OK, you are ready to contact your very first model agency -- or are you? You look through the pages of agents listed on the Internet to find just that right one in your area to contact; or maybe you are going for the big-time in New York City!

It doesn't matter. The lump in your throat just got bigger and you are turning pale with fear of hearing that awful word ,,, NO!!

Now, before you stop reading and say; "This guy is not only negative but he is reminding me of what I feel.", just remember that these feelings are perfectly normal.

Self confidence more important than attractiveness ? More important than ability?

I believe it is. In all reality, self confidence is attractiveness. No matter how pretty you are your chances of becoming a model are slim if you are not confident enough to make the contacts. So, being a sexy and attractive model is not enough, believing in yourself is key!

Even super-successful people sometimes have a confidence problem. Here are a couple of confidence qoutes to make you feel a little better about your situation....

Barbara Streisand had a period of time (after she had become a huge success in music and movies) where she was absolutely terrified to go on stage. Barbara had a confidence problem. It took all the courage she could muster to do a comeback performance so you are not alone!

Another good example is .. ME! I used to be so shy I could not lead a group in silent prayer! I could not talk to people, I felt inadequate in conversation (still sometimes get those feelings) and certainly could not see any degree of success in anything I attempted. You know what was missing? That's right... Confidence!

Do you want to know how I overcame this obstacle and began to have some success in my life?

I would have to say that one of the main keys in overcoming my shyness was education. When I was discharged from the Army I decided it was time to do something in my life (I had no idea what) and go to college. In school I became a psychology major with plans to teach. I later found that teaching was not quite what I wanted to do but the psychology courses taught me some things about my shyness and confidence.

I learned that confidence comes with knowledge. The more I knew about a subject the more confident I became in talking to others about it.

What in the world does this all this about self confidence have to do with modeling?

In a sense, everything!

If you want to make it as a fashion, glamour or figure model you must have a certain confidence. How do you gain this confidence in modeling? By studying and learning everything you can about the industry, finding what makes a successful model, and last but certainly not least ... practice, practice, practice!!

I know there are some limitations for certain kinds of modeling as we discussed in the article about model types but this is not what I am talking about here. I am assuming that you have written down some clear goals outlining the type modeling you are most interested in and suited for and that you are developing a plan to make your goals work.

Remember, a dream is just a dream but it becomes a goal when you write it down, put a date of completion on it, and start step one today.

Confidence comes with small successes and from failures.

I will never answer a teen girl or woman when she asks me whether or not she can make it as a model because people through history have done that and regretted it later. Sort of like the engineers of the Titanic calling it "unsinkable".

I also refer often to two other "failures" in show business.

The first was told he had no singing voice and should go back to his job of driving a truck. This was Elvis Presley.

The second was a new rock group in the early sixties. They were told by a major record label that "bands with guitars are on their way out" and were turned down. This little group turned out to be the Beatles.

So, you are in good company if you are turned down by an agency. Always ask yourself, "What's the very worst that could happen if I apply to an agency?"

I believe the obvious answer is the worst that can happen is that they say no. If this is the case then you are in no worse situation than you are now. But what if they say yes!!

The main point to remember is that everyone is not going to like your "look" and you will most likely be turned down at least once or maybe more but those who have a chance are the ones who keep working to improve and who keep contacting agents. All of a sudden someone could say "yes"; or maybe not.

Want to become a failure? You can do it! The best way to become a failure is not to try. When you look back on your life in later years, even if you never get a single modeling job, I want you to be able to say, "I gave it everything I had" and not be like so many others who say "if only".

Be honest in your self-assessment, follow up with study and lots of practice. Remember that self confidence is attractiveness. If you embrace these thoughts and take these first steps, your esteem will grow and you will find yourself contacting agencies and building self confidence as you make small gains. These are essential if you are to have success in modeling.

If you have a viable business idea and are looking to start your own business, it is important that you have a very well written, polished, professional resume. You will need to use your resume, along with your business plan, in order to gain investment opportunities for your business and gets started. Your resume should be written as if you are applying to be a business owner of the organization you wish to start. While this may sounds silly, as you would of course be working for yourself, it is important to show your investors that you have professional experience to run the business you are proposing. Your qualifications, career goals, education and prior experience should all be aligned with your business venture.

Once you have started your own business, you will come in contact with vendors, independent contractors, and clients who will want to know what you are about before they decide to do business with you. While you can promote your business through a web site, or other advertising mediums, if you are new to what you do, people will want to know about you. To help assure then in your abilities, you can use a resume to let them know of your qualifications. You can use the same resume for your vendors or clients as you used you’re your investors. Keep in mind that any financial goals pertaining to the business, that may be necessary for your investors, should never appear on the resume or personal letter you send to your clients or business partners. Your professional summary should be changed to show how you would service your clients or your vendors; a statement about client satisfaction would be necessary in a resume you are to share with your clients, for example.

Additionally, as a small business owner, you may have an opportunity to branch out into another business, start a new location of your existing business, partner with another company, or even have an opportunity to go work for a larger company in your field. In each of these scenarios, you may need an up-to-date resume highlighting your professional and entrepreneurial experience. It is best to have a prepared resume, and keep updating it or customizing it for specific audiences as necessary. Avoid finding yourself in a position of not having a resume when requested, or having to develop a resume from a blank page in a short period of time. This exposes you to appearing unprofessional, and not representing yourself or your business in a professional and serious light. Thus, you will want to have a well-written and a well-formatted resume even if you own your own business; marketing yourself well, in addition to marketing your business well, will assure your success as a business owner.

Most managers agree that hiring the best person for the job is perhaps the most important step they will take in ensuring their team's long term success. In the pharmaceutical industry each company receives 500 resumes a day from those seeking an opportunity to be hired on within the industry. In fact looking at these numbers from a percentage point of few, you have a far better chance of being accepted to one of the nations most prestigious advanced degree programs that to be hired as a pharmaceutical sales representative.

If your resume has been one of the hundreds reviewed and you are now preparing for a series of interviews, we are here to help. Most pharmaceutical companies either interview candidates right out of college, or are looking for candidates who have sales experience with another company. Which ever group you fit into, if you are like most people, you don't go through interviews every day. Whatever your background, you will benefit from the coaching and training we can provide you regarding what pharmaceutical managers are looking for and how they go about the interview and hiring process. This advantage will greatly enhance the likelihood that you will land one of the most coveted sales positions in the country.

Understanding the Process of the Interview Hiring the wrong person can a costly mistake for an organization. It is estimated that it costs a company up to $200,000 to replace a representative that leaves the company after only 6 months of being on the job. These costs include the cost of advertising, time interviewing, salary, bonus, training, travel, etc…. Obviously, a company wants to do everything they can to avoid making such costly mistakes. They can reduce mistakes and improve the chances of hiring the right person by clearly identifying what the key capabilities are for a sales representative and hire candidates who can demonstrate they have those capabilities

Because these key capabilities have been identified as vital to sales success in the Pharmaceutical Industry, they will be an important focus during the entire hiring process, from reviewing resumes, telephone screening, interviews and making the final decision. Because of this your whole focus during the process should be to demonstrate that you have these essential capabilities that will lead to success in Pharmaceutical Sales. All throughout the process if you focus your energies in finding ways to demonstrate strengths in each of the key capabilities you will increase your chances of being hired. This includes writing a resume, preparing for an interview, your performance during the interviews and in follow-up to the interviews. Think of it as if your job during each phase is to be able to demonstrate to the company that you have the capabilities that will make you successful as a representative and will show the company that you can eliminate the inherent risk the company takes when hiring a new representative. Your success will be enhanced greatly if you know and understand what the key competencies are before you go into the interview and have coaching in how to demonstrate these competencies in the interview. That is the purpose of this program.

This requires thought and preparation in advance. It means you can't rely on your charm or whit to guarantee success. Nor can you rely too much on one strength such as a solid scholastic record, or good communication skills. It takes preparation in each of the major capabilities.

If you want to enter into a new career one option is to be an HGV driver. In America an HGV driver is normally called a semi driver, or hazardous transport vehicle. An HGV driver is a similar UK occupation. In order to become an HGV driver you need a special license, which can be earned in as little time as five days. If you are a conscientious vehicle driver you will be able to make it through the intensive eight-hour-a-day training.

It may seem like military camp to start. However, you are likely to catch on fast enough to earn your license. Furthermore, the probability that you will be able to find a job quickly is very high. In the UK alone there are over 80,000 vacancies. As an HGV driver you will be able to earn quite a bit of money. New C drivers will earn between £qualified C drivers earn £400 - £450 a week Once you gain more experience you will then be earning up to £560 a week, which is over £11 per hour.

One of the advantages of becoming an HGV driver is that you can enjoy the open road. You will not be confined to a puny office and you will be able to see the countryside. You may even be able to travel outside the UK, if you receive authorization to do so. One of the other advantages of being employed as an HGV driver is that you can work on a temporary or permanent basis. Furthermore you can set your own hours to work either nights or days.

If you do not want to work internationally then you can choose to work only nationally or locally. Of course, the best opportunities come to those who are the most flexible, and who are available for all types of runs. One concern that many HGV drivers may have is that of cost. If you are wondering if you can afford to fund your HGV training just remember one very old saying. That saying is as follows: Where there is a will there is a way. Some people may already work a job and will fund their training out of their own pockets. Other people might take out a loan or even get some type of educational grant.

You will want to find the best training as possible in order for you to learn properly. The best HGV training would be through a qualified professional school, or with a licensed experienced driver. The professional training that you receive should prepare you for the test that you would take in order to receive your HGV license. In order to be able to drive HGV you will need to apply for either the Category C license or the Category C+E. The Category C license will allow you to drive a one-unit truck (Rigid Vehicle) and these types are known to be easier to handle.

The Category C+E licenses (a.k.a. Class II) allow you to drive a truck with a removable trailer (Artic Truck). These are a little bit more of a challenge to maneuver, and may take a little more skill. Many drivers start out obtaining the Category C license and then later will earn their Category C+E license. However, drivers can also start out obtaining both licenses if they so choose, but they need to take the test for the Category C license with the use of a Rigid vehicle and then they can work to earn the authorization to drive the Artic Vehicle. If you are an excellent driver and you are looking for a new carrier you may want to see what the licensing requirements are for your specific locality. The requirements described in this article are mostly for the UK.

Confident communication comes from winning small victories first. Here are 4 techniques to help you gain the edge...

1. Avoid starting your responses or conversations with hedging phrases and immediate personal discounters. These fillers give off the impression the you're hiding behind your words and refusing to commit. They also have the power to negate whatever you say next. Examples include:

“I was just going to say…”
“I’m not sure if I’m right, but…”
“I don’t know if…”
“This is probably a stupid question…”

State your point confidently. No need to add extra words.

2. Take yourself on a date ALONE. Go to a fun place. Act like a real date. This will build your confidence and boost feelings of independence. (I do this at least once a month - it's the best!)

3. Use self-disclosure openings as conversation starters. They ease communication apprehension, offer insight into you and appeal to the inherent helpful nature of other people. Examples include:

“Hi, I don’t know anybody here!”
“This is my first time here.”
“I’ve never been to Dallas before.”

4. Avoid the word “interested.” It doesn’t have the confidence and persuasion of “willing.” It also uses more active language because it removes an “-ing” suffix from the sentence. For example, which of the following questions sound more confident?

“Dave, would you be interested in giving me your email?”
“Dave, would you be willing to give me your email?”

LET ME ASK YA THIS...
What's your best confidence builde