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2014 Year in Review: What You May Have Missed

Time flies when you are busy blogging. 2014 has been a busy year in workforce development. In workforce development news, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA) passed and became law and suddenly we are getting ready for the next big thing in the industry. While you have been studying up on the newest changes, there may have been things you may have missed in the blogosphere. To wrap up 2014, I am going to catch you up on all the things you may have missed on KCSpeaks.
 
The Softest Hard Thing
Back in March, I was bringing to light one of the hardest things for job seekers. It is not the hard job search skills like résumé development, but rather it is the thing that gets people in the door. The soft skill that is so hard for people is asking for help. Everyone knows people that have difficulty asking for help. It is not any different for job seekers. Anyone that has worked in workforce development has met a job seeker like this, but once the job seeker seeks help, the transformation can be life (and career) changing!
 
Emotional Roadblocks on the Motivation Highway
Motivation is tough stuff. It is the thing that makes us “go” and “do.” It is an action that propels people to become job seekers and ultimately employees. If only there was a magic pill that we could just dispense. Unfortunately there is not and in workforce development much of our frustration can come from working with people that we may feel do not have the correct level of motivation. Although no one can motivate another, in May I published some thoughts on motivation and working with job seekers.
 
Examining Success in People and Programs
It is probably the most written about topic in business. How to be successful books and articles are everywhere. They are for every subject from sports to business and everything in between. I decided to take a look at how the principles of success seem to fit into the latest trends in workforce development. 
 
Workforce Development: It’s What’s for Dinner
Sometimes we need to find analogies that we can all relate to and food is one of them. In July, I examined workforce development, using some food analogies. Job Seeking is like baking a cake. Success is like sushi. Hungry yet?
 
Who Says Blind Girls Can’t Paint
People with disabilities have amazing abilities and talents that may people may not have. In August, I was fortunate to experience the amazing talent of people with disabilities. I also left you with a couple of resources to tap into when assisting job seekers with disabilities.
 
I can’t believe that 2014 is over, but I am looking forward to 2015 and new inspiration. I want to thank all of my readers for following me throughout the year and through my experiences in workforce development. Questions, comments, issues? Feel free to post below or to send me an email at kcirincione@gmail.com. ~ Karen Cirincione

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