What To Tell Clients About References

My lovely colleague Sharon Williams of JobRockIt put out a late night request on Facebook last night for a client who needed information about reference letter formats. 

Although “letters of reference” have fallen out of favor in recent years, there is something to be said for our clients getting a reference letter from your manager or supervisor when they leave a company (especially if they leave on good terms). Having the reference letter provides the jobseeker with something to use in the event they're not able to find their former manager in the future. It can also help the manager refresh his or her memory if the client asks them to provide a phone reference in the future. And, as a resume writer, you can take excerpts of that reference letter and incorporate them into the resume and cover letter (this was the "original" use of the term "Endorsements" before LinkedIn co-opted it!). If the client's supervisor isn't on LinkedIn, the jobseeker can also excerpt or reprint the reference letter in his or her Summary, providing a powerful testimonial when a formal LinkedIn Recommendation isn't possible.

What are some elements of a great reference letter? Reference letters should be professional in tone and format. Effective letters of recommendation verify experience, confirm competence, and build credibility. The letters can be written by former employers, supervisors, and managers with first-hand knowledge of the employee’s work.

A reference letter may cover:

•      Previous positions held in the company

•      Summary of job responsibilities

•      Strengths, skills, and talents

•      Ability to work independently as well as with a team

•      Accomplishments

With both letters of reference and LinkedIn Recommendations, advise your jobseeker clients to choose someone who can write well, who knows them well, and who thinks highly of them. Make the process as easy as possible for the manager/supervisor by providing information needed to develop a positive, accurate reference. (At a minimum, the client should provide a copy of their resume to the individual; if you think it would be helpful, also consider having the jobseeker provide a short list of their accomplishments in the role, or bullet points of key points related to their position.)

When advising clients about references and LinkedIn Recommendations, the following two Pass-Along Materials make excellent resources:

Jobseeker's Guide to References

How to Give — and Get — LinkedIn Recommendations

Remember, with Pass-Along Materials, you can put your own contact information on these materials and provide them to clients as a bonus or you can sell them.

Don't Use a "Spork" When You Really Need a Spoon

I love LinkedIn. I use it personally, recommend my clients use it, and I've written numerous Pass-Along Materials content packages to help other resume writers and career services professionals help their clients use it more effectively. (Among them: "Getting Started With LinkedIn In Your Job Search" [2013 update] and "How to Give — and Get — LinkedIn Recommendations".)

So when I see an article posted about LinkedIn, I tend to read it! This was the case with an article posted a few weeks ago on Career Rocketeer, called "7 LinkedIn Tools Job Seekers Should Be Using."

(For those who are unaware of the Career Rocketeer blog, it's a heavily trafficked career blog that "invites" career service professionals to increase their visibility by paying to post on the site. Packages range from $99 to $299 and include the opportunity to contribute between 2-8 "sponsored posts" [emphasis mine] a month.)

I was prompted to write this blog post because I saw a well-meaning fellow resume writer share the original article this morning, without sharing any commentary or personal insight. Many times, however, you'll come across an article and agree with most of it, but as resume writers, it's also our duty to point out when advice in an article contradicts advice we'd personally give clients. Otherwise, it looks like we're endorsing the information (not simply sharing it).

The article in question is a simple "roundup" format — it lists seven LinkedIn-offered or related apps, and provides a quick snippet of their functionality as it relates to jobseekers. The author, however, does not appear to be a career services professional. ("Rob Hilborn is from www.broadbandgenie.co.uk, the consumer advice website for UK-based broadband Internet providers.") A quick Google and Twitter search reveals this appears to be the only job search-related article Mr. Hilborn has written.

Now to the central point of my blog post: "Don't use a spork when you really need a spoon."
You know what a "spork" is, don't you? It's that unwieldy combination of spoon-and-fork — not quite one, not quite the other.

Because the author's background is in marketing for a technology firm, it's not surprising that his focus for using LinkedIn is on the tools, not on the functionality of the tools.

In the article, he recommends jobseekers use LinkedIn's Resume Builder App to turn their LinkedIn profile into a PDF or a Word document. That's a terrible idea! The Resume Builder App is an awful substitute for a resume. As resume writers, we counsel jobseekers all the time not to simply copy-and-paste their resume into LinkedIn.

I would never suggest a client use the Resume Builder app. It's like someone asking you for a spoon and you handing them a spork. Yes, it may work ... but when you need a spoon, use a spoon!!

The point of this post isn't to debate the merits of the 7 tools Mr. Hilborn recommends for jobseekers (I would also never recommend the "Apply with LinkedIn" function or the LinkedIn hResume Wordpress plugin — wow, that's 3 of the 7 tools I can't support him recommending to jobseekers), but to remind the readers of this blog — career services professionals — of the need to vet and "qualify" the resources that we recommend. If 90% of an article or blog post is great advice — fabulous, but make sure you point out that 10% you don't recommend. There is so much career-related advice out there ... if we share it without examining it, we're contributing to the clutter, not improving the quality of the content and elevating it to a dialogue.

And, above all, work to identify the "spoons" and "forks" that will be truly useful utensils to our jobseeking clients, not one-size-fits-all "sporks" that may work, but really get the job done.

To Get Certified, or Not to Get Certified ... That Is the Question

Ahh... to get certified or not, that is the question!

Today, I responded to a LinkedIn Group question from Jessica Smith of Resume Butterfly, who was wondering if she should pursue certification. A quick check of my blog posts revealed I haven't addressed this specific issues on here (although I've tackled the question of fake certifications and which organizations offer certifications). And I've certainly answered this question many times in direct emails.

But it's time to write about resume writing certifications on here.

I have known great writers who are not certified, but I've also known SOME certified writers who aren't great writers.

A couple generalities:

• I don't know anyone who hasn't earned one of the mid-level or higher certifications (NCRW, ACRW, MRW), that ISN'T a great writer. Some certifications are relatively "easy" to obtain (the CPRW, for example, isn't tremendously rigorous), and competency certainly doesn't mean "mastery.
• If you ask certified resume writers whether the certification is "worth" it, the answer is generally "Yes," although their answer WHY varies. (See below.)
• Not all certifications are "equal" -- obviously. Figure out WHY you want the certification, and there will be one that is a fit for those reasons. (Prestige, exposure, validation, expert status ... these are just some reasons.)

Here's my guide to certifications (however, it's from 2007 -- guess it's time to update that!!)
http://www.rwdigest.com/certifications.pdf

Certification by itself is a minimum benchmark, but more importantly, it's a confidence builder and marketing tool. It also can help you land certain kinds of projects — for example, some contracting firms only work with certified writers (and some specify the type of certification required — for example, NCRW or ACRW). And some book authors require certification for submitting samples to include in their compiled works.

Entry-level certifications (CPRW and CARW) are the easiest and least expensive to obtain. They require self-study, preparation by reviewing the specific requirements (certification resumes aren't necessarily the way you'd write an actual client resume, but you must meed the certification standards in order to pass), and a writing project, which is reviewed by peer graders.

Advanced certifications require that, and much more -- often a portfolio (multiple documents meeting certification standards), and often more preparation (an initial grammar test or other assessment). They are also more expensive, harder to obtain, and require recertification.

I received my CPRW more than 10 years ago, and the only requirement from PARW is to keep your membership current. (I dispute whether my CPRW requires this, however, because that requirement wasn't in effect when I earned the credential.) However, many of the other certifications do require continuing education and recertification (portfolio submission, for example).

Honestly, I hear some of the same comments about joining professional associations. In many cases, the value is in the eye of the beholder (the resume writer), NOT necessarily the client.

If you asked clients, most of them have no idea that certification is available for resume writers, and they certainly couldn't tell you the difference between a CPRW and an ACRW (although there is a huge difference!).

But I have successfully used certification as a way to win clients, and sometimes that can be what makes it worthwhile for you to pursue it. Listing that you're a certified resume writer can help sway a prospective client who is considering several resume writers (if all else appears equal — which we obviously know it's not, but ... — they will focus on the one thing that is different).

And, as I mentioned, it can also be a confidence booster, especially for new writers. Entry-level certifications are NOT really a training tool, but they do provide guidance on certain standards and expectations. Advanced credentials (NCRW, ACRW in particular), do have more of a "training" component, and that can boost your confidence and your writing skills. With the NCRW, for example, the first-time pass rate is abysmal. But practice makes perfect! And the confidence you get by earning one of the more difficult-to-earn credentials is priceless.

Leave me a comment below: What are YOUR thoughts about certification? Which certification(s) do you have? Which do you find to be most valuable? How has being certified helped you? If you're not certified, why not?

New Free Special Report: Finding Your Uniqueness

How unique are you as a resume writer? Even if you think you're just an "ordinary" resume writer, how you position yourself can make a HUGE difference in attracting clients and being seen as an expert.

In this new, FREE 16-page workbook from Resume Writer's Digest, you'll learn:

• What IS a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) and how can it help you attract more clients to your resume writing business?
• What are the elements of a good USP?
• How to analyze your current client base to figure out how to choose your USP.
• Why a picture can help you create your USP.
• How studying other resume writers can help you figure out how you are unique.
• Four important questions to ask yourself to discover your USP.
• Examples of great USPs.

Includes four worksheets:

• Worksheet 1: Understand Your Target Market
• Worksheet 2: Research Other Resume Writers
• Worksheet 3: Create Your Products and Services
• Worksheet 4: Write Your Unique Selling Proposition

To obtain your free workbook, "Finding Your Uniqueness: Developing Your Unique Selling Proposition," complete the form below!

Free Workbook: "Finding Your Uniqueness: Developing Your Unique Selling Proposition"

* required

Email Address: *

First Name: *

Last Name: *



Email Marketing by VerticalResponse

Do I Need to Issue My Subcontractors a 1099?

"Do I need to issue my subcontract resume writers a 1099 form?"

If you use subcontractors in your resume writing business (or you've paid referral fees to any one resume writer in excess of $600), the answer is probably yes. And you'll have to act fast, because you must issue 1099 forms by Jan. 31.

Working with other resume writers can be a double-edged sword. On the one had, you can work with more clients than you can by yourself. But on the other hand, you have to deal with the extra tracking and bookkeeping. And come tax time, that means staying in the good graces of the Internal Revenue Service.

I'm going to use the general term "subcontractors" throughout the rest of this article, but the same principle applies to any resume writer who you pay more than $600 a year for services.

How the IRS Defines Subcontractors
Since your subcontractors aren't employees, you are not expected to withhold taxes from their payments. You simply pay the agreed-upon amount, and he or she is responsible for his or her own tax reporting.

But there is a catch.

Not only does the IRS want to know from the subcontract resume writer how much he or she earned, but they also want to know from the vendor (that's you) how much he or she paid to each subcontract resume writer. That's where form 1099 comes into play — but only if your subcontract writer meets certain criteria.

When is a 1099 Required?
On the surface, it's pretty easy to determine when to issue a 1099-MISC. If you pay a subcontractor (or other resume writer) more than $600 in a single calendar year, a 1099-MISC is required. The only exceptions to that rule are if you and/or your subcontract writer do not live in the United States, or if your writer's business is a corporation. Sole proprietors, LLCs, and partnerships are all subject to the 1099-MISC rule, provided the $600 earnings threshold is met.

The PayPal Gray Zone
If you pay your subcontract writers via PayPal payment, and you've made more than 200 payments (totaling in excess of $20,000), PayPal will ALSO be issuing a 1099-MISC to the IRS for your transactions. What that means for your subcontract writer is that they are potentially being reported twice — once by you, on a standard form 1099-MISC, and once by PayPal, on the new 1099K. You can see how this could cause some confusion, not only for you, but for the IRS as well.

To 1099 or Not?
If your subcontractor lives in the United States and earned more than $600 in payment from you during the year, he or she needs a 1099 form. As with all things involving taxes, however, it's probably best if you seek the advice of a qualified tax professional, rather than risk getting into hot water over missing or incorrectly filed forms. But do it today … since the deadline is tomorrow.

When You Have to Fire A Client

© Win Nondakowit - Fotolia.com

Last week on one of the resume writing association e-lists, there was a post from a resume writer who was looking for a way to fire a client. The client in question had initially negotiated a reduced rate for a pair of resumes (although I personally don't feel that two-for-one discounts are a good idea in the resume writing industry — we're not selling shoes here, people!) and then was attempting to further negotiate, by saying that he'd pay for his resume once he'd had a chance to review his friend's resume.

At that point, the resume writer realized the client was likely a PIA, and didn't want to work with him (or his friend) anymore. The writer was looking for a way to let the client down. My advice, keep it short and sweet: "Look, this just isn't going to work." Don't argue with them, or allow them to talk you into reconsidering.

One of the things I do for non-resume clients is media training. (Some of you were on my "Feed the Media: How to Get Publicity For Your Resume Writing Business" call, where I shared strategies for resume writers wanting more publicity.) The downside of working with the media is sometimes you'll be asked questions you don't want to answer. When I train clients, I tell them: Stick to your message point. Repeat it over and over again until the interviewer gets the clue that they're not going to get a different answer from you. (If you waffle, they'll eventually get you to say something that you regret; but if you stick to the same answer, eventually they'll get bored and move on.)

So when the client says, "But I want to work with you," you repeat, "I understand that, but I've decided we're not going to be able to work together." If they say, "But I've already spent (hours) on this," you respond back, "Yes, I've spent quite a bit of time on it too, and that's regretful. I'm refunding what you've paid, but I'm sorry, we won't be finishing the project together." You can either say the same exact thing ("This isn't going to work,") or rephrase it slightly. But don't give any wiggle room, and don't back down. If it didn't feel "right" to you to work with this person, it isn't going to feel any "better" to continue the relationship. I'm of the opinion that this is business, not personal. In your marriage, YES, you should definitely "work things out." With clients, I don't feel the same way. (Some say the definition of insanity is "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." I'm not insane.)

I've had to fire my share of clients over the years. (By "my share," that's a handful of resume writing clients, and about the same number of clients in the "non-resume writing side" of things.) The reasons have been varied. There was the resume client who made me cry. (She was an attorney and was impossible to please. I held it together until she left the office, but she didn't walk out still a client. I fired her the minute she became verbally abusive.) I fired the client who came in smelling like pot. (My husband noticed that one, because I lost my sense of smell at age 15.) Sorry, I'm not going to prepare you for the interview only to have you fail the drug test. And this guy was in the Air Force!

It's not easy to fire a client ... but really, it is. As self-employed resume writers, we get to decide who our clients are — who we will, and will not, work with. Life is too short to put up with people who are disrespectful, take advantage of us, or who "change the rules" and then expect us to just go along with it. Even if you've worked with a client before, you have the right to say, "Sorry, not again."

On the non-resume side of things, I've had clients who I worked with who weren't a good fit, and eventually, my head caught up with my gut, and we would part ways. Other times, circumstances would change, and that would necessitate me saying, "sayonara." A few years ago, an association I had worked with for many years (they were one of the first clients of our business, in fact), had a change in leadership. The new board president became obsessed with wanting to draw up a new contract for our work with them. (They had been a client for about 10 years at that point, and were working off a contract from 2004 — including 2004 rates, which I didn't mind, because I enjoyed the work.) Long story short, the board came back with an 8-page contract (written by lawyers) that I just couldn't live with. It wasn't easy to say "Sorry, we won't be working with you anymore" — but really, given that contract, it was.

Because our client relationships require trust. And integrity. I won't (knowingly) include false information on a resume. I once turned down a LOT of money to write a bio for a guy who owned an "adult" store in town. (I didn't want my name on that!) If a client treats me (or anyone I work with) poorly, they're no longer a client. You may not feel that way about clients in your business. (One resume writer once said to me, "As long as their check clears, I don't care."). But that's not how I work. I believe you are known by the company you keep. (And I don't want to be featured on the 5 p.m. news as the resume writer whose client was fired for lying on his resume, and he blames me because I included false information when I knew it wasn't true. I will never be that person, because it won't happen [knowingly] on my watch.)

So trust your gut. Don't back down if a client challenges how YOU choose to operate your business. (There are some things you will hold sacred. Know those things, and don't waver — things like not taking clients on Sundays, or only accepting full payment in advance to start a project.) I've found that when I compromise on those things, it usually doesn't end up working out.

And when it doesn't work out, don't be afraid to cut the cord and say, "I'm sorry, but we're not going to be able to work together." Sometimes, it's what you've got to do. And sometimes it just feels good.

Resume Writers: Work Smarter, Not Harder

Every day, I correspond with (and talk to) resume writers who are working hard. They're working long hours, serving anywhere from a handful to a dozen clients each day, slaving over their keyboards as they work to deliver perfect prose that will win interviews and job offers for their deserving clients.

On the surface, they look like the swan paddling serenely across the pond. But underneath the surface, they are paddling frantically just to keep their forward momentum. Some of them are making big money — high five figures, even six figures. But it's coming at the expense of time with their family and friends, the constant stress of keeping up with client deadlines ... and, sometimes, their health.

One of the best ways to stop struggling with the "trading time for dollars" trap is to introduce passive income and recurring revenue systems into your career services business.

Although most clients find their resume writers online nowadays, the career services industry is unlike many online businesses. For most Internet businesses, working one-on-one with the business owner comes much later in the process, after the client has taken a series of smaller steps — for example, participating in a free or paid teleseminar, purchasing a low-price information product (under $50), or signing up for a group coaching or membership program. Instead, most resume writers go straight to what is typically a "back end" piece for most online marketers — "high dollar" one-on-one service. (That can be anywhere from $100 to $2000 for personal resume development services.)

One of the things I want to encourage you to think about is how you can work with prospects who come your way who aren't yet ready to work with you one-on-one. The answer can be incorporated into your business with passive income and recurring revenue products and services. Create products once and sell them over and over again … and, in the process, introduce prospective clients to you, and showcase your expertise.

If you think you'll "get around" to making these things, or that you don't have the time (or money) to make changes now, let me encourage you to start small. I saw this graphic yesterday on Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter's Facebook page, and it's perfect:

http://www.facebook.com/marymaninmorrissey

If you haven't yet had a chance to watch the "How to Create Passive Income and Recurring Revenue For Your Career Services Business" video, do it today! I recorded my presentation of the same name from the NRWA Conference in Charleston in September 2012! You can access it here for free until Feb. 1. (After that, it will only be available within the Bronze membership area of BeAResumeWriter.com.)

Want Referrals From Recruiters?

Developing an informal referral relationship with one or more recruiters can be a way to generate a handful of new clients each year. However, if you are serious about creating a steady stream of new clients sent your way by recruiters, you need to approach the recruiting firm with a proposal to create a strategic partnership.

This model positions you as a resource and income stream for the recruiting firm, whereas referral relationships (even when the recruiter is compensated for the referral), can seem like more of a one-way street.

Numerous resume writers have been approached by recruiting firms looking to add resume writing to their service offerings. The "Developing Strategic Alliances and Partnerships With Recruiters" special report is invaluable for resume writers who have been contacted about this type of opportunity. Not only will it give you a specific list of questions to ask the recruiting firm to help gauge whether this will be a good fit, but it also outlines issues to consider, systems and procedures to put in place to ensure the relationship works, and identifies the key considerations that should be put into a written agreement or contract.

Some of these include:

• Tracking referrals. How will you know when the client came from the recruiting firm?
• Compensation. Commissions for referrals range from $0 to 75%. How much should you offer?
• Scope of commissionable work. Most referral fees are based on the initial project scope only (usually a resume and cover letter) -- but it's wise to outline this specifically. What if the client comes back for a LinkedIn profile development, or resume retarget? Is a referral fee paid on these services? It depends on your agreement.
• Reporting requirements. Figuring out how and when referral fees are paid is critical.
• Contact information. Are you representing yourself as an agent of the recruiting firm? If so, how will this be handled? Will you have an email address that is tied to the recruiting firm's site, so it's easier to track where referrals come from? A special phone number? 

Also, systems and procedures are important. If you are going to be handling a high volume of referrals from a recruiting firm, you need internal processes that can support prospecting, handling leads, pricing projects, and converting them into clients. You'll also need systems for information-gathering, service delivery, billing, and project finalization. These systems must be scalable to support the increase in projects you want to handle. (And what if you get overwhelmed? Do you have methods for subcontracting projects or making referrals to other resume writers?)

"Developing Strategic Alliances and Partnerships with Recruiters" outlines five case studies of resume writers who have either been approached by a recruiting firm about a referral relationship, or who have initiated this contact.

For example, you can read about Angie, who has developed a referral partnership with a recruiting firm that targets the financial services industry. She pays the firm a small fee that is based on a percentage of each sale. Leads come from all over the country, and she receives 5-6 contacts per month, and converts approximately half of those to become clients. Angie estimates this arrangement contributes around 15 percent of her total revenue.

You can also check out these related blog posts:

• frequently-asked questions about developing referral relationships with recruiters (excerpted from the special report).
• How to find strategic partners and referral relationships
• How to determine what referral fee to offer to the recruiter

The "Developing Strategic Alliances and Partnerships With Recruiters" special report is just $27 and is available for immediate download. The information-packed 22-page report includes questions to ask to make sure the relationship will be a good fit, issues to address with the firm, systems and procedures you should have in place to support the referrals, how to increase the number of referrals you receive, what to put in your written agreement (contract), and frequently-asked questions.


TELESEMINAR FOR RESUME WRITERS INTERESTED IN THIS TOPIC:
Tuesday, January 27 at 1 p.m. Eastern
Details HERE.

Using Content To Convert Prospects Into Resume Clients

I look at a lot of resume writing business websites in the course of my work with careers industry professionals, and -- like any industry -- there are good websites, and there are a lot of bad ones. One of the biggest problems with the websites of most resume writers is that they are completely focused on selling, and not on helping the prospective client understand what they're buying.

Here are some basic questions you should ask yourself about your website:

* When someone visits my website, what would be their reason for doing so?

* Who is my target audience?

* How do I want my audience to react after viewing my website and reading my content? 

* What kind of content can I provide for my audience to read? Is it content that is useful and informative? Will it lead them to want to work with me?

One of the best ways to improve your website is to develop content for your website that will drive traffic, draw in prospects, and help you sell the services (resume writing, cover letters, LinkedIn profile development) and products (information products, teleseminars/webinars) and training (individual and/or group coaching) you offer.

In order to write great content, you need to at least have an idea of what your potential customers want. It is also important to take time to do an analysis of what your purpose and goals are when it comes to content creation.

The written word can be one of the most persuasive tools when it comes to turning prospects into customers. Be prepared to tell your audience why your career services can help them get a new job, change jobs effectively, or find a job faster. This doesn’t mean you have to make a huge sales pitch. It simply means that you introduce your business to your audience by giving them facts. Don’t provide them with a bunch of hype.

Planning and implementation are two key factors in putting your content together. Start by making a plan as to what type of content you will be offering and where you will offer it (blogs? articles?). Once that is determined, you will need to implement your strategy and put your plan into action. Planning ahead is very important and will also help you reach the goals you have set for your business.

If the content you display on your resume writing business website isn’t useful and informative for your readers, you will lose potential customers and most likely will not have the targeted traffic you need in order to make your resume writing business successful.

"I Manage What I Measure"

I was reading an article in the January 2013 issue of Good Housekeeping by happiness expert Gretchen Rubin (author of "The Happiness Project: Or Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun.") In the article, she said one of her "Secrets of Adulthood" is "I manage what I measure."


Wow. Isn't that so true?

We keep track of numbers that are important to us. Our age. Our weight. Our checkbook balance. How much we made last year. These are the numbers we focus on. So if we want to make something important to us, we need to assess a metric we can use to judge progress, and then measure it.

Even when I'm not consciously aware that I'm doing this, this principle has power. For example, in September 2011, I started a membership site for resume writers to help them be more effective in their work (their business), and their work with clients. I use a free email-based "journaling" program called "OhLife" to keep a diary of important happenings. The neat thing about OhLife is that it will remind you of your postings from the past — sometimes that's a week ago, but many times it's a year ago.

It will say:

And then, below that, it will include my journal entry. It's really neat to see what was going on at certain periods, and because it's random, it often brings to mind things I wouldn't have thought to look up. It's also a great way to assess your metrics.

For example, periodically, I'll include the number of Bronze members I have on BeAResumeWriter.com in my OhLife entries. Then, as I get these "past" prompts, I can see the progress I've made in recruiting (and retaining) new Bronze members.

I also keep track of the number of attendees I have for my teleseminars. I create a promotional calendar for marketing each teleseminar, and I keep a running count (in parentheses) on each day of the month leading up to the program. That way, not only can I see how effective certain marketing tactics are (if it jumps from one day to the next), but it keeps me motivated to keep growing that number. (So far, the highest registration for a teleseminar was 162 for "Start, Operate, Profit: Strategies for Building a Six-Figure Resume Writing Business" with Teena Rose in November 2012.) And, as of today, I'm up to 72 registrants for the free "Resume Writer's Affiliate Income Blueprint" program I'm giving on Jan. 9.

My husband was contacted by one of his website clients yesterday, wondering how many visitors they had to their website last month, and in 2012 total. If he didn't have a way to measure that, the client wouldn't know how much traffic they were getting to their site. Instead, he was able to pull up (free website traffic analytics) reports from both 1and1.com (the web host) and Google Analytics.

What can you measure in your resume writing business and life?

Like this post? I also believe that what get's written down get done. Check out my "Ready, Set, Goal!: Business Planning and Goal Setting For Resume Writers" special report for how to set business goals and create an action plan to achieve them in your resume writing business.

Make 2013 Your Best Year Yet

I'm using the theme of "Make 2013 Your Best Year Yet" for my work with careers industry professionals — particularly Bronze members of BeAResumeWriter.com. It's my personal mission to support resume writers in the work they do in their business and with their clients — providing the tools, guidance, and inspiration to create new revenue streams, provide resources that will help their clients be more effective in their job search, and become recognized for their career expertise.

Because yesterday was New Year's Day, there's been a big focus on resolutions. I like resolutions, and I set some of them for this year ... but I prefer goal setting. I'm also a huge believer in the idea of writing down your goals as a way of focusing your intentions on making them come true. I'm constantly amazed when I come across old notes of mine that have goals on them — and quite often, I've achieved those goals, even if I haven't been consciously working towards them!

For a long time now, resume writers have been asking me for a business plan template. So, I put together a new special report that not only includes a business plan template, but a dozen other worksheets and checklists as well!

"Ready, Set, Goal! Business Planning & Goal Setting For Resume Writers" is a 43-page workbook that will be an invaluable resource for new and veteran resume writers alike! It contains dozens of worksheets designed to help you find your focus, maximize your strengths (while minimizing your weaknesses), and create a plan to reach your personal AND professional goals. In short, working your way through this guide, you can create your plan to make 2013 your best year yet!

Some of the checklists and worksheets included are:

• Technology Checklist
• My Dream Business Visioning Statement Worksheet
• Password Manager
• Expense Worksheet
• Three Goal Setting Worksheets (Short-Term, Long-Term, and Immediate)
• Business Plan Template
• Marketing Plan Template
• Action Plan Profitability Analysis

The workbook is just $14 and is available for immediate download. For more information, check it out here: "Ready, Set, Goal! Business Planning and Goal Setting For Resume Writers"

FREE BONUS! Check out these two worksheets from the workbook:
Business Planning Brainstorming
Short-Term Goal-Setting Worksheet

The Importance of Perspective

Boost Your Credibility

Credibility is critical for resume writers. We need our clients to see us as an expert before they engage our services, and we need them to believe in us in order to trust our advice.

If you are credible, people will have faith in your resume services. They will buy from you, and they will recommend you to others.

Part of gaining credibility is building trust. Always give honest, accurate information and be able to back it up. Nothing will destroy credibility faster than not being able to back up what you say.

Follow through with promises. When you tell the client you'll deliver her draft in five business days, make sure you get it to her on day five (or, better, day four!). Do your best to honor the promises you make.

Show that you care and respect others. Listen to what your followers and customers say. Acknowledge their concerns and respect their opinions. While, you cannot please everyone and may not be able to meet every demand, if you show that you care about your people, your credibility will increase.

Customer and client testimonials can help you establish credibility. People want to see proof that something is good. As the business owner, they won't simply take your word for it. Displaying testimonials from satisfied customers goes a long way towards building credibility. Audio and video testimonials are much more effective than written ones.

Don't be a fence sitter. If you believe in something, let it be known and stand behind it. Being "on the fence" diminishes your credibility. If you tell clients they need to always send a cover letter any time they can't hand the resume to the decision-maker, and they question you on it and you reply, "Well, you don't always have to send a cover letter." This can make your client question your methods!

Have passion about what you're doing. If you are enthusiastic about your resume services, others will be too. Your friends and family, previous clients, and others will feed off of your enthusiasm and passion and in turn spread it to others. If you're shy, use the written word to share your passion.

Credibility translates to income. A credible resume writer is more attractive than a resume writer who isn't as credible.

Guest Post: The Best-Kept Traffic Secret For Attracting Visitors To Your Website

Guest Blog Post by Jim Edwards

Did you realize that thousands of website operators use a simple technique to generate targeted visitors to their websites without paying a dime in advertising? It's true.

In fact, the technique works so well that many of them don't want you to discover how they get those thousands of website visitors and make so many sales on virtual "auto-pilot."

Their method?

Creating tightly focused articles other people publish in their ezines (online magazines and email newsletters) and post on their websites. This method rates so powerful that some even call it "the web's best-kept traffic secret."

Now, you may ask, "Why would an ezine publisher or website owner publish my articles for their subscribers?"

The answer: Content!

Over a 100,000 ezines and newsletters operate on the web (along with millions of websites) covering everything from pets and cooking to investments and real estate. Many of them need tightly focused content and they simply can't produce all of it themselves.

Look at it this way... it's the same reason newspapers use the Associated Press. Individual newspapers often can't afford staff writers to cover every story, so they accept articles from outside their organization.

You can do the exact same thing for various ezines and websites catering to your niche audience!

You can get valuable publicity -- exposure you often couldn't even pay for if you wanted to -- by providing valuable, content-rich articles in exchange for a byline and a link to your website (called a "resource box")!

The following represent only a few of the enormous benefits of writing and distributing simple articles online:

• Attain "Expert" Status. Let's face it! In the eyes of virtually everyone who reads your articles you rank as the "expert" on the subject. Just look at people who write newspaper columns. You may disagree with their viewpoints, but they still have an elevated status in your mind compared to the "average Joe" off the street.
• Pre-sell Website Visitors. If your article appeals to a niche audience hungry for more information on a very focused subject, you actually pre-sell them better than any sales pitch. In their minds, you've already delivered content they really want so when they click over to your site you already have a "reputation" in their minds.
• Traffic Lasts Longer. Even though the Internet changes very quickly, webmasters are usually very slow to remove content from their sites. Once you get an article posted on another person's website, you have an excellent chance of that article staying there for weeks, months, even years.
• Increase Links To Your Site. In a recent search I found just a dozen of my articles posted on over 813 different websites! Not only do those postings bring me traffic, but they also help my search engine positioning because of my increased "Link Popularity." 
• Builds Your Affiliate Base. Fact: Affiliates always take the path of least resistance. If you provide excellent articles they can easily post on their sites or copy and paste into their ezines, your affiliates will promote you more often and more effectively compared to those who don't give them tools. Plus, as you make more sales and publish articles, other people will see you providing excellent tools and will want to sign up as your affiliate so they can use them too!
• Build a Huge "Opt-In" Email List. You can use articles to build up a huge list of subscribers by simply compiling several articles into a series and delivering them at preset intervals. Often called a "mini-course," this technique allows you not only to prove to your subscribers that you deliver great information, but enables you to capture their name and email adress so you can send them articles and special offers in the future (with their permission). 
• Requires No Special Skills. People often think they need to be a "writer" in order to publish articles, but that's not true! FACT: If you have a passion for a subject and can talk and explain things like you would to a friend over a cup of coffee, you can write articles people will love to read. So if you operate a website selling virtually any type of product or service (whether your own or as an affiliate), publishing and promoting with articles should rank high on your list of traffic generation strategies. No other method of generating targeted traffic to your website provides the quality, quantity and steadiness of traffic in such a simple, straightforward, and cost- effective manner. 

Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-author of an amazing new ebook, "Turn Words Into Traffic," that will teach you how to use free articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted visitors to your website or affiliate link!
Click here for more information--> http://hop.clickbank.net/?RWDigest/ezarticles

(c) Jim Edwards - All Rights Reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com

Tax Deductions for the Self-Employed Resume Writer

As the end of the year approaches, it's time to start thinking about taxes. Yuck. I know.

When you own a resume writing business, there are a lot of things to consider. One of them is taxes. It will take you a little longer to get them done than someone who is a W2 employee, but there is one upside — tax deductions for the self-employed.

When it comes to taxes, there is a lot to know. As a self-employed professional, things can get a bit more complicated because you work for yourself. When you work for a company, your wages are subject to taxes. You fill out a W-2 form and the company does the rest. You can see on your check what has been deducted for state, federal, and social security tax. It's a no-brainer for the employee. I'm jealous for some of my jobseeking clients when I think about the ease of getting a W-2 form. I'd have my taxes done when there is still snow on the ground in Nebraska if I were an employee!

But alas, I've been self-employed since 1996.

Most self-employed people receive their full pay for their services. Taxes are not taken out. This gives you an advantage when it comes to utilizing as much of your money as you can. But, tax time comes and it's time to settle up with the IRS. This involves calculating all of the income you've earned from clients, and then figuring out your tax deductions. Deductions in the form of tax write-offs can reduce your taxable income. This can change your tax bill.

Tax Write-Offs 
Here are a few of the tax write-offs that you may be eligible to deduct as a self-employed individual. A full listing can be found on the IRS website. Turbotax also has a good list of possibilities for 2012. (Check with your tax professional for specific advice and guidance, of course.)

• Home office — This deduction has tripped people up for years. Basically, you will need a dedicated office space in your home for your business. Conducting business occasionally from your computer in the family room doesn't qualify that space for a tax write-off. But, when you have an office set up, you are also eligible to deduct a portion of the utilities too. (You calculate the total square footage of your home, and the square footage of your "office" and then can deduct expenses as the percentage of your office compared to the total home.)
• Travel expenses — Did you attend a resume writing conference this year? Time to pull together those records -- conference registration fees, airline tickets, meal receipts, gas receipts, and other incidentals. A percentage of these expenses are deductible because they were incurred in the transaction of your business.
• Medical expenses — Because you are not employed by anyone, your medical bills are your responsibility. However, you can regain some of the insurance premiums you paid on your tax return. The exception to this rule is when your spouse is eligible for family insurance at their job and this could cover your medical needs. Again, check with your tax professional. Also: Look into a Health Savings Account as a way to increase your deductions for expenses you're already paying.

You work hard. Make sure that you claim all tax write-offs that are due for your resume writing business.

Guest Post: Increase Sales By Flying Under Your Prospects' "Radar Defenses"

How do you persuade someone to do what you want them to do?

A whole world of marketing exists around us trying to do that every minute of the day. Do you even notice it anymore or, like your prospects, have you subconsciously set up a system of "radar defenses" against the daily bombardment of marketing messages?

Take a minute and count up the advertising methods which fight for your attention (and money) every day. Just the basic list includes:

• Yellow page ads 
• Newspaper and magazine ads 
• Postcards, catalogs, and direct mail circulars in your "snail mail" box 
• Radio pitches interrupting the flow of your favorite songs
• TV ads - about 20 minutes worth per hour now
• Hundreds of storefronts, "mega" malls, and strip malls 
• Highway billboards by the thousands 
• Circulars hung on your doorknob
• Illegal signs on stop signs and telephone poles 
• Legitimate email messages 
• Spam email or UCE (without permission commercial email) 

Just these 11 sources can overwhelm your brain with marketing messages. Like trapped rats, people develop defenses against this never-ending onslaught. They throw up a wall or a "radar defense" that goes into action the minute they smell a "pitch" or a sales job. Don't blame them. We all do it!

So how can you get around this psychological wall against the constant sales and marketing messages? Well, the answer does NOT lie in hitting people with more frequent and obnoxious advertising or sly, sneaky tactics. You might get them to trust you for a minute, but it will backfire in the long run.

You must do two things instead:

1. First, you must establish credibility for yourself and your business as an expert. 
2. Second, you must reduce their fears about doing business with you. 

Doing these two things will get you past their defenses and allow you the opportunity to persuade them to buy your product.

So how do you accomplish these two "simple" things? What will win someone's attention, raise your credibility, and lower their fear factor all at the same time? The one-word answer really applies to most everyone.

Trust!

If a seller can get behind your defenses with information which makes you trust them, then that credibility will carry over into a sale much of the time.

How can you get this credibility?

Well, take this next fact as online marketing "gospel," for many people have proven its effectiveness.

Fact: Publishing and promoting with free articles gives you one of the most powerful opportunities available to tip the buyer's credibility scale in your favor.

How can we prove this works? Quite easily actually. Take a break from reading this and go check out a newspaper or magazine for a minute.

Which do you trust more, the ads or the articles? Most people will choose the articles hands down. Why? Because the articles don't try to "sell" you anything. Instead, they hand out useful information for educational or other practical purposes.

Most of us grew up in a culture which says we can believe and "trust" what appears in the standard "news" or "information" format. In other words, if it appears in print, then we can believe and trust the author.

So go ahead! Use this lifetime of conditioning to your advantage in selling your products and services!

Very few things will create an atmosphere of trust and confidence in people as reading one of your articles on a subject that greatly interests them. It shows you know your business. It also demonstrates you will do more than just try to sell them something.

Publishing articles literally lets you fly under their advertising "radar defenses."

So remember these points when deciding whether or not to use articles to promote your business:

1. Few things create as much trust and confidence in the minds of potential customers as reading an article you wrote on a subject which specifically and intensely interests them. 
2. Articles establish credibility quickly because, right or wrong, we've all been trained to trust the "news." 
3. An article, or series of articles, will differentiate you from the competition, who bombard people with nothing but sales messages. 
4. Providing content-rich, non-sales-oriented articles will also help build and solidify your relationship with existing customers so they give you repeat business. 

(c) Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com

Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how to use free articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted visitors to your website or affiliate links!

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Need MORE TRAFFIC to your website or affiliate links?  "Turn Words Into Traffic" reveals the secrets for using FREE articles to drive Thousands of NEW visitors to your website or affiliate links... without spending a dime on advertising!
Click=> http://hop.clickbank.net/?RWDigest/ezarticles
-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Burned Out?

There comes a point in time where almost every resume writer experiences a burnout feeling. Sometimes the mere thought of one more client project is enough to want to send you back to bed — and, at times, you may find yourself putting your work on the back burner. This can have a terribly negative impact on your business, your income, and your client experience.

What can you do when you feel you can no longer deal with your clients, and you can't stand the thought of one more project?

Here are some survival techniques that should help you get through this temporary burnout phase. Determine the underlying cause of your burnout. Here are some common ones:

• Could it be that you are doing the wrong type of work? (If you hate the marketing and sales part of being a resume writer, have you considered being a subcontract writer? On the other hand, if you love selling the client but hate doing the actual writing, maybe it's time to bring on a subcontract writer.) 

• Should you be focusing on another niche instead of what you are doing? If you like the work, but don't like the kinds of clients you're writing for, maybe specializing in a specific niche would be a good idea.

• Too much work and not enough play — this certainly makes for a dull life. You need to be doing more than sitting at the computer 24/7. Give yourself frequent breaks and set hours for your business. Don't become a slave to your work. When you set a schedule for yourself, try to manage your time appropriately so you can take time off on weekends and/or holidays. You need this time to rejuvenate and regroup. Time off should be family time, fun time and be spent doing something you want to do. (Only you can decide how many clients is the right number of clients for you. For some resume writers, 1 client a day is enough. For others, 3-4 a day isn't too much.)

• Being buried in projects can only add to this burnout phase you are going through. If necessary, you may consider outsourcing some of your work to a trusted colleague. This will definitely help you catch up and maintain your ability to meet client deadlines. You don't have to bring on a subcontract writer permanently! Just post a request for help on one of the E-Lists (NRWA, CDI) and get caught up.

• Let your creative juices flow. If you are bored doing the same old thing day in and day out, then it's time to do something new. Put your creativity to use and find something fun to do that will help your business. This could be something as simple as learning a new skill, software program, or possibly making a video for your blog or website. Anything that will help break the monotony of a typical day can help you survive a burnout.

• Take a well-deserved and much-needed vacation. That's pretty much self-explanatory. A vacation needs to be free from responsibilities of the job. But make sure you're not just escaping from your "issues" (because those will still be there when you come back!). A vacation can be a good idea to think about some longer-term strategies for yourself and your resume writing business. Speaking of which....

• Take a good look at where you are and where you want to be. It might be that you need to make some changes to the type of work you are doing and what you are offering to clients. If every project is something you dread and dislike doing, it's certain you will be facing a burnout more often than necessary. Do you need to change your pricing, so you're making the same amount (or more) while working with fewer clients? 

Don't beat your head against a wall when you feel the burnout syndrome coming on. It is bound to happen to everyone at some point in their career. Once you find the source of your burnout, it's important to do something about it. Don't ignore it, or that feeling will certainly return. Find the source and take control. You'll be glad you did!

One way to feel more confidence and control in your business is to engage in business planning and goal setting. Check out this month's Special Report for Bronze members on BeAResumeWriter.com: "Ready, Set, Goal: Business Planning & Goal Setting For Resume Writers."

Guest Post: What's the Difference Between Salad and Garbage?

Today's guest post is by marketing expert Fabienne Frederickson.

A few years ago someone asked me, "Fabienne, what is the difference between salad and garbage?" I had never been asked that before. The only difference between salad and garbage is time. When you're looking at a fresh green salad and you don't eat it right away, in a few days it becomes garbage and unappetizing. You've also heard the idea of striking while the iron is hot--hot leads turn into cold leads if you don't take action on them right away.

In business, timing is everything. A client of mine always used to say to me, "Fabienne, it's really difficult for me as a real estate attorney to attract clients because I can never anticipate when they're going to need me. (This is also something that résumé writers face.) It's not something that they need very often, so how do I know when to market to them? I don't know how to market to them. I don't know when to market to them. It's just all so arbitrary."

Watch this week's video to find out my strategy on how to use stay in touch marketing vehicles to solve this problem. Being consistent in this way will ensure that you have always have clients.
Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System®, the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time...guaranteed. To get your FREE Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your income, visit www.attractclients.com.

Comparing Ebook Publishing Options

Continuing this week's theme on ebook publishing, check out this chart of popular ebook publishing platforms. Which platform you choose depends on a couple of different factors:

• Ease of publishing. Platforms like Clickbank and E-Junkie allow you to use PDF formatted books. This saves you a lot of formatting hassles that you might encounter with ibooks or the Kindle platform.
• Upfront fees. Some of the publishing platforms have initial fees. For example, Clickbank (which is an extremely popular platform for publishing information products) charges a $49.95 setup fee.
• Payout thresholds. Always consider the payout threshold — you don't want to have to wait too long to get your money!
• Do you need marketing help? Platforms that provide visibility for your ebooks — and/or an affiliate network — can help you sell more books. If you don't have an existing mailing list or "tribe" to sell your ebook to, consider a platform like Kindle that offers you additional exposure.

Ideas to Increase Sales of Your Ebook

One of the key principles of the "Turn Your Content Into Cash" teleseminar I'm doing next week for Bronze members of BeAResumeWriter.com is selling information products -- including ebooks.

Here are some ideas to market your ebook:

1. Get your book reviewed by review clubs. Each book store (E.g. Kindle store, Nook store, iBookstore,) has an active community of people who’re happy to review books for one another. 

2. Get bloggers to review your book. Pay them to review the book if necessary. (Note: This isn’t a bribe, as you’re only paying for the review, regardless of what the review actually says. However, they should disclose the fact that they’ve received a free copy of the book.)

3. Get on the radio. You can build your own media list, or buy an ad in the Radio Television Interview Report (RTIR) to promote yourself as an expert.

4. Contact career-related podcasts and offer to be interviewed. Send them a free copy of your ebook first so they can make sure they like what you have to say. You may be asked for a sample of you on audio so they know you sound good when recorded. Look at PodcastDirectory.com for some ideas.

5. Do a search for similar books. Look at who’s promoting them and contact those websites. Offer a generous affiliate payout if you’re selling on Clickbank, or try to find some other “in” with them.

6. Tap into a pre-existing community. For instance, if you’re selling an ebook for CIOs, get involved with online CIO associations and forums. Build a reputation for yourself, then promote your book.

7. Try to push your eBook to the top of your category, if you’re on an eReader platform. Have all your readers buy your book on one day and give them a bonus if they do so. This can send your book skyrocketing into the top charts, which gets you even more visibility.

8. Start your book cheap. Start your book at $0.99 cents, even if you eventually plan on selling it for $4.99. Starting it off cheap lets you get a bunch of reviews and initial traction right off the bat.

9. Buy ads on reader-oriented websites like Goodreads. This gets you in front of people active book lovers who’re already in the habit of buying books all the time.

10. Guest post on other blogs in the careers industry. Contact bloggers you know and ask if you can write a free article for them. If you don’t know many bloggers, write a brief line about yourself and what makes you credible and offer to do a free content piece for them. (For more posts about guest blogging, check out this page.)

11. Create a compelling affiliate program for your book. Be unusually generous. For example, offer a 100% payout for the first 3 books, or offer a $50 bonus to anyone who sells ten books. This can attract a lot of new affiliate talent towards your book.

12. Comb your LinkedIn and Facebook network. Look for people you know that have audiences, host events, or have a large online presence. See if they’d be willing to promote your book. Make sure to phrase it as a win for them as well by offering to help them in some way.

13. Send your first chapter to BookDaily (http://www.bookdaily.com/). This site gives avid readers one free chapter every day, on books topics they’re interested in. If you wrote a business book for instance, your first chapter can be sent out to everyone who’s interested in business.

14. Lookup conventions and conferences in your industry. Go to all of them. Meet other influencers in your niche and see if you can work together to promote one another. Who knows? You might also sell a few book copies.

15. Head to Twitter and search for questions that someone who needs your book might ask. For example, if you have a book about improving cover letters, you might type in “need a cover letter” or “do I need a cover letter” and so on in Twitter. Find people who recently asked relevant questions and shoot them a message.

16. Keep publishing! Publish lead-in books. If your main book is a $6.99 book, consider publishing a slew of $0.99 or free books just to get more traction and to build more of a brand. All of those sales will feed into the sales of your larger book.

17. If you’re publishing the book on Clickbank, try driving some traffic from Google AdWords and from other sources, like ads on Facebook. Paid traffic can convert extremely well. This works much better for Clickbank than Kindle, because Clickbank books tend to sell for a lot more money.

18. As a long term strategy, create a blog. Post high quality content to that blog every week. Get ranked in the search engines and build a loyal following. This is a great way to sell books on a recurring basis, as well as a great way to launch new books.

19. Create a competition. The competition should be related to content within your book. Prizes can include free consultations with you, two copies of your book (one for the winner and one for them to give to a friend), your help on their next project, a personalized plan for their project, etc.

20. Use Google Alerts to keep tabs on your topic. If someone writes a new blog post about something related to your book, be one of the very first people to respond to the post. Link to your Kindle book from your “name” and “website” field.

Five Tips to Prepare for 2013

I love end-of-year planning. Heck, I love planning in general. (The special report for December on BeAResumeWriter.com is on planning and goal setting!)

Taking just a little bit of time at the end of the year to prepare for the next can make a tremendous difference. I'm one of those people who believes strongly in the idea of writing down your goals as a way of making them come true. In the next few weeks, I will be creating my plan for 2013, including the goals I hope to accomplish.

Don't just meander into the next year. Launch into it with gusto and purpose. These five ways of preparing will help you start your new year off with a bang.

#1: Extract Lessons from Last Year
Reflect on 2012. What were your biggest wins and your biggest losses? What made those wins or losses happen? Look for core lessons that you can take away. What can you learn from your mistakes? What changes do you need to make in your resume writing business to maximize your successes?

#2: Talk to Your Mentors
The end of one year — or the beginning of the next year — is a great time to talk to your mentors. Reach out to people who are more successful than you, or people who've done what you want to do. Talk to them about your greatest challenges, as well as what they'd do in your situation to grow your company. Incorporate their advice into your plan for the year. (I'm always happy to talk with resume writers who have specific questions or need advice!)

#3: Talk to Your Customers
Ask your resume customers for feedback on your service or your products. Talk about what they like and what they don't like. Also ask them about what they'd like to see from your company in the future. (Are they interested in learning more about LinkedIn? Do they want more support from you than the occasional resume update?) Your customers can be your best source of new ideas going into the new year. After all, the only real vote in business that counts is when your customers "vote with their wallets."

 #4: Identify Your Biggest Opportunity
Don't focus on your biggest challenges. There are always going to be fires that need to be put out and emergencies to be handled. Instead, focus on your biggest opportunity. Identify the biggest growth potential arena in your business, then focus the bulk of your time and energy on growing that arena. (For example, one of the biggest threats to a single self-employed resume writer is if something happens to you and you can't work. So putting in passive income/recurring revenue programs before you need them is a HUGE opportunity!)

#5: Set Measurable, Metric-Based Goals
Finally, set measurable, metric-based goals for yourself/your resume writing business. Ideally, you should set one BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal). This can be a revenue number or a number of clients you want to stretch to reach!

If you perform these five steps, you'll plunge head first into 2013 well prepared and positioned for success!

Connect with Your Colleagues ... Even If You're an Introvert

At yesterday's Career Thought Leaders Career Brainstorming Day 2012 session, we talked about assessment tools resume writers and career coaches can use with their clients -- and one of the most-frequently used tools is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). (You can take a free online test to determine your four-letter personality type here.)

If your results indicate that you are an Introvert, you may find it difficult to connect with your colleagues — but this connection can be essential to your success as a resume writer.

You may think that being introverted means that a person is shy. That's not necessarily the case. Introverts do tend to prefer one-on-one conversation over group meetings. They also tend to require a significant amount of quiet time to think and reflect.

Introverts are motivated internally. They are thinkers and can become so locked inside their own head that they appear cut off from others. These tendencies can make it difficult to meet people, make connections, and network. Yet connections can help you build your business.

When you meet the right people you...

• Can build a team of experts to support you to succeed
• Can forge powerful partnerships and increase profits and success
• Leverage relationships 
• Lead people within an organization (for example, a team of subcontractors)
• Build a community of followers, prospects, and customers

In short, relationships are essential for success. Yet introverts can struggle to meet people and forge these powerful and profitable relationships. Here are a few things you can do to meet more people if you're an introvert.

How to Meet People and Build Connections

#1 Set goals

Set a goal to meet one new person each day. This is easily done online — for example, on LinkedIn. (In most communities, you have to make a concerted effort to run into someone who will be a valuable connection for your resume writing business -- for example, another resume writer, a career coach, a therapist, a Realtor®, someone who works in a career services department.) But you can use LinkedIn's  "People You May Know" function to find at least one person to connect with on LinkedIn.

Remember, relationships build a business. The more people you know, the more opportunities you're exposed to.

#2 Build connections

As you begin meeting people, start asking those you connect with on a personal or professional level who they know. You can leverage 5 connections into 25 if each person you meet introduces you to 5 new people. Your network will begin to grow and you'll be meeting people who are like-minded. It's a wonderful way to build a support network.

#3 Set time aside 

Set time aside to recharge and refresh. This is particularly important if you're taking time to get out and meet new people. For example, if you spend an hour networking online, then make sure to schedule an hour of downtime that day too. It's too easy to become overwhelmed and burned out if you spend a lot of time networking and neglect the downtime an introvert requires.

Introverts have a spectacular ability to brainstorm, problem solve, innovate, and build a business. Yet the ability to meet new people and leverage relationships is a challenge. Appeal to your ability to connect with people on a one-on-one basis and start meeting more people in a relaxed and comfortable manner. There's no need to force yourself into a public speaking situation or into a large-scale networking group. Work to your strengths.