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Archive for category: Economy
Thanks in the Marketplace
Posted by: Frank Ableson in C12, Economy, General Business, Company News on November 19, 2009
This past Tuesday, November 17th, I had the privilege to join other business owners at an event in Ambler, PA called "Thanks in the Marketplace". It was a time for us to gather and share what the Lord has done in our businesses over the past year. Approximately 30 men and women were in attendance. We also heard an inspiring presentation by Tim Wampler from Shoes2Share International. Shoes2Share is a missional organization that gathers new and "like new" shoes and distributes them to needy children around the world.
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High unemployment and the best way to not be a statistic - offer your services, not your resume
Posted by: Jason Matyas in Economy, Education, Career Resources, Social Media, Social Networking on November 07, 2009
I was having a discussion on Facebook about the high unemployment rate (now officially above 10%) and decided to offer some of the support we offer our students to the folks reading that discussion. Here are some of my comments, which I think are a good summary of some of the best strategic things that can be done to find employment in this economy:
For those that are unemployed, I want to encourage you to be optimistic despite all the negative signs. I spend part of my time providing career resources for students enrolled in training at MSI Education Services, which does office productivity software training. I emphasize two primary things in my counseling of students:
1) There are many opportunities for non-full time employment, especially on a contract or temp basis. Small businesses often cannot fund full time positions due to the high costs imposed by an oppressive government, but work still needs to get done and if you have a marketable skill set, I recommend that you search for and engage with small businesses and entrepreneurs to find ones that might need your services. Think networking, not job search.
2) How will you find them? One word: Linkedin. Linkedin is essential for both a job search for a full time position, and especially for networking purposes to find and engage business owners that need what you have. I have been giving a seminar for several months on how to use Linkedin for your Job Search that you can find here:
Supercharge your Job Search with Linkedin (on Slideshare)
If you have more questions or would like to connect to me, please find me on Linkedin and send me an invite. I would be happy to help you if I can.
http://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmatyas
Finally, if you are in need of better software skills and are unemployed, you might be eligible for a training grant to attend classes at MSI Education.
http://www.msiservices.com/index.php/education/vocational/
Please contact us if you want to find out if you're eligible for a training grant or are interested in taking a class to fill a gap in your skill set (and resume).
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What is FaceBook good for anyway?
Posted by: Frank Ableson in Economy, General Business, Social Media on September 04, 2009
Today was a very interesting day for me and social media -- in particular FaceBook. I went on to the site as I am in the habit of doing every now and again. I noticed a bunch of "RIP so and so". I thought they were referring to someone who must have been taken out in one of the online games FB is so crowded with. Until I saw them again and again. Then I realized that something must be for real. And sure enough, a fellow from my high-school - a year behind me as I recall - passed away suddenly. Very sad. Had it not been for FaceBook - I probably would not have even known about it for quite some time - if ever. I think it was somewhat therapeutic for folks to share their stories and memories of this individual - so I think that is great. Sad to lose a friend so young.
The other interesting experience I had today was a troubling "time-vampire" discussion with a couple of classmates on FB. The topic was nationalized health-care. I won't go into my position (I am strongly against it) here, however FB presented a somewhat unique forum to have a dialog in short "sound bites". Each post is limited in length so you cannot drone on and on about a point. Good debate practice I think. I like to think that my point was heard -- though I am sure I didn't convince my friendly "opponent" in this matter, others certainly had the opportunity to "listen in" and hopefully learn some new angles on the topic. So beyond telling friends that it's two hours until the weekend or what party you're heading out to after work, FB has a bit of a soap-box opportunity for those inclined. Use it wisely.
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Sussex County Magazine
Posted by: Frank Ableson in Economy, General Business, Business Networking, Sussex County, Community on August 25, 2009
This year's Sussex County Magazine was recently published and is available on the Sussex County Chamber of Commerce website. Thanks to Tammie and her staff for the opportunity to share some thoughts on leadership in this edition.
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Is it the economy - or something bigger?
Posted by: Frank Ableson in Economy, General Business on August 05, 2009
I am often asked, "how is the economy impacting your business". I have a couple of different responses for that. The first is that we, like many other companies, have seen some soft spots in our business development efforts, though the bigger question that I sometimes ponder is what is the long-term impact of all the rush to spending and hacking away at our economy that is taking place in Washington DC right now? I have to laugh when I think how the folks "in the know" can make drastic moves based on questionable data about what temperature we're going to be at in 100 years yet we don't look back so we don't repeat mistakes that have been made by generations that have gone before us. Have a look at this cartoon from the Chicago Tribune - printed in the 1930's.
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