Kick Ass Career Chick

Being a high-powered machine and conquering your workload is never easy.  It’s a finely mastered craft that takes years of experience and a Starbucks Gold Card.  I’ve never been one to be able to just sit down and hammer work out.  I need ambiance, I need inspiration, I need to get into the mood.  Here are are a few of my tricks to getting through the work:

1. Set the Scene: Whether it’s heading to your favorite spot in the library, a local coffee shop, or your desk space at home, make sure that your area is conducive to working.  Make sure the space has enough light, all of the supplies you need, and free of distractions.  This means if you’re at home, turn off the television!
   

   Student studying from m00by on Flickr

2. Have a small treat with you, and if you need it, make it a caffeinated one.  Everyone knows I love my Starbucks.  But I really do try to have some kind of enjoyable beverage while I work or study. It helps brighten up the situation so I don’t feel like my work is torturous.
3. Get the music flowing. The music you play shouldn’t be distracting.  But you don’t want to be put to sleep either.  I normally try to play something with a good beat to keep me motivated.  I’ve always found that great she-power rock gets me pumped to conquer my work.
4. Watch what you wear.  If you are in for a long study or work session, make sure that what you’re wearing is comfortable enough for you t focus but not so comfortable that you can slowly curl into fetal position and use your keyboard as a pillow.
   

   Hard work can Hurt from normalityrelief's Flickr

5. Take a few minutes between every hour to get up and stretch!!! Your body needs to move and blood needs to flow through your body.  Taking 10 minutes between the hours will help clear your mind and rejuvenate you.
   

   Namaste from Canon in 2D on Flickr

6. Schedule cell phone time.  While you’re on your ten minute stretch break you can also use this time to answer any social text messages or phone calls.  Create clearly defined times to get on your cell phone.  Otherwise you may use up all of your study time talking on the phone.  At 3 am you’ll wonder where all your study time went as you cram through your notes.
   

   Girl on Cell Phone from Billy D on Flickr

7. Start each session outlining what you need to get accomplished.  Break out time slots and assign what you will accomplish in that time frame.  Be realistic with yourself and prioritize what needs to be addressed first.
8. Pick your study partner wisely.  It’s great to have a study partner but make sure that your companion is compatible to what you are trying to accomplish.  The girlfriend who is going through a break-up and only wants to talk about her boyfriend troubles is not your best bet when trying to get work done.  You can talk to her on Friday when your mid-terms are over.  She’ll still have the SAME things to say.
9. Outline your workload.  Use a calendar to set goals of when you need to have projects, assignments, and papers done.  This way you can forecast what’s ahead.  You may find that you have 3 papers due in one week.  This way you’ll know which papers to get a head-start on during the weeks ahead.
10. Prepare for the next day.  At the end of every study or work session prep all of the things that you will tackle during your next session.  This will relieve you of any anxiety you may have over what is up in the air and what is not.  You’ll be able to go into your next session with a clear head and a  game plan of what to work on next.

Image from freedigitalphotos.net

If you’ve landed a new job or internship there are a few things you need to know to start your job on the right foot.  You want to come off as professional as possible and even if you’ve never worked a “real job” before, you want to make it seem like you have.  This way, your management won’t regret hiring you on day two mumbling the words, “But they were so great in the interview…”

1. Answering the phone: Your work phone and your personal phone are two very different monsters.  “What’s up?” and “Hey” are not the verbal welcome your office will want to convey.  If you haven’t been directed on how to answer the company phone then the safest answer for a ringing telephone would be stating the company name and then your name.  For Example..[ringing telephone] “Campus Confidant, this is Vanesa.”

2. Outgoing message setup: You will want to make sure that all of your outgoing message responses are setup.  Make sure your voicemail and your email signature now have all of your information and not the person who held the position before you.

3. Signing emails: Many companies are different on how they write emails.  In general always make sure you have a signature to your messages.  ALWAYS sign off with a “Sincerely”, “Best”, or “Warm Regards”.  Since you are an entry level employee it sometimes can come off as rude or arrogant not to have a signature line.

4. Email signature: Make sure that after you sign off your email that you have an email signature.  That signature should include your name and contact information for work.  DO NOT put your personal contact information or social networking sites such as your Twitter or AIM handle, especially if it is not work related and you have some crazy name like “Sweetcheeks143″.

5. Writing professional emails: Yes this is the electronic age but in the business world you can come off flaky and immature if you treat your emails as a Facebook comment.  Write complete sentences, and well organized thoughts.  Do not overload your email with LOLs and emoticons.  This is business, not an RSVP to an Evite.  Make sure that you are writing in a manner that you can be taken seriously.

6. Attire: I’m surprised I even have to write this but people just do not get it…especially our demographic of young women.  At the office, cleavage is distracting, short skirts are distracting, Gwen Stefani acrylic nails are distracting, sloppiness is distracting, stripper shoes are distracting, and peek-a-boo underwear is distracting.  If there is any place in the world that you want people to take you seriously and respect you it is at your job!  You want a career right?  (If not, you’re on the wrong blog.  You can head to that Investment Banker’s Girlfriends Anonymous site.)  Even if your peers joke around with you for your outfits, you should always dress for the position you want not the position that you are.  If you want the corner office part of it is making the hire-ups believe you belong there.  While the girl flashing her leopard bra and slit up her ass may get attention she certainly is not getting promoted.  Save the sexy getups for the clubs where you can actually do something about it and not get in a lawsuit.

7. Analyze the environment. If your office is quiet, don’t be a loudmouth.  If everyone on your team is staying till 6pm, don’t leave at 5 pm.  Make sure that you survey the scene and are flexible enough to ease into the culture.

8. Diligence, Diligence, Diligence. One of the very first times I had to “manage” someone was during an internship in college.  The other intern I managed always had 300 questions, only completed 50% of her projects, and then would come to me and tell me how she couldn’t finish her work.  It’s not that the other intern didn’t have as much knowledge as me or that I had easier projects, it was that she wasn’t diligent.  When she got to an issue she didn’t know the answer she would just ask me.  Before asking me she should have searched through previous emails, used Google, or went through her notes from our meetings to see if she could find the answer on her own first.  If she would have taken 5 extra minutes to try and get as many details as possible on her own she would have saved us both more time and made herself more of an asset than a liability. In the end, I got hired full time, and she was back to being unemployed.

9. Show up. I mean this in so many ways.  If you are going to take a job then show up for it.  Be on time, be prepared, turn in your work, spell check, go through your work with a fine tooth comb before submitting, wait to take days off or a vacation until you’ve really put in your time with the company, engage 100% of your mind and body to your job when you are there. Show your commitment, show that you can be trusted, SHOW UP! You will without a doubt make mistakes but if you are constantly trying to put your best foot forward those mistakes will serve as lessons and not points toward firing someone who always half-asses everything anyways.

10. Check your attitude. Your job is not an episode of “The Hills”.  Put your big girl panties on and act like one.  I say this over and over, but you need to be the person that people will want to deal with first thing in the morning at 9 am, even before they’ve gotten a latte.  On the other hand, don’t be a kiss ass.  No one likes a kiss ass and if you start building your career on this practice at the beginning you’ll have nothing left of yourself by the time you’re 30.

xoxo, Vanesa

While flipping through an old edition of Glamour I came across a great article on Marissa Mayer of Google.  Interesting to think that probably the most beloved and powerful companies in the world has a lot to do with a blonde bombshell.  Marissa was one of the first 20 employees at Google and now takes post as Vice President of Search Product and User Experience.  What I love about Marissa is that it has been highly publicized of her love for wearing Oscar De La Renta and Armani to the office.  Her clean, simple aesthetic translates largely into everything Google puts out.  Marissa is unapologetically female and in an industry dominated by men she is leading the pack…in Oscar frickin De La Renta!!!  As I started combing the web in complete, jaw-dropping admiration (using Google, of course) I found out the following:

• Her full-time residence is a penthouse in the San Francisco Four Seasons (she likes the amenities of grilled cheese via room service and that Barneys is her neighbor).
• When she graduated with her masters from Stanford she had 12 job offers.
• One of her goals is to bring more women into technology and teach them to take chances.
• Naeem Khan designed her dresses for her bridal festivities including a going away dress based on a dress Jackie Kennedy wore while touring India.
• On the Jackie Kennedy tip, her childhood bedroom still has the Jackie Kennedy doll collection she created as a child.
• I love the fact that Jackie Kennedy is clearly one of this woman’s idols.
• According to Google’s corporate page, “Her efforts have included designing and developing Google’s search interface, internationalizing the site to more than 100 languages, defining Google News, Gmail, and Orkut, and launching more than 100 features and products on Google.com. Several patents have been filed on her work in artificial intelligence and interface design. In her spare time, Marissa also organizes Google Movies – outings a few times a year to see the latest blockbusters – for 6,000+ people (employees plus family and friends).”……I’m exhausted just copy pasting all of that.

For more information on this Kick Ass Career Chick, click on the below links:

http://www.google.com/corporate/execs.html

http://www.sanfranmag.com/story/adventures-marissa

http://www.glamour.com/women-of-the-year/2009/marissa-mayer

http://www.vogue.com/voguedaily/2009/12/the-bride-wore-snowflakes/

xoxo,

Vanesa

The Upright Citizens Brigade Touring Company will be stopping by UCSB’s The Hub for a FREE improv show tomorrow night from 8-10pm.  You get can get more info on the event being thrown by AS Program Board here.  I’ve always admired comedians, especially improv performers, for their ability to think quickly on their feet but also to spread some fun in the world!  I heard the name of this group and instantly said, “Isn’t that a TV show?” Ahhhh yes, my memory serves me well.  The group had their own show on Comedy Central for three seasons from 1998-2000 based off of the popularity of their Chicago and New York theaters and improv workshops.  Even more inspiring is that one of the founding members of this comedy troupe is Amy Poehler of Saturday Night Live – Parks & Recreation – Mean Girls – Baby Momma – fame, a lot of which include one of my other all-time faves, TINA FEY!!!!  Watch the below, and TRY to tell me that smart women can’t be funny:

So I started doing a little digging on Amy Poehler and found out that this woman is one Kick Ass Career Chick.  Along with her popular roles in tv shows and films, she is also part of a project called Smart Girls At The Party with her friends Meredith Walker, a producer,  and Amy Miles, host of PBS’ Lomax: Hound of Music.  Their show airs on ON Networks.com and is a way of inspiring pre-teen girls by showcasing the many talents of the average smart girl next door.  I was absolutely charmed by this show and hear this inner voice in me screaming, “MORE!!!!! MORE of this on TV!!!! MORE of this content for smart girls!!!”  Take a look and spread the word to any lovely young pre-teens you may know.  I think it is absolutely genius:

xoxo,

Vanesa

Winter is so easy to dress business casual in.  Throw on a blazer and boots and you’re set.  The spring and summer seasons take a little more effort because they require lightweight fabrics that aren’t too revealing and the daunting task of shaving your legs daily.  Luckily I can always turn to one of my heroes for advice, Jenna Lyons, the genius behind the glory that is J.Crew.  On the J.Crew site they have a fabulous section appropriately titled Wear-To-Work Shop. Here’s how I want to dress to the office this spring:

xoxo,

Vanesa

Google is Godzilla.  It is roaming through our lives like a big giant lizard conquering all that comes in its path.  But imagine the big giant lizard making everything easier and more efficient.  It’s time to surrender.  The days of attaching a document to an email are going to fade fast.  I’ve been using Google Docs for a few years now and am constantly surprised by the confusion I receive from friends when I send them any of the following:

• A calendar invitation from my Gmail Calendar
• A form to fill out that automatically populates to a Google Spreadsheet
• An email with a “private key” link for us to both view and edit a document in Google Docs

We are living in 2010 right?!?!  Well the revolution is growing and its time you get on the band wagon.  I know, I know…learning new things is difficult and it hurts your brain.  It’s so much easier to watch re-runs of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. But trust that one day you will be in an office that no longer uses email attachments.  The entire team of a project will work online sharing, viewing, and editing off of one document, spreadsheet, presentation, etc.  You’ll want to be a part of this.  And picture how much easier this will make that grueling group presentation for your Comm 151 class.

So where do you begin in this journey?  Start by watching this:

Now join the rest of civilization, get a Google account, and start down the road to making life more efficient.

xoxo,

Vanesa

Image: helaingdream/FreeDigitalPhotos.net. Click on the photo to link to healingdream's portfolio.

This past Saturday I came across this really interesting Los Angeles Times article about how the recession has really impacted teens and students in their hunt for summer jobs.  This past March the unemployment rate for people age 16 to 19 hit a high of 26.1%.  A few great tips mentioned include:

• Start Early – You should start looking for a summer job now to beat the crowds of students who will start the hunt once summer begins.  Yes, this may mean balancing school and your part-time gig at the same time.
• Tap into your network – Find out from friends, family members, and teachers if they have any contacts that are looking for team members.  This is the very beginning of your professional networking and as you go along in your career you’ll find that your relationships with people will take your career so much farther than you could do on your own.
• Dress appropriately – Dressing appropriately goes farther than covering up your belly button ring.  Dress for the role of the job you are going for.  If you are applying to work in a retail store that has really funky fashion you should dress the part.  Just make sure that you’re  wearing something that is non-offensive and shows the professional, pulled together person you are.

To read more of the tips and the full article, visit the LA Times here.

xoxo,

Vanesa

From Kri-Fuda Flick stream. http://www.flickr.com/photos/kiri-fuda/3216762779/Click on photo for more photo goodness.

So now you’re a badass with a college degree, youth on your side, and a world of opportunity in front of you.  All you need is one last internship to polish off the resume.  Or you’re now searching for the job to jump-start your career as a post-grad.  “Of course my resume is perfect,” you say, “What kind of idiot do you take me for?”  Well, my friends, in the past month I posted an internship position with Campus Confidant and I have seen the downfall of the next generation before my eyes.  So maybe I’m being over-dramatic (what did you expect from me?).  But the truth is I’ve seen some pretty bad resumes, cover letters, and introduction e-mails in the past month to push me toward writing this post.  And these are not being submitted by your average dumb-dumb.  No, I’m receiving spelling mistakes, lower cased “I”‘s, and cover letters without a resume attached from students with 4.0 GPA’s, leadership experience, and honor society credentials.

I’m sure all of you have gone to your school’s career center and taken a basic workshop on how to write a resume.  Wait, you haven’t?  Okay. Stop reading. Run, don’t walk, to the career center.  Take this workshop first and then continue reading.

Now here’s my very basic checklist of things to remember when applying for an internship or entry-level job.  This is as basic as it gets…..

Things to remember when sending your resume via email to your potential future employer:

1. This is an email not a text message: Do not use short hand text to write your messages.  Write complete sentences and make sure you spell check and grammar check.
   
2. Remember the search capabilities of the Internet and especially Facebook. Your name and your email can be searched very easily.  If your potential future employer were to look you up ask yourself, “Is my Facebook profile picture appropriate?”, or “Are all of my personal photo albums set to private?”.  I literally went through an entire Facebook photo album of a candidate on spring break in Rosarito.  All I have to say is your bi-curiosity in your sorority sister, whip cream, and body shots are not the first impression you want to send an employer.
   
3. You are applying for a position so be courteous, professional, and kind. No one wants to deal with someone who has an attitude from the very first communication.  No matter how amazing you are, there will always be someone from a better school, with a better GPA, and/or more work experience.  Be the personality that someone wants to walk in and deal with every single morning.
   
4. What is the email address you are using to correspond with? This was one of my very first mistakes when entering the professional world.  Using the email address sugarbabygirl69@email.com isn’t exactly the portrayal of a responsible, young professional.  (No, that was not my old email address.) If your email account isn’t appropriate, start a new one…it’s free!!  Also, most email services provide you the opportunity to forward messages from one account to another account.  This way if you’re checking email from your mobile phone you can see all your emails in one account.  Just make sure to respond to emails from the address you used to first correspond.
5. Have you attached your resume??? This is the original reason you are sending the email in the first place.
   
6. Write a cover letter. Even if the job posting doesn’t ask for one include one anyways.  This is your opportunity to reveal more about yourself that the simple bullet points of your resume can’t reveal on their own.  Be professional and personable.  Don’t sound like you’re at a bar, but don’t sound like a robot either.
   
7. Let me reiterate the power of the Internet. Your employer may not know you.  But don’t doubt that they don’t know someone who does.  This can easily be found through Facebook, in which I’ve found many mutual friends of candidates.  Also, don’t doubt the fact that if you’re applying to work in a certain industry that you won’t run into this same person down the line.  Be professional throughout the entire process even if the result is not what you wanted.  You never know how this interaction will play out in the future.  What if the employer decides to go with another candidate but was so impressed by you they recommend you to a colleague of theirs?  You’re entering the real world as a grown up, so act like one.
8. Be mindful of the timing of your responses. If it takes you three days to email someone back they probably will be concerned at how quickly your work turnaround will be.
9. If you are using a resume or cover letter template be sure to fill in all the blank spaces!!! Yes, I have received a cover letter that had an [insert name and company here] on it.
10. Proof read!!!! Read over everything before you send it out.  In fact, grab your smartest and most pulled-together friend and ask them to read it over first.  Better yet, send it to your parents first and have them take a look.  If they are anything like my mom they will make sure that your cover letter and resume represent the product of what they just spent their life savings on to be a part of the higher education stystem.

I am by no means perfect.  I have made many of the above mistakes and I am sure I make more mistakes daily.  But the one thing I have is just a smidge more years in this game and if I can give a helping hand I will.  There are millions of college students and post-grads that will be entering a dismal job market.  Step-up and stand-out in the rat race.

xoxo,

Vanesa

A friend emailed me an article from New York Magazine discussing the departure of Gela Nash-Taylor and Pamela Skaist-Levy from Juicy Couture.  The two women founded the clothing company in 1994 and it was eventually purchased by Liz Claiborne in 2003.  The financial backing of Claiborne took the already popular Juicy brand and expanded them further into keychains, jewelry, doggie sweaters, and nicknacks galore while Gela and Pamela remained 100% in charge of the creative control of the brand.  But now the two ladies want to branch out and do more creative works in books,  TV shows, and movies.  The New York Magazine writer put out the necessary information on the deal, mainly that the two are walking away with $200 million each, but adds this gem of an analysis:

By TV show, we’ll assume the Post means costuming Jersey Shore. And a book? Well, anyone can write a style guide by copying the most recent one that came out and plugging in different pictures and chapter titles, since from what we can tell they’re all basically the same. But a movie? We guess they’d be the perfect people to dream something up with characters like those in Mean Girls, who will overspend on anything popular without questioning WHY GOD WHY.

The Comments section got even more entertaining with comments such as these:

Dina Lohan is a founder of Juicy Couture? That explains everything!
Don’t let the door hit you on your *juicy* on the way out.
Both of them are sorta gross and precisely why I never (really, never) bought any terry cloth sweats – from ANYONE. Ew.

Alright people, enough of this nastiness! Pam and Gela created an empire, how many people can say they did that. And although YOU may not like Juicy Couture clothing, MILLIONS do…how do you think they got that $200 million dollar check???

I’ll admit the appeal of Juicy Couture has changed in the past few years but I was put off by all the negativity around what seems to be a great success story.  I may not own a purple velour sweatsuit  but I can’t help but feel a spark of “Go Girl” in me when I read of these two women walking away from their brand with $200 million when they started in the San Fernando Valley with $200.  Their original concept wasn’t anything mind blowing…they wanted to make sexy basics that they would want to wear themselves and gift to their friends.  But it was their hard work and creativity that took this basic concept into an international brand.  Gela and Pamela started working out of Gela’s one-bedroom apartment and had a cleaning woman helping them with shipping, the cleaning woman would eventually run all of Juicy’s warehouses.  In doing a little more research about these kick-ass career chicks I found a great quote from them on their success.  Gela Nash Taylor: “…We learned from our experiences, and we were lucky.” Pamela Skaist-Levy: “We weren’t lucky, we worked our asses off.”

So here’s to these two kick ass career chicks, a $200 million pay day, a hot pink puffy vest with “Viva La Juicy” spray painted on the backside, and working our asses off….

Xoxo, Vanesa

This post will be slightly different from the rest of the “Style” posts.  As you may have already noticed I typically only showcase items that are less than $100.  But this post will need to go a little bit higher in the price range and believe me it is worth it.  When dressing up to go to an interview you need to invest in a few good office-appropriate pieces.  The last thing you want to do is look like a kid trying to wear “big girl clothes”.  Investing in well-fitted interview clothes will give you a better look and fit making you look like the polished professional employers are searching for.  And when you are looking at the higher price tags on some of these items remember that you will be going on plenty of interviews during school and after you graduate.  If you do end up landing the job you won’t have to go out and rush for work clothes.

A few of my key tips:

• Get one great BLACK suit (blazer with pants or a skirt).  If you can afford it, go out and get another suit in a lighter color like tan or grey.
• Make sure your suit fits well.  If you need to, spend the extra money to get it tailored to fit your body.  Remember you want to look polished, not frumpy or sleazy.
• Bring life to your suit with a pop of color in a bright (but not blinding) blouse or a necklace (you can never go wrong with classic pearls).
• If you plan to accessorize do not go overboard.  Make sure your jewelry is not distracting or frivolous.  You can look stylish in a calm, cool and professional way.
• Go ahead and wear heels, just make sure they’re not the 4 1/2 inch platforms you wear out to the club.

The very first place I head to for work clothes is J. Crew.  Words cannot fully express my love affair for J.Crew so I’ll let the pictures do the talking:

J.Crew’s Super 120s line in their Womens Suiting Department has taken me on many interviews and successfully into the job.

J.Crew Super120s Two Button Jacket ($230) and J.Crew City-fit Super120s Classic Trouser ($130.00)

J.Crew Super120s High Pencil Skirt ($118.00) can be paired with the jacket above if you’re interviewing at a corporate office or it can be dressed down with a cardigan and blouse if you’re interviewing in a more relaxed office.

Here are some beautiful J.Crew blouses to punch up the look of your suit:

J.Crew Herringbone Frances Cami ($88.00)

J.Crew Silk Frances Cami ($88.00)

J.Crew Scalloped Petal Top ($69.50)

J.Crew Tattered Silk Cotton Tank ($178.00)

Once you’ve landed the job you can break your suit up into separates and create these beautiful, business-casual looks:

A fitted graphic cap-sleeve paired with a suit skirt:

My go-to look….Suit blazer paired with tailored jeans (no holes!!!):

For more J.Crew love check out their site here.

xoxo, Vanesa

Before the weekend Facebook announced the Facebook Fellowship Program for Ph.D. students in the 2010-2011 academic year.  Pretty exciting stuff coming from the Goliath of all social media.  According to their post on, what else, Facebook, they are ,

“interested in a wide range of academic topics, including Internet economics, cloud computing, social computing, data mining, machine learning, and systems and information retrieval. Full-time Ph.D. students who are enrolled in U.S. universities and working on research in these topical areas qualify to apply for one of five fellowships, which will cover their tuition and fees and provide a $30,000 stipend in addition to conference travel and other benefits.”

Check out the Facebook Fellowship Program site here and remember that the deadline to apply is February 15th, 2010.

Yesterday’s postings on 5 Tips For Finding a Job and the Anthropologie Internship brought up the following question, “Should college students and post grads have a business card? What information should be on it?” To this I answer a big, bold YES! YES, college students and post grads should have a business card or personal calling card.  In fact, every fabulous being should have one.  I had a personal calling card long before I was employed because I always figure you never know who you’ll meet or who you will want to stay in contact with.  Plus pulling out a beautiful card is très chic compared to the sloppy number written in lipstick on a napkin.

As far as what information to include, I believe in keeping it simple.  No, not as simple as Clooney’s card in Ocean’s 11, which was just oh so suave. (Ahhhhhh, Clooney.*swoon*)

Not that simple and slick (unless you ARE a high class criminal like Danny Ocean).  Here are the basics needed: NAME, PHONE, EMAIL, and if you find it necessary add your LOCATION.  An example may read:

Holly Golightly

New York, New York

holly@littleblackdress.com

212-123-4567

If you work in an industry where social media is involved you may want to add your Twitter site or LinkedIn information.  But always remember that your lines of contact should be ready to receive people.  Your outgoing voicemail message and Twitter tweets should be appropriate for a potential employer to listen or read.  And don’t give out your calling card with a link to a Facebook page where your profile picture is that distant memory from Mardi Gras caught in all of its digital camera glory.  Yes, I’m talking about the pose that got you the beads.

I, myself, am also in the market for a new card and found some lovely choices from Etsy.com:

Modern Geometric from nelladesigns ($18.00)

Signature Calling Cards from HelloHarbor ($14.00)

Flower Cards from saratams ($14-$86)

Stippled Dots Monogram Calling Cards from Saddle Stitch Studio ($16.00)

Black Phone Calling Card from JosStudio ($30)

Simple Icon Calling Card from InkScissorsPaper ($26.00)

Type and Swirl Eco Friendly Calling Cards from modernemotive ($22.00)

2×2 Square Call Me Cards by paperandink ($32.00)

xoxo, Vanesa

There are internships for this?!?!?!  At one point I wanted my entire house to look like an Anthropologie display.  I soon learned that I wasn’t as crafty as I thought.  For those of you UC Davis or UC Berkeley Campus Confidants who ARE crafty enough, or WANT to be crafty enough here’s a posting from the UC Davis TXC and FPS Internships blog:

“Anthropologie is seeking Display and Visual Merchandising Interns for our Bay area stores. Please stop by any one of our locations in the Bay area and speak with a Visual or Store Manager for details. Best time to stop by Monday through Friday between 10 am and 3 pm. For Internship consideration the following expectations are mandatory. You must apply in person to be considered and you must be currently enrolled in college at the time of your internship. Please do not apply unless you have met that expectation. Thank you.”

For the full length internship description read the entire post on the UC Davis TXC and FPS Internship Blog.

Writing this post made me think of all the magical displays I’ve seen at Anthropologie over the years.  After a quick trip through Google Images I found a few photo inspirations:

And while we’re on the subject of the beauty of Anthropologie….This past holiday I was gifted with a Voluspa Candle from Anthropologie and its been sitting at my desk filling the air with all sorts of deliciousness.  Its amazing how the aroma can take me to a peaceful place.  I need these everywhere!!!  Here’s a pic of my candle, Voluspa Goji & Tarocco Orange 3 wick candle.  You can get your very own here at, of course, Anthropologie.

xoxo, Vanesa

I know, I know…the job market sucks.  Not only are today’s college graduates facing a terrible job market, jumping from the maternal womb of college life to the real world is depressing.  I’m a few years out and I’m still dealing with the post-traumatic-stress syndrome of graduating then immediately moving back in with my parents.  (Love you, Mom and Dad!)  Since the average college grad lacks experience we can all lean on the fact that we’re still attractive to employers because we’re young, we’re naive, we’re cheap and therefore we’ll do things most seasoned employees will refuse to do. *Sigh* I guess that doesn’t help much either. Regardless, you need a job because that spa mani/pedi is not getting paid all by itself.  If you’re out there on the hunt and you have no idea what you’re doing check out this great article “5 Tips for Finding a Job” from Top-Colleges.com. Here are some of the key points I found interesting:

#1 Make a Connection

“…you need to make an attempt to make a personal connection so your resume will stick out from the rest.”

#2 Utilize the Career Center

“With an in-person appointment, you can get hands-on assistance with conducting a job search and the career counselor can more effectively help you with creating a resume and practicing interview skills.”

#3 Expand Your Horizons

“If you are having a difficult time finding a job or if you have a few different career interests, focus your job search efforts on the area where the most jobs are available.”

#4 Consider Your Priorities

“When deciding on the right career path, it is important to consider which is more important to you: a job that is intellectually stimulating or one with a high salary. While it is always nice to have a job that is personally satisfying, you also need to make certain you are making enough money to pay for your living expenses.”

#5 Don’t Run Off to Graduate School

“Attending graduate school is meant to be a stepping-stone toward advancing in your career or taking it in a new direction, not as a strategy for finding a job when no jobs seem to be available.”

You can read the entire article here at Top-Colleges.com

xoxo, Vanesa

Photo from consumerist.com.

This past weekend I hit my regular favorite shops in hopes to find some great deals for holiday presents.  Going from store to store I recognized some new faces and realized that these were the new seasonal employees.  During my first year of college I picked up two seasonal jobs that helped me put money away for holiday presents as well as the many cups of Starbucks that got me through finals week.  In these poor economic times everyone can pick up extra cash if only to bulk up your savings.  I came across this great article from the Wall Street Journal about Turning a Seasonal Job into Full Time work. This is a great read and I hope inspires some of you who may be down and out about the economy and job market while balancing your school schedule.

Here is the introduction to the article…..

Every year around this time, thousands of workers are hired for jobs catering to holiday shoppers and usually ending in January. The work can be a short-term way to generate a paycheck. But for a select few—particularly recent graduates and prospective career-changers—the seasonal jobs could become even more.

A small percentage of these temporary recruits are offered staff positions in the months that follow—and not just behind a register, but also eventually in areas like human resources, management and finance.

Continue reading the full article here. And remember, there’s nothing like having money in the bank and an employee discount.

xoxo, Vanesa