Career Chaos

PHONE ETIQUETTE - PLEASE!

It happened again. I had only a few minutes between appointments to grab my phone messages. Someone interested in coaching services had decided to leave a 3-minute drawling summary of his career situation and then zipped off his phone number as if I were a stenographer typing 150 miles a minute! No way could I write down his rapidly fired number without listening to it 3 times! That meant I had to replay the drawling summary 3 times, too. What a waste of my time!

Please... When you are in a job search - or whenever you use the phone - consider the person who listens to your phone message. Make it brief leaving only the simplest facts to convey your reason for calling. But more than that, s l o w l y speak your phone number, then repeat it so the listener does not have to re-listen to your message. This will not only make a good impression on the listener, but will enhance your chances of having your call returned.

Read other Job Search Tips to help get your career in gear!

PERSONAL EMAILS AT WORK: BE CAREFUL!

Before hitting the send button on your work computer, read what you have written. That's the career advice coming from the CCN report of a survey of almost 300 companies with at least 1000 employees.

If you send an email with any confidential information or obscene/offensive language from your company computer, you may find yourself among the 1 in 3 employees fired - or at the very least, disciplined - for this type of behavior.

Employers mean business where their property and image are concerned. This applies to your email, blogs, instant messaging and any Internet activity you engage in at work on company computers. Note: nothing you do on your company's computer is private - everything is subject to company review at any time. Did you realize that your emails will last forever? Even long after you have forgotten that you even sent them?

As a career coach, I see many of clients use their company email accounts to communciate with me. Makes me wonder how many employers actually know that their people are looking for new jobs.