Author: candacemoody

Candace’s background includes Human Resources, recruiting, training and assessment. She spent several years with a national staffing company, serving employers on both coasts. Her writing on business, career and employment issues has appeared in the Florida Times Union, the Jacksonville Business Journal, the Atlanta Journal Constitution and 904 Magazine, as well as several national publications and websites. Candace is often quoted in the media on local labor market and employment issues.

FlexJobs: Survey Says Nearly Half of Military Spouses Feel Discriminated Against

by candacemoody

(Courtesy Flexjobs.com) The unemployment rate among military spouses is 16%, more than four times higher than the civilian unemployment rate. According to a FlexJobs and Blue Star Families survey of more than 500 military spouses, nearly half (46%) of military spouses have felt discriminated against in their job search because they are military spouses. Read on for more of … Continue reading FlexJobs: Survey Says Nearly Half of Military Spouses Feel Discriminated Against

Ode on a Liberal Arts Graduate

by candacemoody

For the record: I’m a proud liberal arts graduate. I graduated from the University of Wisconsin with big dreams and a double major that doesn’t have a darned thing to do with my work now. If you’re a parent despairing over your new grad’s choice of major, take heart. You could be the proud parent … Continue reading Ode on a Liberal Arts Graduate

Learning to Dance

by candacemoody

Each conversation is a dance that we discover as it unfolds, with its own rhythm, flavor, flow. The pleasure we and our partners derive from this dance will depend in no small measure on how well we improvise, moment by moment, phrase by phrase, instinct by instinct. And yes— on how well we talk!

The Modern Administrative Assistant

by candacemoody

Administrative Professionals Week fell this year on April 24. The modern admin assistant is tasked with a variety of important tasks, including data management, supervision, budget responsibilities, even hiring and training. Good riddance to the days when as Peggy Olsen, in Season One of  Mad Men, said, “He may act like he wants a secretary, but most of the time they’re looking for something between a mother and a waitress.”

Making Real Connections

by candacemoody

Confession: I’m an extrovert who dislikes networking events. I like meeting new people, but I find making small talk tedious within a few minutes of arriving. Superficial chat exhausts me, and it’s rare to make a true connection at most business events or parties.

Your Guide to Digital Declutter 

by candacemoody

Spring is my favorite time to purge and clean, and I’ve been working on my physical spaces since the New Year. It’s easy to see where you could make a difference in your office or closet, because you see the overcrowding and hate struggling to find important items.  But your digital storage could probably benefit from a spring cleaning as well.

Exclamation Points and the Female Brain

by candacemoody

The exclamation point may have originated from a Latin exclamation of joy (io). According to Wikipedia, the modern exclamation point was introduced in the Middle Ages when copyists wrote the Latin word io at the end of a sentence to indicate joy. (An end of the sentence “hurray.”) Grammar manuals describe its function as “indicating strong feelings or high … Continue reading Exclamation Points and the Female Brain

Let’s Eliminate Employee Probation

by candacemoody

“Probation” has a couple of meanings, including one from our criminal justice system. Its technical definition is “the release of an offender from detention, subject to a period of good behavior under supervision.” We also use it for newly hired employees, making their first few months feel like a presumption of incompetence until proven otherwise.