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As the New Year started, I committed myself to committing to more "big picture" time and it began today with an all day retreat with the folks at LifeStylized. My new friends Rono and Sierra invited me to attend an all day workshop to "Envision 2012" where I participated in a number of great activities to recharge and refocus on the bigger picture.

45 minutes after the session ended, I walked away with a renewed sense of self as well as a renewed focus on the future of my company and the future of me. I've got some great action items for my business and my personal life and am on my way to reinvigorating my life with passion.

Why did I attend? Because I felt I didn't need to, but because I wanted to. Many times, I fell companies and people don't make the time to focus on yearly goals until the goals have been missed. Others make time for events like this after a major tragedy. I disagree with both of these approaches. As I mentioned at the beginning of today's events, my company grew over 60% in revenues last year from 2010, and this year our goal is to bring in the total of 2010 and 2011 combined. Lofty goals, but realistic given the great people I've been able to bring in as virtual interns, colleagues and freelancers.

It's not too late to retreat this year for a day, a weekend, or an hour. Put it on your calendar and find time to focus now, rather than later.

I volunteered my time yesterday at the Times Union Job fair from 10-1 yesterday to critique resumes of those who were seeking jobs at the fair. One of the recurring themes I saw among the resumes I reviewed was the lack of a LinkedIn profile link at the top of the page.

If you have a LinkedIn account, you should put your LinkedIn URL on your resume to use it as an enhanced version of your resume to direct employers to greater details than your resume can provide.

LinkedIn has become such a valuable resource for employers, job seekers and consultants among many others. From finding the right talent to finding the right service provider, having LinkedIn as part of your strategy as a job seeker or business person is crucial.

For those seeking to switch jobs or finding jobs, using the Skills feature on LinkedIn can enable you to stand out from others in your field of interest.

Stop by the Small Business Expo in Latham at Michael's Banquet House on Saturday December 17th from 12-3pm to see a business trade show in action. The event is free and will feature around 40 independent and small businesses from the Capital Region.

If you stop in today to the Braathe Enterprises booth, we will be doing a Importance of a Good LinkedIn Profile presentation from 1-130.

We also will have available gift certificates for consultations on HR, business strategy, marketing and more

For more information, call 518-290-0812 or email us at info@saratogacollege.com

This event presents a great opportunity to see what opportunities are out there for starting your own business, as well as an opportunity to share with the community. Admission is free, but food donations (non-perishable) will be accepted at the door to go to the Regional Food Bank.

Hope to see you there!

In addition to my offer of free resume critiques online through September 17th (email your resume to robert@saratogacollege.com
), I will be at the following Job Fairs at the times below offering resume critiques and career advice.

Saratoga Job Fair
Saratoga City Center
Wednesday October 5th from 10am-12pm and 2pm-4pm

Times Union Job Fair
Albany Marriott
Monday October 10th from 2pm-5pm

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Another great service I'd like to share with you is Google Appointments. Google Appointments allows you to block out time for people to schedule time with you. You can specify the blocks of time, how long the appointments can be, and what for.

If you'd like to book an appointment with me, you can visit Robert Braathe of Braathe Enterprises Google Calendar to schedule a time to speak with me via Phone/Skype/GoToMeeting

Happy Labor Day! For those of you seeking jobs, here is a list of some upcoming job fairs in New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

As a special for the week of Labor Day, if you send your resume to robertjbraathe@gmail.com between now and September 17th, I'll be happy to review it for you and give you a free 10 minute phone consultation for some suggestions prior to your career fair visit.

New York
Albany Area
Albany Career Fair
Albany Marriott
189 Wolf Road
Date: October 10, 2011
10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm Closed 1-2pm

The Saratogian Job Fair
Wilton Mall
Route 50
Saratoga Springs, N.Y. 12866
Date: Monday, September 12, 2011
Time: 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Saratoga Job Fair
Date: Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Time: 10 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Saratoga City Center
522 Broadway,
Saratoga Springs, New York, 12866
http://saratogajobfair.org/

Hudson Valley
Work Local First Job Fair
Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce
Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel & Conference Center
Civic Center Square
Poughkeepsie, N.Y. 12601
Date: Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

NYC

Senator Joseph Addabbo, Jr. Job Fair
The Shops at Atlas Park
8000 Cooper Avenue
Glendale, N.Y. 11385
Date: Friday, October 21, 2011
Time: 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

The Job Expo
Affinia Manhattan Hotel
371 Seventh Ave
New York, NY 10001
Event Time: 10AM to 2PM
Date: November 17, 2011

Diversity Job Fairs
Affinia Manhattan
371 Seventh Ave
New York, NY 10001
Event Time: 10AM to 2PM
Date: Thursday December 8th, 2011

Western NY
First Niagara Financial Group Information Session
Department of Labor
284 Main Street
Buffalo, N.Y. 14202
Date: Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Time: 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Massachusetts
Multi-Industry Job Fair
100 Trade Center, Woburn MA
Date: Wednesday, September 14th 2011
1pm - 3pm

Clipper City Job Fair
31 Green Street, Newburyport, MA
Masonic Hall
Date: Tuesday September 20th 2011
10 am - 1:00 pm

Sales & Management Career Fair
Date: September 20,2011
Time 01:00 PM
Location:
Hilton Garden Inn -Waltham
420 Totten Pond Road
Waltham, MA 02451

Massachusetts Green Career Conference
Date: September 30th, 2011
Holiday Inn, Marlborough, MA
(Intersection of I-495 and Route 20)
265 Lakeside Avenue
Marlborough, 01752

Boston
Diversity Job Fair
Date: Thursday October 27, 2011
The Westin Copley Place
10 Huntington Ave
Boston, MA 02116
10AM to 2PM

Job Fair of Boston
Doubletree Guest Suites Boston/Waltham
Date: Thursday, December 08, 2011
550 Winter Street
Waltham, MA 02451
10:00AM-1:00PM

Connecticut
Danbury Career Fair
Date: Monday, September 12, 2011
11:00 AM to 3:00 PM
21 Lake Avenue Extension
Danbury, Connecticut

Middlesex County Career Fair
Date: Friday, October, 28, 2011
10:00 am to 2:30 pm
Crowne Plaza Hotel, Cromwell, CT

One of the joys of teaching is the ability to access a multi-talented array of speakers in the Capital Region and beyond who are interested in sharing their wealth of experience with students.

In addition, it is truly a pleasure to see speakers coming out to local events who have the passion and energy to truly engage an audience and put a different perspective on events than we can do from within our own organizations.

As a member of the Capital Region based Consulting Alliance, many of my colleagues speak regularly on a variety of topics related to business, marketing, law and health care professions. I encourage you to view our Find a Speaker page for the Albany Capital Region area serving New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut as well as surrounding areas.

Wilton, NY is going to have a job expo on Thursday May 26th from 1 to 4:30pm. Employers such as Ace Hardware, Adirondack Trust, Global Foundries, Saratoga Casino and Raceway and the Town of Wilton will be present for this free event.

Job Fairs are a great way to prepare for a future job move even if you aren't currently looking or seeking work. In my career, I have found that attending these events has given me a great opportunity to meet potential future employers or colleagues.

Dress for success and attend the job fair this Thursday. For more information, call 518-584-9455 ext 201.

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I'm attending a thought provoking conference for entrepreneurs in Las Vegas presented by Inc. Magazine. In just 5 hours yesterday, I met entrepreneurial leaders in HR, web design, logistics, manufacturing and more. As well, many of us took a tour of Zappos headquarters and received a couple great books on Zappos culture.

Often, we may take a look at a price tag for a conference or event and base our decision solely on that alone. I can tell you that from my experience at the prec-conference alone, this has been money and time well spent.

Today, I'll be attending a number of presentations from authors and entrepreneurs, as well as attending a networking breakfast and lunch, a Tweetup meeting, and a beer tasting, followed by a night seeing O by Cirque De Soleil.

I was going to post a picture of myself making some punchable faces, but decided that I want to keep my beauty intact. However, I am amazed at the number of punchable faces that I see doing presentations, sitting in crowds, or on television.

It's not a matter of how people look, but sometimes how the expressions they make bring about nothing but disgust for what is displayed.

If you want to attract people to your idea or business, a smile does go a long way. A frown, scowl, or unpleasant disposition can instantly turn off customers.