Yes You Do Need a Career Portfolio!

 Career Portfolio:  What is it?  What's in it?

 

Often times, job searching can be a tedious task and many of us don't know how to properly prepare.  I have been there.  I was a college graduate, had just moved back to my home town and needed work.  Most of the people in my family don't have college degrees so my options as to who I could turn to were limited.  

With my back against the wall, I researched and found out what employers in my field were looking for.  I read through hundreds of job descriptions in order to create this really good resume.  I started sending my resume out, and almost immediately, I began getting calls for interviews.  I would go to these interviews and the interviewer would ask me the standard interview questions, but then they asked for certain documentation that I did not have with me at the time.  That's when I decided that, once I found all those documents, I was going to keep them in a safe and ready place and start taking them with me to my interviews.  I did not want any reasons for them to say we will call you.  I wanted to have everything that I needed for them to hire me right then.  And that is why you need a Career Portfolio.  It will help you organize your career information and documents and you will have all the information that a company needs to hire you on the spot.  YES! Eliminate the wait time it will take you to find the documents, submit them to the employer and wait for them to "call you back

So now you know WHY you need a career portfolio, you may be wondering "well what in the world is a career portfolio?"  Don't worry, I have been there too! Back when I was starting out, I had to research EVERYTHING for myself.  There were no coaches to help me.  Which is one of the reasons that I am so passionate about what I do.  Okay now back to the career portfolio.  A career portfolio is a collection of documents to support what your resume claims.  Anybody can create an elaborate resume and list tons of accomplishments, accolades, skills and certifications.  But can they back it up?  That is what your career portfolio does.  It backs up your claims of your education, accomplishments, activities and experiences that your resume outlines.  

Last question you may be wondering is "what exactly goes in my portfolio?"  I am glad you asked!  Here is a list of documents that you want to include in your career portfolio:

• Title Page (with your name and contact information)
• Table of Contents (to help the reader navigate through your portfolio with ease)
• Personal Mission Statement (tells who you are as a person, expanded career objective)
• Cover Letter (optional)
• Resume (error free)
• References (3 professional and 3 personal)
• Degree/Certificate
• Professional Development and Training Certificates 
• Awards and Accomplishments 
• Volunteer Work
• Professional Affiliations (nothing based religious or political views)
• Work Samples (if applicable)
• Statement of Originality (portfolio is your original work and cannot be copied)

 Make sure that you don't use your original documents in your portfolio because the employer may ask to keep it.  Use high quality copies.  If you don't have access to a laser copier or printer, your local WorkSource will allow you to print and make copies.  

 

Your portfolio may be very thin as you begin your career.  Don't worry about that.  Over time, you will be able to see it grow as you being your career and start accomplishing goals! 
 

If you need help creating your professional portfolio, contact me to schedule your free strategy session!  And as always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com and your answer may be in the next blog! 

 

 

 

www.facebook.com/MyKimestryKoaching 

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

20 Affirmations to Speak Daily

Spend 5 minutes at the beginning of each day slowly saying these affirmations.  We attract what we speak.  Speak and receive what is rightfully yours...peace, love, success, joy, prosperity and everything else!
  
1.   I am grateful to be alive.
2.   I am giving my attention to what really matters
3.   I choose to be an humble servant of God.
4.   I am feeling and overwhelming sense of gratitude.
5.   My natural state of feeling is joy.
6.   God will give me everything that I desire.
7.   I enjoy being present and living in the present.
8.   I love and appreciate myself.
9.   I practice living in prosperity daily.
10. I am able to give and receive love effortlessly.
11. I choose to live the life of my dreams.
12. I take inspired action on my intuitions.
13. My heart is overflowing with perpetual bliss.
14. I am down to earth, humble and divinely connected.
15. I tap into my creative flow daily.
16. My will is aligned with God's will.
17. I am persistent and patient.
18. I find harmony and peace in all situations in my life.
19. The spirit of God and energy of the universe is in me.
20. I am living in accordance to my higher purpose. 

If you need help finding balance to create harmony in your life, contact me to schedule your free strategy session!  And as always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com and your answer may be in the next blog! 

 

 

 

www.facebook.com/MyKimestryKoaching 

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

How Well Do you Maintain Balance?

Take this short quiz and find out!

If trying to maintain balance in your life makes you feel like a tightrope walker, you're not alone.  Most of us have so many demands on our time and energy, life can feel like a three-ring circus!  Take this quiz to see how well you are meeting responsibilities, while also recognizing and fulfilling personal needs and wants. 

True or False

  

T  or  F    The only way I can successfully manage my life is to take care of myself    

                physically and emotionally.

 

T  or  F    Nurturing myself enlarges my capacity to help others.

T  or  F    I eat healthy and exercise regularly.

T  or  F    I get check-ups, go to the dentist, and take preventative precautions.

T  or  F    I set aside personal, quiet time for myself, whether I'm meditating or simply 

                letting my thoughts drift.

T  or  F    I experience the gifts of each season: ice skating, sledding, beach walks, 

                gardening, hiking, camping, time outside, etc.

T  or  F   Creativity nurtures me.  I do what I love, whether it's cooking , drawing, painting, 

               writing, dancing, singing or another creative pursuit.

T  or  F   Reaching out to others enriches my life.  I spend quality time with family and 

               friends.

T  or  F   Contributing to the world provides connection and purpose, so I give my time, 

               energy and experience where it is most useful.

T  or  F   I notice and heed the emotional signals that tell me I am out of balance: irritability, 

               overwhelm, resentment, etc.

T  or  F    If I feel that I'm catching a cold, I realize that I may have stressed immune system 

                with over activity, so I stop and take care of myself.

T  or  F    When I need or want to, I say no to requests for my time.

T  or  F    I listen to and honor the requests my body makes for things such as a nap, a 

                walk, green vegetables, exercise, etc.

T  or  F    If I have something planned for myself, I don't toss it aside when someone makes 

                a request of me.

T  or  F    I am busy but I find time to do the things I want to do.

 

T  or  F    I am happy.  I regularly experience well-being, contentment and joy.

     

If you answered false more often than true, you may want to take a look at the questions to which you answered false and see if you can incorporate something its message into your life.  Email or call if you would like to explore this further in a free coaching session.  

As always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com and your answer may be in the next blog! 

 

 

 

www.facebook.com/mykimestrykoaching

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

Why I Don't Hate Mondays

    

For a long time, I used to hate to see the weekend leave and the new workweek begin.  I absolutely hated Mondays! There was nothing in this world worse than a Monday morning.  On Sunday night, my dread would start.  I would begin thinking about the following day and almost start to have an anxiety attack.  But one Monday a few years back, something came over me and I had a mindset change.  It was 6 am and I was getting dressed for work.  I had a long mental list of things that I had to do that day.  As I thought about the list, I realized that it was unrealistic.  As a matter of fact, it was downright stupid.  The things on that list could not have been completed by Superwoman in one day.  I was setting myself up for failure and disappointment.  That moment, changed my life.  It was truly an epiphany!

The moment I realized that  I am not Superwoman but I am human, things changed.  I now looked at Mondays different.  I wrote down my mental list so that I see it.  Writing it down helped me to see that it really was too much to do in one day.  That is when Monday became my planning day.  I now take Monday as my day to plan for my week.  Instead of dreading all that I have to do on Monday, I know look forward to planning what I have to do. 

When planning, I take the time to make 3 lists, Work, Home, and Personal.  On the work list, I write ideas that have brewed over the weekend and how I can bring them to life, clients that I have to meet with during the week and any jobs that need to be completed during the week.  The home list includes:  meals for the week, chores that need to be completed and any family activities that are scheduled for the week.  My personal list is just that, personal.  It lists the things that  I need to do for myself.

Once I have completed my lists, I take out my calendar and put everything on the calendar.  I give every task a date and every appointment or activity a time. This allows me to have my week at a glance and not feel overwhelmed by Monday and trying to get things done in one day.  Planning is critical in almost every aspect of our lives.  We need guidance and a plan is just that.  It helps us get from one place to another and in this case, it helps us get from Monday to Friday! 

As always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com and your answer may be in the next blog! 

 

 

 

www.facebook.com/mykimestrykoaching

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

What Else Do I Need to Get a Loan?

Completing your business plan is just the start to seeking financing for your business.  Your complete business plan lays out:

• What your business is/does
• What service or product you offer
• How much you will charge for your service or product
• How much money you will make from your service or product
• How much money you will need to start up so that you can put your plan into action

If you are anything like me, you think or thought "now that my business plan is complete, I am ready to submit it to banks and get a loan."  This is what most new business owners tend to think..  Unfortunately, it is not that easy to get funding.  If it were, every small business owner would be running to the bank for a loan.  Along with a solid business plan and loan application, you must have other things.  The bank is a business and they will not buy into a (your) dream with the "hope" that you will make money and be able to pay them back, therefore your business plan alone will not get you funding.  The three major things, in addition to your business plan, that the banks look at are: personal creditworthiness, collateral and presentation.

 

Personal Creditworthiness

Aside from your business plan, banks and investors look at your personal creditworthiness before deciding to lend you money.  Yes, your own credit plays a huge part in a bank approving or denying you a loan!  If you can't manage your personal finances, how will you be able to manage business finances?  When applying for a loan, having good to excellent personal credit is important.  If you are looking to get a bank loan to start your business and your credit is not what it should be, work on cleaning up your credit before applying for a loan. 

 

Collateral

When asking for financial help to start your business, collateral is important.  Nobody will give money to someone who has nothing to lose.  Most banks require you to make some type of investment into your own business.  Putting valuable equipment, land or real estate that you may own up for collateral shows a lending institution that you believe in your business enough that you are willing to invest your personal assets.  In reality, it makes sense.  Are you willing to loan someone money who may or may not have the means to pay you back?  Would you be more willing to loan that same person money if they gave you the title to their car until they paid you back?  It is easier to loan money to someone who has a vested interest in the loan as opposed to someone who has nothing invested.

 

Presentation

Presentation is EVERYTHING!  I am sure that you have heard this many times before.  Well, it is true!  People believe what they see.  If you want your business, business plan and loan application to be taken serious, then you have to present all three in a professional manner.  Make sure that when you are submitting any documents, that they are legible, neat and clean.  Your business plan should be printed on high quality paper and professionally bound.  If you hire a service to complete your business plan, make sure that it will be delivered to you in this manner.  Lastly, when you go into the bank to handle any type of business, but namely requesting and/or submitting your loan application, make sure that YOU look the part!  Your are a reflection of your business and your business is a reflection of you.  Be dressed appropriately and professionally. 

 

Aside from a well written business plan, we have to remember that potential investors, banks and other lending institutions are looking at us.  We ARE our business so we have to make sure that we are in order not only professionally but personally.

 

As always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com and your answer may be in the next blog!

 

 

 

 

www.facebook.com/mykimestrykoaching

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

What Bankers Look for in a Business Plan

Starting a business can be one of the scariest things to do.  There are many things to consider before starting a business.  One of the main things that you will need is a business plan.  The business plan is the road map for your business.  It is the document that outlines your business, your services or product and what you expect your business to do financially.  If done properly, your business plan is the lifeline of your business and the start of your road to success. 

 

It is easy to go online and get a business plan template, but it is better to hire a professional to write your business plan.  They know exactly what investors and financial institutions look for in a business plan.  No one is going to give you money because they believe in you or your great idea.  They give money based on if your business will be viable and profitable.

 

After years of writing plans for businesses seeking bank and investor funding, here is a list of what I have found that the banks actually look for in your business plan.

 

1.  Show them a complete plan.  There is nothing worse than wasting an investor or bankers time with an incomplete plan.  It shows poor planning and lack of commitment on your part so why would they lend you any money?  Make sure that your business plan has all the sections of at least a basic business plan.  This is one of the reasons that it may be better to have a professional do the writing for you as they will make sure that everything that needs to be covered is present in your business plan.

 

2.   Show them a realistic plan.  You can't teach a CPA how to count.  Meaning the people who are reviewing your business plan and/or loan application are very familiar with financials.  They have experience in knowing what numbers are inflated or deflated.  Make sure that when you do your financials, you are using realistic numbers and asking only for what you need.  Don't try to get rich off of your business loan.  Also make sure that the numbers in your financials are indicative of industry standards.  Don't pad numbers or profit margins to unrealistic numbers that far exceed existing businesses in your same industry.

 

3.  Show them your business background.  Make sure to include information about your experience and business background in your business plan.  Investors want to know that they are potentially lending money to someone who has business knowledge and experience in the industry for which they are starting a business.  For example, no one is going to give a hairstylist money to start a daycare, but that stylist could get money to start a beauty school because of her experience in the related field. If you have business partners or a management team, make sure that they have experience in the business that you are starting and make sure to include their background information in the business plan.

 

4.  Show them the money.  When reviewing your business plans, investors want to see your financial statements.  They want to see your income statement, balance sheet and cash flow.  They want to see this financial information projected for at least three years but five is suggested.  The reason that five years is suggested is because most successful businesses don't start to see significant profit until after the first five years.

 

If you need help with your business plan, don't hesitate to contact Kimestry Koaching! We offer a free initial strategy session to help you get started in getting your business organized and more profitable.

 

As always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com. 

 

 

 

www.facebook.com/mykimestrykoaching

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

Saving Time IS Saving Money!

 

 

As business owners, we often have a lot on our plates.  Some of us are not only business owners, but we are parents and spouses among other things.  We have many roles that we take on and each of these roles has its own list of medial tasks.  And guess what? It takes time to do each task!  But how much time does it take?  Think of your daily schedule.  As an entrepreneur, we usually don't work a set schedule.  We work as needed, often more than eight hours a day.  We may work for 16-18 hours a day if we include our business and the tasks of our other roles.  If you offer a service or product, how much is one hour of your time worth?  On the low end, I can valuate an hour of my time at $75.  As a person who works from home, I used to think that I was saving money by doing everything myself.  Then I realized that in doing everything myself, I was  wearing myself out and not having the energy to do the major things that I needed to do in order to make money.  So in a sense, I was losing money. 

 

Yes my house was clean, the laundry was done, that database was created and emails were sent out, but I was dog tired and struggling to complete jobs.  I was NOT using my time and resources wisely.  I had to change my thinking (and my husband's thinking- he always said that he was not going to pay someone to do something that he could do himself).  So when I look at chores around my house or administrative tasks that can be time consuming, I have to decide if I would rather be working and earning at least $75 per hour or if I would rather outsource the job.  If my time is worth $75 per hour and it takes 3 hours to clean my house, I have just missed out on $225.  However, if I paid a cleaning service to clean my house (they charge $85 for regular customers), I actually net $140 for that same 3 hours that I would have spent cleaning.  Outsourcing the job and being able to work with a clear mind and not be tired actually allowed me to still make money and get the chore done.  This is just one example of outsourcing. 

 

Take a look at your daily schedule and see where you can be working and earning money as opposed to completing tiresome tasks.  Don't be afraid to outsource or pay a fee for someone else to complete those smaller tasks for you so that you can focus on the bigger (money-making) things that need to be done.  If you need help getting started, don't hesitate to contact Kimestry Koaching! We offer a free initial strategy session to help you get started in getting your business organized and more profitable.

 

As always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com. 

 

 

 

www.facebook.com/mykimestrykoaching

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

How to STAY Motivated

 

 

 

Something or someone lights a fire under our feet and we start running.  We run and we run! And then what?  We get tired and we stop running, often before we reach our destination.  If you are anything like me, you have experienced this.  Finding the motivation and starting something is the easy part.  Maintaining momentum and staying motivated is the hardest part of completing a task.  What I have found very helpful is to plan, prepare and execute.  Using these 3 steps will allow you to not only get on the right track to reach a goal, but it will allow you to know where to get back on track if you fall off.  

 

1.  Plan.  This is a very important part of staying motivated.  Planning means to write down on paper exactly what we want to accomplish and the steps that we need to take to accomplish it.  This step is the most crucial of all the steps because without proper planning, the other steps will not be effective.  During the planning phase, we must identify a single, specific goal.  If we have multiple goals, they should be planned individually.  Grouping goals together makes it harder to plan and even harder to see accomplishment. 

 

2.  Prepare.  In order to take action, we must prepare for action.  Sometimes in order to execute our plan, we have to "get things together."  This might mean gathering the physical supplies or materials to complete the task or it can be mental preparation.  Getting our minds ready to do the work needed to complete the task and reach our goal. Either way, preparing for the journey makes the journey that much easier.

 

3.  Execute.  This is where we put our plan into action.  If we properly planned, we can now "check" items off of our list as we execute the plan.  Checking off items on our planning list gives us a sense of accomplishment.  This is the fuel that allows us to keep our motivation.  We watch our planning list shrink as we get closer to accomplishing or goal.

 

Using the Plan, Prepare, Execute method is very effective for reaching a goal.  It helps us to not only identify a goal and lay out steps to achieve that goal, seeing our goal get closer and closer is exactly what we need to help us stay motivated to reach the goal!

 

As always, if you have a specific question or topic that you would like addressed, please email kimestrykoaching@yahoo.com. 

 

 

 

Power and success in 2014 and beyond!

www.facebook.com/mykimestrykoaching