makes me wonder

[ your name ] inc.

2009-01-26T22:59:00.005-05:00

tiger woods inc. britney spears inc. barack obama inc. what thoughts come to mind when you read these names? sports superstar. pop princess. yes, we can. you have to make sure that when people see your name, you're getting across the message you want. you are your own company. just like a starbucks inc. or nike inc. "personal branding" as i recently read. i'm mainly speaking from the prospective of the unemployed but i think this applies to just life in general. but anyway, i've recently started thinking about questions like "what makes me unique?" "what value proposition do i bring?" "where do my talents and interests lie?" all key questions in trying to market yourself.

i've recently discovered this blog. pretty interesting stuff. what i enjoy most is reading the comments. on the blog was a post by this guy named craig campbell. now he's got the whole personal branding thing going on. check out his resume. it's not your standard resume by any means. i also recently just launched my own job search as well so wish me luck! if i feel like i'm not gaining any momentum soon, i may have to start re-thinking my strategy.

free fees

2009-01-16T14:06:00.003-05:00

you know those fees on your credit card statement or cell phone bill that make you say "where the hell did this come from?" it could be as common as a late fee charge or as strange as a $10.69 charge from SJAMobile who claim you made a purchase on your phone even though it has no data capability... (sorry, i still don't get it). now from here you can either 1. passively comply with the demands of the corporations or 2. refuse and stand up for the little guy. a call(s) to the customer service department usually does the trick. but there's an art associated with framing your argument and why you should be credited for the amount. there's also luck involved vis-a-vis who actually takes your call. from my experience, you want a female operator. most of the dudes are like the guy from transformers, unbelievably unhelpful and very annoying. i'd say the % success rate between m/f is approximately 30%/80%. it's probably because girls are just more sympathetic. now if your first attempt fails, don't give up! call back immediately and talk to another person. more often than not, someone will help, it's just a matter of talking with the right person. just this past week alone, i saved almost $100 by doing this. i even got my bank to credit me $46 in foreign transaction fees from my europe vacay. 5 months after i had already paid it! after realizing what they charged, i claimed i was never probably notified of the change (which is true).

this also applies to things or services the corporations would normally charge for. that you can get for free! like re-ordering checks. when you call say something like, "just to make sure, there's no fee right?" when he says it costs $, just go off saying other banks offer it for free or threaten to take your business elsewhere or claim you are a valuable client yada yada. it works!

new year's resolution

2009-01-03T21:39:00.007-05:00

so i haven't written anything that resembles a blog since the old xanga days. and i've been wanting to share some thoughts, experiences, things that make me wonder.

i'm not big on new years resolutions. in fact, i don't think i've made one since high school back in the days when my youth group would tell us to write a letter to ourself, collect them and then mail it to us later in the year after we've totally forgotten what we wrote. i never liked getting those later. probably because i would read it and say things like, "what, did i really write that?" or "freakin failure..." but here's one resolution i've made this year that i think i can keep: to start a blog. yeah, it doesn't sound like a biggie right? that's the key, go small! here are 5 other practical ones that will not only benefit you but also make a difference for others:

1. take a non-academic class (cooking, photography, dance, music). i signed up for a cooking class and hopefully if i like it, i'll take a few more. in particular, i want to learn some good italian and spanish dishes. i might also take some guitar lessons.

2. donate (charity, alma-mater). did you know you can donate airline miles? yes, we can! i know there are so many of us that have unused miles from a bunch of different airlines. besides, unless you travel for business or always take the same airline, you're never gonna earn enough. here's the link on how to donate to the make-a-wish foundation. in case you've never heard of it, it's a great organization benefiting children with life-threatening medical conditions.

3. become a volunteer. habitat for humanity, a soup kitchen, there are a million possibilities. get involved!

4. go green! i know everybody says it these days, but simple things like recycling a can or turning off a light or taking a shorter shower. i'm guilty of the last one... i like long showers. anyway, my friend daniel introduced me to another great organization called charity water. if you like, please donate!

5. read more books. at least 6 this year. i'll try for 1/month.