I landed a 6-figure salary job by age 30. This is how my life changed. - Cubicle Chic

I landed a 6-figure salary job by age 30. This is how my life changed. - Cubicle Chic I landed a 6-figure salary job by age 30. This is how my life changed. Debt-free Life February 9, 2018 13 CommentsArbitrary or not, most would agree that the six-figure salary is a significant milestone. For many white-collar professionals, a 6-figure salary is something to strive for amongst getting a C suite title, having a corner office, managing a big team, etc.  In fact, in 2017, the average annual income of 25-to-34-year-old Americans was $40K, and the average 35-44 year-olds made $50K (CNBC Money). What is somewhat depressing is that after this age bracket, annual income basically stays the same until the retirement age of 65 and it plummets to $47K. So, the average group of Americans don’t ever make a 6-figure salary in their lifetime. My Humble BeginningWhen I began my marketing career back in late 2000’s, I had an annual salary in the $50K range. On average, that is a decent starting salary. But being in California, having just gotten my MBA and seeing where my classmates had landed salary-wise, it did not feel like a high salary in any w ay. Over the next few years, with a couple of job change and promotions, my salary slowly increased to the 60K range. Then the 70K range. And then it plateaued here for a few years.And Then It HappenedI was OVER THE MOON when I received the job offer back in September 2016 that finally brought my salary into the 6-figure range. Imposter syndrome, self-doubt, and overall disbelief all aside, it was a yuuuuuge (lol) confidence boost. Additionally, my fiancé and I were planning a wedding at the time, so we knew the increase in my salary was going to be a big help. Yet amongst all things, I was really surprised at the thoughts that receiving this offer and having this $6000+ (after tax) a month salary trigged in me.  I never thought these were the things that would surface when I got a 6-figure salary offer.The first thought that followed “I got the job” was “what am I going to buy myself as the reward?” Old (bad) habits die hard. This is how I’ve equated any success in my a dult life to â€" the materialistic reward that I’d allow myself to indulge in afterward. It almost makes sense on some levels: “I make more now, I can buy more.” Right? It’s so scary that this was how my brain had been wired for years. When I have the financial means, the first place my thoughts went to was how I could spend my money on materialistic things, and not pay off debt, not increase retirement savings, not increase investments. In hindsight, after I’ve taken the journey to become a more financially responsible person, it’s frightening to face my old habits up close and personal.I was actually able to shorten the pay-back plan of my car loan.When I was in debt, I’d stare at my Mint account with the amount of debt I had and silently wish to myself “If only I win the lottery tomorrow or have some kind of windfall of money. That would wipe this all off and I can start anew!” This job offer with the 6-figure salary was exactly that. My car payment at the time was $680 a month. I can’t help but CRINGE at that figure now that car payments are out of my life for good. With the increase in salary, I was done with my car payment within 5 months. This 6-figure salary actually helped me pay off my car loan sooner than I’d thought!It gave me the confidence I needed to progress in my career    I generally don’t like talking about things like “imposter syndrome” because I think people (women) have the tendency to use it to legitimize or give more voice to their inner demons. But, there is a reason why this term is so popular these days and there’s some truth in its popularity. Having a nice 6-figure salary is one of the best weapons to battle imposter syndrome, at least in my experience. Nothing says “you are worth it” than your negotiation resulting in the salary you asked for. It’s empowering, validating, and a defining milestone. It also gave me more assurance when I negotiated other job offers compensation packages later in life.I was still the same person I was, with the same challenges, flaws, hard decisions to make in life.This was the most sobering fact that dawned on me a few months after I started this job. Having the 6-figure salary I wanted was not some silver bullet. Getting paid this much didn’t change who I was or the problems I had. It boosted my confidence, sure, but it didn’t give me confidence that I didn’t have. I still had to commute to work, felt anxious before a presentation, had co-workers that were so annoying I wish I didn’t have to deal with them… my work life did not magically transform into something else better. And as naïve as that sounds, I used to hold on to the thought of “if only my salary was much higher” and then things would magically improve. This definitely didn’t happen.  The satisfaction wears off fast. The mind latches onto new goals, and the hustle starts all over again. It’s human nature. We set a goal, achieve it, feel overcome by a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction…then it fades. And we move onto the next thing we slave away to accomplish. This is a big concept in positive psychology called the hedonic adaptation. It describes the fact that “happiness doesn’t last”; you buy a new car, get a big promotion, win the lottery, etc. But after a while, the excitement and euphoria wear off and you’re back to your baseline of emotions. And you feel like you’re back at square one, with new goals to tackle in order to find that “high” again. On this front, I highly recommend three books to read on finding ways to create meaning and measure happiness in life: How Will You Measure Your Life by Clayton Christenson, The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor, and Designing Your Life by Bill Burnette and Dave Evans.What’s your salary story? How does your current salary make you feel and why?

The Upside of Vampires

The Upside of Vampires Halloween Cookies by Petit Four, found via Pinterest Those whove been around these parts know that, when I speak of Vampires, Im talking about the voices/people that suck the good stuff out of us. Oh sure, Vampires are all cool and sexy now (thanks Stephanie Meyer HBO!), but in my work, theyre Cold-Blooded Dream Killers. Believe it or not, I have to retract my total Vampire hatred. I used to see them as The Enemy Who Must Be Defeated, Quickly. They tell us we have no talent, we dont have a chance, were less than, were just like everyone else, well die an old bag lady, yada yada yada. And while this totally sucks, Ive come to realize: Theyre doing us a favor. The Vampires are pointing us to exactly whats in our way. Sure, they can say it way nicer than they do, but despite the tone/attitude/obnoxiousness, the guidepost is still there. Think youll die an old bag lady? Well, map out a solid Plan B and youll be golden. Or put yourself in that scenario and realize it might actually be kinda awesome. Think you have no talent? Get a Win Book together and prove that Vampire wrong. Think you dont have a chance to make a living doing what you love? Find some people who are doing it, and use em as inspiration. Think you dont have anything unique to offer? Ask your friends and family why they keep you around/value you/find you inspiring; articulate what you got complimented on; give yourself credit for the things that come easy to you but everyone else cant do (I promise your head wont swell if you dwell on the positive). So, the next time that Vampire comes a-whispering, dont send him away so quickly. Invite him in, give him a glass of red wine (close enough to what hes used to drinking, right?), and listen to what he has to say. Its only then, once youve heard him through, that you can take action on what hes telling you, and you can slay him once and for all. ________________________________________________

Top 20 Resume Writing Mistakes to Avoid

Top 20 Resume Writing Mistakes to AvoidA top resume writing mistake is when people give their information out to the wrong people. Do not do this.There are companies that will be coming after you if they see such information. If you put it in your resume then you will want to remove it because it will cause you to have a bad image and that is never a good thing. The very last thing you want to happen is to get fired because of an inaccurate resume.When you go through resumes that have information in them that is not true then try to find out who owns the information. Find out where the information came from and then ask them why it is there. Have them explain to you why it is there. This way you can make sure that it is accurate.You will also want to look at the accomplishments that the person has had in their life. What do they have accomplished and where do they reside? This is a good way to make sure that the information is accurate. It might even mean that you did not have the ri ght person for the job.When you go through resumes that are like this then you want to keep your options open. Who else might have the skills that you need and you want to see what other people have to say about them. Maybe there is someone out there that would be more than willing to meet you halfway.Remember that a top resume writing mistake is using an old resume. This might have been the one that got you into the position but that does not mean that it is good enough. You want to be the one that can create a new, better, or better looking resume. That is what you want to hear.So you can see that a top resume writing mistake is something that happens to so many people. It is also something that you should try to avoid. If you make sure that the information is correct then you are well on your way to creating a great resume.

Mark Zuckerberg Says This Habit Makes Him Successful

Mark Zuckerberg Says This Habit Makes Him Successful “The Secret Life of CEOs,” a six part podcast series by the people behind Freakonomics Radio, is packed with tasty little thought nuggets from some of the most celebrated executives in the world, like Richard Branson, PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi and G.E.’s Jack Welch. Oh, and Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. In the newest episode, host Stephen Dubner chatted with the social media titan, who revealed that he has come along way as a manager â€" and there’s one important takeaway a boss or manager can do to make his or her company a better place to not only work at â€" but thrive. In Facebook’s early days, listeners learn, Zuckerberg was a notoriously bad listener. “I thought he showed an incredible audacity to not learn and listen as a leader,” says Jeff Sonnenfeld, a leadership scholar at Yale. “Oh my gosh, has he changed. And he’s had a great board, great mentors, and also he’s just been a great learner. He has been remarkably different now as a leader than he was when he first became CEO.” What changed, exactly? In Zuckerberg’s words, it was only a matter of trust. He started green lighting more ideas, and stopped outwardly dismissing the ones he disagreed with. And once he relinquished some of his control, Facebook became the social networking legend it is today. Here’s the exchange he and Dubner had: ZUCKERBERG: I actually think the most important thing is what decisions and what processes on a day-to-day basis you choose to let people have the freedom to do, and just not get involved with. A huge part of how Facebook works is giving a large amount of freedom to our engineers at the company, and to people who use the product to make with it what they will. And trusting people to do that, rather than â€"â€" DUBNER: Was that hard for you to get to, or … ? ZUCKERBERG: I think it’s hard every day. Because when you’re running something, you, of course, have the ability to make as many of the decisions as you would like. The real art is not â€" not when you know that you have someone who is a superstar, who is going to make great decisions, but deciding to let people do things that you disagree with, because on principle, and it’s just going to free up more creativity and people will feel like there’s more potential to try different things in the future that may be better, if you let them go do those things, even if you disagree with them.

Are Bigger Niche Job Boards Always Better

Are Bigger Niche Job Boards Always Better In a world where bigger is often viewed as better, its sometimes tough to decide whether to choose products and services based upon size or other specific factors.  This can even be the case when deciding which job boards to use within your niche. Of course, niche job boards could be considered the smaller version of the generic job boards that are usually larger and more popular.  But even within a niche you will find bigs and smalls.  So how do you decide whether bigger is better for you? Criteria for Choosing Your Niche Job Board Choosing a niche job board is similar to selecting any other product or service youre considering; you want to make sure it meets your specific criteria.  But there are a couple of general guidelines that you should consider as you make your selections. First, its a good idea to make sure that the job board is reputable and can deliver what it promisesâ€"whether that is exposure, connections with recruiters and employers, or job search tools.  A great way to find out is to look for reviews of or testimonials for the job board. Also, its good to make sure the Web site is user-friendly.  If you have to jump through a lot of hoops to post a resume, dont have the ability to make changes, make privacy setting adjustments, or easily communicate with customer service when you have issues, then the job board may not be worth it. Bigger Doesnt Necessarily Mean Better If you find a great niche job board that meets your criteria, then it may be a winner, no matter how small it may be in comparison to other boards on the Internet.  There are so many to choose from that many boards work hard to ensure theyre competitive. So as long as it appears to get the job doneâ€"and makes you feel comfortable that youll be able to accomplish your job-seeking goalsâ€"its probably the right one for you. While searching for boards, also keep in mind that you dont have to commit yourself to only one.  You can try two or three to actively compare services.  Just be sure to find out whether your profile can be completely deleted if you decide to part ways with a service so that your information wont be stuck online. For additional tips and advice on resumes and cover letters, follow us on Twitter @GreatResume or visit our blog.

9 Fall Fashion Items That Belong In Your Work Wardrobe

9 Fall Fashion Items That Belong In Your Work Wardrobe Fall fashion. It summons thoughts of denim jackets, oversized sweaters and leather booties. And its all right around the corner.But whats in your fall work wardrobe? Perhaps its time to hit the shops or dig deep into the depths of your closet to prepare yourself for the cooler months ahead. Here are nine fall fashion staples that every working woman needs in her wardrobe.1. Denim JacketA denim jacket is a staple for any fall wardrobe. You can wear it over almost any outfit, especially in a casual workplace.2. Oversized CardiganAn oversized cardigan is a good piece to have in your work wardrobe, especially for offices that are always a little too cold.3. Leather BootiesLeather booties are a comfortable alternative to high heels. You can pair them with a skirt or dress to dress them up, or with a pair of jeans in a more casual office.4. Leather JacketA leather jacket is a staple. Its perfect for the workplace, too, because you can dress it up or down.5. Sheer ScarfA sheer scarf is a great accessory to have in the fall because you can wear it around your neck to keep you warm or tie it up in your hair to make a fashion statement.6. Corduroy PantsCorduroy pants are a fun addition to your fall wardrobe that you can only really wear in, well, fall.7. Simple Turtle NeckA simple turtle neck is a great underlayer that can be paired with slacks or jeans and topped with a cardigan or jacket.8. High-Wasted JeansHigh-wasted jeans are casual, but in the right work environment, you can pair them with a blouse and sweater or jacket for a casual office look.9. Blanket ScarfA blanket scarf might bedrngnis be necessary indoors, but if you work in an office where the air conditioning is constantly blasting, youll be happy you have one.--AnnaMarie Houlis is a feminist, a freelance journalist and an adventure aficionado with an affinity for impulsive solo travel. She spends her days writing about womens empowerment from around t he world. You can follow her work on her blog, HerReport.org, and follow her journeys on Instagram her_report,Twitterherreport and Facebook.

What Everybody Dislikes About Resume Writing Free Online and Why

What Everybody Dislikes About Resume Writing Free Online and Why Keep in mind, your resume is the easiest way for you to receive your foot in the door for a desirable job. Its important to get a professional resume that is not hard to read and successfully highlights your abilities and experience, but when saving a resume file for uploading, in addition, it is vital to be certain it is readily accessible for potential employers. Obviously, its much important to find the assistance of some expert writer to prepare the greatest federal resume because the demands of federal resume are much different than resume required for private job. Optional work history is going to be employment not directly associated with nursing. The net is truly an extremely good, incredibly under-rated method to educate yourself on a remarkably wide range of topics (like the work search itself). Needless to say, whenever you are searching for a resume writing service, dont neglect to follow your gut. There are lots of very good ones online, but there are likewise some scams out there too. A good resume writing service is one which extends to you everything required to acquire the interest of possible employers. How to Choose Resume Writing Free Online You can also locate different references for the no cost Resume that your need here. Since resumes are largely digitally sent, theres no need to have a printout and sign the resume. Whats relevant might not be apparent initially. There are essentially two ways you are able to approach writing the resume. Resume writing services often provide a whole package strategy to resume writing. Resume writing tips allow you to understand the proper techniques of resume writing. The majority of the resumes writing services dont offer you the chance of direct contact by making use of their writers. If You Read Nothing Else Today, Read This Report on Resume Writing Free Online You can also locate different references for the Resume Writing your need here. Resume Writing Categories When you look at resume services, youre landsee that they are available in several diverse categories and you will want to opt for the right kind for your job search requirements. Facts, Fiction and Resume Writing Free Online If youve got at least 10 years of specialist experience, I would be careful of any websites that charge less than $40 for a professional-level resume and dont provide individualized, custom, hand-written documents. When submitting an application for jobs on the website, you simply must click the saved resume you created on the website. When you have created a resume employing a work search engine resume builder, the website will make it possible for you to share it together with employers on an identical job search engine. Apparently, there are several online resume writing services available at internet which also claim to deliver all these features to the customers.