Dear J.T. & Dale: I’m a teacher at a middle school; however, my real love is elementary teaching. I’m afraid to change jobs, as my daughter goes to my school and has two more years there. Although she doesn’t mind changing schools, I love having lunch with her every day and driving together. Still, I feel like an unhappy zombie at work. Should I stay until my daughter graduates? — Riva Read the rest of this entry »

J.T.: Every month or so, we bring you the newest and best information about careers. This time we’ll review a survey done by the folks at Accountemps, a staffing firm specializing in accounting and finance. In a survey with executives, they asked this: “How many typos in the resume does it take for you to decide not to consider at job candidate for a position with your company?” Read the rest of this entry »

Dear J.T. & Dale: I was laid off months ago. As I’ve looked for work, I have had the following experiences: (A) Have not received a response saying that they received the resume. (Hellooooo?) (B) Received a postcard in the mail thanking me for attending the interview process. (What interview?) (C) Received an e-mail saying, “You do not have the required skills for the position you applied for.” (Which were exactly my skills and a carbon copy of the job I’d held for years.) I wonder if employers would like to be treated as they treat those looking for work. — Debbie Read the rest of this entry »

Dear J.T. & Dale: I was wondering if you could offer any advice on applying for out-of-state jobs. (I have family I can stay with in the area where I’ll be applying.) — April Read the rest of this entry »

Dear J.T. & Dale: My husband got laid off in November. He’s gotten only three interviews since that time. He recently had a good round of interviews, and today he was offered a job. But the salary is only half of what he was making. He wants to turn it down, but I think he should take it. His ego is so bruised that he can’t imagine doing the job knowing he’s being paid so much less than what he feels he’s worth. What can I say to persuade him? — Maureen Read the rest of this entry »

Dear J.T. & Dale: I’ve heard two different viewpoints on resumes. One says to tailor EVERY resume to the job you’re applying to, while the other says to have one standard resume. What do you advise? — Keenan Read the rest of this entry »

Dear J.T. & Dale: I have a question concerning online applications. When asked for starting and ending pay numbers, is it OK to leave those fields blank, or does this have a negative impact? — Matt Read the rest of this entry »

Dear J.T. & Dale: Several weeks ago, I was let go from my job. My manager had become distant and reduced my workload to next to nothing. During one meeting, my manager offered examples of the wrong way to do things and used the name “John” (my name, and the only John in the department) in the examples. Coincidence or slander? — John Read the rest of this entry »