From the news

90% of the time I am on SFGate I read the TV schedule for sports and nothing else. Well, it's an exception today. Quite a bit of eye-catching business news:

• Facebook ads boost condom brand in Indonesia This one actually sounds more like an ad for Facebook then a news report. Turns out FB ads boost other brands too, as mentioned in the article, like Nestle. So, FB is smart enough to show a still image on dumb phone and an animation on smart phone. That's really news-worthy. The most interesting (and sad) quote is this: "Companies like Nestle are seeing sales flag in developed countries like the United States, as people get more health conscious, analysts said. The growth areas for those businesses are in developing countries" You can draw your own conclusion here.
• Port of San Francisco bears down on Sinbad’s Looks like the SF waterfront area around the Wharf and the Ferry building is going through quite a bit of changes. Sinbad's might be gone next time I'm in that area (Well, I've never tried it). And I heard that the pier for Alcatraz ferry might move too.   
• Yahoo closing China office According to the article, the Beijing office has served as a research and development center for Yahoo. Yahoo is looking for new ways to trim expenses as it comes under pressure from investors who have called for cost-saving measures. I thought offshoring R&D IS the way to save cost! No?

Career day and DiSC

I work for a very large company. People move in and out and around a lot. This week the HR department organized a career day for the IT folks. Maybe they think a lot of us are not very mindful about our career development while focusing on technology too much. I don't know. The workshops on interviewing skill and resume writing come at the right time though. I've learned a few good terms/concepts:

-Elevator pitch: it's how I could describe to a stranger (like the CEO I might run into at the elevator) what I do in 60 seconds.

-STAR: situation task action and result. That's how I should describe my work experiences in terms of projects I did.

-List accomplishment instead of responsibility 

-prep matrix: for each requirements in the job I apply for, relate it to one of my previous projects.

-DiSC are 4 behavioral styles. D is dominance. This type of person is strong-willed, like challenges and take risks and be competitive. Their activity to relieve stress is sports. I is influence. This type is very sociable and optimistic. Their activity to relieve stress is socialize. S is steadiness. This type is loyal and tolerant. Their stress activity is rest. C is compliance. This type is perfectionist and like things to go by the book. Their activity is to be alone. If you know me well, it's pretty obvious which type I am :D Each job also has its behavioral style. So it comes down to whether I could be flexible enough to match mine with the job. Of course it's easier if they match.