases, does this mean we put on career on hold until we find another job?  Jane’s advice is no.   Even with a less than ideal job, you have the power to make it more and progress your career.  How?  Go beyond your job description! ...  read more

5 Success Tips for College Graduates – What I Wish I Knew

tips for college graduates

Just graduated from college?   Congratulations and welcome to the workforce!  Do these words excite you or scare you to death?  If you are anything like me when I graduated from college, it’s probably both.

Transitioning from college to work can be a huge change.  It’s okay to feel exhilarated and nervous. I still remember how much I looked forward to starting my first full time job.  I was excited to finally make money and be part of the “real world”, but I also clearly remember my anxieties. ...  read more

How Basketball Coach Valvano Changed My Career Perspective

coach valvano

A big thank you to our Executive Author, Cindy Wong-Zarahn for writing this article

In the U.S., the national college basketball tournament affectionately known as “March Madness” mesmerizes much of the country for a few weeks in March. The latest tournament is recently behind us, and throughout the TV coverage I was reminded of one of the most inspirational speeches I have ever heard, from Coach Valvano back in 1993. ...  read more

Say Yes – When You Usually Say No

I know it’s well into the New Year, but I am still pondering what to do differently this year to take my life to the next level.  Here is one idea I am implementing – Say Yes, when I usually say no.

I am realizing, if I want to grow in life and at work.

  • I need to go outside of my comfort zone
  • I need to do things differently than I usually do.
  • I need to take new chances and learn from new experiences

Why?  Because the definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”   Even with that understanding, many of us have a harder and harder time saying yes to new experiences.   We have so many bad concepts in our head like ...  read more

What Kind of “Sugar” Can You Contribute?

I can’t stop watching this video.  It just make me feel so good about life and people.  My husband showed it to us a few weeks ago.  Now my kids and I watch it almost every day and dance to it in pure joy.

So why am I share this on my career blog?  Well, it made think about the true meaning of success and a challenge for all of you. ...  read more

Who Would You Rather Be – Elsa or Anna?

Lei:  I am excited to introduce a new Executive Author to our Soft Skills Gym – Cindy Wong-Zarahn.  I only met Cindy last year but feel like we have been old friends for years.  She has close to 20 years of experience in the corporate world with plenty of battle scars as well as very sage advice.  I already personally benefited from her advice for my own career. Click here to read her bio and why she wants to join our community.  You can also follow Cindy on twitter @CZarahn    ...  read more