When you work for a non-writer

So, here you are, working on your reference sheet, and you'd like your supervisor to give you a letter of recommendation. The problem is, great supervisor that he is, the guy can't write his way out of a paper bag. Any recommendation he gives you is going to be full of half sentences and misspellings that render it useless.

Here's the plan:

1. Ask him for the letter of recommendation.
2. Acknowledge that he's busier than any two people you know.
3. Offer to edit his notes or talk with him for 10 minutes about what he'd like to say and then write the recommendation yourself. 
4. Mention any promotions and what they were for, if they were tied to specific projects or actions.
5. Remember to include your major accomplishments in that position, and quantify them.
6. Use excerpts and rankings from performance reviews.
7. Write the recommendation on company letterhead.
8. Present it to him to read and edit or sign.

 This will give you the information you need in a form that a hiring manager will welcome.

Solving homelessness takes more than a job

Steven Samra, who had been homeless until 2000, takes us through the steps and obstacles to getting and keeping a job while homeless.

"If only they'd get a job, they wouldn't be homeless anymore."

You've thought it before. Perhaps you've even muttered it a few times. But however pervasive this "common-sense" rationale for ending homelessness might be, "getting a job" is just not that simple for a homeless person.

Before we even get to the point of being able to afford a home as an employed and "productive member of society," let's talk a moment about what simply trying to get a job actually entails for the typical homeless person: (Read the rest of Steve's story here.)