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Author: Presented by: w2wlink.com

Make Networking a Way of Life
In this economy in which large companies are growing at a slower pace than in the past and given the highly transactional marketplace, workers are changing jobs more frequently either by choice or by necessity. People who previously have targeted only large corporations are looking elsewhere, often to smaller companies. This job climate makes networking even more important. Now, more than ever, it is a necessity, not an option. But because time is truly a precious commodity for many professional women, networking, unfortunately, has often been put on the back burner. The busier the woman, the more networking has lagged behind in priorities. Often it has been done only sporadically for a pointed purpose. Or it has been done in an ad hoc way when convenient. In both cases, women have missed tremendous opportunities to grow their careers exponentially. Professional women can no longer afford to neglect this critical, strategic career builder. There are many preconceived notions about ...
Author: Marny Lifshen

Choosing a Personality Test to Improve Your Career
Many people swear by personality tests as aids to help maximize their abilities and improve their careers.  They find that the tests help them understand and identify areas of hidden or lesser known talents, and provide insight into how they may work better with others.  The Myers-Briggs test by Myers and Briggs is one of the most well respected and established.  There are so many tests out there;  what makes one test better than another, other than a good price and a well known name? According to research done by Performance Programs Inc., a 20 year old human resources consulting firm of industrial psychologists specializing in assessments, there are five criteria that a quality personality test must meet: Comprehensive:  Does the test measure intelligence, motivation, learned skills, natural abilities included in personality, and organizational culture? Systematic:  Are the characteristics listed under the ‘comprehensive’ heading above described in a neutral, informational way?  A...
Author: Jean Lewis

Moving Forward After Losing a Job - Part II
In Part I of this article, I discussed the tremendous emotional stress that assaults anyone who has lost her job. To begin the healthy process of moving forward after the loss of a job, I am providing a strategy developed from my experience working with thousands of people who were between jobs in my 33-year career as a professional recruiter. The first steps in that strategy required the newly unemployed person to (1) recognize, (2) understand and (3) manage the emotional roller coaster that job loss and the resulting job search will create. The following is "the rest of the story": The grieving period. This emotional phase should be as short as possible. The longer you are stuck in the quagmire of distress and dis-ease, the less likely you will be able to rectify this situation and make it better. And, the sooner you start taking positive steps to find a job, the sooner the larger problem of being unemployed is corrected. The major reason that people seem to think that they need a ...
Author: Tony Beshara

Former Match.com Exec Uses Matching Formula to Place
For immediate release: March 17th, 2008 Dallas, TX  Lisbeth McNabb, 47, former CFO and strategist of match.com, in founding w2wlink.com online women’s networking community for professional women in times of growth, has created a women’s networking magnet even beyond her best forecasts.  In its first few months, thousands of women have already logged on and joined in.  What’s the big attraction?  www.w2wlink.com matches women into free networking circles based on their filling out detailed profiles and then w2wlink custom matches them into peer groups of up to ten.  W2wlink.com is a first of its kind, best in its category, online networking community that custom matches members for free, into peer network circles of common interest.  Network circle groups include such common interest areas such as Corporate Fast Track, Entrepreneurial Journey, Career Transition, Work-Life Balance. “Throughout my career I’ve been an advocate for peer networking groups after experiencing synergy and su...
Author: Jean Lewis

Mompreneurs
There’s a new sheriff in the business world – mom. More and more mothers are starting companies, because they can set their own terms. The boss can take the afternoon off to go on a class field trip without having to explain her actions to anyone. Nice gig, huh? Lots of professional women think so. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, firms that are 50 percent or more female-owned account for a whopping 46 percent of all privately held U.S. firms. Let’s bring it down to the micro level and look at a case study. Jennifer Noonan, a former public relations executive, hated the maternity clothes available during her pregnancy. She didn’t like polyester blends. She didn’t like the plastic hangers, fluorescent lighting and industrial carpet that decorated most maternity stores. "Do they think pregnant women have lost their joy of shopping?" she asked. It was her husband who pushed her to do something with her idea. They drove by a new mall that was opening soon in their neighborhood an...
Author: J.C. Conklin

The 6-Step Guide to Pricing Your Product
Bob Barker fans know how tricky it is to guess the price of a product. Harder still is guessing what customers are willing to pay for your own product. Too bad setting prices is one of the most critical challenges faced by any entrepreneur. "Assuming you have a product worth selling, price is the biggest factor that affects the success," says Sunil Garga, president of business and consumer insights for Information Resources Inc., a test-market researcher. While big companies can afford to blow millions of dollars to run sophisticated tests in multiple markets, small shops have to rely on less perfect information (and a healthy dose of gut instinct). Pricing pros will tell you that setting a product's price involves as much art as science--but it doesn't have to amount to spinning the wheel on The Price Is Right. Here are six simple, relatively low-cost steps at making that best guess. Step 1: Can You Brand It? Say you are selling applesauce. The range of market prices is massive...
Author: Lisa LaMotta

Corporate to Entrepreneurial Journey
Lisbeth McNabb, 47, founder of w2wlink.com, the first of its kind and best in the online networking community category that custom matches members into peer network circles of common interest, has an amazing entrepreneurial journey experience to share.  W2wlink, her new venture, is for professional women in times of growth. Every aspect of www.w2wlink.com provides the benefits she received along her fast track corporate career, or is the direct outgrowth of her over twenty years leading high growth emerging stage businesses including strategy, finance, operations, sales and business development from AT&T post deregulation to a new business unit for Frito Lay, bringing Sodexho Marriott from 500M to one billion, and leading fast growth activity at match.com.  Lis then joined a media board to help strategize the first ever 40 websites, and then launched w2wlink.com.  Drawing from her whole career including experience with peer networking groups as diversity leader at Frito Lay, and foun...
Author: Jean Lewis

Learn to Ask for What You Need
Requests are powerful. Truly. While no one request is guaranteed to change the course of your career, business, relationships or life, any single request can. Requests have the potential to make a profound difference to the quality of your life and your ability to achieve the success you want. Sure, just because you ask for something doesn’t guarantee that you will get it.  But not asking for it does guarantee you won’t!  Would you really prefer the certainty of not having your needs met over the possibility of having them met? Surely not?! As someone dedicated to helping people fulfill their full spectrum of needs, I often find myself surprised at how few people actually ask for what they really want and how ever fewer ask for it in ways that maximize the chances of getting it.  So I’m curious: Right now, as you read this article, what needs do you have that are going unmet and are causing you to feel resentful, frustrated and unappreciated because, whether you are conscious of it o...
Author: Margie Warrell

C-Link Suite Interview with Faith Moore
Events build business by connecting people in a splendidly rich communication context in which they freely express and bond over nuances, ideas, and subtleties that other forms of communication simply do not afford. Faith Moore, CEO of Faith Moore and Associates, Ltd, Special Events, Tours, and Destination Management is a leader in the industry and honors w2wlink.com by accepting our invitation to be a C-Link Suite Sunday Interview guest. w2wlink.com: What about events do you believe has such a tremendous business building quality or benefit? Faith Moore: The face to face contact supports the achievement of business goals such as networking, marketing, incentive, acknowledgement of people’s performance. Events are a $103.2 billion dollar industry. w2wlink.com: What kinds of face to face business goals are supported at the annual WPO conference here in Boston? Faith Moore: At the WPO conference, networking is an enormous component. The importance of it is to provide the opportunity ...
Author: Jean Lewis

Visibility vs. Credibility: The Difference in Networking
Networking is a good thing, right? It is a great way for professional women like you to meet people, build relationships, find opportunities, expand your skill sets and establish a reputation. So is there really too much of a good thing? When it comes to networking, the answer is definitely yes. If you stop and think about it, you can probably identify at least a couple of people in your business community or industry that are over-networked. These individuals tend to belong to many organizations, attend tons of events, serve in multiple leadership roles, and participate in speaker and awards programs each and every year - and do anything else that gains them visibility. While each of these networking activities in a reasonable amount is positive, doing too many can lead to a case of quantity over quality. Anyone can be visible – if you are in enough places often enough, people will begin to recognize you, and your name will become known. Being credible, however, is a higher leve...
Author: Marny Lifshen

Staying Relevant at Work
Irene, 60 years old and a senior policy adviser at a government environmental protection agency, wants to keep leading major projects and feels she is on a trajectory opposite that of others her age who are thinking about retirement. She has to stay current to be considered for those leadership roles. Here are some suggestions to help you grow personally and increase your value on the job: Find out about recent technology or computer software in related fields that is having an impact on the way a job is done or analyzed. Read industry publications from cover to cover and subscribe to online newsletters that discuss new developments in the field. Don’t overlook sections that may not seem to relate to your job, such as those on technology or marketing. Often, new ideas come from unusual sources. Participate in training programs offered by your company. Seek out lectures, symposiums and seminars offered through professional organizations or through your local coll...
Author: Gail Rentsch for The Transition Network

Build Your Business Through Smart Networking
Many of us still have a negative perception when we hear the word "networking," and, as I always say, it's a misunderstood word. My theory is that good networking skills build links and alliances with people we meet along our career path. The opposite of networking is not working. You can learn from everyone you meet and also be a resource to them. If you are lucky, down the road something may come back. Here are a few questions that I am  often asked about this "new philosophy" on something that has been around since the beginning of time. Is networking just about finding customers and growing one's business? Networking is all about developing and building relationships first. When this happens with hard work and sincerity, customers will come. It's like a garden. When you meet new people for the first time, it's like planting a seed. When you stay in touch by meeting for coffee or sending a holiday card, it's like watering the seeds. Finally when there is a genuine reason for yo...
Author: Andrea Nierenberg

The Top Ten (Big) Mistakes of Résumé Writing
I, personally. receive 200 to 300 résumés a week. I personally use 200 résumés a week to find people jobs. Being on the front line, in the trenches, I know what works and what doesn’t regarding résumés. Creating a résumé that communicates effectively to the recipient that you are worth meeting to discuss their job is the goal. The resumé is only one step toward getting the offer, but it is important and has its place.  1. Professional women overestimate the value of a résumé. I will discuss in depth the reasons people overestimate the impact of a résumé. But suffice it to say, the value of your résumé in getting you a job, let alone an interview, isn’t what you think! Having said that, there are aspects of your résumé that can almost be magical. You will learn the real value of your résumé and how to take advantage of it. 2. People aren’t aware that the average résumé is read in 10 seconds. Most people think that someone is going to peruse, digest, dissect, read over and over, their ...
Author: Tony Beshara

The Pandora's Box of the Professional Mother
So you’re ready to go back to work. You’ve landed the job, or you are already working and just had a child. There’s only one problem—what do you do with the child or children? Yes, them. Childcare, more specifically finding childcare, is one of the biggest hurdles for professional women. It’s hard to find someone you trust and can afford to look after the kids. Hard doesn’t justly describe the experience of hunting down a qualified and reliable nanny or daycare. It’s nearly impossible. I could write a book about the trials of daycare, nursery schools and nannies, so I decided to focus on one childcare chapter—nannies. Let me give you just a few of my own experiences in trying to track down a nanny. One woman I was trying to interview cancelled three times: once due to pink eye, the second time because her roommate took her car and she didn’t know where she was and the third because her other babysitting job ran over. Why did I try to see her three times? Oh, you’ll learn...
Author: J.C. Conklin

Three ways to Get the Credit You Deserve
How to view it: Men are really good at taking credit for everything. Women are not so good at taking credit for what they deserve. When I give workshops on secrets to getting ahead for women, one of the hardest exercises for participants is what I call "the owning your own worth exercise." It actually is very simple. The participants have a few minutes to write down their thoughts about what makes them great or valuable in a specific work context. Then she must stand in front of the group and tell the group in a first person declaration. "I am a great sales person because …" For many women, this task might as well be walking on hot coals. On the other hand, it is also very common that when a woman is given a compliment at work about her success, her immediate reaction is to say something like, "Well, I could not have done it without Jenny and the team." A common and pleasant ritual among women is the "No, it’s not me, it was you." Exchange. It goes like this: MANAGER: Great Job Be...
Author: Robert Schwarz

The 3 Ds of Leadership for Professional Women
    For more information about team leadership got to weismansuccessresources.com. Written exclusively for w2wlink.com.   As professional women take on the task of leading teams, mastering the 3 Ds of team leadership: Decision-Making, Delegation and Diplomacy allows them to fulfill their roles in impressive fashion. For professional women, there is an emphasis on the Delegation "D," because they often believe they have to prove their value by doing it all themselves. Decision-Making Decision-making is at the core of team leadership. The best skill team leaders can develop is that of helping a team build consensus to make decisions. This is both an art and a science. It is a skill that can be taught and improved with practice. Solely the leader must make some decisions, but when working with teams, it is important for morale and motivation to involve team members. In Alan Weiss’ "Best Practices Consulting Seminar," he identifies five approaches to decision-making. The skill is i...
Author: Skip Weisman

Be Heard in Meetings: The Art of Interrupting
Many women complain about the difficulties they have in being heard by men in meetings. When we learn to understand the gender differences in a positive and constructive light, we can learn new ways to increase the effectiveness of our communication that will increase our productivity and success. This four part series of articles is geared to helping professional women communicate more effectively during meetings so that they will be more successful in having her ideas accepted and utilized. Four skills will be discussed, starting with the art of interrupting for professional women. How to View It: The first specific skill that professional women need to learn is the art of interrupting. This is hard for women, because as a group they are interested in sharing and listening. The custom for women is to listen with the understanding that after someone is done talking it will be your turn. This behavior pattern begins in very early childhood. When women talk with each other the custom...
Author: Robert Schwarz

Is Networking Different for Women and Men?
The concept of networking can be deceptively simple. So simple, in fact, it would seem natural to assume that networking is pretty much the same for men and women. But is this really true? The correct answer to the question of whether networking is different for men and women is actually no and yes. It is true that many of the basic philosophies, strategies and tools of networking apply for both men and women, and that anyone can learn to be a successful networker, regardless of gender. But in reality, women face different opportunities and challenges in the workplace and in networking. Balancing career and motherhood, the glass ceiling, and sexual harassment are just a few examples of the unique trials women face. Our networking experiences can actually be quite different from men – even at the same event, within the same organization, or in the same industry or community. While there is no question that we girls have come a long way in the business world during the past thirty year...
Author: Marny Lifshen

The Risk of Heart Disease in Professional Women
Heart disease is the number one killer of women, and with the pressures that professional women face, heart disease is an especially important issue to that subgroup in particular.  To some of you this may come as a shock, but I assure you, this is nothing new. In fact, over the past decades while the death rate for heart disease in men has been declining, for women it is increasing.  There are many reasons for this discrepancy, including the fact that women have not been included in major studies looking at heart disease.  Even to this day, on average, only 25% of studies on heart disease include women.  Needless to say, women need to know their risk and how to do something about it, so they don’t become just another statistic in this epidemic that was once known as only a man’s disease. It was recently overheard that, "the more women live like men, the more they are going to die like them."  There are multiple risk factors that lead to heart disease besides age and family history, s...
Author: Suzanne Steinbaum

Dallas Business Journal Interview
Lisbeth McNabb, 47, has more than 20 years of experience working in high-growth environments -- and she wouldn't have it any other way. A couple of months back, she left a two-year CFO position at Match.com to found w2wlink.com, a Web site geared toward professional women in times of growth. In early 2008, she plans to launch a networking concept on the site, where women fill out confidential profiles and w2wlink.com matches them in appropriate groups. Why women, and why now? McNabb says the marketplace is ripe: There are more than 34 million professional women in the United States, and 70% to 80% of small business launches are by women. Their buying clout tops $2 trillion. "I'm leveraging a lot of realities," she said. "The market is gigantic and the buying side is very compelling." McNabb was interviewed by Correspondent Karen Nielsen. Q. What's it like to go from a Fortune 500 company to an Internet startup? A. I'm very atypical for someone at a Fortune 500 company. I...
Author: Karen Nielsen