Month: March 2017

Looking for a job but haven’t gotten even one interview? Have a flawless work record but nobody is looking at your CV? It’s possible that your online job hunt is going badly because you’ve made one of the common mistakes below. Don’t fret! They all can be fixed.

1. You’re still looking for work on Monster and job sites

Monster and other types of online job boards may help you find the type of skills asked today from companies in the sector that interests you or keywords to use in your CV to stand out (below I’ll give you more details). But that’s as far as they go: right now they’re not the best places to look for jobs.

These days if you want to get a job online, all the action is either on LinkedIn, or any social network with most of your contacts. I know sometimes it’s hard to contact people and say you’re looking for a job and if they know a place looking for somebody like you, but you’ve got no choice. Send emails, rekindle old friendships and even, if necessary, use that strange function known as “call” on your cell phone.

2. You haven’t kept your job hunt a secret

Except for rare exceptions, you should keep your job hunt a secret. I already know of three cases of friends who announced with fanfare on their Facebook wall that they’re fed up with their jobs and it’s time to look for new one. The result? Since some of their contacts were coworkers (including sometimes their direct superior), there were repercussions. Also, if somebody wants to hire you, looks at your Facebook and finds out that you rant and rave about your job, you’ll lose serious points.

For LinkedIn, you should immediately disable the option “Share Profile Updates” under the privacy settings of your account. Let me explain: each time you change your position on your profile (including the position you want for your next job), your contacts will receive the typical “Congratulate so-and-so on his/her new job!” email. I doubt that your boss would like to congratulate you on your next job.

3. You’ve sent out boring and standard CVs

Before sending your CV for a job opening, carefully scan the offer and put keywords repeated in the offer in your CV and any you find significant. This way, you’ll increase your chances: the company will think you’re the ideal person for the position because you’ve used the same language.

Besides that, you have dozens of online resources to improve your CV. In five minutes of searching, for example, I’ve found this article with 27 free templates for creating your CV. And if you don’t feel like reading, Youtube is full of fantastic tutorials with tips about how to make a great CV. Here you’ve got two great examples.

4. You haven’t researched the company enough

During the selection process, a company only uses nice words to describe themselves. Alright, but does this company interested in hiring you actually maintain those exceptional values? How do they treat their employees? Before you take any key decisions, research!

Besides checking out their corporate webpage or Facebook, you have Glassdoor, a page that lets you search reviews of companies from their employees (current or past). Maybe you’ll save yourself from falling into a hidden trap!

The other option is more journalistic/detective-based. If your company is well-known, you can always research articles related to them and even video reports.

The goal, whatever path you take, is to understand the company’s actual situation and if it’s really aligned with what you’ve planned for your next job.

5. You go to the job interview without any prep

Let’s not get away from Youtube tutorials yet! Before going to your next batch of interviews, it’s important to improve your nonverbal language (both yours and how to “read” the interviewer’s body). On Youtube, you’ll find tons of videos for this (since body language is a visual element, videos are perfect). Here you’ve got a few examples.

Have you already become a master of relaxed body language? Great, because now it’s time to prepare for questions. The interviewer will ask you about the company (you’ll know how to respond if you followed my steps about researching them) and toss you questions like “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” or the previously mentioned “What can you contribute to our company?”

Again, the internet is teeming with resources, specifically great articles such as How to Answer the 31 Most Common Interview Questions, 100 top job interview questions—be prepared for the interview or Top 10 Interview Questions and Best Answers.

Research and study a little and you’ll see how smoothly your next job interviews go.

6. You didn’t clean up your social media profiles

Companies are increasingly looking at social media profiles of potential candidates. Proof of this is that companies can now post job offers directly from Facebook.

Watch what you post on social media and adjust your privacy settings. An unfortunate photo, a comment written at a bad time or you venting about your previous job can destroy all your previous efforts to get a certain position. For more information about this topic, we highly recommend How to Check Your Online Presence Before Recluiters Look You Up, an article from Uptowork, a CV builder platform with a complementary blog plenty of tips to help you find your next job.

7. And worst of all: you aren’t taking 100% advantage of online resources

Throughout this article I’ve mentioned some online tools for looking for jobs. We’ve got obvious tools such as LinkedIn or others that you might not have thought of, such as Youtube video tutorials. But that’s not the end of it.

How about asking your Twitter contacts? Or doing a little networking on pages like Meetup? Or improving your skills through online courses like Coursera, for example? And then there’s pages like emurse.com, which offers articles to help you find jobs.

You have thousands of online resources awaiting you. And each one has more uses than you think. Go on, use them!

Sources used for the making of this article: Lifehacker, Equipos y Talento + all sources that have appeared throughout the article.

If you clean up your house a little bit, I’m sure you’ll find gadgets, clothes and other things that you don’t use, which are in good condition and you could sell. Why don’t you do it? Maybe because in the past you tried and had no good way to find a buyer, or in the end you sold everything at a loss.

While many are having financial issues and can’t pay much money, it’s also true that sometimes we don’t use good seller strategies when we want to get rid of something we don’t use. I’ve found tons of articles online about how to sell something in a professional way for businesses, but there’s hardly any info about how to sell something to individuals online. So, today I’ll leave you with 6 tips that I use when I want to sell my things online… I hope they work for you!

1.- Toy with the price

When it comes to adding a price on what you want to sell, you have to be a real strategist. Don’t be “pricey” and try to post something used at the price of a new item. But also don’t sell your product at a loss, especially when there are other sellers that have higher prices.

Before posting something for sale, review prices for the item as new and on other sites where they sell used items. Add a competitive price, not too high or too low, and always mention that you’re willing to go down a little.

Don’t be close-minded about negotiating if a buyer is interested in your products. It’s not about selling at a loss, but rather getting rid of the item even if you get a little less than expected.

Another good technique for selling is not to hide the actual price of the item. In the description of what you’re selling, put the actual price of the item in stores so buyers see that they’re saving by buying an almost-new item from you.

2.- Consider free shipping

With services like Amazon, Aliexpress and other sales pages, people are used to free shipping, so they’re more hesitant about paying extra for shipping, even if it’s 3 measly euros.

If you’re selling remotely, consider including shipping in the price. Even if you put the item at a higher price, the fact of having “free shipping” or “shipping included” will encourage many buyers.

Another option, if you’ve put several things on sale, is to offer free shipping if somebody buys more than one product (and obviously charge shipping only once).

3.- Choose your images carefully, and your text!

When you’re willing to sell something on a platform, the sales listing is very important. Take good pictures of your products, making sure that you have good lighting and the item is shown in good condition (for example, if you’re selling clothes, make sure they’re clean and ironed, please! And if you’re selling a cell phone, wipe the fingerprints off… don’t be a slob!). Today, with a smartphone, it’s not necessary to have a great camera to take good photos.

Another option is to add official photos of the product, but also attach actual photos so the buyer knows what you have; it’s their job to see the potential!

Just as important as good photos is good text. Besides being careful with spelling, obviously, make sure to be brief but also give all basic info that the buyer may need: features, clothing size, model of the product/gadget and all relevant info.

In addition, to sell more successfully, market your item as it deserves. If it’s something new, clearly point that out and if it’s second-hand but in good condition, always put “like new,” “used very little,” etc. Also, if we’re talking about an item under warranty (especially for electronics), clearly say so in the description and attach the receipt (seriously, always keep receipts, you never know when you’ll need them).

Obviously, if the item has a small defect you should say so, but don’t wallow in this either. True story: I remember once on a Facebook sales group, I read something like “I’m selling this XXX brand bag, which is worn-out from use, but still may work.” Do you seriously think somebody wants to buy a “worn-out” bag, as good as the brand or price may be? If something is well-used, you can put “used but still in good condition” or “perfect with a few repairs,” as well as attaching a photo of the defect or imperfection. And alright, if you’re really selling something that’s worn-out maybe it’d be more useful in a garbage can than the house of a poor gullible soul.

4.- Be helpful and friendly, even if you think you’re wasting time

This seems like a no-brainer, but I’ve encountered really obnoxious buyers! When you sell online, you have to accept the idea that potential buyers will ask detailed questions about the item. Always be helpful with this and respond to all their questions courteously.

It also happens that sometimes somebody is interested in an item, leaves a comment or sends you a private message (for example, on Wallapop for Android or iOS) and you hear nothing more from them. Keep at it, because sometimes a buyer forgets, whether from neglect or absent-mindedness, and not because they’re no longer interested in the item.

Obviously, don’t insist endlessly, there are lots of rude people who simply aren’t interested in buying something and don’t bother saying so… But those cases are the exceptions, often they haven’t answered you out of pure absent-mindedness.

If you’re selling to somebody in your city and they ask to meet up, make it happen, and if they ask to see or try the item before buying it, tell them yes. The nicer you are, the greater the chances that they’ll buy what you’re selling, plus they’ll leave you a good review if you’re selling through an app (Wallapop, eBay, etc).

5.- Talk like a pro seller

It’s one thing to be helpful, and the other is to treat potential buyers as if they were your soulmates. So, when you sell, use professional seller strategies. If your potential buyer is hesitant about an item, tell them that you have other people interested and they shouldn’t think too much (it may be true or not, but the person will never know).

Besides, if they’re in doubt, it’s time to negotiate (see number 1). Offer them a discount and say you’ll give them something (for example, if you’re selling a cell phone or camera, tell them you’ll include the cover for free, even though you were thinking of selling it). If you’re selling remotely, when you prepare the package, add a thank-you note for the buyer. My mother always tells me that we have to be grateful and she’s completely right… You never know when you’ll interact with that person again!

6.- Find the right platform for what you’re selling

Online there are many ways of selling, some completely free and others with fees. The good thing about second-hand ones (like eBay) is that they make sure more people see your item, but it’s not always necessary to choose them.

For example, if you sell very specific things, don’t go to general sites like eBay or Wallapop (available on iOS and Android). Scan Facebook for buyer-seller groups for your item. There, the audience is more specific and looking for certain types of items.

For example, I often sell clothes that I don’t use. My style is very different and not many like it on Wallapop and even Chicfy (service for selling only clothes). Instead, on Facebook groups for alternative clothes, I get many more interested people in a shorter time, plus they’re already predisposed to buy those kind of things. Apply this idea to anything you’re selling, you’ll be amazed by the specific buyer-seller groups in your area.

If you want to know more about sales platforms, I recommend this video, where we recommend 5 very good apps for buying-selling.

It doesn’t matter how high-tech your computer is. Sooner or later it will be overrun by the most common and atrocious evil of the computer world: slowdowns. Is your computer slow to start up or does it have trouble opening certain programs? Don’t worry: follow these six simple tricks and it will be running smoothly in no time.

1. Install only the necessary; uninstall what you don’t use

How many applications, programs or browser extensions are installed on your PC? The more elements installed, the slower your operating system will run.

I recommend doing a general program clean-up. Uninstall programs that have gone two or three months without use and stick to the minimum, only the necessary. In Windows, it’s as easy as going to “Uninstall or change program” and sorting by frequency of use.

Once you have everything cleaned up, think twice before installing anything new. Do you really need it? And even if you do, maybe there are web versions for that program (so you don’t have to install it) or a portable version you can install onto a USB.

Now that you’ve got only programs and extensions you really need, don’t forget to clean them up once in a while. Use programs such as CCleaner to free up space or get rid of unnecessary elements. Mac users can count on the help of Disk Inventory X, which offers a graphical overview of your hard drive’s situation. Windows users have a useful equivalent: Windows Directory Statistics.

If you only have time to do one of these tricks, do this one: you’ll immediately notice how your computer runs great after putting it on a diet.

2. Update everything often, I mean everything

“But it’s such a pain.” I know! But keeping your software and firmware up-to-date is the key to having a healthy and energetic Operating System. The reason? Pick one: it optimizes code, improves compatibility with other installed elements, fixes security bugs… You can get more info in another article about keeping your PC safe. This little trick is even more important for the latest updates of Windows or macOS; these updates usually include crucial improvements to avoid crashes or slowdowns.

The good news is that at this point many of your programs already include the option to automatically update in the background. But I would do a quick review just in case.

3. Watch out for programs running in the background

One of the reasons why your computer runs so slowly is the presence of too many programs running in the background. If you actually use some of these programs, let them be, so you have them immediately available. The important thing is to take care of programs that don’t contribute anything.

This involves pure trial and error. If you want to find out which background programs slow down your computer the most, you can consult the Task Manager (Windows) or Users and Groups (Mac) and try improving this little by little.

4. Ensure security measures

Malware negatively affects your computer’s performance. Not to mention those dang browser extensions whose only goal is to gather info on your PC and sell it to third parties.

I’d like to say everything is fixed by being selective about what you install, but there’s a lot of malware and adware that is installed stealthily. I recommend that you rely on an antivirus. Even though I’m shooting myself in the foot (after all, this is practically a freeware downloads site), it’s worth investing a little money in a professional antivirus edition.

If you have Windows, Avira is the perfect option, which balances protection, ease of use and cost. And almost at the same level, we have Avast! which, unfortunately, has started to introduce intrusive elements such as the rather deceptive installation of its browser, SafeZone. If it weren’t for that detail, we would have given it more points. And in the lower bracket, you’ve got Kaspersky and BitDefender.

For Mac, there’s Sophos Anti-Virus: compact, easy-to-use and you can customize scans to great detail. Not convinced? Try ClamXav 2, Avast! or even Avira.

5. When the offender is obvious…

…go after it!

Sometimes it’s clear that a specific program, when you activate it, slows down your Operating System. In this case, you should focus all your efforts on fixing the problem.

It may sound cheap, but sometimes uninstalling and installing the program again does wonders since it eliminates all the trash it had accumulated for ages.

If a browser keeps giving you problems, such as Chrome, you can delete your recent history to see if performance improves.

And while we’re talking about extensions: keep extensions and open tabs to a minimum.

6. A classic: restore to factory settings

Sometimes it’s worth avoiding trouble and restoring your computer to its original state. The latest versions of Windows and Mac make this procedure easy, so you won’t lose any of your personal data. That being said, make sure you have a backup of everything important, just in case. It’ll be easy to reinstall all the programs you usually use.

If you want to restore Windows, you’ll find all the relevant options in Backup and restore. On Mac, restart your computer and hold Cmd+R to find this function.

Sources used for the making of this article: Gizmodo (text 1, text 2), Apartment Therapy, CMIT Solutions, Coding Sec.

Getting our households under control, clean and organized, is a goal that many have but few achieve. At the end of 2015, Marie Kondo, a young Japanese mother, published the book “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up,” where she gave a series of tips for optimizing home spaces and being happy with less junk. The book, based on everyday tricks and also ancient zen philosophy, has been a huge success that has already sold millions of copies worldwide.

Reading Kondo’s entertaining book could be a good option to start organizing your home, but if you’re looking for other more immediate solutions or you don’t fancy reading books, today I’ll suggest different solutions for organizing your home, based on applications or online services, all of which are free.

This homemade organization guide is divided into different parts, so use it as you wish: check out the whole thing or only read the parts that interest you:

• Cleaning and organizing household chores
• Organizing your wardrobe
• Shopping and organizing weekly menus

Cleaning and organizing household chores

Housekeeping is an uphill battle for all of us. But sometimes it’s not so much laziness about cleaning the kitchen or bathroom as it is finding gaps in our schedules to do so. Thanks to technology, we can have total control of what we should do and when we do it, so our home doesn’t become a lion’s den.

OurHome, available on iOS, Android and web, is the perfect app for keeping chores under control. With it, you can create lists of chores to do, select the regularity you do them and mark them when they’re complete. Since the app knows we’re forgetful, it sends us reminders when we haven’t checked off a certain chore… No more changing sheets every full moon, now there’s no excuses!

OurHome is perfect for those who live alone but also for households with several people. The app has an interface that lets you assign chores to different household members, so it’s perfect if you share an apartment, live with a partner or have kids old enough to take charge of some chores.

In fact, if you have kids, a must-have app is Chore Monster (Android and iOS). With it, you can encourage your kids to do very simple chores (brush their teeth, clear the table, feed the pet) and evaluate their behavior at the end of the day. Good behavior translates into points that your kids can exchange for “Monsters”, virtual rewards.

Although any of these apps will leave you headache-free, it’s possible you’re old-school and prefer to do your planning simpler and on paper. In this case, go to this website to download cleaning and domestic chore planning sheets that you can print and adapt to your needs. And if you’re an Excel fanatic, click here to download a template in this format.

Now that you’ve got your chores organized, it’s time to do them. Certainly nobody is born knowing everything and it’s possible that if you recently became independent, it’s not clear how to do certain things. You can call Mom or, even better, look for resources that teach you how to be a good housekeeper.

There are many specialized websites for teaching certain everyday chores, my favorites are: How to clean anything, Real Simple, Organized Home and Good Housekeeping. The 4 websites are updated several times a week and it’s very easy to find what you’re looking for, from basic cleaning procedures to those foolproof grandmother tricks, and you’ll also save money on grocery products.

Organizing your wardrobe

How many times have you heard the phrase “I have nothing to wear”? In general, we all have more clothes that we really need and, worst of all, we’re not aware of it. Maybe the next time you change your wardrobe, you should contemplate making a complete inventory of your “rags.”

The app Closet Space (available on Android and iOS) will be excellent help for this task. With it, you can catalogue all your clothing to then know what you have and plan your outfits. Additionally, if you like fashion, you can consult the style of over 135 bloggers. If this topic especially interests you, I recommend an article that goes into more detail about other apps for organizing your wardrobe. Click here to read it.

If, instead, fashion isn’t your thing, I recommend that you consider a minimalist wardrobe challenge. What on earth am I talking about? Well, basically it’s a system that lets you live with a minimal number of clothing items. One of the challenges many follow is Project 333, which suggests living with 33 clothing items per season. On this website you’ll find a complete explanation of this method as well as tips for getting started.

Shopping and organizing weekly menus

House ready to go, wardrobe in order… What about food? Shopping and cooking daily is another huge chore that shouldn’t be taken lightly. The best way to take control is to shop with a list app, and the queen of them all is Remember the Milk.

Under this vivid name, you’ll find a very simple-to-use application that lets you create infinite lists and chores, and even assign lists to others. Have you (literally) forgotten the milk? Send a reminder to your roommate so he’ll pick some up on the way home.

Remember the Milk can be used online with free registration or installed on iOS and Android. Data is synchronized between versions and with services such as Google Calendar or iCalendar.

After shopping, it’s time to cook. If you don’t have time, there’s nothing like a weekly menu planner. The service Eat This Much (web, iOS, Android) nicely serves this purpose, letting you organize your menus with your recipes or with thousands of dishes available. This is only the start

There are many other household concerns: finances, administrative tasks, children’s issues… This article is only the first step to taking on a more orderly life and showing that, though you have little time, if you know how to stay organized, the battle of household chaos is nearly won.