Hundreds look to sharpen job-seeking skills in California

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif. — More than 300 people attended the free Performance Breakthrough Conference to receive advice on finding a job or starting a business on Oct. 22. The conference was hosted by the Rancho Santa Margarita Management Society and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., and was opened to the community. __IMAGE2__\"There were many in our society that wanted to host the event after the holidays, but I was convinced the need was urgent and we just couldn't wait,\" said Ken Gibson, president of the RSM Management Society.

There were eight workshops ranging from Jason Lavine's \"Online Social Networking Tools\" to Jordan Law's workshop on \"Provident Living in a Topsy Turvy Economy.\" Presenter, Gary B. Walburger, a principal at Burgess Leighton & Associates, a local recruiting firm specializing in executive search, taught a workshop on how to position yourself to a potential employer. Walburger advised that job searchers should \"create a personal marketing plan before you ever start a job search.\" He explained that most people just send out resumes without really knowing what they are looking for and without doing their homework. Homework is the key to a successful job search.

Peter Vidmar, the highest scoring American gymnast in Olympic history, gave a vibrant keynote on what it takes to win. \"If you work on your goals for 15 minutes per day more than the competition that would equal 91 additional hours in a year. Those 91 hours could be the difference between getting the job and coming in second. And as everyone knows, they don't give silver medals in the job market,\" he counseled attendees.