Frequent Job History:

As I thought about interviewing this week - I was doing just that trying to replace two positions within my department.

I talked with the potential employee and questionned her on her work history. Most of the places she worked she did not stay a long time. Employers tend to look at this history to determine if you will stay long enough to gain benefit from your on-job training.

After she answered my question I realized that none of the places that she was at allowed her the opportunity to stay because they went out of business. This reinforces my belief that you as a potential employee should research the company you are interested in working for - to see if they are financially sound to give you the confidence that the company will last as well.

This is another area that an employer may ask about - but don't shy away from it. Frequent job positions can say positive things as well. It could explain the possibility of internships that you used in skill development; your previous company downsized or went out of business; or a multiple of other reasons that could show your potential employer that your "job hopping" was not based on factors such as lack of dependability; lack of job skills for the position hired, etc.

Again - an air of confidence is one tool that assists you in communicating your skills, talents and abilities to future employers.

Well - it has been a few days since I blogged, so it is time to talk about interviewing!

As a person who interviews potential employees, I have seen my share of do's and dont's. This is not an exhaustive list - remember I am only giving my 2cents.

Dressing for Success:

Too many times do I see young people that have clothes on that are showing their underwear, too tight or just not professional. So when you do get that opportunity for an interview dress for success. I am not asking you to get an expensive suit or dress, but clothes that fit properly, ironed, and properly attired.

First impressions are important because if you care about your appearance you will be given an opportunity possibly to show how you care about your performance on the job.

Interview:

When you meet your potential employer - be sure to walk into the room and look the interviewer in the eye and shake their hand firmly. Do not give them a weak handshake or part of your hand, but give them a nice firm handshake.

Be careful not to get too fidgety - show your confidence in yourself and the abilities you have to do the job, by sitting upright, talking with confidence (i.e.- do not whisper, or not have eye contact), and be sure to give your interviewer the high points of what you can bring to the table.

Listen carefully to the interviewer and if you don't understand what they are asking, either ask them to repeat the question or answer with "Before I answer, let me clearly understand what you are asking of me. Are you asking..." and then rephrase the question as you understand it. If it is not correct, then you have gained their respect that you choose to slowly and correctly answer their question, than to pop off an answer without thinking through it clearly.

Last point for this blog - but make sure you do a little research of your potential organization. You may want to check the website to find out more about the company. Look for their standards, mission statement or core values that they may have on the web. When you are in the interview ask about the environment there as far as leadership is concerned. Will you be working for an organization that might compromise its core values if put to the test? Also, feel free to ask them about the benefits such as vacation, sick, holiday, etc.

As you gain your experience in interviewing you will develop your own style and technique for handling this sometimes awkward situation. Remember the following quick points:

1. Dress for success

2. Make good eye contact

3. Shake their hand firmly

4. Listen, think and then speak

5. Ask questions of the organization

Until another time...

Nina

Greetings!

In my last blog we talked about tithing and the importance of giving God His portion first and allowing Him to know this by our obedience.

Getting a Job
Well I thought it would be good to talk about your job or getting your first job! There is nothing more exciting than getting that first "real" job and begin your way on either a career or a step stone to your future career.

Even as I have been doing this for a bit - I still get questions quite frequently on how to fill out all the paperwork associated with getting that job from people starting the workforce as well as veterans in the workforce.

Writing Your Resume
Typically when you are getting that summer job or doing some restaurant work in high school, you typically fill out an application at the place of business. But as you graduate and start looking for a career oriented job - you need a resume. A resume is a "snapshot" of who you are, what you have done and what talents and abilities you can add to the organization. As you build your resume remember these points:

• Keep your resume short 1 - 2 pages. Too much information and the potential employer will not read all that information.
• Remember to punctuate correctly, spell correctly, and make complete thoughts. Read and then re-read your resume to make sure it flows correctly.
• Show a well rounded individual that has interests outside of the potential job - briefly relate your hobbies, civic and church affiliations, etc.

Next blog - we will discuss Interviews and Interview Techniques...

Let's start off our blogs talking about Tithing. From what I can gather most people don't view tithing as a mandatory thing to do, but as a nice thing to do - when you have excess. Now I have not done any formal research on this - but just from conversations over the years with colleagues, friends, family, etc.

Tithing in Scripture is not an option. Read Malachi 3:8-12 where God talks about robbing Him. It is pretty vivid that He takes tithing seriously and that we should as well for our own blessing. All God asks of us is to give Him the "first fruits" of 10% back to Him.

We had a guest Pastor at our church one time who preached on this passage and used a object lesson to show us how little God is asking of us. He had some fruit that he laid out - oranges, apples, bananas, etc. So he had 10 oranges and 10% of that is one orange. So he put one orange on one table and left 9 on the other. The table of one was God's portion and the table of 9 was ours. Once he got through all the fruit - our table was overflowing! It is amazing that God is asking the 10% as a faith/obedience walk that we are trusting Him as our one and only support and not that we are relying on our family, friends, boss to be our source.

So the next question I usually get is what should I tithe off of - the gross or the net? Well, I tend to tithe off the gross because in my own way I am showing God how grateful I am for what He has provided. But really this is a personal question that you must seek God's direction on for your personal life. For example, I know of some business colleagues who tithe off of net of their business income (income - expenses) because in essence that is their gross. They have received peace from God that He has accepted this so you too should seek God's peace on what amount you tithe off of.

Remember we are stewards of what God has provided to us. If we practice good stewardship - God will bless us greatly. However, if we do not, he will let our own methods of what we do outside of Him to pretty much blow up in our faces.

You may be getting ready to start your first job, have a job or let's say you are not of the age to get a job, but you do the occasionally babysitting job, lawn mowing job, or just chores around the house. Begin your practice of tithing to Him right now! Take the amount you get and be faithful and tithe. Start the habit now of thanking and honoring God by giving Him 10% of what you receive in wages.

You won't go wrong in trusting Him and tithing on your income - you will be amazed how well you will blessed by this simple act of faith.

When I first thought about a 2cents site (a couple of years ago) I did not realize that it would take so long to come to life. But I am excited about this blog and hopefully over the future blogs you will gain some good insight to financial management.

Some of the future topics that will be coming are:

1. Planning
2. Saving
3. Tithe
4. Getting a Job
5. Social Security/Medicare/FWT
6. 401k - retirement planning (yes - retirement - it is not too early to think about that!)
7. Life Insurance
8. Disability
9. Pre-tax saving options
10. Defined Benefit Plans
11. Vacation/Sick/PTO
12. Health Insurance...and anything else that comes to mind

Keep in mind that these are financial "tidbits" and it is of a general nature. Financial management is something that is personal to each person and therefore the tips can be applied in a general way. However, if you have a specific question to your financial matters - just email me or comment on the blog and I will see if I have the information to answer your question.

Recently, I have changed the structure of my CPA firm. This decision was a difficult one to make but necessary to stay in God's will for my life. Over the last two years I have managed a CPA firm, become Chief Financial Officer for Goodwill of Dallas and worked on conferences and camps in my spare time. In that time, my role at Goodwill has grown and pretty much has dictated my day to day affairs. As CFO at Goodwill - I oversee the accounting/finance department, human resource department, IT and the nurse.

But over the last two years, my passion to do conferences and camps has grown and that needs more free time to develop. So I decided to let go of the firm ( I have a few friends who I will still help out from time to time) but this free up my time to work on my passion, expand my knowledge at Goodwill and also to blog on finance topics. I will still do a tax return here and there for some friends and I will still take my necessary courses to keep my CPA license current, but the burden of managing the firm are now gone.

It was hard to let go but I am excited about the future and all it holds. I can't wait to see what God has in store for all that is happening!

General

Hello all,

Well - it is here! Nina's 2 cents on financial stuff that ranges from savings, credit, managing your money, debt issues, etc.

Please note that while I will give my 2 cents on how things should be managed - it is a general idea. If you have specific questions or issues - just comment on the blog or email me at nina@xt4crew.org. I will respond to you specifically - the best I can!

Talk to you soon!