3 Ways to Boost Your Resume and Cover Letter with Keywords - FlexJobs

3 Ways to Boost Your Resume and Cover Letter with Keywords - FlexJobs3 Ways to Boost Your Resume and Cover Letter with Keywords -38If youre sending out the same old resume and cover letter for telecommuting jobs, part-time jobs, or freelance jobs and leid getting much of a response, theres a reason. Several, actually. For one, recruiters get bored with the same old documents day after day and they can spot a generic application from miles away.Another reason is this When you upload your application materials to company websites, their recruiting software often has the ability to screen the documents for specific keywords related to the job to which youre applying. If your resume and cover letter dont contain those keywords, chances are theyre not being sent by the software to a human recruiter for further review. So, whether theyre being screened by a human or a computer, resumes and cover letters without keywords are doomed.3 Ways to Boost Your Resume and Cover Letter with KeywordsH eres how to make your job search materials stand out using keywords1. Use the job description as a knowledge base. Job descriptions are filled with industry jargon and the keywords found here are the ones that companies want to see in your application. Wherever possible, edit the content of your resumes and cover letters to include relevant keywords from the job description.2. Company websites speak the company language. Websites have become an art form and most companies take the time to craft very carefully whats written on their website. Look at the Career and About pages to see how the company speaks about itself and what it values then incorporate any relevant keywords into your resume and cover letter.3. Numbers are always good keywords. Talk about your accomplishments in quantifiable ways, whether its how many people you manage, or how many clients youve brought in, or how much youve saved the company through cost-cutting initiatives. Anything youve done to increase profits or decrease costs is keyword gold.If youre looking for telecommuting jobs, freelance jobs, part-time jobs, or flexible schedule jobs, your job search success starts with a well-tailored resume and cover letter. For other specific tips on customizing your resume and cover letter, check out Customized Resumes and Cover Letters are Better for Your Job Search.

The Guide to Being Friends With Your Boss at Work - The Muse

The Guide to Being Friends With Your Boss at Work - The MuseThe Guide to Being Friends With Your Boss at Work You spend a good majority of your time in the office. So, its really only natural that youll establish friendships with the people you work with. And, having a great relationship with your co-workers can actually make working day after day that much more enjoyable But, when you develop a close bond with your boss? Well, that dynamic can get a little trickier. On one hand, a relationship with your superior can lead to increased communication and a boost in your morale. However, the blurred lines between your personal and professional lives can also complicate things within your office.So, here are seven dos and donts of being tight with your work supervisor. Hint you dont ever want to make jokes about his or her terrible management skills. But, you already knew that much- I hope. Do Always Remember Your Boss AuthoritySure, maybe you and your boss grab drinks together on a Frid ay night or buy each other gifts for birthdays. But, that doesnt mean you should ever forget that your boss is indeed your superior in the workplace. So, even though you think of your manager as your friend, you do want to exercise a certain level of control and censorship when it comes to your interactions outside of the office. The general rule of thumb is that he or she is your boss first, and your pal second. Dont complain endlessly about the duties of your position. Dont make jokes about which of your co-workers should be fired. And, please, dont get blackout drunk- or even obviously drunk. Yes, youre friends. But, you should still make an effort to uphold your professional reputation. After all, your friend can fire you. Dont Flaunt Your Friendship in the OfficeHave you ever hung out with two close pals who spent the entire time reminiscing about stories you werent a part of, talking about people you didnt know, and telling inside jokes they knew you wouldnt understand? It was annoying, wasnt it?Now, imagine how your co-workers will feel toward you and your boss if youre like this every day in the office. Theres bound to be some tension and animosity. Needless to say, its important that you dont flaunt your friendship in the office. It can be pretty off-putting to all of your other colleagues, and even spark some pretty nasty office gossipWhile you should never hide your relationship, you absolutely dont want to rub your bond in everyones face- especially if your manager doesnt have the same relationship with other team members. If you do, you may be left with a great relationship with your manager, but you can kiss your friendships with co-workers goodbye.Do Be InclusiveJust because you have a great relationship with your boss doesnt mean you want to form this exclusive office clique that no other co-worker can penetrate. To avoid any conflict or hurt feelings, make an effort to include others in the office.If youre heading out for happy hour after work , extend the invitation to everyone else you work with. Doing this will not only reinforce the fact that the relationship is fair and legitimate, but will also cut down on the snide remarks and judgment from your co-workers.Dont Get Too Cozy on Social MediaWork relationships mustve been so easy before social media was a big deal. But, now were all tasked with the overwhelming decision of whether or not we should accept that dreaded friend request from our boss. Hitting accept really comes down to personal preference. However, regardless of what you decide, its best not to become too familiar or cozy with your superior on your social media accounts. Why? Well, it introduces a whole new personal element (and possibly even a need for censorship) into your already complicated relationship.Plus, those frequent tweets back and forth between you and your manager can cause your other co-workers to feel uncomfortable or even left out. Do Avoid Office GossipOffice gossip is a bad idea in any circumstance. But, when its taking place between a manager and subordinate? Well, thats just a recipe for disaster. As a best practice, you and your supervisor should stay away from discussions about anything work-related when youre outside of the office. It only serves to expand your gray area and further complicate your already delicate relationship. Plus, you need to keep in mind that this person is still your boss (remember my point about constantly recognizing authority?). After all, your seemingly harmless venting could very well be job jeopardizing for the co-worker youre complaining about. Dont Leverage Your Friendship for Special TreatmentThis should go without saying, but you should absolutely never use your personal relationship for pull in a professional scenario. In the office, your boss should treat you as he or she does any other employee- and you should expect that from him or her. Wouldnt you be furious if you always had to set an appointment with your supervisor, w hile another employee could simply breeze into his or her office whenever he or she pleased? Its a surefire way to make someone feel unten liegend and disrespected, whether thats your intention or not.Do Openly CommunicateBalancing your personal and professional relationship is bound to get complicated, so you and your superior should make an effort to always openly communicate with one another about any problems, concerns, or conflicts.Also, its not a bad idea for you and your boss to sit down and talk about some ground rules pretty early on in your friendship- as awkward and formal as it might seem. This sets boundaries that you can respect both in and out of the office, as well as makes both of your expectations clear right from the get-go. Theres no doubt about it- navigating a friendship with your boss involves some serious thought and consideration. However, its definitely doable, and even surprisingly common Practice these dos and avoid the donts for a friendship thats ethica l, honest, and (hopefully) judgment-free.

How to Derail Your Job Search

How to Derail Your Job Search How to Derail Your Job Search If youre searching for a job, you face a hard enough market these days without making things even worse by sabotaging your own efforts.Here are eight ways that you might derail your job search without realizing it1. Not bothering to apply because youre sure you wont get the job. Sure, if its a wild reach, put your time into other opportunities. But if you can make a reasonable case for yourself, then you shouldnt write off an opening just because you assume that others will be better qualified than you. For some jobs, hiring managers may be willing to take a risk on a less-experienced candidate who brings other strengths. Youll never find out if you dont try.2. Obsessing over your resume and titelblatt letter, to the point that you miss application deadlines or dont apply at all. It doesnt matter how perfect your cover letter is if no one ever sees it. If you tend to agonize and put off applying while you work to get things perfect, set yourself a time limit No more than 30 minutes spent per cover letter, and once you start writing one, you must send it that same day.3. Not bothering with a cover letter at all. If youre applying for jobs without sending in a cover letter, youre missing out on one of the fruchtwein effective ways to grab an employers attention. A cover letter gives you a chance to make a compelling case for yourself as a candidate, totally aside from whats on your resume. Some job seekers convince themselves that because some hiring managers dont read cover letters, none of them do- which is far from true. At a time when most job seekers are wondering how they can stand out in a crowded field, a great cover letter is one of the best ways to strengthen your chances of getting noticed.4. Being shy about telling people that youre looking for a job. If youre hesitating to let your network, family, and friends know that youre looking for work, hesitate no longer. Theres no shame in being on the job market its very common, and most people are glad to help if they can. So let people know that youre looking You never know who in your network might know of an opening for which youd be perfect.5. Getting defensive about a job that didnt work out. If youre asked about a job from which you were fired, you dont need to give an exhaustive account of what happened. Most einstellungsgesprchers are only looking for a few sentences and wont expect a detailed account. Be brief and to the point, upbeat, and dont sound defensive or angry.6. Being bitter and letting it show. Its easy to start feeling pessimistic if you put a lot of time into applying for jobs and it hasnt paid off with an offer. But if youre bitter, itll almost certainly show when you talk to employers, and that will kill your candidacy faster than a spotty resume or bad interview answer ever could.7. Not showing your enthusiasm for the job. Sometimes I interview a candidate and end up unsure if shes even particularly interested in the job. If youre excited about the job, say so Hiring managers are human- we like it when we feel a real interest from you.8. Being too quick to assume that youre out of the running, so not following up. After a job interview, do you obsess over all the little mistakes you think you made, and beat yourself up for not giving different answers? Some people take this to such an extreme that they decide they obviously failed the interview, and so they dont bother to do any follow-up. Obsess if you must, but dont let it deter you from following up after the interview to reiterate your interest. Your self-assessment may not line up with theirs.Alison Green writes the popular Ask a Manager blog, where she dispenses advice on career, job search, and management issues. Shes also the author of Managing to Change the World The Nonprofit Leaders Guide to Getting Results and former chief of staff of a successful nonprofit organization, where she oversaw day-to-day staff management , hiring, firing, and employee development.

Tap Local Talent for Seasonal Hiring

Tap Local Talent for Seasonal HiringTap Local Talent for Seasonal HiringTap Local Talent for Seasonal Hiring Matuson Seasonal hiringis moving into full gear, as companies turn their attention to finding employees for the busy holiday season. In the past, you simply hung a help wanted sign in the window to find contingent workers.If you did that today, chances are youd be overwhelmed with the number of people knocking on your door due to the abundance of available workers. A mora focused approach to hiring locally will yield better candidates without overtaxing your business and ensure that youre properly staffed and rested before the holiday rush.The following tips will help to ensure you secure your share of contingent workers this holiday hiring season.Local newspapers In spite of what you may have read, local newspapers are totenstill alive and are an excellent source to find local talent. Many job seekers still turn to the newspaper when looking for work.Local talent is still p icking up the help wanted section and looking through it on weekends, notes Jeff Graham, marketing director at Monster. Many papers will offer the full suite of recruitment products to any of their customers. This includes online job postings, resume access, Media Solutionsand banner ads.This kind of exposure can make a huge difference when you are trying to rapidly pull in the people you need to fill seasonal jobs.Neighborhood schools and universities Local schools are a terrific source to hire for holiday jobs, particularly colleges and universities with a large number of commuter students.These students live close by and are usually eager to earn funds to help defray the costs associated with attending college. Call the placement office and ask how you can notify students that you are hiring.Keep in mind that if you hire someone in his or her freshman year, you may have a fully trained employee return season after season until graduation.Senior Centers They say sixty is the new fifty, so why not dive into the pool of mature candidates this hiring season and recruit a deeper talent pool. The result means youll find candidates who are looking to put their skills to work on a temporary basis.Hiring mature workers has many benefits including a staff that typically needs less direction and has a clear understanding of what it takes to succeed in business. Stop by and post your openings at the local senior center.Make the application process simple. Leave applications at the center so candidates can apply the old fashioned way in person, if this approach better fits their style.Neighborhood friends If you havent done so recently, check out the neighborhood to see who is now of working age and might be looking for a local job.In case you havent noticed, your neighbors kids who used to babysit for you or cut your lawn are now old enough to work in a store or in your business. Call your neighbor and ask them to have their son or daughter get in touch with you if they are interested in working this holiday season.And while you are on the phone, dont forget to ask them if they know of anyone else who might be seeking a job for the holiday season.Religious institutions Religious institutions help to fortify and sustain communities in a variety of ways. They are also a place where people come to gather and gain support from one another.Contact your local priest or rabbi and ask if they know of any members in need of extra money this holiday season. Most will gladly pass along news of a job opportunity to members of their communities.Look internally Ask your current part-time workers or floaters if they are interested in picking up additional hours during the holiday rush.By drawing from a pool of workers who are already familiar with your organization, you will be able to reduce the amount of time needed to fully train people in your operations.Employee referrals The best new hires can emerge from employee referralsfrom current or past work ers. Ask your employees who they know that would be a great addition to your business this hiring season.Sweeten the deal by paying an employee referral bonus to anyone who refers an employee who is hired and stays through the holiday season.Contact former contingent workers Search your database or your employee files and put together a list of former seasonal workers who youd gladly rehire. Call those on the list and ask them if they are interested in working again for you as a contingent employee.If need be, provide incentives for returning workers. Moving forward, stay in touch and re-recruit throughout the year so you can more easily fill your job openings next year.Stay top of mind by routinely updating your companys Facebook page and sending out postcards during the year to remind workers you are thinking of them.Pull talent towards you Take a page out of the playbook of larger companies and create an inviting career section on your website that attracts the right candidates to your business.Dont know how? Follow the steps outlined in our recent webinar on Four Steps to a Successful Employment Brand and youll be well on your way. Be sure to post a note regarding your contingent positions on the front page of your website so that job seekers can quickly see that your business is hiring.

Top Guide of My Cv

Top Guide of My Cv Optionally, you may also state here if youve obtained a certificate or diploma together with the year of receipt. Your address needs to be your present residence, where you could get mail in a timely fashion. Also, enkoranvers youve got a professional-sounding email address. Be sure to set your cell phone number on your CV. Also, remember that theres a high probability you resume will be scanned electronically as a growing number of companies utilize special software to index resumes. Their insights on the work market, and understanding of the absolute most attractive keywords is just the kind to assistance you should showcase your profile. Adding the incorrect things or too many things to your resume will prevent you from getting the market job which you desire. If you dont have a great verstndigung im strafverfahren of exhibitions, youre assuring the reader that theyre not looking at a brief list, but rather your most relevant history. When you compose a CV, you can lay it out in various ways, based on what you would like to demonstrate the employer. Let our professionals help you in developing a CV which will help you get there. Let us start making your CV today. There are a few things that are the very same for a CV in most countries. Dont enable the incorrect CV format stand in the manner of a prosperous global job search. There are several things that you are able to do to make your CV really special. In lots of ways, a French CV is far easier than an English one. If not sure send your CV in a lot of formats. Top Cv Choices Instead, it is going to paint you in corner. You would like your employer to understand what you did in your prior jobs, but you dont will need to incorporate the kitchen sink. You need your resume to be noticed, but theres such a thing as standing out in a poor way. I am motivated to visit the gym before work to find fit and healthy. Your contact information is only going to be shared when you decide to respond to an employer. Recall that a few businesses receive thousands of resumes every day and the majority of these can be filtered out by Applicant Tracking Software. It may be used to produce several applications to employers in a particular career area. Overly personal info. An objective reader can create a difference in assisting you to catch spelling and grammar problems and many of the other mistakes listed within this post. Use precisely the same language when you create a CV, therefore its simpler for the man or woman reading it to observe how you match up. If youre smart and have followed the other points within this write-up, you are aware that networking and finding strong references is the main thing you can do in order to receive your resume read. She explained the trick to getting an interview was supposed to write an extremely comprehensive titel letter, make sure my education history was at the very top of my resume, and to incorporate a 1 sentence objective at the exact top of my resume. In the event you werent passionate about a part of the role, its assumed that you wouldnt be applying for the position. Your resume is your very first face forward to the employer, therefore its essential that you take the opportunity to to make certain it looks great and is an accurate and strong representation of your qualifications. A personal statement on your CV is a fantastic way to provide your work application extra effects. Just like youre able to sort publications on PubMed by relevance to a particular subject, you can sort your work experience by relevance to a particular position. Keep in mind, the CV is a great method to demonstrate to prospective employers or recruiters what kind of employee youre, your attitude to work and, above all, your focus to detail British CVs dont usually incorporate a photograph unless youre an actor. In the current competitive job market, untargeted CVs have a tendency to lose out to those t hat were written with a specific part in mind. How simple it is to skim your qualifications is vital, however far along youre in your career. Your resume ought to be focused, concise and emphasize achievements and techniques that fit the job that youre applying for. Search for the critical abilities and think about how your very own past experience is related to the job. Putting an objective statement at the peak of your resume wont help you receive an industry job. If youre going for an internet entwurf role, you might want to direct them to a website youve created. If you think like many job seekers, however, youre include in your resume a hyperlink to your social networking profiles or personal site, where photos are suggested. Customized Page Backgrounds you may set a personalized background for virtually any page and post on your site, along with define in for the entire website generally speaking. This effectively provides the employer the choice of easily viewing your photo should they want to. It is your obligation to provide them with the essential details. Ask to determine before and after samples of their work or utilize personal recommendations before you decide on a CV writing service. To better serve our students, we provide numerous our graduate programs in an on-line format. In reality, your application may be ignored without one.

The Cost and Effect of a Bad Hire - Spark Hire

The Cost and Effect of a Bad Hire - Spark HireSometimes the ideal candidate is difficult to find. No one seems to have quite the right combination of hard skills, soft skills, and sunny side up skills (egg humor). Should you settle for a less-than-ideal candidate? Buyer beware. While hiring a mediocre candidate might not seem terribly problematicespecially if the hiring process has become long and tediousin reality a schwimmbad fit can be catastrophic. Check out this delightful infographic from Vitamin T via Mashable, and then learn how a careful hiring process and video interviews can help you avoid a bad hire.According to Vitamin T, a bad hire can cost a company up to $50,000 in benefits, salary, lost customers, eventual severance pay and possible legal action. Eeek Interestingly, this figure also takes into account the financial impact of one bad employee on an entire department. When one member of a team slacks off, other members of the team are put under extra pressure and stres s. This creates a morale problem that can be even direr than the monetary costs of the bad hire.So, what leads to a bad hire? Every hiring process has its flaws, but what gigantic shortfall could possibly cause the hire of a $50,000 torpedo to the department? Although no one problem in a hiring process can be blamed, here are a few ideas that increase the probability of avoiding costly bad hires Always check references. A bad hire has usually had a poor work experience before, and you should try your best to discover it. Hire on a trial basis. Many companies have a 60-to-90-day probationary period in which it is possible to terminate a bad hire without facing legal action. The rules of the period are specific to each company and will need to be drafted under legal advisement. Be very specific in terms of job responsibilities and desired personality.At Spark Hire, lawyers and private detectives we are not. However, we can help you out with the last element on this list. Video intervi ews are an outstanding way to make your hiring process easier and less likely to end in a bad hire. Video interviews provide a screening process that allows for specific questions about qualifications while giving hiring managers a great sense of an employees personality. One-way video interviews also allow multiple people in a department to evaluate a candidate before ever bringing the person to the office. This allows for mora input from stakeholders and more interaction with a candidate in the beginning of the hiring process.Video interviews are also more convenient for candidates. This means that your company will be more attractive to a wider pool of applicantsmore chances for you to find the best person for the jobHas your company ever dealt with a bad hire? Discuss in the space below, or send me a tweet ithinkther4iambIMAGECourtesy ofFlickr by AMagill

Success According to LinkedIns Allen Blue

Success According to LinkedIns Allen Blue Success According to LinkedIns Allen Blue Blue explained how the social and professional networking site is all about empowering every professional through the connections they already have. Personal relationships are very important, and, with 175 million members, the key to LinkedIns success. As his third startup, LinkedIn came into Blues life through the companys own approach a personal relationship. Blue honigwein fellow co-founder Reid Hoffman through a mutual friend while he worked as a theatrical set designer in the San Francisco bay area.What we realized welches that what really mattered was the relationship between me and you, Blue said. And if I reach out to you, youre not saying, Hey, I want to join LinkedIn, youre saying, Hey, I want to join this colleague this person who I trust and respect. I want to join them and be a part of their network and I want them to be a part of mine.Aside from personal relationships, Blue added tha t loving what you do is one of the most important factors in a successful career. Understanding the role passion plays in, not only his own, but anyones career, Blue also explained how LinkedIn was designed to help people in their career endeavors.LinkedIn is also a very mission-oriented company, said Blue. We really do want to make a difference for people who are looking for work, people who are looking to be great at what they do, people who are trying to make their companies better, and for people trying to do the work that they really love.His advice to entrepreneurs was to do what youre passionate about because the desire to do what youre doing and do it really well makes all the difference in terms of you being able to succeed. Passion allows you to see how what youre doing is bigger than yourself and it opens you up to learning and trying new things.The VP also advised future entrepreneurs to fail early and fail often. When you attempt to do something youre passionate about a nd it doesnt work, that is perfectly okay. Get back on the horse and try another path, Blue said.The combination of passion and a willingness to fail is a fantastic combination to building a career and building a career thats going to be you, he said.So personal relationships + passion= success. Not a bad formula. Yet, I wonder, how much of each variable is required to truly become successful? The popular saying, Its not what you know, but who you know does prove true for many success stories. Yet, you also have those who relied on nothing but the desires that burned deep in their hearts and the relentless determination to catapult them into their dreams.Networking is, and, most likely, always will be a beneficial tool. So many doors can open for you simply by knowing the right person. I interned at Scholastic Inc. this past summer and, unlike all the other interns, I didnt even apply for the position. How did I get in? A family member (and former employee) knew someone who knew som eone in the HR department. Connections are important.Yet, although I understand the benefits of having a network, I am convinced that if it came down to it, in the pursuit of success passion must be your greatest resource. You can have all the connections in the world, but if you lack passion for what youre doing it will be that much harder to reach your goals. Sure people can help and encourage you, but when it boils down to it, there has to be something inside of you that keeps you going. There has to be something internally that fuels you, something that motivates you to continue pursuing your dreams even if you do not have those personal connections life says you often need.Success is subjective, its relative to each persons goals. Like LinkedIn, personal connections can heavily contribute to accomplishing your career goals, but, like its co-founder and VP, more so the passion for what youre doing.

Decisions How to make decisions and be more productive at work

Decisions How to make decisions and be more productive at workDecisions How to make decisions and be more productive at workWant to be happier and more productive?Fewer decisions lead to better decisions.Do everything possible to put yourself in a box and reduce the number of decisions you need to make in a day.Think of every decision you need to make (whether big or small) as a one-pound weight placed on your head. Having a few to make is no big deal - that extra weight might even be a pleasant felling - but theycan add up quickly and eventually hamper your ability to move.Why? Your brain is notlage always good at understanding the differences between big decisions and small decisions.Decisions take a lotof effortEven small ones tax the brain. You should try to only make the big decisions and outsource as many of the small decisions to others (or to a routine).For instance, if you are having a special meal that really matters, spend a lot of time on the meal. If not, bestellung quic kly. Use some heuristic. Or order the saatkorn thing. Whatever. Just dont spend 10 minutes deciding on what you want to eat or where you want to eat unless it is really important.Create a default and follow it. When I go out to eat with friends, I often ask them to order for me.Lots of decisions in a compressed timeframe leads to worse decisions. The more decisions you need to make in a day, the worse you will be at making the right decision.Default decisions are your friendOne of the reasons it is so tempting to buy everything on Amazon (even though there might be a cheaper or better option somewhere else) is that it makes decision-making easy. If you trust a site like Amazon, then just trust it and use it for your needs. Dont worry about optimizing on every purchase (on price or quality) unless that purchase reallymatters to you.Its OK to go to the same restaurant or order the same thing. When I was first starting out as an entrepreneur I ate pasta and tuna fish for dinner every n ight and I still love that meal.If you are not known as an amazingly stylish person, then try to spend as little time as possible dressing yourself. Feel free to wear essentially the same thing every day. And no, it doesnt need to be a black turtleneck - it could be jeans and a blue-button-down shirt (which is what I wear to work every day).Its OKto just follow a GPS system you trust (like Waze) every time you drive. It might not be right, but the consequences of being wrong are usually just a few minutes difference in the length of trip.Its OKto listen to the same playlist over and overOne of the huge benefits of the rise in good television is that it reduces the number of decisions aboutwhat you want to watch. Since watching all of The Sopranos takes about 100 hours (and an average movie is just twohours), by watching a TV show, you might need to make about 50 fewer decisions as to what to watch.I actually know some people whospend more time selecting amovie to watch than actual ly watching the movie.This is even true of bigger things like vacations. Yes, spending a bunch of time planning it will increase the value of the vacation. But spending the time planning the vacation might significantly reduce your ability to make other decisions.Try to buy as few things as possible. Thats a good way of reducing the number of decisions you need to make. Then, when you find something you really like, its OK to overpay for something to ensure you get it. If you never go to concerts, then you can pay a lot for the one you reallywant to go to (from the savings of not going to other concerts).Focus on one decision at a timeIf you do need to make a reallybig decision, try to take all other decisions off your plate.When you need to make a super important decision that is hard to unwind, dont make it under duress. Try to disengage with whatever is causing you to make lots of decisions.One of the reasons people get really stressed before their wedding is that there are so ma ny little decisions that need to be made for the event. The color of the napkins doesnt matter, so outsource all those decisions to someone else and then be OKif they pick something that isnt optimal.Make decisions quicklyUsually, a decision is better than punting on decisions.The other way to spend less time making decisions is to try to make these decisions very quickly.For small decisions, its OKif you make bad decisions. If you order something at a restaurant you end up not liking, no big deal. If you pick a bad movie, no big deal. So better that you make them fehlte nicht viel and move on.For bigger decisions, you want to think more but still make them quickly. Its OK to sleep a night on a decision, but taking a month will not likely lead to a better decision (and every unmade decision is that one-pound weight on your head).This article originally appeared on Quora.

Nanoengineered Gel Regenerates Natural Immunity with a Single Shot

Nanoengineered Gel Regenerates Natural Immunity with a Single Shot Nanoengineered Gel Regenerates Natural Immunity with a Single Shot Nanoengineered Gel Regenerates Natural Immunity with a Single ShotSurgeons often transplant bone marrow to treat cancer and other diseases because marrow generates precursor cells that go on to populate the bodys immune system. Yet many patients struggle to convert all these newly transplanted cells into immune system precursors.To improve patients odds of survival, Harvard University researchers have created a nanoengineered gel that mimics bone marrow. Once it is injected under the skin, it could serve as another location where the body can produce immune precursor cells.It is a factory, in that its a foundry that works continuously, said Nisarg Shah, the nanoengineering researcher who led this work at Harvard. Shah is now a professor at the University of California, San Diego.Ultimately, the researchers hope to formulate a small, off-the-shelf injec tion that doctors can deliver after a bone marrow transplant. This would enable patients to recover immune functionality faster.The advance fits into the growing field of cell-free therapies, which prompt patients tissues to produce therapeutic agents. This contrasts with cell-based therapies, where physicians infuse cells grown outside the body into patients bloodstreams. Cell-based formulations sometimes pose manufacturing and toxicological issues.Recommended for You Mapping the Heart for Future Health Harvards bone marrow cryogel three weeks after injection. The outside is covered with bone shell while the inside of the sponge resembles bone marrow with blood vessels running through it. Image Harvard UniversityIn a typical bone marrow transplant, surgeons first implant the bone marrow into a patient and then infuse him or her with stem cells. The bone marrow recruits these stem cells as they circulate through the bloodstream and turn them into immune precursor cell s. The blood stream then transports the precursors to the thymus, where they evolve into T-cells, a type of immune cell that finds and destroys diseases and other threats.The gel developed at Harvard directs the body to assemble stem cells into precursor cells by establishing a niche. This is an environment whose biomechanical and biochemical properties resemble those found in bone marrow. Like bone marrow, the gels niche scavenges stem cells from the bloodstream. The transplanted stem cells go to the gels niche, said Shah. There, they receive instructions that essentially tell them to start becoming these adaptive immune cells, specifically T-cells.Other ways of improving a patients T-cell count exist. These include infusions of donor T-cells, T-cell precursors, and cytokine proteins that encourage T-cell growth. They could also improve immune response.Yet these approaches come with risks. Cytokines can be toxic, and donor T-cells may attack a patients tissues if they are not a goo d genetic match. Its also not clear if these procedures have versatile, long-lasting effects.Shah and his team aimed to address these issues by creating a secondary processing site to transform stem cells into immune cell precursors.Getting the gel to encourage new cell development welches a challenge. While researchers have synthesized many materials that support or expand an existing T-cell populations, they have had a difficult time generating new cells over prolonged periods of time.There are many studies where cellular viability is good, but its very difficult to go further, said Yichun Wang, a biomedical engineer at University of Michigan who also develops structures that resemble bone marrow. She was not involved in the Harvard research.The first step in recruiting stem cell transplants to transform into immune precursors is to mimic natural bones structure.To create a spongy, porous material, Shah and his colleagues quickly freeze a polymer solution of alginate-polyethylene- glycol as it starts to solidify. Tiny ice crystals form in the material before the polymer cures. The gel then stabilizes around tiny spheres of ice. Upon thawing, the gel retains pores where the ice crystals once were.The resulting gel approximates bone marrow well, Wang said. It retains its structure when injected into the body and permits cells from the body to infiltrate its structure. On the down side, it is non-degradable and would require surgical removal.Editors Pick Smart Bandage Does it AllThe real breakthrough, Wang said, is that the researchers found a way to incorporate two proteinsgrowth factorsthat foster cell development within their structure.The first, bone-development growth factor BMP-2, creates a niche environment that recruits stem cells from the bloodstream. The second, DLL-4, directs those scavenged stem cells to differentiate into immune precursor cells.At the projects outset, Shah and his team knew these growth factors could encourage immune cells, but they had to tune the formulation of these proteins within the gel to create the cellular foundry they had in mind. Initially, they allowed both growth factors to diffuse out of the gel to reach mora surrounding cells. In that form, the researchers found that DLL-4 did not encourage many immune cells to differentiate.So they decided to chemically lock DLL-4 into the polymer forming the alginate-PEG gel. This magnified the effect the DLL-4 had on surrounding cells.BMP-2, however, worked in an opposite way When it was tethered to the gel, the growth factor did not create a niche environment. So Shah and his team encapsulated the BMP-2 in a coating that let it diffuse slowly out of the gel.The team tested the gel on mice with injections just above the animals hind legs. The gel increased the number of T-cell precursors and improved tolerance of new bone marrow transplant cells.From other mouse studies, Shah and his team found that delivering this gel with a bone marrow transplant boosts the immune system more than delaying delivery after the transplant.The teams next step is to learn how to tune dosage and delivery in larger animals. Ultimately, they hope to reach clinical trials.Shah envisions boosting patients immune capabilities with multiple injection sites, or many small, separate gels via a single injection, equipping patients with many more immune cell foundries for recovery.Menaka Wilhelm is an independent writer.