Last week, Penelope Trunk wrote a post on BNET’s Personal Success blog, arguing that appearance is such an important factor in whether you do well in business that people should hire personal trainers and even get plastic surgery if they hope to succeed.
I’m not a proponent of that extreme philosophy, but I can’t resist a [...]

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SmartBrief and JobAngels were delighted to welcome many of you to La Tasca in downtown Washington, D.C., on last week to celebrate the launch of a new book from Jason Seiden, one of our favorite career writers.
At “Take the next leap in your career,” Jason spoke briefly about how workers often undermine themselves at work [...]

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One common problem for both new grads and career changers is their lack of experience. In today’s last bonus track, Lindsey Pollak encourages workers to think broadly about where their relevant experience can come from. “When it comes to selling ourselves, we often don’t see what’s right in front of us. Yes, it’s important to [...]

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Today’s guest post is by Joseph Grenny, author of the New York Times-bestseller “Crucial Conversations” and co-founder of VitalSmarts, an innovator in corporate training and organizational performance. Read more at Crucialskills.com.
My co-authors and I have long observed people’s fear of holding crucial conversations. The reality is that when it comes to talking about high-stakes, emotional [...]

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SmartPulse — our weekly reader poll in Smartbrief on Workforce — tracks feedback from leading managers and HR practitioners. We run the poll question each Wednesday in our e-newsletter and feature analysis from Lance Haun, vice president of outreach for MeritBuilder, the main guy over at YourHRGuy.com and a member of the SmartBrief on Workforce [...]

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Most people acknowledge that luck plays a role in business success, but it doesn’t tell the whole story, Steve Tobak points out in today’s first bonus track. “We talk about luck, but successful people make their own luck. We talk about opportunity, but successful people work their tails off, solve critical problems, and slowly but [...]

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SmartPulse — our weekly reader poll in Smartbrief on Workforce — tracks feedback from leading managers and HR practitioners. We run the poll question each Wednesday in our e-newsletter and feature analysis from SmartBrief on Workforce Senior Editor Mary Ellen Slayter on this blog.
Last week’s poll question: What quality do you think is most [...]

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With the markets still shaky and companies pulling back on benefits, many workers understandably worried about their retirement plans. SmartBrief on Workforce readers who are responsible for selling their workers on those plans are in a tough spot. Kris Dunn at Benefits Buzz takes a look at how IBM is addressing the issue.

How IBM covers [...]

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SmartPulse — our weekly reader poll in Smartbrief on Workforce — tracks feedback from leading managers and HR practitioners.  We run the poll question each Wednesday in our e-newsletter and feature analysis from SmartBrief on Workforce Senior Editor Mary Ellen Slayter on this blog.
Last week’s poll question: What is the most important factor in getting [...]

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Waiting for your SmartBrief on Workforce? Read a defense of my former life as a career advice columnist over at Punk Rock HR: “I don’t think you have to work in HR to be a good career adviser; I think you just need to have a keen, open-minded interest in what’s going on in the [...]

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