Some professors don't let students see their Facebook pages. Some accept students' invitations but don't initiate them. Peter Juvinall insists students friend him.

Employment in New York State: October 2009 Issue

What are the advantages of guiding workers to collect stories directed at organizational career management? Expressing accomplishments in story form is a huge advantage because a compelling, engaging story is memorable to the manager making a promotion decision, while people who aren't telling stories may be forgotten. The decision-maker gets to know and trust employees through their stories, which may also help establish an emotional connection that inspires investment in their success. (And, by the way, the same storytelling principles that work for other employees also work for your own career progression.)

Last July Ben Wallace spent a week at Boy Scout Camp with his then 9-year-old son. The two fished, canoed, sat around the campfire, and bonded with dozens of other scouts and parents-something he wouldn't have had time for if he had been employed.

The truth is that many employers generally like older hires because they tend to be more reliable, conscientious and loyal. However, candidates over 50 have to overcome hiring managers' fears that they have one foot out the door. Your friends should de-emphasize their age by removing dates from their resumes and making subtle changes to their appearance to look younger. Most importantly, though, they should showcase their enthusiasm for the job and how motivated they are to achieve, which will make employers more likely to believe they're in it for the long-term.

It's no secret that job security is a thing of the past. Taking on part-time work-especially in a creative arena you've always wanted to pursue-is one way to earn extra income and begin exploring new work opportunities before it becomes a necessity, says Scott Belsky, CEO and founder of Behance, a New York-based company that develops products and online tools for creative industries.

Adam Sheehan has what Japanese animation fans might consider a dream job. As a senior events manager for Funimation Entertainment, a producer of shows like "Dragon Ball Z" and "Soul Eater," he sets up video screenings, autograph signings and other activities at about 20 anime conventions a year. But Mr. Sheehan, 32, says launching a career tied to a special interest typically requires more than deep-seated passion. Education, pro-bono experience and networking is also essential. Edited interview excerpts follow.

Because so many people in their teens and early 20s are in this constant whir of socializing-accessible to each other every minute of the day via cellphone, instant messaging and social-networking Web sites-there are a host of new questions that need to be addressed in schools, in the workplace and at home. Chief among them: How much work can "hyper-socializing" students or employees really accomplish if they are holding multiple conversations with friends via text-messaging, or are obsessively checking Facebook?

I am looking for a full-time job that uses my writing, people and information-gathering talents from 25 years as a Los Angeles Times staff writer. My concern, validated by the coach at the retraining corporation, is that I am over 40. That coach actually told me to leave the dates of college attendance, etc., off my resume. My brother, president of a publicly-traded company, said this advice was nonsense, although he did say age is an issue (and he's older than I am).Can you address this issue of inferiority complex for those of us competing with candidates 20 years our junior? How do we address it? How can we compensate for the potential perception that we are burn-outs or tired when we might -- in my case -- just be bored because we know the job so well?

Some 558,000 people joined the ranks of the jobless in October, sending the rate to 10.2% and the tally of officially unemployed Americans to 15.7 million, the Labor Department said. The 10% figure could overshadow last week's news that the economy began growing again this summer after a long contraction.

New York State's Labor Department vigorously enforces state labor laws to provide a level playing field for law-abiding employers. We work aggressively to ensure a fair wage for all workers and protect the safety and health of workers and the public. We assist the unemployed by providing temporary financial assistance, connect job seekers with employers, and build a workforce that helps New York's businesses compete in today's global economy.

Our careers and our lives are constantly changing. With so many twists and turns it is almost guaranteed that our career plans will not be stagnant. There are many different types of individuals who are moving in/out of a traditional career. Recently the term "comeback parent" has been coined for the parent who has left a paid position outside the home to raise a family, and is now returning to paid external employment. Another example is the graduate student who alternates full time employment with full or part time education. Some leave to take care of an aging relative, start a private practice or a business, attend to personal health issues, or even work part-time from home. While juggling various roles in life, it is important to manage our careers even if it is not currently the highest priority. Networking is an important way to effectively and efficiently tend to your career at all times.

While understanding the Internet's role in the job search and career development has always been important for professionals, the emergence of new Web technologies, such as social media, blogging and social networking have permanently changed the playing field.

Facebook is, according to its own Terms of Use, an online directory that connects people through networks of academic and geographic centers, which is becoming increasingly popular among high school and college students. They use it as a means of staying in contact with their old and new friends across the globe. It seems innocent, but do they know that employers, parents and even the Secret Service have access to their Facebook? This article will address what Facebook is, how students use it, how others can use it, and most importantly, how Career Centers can educate students to use Facebook as a positive means of networking.

Internet presence is user-generated content on the Internet about you and/or your business. For example, you created a web page to showcase your work at a university, or you posted a note to your blog, or you added a topic to a discussion board like Career Development Forums. In most instances, you created that content, or you had someone create it for you. However, since anyone can add content to the Internet about you and your work, you should at least be aware of your IP and monitor it.

The U.S. has shed 7.2 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007. How long will it take for the economy to replace them? And where will the jobs come from? The questions haunt people from the unemployed in San Francisco to officials in Washington. Glenn Atias lost his job as a $100,000-a-year statistician at a market-research firm in the Bay Area last summer when the work was outsourced to India. At 46 years old, he pores over job ads and online postings daily. "I'm stuck watching hundreds of thousands of people in my position grow in ranks each and every month," said Mr. Atias, who lives in Salton City, Calif., in a house worth less than the mortgage. When unemployment benefits run out, he said, "I literally don't know how I'll pay my mortgage, how I'll pay my health care."

The bad economy and the deteriorating commercial real-estate market have motivated some small-business owners to fight their tax assessments. Ann Jones of Columbia, S.C., thought there might be a mistake when she received a property valuation from Richland County in January. The co-owner of the Dog Eared Corner LLC, a pet-grooming company, saw her commercial property's value assessed at $287,000, after she had just bought the three-story building three months earlier for only $210,000.

Protecting your company's reputation is now a 24-hour vigil. Negative reviews - whether they're merited or not - can turn away potential customers and vendors, and reflect badly on your company's brand.

I spent most of my early career trying to do things perfectly. And as you can imagine, this didn't work out very well. Screw-ups happen, and how you cope with them is a strong measure of your overall effectiveness in a work environment.