EDITORIALS

When I was in my mid 30’s, I had the great honor of being treasurer of my congregation, a job I held for 4 full years.It is probably true that I lean towards all-consuming jobs. Or, perhaps I just try to do a good job even when I am not getting paid. Nonetheless, I discovered a lot about h...

During the upcoming Memorial Day holiday weekend, a great opportunity will be presenting itself to you in the form of gatherings of those who know you (and presumably love you).In order to enjoy the greatest benefit, you need to paint on a smile. I don’t care if you have been out of work 3...

There is an extended joke I heard a while back about a man who experienced a flight cancellation. As a matter of fact, he was not alone. The line was long and as the minutes turned to an hour, he was getting angrier and angrier.When he finally got to the head of the line he demanded to be ...

There is no greater challenge in this world than summing yourself up in 90 seconds or writing a proper summary for your resume.As many of you know, I was CFO of an advertising agency in the 1980’s. Initially, I used to wonder why the creative folks got paid so well. As I got more and more ...

I always find it interesting what people say about themselves.Those who deal in hiring decisions have so many hidden tools in their arsenal. I suppose the obvious manifestations of who you are come across in the body of your resume and, of course, in your 90-second announcement. What those...

In our male dominated society called The FENG, one of the biggest challenges I face on a daily basis is getting members to ask for and accept help.I am sure we all know that traditionally guys don’t ask for directions at the gas station. It is much better to drive around and around totally...

One of the pearls of wisdom I heard from a friend of mine in 1991 was that no one is out of work forever, it just seems that way.When you are employed in a W-2 job, weekends and evenings are hopefully your time to relax. Snow days, holidays are also to be anticipated and enjoyed. After all...

We do live in a wonderful time. We have Google, LinkedIn, and every firm that is actually in business has a website.I am always a little disappointed when someone reaches out to me and I realize they haven’t actually looked me up. Just exactly how much time would it take? If you type Matt ...

Of course it would be an understatement to tell you that I believe in the value of a FULL outgoing signature. In much the same way that I am a Fanatic FENG’er, I am also a fanatic when it comes to the substance and format of outgoing signatures. (Persnickety is another word.)I try not to b...

Part of the lecture I deliver to new members who call me is that The FENG is a networking group, not a job listing service. I then add that they shouldn’t allow the fact that we are publishing lots of job leads each month confuse them about our true purpose.In the beginning (when God creat...

One of the many things I am always surprised about is the degree to which most members of The FENG generalize their very specific talents.I assume that this approach is their attempt to broaden their background and make it appear more appealing to a larger audience. While it is always requ...

Although we are frequently willing to accept lower salaries and/or lesser responsibilities, the greater challenge is convincing the world at large of our willingness and overcoming their resistance.What we see as age discrimination, they see as just plain common sense in screening candidat...

One of the worst things that anyone networking can do is to ask if you know of any jobs for them. I can assure you that the most likely answer will be something to the effect that two weeks ago they came across something that was right for you, but they can’t remember who it was they heard...

I’m sure tonight’s topic will generate a lot of comments. Those of you who would like to join in on this discussion are invited to send your comments to [email protected] short answer to the question of the moment is: I hope so! If you weren’t, I’m not really sure how you were added to...

Probably one of the most upsetting and disappointing aspects of searching for a new job when you are “well experienced” is the need to consider positions for which the compensation is considerably less than your last job.I suppose it is part of our mind set as accountants that we tend to v...

For those of you who have been spending any significant time surfing the job boards may I suggest you stop and turn that energy to networking?I had the great pleasure of speaking with an old friend of mine some time ago (yes, most of my friends are old, but this one is actually just a litt...

Perhaps it all started with the telegraph. (Hey, they were charging by the word.) Or, was it the CB radio? Somewhere along the line we have all come to believe that brevity, even when not entirely correct, is somehow okay.Today’s communication formats such as the various smart phone tools ...

Life is made up of a lot of endless details. And, as financial people, the endless details are where we shine.I have said from time to time that eating an elephant is best done one bite at a time. (Mustard would probably also be a good idea.) Most tasks, no matter how enormous they may see...

I am always amazed and astounded how frequently the resumes I see are missing vital information. What I am not clear about is WHY the individual in question thinks that leaving off important data will benefit him or her.Let me start at the top of the list and mention missing home addresses...

In the past week, it is clear that spring is finally here in Connecticut. As you all probably know, I work out of my home office, and I am fortunate that it faces a heavily wooded area. During the winter, I can see my neighbor’s property off in the distance and sort of notice when there is...

I don’t know about you, but there are lots of things in this world that I wonder about. At one time I wondered about why the sky was blue, but that was before Google. I guess there are lots of things we don’t need to wonder about anymore. We can just look them up.The above topic wasn’t one...