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Posts published in “Day: December 23, 2014”

Your grammar, your job (or not)

strickland MICHAEL
STRICKLAND

 
Literacy

“If you think an apostrophe was one of the 12 disciples of Jesus, you will never work for me.” Kyle Wiens in the Harvard Business Review.

While Idaho’s job market is slowly improving, the buzz around the Treasure Valley is still filled with stories of unemployment and underemployment. A business grammar course in the College of Western Idaho’s Business Partnerships /Workforce Development program suggests a way you can get an edge.

“Clear communication is the foundation for success in the business world, and grammar mistakes create barriers to this communication,” reads the introduction to the CWI student manual for the training. The consensus among teachers, scholars and grammarians is that clarity and correctness have taken a nosedive in the “information age.”

Employers often peruse Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages of job applicants that are filled with spelling mistakes, poor grammar, and textspeak. This is one of the quickest ways for a candidate to seal their own job rejection. According to Time, out of the 70 percent of hiring managers who utilize social media profiles to gather more information regarding an applicant -- one-third have declined on candidates due to “poor communication skills.”

“The employer is more apt to question your professionalism if you show a pattern of misspelled words… or your commentary seems rash, uninformed or non-cohesive,” said Jennifer Grasz, a CareerBuilder spokeswoman. (more…)

On the front pages

news

Here’s what public affairs news made the front page of newspapers in the Northwest today, excluding local crime, features and sports stories. (Newspaper names contracted with location)

New Boise police chief to stay on track (Boise Statesman)
2 wolves spotted in Asotin County Lewiston Tribune)
Free clinic in Lewiston stretched for resources (Lewiston Tribune)
Idaho owes more than $400k lawyer bills in marriage case (Nampa Press Tribune, TF Times News, Moscow News)
Caldwell may soon widen 21st Avenue (Nampa Press Tribune)
Bogus Basin prepares for opening (Nampa Press Tribune)
Pebble Creek skiing area opens (Pocatello Journal)

Highway 101 reopens from flooding (Eugene Register Guard)
New architect for Medford fire station (Medford Tribune)
Harkenrider ends 54 years on Hermiston council (Pendleton E Oregonian)
Fish/wildlife using drones to gather data (Pendleton E Oregonian)
Oregon electronic recycling will accept more (Salem Statesman Journal)

An aircraft carrier heads to scrap yard (Bremerton Sun)
Koster bounced from Snohomish ombudsman job (Everett Herald)
Chief deputy prosecutor at Cowlitz dismissed (Longview News)
KapStone and union keep on talking (Longview News)
Federal court banning jail waits for mentally ill (Tacoma News Tribune, Vancouver Columbian, Olympian)
Three more pot stores okayed near Tacoma (Olympian)
Deadline for health insurance arrives (Seattle Times, Olympian)
Tunnel work expected to end 2 years late (Seattle Times)
Spokane downtown seeing high tech light show (Spokane Spokesman)
Inslee will appointent new legislator (Tacoma News Tribune)
New sheriff takes over in Clark
Land trust gains 3000 acres near Mt St Helens (Vancouver Columbian)