Liz Ryan

I used to be shy about gently nudging people to join LinkedIn, but of course I'm not shy about that now.

Whoever misconceived of HR as a process and systems role is fooling themselves and the millions of working people who rely on them because the real work to be done is empowering for employees and customers and shareholders.

Whether you're thinking of making a job change or re-entering the workforce in 2012 or whether you're planning on staying the course in your current gig, here are five good things to do for your career this month:

What do any of us have to lose when we're applying for a job? Why not jump out there and be ourselves, totally, and see what happens?

Dear Liz, I've been interviewing for seven months without an offer (six interviews, about one a month) and I'm getting somewhat desperate. This trans...

People like an abusive boss can only exist because other people allow them to. What if the whole crew up and quit one day -- how would he run his business then?

There is no ethical or etiquette problem involved in quitting a job you haven't even begun yet. It's another thing to quit the job on the third day or second week of work.

If you're using a "Human Voice" Resume style in a chronological format, what is the best way to include volunteer work experience?

You thought your medical marijuana card made it legal for you to smoke or ingest THC? Too bad. Colorado employers are claiming their pot policies don't have to allow for medical marijuana use.

Job-seekers have a lot on their minds, but I don't know of anything that worries job-hunters more than resume gaps and blemishes.

Don't assume that no one has any money because of the recession. Ask yourself: what is their business pain costing them, right now?

Half the world jumps from consulting to in-house employment every couple of years. Consulting experience isn't a problem in any way.

No matter how hungry we are, if we decide that getting a job means abdicating our power and allowing ourselves to be disrespected, we are done.

In general, it is best to err on the side of caution when approaching people we don't know and using our friends' names as entry points for job opportunities.

"You're overqualified" is a sales objection, like a client saying "The price is too high." When we run into a sales objection, we want to ask questions.

If your new manager's department is so poorly run that three more days without your presence would be so devastating, what could you possibly learn from him?

It is fine to say "I had reached a plateau in that job" or "I felt that I'd grown as much as I ever would in that organization." Here are ten more reasons for leaving a job, expressed in Don't Say and Do Say versions.

Why do people keep enabling unethical, badly-managed employers when they behave like swine? I don't want you to grovel and beg on your job search. I want you to be yourself at every instant.

We can and should expect recruiters, hiring managers and HR people to explain their reasons for every request they make of a job seeker.

One company may come forward with an offer faster than the second company will schedule their interview. How do I tactfully stall the one process and speed up the other to give myself more time to make a decision?

There are networkers, and power networkers, and people who should never be allowed to meet unsuspecting new people in coffee shops.

Here's the thing: they're going to hire the best person they can find for the job, right? You can open up the salary conversation with some discussion about just who's getting the job offer.

We have absorbed so much unfortunate job-search dogma over the years, so many ideas that hinder us and keep us focused on the wrong things.

The good news is that we don't have to puff ourselves up in a resume. We can tell stories. The story lets the reader know what we've done and lets him or her decide whether we're a good fit.

The vast majority of people in the world, and undoubtedly millions of job-seekers, have no idea that a Human-Voiced Resume approach exists.