Is it just me, or do most people have little sense of what is going on in the world beyond American Idol or Survivor or The Real Housewives of (Fill in Your Favorite)? The average “man (or woman) on the street” doesn’t seem to know much of anything beyond sports and reality television.

Yes, I know, that is a sweeping generalization and completely unfair. Actually, most people are well-educated (read this), well-read, and quite knowledgeable about current affairs.

Not.

The “average” adult in the United States reads at a 9th grade level, and, as referenced in this MSNBC article, adult math skills have gone into hiding:

According to the Department of Education’s National Assessment of Adult Literacy, U.S. adults are terrible at solving real-world math problems, like calculating tips or comparing prices in grocery stores. Some dismal results:

Only 42 percent were able to pick out two items on a menu, add them, and calculate a tip.

Only 1 in 5 could reliably calculate mortgage interest.

1 in 5 could not calculate weekly salary when told an hourly pay rate.

Only 13 percent were deemed “proficient.” Worse yet, only 1 in 10 women, 1 in 25 Hispanics and 1 in 50 African Americans made the grade.

More good news: according to the President’s National Mathematics Advisory Panel, “half of 17 year olds couldn’t do enough math to work in an auto plant.”

Hey, I’m not some kind of intellectual snob, nor do I value a person more or less because they don’t know who the Vice President is or can’t find Montpelier, VT on a map (for those of you keeping score at home, that would be the capital of Vermont). No, the problem is that employers are typically looking for employees who can think, solve problems, and develop ideas. If job seekers don’t do anything to develop those skills, they risk being permanently relegated to second-tier status as a job candidate.

The idea in job search is to give yourself the very best opportunity to land a good job. Every single advantage, no matter how small, helps. One certain way to elevate yourself above many competitive job seekers is to demonstrate your ability to think and solve problems. Sadly, many job seekers don’t read well, can’t write business correspondence, and can’t do basic math calculations.

The solution? Extend your interests. Read a newspaper regularly. Pick up Math for Dummies. Complete a Sudoku puzzle once in a while (a little practice at solving problems).

Sound silly?

So does this: “We have filled that position.”

Question: Whatever happened to basic communication skills?

Seriously, it seems that employees who can actually write a legible sentence or communicate an entire thought in basic English have become an endangered species. I mean, speaking of “minority,” where is the legislation to make this a protected class of citizens?

Hey, I’m just sayin’…

Ya feel me?

No, I’m not advocating some sort of political position here, I am simply making an observation. Even a casual review of corporate email correspondence is enough to make an English teacher beg for mercy. This very common problem creates two significant problems for companies and their employees. First, there is a natural tendency (particularly with older Americans) to equate literacy with competence. If someone doesn’t know how to write or speak well, that individual is likely to be perceived as incompetent at some level (usually in proportion to how egregious the mistakes are). You can throw rocks at me if you want to, but it is what it is. Look at the way former VP Dan Quayle was crucified for spelling potato with an extra “e” at the end of the word. Potatoe? Really?

Or maybe a few “Bush-isms” will help you understand the tendency of people to equate communication skills with competency [English gaffes originating with former president George W. Bush]:

“They misunderestimated me.” [No doubt.]

“Rarely is the questioned asked: Is our children learning?” [True statement. This question is rarely asked.]

The challenge of poorly written business correspondence is that the company is often perceived in a negative light as a result of those mistakes. For instance, if a salesperson sends a letter or email message to a potential client regarding a large, complex sale – and that correspondence is poorly written – the prospect may decide to look elsewhere based on perception alone.

The second problem is that the vast majority of issues within a company are created by ineffective communication, and poor writing skills only make this problem worse. Performance reviews. Email correspondence. Policy memos. You don’t have to look far to see the problem….as in, “What is THAT supposed to mean??”

So what does all of this have to do with the average job hunter? It means that you may potentially have a competitive advantage right at your fingertips – or, you might be starting off your job search with two strikes against you. How would someone rate your skills at creating effective business correspondence? Do you write acceptably well? Do you know how to write a memo? A letter? An email message?

There is plenty of help available online. If you need it, don’t delay.

It seems us Americans ain’t talkin’ too good, don’t write worth a lick and are worser with e-mails. Our grammar, punctuation and spelling are/is abysmal. And corporate America is saying, STOP.

When Texas communications company Valor discovered its workers, including managers, weren’t communicating, it enrolled them in remedial business writing class.

Jeff Herrington thinks computers are partly to blame for dumbing down English.

“People who are used to using BlackBerries [and] instant messaging are transferring that way of writing into all forms of writing,” he says.

A recent survey found Fortune 500 companies spending more than $3 billion a year retraining employees in basic English.

Even writers have trouble writing.

Sacramento Bee columnist Don Morrison sees the enemy every time he looks in the mirror. Morrison is a client of Roger Peterson, who was among the first to notice Americans butchering their language.

“How about this expression, ‘for all intents and purposes.’ What does that mean?” asks Peterson. “[Or] ‘at this point in time.’ What does that mean? How is it better than saying ‘now?’ ‘That was an awfully nice dinner you just served me.’ Well, was it a nice dinner or was it an awful dinner? Make up your mind. We simply, now, must salvage American English.”

“Unbelievable” is one of today’s “in” words. But is it overused or used incorrectly? Unbelievable means I didn’t believe a word I just said. Anxious — “the president is anxious to meet the prime minister” — means he doesn’t want to meet him at all. And irregardless — look it up in the dictionary. You won’t find it because it’s not a word. Unbelievable.

[From a column by Roger O'Neil. NBC News Correspondent.]

Losing a job is always a hard experience. If you don’t see it coming it can be especially testing, and you risk running the entire gamut of negative emotions. It’s important to keep your emotions in check when losing a job because it can have an effect on how you kick off your search for a new job. Other factors become concerns, as well, so here’s an overview of how to manage under the circumstances of losing a job.

1. Emotional Factor – When you hear you are losing your job, the first thing that likely occurs is you start to feel, at the best, unfortunate. For many it is more probable that they feel sadness or even anger. The key step to take in keeping this from hurting your future employment prospects, don’t act out based on these emotions. When you leave your former workplace, give pleasant “goodbyes” and “thank yous” when you move on to other things. Leaving a good “last impression” is extremely important because you don’t want to lose references. As you move on to the job search, don’t let the shock of having lost the job throw you off your rhythm. Go about your search in a time frame as if it were a job in itself. This will help keep you organized.
2. Financial Factor - Make sure you have a budget between losing one job and beginning another. Know how you’re going to make your savings and other money you have last through the down time. If you lose the job, also ask the HR department if there is any kind of compensation you can get when you leave for days you could have taken off but didn’t. If your old boss wants you to sign any paperwork when you leave, and he or she probably will, be sure you know exactly what you’re signing. Don’t let them hit you with a fast one after you’re technically gone anyway.
3. Moving On – While you’re looking for a new job, take some time to reflect on your professional past. Think about why you may have lost your job. Could it have been because of your work? Or was it more likely the result of company wide losses and having to make cuts in certain departments? These are all important questions to think about in moving on to another career. Spend some time retooling and gathering your thoughts again. Practice your interviewing skills, update your application information.

Losing your job gives you the opportunity to focus on you. Prepare to present yourself to a new employer. In a sense, it lets you start over and you can offer yourself to interviewers as a complete package of an employee. You aren’t just going to be another job applicant, a person filling a title. A job loss is painful, but the most obvious positive effect it has is that it kick starts your journey toward a new job, so set some challenges for yourself and move forward, but stay positive and don’t blow off steam on other people. It’s a lost job, not the end of the world.

Are you ready to take some action in advancing in your career? It’s time to take some direction and get to where you deserve to be.

Get ready for a contest you don’t want to miss!

Win a FREE 360° CareerActionPlanning Session!

Because you have a lot of value to offer the workforce, learn how to pinpoint your strengths and, most importantly, how to sell them.

With the 360 CareerActionPlanning, you get a live, one on one session with a professional from your industry. You can select your coach from over 300 career pros, and check out their background and industry expertise before making the appointment. The coaching takes place via Skype and is available 24/7. You’ll also get a personalize assessment of your strengths, abilities, and resume, plus get direction to the best places to network in your industry.

360JobInterview is giving away 10 free CareerActionPlanning Sessions. All entries must be received by Monday, August 3rd, no later than midnight EST. To enter, fill out this form. Good luck!

Will you find your next job from a reality show? Televised competitions focusing within a particular industry are essentially no more than an elongated, publicized interviewing process.

Take into consideration the following three tv shows. They each are hosted by highly-respected people in their trade. Each have a substantial reward for successfully completing each challenge. But, do careers post-15 minute fame actually flourish?

The Apprentice

Industry: Business
Network: NBC
Host: Donald Trump
Prize: An high-level apprenticeship with the Trump Organization
Rate of Success: From the six non-celebrity apprentice winners, all have engaged in their apprenticeship in various parts of the Trump empire.
Most Successful: Kelly Perdew – CEO, board member, tv show host, and is involved in non-profit organizations.

Project Runway

Industry: Fashion
Network: Bravo
Host: Heidi Klum
Prize:$100,000 and a feature in Elle magazine
Rate of Success: Out of the five winners to this point, four have produced their own fashion lines, with two on QVC, and one with her own store. One has experienced heightened media coverage and had his entire fall collection picked up by a high end retail store.
Most Successful: Christian Siriano – Collection at Saks Fifth Avenue and multiple appearances on movies and tv shows.

Top Chef

Industry: Culinary
Network: Bravo
Host: Tom Colicchio
Prize: $100,000 and PR
Rate of Success: Only one of the Top Chefs has successfully opened a restaurant following the show. The other four out of five have plans to open one soon, however.
Most Successful Winner: Harold Dieterle – Owns Perilla restaurant in New York City.

It is possible to find success via small screen. However, it requires determination and a strong will to experience an elevated career level. Even those who don’t win reality shows still gain the mentorship and skills learned during the process. If going on television isn’t your thing, consider live career action planning to get you rolling. Good luck, and make sure you’re always ready for that ‘close-up’ when the opportunity presents itself.

We’re big advocates of utilizing the power of networking to help develop your career. Whether your goal is to find an starting position or move up a few, socializing and connecting with the right people is essential. It can even make or break you.

Let’s go over some key places available to you online that can really boost your network.

LinkedIn is the one site that you must add your resume to. Oh, and all of your past and present professional connections, as this is more than just a website, it is a social network.

By fully optimizing your LinkedIn profile, you will have a full, strong resume available online for viewing. There are even settings to change your public profile, the one that will come up in search results for those who are not in your network. It will build your image online, the one that you want there, as it usually becomes one of the top search engine results when searching for an individual’s name.

Hey job seekers, where were you last night? If you didn’t say, “out at a business networking event,” you may be missing out on opportunity. Meetup is a great online place to both host reoccurring networking events and find good ones to join.

Some of the greatest career advancements were made possible by a good word from the right person. To find those right people, it’s time to begin actively socializing. Meetup is the place to go if you’re looking to join a social or professional group of folks that share your interests, experience, and goals.

To use Twitter as a ‘micro-blogging’ site or a place to provide a general status update is a mistake if you’re hunting for a job. Twitter is quickly turning into a tool that is used to project a professional, yet personable, image. And, let’s face it, image counts for a lot when looking for the right job.

Twitter gives you real time information that could be useful to you for your intended career change. Find some suggested Tweeps to follow that can help with your job search here.

It is this former job seeker’s recommendation to avoid using websites like Myspace and Facebook to network for your career. While they’re great for interaction at the personal social level, leave it for your family and non-professional friends only. The details you will likely find yourself putting on there are not the first things you’d want a potential employer to see when reviewing you as a candidate. Get some more advice from the 360 pros with live career action planning. Good luck and happy networking!

You don’t have the skills.

Well, that’s harsh. Maybe you do retain the basic requirements, but it’s time to bring yourself up to a level playing field with your competition.

Step One: Research

Research the skill sets the position that you’re looking for requires. Search job listings for the position you seek and take note of both requested and desired abilities. Check LinkedIn to see what sort of backgrounds and interests current and former employees of target companies have.

Step Two: Analyze

Analyze your current abilities. Be honest with yourself. Take a notepad (or open up Notepad on the computer) and list each program, language, and other asset you know. Note your competency level, as well as how many years you’ve had this knowledge and the frequency of use.

Step Three: Develop

Compare both sets of notes from steps one and two. What’s on the first sheet that’s not on the second? Circle those items. These will be the basis for your plan of action. Let’s take a look at common areas that those seeking to advance their careers with a new position need to brush up on:

• Computer Programs

  Unless you’ve been using a specific software up until very recently, likelihood is you will need to refresh, or even just learn the functions of the programs and applications used in a position you’re seeking. Thanks to the Internet, most of this learning process can be free and relatively quick.

  The majority of software suites you’ll need to have competency in are extremely expensive. This makes it very inaccessible. Luckily, there are usually freeware versions online. Freeware is essentially a generic version of more expensive software, that is (as the name would suggest) free. Check out Gimp as a replacement for Adobe Photoshop, Inkscape instead of Adobe Illustrator, Open Office in place of Microsoft Office, or Google SketchUp as a free 3D CAD program. Cnet’s Download.com provides a very thorough database of safe freeware downloads. If you need the real thing, most software companies offer a free trial period, which should offer enough time to get (re)acquainted with the newest version of the program you need to know.

• Languages

  Whether a programming/scripting or foreign language, most companies are looking for employees that ‘speak their language.’ If it’s a simple one, such as HTML or Spanish, your refresher should be pretty easy. If you’re heading into the realm of Mandarin and Python,

  For the scripting codes, you’ll be able to find plenty of good quality resources online. Webmonkey is a great place to check out cheatsheets and tutorials for HTML, CSS, User Interface Design, PHP, Python, and more. Even Wikipedia can be a good place to find help, especially if you check out the references area of their pages.  If it’s a book you’re looking for, O’Reilly Media has an overall quality selection of programming books for all levels.

  Time to learn a new foreign language? Or maybe brush up on those few things retained from high school French and Spanish? Linguanaut provides a completely free website where you’ll be able to find directories of foreign alphabets, phrases, forums, videos, tests, and translation. Keep in mind the majority of the phrases listed will be the formal version of the language, and may not be used in every region the language is spoken. For straight translation needs, Google Translate is a very useful service and offers translation in most languages. Once again, if you’re a book person, a standard phrase book from your local bookstore should suffice. If it’s more specific terminology, such as medical terms in Arabic, try looking online at Amazon.

• Experience

  With the job markets across the board being more competitive than ever in recent history, employers are seeking the ones with the most experience and schooling. Each will make for a lengthier process if you are aiming to close a large gap between what you have and what is required. However, you can step up the ladder (maybe not directly in one step) to be on your way to your dream job.

  Sign up for a class at a community college or a university extension program that specifically offers the ability to learn the skills you need for the job you want.  The junior / community college will offer a cheaper course, but the university extension may be a little more prestigious to put on your resume if it offers any kind of certification at the end of the class. If you’re already well versed in a skill, such as a programming language, but have yet to show it in your employment history, consider taking a test certifying your knowledge in said skill.

  Work experience requirements can provide a near Catch 22.  You need experience to get a job, but to get experience you need the job. If you’re currently enrolled full-time in college, this is slightly easier, as many employers are looking for interns to do more than just make coffee. If you’re not going to university, it’s time to utilize that network you’ve been building. Offer your services for free or at a severely reduced priced. If you want to get into event planning, offer to help a friend for free with the promise of references. Looking to put experience with CSS on your resume? Offer some suggestions to that entrepreneur you met at your last Meetup. You can get experience, you just may need to temporarily lower your working price to get it.

You are already serious about your job search, now it’s time to get realistic about your qualifications. Anything can be achieved, just be honest with yourself, work on what you need to be competitive, and persevere. Always remember, 360 is here to help you with professional Career Action Planning. Check it out, your dream job is closer than you think, and 360 can help get you there.