In one sentence, describe what the following article is about: While you may have handled conflict great during a college internship, if you graduated 3 years ago this is not the best example. Employers want to know who you are now, so always pick a recent example. Preferably, your example should be from a job you've held in the last 12 months. If you've been unemployed for awhile, do you have any non-work related examples? An example from volunteer work can also help showcase your experience. You want to show that you would be an asset to a company, so pick a story that makes you shine. Choose a situation where you produced amazing results and were successful in resolving a conflict. Do not pick an example where you left a situation bitter or frustrated. Focus on positive experiences, in which a situation was successfully resolved. Results are also important to showcase. You may have smoothed over a disagreement between two co-workers, but maybe the only results were a decent 20 minute presentation. You want bigger results than that. For example, talk about the time you helped smooth out a misunderstanding between a client and employee, which resulted in a huge sale for your company. Never focus solely on teamwork in a team player question. You only have so much time in a job interview to speak to all of your strengths, so make sure to get in as much information as possible. Think of what other strengths were involved in a team work experience you had. Say you worked with a co-worker on a sales pitch for a client. In addition to working successfully on a team, what other skills did this situation require? For example, you probably had to make a deadline, use great verbal communication skills, and demonstrate great interpersonal skills. Find ways to work in these skills as you outline your experience working on a team. Ask a friend or family member to help you practice for your interview by acting as the interviewer. Give them the list of sample questions you predicted might be asked. Encourage them to add their own questions too, so you can get comfortable performing under pressure when you haven't crafted the perfect answer beforehand. The more you practice and become familiar with possible questions and your answers, the easier it will be to stay calm under pressure. Ask your "interviewer" to challenge you with difficult questions and resist offering feedback until the practice is over. For this exercise, they should consider you one of several strangers they have to meet with to fill the position.
Summary: Pick a recent example. Select an example that makes you look good. Find an example that showcases your other strengths. Perform mock interviews.

Start with the spare bedroom. Clean the sheets, vacuum the floor, dust the tables. Then your bedroom. Make your bed, organize your makeup, dust the blinds. If you have kids, clean their rooms! They would appreciate it. Change the sheets, fold their clothes, switch the light bulb in the lamp. Travel through your basement to the attic. You never know where that sock you lost 2 years ago could turn up.
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One-sentence summary -- Clean the bedrooms. Sort any dirty clothes that are in the house.

Q: Just because there is a pause in the conversation doesn't mean it has to be awkward. Perhaps the person is thinking before responding or maybe there is simply a natural pause. Take this opportunity to connect in other ways such as by making eye contact or just being present with the person. Silence doesn't have to be awkward. It can be filled in other ways besides words. For example, if someone has shared something difficult with you, perhaps a family member is ill, instead of trying to find the right words, give them a hug. This shows that you care and can say even more than words. Sharing silence with someone when they don't have anything else to say, is also a good way to allow them space for an emotional response. There is generally something that caused the awkward silence. If you recognize the cause, you can more easily fill the silence. Maybe someone said something that made the other party uncomfortable. Maybe you have vastly different views about something and are avoiding conflict. Maybe you just don't have that much in common to talk about. Depending on the situation, you can respond accordingly and move forward. If you said something that made the other person uncomfortable, you can simply apologize by saying something like, "I'm sorry, that was out of place." Then move the conversation in a new direction. If you don't have much in common with the other person and have exhausted your shared interests, the silence might be telling you that it's time to leave. Excuse yourself gracefully by saying something such as, "I have to go drive Donny to football now. Take care." This works best when the conversation has been halted by somebody saying something embarrassing, rude, or untimely. For example, if you are going on and on about how much you hate chess and the other person then says, "Oh, it's my favorite game. I'm actually a grandmaster." You could say something like, "Well I guess we won't be chess partners anytime soon!" Then change the subject to an area of common ground. You could ask what other games they like. Or if you're talking with a friend and telling them about your great date last night, and they respond with the date they're having tonight, and you discover that you're both dating the same person, the silence will be so thick you could cut it with a knife. Simply say "Awkward!" in a funny voice to diffuse the tension. If you decide you enjoy the person you're talking with, but for whatever reason the conversation has stalled, suggest something you can do together. For example, if you're at a party it could be as simple as becoming the ad hoc greeting committee for new arrivals, or you could volunteer to be the bartenders for a little while. Maybe even create a signature cocktail and name it after the two of you! If you are on a date or one-on-one with someone, suggest a walk, or a snowball fight, or some other activity you can both do at the moment. Focusing on something other than your conversation partner is a sure way to make them uncomfortable and add to the awkwardness. For example, don't take out your phone and start checking for messages. Not only will they feel unimportant, but they might even leave! Find productive ways to deal with silence that involve both of you. If you really feel the need to look at your phone, you can involve the other person by showing them a short video clip or sharing a song with them. This can spark a new conversation. If conversation is not happening for whatever reason and you're in a situation that permits, smile and say "Please excuse me," and walk away. Find a friend to talk to or simply walk outside and get some fresh air. If you're on a date and simply aren't connecting with the person, call it a night. Say something like, "Well, I really should get going. I have a lot I need to get done tonight, but thanks for dinner."
A: Accept the silence. Identify the source. Acknowledge the moment. Find an activity. Avoid awkward behaviors. Know when to quit.

Problem: Article: Give your characters things that they want. Having established goals is a great way to drive the story and create storylines when you're running low on ideas. You don't want characters that seem perfect. This strikes readers as being unrealistic and boring. If you want people to really sympathize with your characters and root for them, give them flaws. They can be greedy, too talkative, rude, selfish, or not exactly smarter than your average bear. Give your characters backgrounds, interests, hobbies, and other things that show that they have actual lives. This makes them seem more real and relatable. Fight the cliches! Don't make your characters "normal" by comic standards. Give them individual and unique characteristics, and think of new and different ideas for your comic. Remember, your characters don't have to fall in love. Don't make a character for the sole purpose of being a love interest; make them realistic, and if a love story seems appropriate between two characters, let it develop in a realistic manner. Cliches aren't how people are, they are how people think they are supposed to be. You can help change this by making your characters behave like people do in the real world.
Summary:
Give them hopes and dreams. Give them flaws. Flesh out their lives. Fight cliches.