6 Worst Attributes You Can Give yourself in a CV

The problem with most of us is that we love ourselves, sometimes too much.
This love tends to be all-encompassing, which means that we often try and encompass everyone else with this self-love.
We fail to realize, however, that sometimes we can sound a little too wonderful and this can put off potential employers. We may also use words that in some cases mean slightly less than we'd like them to. Especially when we're presenting ourselves on a CV.
Below are the 6 worst attributes you can give yourself in a CV. Please check them against your own CV profile. Just in case you think you're that wonderful.

1. VISIONARY. What are you, a clairvoyant? Someone with special powers? Iron man? You probably think that you are. However, one part of vision is envisioning what others will think of your self-attribution. Describing yourself as a visionary in a CV is telling other people (read employers) that you're more existentially exalted than they are. That isn't very visionary.

2. INSPIRATIONAL LEADER. Who said so? Do you have a list of those you have inspired? You're going to tell me that all those people who have signed your recommendation letters actually have the merest tinge of objectivity? Or are you going to tell me that they recommended you because you asked for it? That wasn't very inspired of you.

3. SUCCESSFUL. I've noticed this word couple of times in CVs. I think it's somehow sneaked in there by the typist. Or, may be it is  an inspiration to the candidate. Especially when they need to remind themselves that they're successful. They worry that they're not. They also need to believe that other people are failures.  You might have scored those straights As and graduated with a first class honors, but success and failure are movable beasts. As words of self-description, they actually mean nothing. Except in your shrink's office.

4. THOUGHT LEADER. Someone in marketing must have invented this one. Does it mean: "My thoughts are better than yours?" Does it mean: "People can't wait to hear the next thing that comes out of my brain?" Or might it signify: "I'm trying to make myself sound important here and I hope I get away with it."?

5. CONCEPTUAL THINKER. Please forgive me for asking, but what does this mean? Does it mean that you have a grasp of mental concepts? Doesn't everyone, at least to some extent? Are you trying to say that you have lots of ideas? Or that you think in ideas? Or that when you think you don't just think of ice cream and butterflies and sunny days? Could it be that you're saying that you had no idea what to write and this sounded good?

6. PURPOSE-DRIVEN. I worry. You're driven by a purpose, as opposed to a whim? But what if your purpose is whimsical? What if your purpose is money? Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I went to a thesaurus, fascinated by what might be the opposite of purpose. I was given "aimlessness," "neglect" and "oversight." You're telling me you're not driven by aimlessness? OK. So you wrote that on purpose?

5 Things You Should Never Say In A Job Interview

When attending an interview, the interviewee's main objective is to impress the recruiters. However, in trying to achieve this, candidates sometimes get carried away and end up giving responses that only ruin their chances of securing the job

Below are some of the responses should never give in an interview.

1. What do you do here?
This question, if asked by the interviewee, portrays him or her as ignorant and not having no  prior knowledge on the background of the company.
Background checks forms the basis when one is preparing for interviews. Surely you shouldn't express all that interest in a company you don't even know what they are dealing in.You should never walk into an interview not knowing about the position you are applying for or the company. You want to come forward as excited and focused to work with the company.

2. I Did Not Get Along With My Boss.

Yeah, right, things didn't work out with your previous employer. You are not alone, in most cases it doesn't. You might want to be honest in the interview but please keep this to yourself. Under no circumstance should you speak ill of your previous employer. This might make the recruiter think that you are the one who is difficult to work with.

3. I Will do Anything.

Apply for a specific role at each company, and be ready to explain why it’s exactly what you’re looking for and you should be given that role.
You don’t want to come out as being desperate and not focused. Most hiring managers are looking for people who are very passionate about the role they’re taking on. So when you give an open request, it only shows lack of passion.

4. Check it On My CV.
 
When an interviewer asks anything even if already covered in your CV, he/she wants you to expound beyond a written word.
The main purpose of the interview is to gauge how well you can express yourself, therefore any question asked seeks to test or gauge a particular skill. Communication skills, confidence, and honesty are some of the things interviewers gauge.
How you express yourself is key to whether you get that job or not. Your CV has done its part and landed you that interview. The remaining is up to you.

Applying for Personal Loan? Here are Three Things You Should Know Beforehand

Choosing the right bank to file a personal loan with is as daunting as paying the dues itself. There are vital factors to where borrowers should base their decisions before making up their minds. Some are obvious considerations while some are often overlooked.
Here are the things you need to know before signing a policy and contract with bank representatives.
1. Interest rates.
Banks give different interest rates, and not all loan payment schemes have the same policies. Secured personal loans have relatively lower interest rates when compared to unsecured personal loans. Advanced loans, nonetheless, can have higher interest rates than what unsecured ones have.
Always widen up your list of options. Compare interest rates not of different loan plans within the same bank but should be compared among banks. The ratio of interest rates should also be practically proportionate to the term (duration) of payment. Remember that some lenders may offer loans with lower interest rates but with shorter term of payment, so be wary.
2. Company reputation.
Many aggressive lending companies and banks do whatever it takes to get clients by whatever means possible. Banks and their employees are the best salesmen! They have compelling talkers that often leave grey areas but end up convincing clients anyway. Some even resort to blackmailing, often by using loan sharks and other threats.
Research if the lender has a good history in honoring contracts and not blatantly violating them. Avoid very lenient banks that would extend payment period on the condition of doubling the interest rate without giving you other options. They surely have hidden agendas.
Coaxing banks are obviously after your money more than you are in need of their money. They are the ones that enter an agreement with borrowers in a not-so-good faith, so better avoid them before you get mired in debt.
3. Hidden charges.
Before filing your application for a personal loan, always scrutinize the payment scheme and know every item to pay for. Hidden charges are very prevalent in almost all kinds of financial transactions, be it credit card bill, phone bill or even school tuition. These are the vague and undeclared dues which are not clearly shown in contracts or policies.
Don't get carried away by glib talkers. Always keep in mind that they are sellers and they will do anything to close a deal even at your own cost. Lenders are walking billboards with neon lights that spell all the upsides - only the upsides - and hiding the downsides.
For this reason, it is best for you to fill out all grey areas in your mind and answer all lingering questions - whether you've already asked them twice or they just popped out of curiosity - before giving your final decision. All details should be laid out in front of you, both big and small. Know everything you want and need to know before signing a contract for a personal loan so you won't get mired in debt and suffer in the long run.

Seven Life Lessons You Will Never Learn in an MBA Class

Experience, they say is the best teacher and when it comes to life; what better teacher can beat life
experiences themselves? Remember, experience is also a school of hard knocks so better learn it from others. Here’s a summary of life lessons a former MBA student documented.

1. Networking: If there’s anything I’ve learned in the 2 months since I’ve been out of school, it’s that I didn’t know a thing about networking. The only thing I learned about networking in business school is that it was important. The reality is, like most things in life, networking is a skill you have to develop. One of the things I made conscious effort to do was to follow the networking strategies of books like Brian Tracy’s Luck Factor and Never Eat Alone.
Perhaps the best networking advice I’d ever come across was volunteering for organizations in your area of professional interest. I started to do that and the interview I had today was purely the byproduct me recognizing the hiring manager’s name when I checked him in at an event. The next day he emailed me about the position even though I didn’t get a chance to
talk to him at the event.
The other important realization I’ve come to is that networking is something you should be doing whether you have a job or not. I’m in the position I’m in because I didn’t network in my last semester at business school the way I should have.

2. Ego: There really is no class in
business school that teaches you how destructive the power of your ego is, although there should be. I made an error in judgment early in my business school career, which completely changed the trajectory of my MBA experience. I indirectly violated someone’s trust and never managed to earn it back. My ego-driven desire to get ahead was what caused that decision and in the long run, it didn’t even pay off.

3. Enlightenment : I’d love to see the
day when a business school offers a course on enlightenment. Just imagine a bunch of MBA students sitting in a room meditating and contemplating life while the professor appears to be some sort of monk. This kind of coursework is highly unlikely, but enlightenment is an important quality of all important leaders. In fact at the top of Maslow’s Hierarchy is self-actualization and thus in my mind essential to effective leadership.

4. Goal Setting: To say that business school doesn’t teach us how to set goals might seem ridiculous to some. But, if you ask some MBA students what they want to do they will most likely reply “find a job after graduation and make 6 figures.” While that’s a noble goal it’s really more like a task. It’s only through my study of personal development that I’ve come to understand the power of goal setting.
If MBA programs offered a course on goal accomplishment for one semester, it’d be really interesting to see how much more effective people would be. If I could go back and do it again, I would have kept a visible reminder of my goals somewhere all during business school.

5. Perseverance: Nobody teaches you this in business school. This is a lesson that you can only get through the school of Life. Unfortunately we’ve been conditioned to believe failure is bad. But it’s times like these you have to remember that Michael Jordan said” “I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

6. Detachment: If we could master on skill that would forever change the quality of our life experience is becoming detached from outcomes Business school is a goal driven environment where everybody is trying to get a good job, make good money, and end up doing what they love. So being detached from all outcomes would be almost looked down upon.
However, if we did become detached we would find peace of mind inside ourselves that would allow us to sail through our personal and professionallives.

7. Patience: Wayne Dyer, in A Course in Miracles says somewhere that “Infinite patience leads to immediate results.” I personally am not the most patient person in the world. But, there is something I’ve noticed in my moments of patience. Usually after I
surf, I’m often stuck in traffic, but I’m so wiped out and mellowed out that I’m completely patient no matter how bad the traffic is. This kind of peace where nothing phases you is an ideal place to'operate from.

Coudtesy: theskooloflife.com

Jobless Conmen Preying on Kenyan Job-Seekers

Thousands of Kenyans are seeking jobs and yes, it gets to the point of desperation with the cost of living rising every single day. Another bunch of jobless conmen have devised ways to take advantage of the vulnerable job seekers by setting up fake companies advertising for jobs and exploiting money from them via M-Pesa and other mobile money transfers.

One of these conmen recently preyed on a friend of mine and after loosing her money and wasting time, she decided to share the information, so we can help other job seekers recognize the tricks of these guys. First of all, they sent her an SMS saying they found her number on OLX and that they were recruiting:

Now, here are a few things to note –these guys have gone a step further to make their business look legit by using Google’s free website service, KBO.CO.KE which is highly ranked on Google. This tricks the job seeker to imagine that this is a legit company with a good history and investment. These guys will often create multiple websites since it is free and eventually when they are exposed they will move to using a different name.

My friend who was desperate for a job was excited and went ahead to contact them. She went to the website and sent her CV to the provided email and eventually, they contacted her and told her that she had been shortlisted. Eventually she was asked to go for an interview but they needed a full medical report from her or she pays Kshs. 500 via M-Pesa so that it can be done at the day of the interview. This she sent the money, just like most Kenyans would, we rarely have full medical reports.

The money was sent to MARSYDEN MULEI – 0725644814 and she was even sent a confirmation and a reference number from the “Company”. She was asked to go for an interview on Monday 24th June and it was supposed to be a the Brick Court Building in Westlands.

Come Monday, my friend went there and when she got to the building, the guards told her they did not know of such a company on that building. Being a new company, she gave it the benefit of doubt and went ahead to look for it within the building. No one had an idea about such a company. So she decided to call the guys she has been talking to, the person who picked up directs her to another person saying he was not around. She calls the second person who in turn tells her that she was late for the interview but she can send him 500/= and he will pick her up at the gate of the building.

Naively, she sent the money and waited. The guy’s phone went unpicked for a while and that was when she realized she had been played. She had referred another friend so both of them fell victim to the con plan.

Please spread this message as far as you can and help vulnerable Kenyans avoid these traps. These guys are cunning and they know what will make you easily trust them, they ask for small amounts of money but they end up getting it from hundreds of people. Please report any of these cases to Safaricom and the Police.

Investment Options in Kenya: Where to Make Money in 2014

December holidays are now behind our backs, January blues will soon varnish and the only challenge remaining this year would be to implement the many resolutions you reached with yourself for 2014. The razor thin wallet, empty fuel tanks, school fees and tense relationships characterizing this dreaded month of January will be gone immediately you receive your first pay check of 2014 in a week or two.

Despite the tough beginning to the year, majority of Kenyans remain hopeful that 2014 will bring with it better things; a bigger house, a new job, financial stability and a new car.

However, difference between those who will achieve thier dreams this year and those who won’t comes straight from the investment decisions they have made or will make this January.

For the business savvy individuals, the time to reflect on the enjoyment over the December holidays is gone.

They have already ordered consignments of goods from Dubai or China, scanning through the  newspapers for lucrative government tenders, contacting their brokers and / or financial managers on which cherry stocks to pick at the NSE, the next car, land, or real estate deal to close and the like.

Below are a few tips on where to invest and make some good money in 2014:

Stock Market

The NSE is a one hot investment option for those willing to take the risk and have a sizable financial cushion to absorb potential losses.

Measured by the NSE all share index, a well-balanced portfolio of shares in the stock market in 2013, made returns of upto 50 percent. This means that a ksh. 500,000 investment in the stock market would have swelled to 750,000 on average.

The Nairobi Stock Exchange has been on a 2-year bullish run and the indications are that the appreciation in share price is set to continue for a third year running.

Safaricom shares made headlines after soaring above the 2008 LPO price of KSh5 per share, more than doubling the investment to trade at 11.10.

However, the stock market, is quite volatile and is therefore most suited for investors with long-term investment views. It requires patience and good investment strategy as it can result in loss of investment in some instances.

Generally, there are two categories of companies listed at the Nairobi Stock Exchange; the growth counters which basically pay the investor through share price gain but offer low to zero dividends and the mature ones which pay high dividends annually.

Growth companies should be viewed as long-term investments. They include NBK, Britam, DTB Centum, and NIC, among others.

The mature stocks which pay high dividend annually, include BAT, Bamburi, EABL, Carbacid and the Nation Media Group.

A clear understanding of the performance of listing companies and the overall economic performance are good indicators of which shares to buy and which ones to sell.

Agribusiness:

Forget Maina and King'angi's cash cow, farming is becoming the new money minting machine. Young investors have realized the huge potential in this industry and the handsome returns it offers.

Besides soiling hands, setting up a value-addition plants represents a massive growth with potential for high return on investment, for the small scale investors who grow and sell agricultural products like onions, watermelons, apples, and tomatoes.

Technological advancement, such as the use of greenhouses has help farmers controlling crop growing conditions thereby almost guaranteeing good yields.

Look at the number of Kenyans scrambling for fruits and vegetables and you will realize that agribusiness is the in thing. Timing your harvest to coincide with the dry season will automatically multiply your returns.

For large scale farming investors, agribusiness also offers lucrative opportunities such as leasing land for maize, wheat, or potato farming. The high demand for Kenyan flowers oversees provides a ready market for horticultural investment farmers.

Real estate:

The boom in the Kenyan real estate sector has continued for the past few decades, lifting most investors into the millionaire class.

A quarter acre piece of land in Nairobi, Kisumu or Mombasa could earn you multi-millions either through just waiting for price appreciation or developing it into residential or commercial property.

A high-rise residential apartment, directly targeting the middle to lower income class where demand for housing is high, can fetch anything between, Sh4 million to Sh13 million depending on the location, neighbourhood and quality of finish.

The houses selling for between Sh1.5 million and Sh3.5 million targeting the lower middle class are also a good investment opportunity  for investors this year.

Establishment of county governments and the devolution of functions and civil servants to the counties,  offer good bets  as thousands of civil servants will looking for new homes.

To get the most value in future, always be sure to move in before the infrastructure. Real estate investment thrives on speculations. Therefore, if you get wind of a planned hospital or road at a site in a year or so, get in now.

The Thika Superhighway, Northern bi-pass came and went and real estate investors made a kill for their money. The Standard Gauge Railway, Outering road, Turkana oil fields and Lamu port are coming.

Government tenders:

30 per cent of all government contracts, this year, will be reserved for the marginalized: the youth, the women and the disabled. This opens a huge business opportunity for groups and individuals to do business with the state and earn some extra coin.

The most important requirement is that you must have registered company and get a KRA certificate.

The beautiful part of this investment option is that the tenders range from smaller contracts like supply of stationery to bigger ones like construction of roads. This opens the door for Kenyans from all walks of life aged 35 and below to participate.

Investment in Government tenders require individuals or companies with deep pockets. This is because government tenders require huge capitals. The cash-flow projection is rarely accurate as payments may delay by months and payment is only done after service delivery.

Foreign Trading:

The import / export business is an area likely to experience high growth especially now that the government is trying to promote its exports relative to the country's imports. Export opportunities can be exploited in the form of value added agricultural products.

Most of the Chinese products that may seem cheap to Kenyans are even even cheaper in Shanghai.

There are high chances that the Chinese earphones that you bought, in Nairobi, for ksh150, go for as little as kSh30 in Guangzhou. This is a business in which profit margins of 500 per cent is often attained.

For property developers, importing construction materials like roofing and floor tiles from China or Dubai may just help you cut costs and make huge profit.

Construction of hostels:

Expansion, Devolution add subsequent expansion of our public Universities in the last ten years has lead to at least one or more University in your county. 

However, despite the rise in admission numbers to match the expansion in public and private universities, development in accommodation facilities - hostels, have not kept the pace.

For instance, it’s now common for self-sponsored students, and at times JAB students to look for their own accommodation around our public universities.

This has opened up investment opportunities to build hostels around universities and their satellite campuses to accommodate students.

Considering the small size of a hostel room and that an investor can put multi-storey building with multiple double-Decker beds per room, the margins from this venture are high.

For monied investors, you can get into public-private sector partnerships (PPPs) with public universities.

The private developer will build the hostels on the University lands; operate them for up to a period of 25 years before leaving it to the Government.