Archive for July 3rd, 2009
» posted on Friday, July 3rd, 2009 at 4:10 pm by admin
How to Get Referrals from Warm Contacts
You may find it hard to use networking to find a job if you can’t rely on your warm contacts to give you the information you need. At times, you would have to ask your warm contacts to refer you to at least two people that they know who will be able to give you the information you needed.
However, there are times that your warm contact, particularly those who don’t know you well, may not readily provide you with the information. Some of your warm contacts may feel reluctant about vouching for you to their other contacts.
Because of this, you may find it difficult to use your network. To make networking and getting referrals an easy task for you, here are a few tips.
* Nurture your warm contacts.
Before you even need your warm contacts or before you even ask for help, keep in touch with your warm contacts. You may send notes or greetings from time to time, call to “catch up” on them, invite them to lunch, be interested or help in their business or do anything just to cultivate your connection with them.
In this way, by the time you need help, they can remember you and can more readily give information about their other contacts that will be able to help you.
* Be polite.
Since you might not have close personal relationships with some of your valuable warm contacts, it is inappropriate to just give them a call and ask them for information about your field of interest.
Sometimes, sending a note in advance, or asking to meet them for lunch is a better way to ask for their help.
* Listen to them.
Most of the time, even if your warm contact knows little in the field where you are trying to find a job, they might offer you advice. Be polite and interested in what they are saying. Who knows, the information that they are giving may be valuable to you in the future.
There are times that your warm contacts may be telling you tips on what manner will work best when you talk to the persons to whom you are being referred. Your warm contacts may also imply what qualities and qualifications the person is looking for.
* Ask for at least two referrals.
Before you ask for referrals, make sure that your warm contact had said everything that he or she can say about your field of interest.
Even if they know little about that field, it is impolite if you cut them short while they are speaking to ask if they know somebody who will be able to help you.
If they weren’t able to refer you to at least one of their contacts, thoughtfully ask them why they couldn’t do so. They may give you answers that may include indirect comments or suggestions. They may also indicate a lack of confidence in your work strategy. If this is so, you may have to make follow ups with them to prove that you are indeed credible and match their requirements.
However, there are also times when they can’t refer you to their contacts because they just don’t know anybody who might have the information or might be interested in the product.
In this case, ask them to keep their eyes open for opportunities that you might be interested in. You can also leave with them copies of your resume.
* Just ask for two referrals.
Two referrals are enough from each warm contact. This is to have another option in case the first one didn’t work out. Asking for more than two referrals could be impolite as it can take much time from your warm contact. Also, that will make your warm contact feel that you are relying mostly on him or her for your job search. So, unless they volunteer the information, don’t ask for more than 2 referrals.
* Contact referrals as soon as possible.
When your warm contacts give you referrals, there are times that they also call these people personally to give more information about you. On the other hand, when you contact the people to whom you were referred, your referrals may call your warm contacts to verify the information or to ask more information about you.
Either way, you have to contact your referrals soon enough that these people can still remember their conversation with your warm contact, or your warm contact can still remember that you have talked.
At times, after your referrals were called by your warm contacts, they anticipate your call and even prepare questionnaires and exams for you to take. Do not waste this opportunity by delaying follow-up on referrals.
Keeping these tips in mind will be able to help you in asking for good referrals from your warm contacts.
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» posted on Friday, July 3rd, 2009 at 6:50 am by admin
Bad debt credit card
???Bad debt credit card???- what???s that?
Bad debt credit card is basically a credit card that the credit card suppliers offer to the people who have bad debt. Did that astonish you? Well, don???t let your thoughts run just yet.
You can classify bad debt credit cards into 2 categories based on what you understand by bad debt credit card. The first category of bad debt credit cards is those credit cards that are secured (and are also known as secured credit cards). These bad debt credit cards require a security i.e. you have to open (and maintain) a bank account with the bad debt credit card supplier. The credit limit on your bad debt credit card is calculated as a percentage of the balance you hold in the bank account you have opened with bad debt credit card supplier. Generally, this is 50-100% of your bank account balance. So, this bad debt credit card enables you to spend the amount you hold in your bank account; only the way you spend it changes (i.e. instead of spending that as cash you spend it using your bad debt credit card). So bad debt credit card lets you enjoy the convenience and other benefits that are associated with credit cards, even with a bad debt. This security is as such important for the bad debt credit card supplier; after all how can you trust someone who has a bad credit rating.
The other category of bad debt credit cards are nothing unusual, they are the same cards that we know of most commonly; the only difference is in the way you get them and the objective behind getting them. Here, we are talking about the credit cards that you use as a debt consolidation mechanism i.e. consolidating bad debt (as such any debt is bad). So we can call them bad debt credit cards too. These operate by transferring of the balance you owe on your current, high interest credit cards to these bad debt credit cards that have a lower APR (at least for some initial period). Hence, these bad debt credit cards help you in consolidating your debt and getting some relief from the higher APR that you were experiencing on your current card.
Some people accept both of the above categories of credit cards as bad debt credit cards while others tend to go with one or the other. So, what you regard as a bad debt credit card is really a matter of personal choice.
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