Top Kenyan Jobs: FREE JOBS ADVICE

Showing posts with label FREE JOBS ADVICE. Show all posts

March 24, 2011

Should I Resign Today?

Should I Resign Today?

Should I quit my job” is a question many carry along with in their mind. Some even go for a year contemplating their next move. Quitting work is not easy; it takes courage especially when you aren’t even sure what you really want. Most of us have been there. The signs maybe pointing to you having to quit your job but you just aren’t sure.

Before you can even decide, an evaluation of your contribution against the following questions may help you make a wise and firm decision, one that you will not look back and regret.

Advice For Job Seekers

Advice For Job Seekers

Hello my dear unemployed Friend,

I know how you are feeling. I am sure it is hard and disappointing to be in such a state of affairs and you look almost hopeless. But you have nothing to blame yourself on. I know you are smart, you are prepared, you are diligent, you are persistent, and you are ready to work hard for your self and your family.

Jobs Search Trick: Apply To Fewer Companies

Jobs Search Trick: Apply To Fewer Companies

The other day we were having lunch with a friend who studied Finance, graduated with honors, has all the necessary accounting packages, and in my opinion he’s quite capable. He can really maximize on his knowledge and skills given the opportunity .However, despite his talent, he still cannot find a job.

Create A Great Impression In Your New Job

Create A Great Impression In Your New Job

Congratulations! You’ve just been appointed to your new job. Now the real work begins. It is important from the beginning to convince your new employers that, in selecting you, they have made the right choice.

The first week in a new job is likely to be demanding and exhausting.

Kenyan Men Scared of Women’s Success?

Kenyan Men Scared of Women’s Success?

Most successful career women who have attained a level of success are erroneously blaming the men in their lives with little or lower level of success for their failed relationships.

Job Search Advice For The Frustrated Graduate.

Job Search Advice For The Frustrated Graduate.

It’s now official; our graduates are starting their career journey more stressed that earlier anticipated. We have some going for as long as 10 years without a job, only a pile of certificates to show, and what’s even worse is that in the struggle to fight joblessness, many are ending up with countless diplomas and degrees that add nothing else but frustrations.

Email Job Applications

Email Job Applications

A common complaint that I receive from job seekers is that they don’t get responses to their e-mail employment applications. There are two aspects to this concern:

* Not sure that the e-mail application was delivered
* Can’t understand why they didn’t get to the next step of the recruitment process

The first point is more of a logistics issue. I used to think that it was trivial for employers to have automatic responses to e-mail job applications acknowledging receipt. Now though, after getting this question so often from job seekers, I wish that all companies would implement some form of automatic receipt of the application, to give peace of mind to candidates (and those that work at Internet job sites).

Ladies, Can You Marry A Jobless Man?

Love they say is blind. But that no longer seems true today as our women and girls are becoming more exposed, on the issue of love and marriage. Getting married is one thing but marrying a man who can carry out his responsibilities as father and husband in the home is another.

This is why we have taken time to listen to the views of some of our youths on what they think about marrying a jobless man, and this is what they have to say. Enjoy it

A jobless man isn’t ripe for marriage — Ann, Banker.
I may be tempted to start by saying that it depends on the man involved, or if I’m in love with him, and so on. But the truth still remains that a jobless man shouldn’t be looking for a wife.

New Year Resolutions Concerning Your Career in 2011

This time of year, as we approach the New Year, most of us spend an inordinate amount of time reflecting on where we’ve been and where we’re going. It can be depressing for some people; especially those who feel like their goals are never getting any closer to reality.

I know because I used to be one of those people. Every December 31st, I’d look back on the year that was and think, “Next year, things will be different.” But, inevitably, January 1st would come and I’d still be me, I’d still be facing the same challenges at home and at work, and I’d still be clueless about how to overcome them.
It’s like the U2 song goes: Nothing changes on New Year’s Day….

Somewhere along the line, I got sick of that little routine. I made the decision to change what wasn’t working in my life and at the top of my list was my career. That was about 3 years ago now and I haven’t looked back for a second. Sure, it was a difficult process. It was scary and I made some mistakes along the way. But I learned a lot about myself and ultimately, I landed here. Today, I do what I love day in and day out. I’m still moving forward, still making adjustments and figuring out what really works for me, but I’m happy. This year, I’m not afraid of reflecting on the past or making goals for my future. I’m in the zone, you might say.
This post isn’t about making you jealous of my career. I simply want to point out that finding professional success and career fulfillment can be a long, arduous road to walk, especially if you’re doing it alone. But the journey is well worth it on the other side. Nothing has given me a greater sense of achievement. I have faith that, if that’s what you’re looking for in 2011, you are more than capable of reaching your goal.

So, if you’re approaching the New Year knowing that you want to change something in your career but you’re just not sure what that is or how to go about doing it, you’re not alone.

What’s your new years wish career wise?

November 15, 2010

Too Many Diplomas And Degrees Hurting Your Job Search

Too Many Diplomas And Degrees Hurting Your Job Search

We Kenyans are overly fascinated with education. And by education, i mean having a string of diplomas and degree in this and that. And it is with a good reason. We have case studies of from rags to riches simply because someone got a degree here and a diploma there and look how far they have come.

Take a case of Mutula kilonzo, Alfred Mutua, Martha Karua, Wangari Mathai and the list goes on. Were not it for them getting a higher education i doubt they’d be where they are now.

That was then. The reality now is very very different. whereas in the eighties you could count the number of law graduates, Bcom and the likes the situation now borders on saturation. Almost all courses, save, for medicine can be said to be saturated. All of us want to ‘take’ the marketable courses paying little attention to talent or even interest and you wonder why the unemployment rate is so high in Kenya.

And here is the surprise for a Monday morning. Do you know that too much education, knowledge and experience in your CV could be the reason you cannot get a job?

Find Purpose In Life And Your Job Or Career

Ever spend much time thinking about that? What’s your purpose?
What does that have to do with your job search or career? Everything!
Do you find your purpose in your job, or in something outside of your career?

What animates you from day-to-day?
- Advancement in your career?
- More money?
- Ability to have more toys, nicer houses, cars, jewelry, or ‘stuff’?
- Provide better for your family?
- Provide value or serve your customers?
- Be a better spouse, parent, child, friend, or neighbor?
- Have more fun?

The Joy And Pain Of Working For A Family Owned Business

We all know about the Kirima family. Though the saga has cooled off it was not a good sight all. But that is family for you. Unlike friends, you can only work with what ‘God’ has given you.

On another note, have you ever wondered how it is to work in a family run business like the one for Kirima?

To be caught in the cross fire when things are not working? Many of us start our careers in small or medium sized firms mostly owned and run by the family.

I went out and interviewed a good friend who has worked in such a situation and this was his candid response.

My life working for the family.

I worked for a small family business for about six years. It had many ups and downs, especially when I was trying to compete for gratitude, amongst all of the family favoritism!

It was a Father-Daughter-Son operation, with about ten additional employees. The Son’s name sat proudly over the entrance to the business, but he was NOT a part of it! This left the Father and the Daughter, fighting in the wings, over the direction and the future of their concern.

9 Reasons Bad Employees Are Never Fired

Have you ever received poor service from someone you expected should be helping you as part of his or her job? The answer is almost certainly “yes.”

And, if you’re like most people, you have probably also experienced the frustration of working with someone who made your own job more difficult.

In both cases you may have wondered, “Why don’t they just fire this person?”
Firing someone may seem easy in theory, but it is often a last resort for an employer. A bad employee’s supervisor may know that the employee isn’t performing up to snuff, but that supervisor — or the company — may have what they consider to be a good reason for not firing the employee.

Whenever you encounter someone who you think deserves to be fired — either in your own workplace or elsewhere — consider if any of the following might be the reason the bad employee is still on the job:

1. The employee has a relationship with someone higher up.
This is Kenya hence this reason coming tops. A relationship doesn’t necessarily have to be romantic or family, although either is a possibility. In many cases, the relationship that keeps someone from getting fired is friendship. The bad employee may not perform well on the job, but may be a drinking buddy for your boss, or may simply be someone that senior management enjoys having around the office.

2. The boss relies on the employee.
when a supervisor depends on an employee, the supervisor is less likely to attribute poor performance to the employee’s ability or attitude, and more likely to attribute the poor performance to forces beyond the employee’s control.

3. The employee brings more value to the company than he or she costs.
Maybe the employee who jokes around and wastes other employees’ time at meetings is also a brilliant worker whose productivity has resulted in significant revenue for the company.

4. The boss thinks it could be worse.
Even if everyone knows the employee is not pulling his or her weight, management may fear that a replacement could do an even worse job. This fear is compounded if the company has previously had other people perform more poorly in the position.

Job Related Issues: My Wife Earns More

Money is a very emotive issue and that’s why the number one dreaded job interview question is ‘how much do you expect to earn? Bring the issue of money in marriage and you will get fireworks.

Whereas many men are comfortable with other women in office earning more than them, many cannot stomach their partners earning even a shilling more than they do. Is it a curse? I rarely heard a man says very proudly about his wife that she is very efficient and earns more than he does.

I have noticed that some men have a problem with their wives making more money than they do.
There is an overwhelming belief in our society that the man is the primary breadwinner and the woman the homemaker irrespective of all the high talks about the gender equality.

Like every coin has two sides, wife’s earnings also do the same. World is changing so is the ego of the man.
Some men are taking it positively and some are still in that primitive age and finding it difficult to get adjusted with the notion of wife earning more than him. They are forgetting that every relationship has to be based on love and trust and not on Money (at least in my thinking).

Job Descriptions & Applying For The Right Job

A friend of mine recently left his position at an IT company to start his own business. He has 15 years of excellent work experience, including 10 years of managing others, and an MBA. His former job is now advertised online,and over the week I met a woman who had applied for it.

This woman was unhappy with her current company and had noticed that my friend’s former position paid really well. Interestingly, she failed to notice much else about it.

I talked to this woman about the position opening at length, and was surprised to realize that she had barely read the job description before deciding to apply. She told me about her previous work experience, which was only vaguely related to the requirements of the advertised job. She was stunned when I told her that the position required managing a department of 10 people, and then it started to sink in that her lack of supervisory experience might hurt her chances of getting the job.

She also mentioned that the opening had asked that applicants have knowledge of a specific online database system. She then asked me the most surprising question of all: “Do you think they’re really serious about only hiring someone who has experience with that system?”

At this point, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for this woman. So I will offer you the same advice that I gave her. There are dozens of candidates applying for most open positions these days. Believe me or not a simple Daily Nation advert will attract no less than 600 applications and for some professions this can run to thousands. The worst are those that require applications to be sent via email. HR managers have testified to receiving over 3,000 job applications for a single position.

Kenyan HR managers will tell you that one of their main job duties is “shortlisting” these applications into a small pool of qualified applicants—in other words, disqualifying everyone they can in order to whittle the list down to only the best candidates for each job.

Many times, companies find themselves ruling out perfectly qualified candidates simply because they have too many from which to choose. With this in mind, please do yourself the favor of not applying for jobs if you’re just not qualified.

Serious employers purposely write their job descriptions in order to attract candidates who are a good match. If the ad says they’re looking for X, Y, and Z qualifications or experience, I can guarantee you one thing: Yes, they really mean it!

Those in HR or management, is this the case?

October 5, 2010

Employment And Financial Independence

In the early years of my career it was all about finding a better job with a better pay to take care of my ever increasing expenses. I only thought of cutting non essential; expenses once in a while but then the urge to ‘fit in’ or to be seen ‘rich’ would win and I’d be back to the drawing job.

Now that I am older and wiser appearing rich doesn’t bother me. I am only concerned with the size of my bank account and no longer want to ‘fit in!’

Many, many employees choose to appear rich. This usually means buying a house you can’t really afford, cars you can’t really afford, and all sorts of electronic devices and jewelry and other items that you can’t really afford. Outwardly, you appear to have lots of money, but you’re actually sinking in a giant pile of debt, barely able to keep your head above water.

In this case, the appearance of wealth doesn’t equal financial independence. Instead, it equals a huge amount of financial dependence. Employees in such situations depend on their employer for steady employment. They depend on their continued good health. They depend on minimizing major unexpected events – a car transmission failure can be devastating.

That’s far from financial independence. But from the outside, it does look good.

They are Kenyans who have nice houses and nice cars but seem not to have high paying careers. Do they have it all? Maybe at a glance, but the stress is intense. They’re constantly walking a high wire. If someone loses a job or the car’s transmission fails or a child gets devastatingly sick, the whole thing falls apart.

And it’s scary. Most of the time, people who appear rich do all they can to pretend such things can’t possibly happen to them, but late at night, they know such things certainly can happen to them – and they worry a lot.

A big part of the focus tends to be short term happiness and impressing other people – but long term happiness and enjoying yourself takes a big back seat. Fake it until you make it? Only if you’re bringing something more to the table – and that “something more” comes through without lots of superficial elements to impress others.

Trust me, I’ve been there. It can be fun in the short term, but over the long haul, you realize how many opportunities in life you’re missing.

On the other hand, one can choose to be rich. From my perspective, being rich means being as financially independent as possible – almost no life events can impact your situation – and being surrounded by the things you care the most about.

Yes, this has one disadvantage over appearing rich: you don’t get lots of shiny things whenever you want them. But it comes with tons of additional advantages.

You’re not tied to your job for purposes of compensation or salary. If you hate your job, you can quit and find something you don’t hate even if it’s a low pay. The money isn’t the constraint here.

You’re not buried in bills and Sacco loans. You don’t have tons of different things that need constant care and maintenance. You don’t have “friends” that constantly judge you based on the stuff you have.

You don’t worry about having enough money when you retire or if the worst comes to the worst, when you’re sacked.

In the end, it comes back to one simple question: do you want to appear rich, or do you want to be rich?

September 27, 2010

28 Truths On Jobs And Careers

A conversation on jobs and careers in Kenya with some friends this weekend led to this list forming in my head. Feel free to add your own in the comments section

1.The career you think you’re going to have? This is not the career you’re going to end up with. The job you went to college for? That’s not the job you’re going to end up with.

2.You will spend a good portion of your work day with nothing to do.

3.Meetings almost never solve anything and never end on time.

4.Trusting co-workers can be bad for your career.

5.You’re probably way, way over educated for the job you’re in.

6.There are plenty more important things in life than your career or even job.

7.Some workplaces function EXACTLY like high school.

8.Learning to look busy is a valuable survival skill.

9.You’re unlikely to ever meet a happy accountant.

10.No one really takes the time to adequately train you. All new employees are inadequately trained.

11.The mistakes you make are sometimes more valuable than the things you did exactly right.

12.When your career is the only good thing you’ve got going in your life, it’s time to reassess your life.

13.That temporary job you settled for… is it really temporary if you’re still in it after all this time?

14.Turf wars and office politics exist in every office, no matter how small.

15.Be nice to the administrative assistants, secretaries, and office messengers; they are the key to everything because they keep the world turning.

16.It’s rare that your colleagues are actually smarter than you; it’s all confidence.

17.For every 100 job application only one employer will bother to send a regret letter.

18.Your boss is a human being too.

19.No one will believe in you more than you.

20And if you don’t believe in you, you’re not going anywhere.

21.Office gossip can be positively deadly.

22.Lunch – try to never skip it. You do not earn points for working through it and it helps you stay sane.

23.It IS possible to one day wake up and realize you hate your dream job.

24.The car you drive to work or the clothes you wear are important. Office workers put a lot of value judgments on fellow workers vehicles and dressing style.

25.Timing, like location, is literally EVERYTHING.

26.Networking is not just a buzzword: it’s the most valuable thing you can do for your career.

27.Take the lowest paying job with the best job description and title, rather than the best paying job with the worst job title.

28.Sometimes it’s who you know, NOT what you know.

September 21, 2010

Salaries, Why It Should Remain Private!

Let’s face it: our salaries are very important. They define how much our employer thinks we are worth, what we can afford to do in our lives, and even our self worth. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: we are what you make.

Our salaries are also a way to measure how our career is going (is it steadily climbing or has it stagnated?) and what kind of future we may or may not have at our jobs.

At my old job, for example, getting a raise was like pulling teeth. Even if you went above and beyond your duties to help the company, it didn’t matter a whole lot. Salaries were kept low because that was just the way business was done. To most people there, being underpaid was simply a fact of life. It’s one of the reasons I left and the main reason turnover was so high.

So I’m definitely one of those people that thinks you should pay attention to your salary and make sure it reflects how hard (hopefully you’re all working hard out there) you’re working.
But there’s a limit: it’s worth it to compare yourself to the people around you.

I Can’t Believe He’s Making More Than Me!

This is the kind of thing that will drive you insane. Let’s say that someone you work with who is at the same level you are drives you nuts. For whatever reason, you see yourself as being WAY smarter, WAY more efficient, and WAY more hardworking than that person.

And then let’s say you find out they make just as much as you do. Or—gulp—more than you. It’ll drive you crazy if you let it get to you. Here’s where you can refer to an old maxim that will help you through a lot of issues in your life (not just at work): Life isn’t fair.

Get used to it. The only thing comparing salaries will get you is some tense moments in the office. Maybe you’ll feel unconsciously hostile towards some people if you disagree with what they’re making. Maybe it’ll just wear you down after a tough day at work. Maybe it’ll make you bitter. Either way, it won’t help you in any way. All it will do is hurt.

After all, there’s a reason most employers discourage (or straight up forbid) the discussion of salaries among employees. It’s just not healthy.Worry About What You Can Control.

Can you control what your coworkers make? Nope.Can you walk into your boss’s office and say, “I want a raise because X is making this much and I am 15% better than her”? Nope.

Here’s what you can control: your own salary. Nothing else.

How? Well, there are lots of ways. But in my mind, the best thing you can do is focus on becoming a better employee. That means doing things like showing up early, helping your boss out, and going beyond the scope of your job.

If you feel you deserve more money, make a rational case for it. comparing your salary to averages or to people outside your company is fair game. If you are below the averages, then you may have a case. And if you aren’t but still want a raise, force one by showing your boss the great work you’re doing.

I don’t mean sending emails from home at 10:59pm just to show you’re “working,” but real, quantifiable work that no one can argue with.

Make it easy for your boss and for everyone to see that you deserve a raise.
Just stay away from the comparison game. All it will do is frustrate you and make your time at work that much more unpleasant.

Or What do you think?

September 8, 2010

Applying For Jobs You’re Not 100% Qualified For

One frustrating but common predicament Kenyan job seekers encounter is deciding whether or not to apply for a job if they don’t meet the employer’s requirements. It is a frustrating but common occurrence many Kenyan job seekers can relate to.
While browsing job postings be it online or through newspapers, you see a job that has the responsibilities and duties that match your interests. The day-to-day role is exactly what you’ve been hoping to find. Then you see the minimal requirements and, although you have some of the necessary skills and plenty of passion, you don’t have the qualifications the company demands.
Perhaps you have three years of relevant experience, not five. Or you have a bachelor’s degree, not a master’s. You’ve been in a managerial role but haven’t drawn up a budget before. You know you can do the job, but you don’t know if you’ll even be considered without satisfying each of the requirements.
Should you apply?

Gauge your options
The decision to apply seems like an obvious choice. On the surface, you have nothing to lose by submitting your CV and everything to gain if you are called in for an interview. Yet, you need to look beyond the immediate outcomes and ask yourself a few questions:

1. How close am I to being qualified?
Some Human Resource managers won’t consider any applicant who doesn’t meet the minimum requirements, even if they are a perfect fit save for having one too few years of experience. However, many HR managers will look at all the job candidate has to offer, so the right education, work history and skills can make up for other shortcomings. Give yourself an honest estimate of how close you are to the employer’s ideal applicant.

2. Am I wasting the employer’s (and my) time?
Wanting the job — even if you’re a quick learner — is significantly different than being qualified and capable. A job seeker with years of experience in another industry might be a skilled worker, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to a good match for this job. Use your cover letter and CV to make a strong case for your ability to do the job, otherwise the HR manager won’t view you as a serious candidate.

3. Do I have a plan?
Taking the previous two points into consideration, ask yourself what your next step is. If you are one course from completing your degree and being qualified for this job (and others like it), will you return to school next semester? Is working for this specific company a priority?
If so, you don’t want to repeatedly apply for jobs until the HR department has flagged you as a nuisance. Instead, only apply to jobs for which you are a contender. Take some time to gain experience and skills that give you the right qualifications. As frustrating as the long process might be, it can transform you from a long shot to a front runner if this particular industry or company is important to you.

4.Look at the situation from the employer’s perspective
According to a recent Career survey, only 18 percent of HR managers spend more than two minutes looking at a CV and 5 percent spend 15 seconds or less. You need to make a positive impression quickly if you want to get noticed for any job, but especially for one where your qualifications fall short of the employer’s expectations.
Imagine yourself sitting on the other side of the desk and look at your CV and cover letter from the boss’ perspective. If you were choosing from the pool of 100 job applicants, would you pick your application out of the pile or would it go in the waste bin? Consider some of the ways you could boost your chances of landing an interview and eventually the job:

5·Don’t leave room for doubt
Don’t send a cover letter or CV that apologizes for your shortcomings. Instead, give examples of how your experience is relevant to the position. Rather than make broad statements about what you could do for the company, cite specific statistics or accomplishments.

6·Satisfy as many requirements as possible
Although you don’t meet every qualification listed on the job posting, you should meet some of them. Just because you don’t have managerial experience doesn’t mean you’re exempt from meeting the application deadline and submitting the requested documents. Do not allow the HR manager to discount you for a preventable technicality.
And finally, always remember you can only win if you try!

July 16, 2010

Understanding The Pscychology Of Your Boss.

Job summary:
That day or evening when you were enjoying that tea with your family and friends, you received a call on your mobile and the screen was showing, “Boss is calling”. What did you do? Did you answer the call or did you let it ring? Did you c...

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Source: Career Point Kenya

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Jobs in Kenya

March 24, 2011

March 18, 2011

February 23, 2011

February 21, 2011

February 10, 2011

February 7, 2011

January 19, 2011

December 23, 2010

Ladies, Can You Marry A Jobless Man?

December 21, 2010

New Year Resolutions Concerning Your Career in 2011

November 15, 2010

October 28, 2010

Find Purpose In Life And Your Job Or Career

October 26, 2010

The Joy And Pain Of Working For A Family Owned Business

October 23, 2010