5 Ways to Motivate Yourself (and Everyone Around You)

5 Ways to Motivate Yourself (and Everyone Around You)5 Ways to Motivate Yourself (and Everyone Around You)To be seen as a leader at work, youll need the drive to consistently deliver superior results, the energy reserves to give a your colleagues a boost when they have a tough day, and the mental agility to be at the top of your game when you interact with senior leaders- so that they know youre up for bigger challenges.But, when you face the same ups and downs as everyone else in the office, its easier said than done. So what can be done to motivate the motivator?One things for sure Theres no shortage of advice columns filled with tips that are less than realistic and far from sustainable. Researchers have found that an afternoon nap improves productivity, for example, but unless you work in a mattress showroom, thats not exactly realistic. Neither is it especially helpful to know that athletes perform best after 10 hours of sleep or that Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer gets so much done be cause she needs only four hours of sleep. Lets be honest Not many of us are able to pull off either extreme.So for the rest of us- those who want to maintain a high performance and be a role model to others without resorting to caffeine pills, cattle prods, and other unsustainable gimmicks- here are five research-backed ways to keep yourself at peak performance. 1. Arrive at Work in a Good MoodResearchers Nancy Rothbard and Steffanie Wilk found that call center representatives in a Fortune 500 company who started the day in a good mood delivered superior results and felt more positive after their calls. Their colleagues who arrived in a bad mood, on the other hand, suffered a dip in productivity of up to 10%. A positive mood lifts your brains dopamine levels, resulting in improved cognitive performance. So, build a mood-lifter into your commute, whether its listening to music, calling a friend for a virtual coffee chat, watching an uplifting TED talk, or catching a highlight from yo ur favorite late night show, and enjoy the resulting boost in brainpower as you arrive at your desk.2. Manage Your Energy, Not Your TimeWhen McKinsey Company studied the characteristics that drive and sustain top female leaders, energy management was discovered to be a common element of their success. Those leaders understood exactly what drained and sustained them, and I recommend you do the same. Keep a log of your energetic peaks and valleys for at least a week, and from those insights, build a new routine. By paying close attention, you may learn to avoid the carb-heavy lunches that make you sleepy by 2 PM or to connect with a chatty team member early in the day, when you still have the energy to wrangle his or her whimsy. 3. Expand Your Capacity Like AthletesOnce you know your energy sources, you can expand your capacity like elite athletes do, a strategy advised by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz in The Power of Full Engagement. They recommend approaching a typical workday like a n interval training workout by arranging tasks into bursts of intense activity interspersed with breaks or lower-intensity activities. What interval works best? K. Anders Ericsson, a psychology prof at Florida State University, found that high performing professionals- like elite athletes and musicians- maximize their performance with 90-minute bursts of activity. So, start there Work, for example, on that PowerPoint presentation for a frenzied 90 minutes, then shake things up with a stretch break or walking meeting. 4. Be an EnergizerAnd once you have all that energy, dont be stingy with it. Sharing it with others will motivate your team and boost your performance, too. According to The Hidden Power of Social Networks by Rob Cross and Andrew Parker, people who energize others are much higher performers, and theyre more likely to be heard and to have their ideas acted upon. Just remember, being an energizer is a more subtle skill than being a cheerleading extrovert. Cross and Parker note that energizers are not entertainers, or even necessarily very charismatic or intense. Rather, they bring themselves fully into an interaction. How exactly do you do that? Communications analytics company Quantified Impressions reported that simply making eye contact establishes an emotional connection with the person youre speaking with. Want someone to know he or she has your undivided attention? Put away your cell phone, lean toward him or her, and make eye contact. 5. Understand Your Goal OrientationAccording to the article A Social-Cognitive Approach to Motivation and Personality by Carol Dweck and Ellen Leggett, there are two types of goal orientation. People with mastery orientation are motivated by the challenge of learning something new, while people with performance orientation do better when striving for excellence by using their existing skills.For example, a mastery-oriented individual who is tasked with improving her help desk metrics might motivate herself with a goal to re-engineer the process for incoming requests and achieve that goal by delving into the latest research and speaking to experts in other organizations. Someone who is performance-oriented, on the other hand, would do better with a goal of lifting metrics 15% above last quarter, working toward that by reviewing individual metrics from prior months, identifying when he performed at his peak, and then replicating those successes while striving to push the bar higher.Which type are you? Whichever it is, tailor your goals and how you achieve them to suit the style that best motivates you.Once youve found your personal formula for self-motivation and rejuvenation, youll be better prepared to pay it forward and go beyond being a solo star performer who motivates only him or herself. Now you can begin lifting up others as you climb. Ask yourself How will you motivate those around you? Photo of sticky notes courtesy of Shutterstock.

The Recipe for Resume Success

The Recipe for Resume Success The Recipe for Resume Success If you visit my website, youll see that Ive read more than 500,000 resumes. It is a frustrating exercise, because most are little more than spam (resumes that in no way fit the requirement) or are badly written a simple recitation of responsibilities without contextualizing the work that was done.I was interviewing Ron Nash for my podcast, Job Search Radio, a few weeks ago, and together we hit on a recipe for resumes that get results. We joked that it was an Italian recipe for a successful resume because the acronym spelled out PARM, as in parmesan.Before we discuss the acronym, I want to encourage you to think of your resume in the context of SEO or keyword optimization, pspeciesicularly if you will be submitting it through an applicant tracking system (black hole) or posting it on a job board. Because of the ranking systems both tend to use, you want to list terms firms search for to find someone like you in the top thi rd of your resume, where both systems will be more likely to believe that it is recent, relevant experience.Also, minimally, you should include your city, state, zip code, and your mobile number under your first and last name. Not including your zip code prevents firms and recruiters alike from finding you in their systems when new positions open that might fit your experience. After all, when searches are run, 25 or 35 miles from a particular zip code is one of the variables used for locating people.Now, lets getto the PARM modelP Is for Problem What Is the Problem You Were aAsked to Work On?Describe in detail what the herausforderung is you were asked to resolve. Maybe you are an IT professional hired to manage a project to deliver a system for your firm. Maybe there were network issues or business continuity problems you were brought in to resolve. Maybe you are a CPA who is hired to do month-end closings for clients in a timely way. Describe the problem in great detail.A Is for Action What Actions Did You Take to Resolve the Problem?What did you do and how did you go about doing it? Who did you interact with?Lets use the example of an engineer. Theymight be tasked with developing a solution to a particular problem. Who did you meet with on the business side? How did you resolve issues between the different groups? How many people did you manage? Were they all on site or were some offshore? How large a budget did you have? All of these factors give texture to a description of what you did.R Is for Results What Results Did You Achieve With the Actions You Took?Describe the outcome of your efforts. Perhaps you delivered the project on time and under budget. Perhaps someone described your work in glowing detail because of the success you achieved. Too often, people only discuss the role and responsibilities instead ofgoing into detail about the results of their work. How will anyone know unless you tell them?M Is for Metrics How Did What You Do Help Your Compa ny Make or Save Money?There is a big difference to an employer when someone has worked on something that saves $10,000 versus $10 million. Theres a big difference between someone who helps a firm make $10 million versus $100 million. Let people know the scope of your work. After all, unless you tell them, they have no way of knowing.If you are in a job where this particular metric does not apply, theres another way to demonstrate value.Lets say you work in a call center where such metrics are not available. You can always describe the percentage difference in whole volume you handled versus the average worker. For example Handled 17 percent more calls than the typical employee of the organization. Resolved 42 percent of all calls without escalation versus 18 percent for the average employee.Such metrics demonstrate how you would be a superior hire for their firm.Put it all together and it spells PARM a recipe for resume success.P.S.Receive $25 off a resume critique with this link.M aster the art of closing deals and making placements. Take our Recruiter Certification Program today. Were SHRM certified. Learn at your own pace during this 12-week program. Access over 20 courses. Great for those who want to break into recruiting, or recruiters who want to further their career. Like this article? We also offer tons of free eBooks on career and recruiting topics - check out Get a Better Job the Right Way and Why It Matters Who Does Your Recruiting. document.write(Read more ) in Resume Writing

5 Advances in Smart Fabrics

5 Advances in Smart Fabrics 5 Advances in Smart Fabrics 5 Advances in Smart Fabrics Fabrics can do more than keep their wearers warm or clothed or help them make a fashion statement. Newly designed materials, sometimes called smart fabrics or smart textiles, incorporate a number of advances that help them generate electricity, cool the body, and even capture greenhouse gases. Below, weve detailed five smart textiles and their not-so-futuristic functions.Powered and Warmed by the SunResearchers at Georgia Institute of Technology recently developed a fabric that generates electricity from the sun and the wind surrounding the wearer. Garments made from the material could one day power the smartphones or global positioning systems their wearers use every day, says Zhong Lin Wang, a professor in Georgia Techs school of materials science and engineering.To create the material, the researchers used lightweight polymer fibers, photoanodes (the anode of a photoelectron cell), and fiber-based triboelectric nanogenerators. The latter use the triboelectric effect, a type of electrification at contact, and electrostatic induction to generate a small amount of electrical power from mechanical motion, in this case, the wind that blows across the nanogenerators, Wang says.A bracelet is made from fabric woven with special energy-harvesting strands. Image Georgia TechThe photoanodes are used to harvest the sunlight.The anodes, fibers, and nanogenerators are then woven with strands of wool into a 320-micrometer thick fabric that can be used to make tents, curtains, or wearable garments, he says.The backbone of the textile is made of commonly used polymer materials that are inexpensive to make and environmentally friendly, Wang said.That also means they can be produced via large-scale manufacturing methods.In one of their experiments, Wangs team used a fabric about the size of a sheet of office paper. They attached it to rod like a small colorful flag. Rolling down the windows in a car and letting the flag blow in the wind, the researchers were able to generate significant power from a moving car on a cloudy day. The researchers also measured the output of a four-by-five centimeter piece of the fabric and found it charged a two-microfarad commercial capacitor to two volts in one minute under sunlight and movement.That indicates it has a decent capability of working even in a harsh environment, says Wang.Clothed CoolingOn the other side of the nation, engineers at Stanford University have developed a low-cost, plastic clothing material that could cool the body more efficiently than natural or synthetic fabrics.A low-cost plastic material that could become the basis for clothing that keeps people cool in hot climate. Image Stanford UniversityIf you can cool the part rather than the building where they work or live, that will save energy, says Yi Cui, an associate professor of materials science and engineering at Stanford.The researchers found a type of polyeth ylene with a specific nanostructure that makes it opaque to visible light, for modesty, yet is transparent to infrared radiation, to let body heat escape. So in addition to letting perspiration evaporate through the material, something ordinary fabrics already do, the three-ply polyethylene allows thermal radiation, air, and water vapor to pass through, and it is opaque to visible light, Cui says.They modified industrial polyethylene by treating it with benign chemicals to enable water vapor molecules to evaporate through nanopores in the plastic, allowing the plastic to breathe like a natural fiber, says researcher Po-Chun Hsu.Those who wear the clothing made from the material feel nearly four degrees Fahrenheit cooler than if they wore cotton clothing, Cui says.Artificial-Light EnergyThermalTech, from the company of the same name, calls upon energy-absorbing technology embedded in fabric to transform the suns ultraviolet rays as well as energy from artificial light into heat to wa rm wearers in minutes.Jackets are made of ThermalTech fabric. Image ThermalTechThe fabric is made of a 100 percent stainless-steel mesh coated with a solar technology similar to that used for solar water-heaters, says Araceli Ros Flores, the companys chief technology officer. The company recently carried out a successful Indiegogo funding campaign to create a solar-powered smart jacket that incorporates ThermalTech.The jacket resembles a common lightweight winter coat and warms wearers up to 20 degrees Fahrenheit within two minutes, Flores says.In September, the company began shipping jackets to early backers.Electronic SkinXenoma, a company spun-out from the Someya lab at the University of Tokyo in 2015, integrates stretchable circuit and sensor technologies with traditional textiles to remotely monitor the users motion, respiration, and body temperature for the virtual reality gaming, healthcare, and fitness apparel markets.The stretchable circuit technology allows more than 30 se nsors to be integrated into a shirt. The number, type, and location of sensors can be fully customizable, says Osamu Sawanobori, the companys co-founder and its chief development officer.E-skin can be worn like a typical shirt and is machine washable, he says.Captured Greenhouse GasesSmart Textiles, a Swedish research lab, on the other hand, is at work on textiles that use a methane filtration production method, which, say its creators, make for clothing made from greenhouse gases filtered from the air.The lab has teamed with researchers at the University of Bors in Sweden to develop a method that binds methane gas from the atmosphere with textiles, says Lena-Marie Jensen, Smart Textiles coordinator.The lab wants to develop a product made from greenhouse gases and air in order to demonstrate to the market that it is possible.If we can achieve a cycle where the producer and the retailer can make it simple for the customer to leave garments to be repaired or recycled, textile fibers n ever have to become garbage again, Jensen says.Jean Thilmany is an independent writer.Learn more about the latest energy technologies atASMEs Power and Energy.If you can cool the person rather than the building where they work or live, that will save energy.Prof. Yi Cui, Stanford University

A Strong Yet Ethical Résumé, Fast, Part II

A Strong Yet Ethical Rsum, Fast, Part IIA Strong Yet Ethical Rsum, Fast, Part IIPart I covered everything from rsum length to format to ethical temptations. But what if you have a GrandsReached expert level in all expansion sets of World of Warcraft while developing a network of loyal collaborators.Created custom Spotify playlists on mobile and desktop media for self and then, for pay, for friends and referred strangers.Key member of a team that built a boat that sailed 53 miles without leaking ... until it did.Ive gotten the hedonism bug out of my system and am ready, actually eager, to get to work.You might ask, Doesnt such narrative belong in the cover letter? Yes, but it also belongs in a rsum if only because cover letters and rsums often get separated.The jailbird might give this a go2011-2013 Inmate, Sing Sing Correctional FacilitySelected as prison library assistant, a sought-after assignment. Given increasing responsibility, including training inmates on use of the Internet. Also tutored inmates in reading and math.Wrote Surviving in Prison Without Joining a Gang, the only inmate-written article published in 2012 in the Sing Sing newsletter.Released early for good behavior. I certainly plan to continue that good behavior if you choose to take the risk of hiring an ex-offender. Perhaps someone gave you a chance. Im looking for someone to give me one. I will work hard and honestly.Mightnt you consider that person, at least for an entry-level job?Skills section. Include all skills that would impress your target employer, especially words likely to be searched for by automated tracking systems, those soulless screeners.Education. If its been three years or less since you finished school and the designer label on your diploma and/or your school accomplishments would more impress your target employers than would your work history, place the education section before the work experience section.As in the work experience section, list three or four accomplishmen ts at school or in extracurricular activities. And as grade inflation is the norm, only include your GPA if its 3.5 or higher.Do include relevant education youve obtained outside of school certifications, workshops, etc.Personal interests. List three or four. Often, a shared personal interest can be the tipper that lands you an interview and even the job.Cross-check. Misspelling and grammatical errors are signs of sloppiness if elend ignorence. (Did you catch the spelling error? Its ignorance. Just checking.)Double-check to be sure youve excised all sneakiness from your rsum, if not for an ethical reason, then for the pragmatic one that it reduces your chances of getting hired. For example, some people with employment gaps leave out the dates of their employment or call themselves a consultant. Most employers line their cat box with such rsums. And if, perchance, you make it to the interview or reference check, the truth will likely come out which will eliminate any chance of your l anding the job. Similarly, deceptive older applicants try to hide their age, for example, by not including the date they got their college degree. Hint, Bucko Before hiring you, theyll see your wrinkled puss and feel deceived and thus play wastebasket basketball with your rsum or even put you on the employers permanent blacklist. Get candid feedback. Now put aside your rsum for a day, then reread it with fresh eyes and, as necessary, revise. Finally, show or email the draft to colleagues, friends and/or headhunters who are in a position to assess if it will likely impress your target employer. Ask them, Is it clear, concise, and most important, would it make you want to interview me for my target job? Urge them to be honest. Better to get their criticism than for employers to use your rsum as scratch paper or fish wrap.And now you have a strong, ethical resume, no Sturm und Drang required.The San Francisco westindischer lorbeer Guardian called Dr. Nemko The Bay Areas Best Career Coa ch and he was Contributing Editor for Careers at U.S. News. His sixth and seventh books were published in 2012 How to Do Life What They Didnt Teach You in School and Whats the Big Idea? 39 Disruptive Proposals for a Better America. More than 1,000 of his published writings are free on www.martynemko.com. He posts here every Monday.

Interpreter Resume for Dummies

Interpreter Resume for Dummies The Tried and True Method for Interpreter Resume in Step by Step Detail Most interpreters have no less than a high school diploma. Some interpreters work in just one department while others might work in numerous departments as needed. Evidently, a court interpreter must act quickly and understand how to take care of any linguistic or ethical issues which will undoubtedly arise. By way of example, court and health care interpreters will probably get on-the-job training. Ok, I Think I Understand Interpreter Resume, Now Tell Me About Interpreter Resume Your interpreter cover letter is just one of the main parts of your job application. If youre asking for a specific position, it is better to compose a work application that contains a resume objective towards the top of the extremely first page. A single sheet is ideal. Be certain to list your relevant abilities and any certifications you might have, including your healthcare interpreter cover letter Handlers card. When you understand that you require an interpreter for facilitating effective cross-cultural communication in a worldwide conference, meeting, exhibition or another event, you must begin with the subsequent. Because a person might become disabled at any moment, were expected to ask all our employees to update their information every five decades. Seamless communication is now an imperative to produce a mark in the worldwide market. Effective communication is the largest factor that drives the demand for an interpreter in the industry world. In general, theres not anything wrong with using a work application objective. There are a couple things you ought to know on the best way to compose a resume. Conclusion If you would like to get a good resume for the interpreter job that youre gunning for, you have to start it using a compelling objective statement that gives value to the prospective employer. Leave no doubt which you are the ideal person for the job. The aim is the initial statement in a resume that could decide whether the reader may want to take their time to read it to the previous line or simply dump it after just a glance. This boolean methods are useful in figuring the state of a thread. If youre applying for work, any answer you give will be kept private and wont be used against you in any manner. If you previously do the job for us, your answer wont be used against you in any manner. Application writing could be a very simple job if you realize how View the target section for a destination to concentrate on your abilities and accomplishments rather than a wish list for the kind of position youd like to have. If you might fit all suitable info on a single page, you have to do hence. A guide job isnt likely to become an archives position. Interpreter Resume - the Conspiracy Your application was created to sell 1 productyou. When you compose a work application choose a fairly simple file format. A fundamen tal job application template is easily the most serious version or selection of the resume template that could be used to make resumes for more or less any operate position. You may find an application template for an entry-level placement, and youll locate a template intended for nearly any kind of job or maybe profession you want to know more about. The doctor writes orders for certain vaccinations. Medical assistants are in demand, but it doesnt indicate it will be simple to land work. Theres one little-known approach to have the job. A summer months job via your granddad isnt really critical to list. If youre looking for a fresh work or intend to shift your present job then you wish to create your resume in as many places as is possible to boost your visibility in leading in the befhigung employers. Full-time careers will get increasingly popular as demand increases with the developing international population of the United States. In place of focusing your work target st atement solely on emphasizing your major capabilities or strengths, you also will need to be aya to the job that youre applying for and whats more, you might have to say what you are able to do to help the company or company. Perhaps youre looking for a fresh job, or maybe merely seeking that campaign at work. The Unusual Secret of Interpreter Resume In case you still want to add items like a Career Objective, be certain you tell the hiring manager what you may do to them, NOT everything you aspire to escape from doing work in their opinion. Your particular job prospects will be contingent on your geographical area, and which languages you are able to interpret. A job or an internship is a superior method to practice spanish whilst gaining valuable work experience or only earning some extra cash. Youre going to be singled out as a not so very good candidate to employ. Many interpreters specialize in 1 field, but the demand for skilled interpreters can happen anywhere. Attorn eys should remain conscious of the should inquire into the right dialect when choosing a professional interpreter. Attorneys must also take action to make sure that the interpreter speaks the proper dialect of the specific language. Translators often work at home. Interpreters arent translators. Medical interpreters should have an in-depth understanding of health terminology, and they need to be ready to be tested on medical terminology and language skills during the interview approach.

The Undisputed Truth About Thank You Email for Resume Writing That the Experts Dont Want You to Hear

The Undisputed Truth About Thank You Email for Resume Writing That the Experts Dont Want You to Hear A thoughtful follow-up like a thank-you letter can be mighty powerful in various ways. For instance, you may want to just compose an overall letter, or you might want to bring up the subject of possible follow up discussions. Sending a letter out quickly shows youre serious regarding the opportunity. Set the date once you wrote the letter on the very first line, and after that compose the recipients name, position, and company address below that. Position yourself now so that youll be in the correct place later. A Resume is the initial step when you get started searching for work. Heres What I Know About Thank You Email for Resume Writing The additional personal touch increases your opportunity of receiving an invitation for an in-person bewerbungsinterview. Whether its your very first interview or youre an interview veteran, it isnt hard to feel overwhelmed about your le tter choices. Your thank you note ought to be sent within 24-hours following your interview. Dont worry, youre going to learn a proven, easy method of emailing a resume, plus some excess tricks it is possible to use on the way. You just need to think along the right lines. Writing a perfect resume email is only a fraction of all of the situations you must keep in mind before you click send. To begin with, before you begin drafting your letter, enkoranvers that your email address is professional. After that, move to LinkedIn to see whether youre able to locate their email address. Its possible to send an email and await a response, make a call or chat livethrough the site, so there are lots of choices. Your resume email must be short and sweet. Its possible to still attach your cover letter in another file, just be sure it matches the content of your cover email. When its by email, you might be advised in regard to what fassonat you need to use for your resume, what thin gs to include in the topic line of the email message, and by once the employer should receive it. Be sure your subject line clearly states the objective of the message so the employer doesnt mistake it for spam, or otherwise overlook it. Ruthless Thank You Email for Resume Writing Strategies Exploited Explain why employer must pick you. Even in the event the hiring manager states that you wont hear back for some time, theres always a possibility that the individual is likely to make their decision quickly, Pachter states. If youre writing a letter following your job interview, it can enable the employer know that youre interested in working for the company, and in the flip side, if youve taken the choice to reject the job, sending a work rejection letter its likewise a polite form to permit the employers know about your choice. Make the employer or recruiter understand you will appreciate work in their opinion.

Best Practices for Employment Background Checking

Best Practices for Employment hinterggroe nachfraged CheckingBest Practices for Employment hintergrund CheckingScreening job candidates has become an increasingly important step in the hiring process, yet not all employers use employment background checks to their best advantage. What should all employers understand about conducting successful employment background checks to ensure that they build the best gruppes? Look for Relevant Data in an Employment Background Check This is the information that employers should seek to find when they perform essential and professional background checks. Background checks can include an array of personal information about job applicants, such as County criminal historyVerification of addressKnown sexual offenderEmployment history verificationDriving historyEducation history and degreesHealth fraud and abuseReference verificationDrug testingCounty civil historyFederal criminal historyFederal civil historyProfessional license verificationSocial media screeningCredit checks Employers may find information about any or all of these background areas without difficulty by checking internal resources or through the use of a qualified service provider. Note that employers canbut they may not want to pursueeach of these background checks depending on their relevance to the job they are filling. For example, the average employee doesnt handle money in most jobs but employees in an accounting office or who run a cash register do. Thus, a credit check is only necessary for employees who will handle the financial end of your business. Otherwise, the credit check is invasive and unnecessary. Employers also need to make certain that they are using legal and best practices in areas such as social media background checks. In some casesas with social media screeningemployers may want to leverage a third-party vendor to mitigate violations of the law. The greatest challenge for employers is knowing how to weigh the information obtained dur ing the employment decision-making process. Another is to ensure that their background check process adheres to state and Federal laws. For example, many states restrict the time period of past history that you may consider. Most screening providers will relay information for the past seven years. To ensure that you are compliant with the law, talk with a knowledgeable provider, an attorney, or your state department of labor. Know When to Consider Criminal History Most employers who conduct employment background checks rely heavily on criminal history when screeninghowever, that information alone rarely paints a complete picture of any job candidate. What may look like a red flag could actually be a red herring. So employers need to thoughtfully consider how a criminal past may actually affect job results. For instance, a citation for walking a dog off-leash or for fishing without a license does create a criminal history, but it does little to portray the schriftart of skills a befhigungly reliable employee could bring to the job. On the other hand, when a criminal past stems from a more serious violation, employers must consider whether the nature of the crime relates to the skills necessary for the job. Be careful to look at the big picture and decide how any criminal history may, in fact, relate to the job in question. Most importantly, to ensure Equal Employment Opportunity Commission compliance, do not adopt a blanket policy regarding criminal history in your hiring. That is, eliminate statements in your policy and handbooks that state such policies as our company does not hire felons or our company does not hire anyone with a criminal record. Never say never. Discern Patterns From Background Data Thorough screening procedures provide details far beyond acriminal history that may be the best indicator of an employees capabilities. Employment history, for one, helps to confirm job experiencebut also sheds light on potential issues such as frequent moves, career changes, and other factors that could indicate a potential employee might not be a good long-term candidate. Look for patterns that show how an employee strives to succeedor how an employee displays consistent difficultiesto get a good impression of her or his ability to take on the job. Be careful, because applicants inflate their resumes more often than you may think. If you are considering someone based on skills listed, proper verification of employment, education, and licenses is a must. This is also a great way to screen out dishonest applicants. Dont Overlook Crucial Information in a Background Check Some indicators of a job applicants capabilities might surprise you. A background check might reveal a personality trait or unique response to a situation that could be a real asset to your team, despite the fact it isnt highlighted in the applicants resume. If you make the effort to conduct a good employment background check, use all of the information you can to your advantage. As important as it is to find areas of concern, it can be just as important to mine for strengths. Filter Information Carefully to Avoid Discrimination Most importantly, use the background information wisely. A single concern raised by an employment background checksuch as confirmation of a criminal historyshould never automatically eliminate a candidate from consideration. Instead, consider a candidates entire presentation and eliminate him or her based on objective details pertinent to the ability to accomplish the job. Document the hiring teams recruitment effort and decision-making process with as much detail as possible. Unfortunately, many employers dont realize that they unknowingly discriminate in the hiring process. If applicants answer honestly about past histories such as an existing criminal record, an automatic rejection based on that undesirable answer constitutes discrimination. Personal information from the past cannot solely decide an applican ts fate, so be sure to Ban the Box with an auto-rejection process and consider the whole candidate. To avoid discriminatory hiring, be sure to follow the guidelines set forth by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission with regard to criminal history, including the type of crime that was committed, the nature of the work that must be accomplished and the amount of time that has elapsed before tossing that job application. Discuss Concerns With Job Candidates Be prepared to share all background information with applicants. Employers must legally provide this information if requestedand also if any of the information found precludes those applicants from being hired. But remember, you have an opportunity to put the data into perspective by generating a discussion about the issue with the potential employee. Remember, the employment background check is a way to obtain information to aid your decision-making. Use that information to your advantage. Work through your questions wit h the prospective employee instead of dropping your candidate without the chance to explain. Avoid Costly Mistakes As You Approach Employment Background Check The greatest error in conducting background checks is not incorporating them into the screening process in the first place. The cost of replacing a bad hire far outweighs the value of a good background check, so put your procedures in place from the get-go. Additionally, you can save your organization time and money when pursuing background checks. Work with a reputable firm that conducts the work themselves, at the source, without automation.Adhere to all adverse action procedures, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and other state and local laws.Have an attorney knowledgeable in this field review your process.Devise a list of background checks that are pertinent to assessing the qualifications of candidates for each of your available jobs. Courts are increasingly finding for plaintiffs if the check that affected their candid acy was irrelevant to the job. The Bottom Line on Background Checks Overall, keep in mind that a good business is built on people who fulfill their duties responsibly. Any information that is revealed to you when conducting pre-employment screening is information about real individuals. Whether that information provides positive or negative signs about a candidates potential fit within your organization, be respectful and responsible about the way that you handle the information. Information from an employment background check can impact many people who have a stake in your business and its reputation. The way you handle candidate background information can impact the candidates lives as well. It is a serious step in the talent management lifecycle that deserves proper care every step of the way. mora Red Flags for Employers During Hiring 5 Cover Letter Red Flags for Employers5 Interview Red Flags for Employers5 More Interview Red Flags for Employers

Putting Greenhouse Gases to Good Use

Putting Greenhouse Gases to Good Use Putting Greenhouse Gases to Good Use After many years of work, engineers at Stanford University have developed solar cells working underwater that can provide enough energy to produce chemical reactions for converting captured greenhouse gases into industrial fuel. The solar cells are a critical component of a new way to fight climate change in a process called artificial photosynthesis.The work is being done in the lab of Stanford professor and materials scientist Paul McIntyre, a pioneer in the artificial photosynthesis field. The researchers reported on the latest breakthrough in a paper published in the journal Nature Materials last October.The concept is that greenhouse gases are captured and channeled into giant chemical tanks, where the water-resistant solar cells turn the carbon dioxide/water combination into solar fuels. This is yet another instance of engineers observing and emulating nature for solutions to modern day problems. In natur e, green plants use energy from the sun to convert water and carbon dioxide into chemical energy, the sugar or glucose that fuels a plants functions and activities.GCEP Investigator Paul McIntyre (left) and doctoral student Andrew Scheuermann. renommee StanfordThe key challenges have been keeping ordinary solar cells from corroding under water and then finding a way for them to capture enough sunlight to provide sufficient energy. McIntyres lab was able to shield the solar cells from corrosion in 2011 by coating the electrodes with a protective layer of transparent titanium dioxide. However, even though the coating was very thin (the thickness of a sheet of paper would require 25,000 layers), the cells still could not absorb enough sunlight to produce adequate power.In the recent paper, Andrew Scheuermann, who has been working on the second challenge as a doctoral student and will soon be awarded his Ph.D. in materials science and engineering, reported making the cells mora powerful by adding a layer of charged silicon between the titanium oxide and the basic silicon cell. The cells have set a record for solar energy output under water and can produce enough energy to operate various systems.When we first showed this technology in 2011, these materials lasted for only eight hours, Scheuermann says. Its now January been tested for many months and is still running. Its showing that this indeed will work.He made the solar cells more powerful by adding a layer of charged silicon between the protective transparent titanium oxide and the basic silicon cell. The charged silicon layer acts as a booster to the bottom active layer that absorbs sunlight and excites the electrons.Scheuermann likes to explain the process by calling it reverse combustion Your car combusts fuels, blows them up literally. Then exhaust comes out at the end. We take that exhaust, reverse combust it with sunlight back into the fuel.He notes that the very best material for converting sunlight int o useful energy is silicon. What this work did was figure out how to increase the power of the devices to match the photovoltaics in solar cells on roofs. Before it was only halfway there with sub-optimal silicon, he says. With the understanding reported in our paper, we were able to get an efficient device that had both the protection and the types of power that we know silicon can achieve.The a-ha moment came when the researchers were looking at a number of different cells they had made to identify why some were doing better than others. It was a long process overall, but there was that one moment where I said, Thats it referring to the charged protection layer. We knew what experiment we needed to do to prove if that was true. The experiment went beautifully, and we were able to publish the work, he says.There is still more work to be done, however. Just as photosynthesis in nature is a two-part system, most scientists, including Scheuermann, believe two solar cells working toget her are needed to complete the process. Like a battery having an anode and cathode side, we need a solar cell on both sides, which in total provides the power to drive this very efficiently. Our work has given sufficient power on the anode side. The anode is more difficult to do so thats very promising. The cathode shouldnt be as hard, and some people have already made a lot of progress with it, he says.Some additional optimization of the power is possible, but the biggest challenge is combining the different storage cell varieties into one operating system. Its an integration challenge first and then a scaling challenge, he says.The technique used to make the protection layers is actually well developed today in the semiconductor industry to make small devices like smartphones, but has not been used at the scale required. He predicts that systems should be ready to start turning greenhouse gases into fuels within five years and then could be scaled up.Nancy S. Giges is an independe nt writer.Learn more about the latest energy technologies at ASMEs Power and Energy. For Further Discussion Your car combusts fuels, blows them up literally. Then exhaust comes out at the end. We take that exhaust, reverse combust it with sunlight back into the fuel.Andrew Scheuermann, Stanford University

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