"Helping you gain
.control of your career"

In this issue we look at how to juggle more than one job successfully; provide some top tips for business blogging and show you how to hone your negotiating skills so that you always get a win-win situation.

• Editor's Desk
• Bite 1
• Bite 2
• Bite 3
• Working Web
• Last Word

It’s now the middle of summer and things are hotting-up – and I’m not sure I mean that in a good way. There are riots and strikes in Greece over the cost-cutting measures that will be needed to gain them the funds they require to keep afloat and in the Euro Zone. A number of teaching and civil service unions brought their workers out on strike in the UK recently, protesting about proposed alterations to their pension provision. And more strikes are threatened for the autumn.

We’re hearing news of more retailers going out of business on our high streets and losses in manufacturing. I’m not surprised that some people are feeling gloomy and uncertain.

But one of the best ways to weather storms of this kind is to be flexible. If your company is having problems, are you prepared to take on new responsibilities or cover for staff on holiday? If you lose your job, would it make sense to take on two part-time jobs rather than expect to walk into the kind of work you are familiar with? Do you need to upgrade your skills so that you’re indispensable? Our lead article Doing More than One Job looks at the pros and cons and gives you some sensible ideas to think about.

And if you do decide to go down this line our Effective Time Management course might be just what you need.

In last month’s issue I mentioned that social media was not my strong point but I do see the benefits of blogging to push your business or your career. My colleague Shelley provided a really worthwhile post on this subject when she was guesting on the Business Training Blog a few weeks ago. So, I make no apologies for pinching it and using it as my second article this month. Thanks, Shelley!

Don’t forget, our Complete Copywriter course looks at promoting your business using a variety of methods, including advertising, press releases and social media if you need to go into this subject in more depth.

Our final article looks at how to negotiate effectively. You need to achieve your aims and what is best for your business but at the same time you want to maintain friendly relationships with the people you are dealing with for the future. So, the best solution is a win-win situation where each party feels that they have gained something. It may sound difficult to achieve, but this article shows you that negotiating needn’t be a minefield.

So, as usual, let’s get down to business...