How Can a LinkedIn Profile Boost Your Hiring Chances?

Photo credit: Forbes.com

Living in a digital age is but a worthwhile experience. This is where odd ideas meet reality.

If you are a job seeker, you should know how to take advantage of the modern tools to boost your chances for your target job. Apart from making a paper resume, you should also prepare a good online profile. You don’t know how far it can lead you to succeed in your job pursuit.

Now is the right time to improve your online “strength” through LinkedIn.

Why It Matters

LinkedIn is the most important networking site for professionals like you. Here are the reasons why having this social page can boost your career growth:

• It serves as your online resume. Like a paper resume, a LinkedIn profile contains sections that speak about your qualifications and strengths.
• Hiring managers use it. The recruitment process has drastically changed for it now entails browsing of LinkedIn profiles. If you have a good profile, chances are you will get shortlisted.
• Get an “unexpected” invitation for a job interview. Yes, this is possible. Even if you do not seek a job from a certain firm, hiring manager can see your professional record and might invite you to join the company.
• See yourself on Google search results. More often than not, LinkedIn pages get high ranking than other web pages (when one searches for people’s names).

Do It Right

Your LinkedIn profile is your tool to market yourself, even if you go offline. That said, it is imperative that you always keep it updated and striking.

How will you improve your LinkedIn account and the results shown by the profile strength meter? Here are some tips for you:

• Add content. Upon registration, provide all the required info. The more details you give, the higher your profile strength it can get.

• Upload a good photo. Show your professionalism. Your profile picture must be a head shot photo of (only) you wearing corporate attire. The background must be solid, light-colored.

• Cite your skills. If possible, ask former and current colleagues and bosses to recommend you for your acquired skills.

• Add connections and join groups. Joining groups in your field is a way to prove your expertise. Be an active member.

• Share relevant content. Do this on a regular basis to maintain a good profile.

• Avoid any error. Maintain an error-free career summary. Make it a habit to proofread it or ask someone to check it for possible errors.

Make a superb LinkedIn profile and you’re getting closer to job opportunities.

Best Places to Visit with the Family This Christmas

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Are you planning to travel with your family this holiday season? Here are some of the places where people best celebrates Christmas.

1. New York City, NY

Christmas in New York is timeless and beautiful. Aside from the Rockefeller Center and its world-famous Christmas tree, the carriage ride through Central Park brings you to the Currier and Ives era in the middle of Manhattan.

2. Amsterdam, Kingdom of the Netherlands

Dutch people have two Christmas celebrations: toys and gift giving on Dec. 5; and family gathering and food feast on Dec. 25. Between these days, Amsterdam is filled with white lights, shopping avenues, and frozen canals where everyone is enjoying an ice-skating party.

3. Santa Claus, Indiana

Living up with its name, this town is packed with Santa-themed shops and attractions such as Santa’s Candy Castle, Santa Claus Museum, and Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari. Since 1914, a group of “Santa’s Elves” from the town has made it their mission to answer each child’s letter sent to Santa.

4. Philippines

Known as the country to have the longest Christmas season, carols is heard as early as September and lasts until January. As one of two predominantly Christian countries in Asia, Simbang Gabi or night mass is observed starting December 16 to Christmas Eve. Folk beliefs hold that God grants the special wish of a devotee that hears all nine Masses.

5. Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland

Dubbed as Santa’s “true base of operations”, thousands of visitors all over Europe tours the Santa Claus Village and Santa Park every year. The locals offer tours of Santa’s workshops where you can buy souvenirs, encounter real reindeer, and visit the big man himself.

6. Paris, France

Known as The City of Light, Paris maintains its reputation. During Christmas, strings of white lights, in all shapes, line the boulevards and shopping streets. High-end stores put on elaborate displays that attract crowds from all over the world.

Sounds fun? Book your flights now for some travel agencies give discounts to early birds. Remember that it is always the best to spend the holiday season with your loved ones.

How to Live Happily Being Single

Photo credit: mobavatar.com

Whenever there are talks about single women, it is common to have some questions. Why don’t they settle down? Do they have a failed relationship?

For those who live a single life, it is their choice or the situation asks for it. It could be because of their partners’ death or a breakup. Whatever the reasons, you still have a good life to face.

We are in a society where there are single women. The good news is, they all cope and live a happy life. Here are ways on how to stay happy being single.

The Rules to Stay Happy

1.    Remind yourself that being single is not a weakness. It won’t be a bad mark on your personality. What will be a point against you is if you let this mess up your life.

2.    Create positive thoughts. There could be doubts on how you are going to live your life through the coming years. Insecurity may pull down your esteem. It is just normal to have a wavering feeling. But this should not weaken your aim to move on and live better. So look at yourself as a strong person who can live without relying on a partner.

3.    Bust out the old-maid myth. Don’t think that living without a partner will make your life less happy and meaningful. This is just an old adage to fill up a garbage can. You are a brave person that can redefine singleness into a fabulous concept. Isn’t it that behind every successful man is a woman? So who says that you can’t thrive on your own?

4.    Be thankful for what you have. Look around you and you have so much to appreciate. You still have your family, good friends, or children. They will always be there to listen and support you. What’s more, being single is not a glitch to solve. It is not as distressing as the problems on hunger, illness, and homelessness. You still have a worry-free life to take care and to endure.

5.    Focus on worthwhile things. Being single is not the end of the world. It should not stop you from you living. Now, you have all the time to improve yourself. You may take a new course to hone yourself to another field. If you are working, you can go for an extra job. These things will make you productive while forgetting past experience.

In truth, you should take pride to live in singleness. You are great and more than capable to live a happy and fulfilling life. You can find many benefits; thus, never regret being single.

Social Media Pages: The Hidden Keys to Business Growth

Photo credit: Forbes.com

The Internet has gone a long way. From its humble beginnings, it has grown to become a powerful tool that rules the world. It is more than a storage of global information—it is now a way of life, seems like the air that we breathe.

Not only people make the most out of the Net. Even businesses do.

Social media sites are a hit in recent times. And they exist not just to let people connect with others but also to earn a living. Yes, you read that one right!

Techniques to Try

If only all FB and Twitter users know how to use their accounts wisely to earn money, perhaps there would be lesser number of poor people.

So, you’re now convinced about the power of networking sites to start and/or grow a business?

Here are a few marketing techniques that you should employ to boost your online presence and achieve business growth:

• Video – Videos are still a hit for all types of netizens. Create one that advertises your business and upload it to various video-sharing sites (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo, etc.). You’ll soon see it going viral across social channels.

• Hashtag – It seems hashtags are here to stay for good. Not only Twitter makes use of this scheme to let users know the latest trends; other sites have also applied it. In using a # sign, be creative. Include your business name to create a buzz, start a discussion, and make it searchable online.

• Facebook Ad – This may annoy FB users but not always and not all users. This is not very expensive as you might think. In fact, this is an ideal investment for a startup or small business. Make an enticing ad and it will surely give you a good conversion.

• Optimization – As long as SEO exists, social media optimization will never die. Keeping an updated social page for your business will let you gain due consideration from search engines. A maintained account is deemed relevant; thus giving you much higher rank.

• Picture – Instagram is a new yet powerful platform for marketers. Through it, they can earn money via sharing of pictures and succinct messages.

Mobile Version

Whatever technique(s) you choose to employ, be sure that you have a good mobile version of it. This way, you can reach much more audience.

These schemes can guarantee a profitable boost. Employ them and see your business growing at a breakneck speed.

Social media pages are, indeed, useful marketing tools and opportunities disguised as a mere social platform online. Discover them now!

Trending Christmas Decorating Ideas for 2014

Photo © Christmas.com

Christmas décor trends change from year to year to keep your home from becoming boring. They can also bring a dramatic and exciting change to your home’s ambience or give a feel of serenity and tranquillity to your house guests. The following ideas will give you some insight as to what the new trends so that you can begin planning your holiday décor.

• Shimmer and Shine. Inclusion of metallic accessories is one of the top home décor trends for 2014. Adding lots of gold and silver in your decors is going to be a popular trend. Using oversized gold bows and ribbons on the tree is better than just tiny shiny ornaments. This is also the best time to add some vintage gold framed mirrors, which you can hung on the wall or place on a table as the base display.

• Tranquil ThemesUsing a white tree with turquoise, pale blue, light green, or any pastel-colored decors is a trendy way to add tranquillity to your home. Be conservative for decors you put in a room if you want to achieve serenity. Less is always the best when creating a serene atmosphere.

• Exciting and Bold. Unleash your artistic touch this year through your Christmas decors. Colors such as purple, bright pink, rich turquoise, brilliant red, and emerald green are the ideal base tones to use. Rich colors with a metallic finish combine beautifully with dark shades of purple and turquoise.

• Vintage Re-purposed Decors. Vintage decorative accessories have already made their mark into the modern and contemporary trends. Vintage ornaments can attractively be infused into the modern home decors. Re-purposing items from the past is among the among the trendy 2014 holiday decorating themes.

• Textures. The use of textures to create visual interest in a room is also in the list of home décor trends. You can apply the trend using faux furs to create beautiful Christmas displays. Natural elements such as sisal and burlap blend well with woodland holiday décor themes.

Do you love these ideas or got other themes to decorate your home this coming Christmas? Share your thoughts with us. We would love to hear from you!

Why Do Huge Shopping Spree on November?

Photo credit: gettyimages.ae

Looking for big sales? Here’s one good tip: you will find some low-cost products at a certain time. 

Whether you want to buy gadgets, book a flight, or lease a car, there is a right time for each. For wise shoppers, November is the best month to make more purchases. Though there are deals on other months, you will still get more savings during November.

Here are some reasons this month is the best time to shop:

Photo credit: slidingwardrobeworld.com

1.   Find best deals. Aside from Halloween, get big discounts during November. It is not a surprise that products hit their rock-bottom price on this month. As stores begin to sell items for the Christmas season, they mark down prices of other products. Also, you will find low-cost toys and other gift items for the upcoming holidays.

2.   Stores begin to push their old stuffs. Traders will replace old stuffs. They will dispense these items by dropping the price. If you want to buy a car, this is the best time as new model comes out. Haggle your way down for good old car models as you can get one with a low price. Meanwhile, digital cameras and some tech gadgets have the same story. So you can buy these stuffs in a reduced cost.

3.   The market has enough supply. Prices are low because supplies of products are ample. Take for instance, cookware and kitchen tools. They are popular items for the season; hence, you will find them in every market. 

Photo credit: happynew-year.org

4.   Black Friday sale. In the US, Black Friday is a retail blowout right after the Thanksgiving Day. Massive savings, both online and around the country, entices millions of US shoppers.  You can get a 20% to 75% discounts on various products. The idea of Black Friday is to make a bigger profit. It coined its name from the theory that black ink is a mark for profits

 5.   Cold off-season. This is the start of a colder season. Buyers will move away from cooling products. As such, traders will cut off the prices to push these products. These are air conditioners, fridges, freezers, coolers, and electric fans. If you are into gardening, you will find plants to have cheap prices, too.

Easy Ways to Make You Feel and Look Good

Photo credit: behappylifecoach.com

People today look much more stressed out and anxious than ever before. It is ironic, though, that the current generation enjoys the pleasure of using modern tools, which help ease human tasks.

There may be a lot of reasons for such experience of stress and anxiety and these causes vary from one person to another. But it all seems to boil down to lack of healthful daily routines. Yes, people forget to do basic activities that could brighten up the day and make them happy all day long.

Now is the time to bring back those old healthful habits and make a change to the way you live your life.

What to Embrace and Do

In case you forget what these habits are, read on. This article gives tips on how you can improve your lifestyle.

• Utter – Don’t forget to utter your mantra once you wake up. This is the simplest way to start your day right. Your mantra should motivate and guide you toward reaching your daily goal.

• Breathe – Take a few deep breaths to lower stress in the body. This is the essence of being a human.

• Smile – Even if you are going through life’s trials, take time to smile for it is the secret of youthfulness. A smile can attract good vibes.

• Move – Do some stretching or physical exercises. Walk or jog around for a couple of minutes. This releases muscle tensions, relaxes your body parts, and prepares to get you going.

• Drink – Thirst can weaken you. So, drink water, coffee, tea, or milk. The key here is: whatever makes you and your tummy happy, drink a plenty of it.

• Eat – Watch what you eat. Consider the type, quality, and amount of food, as well as your current body mass and health goals.

• Play – Release some sweat to cool you down and cleanse your body system.

• Talk – Find time to talk to anyone—your parent, sibling, friend, or office mate. Share your thoughts and listen to what they say. Socialize with people online and offline.

• Meditate – If time permits, perform yoga. This can recharge your body and refresh your mind.

• Rest – After hours of doing various activities, end your day with something good. Take a rest to restore your energy. Sleep on time. Find the best position so you’ll have a sound sleep.

Things to Quit and Ignore

To achieve a worry-free life, avoid these:

-      Vices and bad habits (smoking cigarettes, taking illegal drugs, drinking alcohol)

-      Laziness

-      Pessimism

Follow these tips, stay focused, and you’ll soon see yourself living life to its fullest.

Top Tips to Take Pictures like A Pro

Photo credit: thinkstockphotos.com

Who else doesn’t have a camera? If you don’t have a portable cam or a DSLR, you have a smartphone or tablet, right?

With this stuff, you don’t care if you starve to death or stumble upon as long as you capture scenes. You take shots of unique areas you cross by, or of foods you are about to eat.  

You take selfie or group shots. You post it on Facebook, tweet it, and brag it. But, did you know that you can simply take pictures just like a pro? 

Yes, even amateur smartphone owners can create pictures that blow away the viewers. All you have to do is keep these tips and try it out.

Photo credit: flickr.com

1.   Keep it clear and sharp. Avoid shooting in a hot or humid set up. Also, prevent flare-ups by taking a shot that won’t go against the light. These can make the photo filthy, hazy, or dim. You won’t be able give out a clear and fresh view. Did you find some of your smartphones shots blurred? This often happens with low light setting. Use a tripod or a monopod to stabilize the shutter.

Photo credit: hookedonhouses.net

  

 2. Consider the lighting. If you want to shoot outdoors, consider the weather condition and the time. Shoot in early morning or late day. This will give dramatic or intense effect on your photo. Go with the natural light because it has more quality and create depths. 

Photo credit: culturalhealthprofessionaltours.com.au

3.   Mind your backgrounds. Striking photos have great backgrounds. These could be a landscape, glowing city, beaches, buildings, or beautiful houses. In doing this, you have to know where to put things in place. Let’s take, for instance, a photo at the beach. You have to look into various components: the sky, the sand, the water, and the person. Make sure that you see these things in your frame. You may shoot the person at a close range, then zoom out to capture the beach as a background. You may take the shot sideways, a bit lower to get more of sand’s view, or a bit high to capture the blue sky.

Photo credit: kenrockwell.com

 4.  Watch out for unwanted elements. Be careful when there are trees or bushes at the back. They usually appear as growing out of your or your subjects’ head.  With DSLR’s, you can actually shoot by simply focusing on the subjects and blurring the backgrounds. In smartphones, this is hard to achieve. So you just have to change venue or find the right angle.

Not all of us can make a difference from the ordinary one.  But there are ways to take pictures just as an expert does.  Just follow these tips and see the difference.

Homemade Food Gift Ideas to Try This Christmas

Do you want to give personalized gifts this Christmas? Try these budget-friendly and timesaving homemade food gift ideas.

Photo © Romulo Yanes

1. Espresso-Flavored Sugar Cubes

Share your love for coffee to your loved ones! This easy to make, caffeine-spiked sugar cubes will surely add kick to your hot mug of Christmas coffee or cocoa. 

Photo © Jose Picayo

2. Flavored Gourmet Salts

This variety of self-made gourmet salts is a quick and simple gift that any foodie will love. Shred old newspapers or book pages for cheap and eco-friendly packing materials. 

Photo © Catherine Gratwicke

3. Calming Herbal Tea

Turn those boring homemade teabags into Christmas presents. Put the dried herbs into petite sacks cinched with thread and hand-stamped tags with cute messages inside. 

Photo © Lara Robby/Studio D

4. Tea Cookies

Using the basic recipe of tea cookie dough, you can create four different kinds of Christmas cookies that can satisfy various taste buds. (Roly Polys, Jam Thumbprints, Red-and-Whites, and Raspberry Bars)

Photo © Charles Schiller

5. Chocolate Bark

Indulge your sweet tooth with this easy to make treat. Using chocolate as your base ingredient, (you can use any kind you want) enhance its flavor by adding dried fruits and nuts.

Photo © James Worrell

6. Simple Sugar Cookies

Level up sugar cookies by customizing them. Add a card to each pack with the recipient’s initial. You can add short messages or even share the recipe so they can make a batch too!

Photo © Ellen Silverman

7. Homemade Jams

Rather than giving store-bought jams, your loved ones will surely appreciate the homemade ones. Using the online recipes to make the jam, pack them into cute glass bottles that can display or reuse once it’s empty. 

Photo © Frances Janisch

8. Peppermint Sticks

Make simple peppermint sticks look and taste better by adding personal touch. Dip each stick into melted white chocolate, and then roll them into your desired toppings. Once dried, you can put them into a gift box with holiday tissue paper.

Photo © Alton Brown

9. Paradise Macaroons

Satisfy your pastry cravings with this fusion of chocolate, coconut, and macadamia nuts. One bite of these island-inspired macaroons and you’ll think you’re in paradise!

Photo © Levi Brown

10. Super-Chunky Christmas Cookies in a Jar

Layer all of the ingredients into an airtight jar and make a custom tag with the recipe so your friends can bake fresh cookies whenever their craving hits. 

They all look yummy right? Keep in mind that presents don’t have to be expensive. Just like the old saying, “It’s the thought that counts!”