Press release

After a few short press releases for Moving Arts Dance in Concord, I've now written my first full-length press release for the group, although you could consider my resume a press release. Anyway, here it is:

For more information, contact:
Scott Belding, Moving Arts Dance: 925-825-8399 or e-mail: info@MovingArtsDance.org
Aaron Crowe, public relations, 925-482-5934, or e-mail: aaron.crowe.consulting@gmail.com

Meet Major League Baseball Manager Tony La Russa and get his autograph at recycling event

Sponsored by Moving Arts Dance Center & Theater, and AT&T Real Yellow Pages

CONCORD, CA, JAN. 21, 2009 -- Tony La Russa, manager of the St. Louis Cardinals and former Oakland A's manager, will appear at an autograph signing of the new AT&T Real Yellow Pages on Saturday, Jan. 31, from 1-3 p.m. at Moving Arts Dance Center, 1281-C Franquette Ave. in Concord. A suggested donation of $10 is requested.

La Russa will sign copies of the new Contra Costa County Central AT&T Real Yellow Pages to kick off the annual phone book recycling drive. La Russa and his daughter, Moving Arts Dance member Devon, are featured on the cover of the new AT&T phone book alongside Moving Arts Dance members and Artistic Director Anandha Ray. AT&T is a 2009 season presenting sponsor for Moving Arts Dance. La Russa is on the board of directors for Moving Arts.

New, signed copies of the phone books will be provided at the event.

Residents and businesses that bring their old phone books to the event to be recycled will get a new phone book signed by the manager of two World Series-winning teams, including the A's. One of his former players, Rickey Henderson, was recently voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Moving Arts Dance is a 501(c)3 non-profit charitable arts organization. It is a dance company, school and theater, and has classes, workshops and shows each year.

Moving Arts Dance Theater presents a variety of dance performances throughout the year. Under Executive Director Scott Belding, its professional dancers have traveled around the globe to perform. Artistic Director Anandha Ray, who is also on the phone book cover, heads the dance company and the dance center.

Here are some upcoming events at Moving Arts Dance:

* Salon Concert on Feb. 7 and 8, titled "Beauty from Darkness" with the band Judgement Day. The shows are at 8 p.m. Feb. 7 and 2 p.m. Feb. 8 at the Moving Arts Dance Theater at 1281-C Franquette Ave., Concord. Advance tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for seniors and children. Tickets on the day of the show are $25 for adult and $20 for seniors and children.

* Jan. 30 auditions for "Hansel & Gretel's House of Rock," an original show that gives dancers a chance to build their resume by performing with a professional company. A variety of parts are available for children, teens and adults, from non-dance roles through professional dance roles. Participants should wear clothes that are easy to move in and show your body, bare feet and hair back with no bangs (no baggy clothes, please). Dancers should arrive warmed up and ready to learn choreography, and arrive on the floor ready to go 15 minutes before their start time. Start times vary by age and experience: 4 p.m. for children ages 5-8; 5 p.m. for children ages 9-12; 5 p.m. for age 13 to adult who are beginner dancers and character actors; and 6 p.m. for others age 13 to adult. A $5 audition fee is required. If cast in the show, a participation fee will be required to cover costs related to rehearsals, costuming and performances. Fundraisers will be available to students to help cover their fee.

For more information on Moving Arts Dance, call the studio at 925-825-8399 or go online to http://www.movingartsdance.org/.

For people who can't make it to the recycling event and autograph session with La Russa on Jan. 31, they can call the AT&T Real Yellow Pages Project ReDirectory help line at 800-953-4400 for directory recycling information.

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Here are the Moving Arts Dance members pictured on the cover of the AT&T Real Yellow Pages, from left to right:

* Anandha Ray, Artistic Director of Moving Arts Dance. An award winning choreographer, she holds two master's degrees in dance, is in the Contra Costa County Women's Hall of Fame, a former chairwoman of a university dance program and has more than 30 years' experience with teaching, choreographing and producing dance concerts and tours.

* Devon La Russa, assistant artistic director. Devon debuted with Moving Arts Dance in July 2002 at the Chronicle Pavilion in Concord, and is a principal dancer in the group. She performed with Oakland Ballet from 1995-2005, performing principal roles in Michael Lowe's choreography and with other choreographers. She has been a freelance flamenco artist since 2005 and is studying and performing with award winning flamenco dancer and choreopgrapher Yaelisa.

* Tony La Russa, board member of Moving Arts Dance for five years.

* Coreen Danaher, (in background) debuted with Moving Arts Dance Center in April 2006. Born in Vallejo, she studied for 10 years at Vallejo Ballet Conservatory and later trained at Berkeley Ballet Theater. She has performed with Ballet Counterpointe Rep, as a corps dancer in Diablo Ballet's Paquita, and as a guest in Professional Ballet School's Spring Showcase. She is in her second season at Peninsula Ballet.

* Paris Wages, assistant artistic director, joined Moving Arts Dance in September 2005. She has danced with several companies, including Los Angeles Classical Ballet, Winifred R. Harris' Between Lines, Heidi Duckler's Collage Dance Theatre, Los Angeles Opera, Opera Pacific, San Diego Opera and San Francisco Opera Ballet. She has been adjunct faculty at Solano Community College since 2005.

* Mariko Takahashi joined Moving Arts Dance in 2007. She received her training at the Ayako School of Ballet, in Belmont, where she also teaches ballet and jazz. She has performed with the Oakland Ballet, Peninsula Ballet Theater, Diablo Ballet, the Ronn Guidi Foundation for the Performing Arts, and Sierra Nevada Ballet. In addition to her work with Moving Arts Dance, she has had the pleasure to have dances created for her by choreographers such as Donald McKayle, and Scott Rink, and has performed principal roles in full-length productions such as Giselle, Sleeping Beauty, and Don Quixote.

* Maria LaMance joined Moving Arts Dance in summer 2005. She trained at the San Francisco Ballet School and earned her bachelor of arts degree at San Francisco State University. She has performed with numerous modern dance companies and independent choreographers, including Heidi Schweiker, Lea Wolf, Kate Corby and Dancers, Earth Circus Productions, Jenice Alcosta Movers and Huckabay McAllister Dance. She teaches ballet and Russian character dance at Dance Theater international and is a certified massage therapist.

* Terrin McGee Kelly (being lifted) joined in summer 2004. She has dance with Ballet Magnificat, Oakland Ballet, Peninsula Ballet Theater, Theater Ballet of San Francisco, and has guest performed in and around the Bay Area. She has been an extra for Comedy Central, the the series Nash Bridges and the Matrix II. She was a participant in the Miss America Organization, holding titles over three years while she promoted her platform of arts in education, where she gave lecture demonstrations, assemblies and performances at local schools.

* Adam Aicher, ballet master, has danced with Company C and started with Moving Arts in 2007. He received full scholarships to Boston Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Houston Ballet and received a ballet scholarship to the University of Utah. In 2003 he was invited to study under Fernando bujones at Orlando Ballet. he is a dual-certified pilates trainer, is Red Cross CPR and First Aid certified, and gives frequent lectures on dancer health and injury prevention. He has extensive experience working with all levels of dancers and athletes.

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Marketing me

The marketing of Aaron Crowe looks to get a bit interesting this week as a guerrilla job search firm has offered to help me rework my resume. If I like the service, I'll promote it here and tell my friends, family, etc. I was laid off more than six months ago and figure I might as well try something different. I'll give it a try and report what's happening here so other unemployed people can learn from it and apply it to their job search too.

I'm also busy today working on a spot.us story and a lengthy piece for WalletPop.

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Simplify, simplify, simplify

A comment was recently made by a WalletPop reader on my story about callbacks for job interviews. He didn't gain anything from the story, which is fine, and he made a point that I think is worth remembering in the search for a job. The full letter is linked to the story, but this is part of what he wrote:

"I've also been unemployed for 6 months, and I've found the simplestatement "I'm here to work, what do you want me to do?"has hired more people than the most elaborate resume or most timely call back."

I see the point and agree that too often job searchers can spend too much time on resumes and worrying about callbacks and other things out of their control that they can lose sight of the simple thing they're trying to do: Get a job. Granted, it's not easy in a recession, but there are jobs out there and it's good advice to keep it simple and not worry about callbacks. I, like I expect most people, try to learn from my mistakes and want to find out better ways that I could have presented myself to get the job. While I still plan on using as many methods as I can to find a job, maybe it's best to try them and then move on if they don't work. Let them fall by the side of the road if they don't work and see what else might work.

As Henry David Thoreau said: Simplify, simplify, simplify.

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Finding a meaningful career

One thing I was told again and again by friends and people I'd run into when discussing being laid off, at least in the early days of my layoff, was that things happen for a reason and that the best will come of this. I agree with fatalism to a certain point, but I also think we each make our own path based on the decisions we make. I was laid off almost six months ago (June 27, making the day after the day after Christmas a six-month anniversary I don't want to celebrate) and while I can partially agree to the premise that all things happen for a reason, I'm still searching for the good behind losing my job. Maybe when I find one the clouds will clear and I'll know where I stand in the universe.

But until then, I continue looking for full-time work. And one good thing I can pull from this search is that it gives me a chance to explore careers I probably wouldn't have if I was still working at a newspaper. For example, as a newspaper reporter and editor, I could never take a stand on an issue, for fear that it would look like I had a bias on a story. I tried to keep my opinions to myself on politics and the like, and I didn't appear at community events such as a fund-raiser for a local politician I supported, because I worked at a newspaper and was to remain objective. I didn't mind because I loved my job so much.

Now I'm free to choose a career where I can have an opinion and if not actively advocate for a position, at least support it openly. For example, I want to work somewhere where I can not only make a difference, but can do work that will benefit the local community, if not the world. I want my writing, speaking and any other work I do in the job I'll eventually find to help benefit that cause. One arena could be in the "green" field, such as solar power or other energy fields, as I strongly believe that America should be rid of its foreign oil habit and be a leader in ending global warming.

As in journalism, I'd like to work somewhere that benefits people and serves a greater good. I enjoy informing people and helping them learn things, and helping them solve their problems. It may sound like an oxymoron, but I'd like to work in government for those reasons. I think government can help people achieve their best and provide services to make their lives better.

That's partly why I volunteered in the November election to help re-elect U.S. Congressman Jerry McNerney. He was a good candidate and someone with views that I could get behind. The writing and other work I did on that campaign gave me a lot of experience that I hope will lead to a job. It was a great learning experience that showed me I'm on the right path.

A few months ago someone from a career center at a community college reviewed my resume and was so impressed she said she couldn't think of much to change or add to the resume, just a few tweaks. She was amazed by my experience and was confident I would find a good job soon. I was doing everything she could think of to find work, such as networking, getting informational interviews, adding to my job skills and polishing my resume. I was a bit down because I had sent out many resumes and had interviews without any success. She pointed out that everything I'm doing is like a gardener planting seeds, and that all of the contacts and other things I've done in the job search would lead to some flowers growing and that I would have my pick of jobs.

I've planted plenty of seeds, and plan to plant more. I just want to see some start growing.

(NOTE: I've added multiple paragraph marks between paragaphs, and they aren't working. Any blogger experts, please advise.)

Podcast resume

My job search now includes a podcast! I was at the CPC Job Connections weekly meeting on Saturday morning, where Ian Griffin of Executive Communications was giving a speech about how to do a podcast to aid in a job search. At the end he picked a name out of a hat to interview someone about their job skills, and my name was chosen.

Listen to the podcast here at his Web site. Or go to:
http://www.exec-comms.com/blog/2008/11/15/interview-arron-crowe-job-seeker-blogger/

It was a lot of fun and why I someday see this as a way to promote myself, it seems like it would be a lot more useful as a way to get out the word about a hobby or something you want to tell the world about. Maybe I'll do some news or feature stories, AKA Studs Terkel, and put those on a podcast. While the learning curve doesn't look to steep, it does look like it will take some time and a small investment for software, equipment and a server.

Resume help wanted, apply within

There are plenty of places to go for help in writing a resume if you're willing to pay. And there are probably fewer, but still good, people who will help review resumes for free. Today I went to one of the free ones, and I'm happy to say that other than a few tweaks, my resume seems in good shape. It's a few posts below this one if you're interested, and I plan to rewrite and move a few things around and will have another version posted by early next week.

Today I went to EastBay Works in Concord, where a kind person from Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill looked at my resume and gave me a few tips. We also discussed my job search, and I was glad to hear that I'm doing everything right in looking for full-time work. I'm doing everything she said she'd recommend to people hunting for jobs: I'm spending half of my time networking and the other half applying for jobs I find on craigslist, Indeed or other such Web sites; I'm going on informational interviews; I've joined a networking group; I'm volunteering, I'm looking for work I'm qualified for and tyring to move my job skills from one field to another, and I'm doing freelance work related to my field.

Since the top third of a resume is what gets looked at the most and quickest by an employer, she suggested that I move my excellent work experience up and take the "Skills" section and incorporate that into the accomplishments bulleted in my professional experience. I plan to make those changes and to try to spice up the look of the resume by early next week. After that, I'd like to try to find someone who hires for Web writing jobs and see what they think.

The new resume

It may not look as sharp here as it does as e-mail attachment or on paper, but here is the newest and most improved, resume. Let me know your thoughts.

Aaron Crowe
Concord, California 94521
Residence: (925) 680-2557 Cell: (925) 482-5934 aaron.crowe.consulting@gmail.com


Writer/Editor
Editor ~ Researcher ~ Internet writer
Page designer ~ Complex decision making ~ Team Building

SUMMARY
Extensive background in writing and editing news stories and designing pages at daily newspapers as reporter, copy editor and assigning editor. Analytical, critical thinking skills used daily under deadline circumstances. Able to ask probing questions and synthesize complex information into understandable prose. Excellent written and verbal communications skills. Part of a Pulitzer Prize winning team.

SKILLS
Communication: Excellent written and verbal communication skills, working as a reporter, copy editor and assigning editor at daily newspapers. Also writing for city publications, blogging, and writing communications for Bay Area Congressman.

Problem solving: Headed weekend coverage at Contra Costa Times, overseeing reporters and working with every department in the newsroom to coordinate newspapers and ensure story packages were complete and accurate.

Analysis: As an assistant metro editor, coordinated news coverage and worked with reporters on getting timely, analytical, accurate news stories daily.

Project management: Oversaw two weekly newspapers at the Contra Costa Times, along with weekend coverage, requiring coordinating many departments.

Employee training: Trained newsroom staff on QuarkXPress for a year and helped with implementation of a new computer system.

EXPERIENCE

July 2008-Present

Owner of AC Consulting, a communications firm offering freelance writing/editing. Clients include city of San Ramon and writing/editing quarterly newsletter for city; United Reporting of Sacramento; and writing biographies for retirement community residents.

Blogger at www.talesofanunemployeddad.blogspot.com, about looking for work while keeping a young daughter occupied.

Volunteer at a Bay Area Congressman's re-election headquarters. Writing and researching for campaign's deputy communications director.

Leader of a Success Team of Community Presbyterian Church Job Connections in Danville, the largest networking group in the Bay Area. I formed and coordinate a Concord group, which meets weekly.

1995-2008
CONTRA COSTA TIMES – Walnut Creek, California
Assistant Metro Editor (2004 – 2008)
Direct supervision of staff, including successful management of all compensation, scheduling, training and employee relations issues.
Responsible for all story budgeting components of four different newspapers owned by the Times.
Led team of reporters throughout Contra Costa County to organize and edit all publications and meet critical deadlines.
Make daily decisions based on complex and conflicting information.
Strong customer service skills exercised both internal and external to the organization.
Critical thinking skills used on a daily basis. Led team of reporters in analytical stories and in-depth projects.
Extended experience interacting with cities and their various branch offices.
Facilitated daily and weekly brainstorming sessions with staff and the management team.
Copy Editor (1995 – 2003)
Extensive editing experience within the Business and News Departments
Responsible for teaching pagination system QuarkXPress to staff.
Design news pages using text, photos and graphics.
Have also worked as copy editor and reporter at newspapers in Fairfield, Tracy and Ridgecrest, California.

AWARDS
Part of 1997 Pulitzer Prize winning team for Public Service for coverage of Grand Forks, N.D. flood.
California Newspaper Publishers Association first-place award for illustration for a weekly publication in 2005.
CNPA second-place award for page layout for a weekly publication in 2005.
CNPA second-place award for public service for a weekly publication in 2005.

EDUCATION
San Jose State University, Bachelor of Arts degree (with distinction) in Journalism, Minor in English

TRAINING
Software training includes Microsoft Word, JazzBox, InDesign, QuarkXPress

Rewriting the resume

Writing a successful resume is one of the most difficult parts of the job search. For the past few weeks I've been focusing on rewriting my resume after discovering that it was geared more toward newspapers and less toward other areas where I want to work, such as the Internet. I don't know why it took me months to figure this out, but with the help of someone during an informational interview, I learned that my old resume wasn't going to get me a job. I'm trying new things and expect the next one to do more.

There are tons of Web pages about how to write resumes, and plenty of people are willing to do it for a price, or even for free, and I could even add some power words to spice it up and attract some more looks.

One trick is to put words from the job description, such as the common "communication skills" in the resume so that when a computer scans it for keywords, those will pop out and move it up the pile. I like to take the approach of having as many people look at it as possible, getting their feedback, and using what I think is best. On Thursday, for example, I'm going to EastBay Works to have my resume reviewed by a professional for free. I've also given it to my Success Team at Job Connections for their input, which has been the most valuable so far, and changed things around. Another idea is to give it to a potential employer, probably during an informational interview, and see what they think and if it's what they're looking for in a potential employee.

Once I get it completed, probably by the end of the week, I'll post it in a blog and see what the readers think.