DEVELOPING YOUR DREAM CAREER

Tips on How To Prepare for Your Dream Career

Almost every student or job seeker has a fair idea of what career they want to pursue but many don’t really know how to make it happen. Job search is becoming increasingly difficult and thanks to technology, employers are continually raising the bar on their expectations from new hires.

So, how do you beat the odds and nail that job that puts springs on your feet each morning as you go to work? We invited an Executive Trainer and an HR Director to September edition of #SFANLiveChat to weigh in on how job seekers can prepare for and find careers they love — or let it find them.

Marricke Gane Kofi is a Donor Consultant/Executive Trainer at Marricke Gane Consulting Ltd while Lexy Boahene is the founder of LX HR Solutions, an HR company that help Ghanaians in Diaspora find work back home. Below are exclusive insights from the chat on how to determine your career path, stay visible to recruiters, and eventually get hired.

1. Understand what a career is and be clear about what you want.

There’s a difference between having a job and having a career. A job is something you get to do to make a living — to earn money — while a career is like a calling. “In my view, a career is something you are wired for, love doing, and that adds value to you and others both financially and otherwise,” Marricke explains.

In a job, you do whatever the boss says and try as much as possible to be in his good books but in a career, you go above and beyond your job description. Your primary focus is not on doing the barest minimum to earn a paycheck, you take initiatives and perform the job as though the company belongs to you.

“I’d describe it as an occupation that you embark on throughout your working years,” Lexy underscores. “You are expected to develop and progress through this journey!”

This involves a clear understanding of what you truly want and setting specific goals on how to actualize it.

“I don’t think you always necessarily know from the beginning,” Lexy says, “but it’s important to consider these three things when choosing a career path:

a. Make sure you are doing what you love or enjoy

b. Do what you are good at and what naturally comes easy

c. Try to stick to broad subjects/tasks in the beginning. Learn a range of new things and transferable skills.”

“I think one of the core things to do is know yourself — how your brain works, your personality, your natural interests. The moment you know how you are wired, the next thing is to figure what industry and roles require your strength most. Your strengths must find you your career not vice versa,” Marricke observes.

When you’ve figured out where to start your career journey from, then you need to set clear goals for your progression:

• Where do you want to be in the next year, five years or ten years and how do you get there?
• What needs to be done daily, weekly, or monthly to move you further, faster?

Note, things might not always play out the way you planned, continually review your strategy and adapt to changes.

Finally, leverage community events, attend workshops, find a mentor and build relationships. These will help you find direction.

2. Don’t be trapped by the lack of experience “Catch 22”.

“It’s better to be prepared for an opportunity and not have one than to have an opportunity and not be prepared.” — Whitney M. Young

Recruiters won’t hire you if you don’t have work experience but you need the job to get work experience. That’s the catch-22 entry-level job seekers often face.

To avoid this, don’t wait until you graduate from college before getting prepared for work, get involved in an internship or apprenticeship scheme — work for free if you have to or find a solution to a problem and create a startup, Lexy emphasizes.

Your internship job might not necessarily be in the area of your passion but it gives you invaluable understanding about the world of work, and helps you create vital connections. An internship is a way of testing the waters of your career journey.

Many students often moan that they don’t get to do actual work during an internship other than ‘fetching coffee or making copies’. The truth is if you’re diligent in those humble assignments, you could build great traction that might land you better roles.

No matter how insignificant your work might seem, be sure to use it as an opportunity to distinguish yourself and learn how things work in the bigger context. Ask questions, show genuine interest in what your colleagues are doing and someday someone might need a hand with something and you’d be ready.

3. Make it hard for recruiters to ignore your resume.

“When you do a resume, think of a recruiter as looking at thousands of resumes, she or he will pick ones that make her or his work easier to select.” — Marricke Gane

Contrary to popular opinion, many hiring managers are still utilizing resumes in making recruitment decisions.

But, that’s not the whole truth.

Let’s say you saw a job advert and sent in your resume. The system stacks it in and eventually, the HR exec gets ready to review the pile (if she doesn’t review them just-in-time).

She is looking for two exceptional candidates for a marketing position but she’s faced with more than 2,000 resumes (well, to be fair let’s just say 100 resumes). As if that’s not enough, she has to also take a peek at some of the cover letters for the shortlists.

How much time do you think she has to consider each of the resumes before clicking the “next” button or throwing it into the waste bin?

15 seconds, tops!

So how do you make your resume stand out from the pack?

“Make it look the way most people’s resume will NOT look like; simple, easy to digest and powerful. I like to use infographics. I recommend infographs because most won’t use it. It depicts info on you in attractive and digestible ways,” Marricke says.

Many job applicants often think that the more content and “activities” they have on their resume, the better. And so they list everything you can imagine in there. Unfortunately, that’s the quickest way to get your copy into the trash bin.

A better approach is to find out what experiences the job needs and highlight that, period.

“Keep it simple and please make sure the layout is not overwhelming,” Lexy cautions.

The difference between a CV and a Resume:

It is generally accepted that a CV (Curriculum Vitae) is a long in-depth document that can be laid out over two or more pages and it contains a high level of detail about your achievements, a great deal more than just a career biography while a resume is a concise document typically not longer than one page as the intended reader will not dwell on your document for very long. The goal of a resume is to make an individual stand out from the competition.

P.S: Remember to spellcheck your stuff, use uniform fonts and sizes, and highlight your accomplishments at every role you mention.

4. Brand yourself on social media.

Social media is a very useful resource when you’re looking for a job but it can equally be a liability.

“If you haven’t kept a good social presence until now, it’s a bit late because recruiters go way back to look. Most recruiters just want to see if you are positive or negative in the social space. So be on social media to make an impact. You can’t be nasty on social media and tell interviewers you are sweet — they’ll see you as a reputational time bomb,” Marricke explains.

To create a good social media image, Lexy says, firstly, have a presence on social media even if it’s just Linkedin and be active! Talk about social issues and highlight your strengths on your social media pages.

In today’s super competitive labour market, personal branding trumps “job experience”. Leverage social media to create your equity and become a thought leader in the area of your passion. A lot of companies are looking for subject-matter-experts and social media influencers because majority of business transactions now happen via social media.

Here’s a simple outline on how to create a personal brand on social media:

• Identify two to three subjects you care about — you have to represent something.
• Create a decent and consistent profile across various platforms — Guy Kiyosaki, the chief evangelist of Apple, is famous on several social
  media sites, and his rule of thumb is to always have a professional business attire photo of just your face for profile pictures.
• Start blogging or posting consistently about subjects of your choice. Don’t just focus on sharing your stuff, make out time to connect with others by reading, sharing, commenting on or liking their posts/tweets as well.
• Be authentic. The reason you have to be you is that if you are simply putting on a show, the day the façade comes down, you’ll lose your audience.

Deal breakers in a prospective employee.

We asked Marricke what his deal breaker in a prospective new hire is.

Marricke: I always recruit someone who can demonstrate creativity and adaptability. Things change fast at work and so should you.

Conclusion

You deserve a career you love. But if you don’t plan for it and apply yourself to make it happen, your dream career will only be a dream. So, figure out what you truly want, utilize every opportunity you have to move yourself closer to actualizing it, create a resume that sets you apart from the competition, and leverage social media to build your brand.

In the final analysis, “it’s not what you do but the impact you make on a day to day basis. Make each day count,” Lexy impresses.

“Your career is what you are already wired for, refined and lived. It must never be what you do for money or for mummy or daddy,” Marricke concludes.

Were you inspired by this article? 

If you are inspired, please share to your social media handles to inspire someone.

#chiefamo_inspires 

How To Set And Achieve Your Goals

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Goals are what power and motivate you to achieve your dreams. As said by Tom Hopkins “Goals are the fuel in the furnace of achievement”. Without goals, you will simply move in the direction that life takes you. With goals, you fly like an arrow, straight to your target. Until November 2016, I had never properly set a goal and achieving any goal was difficult and almost impossible for me. With guidance from my mentor, I set my goals for 2017 and I have achieved or partially achieved every goal on my list.

Below I walk you through the exact steps I took,  to help you set and achieve your goals.

Decide

1. Decide what yo want:

The first step in setting your goals is to determine what exactly you want. Picture your ideal life, assume how your life will be if everything was perfect and you had no limitations. Take in to consideration your income, family, health, net worth etc. How healthy will you be? How much money will you be earning daily/monthly? Your ideal family life, your net worth on retirement etc.

2. Identify your “WHY” you want to pursue your goals:

Motivation is key to achieving goals. The journey to achieving your goals will be though (nothing good comes easy). You will face many challenges, and you will need motivation to overcome them. Your “why” for pursuing these goals should be good enough to motivate you to work harder. One of the reasons why I hustle is to be able to spend quality time with my family. I want my children to see me every morning before they go to school and also spend some time with me every evening before they go to bed. This is what motivates me. Identify what will motivate you to pursue your dream life.

Write It Down

3. Put it on paper:

It is said, “If your goals aren’t written down, then you are not serious about achieving them”. Studies have shown that, people who write down their goals accomplish significantly than their counterpart who do not write them down (holding all factors constant). In November 2016 when I was setting my goals for the year 2017, the first step was to resign from my part-time job on 31st December, that year. After forwarding my resignation letter to my administrator, she tried convincing me several times to extend my stay there. After every meeting with her, I always leave her office convinced and with a decision not to resign.  But, everyday upon reaching the house & seeing my written goals, my decision to resign always rekindles. I finally resigned on the set date as planned.

What I learnt is that, writing down your goals is like making a pledge to yourself. And seeing it always will motivate you positively. Your goals should be clear, specific and measurable.

Clear: it should be such that a child (6 yrs.) can understand it & should be able to explain it to another child.

Specific: your goals shouldn’t be vague, they should be clearly defined. Instead of saying “I will lose weight”, a specific goal would be “I will lose 5 Kg”.

Measurable: you should be able to evaluate your progress, so you will know how close you are to achieving your goals or when you have achieved it. Using the example above, a measurable goal will be “I will lose 5 kg in 2 months or by April”.

4. Set time limit:

Your goals must have a deadline, so you can know when to celebrate your success. Deadlines drive you to work much quicker towards achieving your goals. If your goal is a long term one, 5-10 years. Break it down to yearly, monthly, weekly or even daily with sub goals.

Obstacles To Overcome

5. Identify obstacles:

There are a lot of obstacles which you will have to overcome to achieve your goals. Identifying these obstacles in advance gives you the chance to come up with ways to overcome them. For example, you might find that you are scared of starting your own business because you think you might fail. This could lead you to think about ways to overcome this fear.

6. Identify the resources you will need:

To achieve something you have never achieved before, you have to learn and do things you have never done before. You will need skills, information, help from people to achieve big goals. Identify the skills that you will need to acquire to achieve your goals, e.g. presentation skills, marketing skills etc. Identify and write down the names of people who will be instrumental in you achieving your goals e.g. spouse, siblings, friends , customers etc.

Prioritize

7. Prioritize:

When writing down your goals, you will discover that you have several of them. But they are all not as important as each other. Some will contribute more to your bigger goal, so it will make sense to prioritize those. Write down all your goals in other of priority and tackle those that will affect your objective if not done first. Plan your activities for each day, week and month in advance.

8. Stick to your goals:

Writing down goals is one aspect and working out your goals is another aspect. It is the later which makes the most difference. Discipline yourself to work on your goals. Set reminders to remind yourself, work on them daily, track your progress and constantly motivate yourself.

I hope this goal setting tips help you achieve more in the coming years than you have ever achieved previously. I wish you all the best in your journey.

Let me hear from you how helpful this article has been to you in the comment section.

 #Chiefamo inspires

THE LADY ON FIRE

*LADY ON FIRE*
By Uncle Ebo


He was having his evening beverage


That's when she joined him.


"Hi there handsome, you're looking good. So fine I can eat you up" she said sitting down.


"I thought we agreed to keep away from each other? I am a married man" he told her.


" Come on. I won't bite. You can't resist me, no man can" she said.


"I am a married man" he told her.


"Fight all you want but soon I will have you. I am way better than your wife" she told him.


"You are nothing compared to my wife" he told her off.


"Really? All this body. All these curves. All these sweetness.


I bet your wife is not as good in bed as I am" she told him unbuttoning the top button of her blouse to reveal her cleavage then lifting up her skirt, just a bit.


"If I was a lustful and unfaithful man, all that would move me. But I am too grown to be enticed by what you're showing off.


I am a grown man, you think all that consumes my mind is sex? And for your information, my wife is actually great in bed" he told her.


"How will you know unless you do me.


Try me tonight. Let's drive in your black car to a romantic hotel, I promise you a night you will never forget" she told him.


"You know what you are? You are lazy? A lazy woman" he told her then took a sip of his beverage.


"How dare you call me lazy?! I am a high flying educated woman. Any man would give anything to have me" she said.


"Fair enough. But would you give anything to make a man?" He asked.


"What do you mean?" She questioned.


"You look at me and find me attractive yet you disrespect the woman behind who I am, you want me to cheat on my wife, the woman behind my attractiveness" said he.


He drank a sip and continued,


"My wife is responsible for the man in me that you want today. When I had little, my wife believed in me. These suits you see me wearing, are my wife's idea,


I ask for her advice on what to wear. My success has come to pass because she prays for me and puts up with my demanding work hours. She corrects me and moulds me and that has moulded my character.


The Range Rover you see me outside driving that you fancy, I bought that with my wife. She and I invested to buy our house. I look attractive and pleasant because she treats me well and gives me peace.


And now you want to have the man that she made out of me and dishonour her? You want to have the man that she has built for years? You are lazy?"


Silence.


"I see you turning down the single men who want you and yet you want me, a man that another woman has made?


No, it doesn't work like that. Find your own single man, believe in him, pray for him, support him, nurture him and mould him to be the attractive man you want him to be. You women have a nurturing and helping gift, activate your gift.


My wife has been busy building me and I will not leave her for a woman who has nothing to offer but her sexiness.


So if you may excuse me, I need to drive home and take my wife on a date. She deserves the best" he said as he stood up and drank a last sip.


He reached in his wallet and placed gh50 on the table.


"Have yourself a drink as you think about your life and how you'll stop being lazy and find a single man you can build with. My generous wife and I have paid for the drink" he said.


He walked away as she looked on.


"I need to find my own husband" she thought to herself. (#copied for all men)

#copied
Chief_inspires
😇😆😆

VIRGINS AND MASTURBATION

I get lots of questions on masturbation most especially from ladies -yes, ladies masturbate a lot, especially virgins. Guys also masturbate. There is no debate on that. I'm not here to argue about who masturbates most, I need to deal with a serious issue.

Sexual urge for virgins is strong. What makes it stronger is the novelty, newness, the mystery and the hear says about sex.

Masturbation is fondling your genitals consistently to achieve orgasm. Ladies may stroke their clitoris while guys rub, massage or caress their penis. I decided to give explicit explanation because some ask me what masturbation is. Some ladies especiallly non-virgins use candles, banana, small bottles, sticks, dildos or whatever represents a penis and do solo sex (having sex by yourself).

From teenage upward, you will have a strong desire for sex. It's a sure sign you are normal and capable of having and enjoying sex in marriage. In your 20s it will be stronger and intense! You may wake up feeling horny for no single reason in the world or go hot on spotting a curvy lady! You may start noticing shapes and curves and you have to shake your head several times to keep the image off. You may get worked up on watching a romantic movie and discharge something. You check up and discover you are wet. All these are normal, you haven't committed any sin.

So what then do you do when you get hot and horny? Have sex? I know you know my answer and some singles will never be caught dead sleeping around, so what do they do? They masturbate! They give themselves release and pleasure through solo sex while claiming virginity at theseame time. Masturbation is completely wrong and not the way out. Let me explain:

1. Masturabation is not done in isolation. It is done with the image of someone in mind. It can be a lover, an EX, a celebrity, a married person, a crush, someone you like but incapable of having. You imagine having sex with them while masturbating. That is MENTAL FORNICATION

2. For ladies, while inserting all manner of objects, you may mistakenly deflower yourself and also introduce infection into your genitals and womb. It will be very difficult to convince your future partner that you never had sex with man except objects during your solo sex.

3. You kill your ability to enjoy sex in future. Millions of women don't enjoy sex in marriage which leads to sexual frustration, adultery, lesbianism and feminism. If you are used to getting orgasm by yourself, you won't be able to get it from your husband. If you are used to objects in your private part, you won't have feelings for your husband's penis. You will always think of something harder, bigger, longer, larger and completely unrealistic! Women who complain their husbands' penis are too small didn't marry as virgins. They must have been promiscous as singles.

4. You will not have a good sex life as a man. You will experience pre-mature ejaculation and your wife won't enjoy you leading to acute sexual frustration in marriage. You need self control to fully enjoy sex and give your wife maximum sexual pleasure. A woman enjoys sex when the man can go on for at least 7 minutes before ejaculating. Because you are used to instant release from masturbation, you may not be able to go more than a minute before exploding leaving your wife completely unsatisfied and frustrated. She may close up, become frigid and stop having sex altogether which may lead to you having an affair, she having an affair or both of you having an affair. Self control before marriage helps you enjoy sex to the maximum. You are able to delay ejaculation, go on for a long time and have excellent orgasm while giving your wife pleasure too. That is why total virginity pays!

5. If you do not suffer premature ejaculation, you may have serious problem with delayed/ retarded ejaculation. A situation where you get erection for several hours without ejaculation or orgasm. What is the benefit of sex without orgasm? Rough masturbation with your hands kills your ability to feel/enjoy sex with your wife. It is hell for a woman to be under a man who thrusts in for hours unable to ejaculate. How will the woman get pregnant? It's the reason some women are seemingly "barren" and can't talk to anybody out of embarrassment. Thrusting hard for so long leaves the woman sore, frustrated and hating sex altogether. You have so much to lose sexually when you masturbate. Abstaining from this degrading act helps you feel relaxed, confident, have normal sexual intercourse and enjoy the pleasures that comes with sex IN MARRIAGE!

6. You start having sex in the dream with a known or unknown person (demonic entities other wise known as spiritual spouse).

7. You feel drained, dirty, empty, useless and powerless after each act.

8. You start getting unsatisfied and wants the real thing. You fantasize more about sex and start longing for the real act.

9. You get a warped view of the opposite sex. You see them as sexual objects and start having sex with anything in skirt or trousers -you become promiscous.

10. You get damaged, hurt and broken.

11. You are at risk of hell fire!

These and more are the consequences of masturbation. They damage you and shatter you to pieces!  What then should you do with your sexual urge? How do you handle the constant hunger for sex?

1. Avoid all dirty pictures, pornography videos, pictures and hot, romantic movies -they are powerful sexual triggers!

2. Avoid friends who say dirty,lewd and obscene things. Stop all sexy banters with friends and say only things that are pure, holy, needful and helpful.

3. Get busy with your life, education and career, there is more to life than sex.

4. Transmute your sexual energy: Channel your sexual energy into something great. I had a strong sex drive in the institution. I simply channelled them into my education making me the best student in my department from the second year. I was very excited and energetic. I burnt the energy on my studies. I also started my ministry and was very committed as my fellowship bible study co-ordinator. If you don't burn that energy, you will have sex.

5. Study the word a lot especially Psalm 119. When you are filled with the word, you have no space for the devil and his demons in your heart.

6. Pray and speak in tongues always. It sanctifies you.

7. Make friends with godly people.

8. Avoid pornography and romantic movies.

9. Get busy in kingdom service.

10. Give your life to Jesus if you are not born again. He will surely help you out.

Masturbation is wrong, bad, demonic, destructive and sinful. Avoid it and end it with speed if you are deeply involved in it. Jesus can help you. Call on him! God bless you.

http://chiefamo.wordpress.comChiefamo_inspires

POWERS OF AM SORRY

THE POWER OF *I AM SORRY.*

*I am sorry,* a short but mighty sentence!

If you wish to live long, don't joke with this short sentence, *I am sorry.* Do you know how many people who had gone to early grave because they neglected the therapeutic power of *I am sorry.*

Most of the troubles in most homes are heightened because wives are too big to say *I am sorry* to their husbands and you can trust the ego of  husbands in saying same to their wives.

Quarrel lingers between friends because no party wants to say *I am sorry* Each says or asks, why should I be the first to say *I am sorry?* He or she would beat his or her chest and utter the ego phrase, *a whole me!*

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the part of the world where saying *I am sorry* is a hard nut to crack while curses are easily unleashed.

Welcome to the part of the world where people refer to a person who says *I am sorry* in a midst of a rift as a *weaker sex*: one who is not man enough; one who is foolish.

Welcome to Africa where saying *I am sorry* is tougher than forcing a donkey to pass  through a needle hole.

All of us are victims of this discussion. We have lost valuable assets, money and even lives because of this cheap and affordable sentence *I am sorry*. It simply  cost only a breath of speech.

Have you ever wondered why domestic violence is less pronounced in the western world? It is simply because they understand the efficacy of *I am sorry*.

Husbands say it to their wives and even children whenever they err, wives and children do the same  and life goes on fine.

Friends, this is simply a piece to encourage us to cultivate  a habit of saying *I am sorry.* It is difficult but readily affordable.

If I have offended you in one way or the others *I am sorry*

Have a wonderful day!