Readwrotes Blog

Are you worried about losing your job? Follow these 3 tips to recession proof your job and increase your chances of staying employed. Stop Whining No complaining allowed. No one likes a whiner and those who complain are usually the first to go. While you’re at it, do not participate in the office gossip. Stay visible Do you work from home? If you work from home you are not front of mind with your manager and have a higher chance of being let go. Stop working from home and get to the office everyday. Also get to work before your manager does and stay 15 minutes after they leave. Start Networking There is no better time than while you’re employed to be looking for another job and networking. Contact head hunters and old colleagues to let them know what you’re doing these days. It’s always good to be front of mind with people you’ve worked with in the past just in case you find yourself unemployed. If you do find yourself unemployed, start your job search with SnagAJob.com or USA...

In these tough economic times you are lucky just to be offered a job interview. So before you show up for the interview, make sure you are prepared. The list below will help you to be prepared for your next job interview. Please read it before your next job interview. Good luck in your seach for employment. An interview gives you the opportunity to showcase your qualifications to an employer, so it pays to be well prepared. The following information provides some helpful hints. Preparation: Learn about the organization. Have a specific job or jobs in mind. Review your qualifications for the job. Be ready to briefly describe your experience, showing how it relates it the job. Be ready to answer broad questions, such as “Why should I hire you?” “Why do you want this job?” “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” Practice an interview with a friend or relative. Personal appearance: Be well groomed. Dress appropriately. Do not chew gum or smoke. Go easy on the cologne/perfume. The in...

By Judith Latham Washington 19 June 2009 The controversial outcome of Iran’s presidential election has provoked political commentary around the world. The official results, which handed a landslide victory to incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have also prompted daily rallies in support of reformist candidate Mir Hossein Musavi, who finished second in the balloting. Image made from video broadcast by Iran's IRIB television shows Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as he makes his address as part of Friday prayers at Tehran University, 19 June 2009 Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has announced that the 12-member Council of Guardians will investigate last week’s presidential vote. A partial recount has been ordered, but the final report is not expected for another week. The Council of Guardians has invited Mr. Mousavi and two other defeated presidential candidates to a meeting...

By Lisa Morehouse New Orleans, Louisiana 19 June 2009 Walk into New Orleans' St. Anna's Episcopal Church and you can attend Mass and share a fellowship meal, both with great musical accompaniment. And - if you visit on a Wednesday - you can see folks getting acupuncture treatments or having their blood pressure checked in a hallway near the church's kitchen. A volunteer health worker checks blood pressure at the weekly clinic at St. Anna's This weekly treatment center is run by the New Orleans Musicians' Clinic , in cooperation with its many partners - including the church and some local hospitals. The musicians get a paying gig, a free meal and medical attention. Music-making not always a profitable occupation The New Orleans Musicians' Clinic is the brainchild of a group of doctors and musicians' advocates, like Bethany Bultman. She says they were appalled at the poor health and p...

By Lisa Schlein Geneva 20 June 2009 Newly displaced families wait for registration outside an IDP camp outside Mogadishu, Somalia, 15 May 2009 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is urging the international community to do more to protect and care for refugees around the world. The appeal comes as the agency commemorates World Refugee Day, which focuses on the plight of tens of millions of refugees and displaced people uprooted by conflict and persecution. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says people flee their homes not because they want to, but because they have to. It reports there were more than 42 million refugees and internally displaced people worldwide by the end of 2008. And, those numbers are continuing to grow. Victims of conflict The UNHCR says so far, this year, millions of people have been forced to flee their homes in conflict-ridden places such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Somalia. An...

By Julie Taboh Washington, D.C. 19 June 2009 One hundred twenty-two films from 58 countries are drawing large audiences to a modern theater complex in Silver Spring, Maryland, where the annual Silverdocs Film Festival is under way [June 15-22]. AFI Theater in Silver Spring, Maryland Now in its seventh year, Silverdocs has managed to attract hundreds of established and up-and-coming documentary filmmakers, industry professionals and movie fans from around the globe. And it's done it again this year. Local resident Jim Hill has been attending the Silverdocs festival for the past four years and says it's one of the best festivals he's been to. "I like the fact that this festival concentrates only on documentary films, which I think brings a level of reality to films that you don't have in feature films." Basketball star LeBron James highlight of opening-night film The film More Than ...

By Kent Klein Washington 20 June 2009 President Barack Obama U.S. President Barack Obama is again promoting his plan for a new agency to protect consumers in the American financial industry. President Obama says his proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency would protect investors and borrowers from the abuses that led to the current U.S. economic problems. "An epidemic of irresponsibility took hold, from Wall Street to Washington to Main Street. And the consequences have been disastrous," he said. In his weekly Saturday address, Mr. Obama says the proposed agency would set tough new rules to force companies to treat financial customers fairly. "We are going to promote markets that work for those who play by the rules," he said. "We are going to stand up for a system in which fair dealing and honest competition are the only way to win. We are going to level the playing field fo...