Resume Help for New Job Seekers

I've posted a new page on the web site for job seekers that are either new to the job market or returning to the job market after an extended period of time.  This page is not really directed at those in upper management.  

I've been hearing a lot from people that want to get a job but feel they cannot meet the requirements so they do not apply.  I think these people have more skills and talent than they give themselves credit for.  

If you know of someone that may be in a rut, please share the link to Resume Help for New Job Seekers.  

#SHEP, Savannah Harbor Expansion Project

I am still miffed about the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project not receiving necessary funding in the budget that was announced this past week.  Instead SHEP is designated to receive a paltry $1.52 million for
pre-construction and design.  

It may not seem as if it is a big deal but Savannah is the fourth largest port in the United States.  In world ports, Los Angeles, Long Beach, and the New York/New Jersey ports rank higher on the list at 16, 21, and 25 respectively.  Savannah ranks at #44 in the world ports and it is the second busiest port in the United States for containerized exports.  It's a big deal to the future of the United States.

Fortunately, Gov. Nathan Deal is prepared for the state to move forward even though the price just keeps increasing as time passes.

I started to look in to this more closely because I wondered how much had been spent on negotiation and research prior to the current administration denying the necessary funding to keep the Savannah port in the top fifty of the world. The United States only holds four of those positions and while other countries are preparing for the Panama Canal Expansion in 2016, Savannah and the United States has been left high and dry.

I never did come up with a cost but I can tell you the more I read, the more disturbing this is. Even if work begins this year the project will not be done until late 2017. This is not just about Savannah, it is about creating jobs and commerce throughout the southeast.

Fifteen years in the works and now it has come down to behavior that is comparable to a playground popularity contest.  I never did like Dodge Ball.

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/

Jobs

I received a notification from Rich Products about the jobs that they have available.  Sadly, not all of the links came through on the notification so I searched for Rich Products to find easy access for you.  If you think you are not familiar with the company, think coffee creamer and you will be right on track.  Rich Products maintains operations in logistics, travel, restaurant, and more.

Rich Products welcomes you to explore their current openings through the Rich Careers page.  I suggest you browse the web site as there is specific information about applying and you'll learn a lot about the company.
If you're the type that prefers to cut to the chase, here's your link: Rich-products/all-jobs/united-states/.  Jobs are available in CA, CT, FL, GA, IL, NJ, NY, OH, SC, TN, TX, VA, and WA.

Feel free to visit our site, Georgianna Hardware Corporation if you want some free resume help.

A House Divided Among Itself

We're still in the official shutdown and reporters are providing plenty for me to read. Tonight, my thoughts are with the private sector as I am once again completely impressed by how unselfish Americans are.

We heard about our government failing the families of fallen soldiers. The Fisher House generously agreed to offer the families a appropriate time. The Fisher House will also cover flights, hotels and other incidentals for family members.

The Laura and John Arnold Foundation donated ten million dollars to so that more than 7,000 children can return to their Head Start classrooms.

While the two foundations mentioned above are taking notable and noble action to help America through this difficult time, it is easy to forget the numbers of people that commit to assisting others on a smaller scale. Believe it that every bit of effort and every penny makes a difference.  Each of us is helping build a better America.  The private sector is showing improvement by building more products and improving our infrastructure nation wide.  Keep on, folks!  You're making the world a better place and your neighbors are noticing.  

Don't forget, a house divided among itself, cannot stand.

Georgianna Hardware Corporation (our fun blog)

Need A Job

It's hard for us to believe, but even after all of these years there are folks that are still in need of a job.  We have been talking about jobs since we started GHC and it's difficult tell you a total number of people we have been able to help.  Actually, each of those individuals did it on their own! We're only here to offer the helping hand.

There's good news for folks looking for a job.  The jobs are out there!  We've been helping a few friends from different locations in the country seek employment and we're surprised at the availability of jobs.

While helping our friends, we did notice key things you should note:  If you're still searching, don't expect to readily find a full time job.  With Obamacare in the works larger companies are finding it difficult to offer full time employment to individuals.  The flexibility of your schedule will certainly increase your opportunities. We're impressed that businesses are recognizing the need to offer job specific training and not listing extensive requirements of prospective employees.  We had a great deal of success by using indeed.com to do our research.

If you're feeling discouraged, stop that.  Perhaps it is time to start over.  Our web site has free resume help available and we would be happy to have you visit us online at Georgianna Hardware Corporation.

Happy job hunting!

The Grandmother Test

When we were in the process of updating our web site we found information that we felt was both timely and important so decided to share it.  

From GHC site:

While seeking employment it is important for you to consider things from the employer's perspective.  It is not unusual for companies and schools to search for concerns that they have about potential employees or students.  I think the idea is best called, "The Grandmother Test".  Most employers are seeking information about drug and alcohol use.  (This is due to insurance requirements.)  Let's face it, even though we might decide to tie-one-on, none of us are stupid to the fact that our grandmother would probably rather not see any of us in that condition.

Employers, just like your grandmother, do not have the desire to see inappropriate photos, nor do they care to read about inappropriate behavior.  Most people decline this offer!

Social media allows for much to be said in very few words.  Employers can and will judge your communication skills by comments you post.  I set a standard for myself on this.  I've always believed that if I had the nerve to write it and send it, I needed to have nerve enough to claim it by putting my signature on it.  The Grandmother Test holds true again.  Simply remember, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."  

You can use the World Wide Web to your advantage but don't forget that everybody else can too.  There are plenty of sites that offer information about this subject but do your own research about yourself before the potential employer calls.  You can do that by searching for your name through any major search engine.  Seeing yourself the way your future employer will might just save you some embarrassment.

~Kara Miller

Visit us and Like us on facebook

Who are/is They?

Tonight I log onto Twitter and six of the first ten Tweets I receive are making comment about how our personal information is being mined by the NSA as well as businesses.  Yes, this is ridiculous BUT...

Remember when you closed on your house?  I remember being a little surprised when the attorney asked me to confirm my alias name.  Fortunately I remembered that many years ago I had received a check that was made out improperly.  I was able to deposit it to my account as long as I was willing to wait the ten days for it to clear.  Yes, I did use that alias and yes, the check cleared but years later "they" still knew.

I'm not sure who "they" are.  I'm thinking "they" are the same as "everybody else's mother" but I do know that there are times this works to my advantage.  There was the time that my credit card company had placed a hold on my account because I used the card for an unusual purchase.  It wasn't convenient to call the company and confirm that I had bought gas and used their card but "they" noticed.  Good catch, "They"!

Facebook, Microsoft, and Google are all on the list of place that tapped into their user's communications.    It raises questions but you need to be aware that this happens and it has been happening for some time.  Remember you read it here and be sure to be nice, polite, and well behaved!

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/Pages/default.aspx

The Thing To Do

I happened across an article by Leo Shane III of Stars and Stripes which refered to PTSD. (Ref. link that follows for article in question.)

http://www.stripes.com/what-do-we-need-to-know-about-veterans-1.223351

I have never served in the military but my dad served during the Korean Conflict. I was an adult when Dad was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress yet it was more than 25 years after he had served.  He didn't romanticize about his time spent in the military and never suggested that he questioned his choices, actually he said that joining the military at that time was just the thing to do.

I recall him telling me the story of arriving home. He was walking down the street and saw his former boss. The man told him that it was nice to see that he was back and said, “I'll see you at work Monday morning.” Years later he laughed about that and told me, “So on Monday morning I went to work.”  I had a ton of questions.  Did you know what you would be doing for work, did you still want to work there, what were they planning on paying you?  He shrugged his shoulders and said, “I went to work on Monday because it was the thing to do.”

When Dad was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress he was shocked.  He couldn't believe that he had been living with PTSD all of those years and never knew it was a condition that could be diagnosed.  From the time that he arrived home he had kept busy leading his life and suddenly PTSD was demanding his attention.  Recognizing PTSD and acknowledging it was the thing to do.

The article in Stars and Stripes refers to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder but my dad nor his doctor ever referred to it this way. They referred to it as Post Traumatic Stress.  Perhaps these men were just wise l beyond their years and refused to give it a negative connotation.  Reading the article from Stars and Stripes only gives civilians a glimpse of what it is like to come home. We need to welcome these men and women home and treat them well because it's the thing to do.   

DRI DUCK

I was cleaning up tonight and picked up a jacket that my husband had worn.  As I walked to the closet to hang it I could not help but to notice the weight and the nice construction of the garment.  Gosh, I must have really been concerned about his warmth when I bought this, I thought!  I looked to see where it was made.  China.  Aaargh.  You know how I feel about this, but something made me look into DRI DUCK farther.  

DRI DUCK has their corporate headquarters in Overland Park, Kansas and a distribution center about five miles down the road in Lenexa, Kansas.  Another story of companies having to send work overseas in order to keep costs under control.  

We published a link on our site for DRI DUCK coveralls at 60% off.  Stop in and get yourself  a pair! www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com

Wellness in the Workplace

Recently there have been a number of news articles that specify the importance of wellness in the workplace. This is not necessarily news. It has been 26 years since workplace violence occurred at a post office in Edmond, OK and though records are difficult to find there were many incidents prior to that. Sadly, this problem has overflowed to another generation.

This morning we arrived at work after a weekend of trying to put a number of thoughts into proper perspective. It was a matter of being thankful to be able to return to our routine and place ourselves in what we considered a normal day.

Of course, our conversation centered around Newtown, CT and it involved more questions than answers. We all agree that a solution needs to be found to keep our society from living in fear. Our thoughts? The children can be our teachers. Ask questions and listen attentively to the answers. It lets people know that you care.

Need some quick help with your listening skills? You can visit http://nature.berkeley.edu/ucce50/ag-labor/7article/listening_skills.htm

Made in America Movement

America is absolutely amazing. Apple made an announcement that they were bringing some of their production back to America. This made the headlines, but we were curious. We wondered if we are still in the minority of people that look for products that are made in the United States of America. Come to find out, we're not the only people that believe in America.

The Reshoring Initiative teaches us that companies benefit from reshoring as offshore sourcing faces higher costs in transportation and fuel, as well as increasing wages. We invite you to visit our December Notables December 2012 Notables page to learn more about reshorenow.org.

There is a whole new trend coming along called "Reshoring" although some refer to it as "backsourcing" or "onshoring".  Either way the efforts support businesses bringing jobs back to the U.S. from overseas.  Companies such as Janssen Boas are happy to help other businesses bring products back to the United States and organizations like reMakeIn still believe that neighbors and local communities can help one another.  

America is amazing!  For many of us America is the country that owed us nothing but gave us everything.  It seems we're realizing that it is time for us to give back.

Why Care About the Presidential Election?

Sometimes I feel like I am preaching to the choir, but today's blog is specifically for the young people that are questioning why they should be bothered being interested in this presidential election.  This will take about two minutes of your time to read.

My mom's family came to America on the Mayflower. History books have taught me that they left England because they felt so strongly about their religious freedom. They were referred to as Separatists and had many difficulties prior to their arrival here.

My dad's family came to America from Nova Scotia, Canada. My paternal grandparents decided to come to America with hope of starting a new life. They were a young couple that had already experienced having two of their children die of Scarlet Fever.

Not having interest in any election is something that is not new to me. Actually, I follow politics for my entertainment and I get it that you're disinterested, but I'd appreciate your being kind enough to allow the few minutes for me to make my case.

This presidential election is rather unique in the fact that our country is divided so evenly. This month we are starting to see changes to our country that have been put in place by our current president. Companies are experimenting to see how they can still make profits while avoiding paying for health care. The first thing those companies did was cut employee hours to 28 hours per week. I bet that hurt. By my calculations those people will receive a check for $168.00. Crap. My smallest grocery order this month was $127.54.

Who cares? Your healthy. You didn't even want to work full time. OK, think about the number of doctors that are becoming disinterested in serving their communities because they never get time off, their pay is going to be reduced, and they will need to make budget cuts with their staff. Odds are they will need to have a part time staff. They went to school for this? They are doing more accounting than assisting people and they're not happy. Can you blame them?

We have heard a lot about Libya recently. Big deal. Most Americans don't even know where it is. That doesn't stop us from sending money to their country and we will do it again next year too. In return we had four Americans killed. Only four, but they weren't your brother, uncle, or friend. Americans care so our government sends money to countries that need financial assistance. Don't forget the millions that we send to others countries and that inludes North Korea, Columbia, and Russia. Wonder why North Korea wants to blow us off the face of the earth? Maybe it's because we gave them $106 million in 2008 but only gave them $2.5 in 2009.  I did the research using our government's web site at http://foreignassistance.gov/CountryIntro.aspx so that you didn't need to.

If you're in the twenty-something bracket think back to September 11, 2001. Do you remember where you were when you heard about the attack on your country? Prior to September 11, 2001 there had been few foreign attacks on U.S. soil. Just for reference, we had the War of 1812, the U.S.-Mexican War in 1846, an attack led by Pancho Villa in Columbus, NM, in 1916, the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, and an attack in New York on the World Trade Center in 1993. These people that you have no interest in keep all of us from harm.  

I remember feeling that my vote didn't count and the president didn't really represent me. Not that either candidate can relate to me now! Who cares? The question is, why care?  Well, as American citizens we have been granted our unalienable right: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  The generations before mine didn't just throw these rights away, they've kept them in check for you. Even with its current difficulties people still have a desire to live in our country and they have good reason to. C'mon, that's kind of cool to know that people you don't even know want to have a life like yours.

If you don't care, too bad. You're not the first and you won't be the last. Worst that can happen is the candidate you choose might not win. I have a realistic view. Is the glass half full of lemonade or is it half empty. Realistic me: It could be piss. You're in America because the generations that came before you thought your rights were important. It's time you care.

We're Concerned About Jobs

     We're concerned about jobs.  We've heard about the taxes, but without a job we cannot be taxed.  We can't even go to the mall and spend money on things that are taxed at the local level.  This whole situation is obviously a big mess.

     There are other things to be considered too.  What are we teaching the next generation?  As for myself, I see an angry younger generation that is trying to understand things that are way above my middle-age ability. Knowing that one of six children are receiving assistance for food provisions, it leaves me wondering how these children are handling this crisis that they experience every day.  With mom or dad not longer working this is added stress to the children too.    

     As adults, our coping skills include humor.  Wonder what the next generation thinks of our laughing about there being a lack of oxygen in Denver?  I'm fairly certain that a five year old child hasn't learned about altitude changes.  I keep hearing about light-hearted comments, but I'm not even sure how much my heart weighs!

     The next time the younger generation tells you that you're clueless, take a moment and think about it.  I agree that we need to pull ourselves up by the boot straps and hang in there through these tough time, but think about how the next generation interprets what they see and hear.

OK, folks.  I'll get step down from my little soap box.  When I heard teens talking earlier, it crossed my mind that they should be talking about cars and dances, not gas prices and political debates.

The Start of The New Year

And they're off!  Off into the New Year with great enthusiasum and robust confidence.  Leaving 2011 behind and dashing into 2012 with great eagerness. 

You were all part of the transition that is taking place.  Made in America is cool again.  More and more folks have taken steps to promote and support products and services that support American workers.  Good for you for being a trend setter.  Your awareness is what keeps Americans working.  No matter how minimal you think they are, I appreciate your efforts and they are making a difference in our country. 

Georgianna Hardware is speeding into the new year too, but things will be getting off to a slow start.  Sadly, my husband suffered a hernia late in 2011 and he will be having corrective surgery this week.  In a family owned and operated business this means the entire payroll calls in sick.  We want to be as close to him as possible during his recovery which means he should be quite anxious to return to work in February!    

Thank you for your support throughout 2011.  There are a lot of things in the works here and I think you'll like what Georgianna Hardware offers to you in 2012. 

http://georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/default.aspx

Twitter is Over Capacity

Can you believe it?  I just tried to Tweet and Twitter is over capacity.  We didn't even have Twitter when I first started to use the World Wide Web.  Actually, the first comment came to me some years ago when a nice, young man came to my home to fix my DSL.  I said, "Don't worry that you can't fix the problem with the first ten things you tried.  When I used the VT100 it would hang up every once in a while.  Computers always come around."   He replied, "Hey, I learned about that VT100 when I was in college!" 

This week is much better.  I was able to attend the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, CA from the comfort of my living room.  (That's better known as E3 to those who are heavily involved.)  Over 45,000 people were expected to attend the three day event!

Microsoft had everybody's attention right off with their announcement of their Kinect Star Wars game.  Funny that there would be excitement over the Star Wars game because Microsoft informed us that they are giving their XBox Live service a facelift.  The updated service will give us access to You Tube and live TV.  Not only that, but we will be able to control our XBox Live account with our voices.  The updated service will also provide access to Bing to search for XBox Live content.   They also announced that Disney and Microsoft has partnered to create the entire Disneyland park so we can all have a 360 experience.  The rides will be considered mini-games.  

Nintendo announced their next generation console, the Nintendo Wii U.   The console’s controller utilizes a touchscreen that can be used to play games on its own while the system allows for interaction between the touchscreen and the television.  It has a 6.2-inch screen with two analog controllers, but it isn’t a portable gaming device though because it acquires its images wirelessly from the console.  With Wii U owners will be able to have five participants in games or can use more than one controller to play a game.

Sony announced the new PlayStation Vita.  I admit I wasn't there, but I believe the consistent comments that the screen resolution is excellent and the controls are smooth.  What appeals is the touch interface on the back of the device.  AT&T is PlayStation Vita's 3G partner.  The games might cost more, but the game experience will be far better.  Sony is also adding to the 3-D experience and they told us about their new social network, "Near."  We will see the Vita in stores for the holiday season.

I want to go back over a few things that I saw and a few that I missed, but the first thing that comes to mind is, "WOW!"  I had a blast attending E3.  Thank you to everyone that broadcasted.

Please visit our web site to order.  Remember, Amazon is helping keep Americans employed.
http://georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/Gaming.aspx