So what’s the impetus for our unrealistic expectations and subsequent career dissatisfaction? My work in talent recruitment has taught me that yes, sheer naiveté is one minor causes—but more heavily it is the lack of guided self-reflection that has many of us considering a misaligned career. In the same way that one shouldn’t force their size eight foot into a size six, many of us are trying to force our way into jobs outside of our true interests and skill set, creating overall work displeasure and thus, burn out.

In this tough economy, it’s hard to resist applying to any and every job, but landing an ill-fitting job has inevitable negative side effects.  It is far more important for any career to narrow your job hunt based on some serious self-reflection.

Before you continue your job search think deeply about the following:

1.    Reflect on your passions: For many this alone can seem like an overwhelming task. It doesn’t have to be. Think about it this way: When do you experience the most joy? As you reflect on your current or most recent job consider the parts of your day you enjoy the most and the least. What aspects of your work do you find motivating? What are the things you do outside of work that keep you balanced?  Identifying these things will often lead us closer to understanding our passions and extrinsic and intrinsic motivations.  Finding a job that aligns with these things is a win!

2.    Take inventory of your skills: What ‘tangible’ skills have you acquired through your career?  Are you a skilled communicator? Do you have management skills? Are you a strong project manager etc? An important distinction should be made between attributes and skills, as they’re quite different. Being an expert in PowerPoint is different than noting that you’re a patient person. As you seek your next job opportunity, make sure it aligns with the skills you enjoy using.

3. Where do you want to professionally develop? This question should not only incite reflection around self-identified weaknesses, but also other areas of development that may have been untapped given the nature of your previous work experience. Are you looking for an opportunity to manage adults, or for projects to push your skills in Excel? Look for opportunities that will strengthen your skill set and further you down the path to your long-term goals.  Neglecting this focus could lead to job dissatisfaction.

Thinking through the above tips is only a start. As we consider our various career paths, we must look beyond the idea of a fulfilling job, and more towards an opportunity that allows us to walk within our purpose.  The more aware we are of our gifts and passions, the closer we are to walking towards that which is innate to our success.

Jovian Zayne is a writer, photographer and occasional radio co-host in New York City.  Read more from Jovian on her personal blog Word Up Haay!. Join her on twitter via @jovizi for laughs, encouragement and your daily dose of quick wit.

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One day while in the office she asked to speak to me and told me that I needed to work on my accent. Now, this coming from a woman who herself had an accent that I could barely understand at times, you can understand why this was insulting to me. She went on to say that I pronounced the word “ask” like “ax”. She went on to say she noticed that other Black people do that as well. She also commented that people can tell that I am Black when I answered the phone. I responded with “why does that matter?” She never did answer my question. I then said, ‘you don’t think that people who speak to you can’t tell that you are a foreigner?’ Now I was being a bitch. She responded with yes but made it a point to never answer my question about what difference my race made to people on the phone.

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Months later while listening to my friends stress about their job search this incident came to mind. It made me wonder how many jobs they have been passed over because of their African American dialect. When I say dialect I am not speaking of not being able to speak proper English. In my case I speak proper English and do not use slang in the work place and my friends are college educated, hip to the game, young Black people who know to adjust to their environment as well. I am speaking of African American dialect or accent on certain words which was a problem for my past boss. How many jobs have turned them down because of the way they pronounced certain words?It made me consider whether or not an… To Read The Rest Visit YeahSheSaidIt

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The release of last month’s employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed that black teen unemployment was at 38 per cent of the participating labor force of this demographic. This is particularly concerning as we enter the summer months where teens are easily distracted by external influences and a lack of school responsibilities. So what can you do to keep your teen out of trouble? This is what we think:

1. Send him/her to Grandma’s

If she’s still with you, there may be no more reassuring way to get your kid into line than sending him or her over to Grandma’s house.

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You’ll be rest assured that G will be dissing out some of the same strong-handed treatment she gave you as a child. Your teen is bound to learn all about respect, responsibility and cleaning in between the tiles of the bathroom.

2. Get him/her voluntary work at your place of employment

Once again, it may not be possible to pursue this course of action but you could at least try.

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To have your kid delivering the mail in your office, or washing up at your work’s kitchen, could be a great way to keep him or her out of trouble. They might even get a few bucks out of it in the process.

3. Find out about any summer school possibilities to keep his/her brain active

Some schools, churches and community groups offer summer programs to further teens’ learning experience or to keep them occupied during the long summer months. These can make for a great transition into the following school year and may even have your teen ahead of his or her pupils. Contact your local school, church or any teen-related community group to see what they have on offer.

It’s our time to shine this month with the release of the official unemployment data of May, which suggest that black women made the biggest improvements in unemployment.

Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows a 10 per cent decrease in unemployment for black women from 13.7 per in April to 12.4 in May.

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As a demographic, black women were the highest achievers this month.

Unemployment for white women remained steady at 7.4 per cent. However the gap between women from both racial groups remains alarmingly high at around 65 per cent.

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Keep an eye out for some upcoming features on Hello Beautiful about niche labor opportunities for black women.

But in the meantime, what factors in modern America do you attribute to the difficulties facing black women in the employment market?

I can’t believe that after all these years I had no indication of this. How could I have been so clueless to something that directly affected me. I was/am an emotional eater. One would think that the sudden desire to devour 3 slices of pie back to back with a tall glass of milk when I’m bored would have led me in that direction. However, I was clueless. All, I did know was whenever I am experiencing the emotions of being upset, bored or sad, you can also throw hungry in the mix. Yeah it is that kind of party for me ladies. So much so, that I still battle overeating daily. To top it off, I love to eat. I genuinely love food. I love food with extra flavors, spices, and juices. I love the feeling of a full stomach followed by a good nap after wards. Yeah I said it! God help me if it is that time of the month. The refrigerator door and my hand is glued together for that week.

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Overeating is an issue that affects 1 in every 100 women in this country. “Aww that doesn’t sound like a lot to me LJ”. Oh, but it is. Especially when you think about the fact that for every 5 women there is 1 men. In other words, there are more men than women on this lovely plant we are spinning on.

The other causes of overeating are as follows:

* Unemployment

* Financial pressure

* Health problems

* Relationship conflicts

* Work stress

* Bad weather

* Fatigue

With that being said, how can we combat this gluttony epidemic? That, even I do not have a clear and straightforward answer to. In my case, I often overeat when I am bored so what works is when I find something to occupy my time as I find that the busier I am the less my mind is free to wonder about a Chicago stuffed Leona’s pizza slice or a thoroughly dipped Italian Beef with peppers on the side (God! I miss Chicago’s food).

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He’s gotta make money somehow. Earlier this week, the NBA suspended the Washington Wizards’ Gilbert Arenas indefinitely and without pay. This comes after his Dec. 21 “confrontation” with teammate Javaris Crittendon and his admission that he kept firearms in his professional locker.

“As I have said before, I had kept the four unloaded handguns in my house in Virginia, but then moved them over to my locker at the Verizon Center to keep them away from my young kids. I brought them without any ammunition into the District of Columbia, mistakenly believing that the recent change in the DC gun laws allowed a person to store unloaded guns in the District. On Monday, December 21st, I took the unloaded guns out in a misguided effort to play a joke on a teammate. Contrary to some press accounts, I never threatened or assaulted anyone with the guns and never pointed them at anyone. Joke or not, I now recognize that what I did was a mistake and was wrong. I should not have brought the guns to DC in the first place, and I now realize that there’s no such thing as joking around when it comes to guns — even if unloaded.”

Now, he’s baring his skin and showing off his tattoos in an “Ink, Not Mink” ad for peta2.

He may be stupid, but at least he looks good.

Other celebrities who have appeared in PETA’s now infamous “I Would Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” ads are Eva Mendes, Khloe Kardashian, Nia Long.

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Studies show that unemployment has reached a 25 year high, and with so many people unemployed or under-employed, we are asking should women start to pay for dates? If we look at dating traditionally, then it would be a form of courtship.  That means that single people are dating to eventually find the one to marry and that requires a partnership. Partnerships are what we are working on down the road by dating now, so we are all trying to put our best foot forward–right?

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Men that do not have jobs can not afford to date and that is because society has an expectation that they will pay. However, women that do not have jobs can afford to date because it is not an expectation that we pay but now that the economy has gotten so ruff  we should start. He can not always bare all of the burden of paying for the dating/entertaining so here are the guideline for when you should make sure that you have your purse handy:

1)  3:1 ratio: After he has paid three times you pay once. And you pay for the whole date like he did, that goes for everything including the tip.

2) When you are visiting his home: This is old school but if your guy says that he will be cooking dinner at his house then you bring something. The dessert, a bottle of wine or the new Jay-Z CD, never show up empty handed–not a good look!

3) His birthday or promotion at his job: This may sound obvious, but if you ask him what he wants for his birthday, and he says dinner then you should pay for it. He is just a passenger, you are the driver it’s your gift.

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Ladies could you handle a reversal of traditional gender roles in your home?

BP member karmababy_karma asks, “I mean…Is this a black issue? or A woman issue? or A sex issue? or a Class warfare issue?” in the forum topic he created titled Sista’ voices lost respect after husband laid off–On national T.V. With men making up 80% of the newly unemployed during the economic crisis, this is becoming a hot button problem. Check out the forum and let us know what you think about this issue here.