March-April 2010 Issue Preview!
 
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Cover Stories: Dr. Thienna Ho and Ernestine Shepherd
Dr. Thienna Ho - As an innovator, Dr. Thienna, as she is known, has developed what is known as the FAIRSKIN Method, a line of natural products to help people of all races drastically improve the appearance and health of their skin.
Inspired by her own dislike or misunderstanding of her blotched skin tone as a child, she became intrigued by it and began comparing her skin texture to that of her mother, sisters and brother who had smooth complexions. She tried every product possible to achieve clear, even-toned, smooth skin but without success.
Her passion and desire to correct her skin problems also became her passion to help others with skin problems. After years of testing, research and intensive labor, Dr. Thienna uncovered the secret to healthy glowing skin without the aid of chemicals.
Ernestine Shepherd - Shepherd has shocked the world with her resilience and determination to become a bodybuilder. She is known as the world's oldest female bodybuilder. At age 72, Shepherd has earned a placed in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Shepherd who picked up her first barbell at the age of 56 is now helping senior women, including her church members get into shape. She is a trainer as well as a bodybuilder and has confidently competed with women half her age. With the support of her husband, family members and friends, there's no telling how far she will go.
- Sasha Ottey Turns Her Personal Challenge into Victory
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Mark Parker - President and CEO of Nike, Inc. - Corporate Excellence
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Buidling Your Professional Network
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The Best Places to Keep Your Cash
Building Your Professional Network
by Annemarie Cross
One of the best methods that will support you in maximizing your overall job search campaign is your professional network. Yet how often do I hear clients comment that their network of contacts is one thing they only seem to follow up on when it's time to make a career move. This may be true for you too.
It is well known that many job opportunities are never advertised (termed the 'hidden job market') - in fact, many industry studies and surveys have found this to be a staggering figure of 70-80%.
According to revelations from the 2006 Executive Job Market Intelligence Report (as reported from ExecuNet):
. Seventy percent of companies do not post job opportunities that are offering salaries within the high six figure range.
Networking outpaces online job postings by 6 to 1 in successful job searches.
Despite the increase of online job boards and job postings, learning that you can increase your success 6 to 1 just by leveraging your professional network through networking, I hope, is enough to prompt you to start building your contact database today!
Here are some great tips and strategies on how you can begin to not only build, but continue to nurture your professional networking into a valuable resource that you can leverage when you are ready to make a career move.
1. Begin with the end in mind
Your goal in building your network is to generate a list of names of people you can connect with and not just a list of people with whom you already have an existing association or established relationship.
Before you begin questioning whether a person should or should not be included on your list, it is important at the initial stage to include everyone who you know on your list. You never know who that person has within their network of contacts. Not including them on your list could potentially limit you from accessing hundreds of other great contacts and opportunities.
2. Develop your network list
Start with a blank piece of paper and draw three columns labeled: Personal; Professional and Other. Then, begin writing down all the names of people you know within each category.
Personal
Association Members
Special Interest Group Members
Lecturers
Co-Students
Recruitment Consultant
Former Colleagues
Professional
Neighbors
Immediate Family
Distant Family Members
Church Members
Sporting Group Members
Other Neighbors
Immediate Family Members
Distant Family Members
Church Members
Sporting Group Members
3. Build your online network
Here are a few great 'free' online social networking sites that you can begin using to build your database. Having your profile listed on these sites is a great way to maximize your exposure 24/7, 365 days a year.
LinkedIn-www.linkedin.com. If you decide to join up with LinkedIn, make sure you send me an invitation to join your connections. To see LinkedIn in action, here is my profile: (www.linkedin.com/in/annemariecross).
Social Network Audit-www.socialnetworkaudit.com.
FaceBook-www.facebook.com. If you decide to join up with Facebook, make sure you send me an invitation to join as one of your friends.
Cagora-australia.cagora.com/home.
Ecademy-www.ecademy.com
[you can even upload your CV/resume to this one].
Remember to keep your online message strictly professional to ensure you continue making a good impression when people access your profile.
4. Nurturing your network
The best networking relationship is a reciprocal one. A large and very successful business network group - BNI have as one of their mottos 'Givers Gain.' By following this 'givers gain' principle with your network of contacts, you will develop an amazing resource.
Here are four simple strategies that you can being adopting today in order to keep in contact with your network and be seen as giving back to your network.
1. Become genuinely interested in your contacts
Find out what they are interested in and when you see an article or anything relating to your contact's interest, send them a copy of the article for their records with a very brief note.
For instance:
'Hi George, knowing that you are a passionate boater, I thought you may like to read a copy of the attached article. I've also included two complimentary tickets to May's Boat Show - I'm sure you'll enjoy it! Hope all is well!"
Best regards, Annemarie
2. Become known as the 'go to' person
Once you have established a large list of contacts with professionals, you can become known as the 'go to' person by sharing your resources and connecting people within your network to each other.
This way, if someone in your network is looking for a reputable accountant, rather than scouring the Yellow Pages they contact you as they know you would probably have someone you can recommend to them. And, if you don't you could certainly reach out to your contacts and find someone.
3. Keep in contact
Send a card to your contacts on their birthday or other special occasion. Everyone loves to feel special and receiving acknowledgement from you on their birthday or on any other special occasion/event is a great way to continue building your relationship.
4. Send a 'thank you' card
Show your appreciation by sending a 'thank you' card to people who have helped or assisted you. Saying 'thank you' is such a nice gesture and again, is a great way to continue strengthening your relationship.
Remember, building and nurturing your network of contacts is something you should be doing continuously - not just when you are seeking to change careers. So, what steps are you going to implement to start building your network today?
To your success! Annemarie
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