Expat Water Cooler

Welcome To Expat Water Cooler!

Here you can find overseas jobs and advice on living overseas. Our members section allows you to meet other expats and share advice with one another or just show pictures of your travels. You will find jobs all over the world in our jobs section and advice from various expats in our articles section.  Aftere you are a member you can inviite your friends to join your friends list from your Facebook, Linked In, Yahoo, Gmail, Hot Mail and many other address books.

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Don't create the wrong career network: Avoid Creating the "Anti-Network"
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Everyone has heard about the importance of building a professional network. The saying, “It’s not what you know it’s who you know.” rings true. The more people you know that can help you achieve your career goals the faster you will complete them. What many people forget about is as they create their professional network they could be creating an anti-network as well. An anti-network is made up of people who dislike working with you for various reasons. It may be they do not like you professionally or they do not like you personally. Either way you have started creating your anti-network. An anti-network is made up of those who want to see you either fail or out of their work environment all together. It may not concern you how your coworkers view you now but later on down the road it could hurt your chances of getting a job you really want. You could find yourself applying for a job with a company sometime that one of your former coworkers works at. They could be the one who looks at your resume or interviews you. They may be in a position where they would be your supervisor. So it is as important to keep your anti-network small as it is to grow your professional network.

 
Transitioning From the Military to the Civilian Work Force
The best way to start your transition from the military to the civilian work force is before you even enlist. By picking the right military career from the beginning will put you a step ahead of most people whether they took the rout of the military or college. By studying for the ASVAB and taking it a few times to get the best score possible is something a huge step towards this goal. You will need to score high enough to qualify for the career you choose. You should take the time to find a career that is compatible with your personality and that has a good job growth rating by the Bureau of Labor. I go into much better detail on how to choose your military career in the article, "How to Get The Most out Of Joining the Military". Once you are have started your career it is already time for you to start planning for your transition into the civilian work force. It does not matter if you plan on only spending four years in the military or twenty because the things you do to prepare yourself for the civilian job market will help you have a successful military career. The military looks at schooling just as much as companies will when you enter the civilian work force. The more classes you take and the more certifications you can get will significantly increase your chances of getting promoted sooner rather than later.
 
Certifications or College – Get an Education

Education is not only the key to getting a good job it is the key to career advancement and getting over career roadblocks. Going to some form of schooling after high school is something you have to do to get yourself a good job. I don’t care about any stories you here about people who dropped out of college and became rich and famous. That is such a rare scenario it is hardly even worth mentioning. If you want a job that pays you enough to not only live on but actually build a savings you will need to either go to college or a trade school. There are ups and downs to whichever one you pick but you need to pick one or both of them.

 
Expanding Your Job Search to the Global Market
With the job market how it is today you want to give yourself as many advantages as possible when you are looking for employment. For years people have been talking about the global markets and how other countries and regions are catching up to the United States. Analysts and news programs talk about what we need to do to keep jobs in the United States so people can find work. My question is why don't you go where the jobs are? If you are having a hard time finding a job in the United States expand your job search to the rest of the world. Instead of beating your head up against a wall trying to find that one job in your home town try looking for a job everywhere. You will have a much easier time finding a job if are willing to move to a new location whether it is in another state or in another country.
 
How to get over career roadblocks

Are you ready to move to the next level in your career?  Have you had trouble getting that big promotion?  Is your annual raise just not cutting it?  Yes is the answer most people will come up with for all three of these questions.  There are things you can do to jumpstart your career and get it back on track.  I will discuss ways for you to get that promotion you have been seeking and the best way to increase your salary.  Most people get stuck in a career black hole through no fault of themselves.  It is important to know that so your faith in your self does not diminish over time.  The longer someone goes without job satisfaction the harder it is for them to take the steps necessary to get their career back on the right track.

 
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