Take a Break from the Stress

Money's tight and your stressed how you're going to pay the next round of bills. I know this is a cliche, but during times like this, you have to remember to have fun, especially if you have kids.

Have a cheap night in with the kids with a special game night. With a trip to the dollar store and some inexpensive finger foods, you can turn an ordinary night into a memorable event. Check out my eHow article at http://www.ehow.com/how_4917541_organize-fun-family-game-night.html .

A night like this reminds you what is truly important in life: your family. Yeah, it would be nice not to have to worry about money. But take a night off and have fun with the kids.

If you don't have kids, invite some friends over for a game night and make the theme "Cheezy Kids' Birthday Parties." Not only is this a silly theme sure to make the evening fun, it's also a cheap decorating idea. Now you can go to a dollar or party store and buy the cheapest, tackiest kids' birthday party supplies (plates, napkins, paper table cloth, cups, etc.) to decorate your house. Have everyone bring a finger food. The finger foods and cheap decorating ideas keep the party in your tight budget.

If having friends over doesn't work for you, treat yourself to a special movie night at home. Movies are only $1 from the Red Box (see if there's one in your area http://www.redbox.com/home.aspx). Get special popcorn you normally wouldn't buy and serve it in a fancier bowl than you would normally use. Serve yourself a hot dog and mac n' cheese on fancy dishware. Set a nice place for yourself in front of the TV. Light soothing smelling candles, turn down the lights and enjoy yourself.

Take a night off from your problems. You really need it!

The Phone is Ringing

This week at work I received more than the usual amount of unsolicited calls asking about job openings. This is a sure sign it's getting tough out there. If you're thinking about making these calls, do it! Have your professional voice on and be ready to fax or e-mail resumes as soon as possible.

I appreciate when people call me looking for jobs. If their background might match a possible future opening, I'll let them know I don't have anything now, but will keep their resume on file.
Check out my eHow article http://www.ehow.com/how_4847662_unsolicited-calls-potential-employers.html for more tips and suggestions. Good luck with your job search!

I've Earned 10 Cents!

My third eHow article just earned 10 cents! I know I shouldn't get excited over such a small amount, but maybe now the $$ will start rolling in. Soon I'll need a wheel barrow. Oh, wait. They won't even make a deposit into my account until I earn $10! Only need 100 x what I've got now. Good thing I have a good sense of humor about this.

Job Applicants Who Won't Even Get an Interview

My latest article for eHow is on "How to Apply for a Job" http://www.ehow.com/how_4835590_apply-job.html . While this may seem like a simple task and there should be no need to discuss it, you would be amazed at what I see. People come into the office to fill out applications wearing bright orange sweats and with greasy hair.

Others are rude to the receptionist or call me to see if they can fax their resume rather than come in. Nothing screams lazy like a request like that, especially since our offices are available 24/7.

Another fun applicant is the one that refuses to fill out the application until I meet with them. Yeah, I'll meet with you long enough to let you know not to waste my time or yours. If you're this particular during the application process, I definitely don't want you as a co-worker.

Even more fun is the applicant who calls each morning to see if I reviewed his resume yet. After the third time, it's in the shredder.

And I'm sorry, but the person who comes in wreaking of body odor, pot or alcohol definitely is not getting an interview!

Blood shot eyes and dilated pupils without a medical excuse aren't in the running either.

Yeah, we've seen it all and laughed. So the article is on eHow. Enjoy and good luck with the job hunting!

By the way, for some jobs, I do look past tattoos & piercings, but for some positions I can't. So before you tattoo or pierce, be careful where you put it. If you can't cover it, you're barring yourself from a good portion of the jobs available.

It Really Isn't You!

Are you getting discouraged about not being called back after interviews? Don't. As long as you are being professional and dressing nicely for the interview, it's not you, it's the job or the company's fault!

Last week I interviewing applicants for an inside sales position. We're looking for the specific ability to turn a query into a sale. Not very many people have this skill naturally and few can learn it.

Anyway, during the interviewing process, a really nice applicant (we'll call him Bob) came in. The guy is smart, appears dedicated and may be able to do the job basics, but doesn't have the sales experience. Unfortunately someone else came in with the qualifications we wanted and I'm very excited about the 2nd guy starting on Monday.

There's nothing wrong with Bob and I'll call him Monday and let him know that I'll keep his application in a folder in case we need someone with his abilities. Or, if I hear from a colleague that they need someone with his skills, I'll forward his information. Bob exemplifies the difficult part of my job -- finding someone you like but you don't have a place for them in your organization.

The moral to this story is that if you don't get a job after an interview, don't take it hard. The interviewer's job is to match the applicant with the job. In this case, Bob didn't meet all the qualifications, but he is still a great guy.

By the way, for more information on how to interview, check out my e-how article: http://www.ehow.com/how_4782875_prepare-job-interview.html

A Talent Leads to Extra Cash

To help out the cash flow, my husband did a side job on his furlough day. Luckily he enjoys landscaping as well as being handy with odd jobs. He trimmed a tree for one person and did some household repairs for someone else. Earned enough to buy some groceries.

My tip to everyone is to look at your interests and see if you can turn it into a small side business. I notice a lady in my area is advertising her sewing skills to alter and repair clothing. Someone else is offering to run errands. I was thinking today about a dog poop business. What if I charged $10 per yard each week and got as few as 5 yards? I could get it all done on a Saturday morning and make $50 for the week. Not a bad idea!

Think outside the box to come up with a quick business that doesn't require a lot of upfront cash. Good luck!

Let's Get Started with Interviewing

I'm so excited! I just wrote my first eHow article and it really wasn't that hard. It's about preparing for a job interview. You can check it out at http://www.ehow.com/how_4782875_prepare-job-interview.html

Actually, PLEASE check it out! I need to get views so I can get some notoriety. I appreciate all pity views, so pass it on to your friends, family, enemies, etc.

During my career in Human Resources I managed a training program for people on unemployment. Part of the program was a job skills class that included info on interviewing skills and resume preparation. I plan to share all that knowledge on eHow. So the above article is the first of several. I'll go into the details of some of the steps in later articles.

And for all of you searching for jobs, I wish you the best of luck. Through my career I have interviewed hundreds of people. My best advice is for you to remember that the interviewer wants you to be the last person they have to meet for the job. However, they have to make sure you'll be a good fit. It doesn't do you or them any favor to misrepresent yourself. Be calm, be truthful and be confident.

With My Fingers Crossed

Here we go!

My husband has his first mandated furlough day tomorrow. He's a California state employee and this is the all-knowing state politicians' idea on how to solve a budget crisis: make the middle class poorer.

Because we refuse to be victims, we have decided to find alternative ways to make money. Who knows, maybe we'll become such wealthy entrepreneurs from these ideas that he'll be able to tell CA where they can put their job!

Tonight's first steps are an article on e-How and this blog, which will give you the ideas we're using to make more $$. Or ideas we've heard about but are too timid to try.

Also, since I have a background in human resources, I'll be sharing job search and interviewing skills.

So, with our fingers crossed, I start this endeavor. Hope you learn something while we make some extra $$. I'll keep you updated on the income so you'll know how real it is!