Job Market Report May 17 2012

A nice pick-up this week - sights of improvement? _______________________________________________________________________________________ For Information: Dan Moran, 518-641-8968 May 16, 2012 Job Postings Take Turn for the Better with an Increase (Albany, NY, May 16, 2012) – Post postings took a turn for the better, increasing over 200 this past seven days for the period prior, certainly good news. “Job postings came in at 1996 for the last seven days, up from 1763 the week prior, a nice increase and perhaps a sign of some renewed confidence in the market” , stated Moran, of Next-Act (www.next-act.com), a career transition management firm located in Colonie. “ This is also good timing for recent college grads returning to the area in search of jobs. They will see a bit stronger job market which will be helpful”. Other markets in NYS saw declines in the number of job postings, especially the metro NYC market which has had a very difficult past few months with postings being way down from last year’s levels. About Next-Act Next-Act, a division of DVG, Inc. is a career management & transition firm directed by Dan Moran, the Founder & President of the firm. Moran contributes over thirty years experience in career consulting, business and human resources management. In 2012, his firm will celebrate 24 years in business. Moran is noted for his expertise in helping today’s “boomers” move on to fulfilling second careers, while helping executives and professionals achieve their career goals. The firm also provides human resources consulting and corporate services to companies. Moran is also a certified facilitator for C.J. Hayden’s Get Clients Now! & Get Hired Now! programs. For further press information: http://www.next-act.com/press_room. Dan Moran President & Founder Next-Act Career Management & Transition Specialists Celebrating 24-years of helping others in 2012! 125 Wolf Road, Suite #128 Albany, NY 12205 Office: 518-261-4212 Cell: 518-641-8968 eFax: 586-279-4212 dmoran@next-act.com

You need a clear vision to travel to new heights in your career …

You need a clear vision to travel to new heights in your career …We are limited, not by our abilities, but by our vision.” – Jonathan Swift, Irish Author and Satirist In the course of my practice, I meet new people each and every week who are in the state of flux in their career, sometimes caused by things good, sometimes not good. One common need I see in all – they need a vision of where they are going so they can proceed. Some may call vision direction, or a plan – it is all the same: Having a specific and concrete vision of how you want your future shaped, what you want to do on your terms and how you will measure your success. Sadly, many go through their career without a vision – they just do their job. They are not motivated, have little passion for what they do and just go by day-to-day. That is no way to live when there is an alternative, if one will just open their eyes and see their vision. I tell many of my clients – looking for a job isn’t that difficult with technology today – but without a clear vision, the task is daunting if not impossible. Having a clear vision is the roadmap to take you from where you are today to where you want to be – somewhat of a GPS of your life. Without a clear vision of the goal, situation or value you want to deliver – really anything you are pushing for – you cannot see it, and when you achieve it, you won’t realize it. Sound like you? What do you do? • First, commit – commit to making a change in your career life for the better which will have a positive impact on all part of your life. This is the toughest step for sure. I know I hammer this over and over again – it is just so critical. • Identify the ideal career or job situation for you – and write down the specifics. It might be setting, physical location, type of people you work with, type of work you are doing, compensation, etc. Just detail it and write it down – this is critical. Keep this “list” in front of you always, in clear view. • Identify where your ideal situation exist through research, networking, securing professional advice to help you if needed. Be open minded; ask questions; find the answers. • Create a clear vision statement for yourself – what do you want to be, what do you want to accomplish and then set metrics around your vision – timelines, measurements etc. • Reward yourself when you move through the steps above – hey, we are human – rewards work to push performance! Buy yourself something – take a few moments to savor your progress. A career vision statement is really "big picture" thinking. It should focus on what you want to aspire to -- and that should inspire you -- regardless of where you are now. A career vision statement opens your eyes to what is possible and gives you something tangible to move toward. Unlike a career or personal mission statement, which focuses on who and where you are now, a career vision statement is documenting a mental image of the future you. A career vision statement describes the absolute peak of where you envision yourself in your career -- not necessarily your current career, but the career you really want, the career that will completely fulfill you. What does a career vision statement look like? Some examples; notice how simplistic and direct: I will become a well-known and respected leader in the food industry, revitalizing the ways food is produced and marketed, making healthier products to help people live better lives. I will become a leader in my organization, helping transform it into an organization that respects all its stakeholders -- while at the same time being the best husband and father I can be. Clear vision provides clarity; without clarity, fear sets in and will stop most dead in their tracks. Don’t let that be you. Start thinking; start writing! And thank you for reading this. -Dan Dan Moran President & Founder Next-Act Career Management & Transition Specialists Celebrating 24 years providing career management services in 2012! 125 Wolf Road, Suite #128 Albany, NY 12205 Office: 518-261-4212 Cell: 518-641-8968 eFax: 586-279-4212 dmoran@next-act.com

Still flat - but don't be discouraged - still good jobs out there ... _______________________________________________________________________ For Information: Dan Moran, 518-641-8968 May 8, 2012 Job Postings Consistently Flat (Albany, NY, May 8, 2012) – Again this week, job postings were flat in the region at a time when we should be seeing growth. Postings were 1763 compared to 1714 the week prior. “We are clearly stalled with no growth. This isn’t positive news at all”, stated Moran, of Next-Act ( www.next-act.com ), a career transition management firm located in Colonie. Other markets in NYS posted similar results, up or down but generally flat. “This just isn’t Regionally – it is Statewide. About Next-Act Next-Act, a division of DVG, Inc. is a career management & transition firm directed by Dan Moran, the Founder & President of the firm. Moran contributes over thirty years experience in career consulting, business and human resources management. In 2012, his firm will celebrate 24 years in business. Moran is noted for his expertise in helping today’s “boomers” move on to fulfilling second careers, while helping executives and professionals achieve their career goals. The firm also provides human resources consulting and corporate services to companies. Moran is also a certified facilitator for C.J. Hayden’s Get Clients Now! & Get Hired Now! programs. For further press information: http://www.next-act.com/press_room . Dan Moran President & Founder Next-Act Career Management & Transition Specialists Celebrating 24-years of helping others in 2012! 125 Wolf Road, Suite #128 Albany, NY 12205 Office: 518-261-4212 Cell: 518-641-8968 eFax: 586-279-4212 dmoran@next-act.com

Don’t Lose – Fuel Your Mind while Unemployed

“The mind, once expanded to the dimensions of larger ideas, never returns to its original size”. Oliver Wendell Holmes Out of town this week so I am relying on a contributor I met some time ago to provide some very important tips to those unemployed who think, at times, that they may be losing their mind! Being unemployed is out of one’s element. The routine is changed, and one can become lonely. Brian Jenkins who writes for Brain Track.com provides some very pertinent and useful tips one can employed to stop the craziness which I have included here. Expand your mind – improve your skills One point Brian recommends is using your time unemployed to expand your mind and skills and he presents some very good links to programs in online learning. Many are free. What better way to use this time and prepare yourself for the market. Hope you enjoy. Back next week. And thank you for reading this. – Dan How to Keep Your Sanity While Out of Work and Job Hunting After losing a job, your source of income is gone along with your daily structure, personal work relationships, and, perhaps most importantly, your sense of purpose. You may feel as if you're on an emotional roller-coaster. You may feel frustrated and depressed, so what can you do? Here are some useful tips to help you keep your sanity while out of work and looking for a job: Volunteer: Volunteering boosts your self-esteem and overall level of satisfaction. Doing good for others provides a natural sense of accomplishment. Volunteering makes you feel better about yourself and it makes you feel useful. Additionally, volunteering combats depression because it keeps you from feeling isolated; it keeps you in regular contact with people. Volunteering also looks good on a resume and provides networking opportunities. Get some sunlight: According to a study by Gavin Lambert of the Baker Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia, a sunny day can boost your mood. The study shows the brain produces more of the mood-lifting chemical serotonin on sunny days than on darker days. The study shows the rate of serotonin production in the brain is directly related to the duration of bright sunlight. So get outside every day! Go somewhere: It's easy to get depressed sitting alone in your house all day. Try to get out of the house every day - take a walk, go to a shopping mall, be among people. Physical activities: Aerobic exercises, jogging, and other physical activities help you to use up the excess energy produced by stress. Experts suggest at least 30 minutes of exercise every day. Being active can boost your feel-good neurotransmitters called endorphins. Exercise also gives you important time away from worrying about finding a job. According to the prestigious Mayo Clinic, almost any type of exercise, from aerobics to weightlifting, can relieve stress. The Mayo Clinic also states that regular exercise can increase self-confidence and decrease the symptoms associated with mild depression and anxiety. The Mayo Clinic goes on to say that exercise can ease your stress levels and provide you with a sense of command over your body and your life. Stick to a schedule:After losing a job, it's important to build and maintain a new routine. Go to bed and get up at about the same time each day. Treat your job search like a job - set a daily job search schedule. Overqualified?: Take a job you're overqualified for to make ends meet. The job also gives you something to do during the day, and it's just temporary. Consider also taking a part-time job you're over qualified for. Studies show it's easier to get hired for a new job while employed. People tend to define themselves by their job titles, but you are way more than your job. Focus on what you're getting from the job instead of what you're not getting. With most jobs there are things you can learn and skills you can develop. Support from family members and friends: It's easy to feel useless and depressed when your unemployed. You need to vent these feelings. The positive comments and encouragement you'll likely receive helps you cope with being unemployed. When you share your burdens, your problems are put in a better perspective and will seem less difficult. Unemployed people often feel a sense of isolation and loneliness; talk and socialize with your friends. Consider joining a job-seekers' support group. Learn something new: Challenge yourself to learn something new; meeting the challenge will keep you busy and increase your self-confidence. Take online courses: Taking classes gives you something positive to do, and they also enhance your resume. If money is a problem take free online courses from notable colleges. Through OpenCourseWare, many colleges and universities offers free access to courses taught previously. OpenCourseWare includes materials used in courses, suggestions for reading material, and lecture notes. Some classes include video or audio lectures. You can learn at your convenience. Here's a list of some of the schools offering free classes in a wide array of subjects: • Yale University • Utah State • UMass Boston • UC Irvine • Notre Dame Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) offers a large number of free courses. MIT's Sloan School of Business Management provides a large list of undergraduate business courses. The free courses allow you to gain knowledge and skills, enhance your resume, and do something positive with your free time. Also, when you're asked what you do for a living, you can say, "I'm looking for a job and I'm taking classes at MIT!" Think of being unemployed as a challenge. A lot of successful people have been unemployed. Take care of yourself, stay positive, and keep busy. Brian Jenkins writes about many different college and career topics for BrainTrack.com. He has contributed content to BrainTrack's career planning guide. Dan Moran President & Founder Next-Act Career Management & Transition Specialists Celebrating 24 years providing career management services in 2012! 125 Wolf Road, Suite #128 Albany, NY 12205 Office: 518-261-4212 Cell: 518-641-8968 eFax: 586-279-4212 dmoran@next-act.com

Job Market Report May 2 2012

For Information: Dan Moran, 518-641-8968 May 2, 2012 Better -- not great _________________________________________________________________ Job Postings Remain Flat; Market Continues to Appear Stalled (Albany, NY, May 2, 2012) – The job market in the Capital Region continues to remain flat this past seven days right in the midst of the time when we should be seeing stronger job growth given that this time of the year – March – June – is the prime recruiting and hiring season. Job postings are reported as 1714 compared to 1656 the prior seven days. Comparing to 2011, job postings in the region are down about 60%. “What we are seeing in our region is consistent with national reports that the job market and therefore economic growth has stalled. Other reports show that small business – employers with 50 or under employees – are the hiring machines today representing better than 50% of the jobs in the market, so that is a key tip to those in the job market – think smaller! Look at smaller companies – they are fueling the market and present excellent opportunities”, stated Moran, of Next-Act (www.next-act.com), a career transition management firm located in Colonie. “But a bit of good news – postings didn’t go down this past week, breaking a two-week down trend.” Other markets in NYS posted similar results, up or down but generally flat. Metro NYC continued to be way below 2011, by better than 70%. About Next-Act Next-Act, a division of DVG, Inc. is a career management & transition firm directed by Dan Moran, the Founder & President of the firm. Moran contributes over thirty years experience in career consulting, business and human resources management. In 2012, his firm will celebrate 24 years in business. Moran is noted for his expertise in helping today’s “boomers” move on to fulfilling second careers, while helping executives and professionals achieve their career goals. The firm also provides human resources consulting and corporate services to companies. Moran is also a certified facilitator for C.J. Hayden’s Get Clients Now! & Get Hired Now! programs. For further press information: http://www.next-act.com/press_room.

How to be you own personal Best Of …

“Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.” Ralph Waldo Emersonhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

I had the opportunity to interview Dr. Mary Hawkins, President of Bellevue University, S. Bellevue, Nebraska and to talk to her about the new initiative Bellevue University has launched to address the real concerns of many in today’s market –the downward spiral of quality education and the ranking of US education in the world. Once number one, the US ranks 12th internationally – and we clearly need to change this to be competitive.

We hear the term “best of” each year. Publications survey to rank the Best Of for restaurants, sports, venues etc.But how can you be the “Best Of “ in your life, fulfilled in career and life? It all starts with a commitment (we will discuss the University’s Make It Happen Now initiative) and a pledge to be your best.

Dr. Hawkins – and I agree with her 100% - feels that students who started but did not complete their degree often get left behind as the job market and skill requirements change. “60 % of those who start a course of education, sadly, do not complete it”, stated Dr. Hawkins, a statistic that floored me. “College counselors struggle to understand the needs of today’s students. If we can motivate those students to return later in life, there could be a positive impact upon the nation”.

Dr. Hawkins – you study identified that 25% of workers don’t like their job. Was this surprising ?

“Yes Dan as I did not think the percentage would be that high. This high level of discontent with work, impacts productivity and morale and as well, since a job is so tightly aligned to an individual, their self-satisfaction, family and community. If one is unhappy in their job, it affects all parts of their life”.

Do you feel there is a shift in traditional thoughts about work – with work being a means to produce income and you needn’t be happy as long as you were making money to support the family?

“Absolutely. There is clearly a new thought process so unlike previous generations. Our parents and generations before worked in one industry, one company for their careers – even if they didn’t like their job. It was just the right thing to do. Today there are new opportunities to redirect one’s career, and people are more mobile offering even more opportunities. There are new options to continue education in a traditional or non-traditional way, opening new doors for those contemplating a change” .

You also found that 12% were opting for self-employment. Why do you feel this is happening?

“We are finding that people want more control over their lives and more flexibility. Younger students see what is possible as they have witnessed the founders of Facebook and Apple become rock stars and rich, and often their plan is to follow that path versus traditional employment. People also seem to want to create something of their own – to create their own work of art - and they have the means and resources to do so with technology and communication. Colleges are beginning to catch up to this wave. Here at Bellevue University, we established a Center of Entrepreneurship to specifically address this need and the emerging growth”.

To those readers reading this shaking their heads and saying, yup – this is me I need to restart – what advice do you have for them?

“The most important action – commit. You and I know Dan that the first step in redirecting ones career is that commitment to yourself. We ask people to take a pledge to them elves as part of the Make It Happen Now initiative. Next, if further education is your goal contact your college of choice and if you do not get the answers you need, call another. Make sure they understand your needs. We are always here at Bellevue to help. One should also look to their current employer to see if there are educational benefits available.

Fast forward five years from now – what do you hope we see in the next 5 years survey?

“I would love to see 50% of those who have started but not finished their education get to completion which will help them grow and provide their family. If we get this going, we will be in great shape”

Tell me more about MakeItHappenNow.org

“It was born here at the University and is part of our commitment to help the 38 million Americans who have some college credit but no degrees realize their dreams. Everyone is asked to make a personal pledge of commitment to their goals which is printable and can be shared with others. That is the start. From there, we provide, via our website, a host of resources, experts in the field of career and education which I know you are joining Dan, and information to inform and motivate those who make a commitment. It all starts with the pledge and one can do it right now: http://www.makeithappennow.org/pledge/”.

Dr. Hawkins leadership is inspiring to see and it isn’t just words – it is action! Take the first step – a critical step – commit to be the “Best“ in your life. Take the pledge and keep it in front of you.

And thank you for reading this. - Dan

Job Market Report April 25, 2012

Sadly the numbers seem stuck .. market is flat, but do not let this deter you! ___________________________________________________________________________________________ For Information: Dan Moran, 518-641-8968 April 25, 2012 Job Postings Flat; Market Appears Stalled (Albany, NY, April 25, 2012) – When the Regional job market should be seeing signs of growth, it appears that employers have put the brakes on hiring, and this is concerning. So states Dan Moran who tracks job activity daily. “This is the season where we historically see a significant increase in hiring activity for the Spring and early Summer and it is not happening. All signs now point to the fact that the job market has weakened in our Region – a Region that typically outpaces the State and nation just when it appeared a stronger recovery was on the horizon. This appears to be consistent with national reports that show that the unemployment rate is not changing or improving and new jobs have slowed,” stated Moran, of Next-Act (www.next-act.com), a career transition management firm located in Colonie. “There is a concerning slow down in the job market and therefore economic recovery”. Job postings were 1650 this past seven days, down from 1700 the week prior. “The increases we saw a few weeks ago have evaporated”. To those in the market today looking for a new job Moran recommends, “Don’t get hung up on the numbers. While the market is softer there are still great jobs in the market so don’t let the ups and downs of the numbers concern you”. Other markets in NYS posted similar results, up or down slightly. Metro NYC has been languishing as of late with the overall market being down some 40-50-% signaling a regional issue, and consistent with national reports. About Next-Act Next-Act, a division of DVG, Inc. is a career management & transition firm directed by Dan Moran, the Founder & President of the firm. Moran contributes over thirty years experience in career consulting, business and human resources management. In 2012, his firm will celebrate 24 years in business. Moran is noted for his expertise in helping today’s “boomers” move on to fulfilling second careers, while helping executives and professionals achieve their career goals. The firm also provides human resources consulting and corporate services to companies. Moran is also a certified facilitator for C.J. Hayden’s Get Clients Now! & Get Hired Now! programs. For further press information: http://www.next-act.com/press_room. Dan Moran President & Founder Next-Act Career Management & Transition Specialists Celebrating 24-years of helping others in 2012! 125 Wolf Road, Suite #128 Albany, NY 12205 Office: 518-261-4212 Cell: 518-641-8968 eFax: 586-279-4212 dmoran@next-act.com