How Facebook Can Ruin Your Career?

Since its inception back in 2004, Facebook has quickly grown into one of the most popular and successful social media platforms around. According to statistics, currently there are over 13 million Facebook users in Malaysia, putting the country among the top 20 of most active Facebook users worldwide.

But be forewarned: excessive use and slips of words/photos may land you in trouble, jeopardize your career, or even ruin it. As Facebook popularity continues to rise, so will the extent of your life exposure. Privacy problems will begin to set in and even the Facebook founder’s sister, Randi Zuckerberg, is not spared of this issue.

Lack of safeguarding will expose you to all those things you are up to. The truth is, Facebook can have an adverse effect on your career in many ways.

The worst that could happen

Some three years ago, a British woman employee, who had apparently forgotten that the boss is on the friend’s list, wrote in her Facebook wall that “I hate my job” and that her boss is a “wanker”. Her boss immediately responded to her status update that ended with “don’t bother coming in tomorrow” and “I am serious.”

This is not the first, and certainly not the last case of a worker being fired from job because of what they have written in their Facebook account. A worker in Switzerland was met with the same fate after she was found active in her Facebook account while on a medical leave. To date, more than 20 cases where workers lost their job with Facebook as the instigator have been made public.

Loss of productivity

Facebook has an unspoken way of trapping its users. What starts out as merely checking updates turns into hours of clicking, reading, picture browsing and so on. The continual need to be connected and see if anyone commented or uploaded something new results in employees spending 10-15 minutes every hour re-opening their Facebook profile.

A significant number of workers have been found simply leaving Facebook open in the background, while attending (or pretending to attend) to their work. Some even chat while completing their important report. These “few minutes” of chatting add up quickly. Even the most dedicated employee may not calculate the amount of time they waste each day or week and before they know it, a deadline was missed, the quality of work dropped, and your career is on the line.

Workplace conflicts can arise

There have also been cases where Facebook communication exchanges caused workplace conflicts. In a heightened emotional state, you are less prone to carefully crafting what you say. If you are friends with the other employees in the office, you might find that it creates problems that you would have never had before the introduction of the social network.

It is not unusual these days to see friends who have been upset with a certain incident, occurrence or happening in the office going extremely emotional on Facebook. For instance, a worker who is tasked to carry out another worker’s job (who goes for leave) might something like, “saving your ass is not my job description,” and this person (who can happen to be your Facebook friend) may be alerted to this.

Things can get personal

If people are upset by something a colleague said they might get into a heated debate wherein they casually threatened, harass, bully or blackmail a colleague in what people often forget is a public forum, visible to anyone online. People who are emotionally charged tend to act impulsively without weighing too much on the consequences of their actions. This could be an onset of a more serious trouble.

When people are upset, they do not weigh the consequences of their actions and act out of impulse. They also, when emotions are involved or feelings are hurt, often want to “vent” about a bad day to anyone who will listen. If they felt they were wrongly accused of something they may seek advice from friends or family because they want someone to side with them and their decisions.

Adverse effect on employment prospect

Does bad Facebook habits affect the employment prospect? According to Sinsee Ho, a senior recruitment practitioner, yes it does. Traditionally, employers rely on references for background check before deciding to hire workers. Today, shrewd employers go the extra length to casually look up the candidate’s presence in social media.

“Some of the status updates and photos are made available publicly, even not to their social friends, and this provides employers another ‘perspective’ for behavioral check,” added Sinsee.

“Recently, I was placing a job candidate, who happened to be a Facebook network, in a new company. This candidate looked all excited to start a new employment. In fact I talked to her to ascertain that she is making the right move.

But she might have overlooked the fact that we are socially connected; I soon discovered that she was starting a consultancy firm on your own through her Facebook status.

You can say her credibility has just vanished out of the window.”

Bad digital footprints can’t be good

“It’s perhaps inevitable for us to treat the web as part of our life now,” asserted Jason Gan, a Penang-based social media expert.

“This level of awareness is important to avoid undesirable digital footprints. You don’t go out naked, so don’t post naked photos; you don’t defame someone publicly in real life, so don’t go do funny things on people’s wall. Even the search engine might not crawl on your funny photo or status fast enough, someone might have just print screen it. Now some more we will have Graph Search soon, the world can be so searchable.”

“Also I think one should constantly search for themselves or any related on various search engines. In case digital dirts really exists, they can still be diluted, or even cleaned. There are various tactics to dilute undesirable digital footprints, mostly work on search engines. Some agencies focused on creating strong social media accounts/websites/blogs, etc., for their clients to sink any negative comments. Still, if your future employer’s HR manager persistent enough, things can still searchable.”

In sum, in spite of the growth in popularity and the fact that this social media platform reconnects you with friends in more ways than you can imagine, Facebook should be used cautiously. Don’t let your career ruined just because of something silly that you post or do in your Facebook account.

Notes:

Sinsee Ho has been in the recruitment industry for more than 10 years. She is the founder of Jobsmart Malaysia, a professional recruitment consultancy.

Jason Gan is founder of Instapps, an e-commerce application for Facebook and mobile commerce, and Tribeup media, an innovation lab that experiments with technology ideas.

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Career prospect in sports science explored

Sports science is indeed an interesting career discipline. The field generally involves scientific approaches and studies of improving sports performance, encompassing various subfields that include physiology, motor control, psychology, sports management, diets and nutrition, biomechanics and performance analysis/feedback. Behind that immense success of world-record sprinter Usain Bolt is a hugely competent sports science team that has been dedicating years of their work to bringing the athlete into world fame today.

For decades, sports science experts have been in great demand from teams and nations wishing to bring their sport into a different level. Many universities now offer higher education opportunities, such as degree in sports science in the wake of the growing demand. Careers and job opportunities for a sports science grad can be found abundant in various local, national and club sports teams, fitness centers, gymnasiums, universities and even sports retailers.

Along with the growth opportunities of the sports science career, you can also enjoy a peace of mind in connection to the monetary benefits the sports science jobs have to offer. With numerous job opportunities to choose from, you must go with the one offering long-term results. Following are the career prospects in sports science you can possibly look into.

1. Sports Therapist

The role of a sports therapist is to consult athletes and sportsmen in training for optimized output. Ideally, a sports therapist would have a combined expertise and knowledge in the sport they are taking charge of (e.g., football, tennis, athletics, etc.) as well as the physiology involved in the sport. Job scopes of a sports therapist may involve sports massage, electrotherapy (e.g., ultrasound), core stability training, muscle strengthening and so on.

Along with that, the sports therapist works on the injuries sustained by the athletes and assist rehabilitation. The Arsenal football club is renowned for its capability to nurse serious injuries for players and return them back into remarkable fitness thanks to highly capable sports therapists the club employ. On top of that, a sports therapist needs to carry out injury prevention measures for athletes. A diploma or degree would qualify you to be a sports therapist.

2. Sports Coach

In these days, having experience in the game in the game itself would not qualify you as a sports coach, as yet. There is more to it. Eric Cantona is one good football player but that does not mean he can coach a team to a league championship. Bringing your team to the next level would require you to look into all other key aspects such as administering training, developing young bloods, identifying prospective talents, monitoring nutrition, performing psychological and mental approach, identifying strengths and weaknesses, and so on.

Extensive knowledge of the sports science is required these days to help the players deliver their best. For this, coaches with sports science knowledge are in high demand in the industry. If you think you can coach the players and extract the best results out of them, then you are certainly on the right track, considering the ample sports coach positions on offer for you to enjoy.

3. Fitness Manager

Of recent, the demand of the fitness centers has increased big time. With this increase, the need for more good fitness managers should not be underestimated. A fitness manager is one step higher than a fitness instructor or supervisor, so ensure that you align your goal with the correct growth path. While a fitness instructor works mainly with individuals or people, a fitness manager needs to keep abreast with the daily management of a sports or fitness center. These include facilities maintenance and managing workers (fitness instructors, admins) in his or her fitness center.

4. Sports Development Officer

You can make a name for yourself as a sports development officer, provided you have the sports science degree up your sleeves. You can enjoy the perquisites of a sports science development officer helping you achieve the career-oriented results you are in pursuit of. The development officer is vested with the responsibility of spreading the benefits of active participation in games throughout the community. The primary responsibilities of a sports science development officer are to promote and organize the community sports paving the way towards a healthier community. Fundraising is another aspect the development officer needs to have a look at. If you think you can do the mentioned tasks with ease, then there are ample job opportunities for you to choose from.

5. Sports Administrator

Working at the administrative level requires sheer knowledge about the industry. You have to ensure you go for the right option leading towards career development. If sports science is your way to go, then becoming a sports administrator can serve you ideally. A sports administrator helps the particular organization with the smooth and unhindered running of sports within that organization. Organizing and planning the sports activities is the name of the game for every sports administrator, so you need to have the mentioned expertise in the offering.

6. Sporting Event Organizer

Today, the role and the utility of an event organizer have been receiving more attention. Companies prefer individuals having sports science knowledge under their belt to help them organize the sporting activities in a serene way. Sports and science are correlated big time. Therefore, the demand for the event organizers having a sports science degree has increased manifold. It is the responsibility of the event organizer to keep an eye on the sporting event from the conception up until the very end.

7. Sports Psychologist

Studying the behavior of an athlete has become imperative these days. For this, the services of sports psychologist have become an important choice. If you wish to enjoy the ideal return for your sports science degree, then starting your career as a sports psychologist can do the trick for you. The primary responsibility of a sports psychologist is to take care of the well-being of the individuals/teams you are associated with.

8. Sports Writer/Journalist

If you love sports and can write well, then a sports writer or journalist can be just the career to look for! For every mainstream medium, sports journalism is an essential division that does sports writing. Additionally, there are magazines specialized only in sports, fitness and health. Understandably, breaking into mainstream medium would not be the easiest thing to do, especially for those with lack of writing training and experience (unless your dad is the newspaper’s editor). But you can always start small by writing for your own blog or small websites, before embarking a journey further into more established media outfits.

[image: sportssciencejobs.co.uk]

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How to become a lawyer?

Many students aspire to study law and pursue careers in law for many reasons. While some students want to pursue a challenging and fulfilling careers in law, others want to effect change or help members of their respective communities. If you are thinking of pursuing a career in law, then you need to get acquainted with the expectations and requirements of law schools and state bar associations. In the section that follows, we shall look at fundamental things that may help you in your quest to become a lawyer.

Enrolment in a law school

Like most other demanding courses, a degree in law requires more consideration and preparation. The reason is that most law schools are highly selective of the students who enroll for their programs. Many law schools prefer applicants with high grades with good record in extra curricular activites. Critical thinking is also required as it forms the basis of creating and evaluating arguments surrounding an issue. So, if you are thinking of enrolling in a law school, you have to take these requirements seriously.

Studying and training as a lawyer

If you are interested in pursuing a career in law, then you need to be cognizant of the work habits and lifestyle of law students before you enroll in  law school. The rigorous study cycle may seem quite disenchanting, but it nurtures students to be meticulous and diligent as is required of attorneys and lawyers. As a student, you should have good research and documentation skills. In addition, you should know how to source information, organize your ideas, and present arguments in a persuasive manner. Students are required to read widely and assimilate the information quickly. Besides that you should be ready to study for long hours and undertake exhaustive reviews and analysis of cases.

Traits of good lawyers

Lawyers are expected to have a deep understanding of legal issues and to keep up to date with changing laws and legal systems. Most importantly, they must be able to advocate different interests some of which they may not personally agree with. Fundamentally, lawyers should have excellent verbal and written communication skills which are requisite for effective negotiation and persuasion. The demanding and exhaustive work requires diligence and commitment of the highest level.

Certification and licensing to practice law

For you to work as a lawyer, you must complete your law degree and pass the bar examination. A law degree qualifies you to work in private practice or with big law firms and corporations. Since law careers are highly competitive, a law degree alone does not guarantee you job. Good grades may build your portfolio, but it is personal initiative and dedication that makes you a good candidate to a prospective employer. To work as a lawyer, you must also possess good analytical and problem solving skills.

What kind of lawyer?

Law is a broad field which covers many areas that overlap. Lawyers work with different entities, from government agencies, non-governmental organizations, interest groups, and corporate firms. If you want to become a lawyer, you should decide whether you want to work in in civil criminal or in civil litigation. Civil law focuses on agreements such as contracts, leases, wills, and mortgages while criminal law focuses on individual crimes. There are also special areas of corporate and private practice for law graduates.

Attorneys and lawyers study agreements and situations to avoid litigations, not to engage in confrontations and lawsuits. Lawyers read, research, discuss and negotiate with clients and parties in a lawsuit.  If you pass the bar examinations and get sworn as an attorney, you can pursue any of the following specializations:

• Trial lawyer
• Corporate lawyer
• Intellectual property lawyer
• Property lawyer
• Environmental lawyer
• Patent lawyer
• Government lawyer
• Insurance lawyers

Besides the above areas of specialization, you can work as an international lawyer, a bankruptcy lawyer, or even a probate lawyer.

How much is a lawyer’s salary?

All law graduates are required to do chambering, which is a form of law apprenticeship, before they can be qualified lawyers. In Malaysia, a chambering allowance of RM800-RM1200 is paid, while a qualified lawyer gets a salary between RM2500 and RM3500. The figure goes higher as the number of experience accumulates. A report by PayScale.com indicated that lawyers with between 5 and 9 years earn between RM4,500 and RM7,500 monthly. In the US market (experienced lawyers), statistics from Bureau of Labor shows that the annual median salary range for lawyers is between US$60,000 and US$137,000 ($5,000 and $11,000 monthly). A lawyer’s salary do vary depending on experience and employer.

Law partners tend to earn more than lawyers in private practice. Lawyers in big law firms earn six-figure yearly salaries, that include profit sharing. It is not unusual to find corporate lawyers earning half a million dollar or more per year. On the other hand, lawyers in smaller legal practice earn more modest incomes. Regardless of their experience and area of practice, lawyers make decent incomes that guarantees them comfortable lifestyles.

Career outlook for lawyers

The career outlook and employment for lawyers remains positive. Country laws continue to evolve and with it, the demand for litigation services will always be around. Government reports indicate employment is slowly shifting from individual practice to employment in large firms. However, competition still remains a challenge for new lawyers. So, if you want to go into private practice, then you should consider working in smaller cities where competition is relatively low.

Regardless of your motivation for pursuing a career in law, the fact remains that legal practice is both challenging and rewarding at the same time. High grades and demonstration of requisite skills is necessary for enrollment in a law school. Graduates with good academic records and requisite skills stand a good chance of securing the best job opportunities. To work as a successful lawyer, you must complete a law degree and pass the bar exam. Thereafter, you can choose to work in private practice or in a law partnership.

[image: bestphilippinelawyer.com]

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Telco magnet Ananda Krishnan has officially become the richest man in Malaysia at the turn of year 2013. His latest net worth, estimated to be around RM30.56 billion, is enough to displace “Sugar King” Robert Kuok to second place. The latter’s combined net worth is evaluated at RM29.4 billion.

The Chinese Nanyang Siang Pau carried the research in coming up with this latest richest-men list.

Robert Kuok has been the country’s richest man for four years running, before this latest published results. He was estimated to worth about RM45.7 billion last year, before seeing his wealth significantly plummeted within 12 months period.

Ananda Krishnan was born and raised in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, to Sri Lankan immigrant parents. He has been a bright student since small; he did well in school and graduated with flying colors in tertiary institutions. He obtained his degree in Melbourne, Australia and completed his MBA from the renowned Harvard University.

Ananda’s enterprising values had begun not long after his graduation. Before settling into the entertainment, telco and media businesses, he started exploring oil and gas and gambling industries. His current business interest include in Astro, Measat, Bumi Armada, Maxis, Tanjong PLC, Powertek and TGV Cinemas.

Ananda received a major boost in his wealth when Astro was successfully listed in the Bursa Malaysia last year. But last year has not been the easiest year for him either. In mid of 2012, his right-hand man in his Indonesia business, Ralph Marshall, was put in the country’s police most-wanted list.

Malaysia’s richest men in 2013 and their wealth:

1. Ananda Krishnan, Usaha Tegas (RM30.56 billion)
2. Robert Kuok, Kuok Grop of Companies (RM29.40 billion)
3. Teh Hong Piow, Public Bank (RM15.10 billion)
4. Lee Shin Cheng, IOI Group (RM14.68 billion)
5. Lim Kok Thay, Genting Group (RM14.17 billion)
6. Quek Leng Chan, Hong Leong Group (RM10.42 billion)
7. Yeoh Tiong Lay, YTL Corporation (RM9.75 billion)
8. Syed Mokhtar al-Bukhary, Yayasan al-Bukhary (RM9.14 billion)
9. Azman Hashim, AmBank Group (RM4.18 billion)
10. Lee Oi Hian, Batu Kawan Berhad (RM3.95 billion)

[image: bornrich.com]

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If you intend to pursue an ideal career doing the trick for the years to come, consider reading this article until the very end. On the one hand, finding an ideal career requires a thorough soul searching; on the other, you have to consider the prevailing trends as well. Be conversant with the job openings offering ample growth opportunities.

Coming across the ideal career can be a bane, but if you have sound knowledge of the market trends up your sleeves, then you can decide a career serenely. If you are hoping 2013 will pave the way for you to enjoy a sound career, then you must have knowledge about the careers to watch out for in 2013. Following are 10 of them:

1. Software development

Software development has been around for decades, and it is here to stay for a long, long time. The only catch is, you will have to adapt to changes quickly and be ready to embrace new technology. With technology on a high these days, software engineers are enjoying hefty profits working for various applications, and of late, mobile device-related applications. Becoming a software developer can be the ideal pick, provided you have the necessary expertise and passion to get the job done. The continuous expansion of systems and technology can pave the way for thousands of new job openings for the software developers. Last year in 2012, Software Engineer was named as the best job in the US. 

2. Social media marketing

Digital marketing has been swiftly and furiously overtaking the conventional marketing in the recent years, and at the crux of it, say hello to social media marketing. Effective social media marketing strategy engage users, readers and followers, and ultimately enhance branding and positioning. The likes of Facebook and Twitter have become a powerful weapon in marketing; most major companies, if not all, have resigned to the fact that without social media marketing, their products, services and branding are doomed to perish.

3. Electronic publishing

Electronic publishing is taking over the world by storm that even the legendary Encyclopedia Britannica decided to stop its 200+ years of print publication and go fully electronic. Printing jobs may be diminishing, but this only means that the need for digital-enabled tools is more prevalent than ever. In ebooks, EPUB is one of the many forms of electronic products that are gaining attention today; it has moved from EPUB 2.0 to EPUB 3.0, which allows more interactive features into the digital products. Both technical (e.g., programming, digital conversion) and non-technical jobs (e.g., production workflow) will be in high demand.

4. Creative services

The revolution of communication and entertainment media (broadcasting, cellular network, mobile devices) has created vast opportunities for the creative fields. Hardly goes a day without the rise of new technology that promise to enrich the media and make the world more interesting. Strong workforce in this industry is needed to strengthen key business aspects that include advertising, promotion, branding and public relation exercise. If you are into graphic design, video production and animation, you could have an eventful career this year.

5. Freelancing

A freelancer is someone who does work for other people/organization without any long-term obligation. Jobs are mostly done on project basis. One can work full time with a company and freelance in their free time, or do it on full time basis. According to the recent survey results, freelancing income has significantly increased in 2012, and is estimated that in the year 2013, there will be a further 8-10%. Speaking of freelancing, you can enter the field as a freelance writer, web developer, translator, virtual assistant, etc.

6. Green technology

Advancement in technology, in the past decades, has put the place we call earth in grave danger environmentally. Without curb, new generations risk of missing what we are currently enjoying. Environment is an important life element and jeopardizing its future for the sake of business would not do any good. Green technology (also referred as environmental or clean technology) involves the application of green chemistry, environmental science and monitoring, electronic devices and technological platforms that would help minimize environmental problems.

7. Islamic banking

Since its last recommendation, interest by the western world on Islamic banking has gained tremendously, especially with the financial collapses of nations backed chiefly by western-banking models. Economists are beginning to appreciate what the Islamic banking can now offer, appreciating its potential, which is valued at over US$ 1 trillion. As it stands, Islamic banking is growing at a steady rate of 10-15 percent per year, with signs showing that it is set to grow further. It is also interesting to know that the biggest Islamic banking center is now residing in Europe (Britain), not in Middle East or Asia.

8. Fitness and health

In recent years, people have been made more aware of fitness and health. “Fat nations” such as Australia and the US have begun emphasizing importance of taking charge of one’s health. After all, what’s the point of making a lot of money in your job when you can’t stop thinking about your diabetes? Dieticians, gym instructors, fitness coaches are highly sought after, with many becoming sort of celebrities with regular appearance in the mainstream media.

9. Cloud computing

One of the major technological challenges in the next few years is making computing resources (data, storage, desktop, etc.) available across a network. Think of a thumb drive carrying your latest holiday photos; but instead of carrying this thumb drive around in your packet, cloud computing will allow you to access these photos from any computer with network. Jobs will be abundant for a wide range of IT specializations that include security, database, programming, network, testing and debugging.

10. Biomedical engineering

If you think you can solve the problems of people by bettering their lives, then a career in biomedical engineering (BME) can be extremely fruitful. Established with the intent to close gaps between two important fields: medicine and engineering, BME applies design and principles of engineering to biology and medicine. Advancement of healthcare treatments owes a lot to many of the BME applications. Cellular, rehabilitation, medical imagery or genetic engineering are some of the jargons you may want to be familiar with, before embarking on a career along this line.

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