20 Most Popular Gig Job Seeker Articles of 2015

Summary: Check out the top 20 most popular job seeker articles on Gig in 2015.

It’s been a tough year for job seekers, but better than last, and 2016 looks more promising still. Whether you’ve found the perfect job or are still looking, our popular articles are sure to aid you in your endeavor. Our readers showed plenty of interest in tweaking resumes. They also showed concern in how to speak at work, and how to relate to coworkers. We have answers for all these perennial issues, and by reading up on them, you can feel assured that your 2016 will end up even better than 2015.

1. Can You Legally Be Fired for Being One Minute Late?

It can be petty to be fired for being late, especially if this is not a chronic problem with you. Does your employer have the right to fire you for such a small grievance? The short answer is yes. The longer answer is no, there are a few laws that could save you from being fired due to being late. Check over these various laws and discover if any of them apply to you. But we recommend you check over this list before you end up late and in trouble.

2. 6 Words to Remove from Your Resume

Reading through a pile of resumes, employers start to tune out when they hear cliché words. Not only does a cliché word taste gray and tepid to an employer, it also represents a missed opportunity. By avoiding these 6 words which could diminish your resume, you can put in others that make yours stand out. After all, most resume reading is looking for key words, not a deep analysis of the sentences and structure. So pay attention to what terms you are using. This article tells you how.

3. 28 Phrases Not to Use at Work

Words are symptoms. The words we say each day bespeak our beliefs and ideas, and also our attitudes and feelings. You will be judged as you speak, in and out of the work place. This article identifies 28 phrases that are simply no-no’s for saying in the work place, as natural and inevitable as they seem. When you catch yourself saying them, recognize the attitude they convey and ask yourself if that is the kind of person you would want to be known as. Merely reading the list can give you a sense of what to avoid in general.

4. How to Talk to Your Coworkers about Their Bad Hygiene and Manners

Sometimes addressing problems with employees gets touchy. Personal hygiene issues, for instance – how to be appropriate and spare people’s feelings? Or what if they have annoying habits, talk too loud, or get on other people’s nerves? Don’t be afraid to address real distractions in your work place. But be shrewd in how you do it. This article lists a set of strategies you can use to approach these touchy situations.

5. Best and Worst Ways to End a Professional Email

Small touches make all the difference. You could enjoy a first date with a man or woman, and it all went great, until that final moment, when you had an awkward good night kiss. In the same way, something as subtle as how you end your email leaves a final taste, or aftertaste, in the mouth of whomever you are corresponding with. This article uses surveys to determine the best and worst ways to end an email.

6. Advertiser – Top 10 Skills Needed to Become an Advertising Associate

Advertising is a hot job lately – high paying, interesting, and on the rise. Yet there is fierce competition for securing such a position. This article details 10 skills you can hone and advertise to secure this coveted position.

7. Successful People Tell Us 9 Things to Do Before Bed

The beginning and the end of a thing best exposes its character. So end your day right. This article explains 9 things you can do right before bed to ensure you get to sleep and have a relaxed night to recharge for the new day. As it is a list of what successful people do, you might consider if you want to add it to your own rotation.

8. 25 Books Successful People Say You Must Read

There are a lot of books out there, maybe too many, and knowing which one to read and why is difficult. It is like religion or dating: following somebody else’s advice may not work for you. Yet there is something to be said for paying attention to what successful people read, if only to clue us into their mindset. This list of 25 books is drawn from the favorite reads of CEO’s and business owners such as Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. It includes biographies, self-help, and some profound novels. Check it out.

9. What’s Your Elevator Pitch?

We’ve all heard of the importance of having an elevator pitch, a short speech you could express in a minute, in about 225 words, that could impress a possible employer or client on your mission. But how to write one? How to be compelling and actually sell your idea, and sell yourself? Merely making a short speech is not enough. This article tells you how to craft in advance each part of the speech.

10. Companies to Watch in 2016

Some people go to restaurants to do people watching. Others are more interested in those bigger “people,” corporations. This article clues you in to what companies offer the most excitement in 2016. From Disney to Apple (and many others) this article tells you what dynamic situation each company is in and what to watch for. It isn’t just a prediction of who is to grow and succeed. Some of them could tank fast. What matters is they are in a situation where they will sink or swim, and whatever happens, it will be epic.

11. What Not to Put on Your Resume

Your resume is your first face to your employer. This is who you are, your first impression, and since you can take your time in preparing it perfectly, do so. Your resume and your cover letter set the tone, and can make the difference between getting quickly vetted or set aside for further consideration. This article explains how to make the difference between the two, by showing you exactly what you do not at all want to include in your resume.

12. 5 Rules When Writing an Interview Thank You Note

Not everybody writes a thank you letter after an interview, but you should. This article tells you why. Not only should you write a thank you note, you should write two. This article explains all that and how to do it right, as well as how to impress your interviewer and leave them with a lingering feeling of warmth and hope in your direction.

13. 12 Companies That Profit Off Sexual Exploitation

This dirty dozen list points out what common name brand highly visible organizations profit over sexual exploitation, often despite the law. Some of them defend “entertainment” that sexualizes children or slavery. Merely being aware of what these companies are being criticized for and why should help you realize the war many are waging to make the world safer for our youths and ourselves.

14. Inventor Jobs and Inventor Job Description

A wild and surprising career option that many don’t consider is being an inventor. With such legendary icons as Edison in its history, this is a highly romanticized profession. But is it realistic? What would it actually require to be an inventor nowadays, and what should you honestly expect if you attempted to be one? This article explains all that, informing you on whether following a wild dream will cause you to be lost and regretful, or successful and fulfilled.

15. Top 3 Reasons It Is Important to Get Along with Coworkers

You might be tempted to impress only the people you are impressed by. Or you might want to be in your boss’s good graces, at the expense of anybody else. This article explains why and how to get along with all your coworkers, and how in today’s work field, with ever changing jobs, this is more important than ever.

16. The Best Companies and Their Benefits

Some businesses offer different benefits than health care. Some offer babysitting, and others offer free food. This article explores what some of the most innovative companies offer, including one that has an unlimited vacation policy – take off as much time as you need, so long as you get your work done. When considering the climate and atmosphere you want to work in, these secondary and surprising benefits could make all the difference in your choice of careers.

17. Resume Secrets to Give Yourself a Fighting Chance

Many of our most popular articles are about building a solid resume, and for good reason. This is the first hurdle, the first great test you have in creating yourself as a viable candidate for a job. Take great care, therefore, in how you do this. This article offers solid advice in how to get your resume out of the slush pile into the pile of hopefuls.

18. The Perfect Employee

It helps to have ideals. This list of characteristics of the perfect employee is sometimes silly, but often on target and insightful in what direction you can go in towards being the ideal employee. By internalizing some of the ideals presented here, you can give yourself a makeover, and be more of what your employer wants to keep and promote. Reviewing the list may also reassure you if you are already some of those things.

19. How to Write Effective and Professional Emails

Writing emails is part of how most businesses work. Family members, friends, and businesses all use emails, and writing an email is a different beast than writing a stationary letter. For one thing, you should write little, say more, and say it concisely. This isn’t easy or taking a shortcut. Often it takes more effort to say things concisely than all drawn out. This article explains the importance of writing effective and professional prose for your work place.

20. How to Be More Motivated in the Workplace

One of the hardest parts of any job is burnout, or losing interest, when things get stale and you no longer care to go to work, and start, in fact, to dread it. You might be tempted at such points to give up and move on. No need for that, this article explains, but you might adjust your attitude about what you expect from the job and what you intend to do in it. This job helps you fall in love with your job all over again.