The Most Effective One Word Icebreaker to Use at Work

The Most Effective One Word Icebreaker to Use at WorkThe Most Effective One Word Icebreaker to Use at WorkNeed a quick, no preparation icebreaker that works like a charm to break the ice in a meeting or training session? Highly adaptable, this icebreaker leads the participants right to the content of your meeting or training class. Here, see this one-genau icebreaker and suggestions about how to endlessly adapt this icebreaker to your participants needs. Sometimes, the seemingly most simple icebreaker will help you more than an elaborately developed and painstakingly prepared complicated icebreaker. You can figure out the one word to solicit the reactions of your attendees on the fly and then, devote the rest of your preparation time to the content of your meeting or training session. One Word Icebreaker Steps Divide the meeting participants into groups of four or five people by having them number off. (You do this so that your participants get to know fellow attendees. People ge nerally begin a meeting by sitting with the people they already know best, when your goal is normally kollektiv building across a group.)Tell the newly formed groups that their assignment is to think for a minute and then to share with their group the one word that describes X. In the first venture with this icebreaker, leading a session on organizational culture, the request from the group was that they think about their current culture and come up with one word to describe it.This icebreaker helps the group explore their thoughts on a common issue. This icebreaker is a perfect segue into the topic of the meeting or training class. The group was fascinated by the variety of the words chosen by the other participants to describe their culture.Consequently, the icebreaker did provide a snapshot of the current thinking of the group about their culture. (The groups one-word culture descriptions ranged broadly funky, family, fun, bipolar, fractured, cohesive, inspiring, and motivational are samples of their chosen words.) This icebreaker sparked spontaneous conversation in every group as the participants questioned each other about the meaning of their one word. They asked for examples and found that the combination of the participants chosen words did describe their current organizational culture.Upon completion of the initial spontaneous discussion, ask the participants to share their one word with the larger group. Ask for a volunteer to start and then, ask each participant to share their one word that described their culture. (Even your most quiet members are comfortable sharing their one word.) Next, after the participants have listened to the variety of words from the larger group, ask them to explore several questions in their small group. In this instance, asking each participant to select one word to describe their organizational culture, the participants were then asked behauptung follow-up questions.Is this culture consistent across buildings and depart ments?Is this the culture that you want to have in your organization?Does this culture support the accomplishment of the environment you desire for employees and the achievement of your company goals?Your opportunity for follow-up questions is endless. These debriefing questions can support the content of your training class or meeting. Debrief the icebreaker by asking for a volunteer from each group to share a point or two that highlighted their discussion. (You will find that many of the session attendees took notenzeichens.)Because your participants are almost always your best source of laughter and fun in ameeting or training session, each of these steps generated remarks, insights, ah-has, and examples.Upon completion, move into the rest of the material you have prepared for the session. This one-word icebreaker takes 1015 minutes with the initial enthusiastic, unstructured discussion that the icebreaker generates. Total time will depend on the number of additional questions th at you ask the group to discuss as part of the debrief of the one-word icebreaker. More Applications of the One Word Icebreaker While this one-word icebreaker was developed for the above-described session about organizational culture, the applications of the one-word icebreaker are limited only by your imagination. Here are a few ideas for adapting the one-word icebreaker to your needs. Session About Teams what is one word that you would use to describe your team?Session About Communication what is one word that you would use to describe the effectiveness of your communication?Regular Weekly Meeting what is one word that you would use to describe how work is going for you this week? Or, in one word, describe your most significant challenge this week.Managing up Session in one word, how would you describe your relationship with your boss?Session About Empowering Employees what comes to your mind first when you think about empowering employees? A Class About Performance Management what is one word that describes your current employee appraisals?Session About Interpersonal Communication what is one word you would use to describe the communication skill you are most interested in developing?For a Session on Conflict Resolution what is one word that describes how you feel when you think about having a conflict with a coworker? Please note that each of these examples provides an excellent opportunity to segue into the content of your meeting or training session. They also serve as a simple needs assessment for what your content needs to cover to meet your participants needs.

Heres when an internship is a good idea and when it isnt

Heres when an internship is a good idea and when it isntHeres when an internship is a good idea and when it isntIf your plan and aspiration is to embark on a professional career in a corporate-type environment then I would be hard pressed to argue against pursuing a summer internship opportunity. Ill briefly explain why then lets consider some alternatives.Completing a summer internship is largely inconsequential in my opinion from the perspective of building knowledge and expertise in your chosen field. What you will learn in the span of ten weeks or so, while significant relative to your knowledge base on day one, is frankly minuscule relative to what you will learn once you embark on your full-time occupation.Your participation in an internship or co-op program is nonetheless very relevant to your future and there are three distinct parties who are interested in it.The first is the person or organization that employs you for that internship. Most talent-driven, high-quality organ izations use an internship program as a strategic talent pipeline a way of identifying and vetting prospective candidates for entry level professional positions. If theyve landseen what you can do for a couple of months or more, they can be reasonably confident of what theyll see from you in the course of a more permanent commitment.The second interested party is any other employer to whom you might apply following your internship. The fact that you have completed an internship sends a prospective future employer several important signalsIt is evidence of a seriousness of purpose on your part in planning and pursuing your career obejctivesIt indicates that at least one other organization was prepared to employ you so you must have at least some good things going for youIn the event you got an offer to return to the internship employer the following year (e.g., if you interned after junior year and were extended an offer of full-time employment following graduation), that fact patt ern indicates strong, on-the-job performance on your partIf the prospective employer is in the saatkorn field as your internship employer then your experience demonstrates a focus on and commitment to that same field (one of the most important considerations for any employer considering an entry-level candidate does the candidate really want to do this kind of work?)The third interested party, and perhaps the most important, isyou. An internship is not only an opportunity for a fhigkeit employer to evaluate you. Its also a crucial opportunity foryouto evaluatethem. Not just the organization, its people and its culture, but the industry itself. You are potentially getting ready to sign on (as a full-time hire) for 40-hour work weeks (and potentially much, much more) in this industry and this firm. Do you like the work? Wouldnt you like to de-risk that decision for yourself by trying it out on a no-commitment basis first?Finally, there is a very practical reason to pursue an internshi p depending on your chosen field. Premier employers in many of the most competitive fields such as finance, tech, law and elsewhere hire entry-level, full-time candidates almost exclusively through their internship programs. If you show up in your final year of college let alone beyond without meaningful, relevant internship experience or something comparable, the odds are very, very slim that you will secure an attractive opportunity. Its competitive out there, and thats just the way it is.But what if thats not your chosen path?I mentioned at the outset that my answer was somewhat predicated on the idea that your plan would be to pursue a career in the professional or services sector.If that is indeed the case, there are two other types of activity that come to mind that would be additive to your resume. One would be to participate in an interesting research project, likely working for a professor at your college or university. Another would be to set up and run your own geschft sleben. Ill elaborate.Firstly, I would suggest that either of these activities would be most ideally suited to the summer after your freshman or sophomore year, rather than after your junior year. That latter summer window is critical for securing a relevant internship that has the potential to lead pretty directly to a full time position. But if, for example, you havent been able to secure an attractive internship or co-op opportunity, one of these options may be helpful. Undertaking a research project, especially if its in a field that may pertain to your chosen career track, can be useful and additive. All the more so if youve previously secured a traditional internship in a prior summer, which will help check a number of the boxes I outlined above.Starting or running your own business, which I see from candidates with not inconsiderable frequency, can also be a good use of time. Doing some summer tutoring for local high school kids doesnt really cut it in this regard though. Tha ts a fine activity for the summer after you leave high school. But if youre going to do something along these lines later in your college career, it should be something more substantive that demonstrates commerciality, business acumen and insight.In the end, the one thing you absolutely cannot afford to do is nothing.The competition for good jobs out of school is extraordinary. You will be up against any number of accomplished and driven candidates for the most sought after jobs. You cannot afford to create a disadvantage for yourself by failing to use your summers or other downtime productively in pursuit of your career goals. Because everyone youll be up against for that job you want will not be making that mistake.Jonathan Jones is head of Investment Talent Development at Point72 Asset Management.This article first appeared at Quora.

The 10 Best Job Search Tips of 2017

The 10 Best Job Search Tips of 2017The 10 Best Job Search Tips of 2017 If youre a smart, thoughtful candidate, youll always research what you can do to improve your odds of landing a job. The problem is, theres a plethora of advice out there. With so many articles, books, videos and even friends and family telling you what you need to do to score your dream job, how do you have time to sort through it all?Well, fear leid - weve distilled some of the best job search tips of 2017 down into one, easy-to-digest list for you. We combed through some of our top-performing pieces this year to get the most notable, valuable tidbits of advice so that you can find the job that fits your life in every way culture fit, salary, qualification, etc. Read through this list, and make sure to employ these tips in your next job hunt.If theres one way to sell yourself short during a salary negotiation, its by letting them know what you currently make. While the bewerbungsinterview questi on, What do you currently make? is already illegal in some places , there are many others in which it is not. But dont worry - if you come face-to-face with this question, you dont have to answer it directly.In 9 Things to Never Say in a Salary Negotiation , Josh Doody, author of Fearless Salary Negotiation recommends responding with something like the following Im not comfortable sharing my current salary. I would prefer to focus on the value I can add to this company rather than what Im paid at my current job. I dont have a specific number in mind for a desired salary, and you know better than I do what value my skill set and experience could bring to your company. I want this move to be a big step forward for me in terms of both responsibility and compensation.One of the biggest resume trends right now is including concrete metrics in the section that details your prior work experience. Recruiters and hiring managers love this because it provides context for and demonstrates the impact of your previous accomplishments. Wondering what that might look like in practice? In Heres What the Perfect Resume Looks Like , we provided the following exampleHas the company youre applying to gone through three different VPs of Finance, or any other high-level executive position, in one year? You may want to think twice about whether or not its right for you.This can indicate a few things. One, leadership may be very fickle unable to land on the specific qualities they want in a candidate . Two, the company may have a bad internal culture which makes retention nearly impossible, no matter how talented the new hires may be. Three, top-level goals may be as fleeting as the talent, says Glassdoor Editorial Director Amy Elisa Jackson in 7 Types of Companies You Should Never Work For .The fix? Companies with high turnover wont deliver on their promises and may just be a waste of time - unless there are extenuating circumstances, you may want to direct your efforts e lsewhere.Just as its good to research a company before you apply to a job, its good to research the CEO as well, as Jackson demonstrates in 6 Types of CEOs You Should Never Work For .Having creative ideas and a strong vision for ones company are great qualities to have in a CEO. However, if theyre only capable of presenting a dream without possessing the determination, focus and grit to actually see it through, they may not be best suited for the top position at a company.If you are someone who appreciates clear guidance, structure, and an achievable plan, the dreamer CEO is not for you, Jackson says. The best dreamers (think Elon Musk and Bill Gates ) also have a dash of expertise and understand the weight of asking others to follow their crazy ideas.Its a simple concept, but one thats helped launch Cathy Engelbert to the top of the corporate ladder, as she shares in The Brilliant Career Advice from Deloittes CEO in One Sentence . When asked what her secret to success was, Eng elbert said it was Building a team that brings you solutions instead of challenges, listening to and collaborating with them - that ultimately prioritizes your focus on issues where you can have the most impact, not just scratch items off the to do list To me, productivity is directly related to the personal relationships you are able to build.Moral of the story - if you want to keep climbing the ranks, it helps to have a solid group of colleagues who can vouch for you and open doors for you.The number one way to become the candidate that recruiters dream of? Informing yourself about the role and company so that by the time you show up to the interview, you already know that youre qualified for the position and a good fit for the culture. One of the best ways to demonstrate this is by doing your research beforehand. That way, you dont have to show up to the interview asking questions like, What exactly does the company / this department do?Finding the answer to this question is pa rt of your research. Your questions need to show that youve put in the time and done some basic research about the company and role, says Harriet Green, General Manager, IBM Watson Internet of Things, Customer Engagement & Education in 11 Things to Never Say in an Interview, According to a Hiring Manager . Instead, consider asking what projects the department is currently engaged in or what challenges it faces, with a view to highlighting the value you can bring.Hardworking, synergy, wheelhouse these are all words that recruiters and hiring managers and tired of hearing. Not only have they been used so often to the point that theyre basically meaningless - they also dont really prove anything about you.You have a limited amount of time to catch a recruiter or hiring managers eye - use it wisely, cautions Jamie Hichens, Senior Talent Acquisition Partner at Glassdoor in 21 Words To Never Include In Your Resume .Instead of bluntly listing qualities like hardworking on your resume, provide relevant anecdotes that demonstrate those values. For example, highlighting an additional project or responsibility you took on in addition to your expected tasks is a good way to show youre hardworking without coming out and saying it.The fact that recruiters cant see you during a phone interview is both a blessing and a curse - on the one hand, you dont have to worry about appearing nervous or getting caught taking a peek at an interview cheat sheet. On the other hand, it does open up the temptation to multitask.My number one pet peeve is people who decide to multitask while on the phone interview, says Dan Krupansky, Talent Acquisition Manager at PrimePay in the piece 12 Things to Never Do During A Phone Interview . I have heard candidates washing dishes, making lunch in the microwave, going for walks, letting their dog out and grocery shopping during the interview. I even had one person use the bathroom and flush the toilet while speaking with me.While you probably h ave the common sense to avoid activities like that, it can be easy to check your email or Facebook while a recruiter is speaking at length. If you know youll be tempted, stow your computer away.I get it tailoring your resume to the specific job and company you want is a pain. But if youre applying to your dream company, its well worth the effort.Most resumes are reviewed electronically before a human sees them, says career coach Jeanne Patt in 6 Resume Mistakes To Avoid At All Costs . Tailoring each submittal with keywords from the job posting is critical to pass the electronic screening.Look at each bullet point in your resume, and think about whether or not it communicates the skills, personality traits and values that the company youre applying to is looking for. If not, tweak it until it does.When people talk about why theyre seeking out a new position, they often delve into everything that was wrong with their former employer low pay, a bad boss, uninteresting and unchalleng ing work, etc. But if you dive down into the rabbit hole of what didnt work, you can come off as negative and ungrateful - definitely not traits you want to highlight to a potential employer.Complaining about how you didnt get along in your last work environment is detrimental on two levels. First, it shows your lack of ability to cope with a challenging situation and move past it. Second, the last thing your interviewer wants is for you to be talking trash about their company or employees in the future, says Glassdoor contributor Lillian Childress in 11 Things To Never Say in a Job Interview .Instead, veer away from the negative and focus on the positive - rather than talking about why you want to leave your current company, talk about why you want to apply to the current company, perhaps because of their excellent company culture, career opportunities, etc. Not only will this make you look more positive - its flattering for the employer to hear.