Lamplighter Volume 7 Issue 6 December 2015

Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

Don’t Get Bossed Around!

By: Jerrold (Jerry) Clifford

When individuals seek a position they sometimes lose objectivity, as exemplified by the following story: One day a man went to a pet shop to buy a parrot. The store owner took the man to the parrot section and showed him the birds on display. The customer asks, ''How much is the yellow one?''

The shop owner says, ''$2000.'' Shocked at the cost, the man asks why it's so expensive. The shop owner explains, ''This parrot is a very special one. He has keyboarding skills and can type really fast.''

The man thought about this and realized that having special skills set the bird apart. But looking for a lower cost he asked, ''What about the green one?''

The shop owner replied, ''He costs $5000 because he not only knows keyboarding but also can answer incoming telephone calls and take notes.''

The man realized that being multitalented and having additional special skills could result in a higher net worth but decided to keep looking. He asked, ''What about the red one?''

The store owner replied, ''That one's $10,000.''

The man says, ''What does HE do?''

The store owner shrugged and said, ''I don't know, but the other two call him boss.''

Unlike the bird in this joke, you probably won’t be desired (get hired) unless people (such as HR screeners and the hiring manager) know what you do. To help these individuals get a feel of your experience and accomplishments, you can highlight them in credentials such as resumes and cover letters or “Tee letters”.

The purpose of a resume is to show hiring people your experience. Since companies often feel that current experience is most important, most people highlight the last ten years of experience and only briefly mention prior experience. (Exception: Due to regulatory requirements, company exposures or government concerns, some industries want full disclosure). Resumes are created with different styles and formats; each style has its advocates so the choice of which would best represent you --- is really up to you.

The purpose of the cover letter is to quickly show hiring folks how well you fit the company’s need. It can also be used to highlight special skills that supplement or support your work accomplishments.

A “Tee letter” is a type of cover letter named after its format, two columns resembling the letter “T.” The objective of a Tee letter is to quickly and visually let the reviewer know how well you match particular company requirements. Company-stated requirements are listed in the left column. Corresponding to the left column entry is a brief right column description of your knowledge and experience matching that item.

What goes into, and the format of the resume and cover letter is completely up to you. You decide the best way to convey your experience, special skills and talents.

In other words, you are the boss!

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Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

From the Editor’s desk By: Adelaida (Aida) Rodriguez

We have been blessed with another year and about to say good bye to of hope and blessings in -

2015 - and we are looking forward to another year

2016.

My sincerest gratitude to the following people for their help and support in making the Lamplighter a successful online presence:  Eric Nilsson – our indefatigable and knowledgeable compositor and contributing writer.  Barbara Daisak – our Proofreader and TECH TIPS column contributor  Jerrold (Jerry) Clifford – our all-year round contributor for all his innovative and informative articles  Jim Scott, Amanda Sherman, Aaron & Laura Cohen - contributing writers  Rod Colon – our ETP founder and strong supporter  Carl Reid – ETP Executive Director and online publisher  To all the ETP members and colleagues who have been supporting us For your reading pleasure, I have gathered some inspirational articles attune to the Christmas and New Year season.

I hope you will enjoy reading them and learning the “golden nuggets” of moral lessons they impart.  Being Different Can Be a Blessing – The True Story of Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer Read more at http://www.motivateus.com/stories/rudolph.htm#c679Q1O0b6p0ZiOh.99 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._May  The Elephant - Failure is part of learning; we should never give up the struggle in life. --- Author Unknown --Submitted By Joy Hale --- Texas  A Dish of Ice Cream - http://www.livin3.com/5-motivational-and-inspiring-short-stories MAY YOU AND YOUR FAMILY HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!!!

The Lamplighter Staff

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Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

Being Different Can Be A Blessing December 17, 2010

The True Story Of Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer (How he came into being).

--- Author Unknown --- Submitted By Joy Hale --- Texas

A man named Bob May, depressed and brokenhearted, stared out his drafty apartment window into the chilly December night.

His 4-year-old daughter Barbara sat on his lap quietly sobbing. Bob's wife, Evelyn, was dying of cancer. Little Barbara couldn't understand why her mommy could never come home. Barbara looked up into her dad's eyes and asked, "Why isn't Mommy just like everybody else's Mommy?" Bob's jaw tightened and his eyes welled with tears. Her question brought waves of grief, but also of anger. It had been the story of Bob's life. Life always had to be different for Bob. Small when he was a kid, Bob was often bullied by other boys. He was too little at the time to compete in sports. He was often called names he'd rather not remember. From childhood, Bob was different and never seemed to fit in. Bob did complete college, married his loving wife and was grateful to get his job as a copywriter at Montgomery Ward during the Great Depression.

Then he was blessed with his little girl. But it was all short-lived. Evelyn's bout with cancer stripped them of all their savings and now Bob and his daughter were forced to live in a two-room apartment in the Chicago slums.

Evelyn died just days before Christmas in 1938.

Bob struggled to give hope to his child, for whom he couldn't even afford to buy a Christmas gift. But if he couldn't buy a gift, he was determined to make one - a storybook! Bob had created an animal character in his own mind and told the animal's story to little Barbara to give her comfort and hope.

Again and again Bob told the story, embellishing it more with each telling. Who was the character? What was the story all about?

The story Bob May created was his own autobiography in fable form. The character he created was a misfit outcast like he was. The name of the character? A little

reindeer named Rudolph, with a big shiny nose. Bob finished the book just in time to give it to his little girl on Christmas Day. But the story doesn't end there.

The general manager of Montgomery Ward caught wind of the little storybook and offered Bob May a nominal fee to purchase the rights to print the book. Wards went on to print, "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and distribute it to children visiting Santa Claus in their stores.

By 1946 Wards had printed and distributed more than six million copies of Rudolph. That same year, a major publisher wanted to purchase the rights from Wards to print an updated version of the book.

In an unprecedented gesture of kindness, the CEO of Wards returned all rights back to Bob May. The book became a best seller. Many toy and marketing deals followed and Bob May, now remarried with a growing family, became wealthy from the story he created to comfort his grieving daughter.

But the story doesn't end there either.

Bob's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, made a song adaptation to Rudolph. Though the song was turned down by such popular vocalists as Bing Crosby and Dinah Shore, it was recorded by the singing cowboy, Gene Autry. "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was released in 1949 and became a phenomenal success, selling more records than any other Christmas song, with the exception of "White Christmas."

The gift of love that Bob May created for his daughter so long ago kept on returning back to bless him again and again. And Bob May learned the lesson, just like his dear friend Rudolph, that being different isn't so bad.

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In fact, being different can be a blessing.

Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

The Elephant Rope http://www.livin3.com/5-motivational-and-inspiring-short-stories

As a man was passing the elephants, he suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge creatures were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg. No chains, no cages. It was obvious that the elephants could, at anytime, break away from their bonds but for some reason, they did not.

He saw a trainer nearby and asked why these animals just stood there and made no attempt to get away.

“Well,” trainer said, “when they are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them and, at that age, it’s enough to hold them. As they grow up, they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away.

They believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free.”

The man was amazed. These animals could at any time break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn’t, they were stuck right where they were.

Like the elephants, how many of us go through life hanging onto a belief that we cannot do something, simply because we failed at it once before?

Failure is part of learning; we should never give up the struggle in life.

A Dish of Ice Cream http://www.livin3.com/5-motivational-and-inspiring-short-stories

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10 year old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him.

“How much is an ice cream sundae?”

“50 cents,” replied the waitress.

The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied a number of coins in it.

“How much is a dish of plain ice cream?” he inquired. Some people were now waiting for a table and the waitress was a bit impatient.

“35 cents,” she said brusquely.

The little boy again counted the coins. “I’ll have the plain ice cream,” he said.

The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away.

The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and departed.

When the waitress came back, she began wiping down the table and then swallowed hard at what she saw.

There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were 15 cents – her tip.

Moral: don’t judge the book by its cover!

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Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

Welcome to (I dare say!?) the Holiday season!

As Fall marches on…did you upgrade to Windows 10 yet?

Read on for more on the privacy side of things!

And many continued Thanks to Eric and Aida for continual news to use!

Your posts are always welcomed!

Check our next issue for another great Tech and Social Media Tip!

Windows 10 and privacy: Whom should you trust?

We put Windows 10 to the test to see if Microsoft’s privacy claims match the reality

By Woody Leonhard InfoWorld | Sep 29, 2015

Yesterday, Windows honcho Terry Myerson (finally!) posted an official blog about Windows 10, privacy, trust, transparency, and the three levels of data collected by Microsoft when customers use Windows 10. He says: I assure you that no other company is more committed, more transparent and listening harder to customers on this important topic than we are.

From the very beginning, we designed Windows 10 with two straightforward privacy principles in mind:  Windows 10 collects information so the product will work better for you.  You are in control with the ability to determine what information is collected.

With Windows 10, information we collect is encrypted in transit to our servers, and then stored in secure facilities.

Keep reading: http://www.infoworld.com/article/2987022/microsoft-windows/windows-10-and-privacy-whomshould-you-trust.html

LinkedIn Referrals: One More Reason to Properly Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile Posted on October 16, 2015 by Lisa Rangel

LinkedIn announced the rollout of LinkedIn Referrals this week. LinkedIn Referrals, which is being called the next generation of LinkedIn Recruiter, is where recruiters use profiles of their superstar managers and employees to find other applicants with similar traits and expertise to add to the rock star employee roster. So instead of trying to write a candidate profile or job description to capture the essence of that top notch employee to find another one, now a recruiter can use the profile content of the superstar employee, within the tools of LinkedIn Referrals, as the basis to find the next key hire.

Keep reading: http://chameleonresumes.com/2015/10/16/linkedin-referrals-one-more-reason-to-properly-optimize-yourlinkedin-profile/

What’s Your Online Reputation?

Thanks to social media, today’s online reputation economy is humming with activity.

By Frank Kalman October 14, 2015

What do you post on Facebook? Do you consistently update your Twitter? How about your LinkedIn page?

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Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

These questions busy the minds of many professionals. Not only is professional reputation based on your accomplishments and behaviors at work, but also how you broadcast them to the world through the overabundance of online channels in existence.

With the flurry of online activity, known as the reputation economy, comes many risks. For starters, simply not having an active social media presence is a risk; posting inappropriate things is another. Indeed, managing online reputation is a skill, one that Michael Fertik, CEO of Reputation.com and author of “The Reputation Economy,” hopes to help both individuals and organizations build.

Talent Management spoke with Fertik on what’s important in creating a healthy online reputation. Edited excerpts follow.

What is the reputation economy?

There’s more to see here: http://www.talentmgt.com/articles/7568-whats-your-online-reputation

Improve Your Developer Career: Learn to Write

By Nick Kolakowski 10/13/2015

What’s a surefire way to become a better developer?

According to Mike Borozdin, an engineer who’s worked at Microsoft and DocuSign, it’s all about learning to express your thoughts in a clear, articulate way. “I would advise folks in software to do one thing, and that’s write,” he recently told Business Insider. “Learn how to write… it’s actually useful.”

Without solid writing abilities, developers can have a hard time articulating the value of their work in front of managers, stakeholders and clients. If they can’t effectively convey ideas, they may find it more difficult to secure the resources, time, and people they need to complete projects or start new ones.

Developers also need effective writing skills in order to create the documentation supporting a new piece of software.

Without clear documentation, users can quickly become frustrated with a platform’s more idiosyncratic aspects, and abandon it.

If you’re interested in writing well, consult the following resources: See the suggested resources: http://insights.dice.com/2015/10/13/improve-your-developer-career-learn-to-write/

Answering Your Questions About Specifics [in terms of punctuation and grammar] October 14, 2015 by Fiction Editor Beth Hill last modified October 14, 2015

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been asked a lot of questions regarding specifics, especially in terms of punctuation and grammar.

I’m going to post some of those questions and answers in a series of articles so that you can see questions that other writers and editors have and see options for solving those grammar and punctuation problems.

But first, let’s look at resources that can help you with those problems. _____________________ Like most of you, I don’t have every grammar or punctuation rule at the tips of my fingers (or the tip of my brain), and sometimes when I seek answers from multiple sources, I find that those answers contradict one another. I’m left trying to figure out the differences between the suggestions, rules, and/or opinions. I’m sure you run into the same quandary. Yet usually we can determine why there are seemingly contradictory recommendations.

Read more>> http://theeditorsblog.net/2015/10/14/answering-your-questions-about-specifics/

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Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

The Business of Visual Storytelling

By Steve Silvas

When was the last time you heard a really great story from one of your customers?

Chances are you hear them all the time – but why keep them to yourself? Spreading those stories across your organization can be a valuable knowledge-sharing tactic.

Storytelling has been a natural hobby of mine forever, but it’s also my favorite way of learning for business. Give me a list of specs, features or names and chances are that I’m not going to remember much about them. But tell me a story about the benefits of how those features can be applied and I’ve got perspective that will make the idea stick. Draw me a picture and I’ll get it even faster – and likely be able to tell the story myself.

See about storytelling here: https://www.citrix.com/blogs/2015/09/22/the-business-of-visual-storytelling/

Tell a story that others will want to read [Text omitted] 1) Is the main idea conveyed concisely?

Here, the editor is looking to see that the text is not convoluted or full of jargon, and that short words and phrases are used instead of long ones, when possible. You don’t want to exhaust the reader by making him or her read a pagelong paragraph for one tidbit of information.

2) Are any words, sentences, or sections of the writing extraneous?

This is similar to the point above. If something is irrelevant or unnecessary, the copy editor will do away with it, allowing only the most read-worthy material to shine.

3) Does your introduction inspire people to continue reading?

An introduction is what pulls the reader in, so it had better be interesting, informative, and intriguing enough to make your audience want more.

4) Is the progression of the text well organized?

You won’t be doing anyone a favor by presenting a disorganized text. Make it easy on your readers (and the editor) by sticking to an outline and smoothly transitioning from one point to the next. Of course, this will be provided as part of the copy editing service, but you want to provide your editor with a strong first draft.

5) Are the tone and style consistent throughout?

Does the work read as if it were written by five different authors? Maintaining consistency in terms of writing style and voice is one of a copy editor’s concerns.

6) Is the final thought strong?

Whether you want to teach your readers something or leave them with a thought-provoking idea, the copy editor will help ensure that your conclusion is as strong as your introduction (which is what you promised the reader in the first place).

[Text omitted] There is a lot more at this link:http://blog.bookbaby.com/2015/09/what-to-expect-from-copy-editing/

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Lamplighter

Volume 7, Issue 6 Special Holiday Edition From Lamplighter — December 2015

EMPOWERING TODAY’S PROFESSIONALS (ETP) MISSION Encourage, train, support, mentor and advise fellow CEOs of ME, Incorporated in all aspects of defined responsibilities to their personal Board of Directors.

ETP was established specifically to help individuals in transition find jobs.

ETP CORE VALUES ETP has a special concern for the advancement of professionals worldwide and is committed to delivering its core values of INTEGRITY, RESPECT, RESPONSIBILITY, and COMPASSION to its members.

Lamplighter Contributors Jerrold (Jerry) Clifford is a project/program Management, PMO management and strategic Project planning specialist with advanced expertise in managing multiple, concurrent, highly visible projects and rescuing troubled projects.

He is the author of several books including Computer Mathematics Handbook, Modern Electronics Math, Handbook for Electricians, Complete Car Owners Manual, and Basic Woodworking & Carpentry. He is also the recipient of the President’sVolunteer Service Award from President Obama.

Rod Colon Career Strategist, Corporate Trainer, Motivational Speaker,Radio Show Host, Author and Master Networker.

Professional Training & Coaching - Greater New York CityArea Current: Rod Colon Consulting, LLC, InclusionINC, Wolters Kluwer Health

Carl E. Reid, CSI Chief Savvy @Intrapreneur Empowering People to AchieveEXTRAORDINARY RESULTS Greater New York City Area - ManagementConsulting Current: Empowering Today's Professionals, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

Lamplighter Staff Adelaida (Aida) Rodriguez is the Editor-in-Chief and Contributing Writer of the Lamplighter Newsletter. She is a Project Manager Professional (PMP), Business Analyst/ Consultant at the Warranty Recovery Specialist, LLC

Barbara Daisak is the Lamplighter Contributing Writer & Proofreader. In addition, she is a Learning, Training, & Development Specialist and Microsoft Certified Master Instructor. Barb is also an Instructor Adjunct with the County Colleges of New Jersey with specialties in the Technology Training Divisions and Corporate Training Programs.

Phone Numbers:732.863.4948 ― 732.616.2397-mobile Email Barbara at: bndaisak@verizon.net

Eric Nilsson is the Compositor and Contributing Writer for Lamplighter. Eric enjoys the art and science of newspaper layout. He has been an IT consultant at the Professional Service Group of New Brunswick and previously worked for North Jersey Media Group (Bergen Evening Record) as a Project Manager and Programmer/Analyst. Interests include economics, history, and journalism.

Email: ericnilsson@earthlink.net; LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/ericsnilsson

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