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1. You become the office Spanish translator. Which is totally fine once in a while, but you're pretty sure this wasn't actually in the job description. And if you don't speak Spanish, it's awkward to have to explain that to people and see their faces fall in disappointment.

2. You also have to become a walking, talking guide to all of Central or South America, even if you're not from a particular country. "Where in Mexico is [insert city]?" "I don't know, I've never been there." "Where is the best food in the DR?" "I don't know, my parents are from Argentina." "I'm going on vacay to PR in a few weeks, what should I do?" READ MORE AT COSMOPOLITAN LATINA

Has your job search only been met with frustration in 2014? Wouldn't it be great to start the new year with a new job?

Let's assume you have all the experience, knowledge and skills necessary for role you seek. You might think that's all that should be important. But then your applications get ignored, and the answers you do get amount to a pile of rejections. You might ask yourself: "What's wrong with this system?"

Step back, and use this season to get a better sense of the process in which you are engaged. Try looking at it from the vantage point of human resources screeners and hiring mangers. READ MORE AT AOL JOBS

Hispanic adults in the U.S. in 2014 have reported spending more money on a daily basis, on average, than is typical for the U.S. adult population: $96 vs. $90, respectively.

These results are based on interviewing conducted as part of 2014 Gallup Daily tracking, which asks Americans how much they spent "yesterday," excluding normal household bills and major purchases. It provides an indication of discretionary consumer spending. So far in 2014, daily spending averages for most months have been slightly higher than in the corresponding month in 2013, and overall average daily spending to date in 2014 is slightly higher than what was found in 2013.

President Barack Obama's recent executive action would defer the deportation of millions of immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally, many of them Hispanic. This raises the question of the potential effect this move will have on the U.S. economy. READ MORE AT GALLUP

An executive who runs a muliti-million-dollar budget at Boeing and who got ahead despite being a single mother at the age of 17, a Spaniard who quit university in the first year and the youngest trainee in Facebook are among the 20 most influential Hispanics in the field of technology in the United States.

The ranking, published Tuesday by the technology website CNET in Spanish, includes people from different nationalities and backgrounds.

"Due to the lack of an Hispanic presence in the United States technology industry, finding successful professionals who are part of the list was not easy," the director of CNET Spanish, Gabriel Sama, told Efe. Sama applauded the fact that he and his team were able to gather "a fascinating group of individuals, of various nationalities, experiences and specialties who represent very well the talent and creativity of the community in the industry." READ MORE AT LATIN TIMES

A great résumé is at the heart of any successful job hunt. While lots of job hunting advice, mine included, says that a LinkedIn profile is critical to getting noticed during your job search, it does not replace a traditional résumé.

But the older you are, the trickier it can be to create a résumé that's not only concise but also does justice to your years of experience. Here are seven ways experienced job seekers can get their résumés noticed. READ MORE AT AARP

Atlanta seldom comes to mind when most marketers think about the future of Hispanic marketing or the dynamic Hispanic millennial segment. It’s usually far down the list in discussions of the growing Hispanic population. However, it shouldn’t be.

The Fastest Hispanic Population Growth in the U.S. Is Happening in Emerging Markets Like Atlanta. Atlanta is at the epicenter of a trend I have been writing about for some time — the emergence of new non-traditional Hispanic markets. Atlanta is where Hispanics — particularly more recent immigrants — are increasingly immigrating outside the traditional Hispanic immigrant gateways of Los Angeles, New York, Miami and Chicago. READ MORE AT MEDIAPOST

Each December, salary comparison and job search site Glassdoor takes a look at the best places to work for the coming year, and the resulting list provides a snapshot of what employees experienced over the past twelve months, and what they’re hoping for in the ones to come.

To determine the best places to work, Glassdoor looks at company reviews provided by employees between November 13, 2013 and November 2, 2014, in which individuals are asked to consider and rate such factors as overall satisfaction, CEO leadership, career opportunities, compensation, and work-life balance. READ MORE AT FORBES

Urban legend has it that corporate budgets for the year have already been expended and the hiring process all but stops in December. Not so! While you may be tempted, do not put your job hunt on ice. Even in those companies where hiring is temporarily frozen, networking and interviewing continues unabated in order to lay the groundwork for a rush of job offers going out when the new budget year arrives in January.

Remember that about 80 percent of all new hires are the result of someone knowing someone else through personal networking. And because there are so many parties, gathering and events of all kinds in December, this is the high season for networking your way into a new job. READ MORE AT U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT

When Instructions Not Included, the Mexican breakout hit that quickly became the U.S.’s highest-grossing Spanish-language film ever, was released over Labor Day weekend in 2013, it was written about with mild surprise, the way that successful movies starring predominantly black casts are often categorized as unexpected hits. The movie debuted in fifth place with $10 million on the back of its social-media-savvy director-star Eugenio Derbez and did extremely well in Texas and California, both states with heavy Mexican populations. READ MORE AT VULTURE

More Hispanics are graduating college with bachelor’s degrees than ever before – especially in engineering and physical sciences.

However, Hispanics are vastly underrepresented in the workforce in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics – or so-called STEM jobs. Though they account for about 15 percent of the U.S. population, they were just 7 percent of the STEM workforce in 2011.

This is bound to change, or at least has the potential to. READ MORE AT FOX NEWS LATINO

Just last week, the Grammar Chic blog weighed the heavy question of job hunting over the holidays—that is, should it even be attempted, or are you better off putting your job search on hold until January? The possibly surprising answer is that the month of December is actually an ideal time to job search: Competition is thinner, employers are more desperate, and you have holiday parties to use to your advantage.

Yes, holiday parties. Most of us will attend one or more of them in the weeks to come, and while these yuletide get-togethers can be perfectly merry and bright, they can also be helpful to you as you seek a new job. READ MORE AT BUSINESS2COMMUNITY

Many job seekers have told me how much they hate networking for their job search. They don't like meeting strangers, particularly when they (and the strangers) have "an agenda."

They'd rather spend (waste?) time endlessly clicking on the "Apply" button on job boards than venture out into the scary world of "NETWORKING"! READ MORE AT HUFFINGTON POST

The holidays are sufficiently busy that many jobseekers effectively put their searches on hold, from Thanksgiving through the start of January. They simply assume that employers are going to be too busy with holiday parties and end-of-the-year reporting—plus getting ready to start strong in the new year—to deal with things like hiring new talent.

This couldn’t be more wrong.

On the contrary, the holiday season is often an ideal time to seek out new employment. There is a lot less competition—many jobseekers actually do suspend their searches over the holidays—but also a lot more desperation for open positions to be filled. Landing the perfect position just might be easier than ever when you try to do it during the month of December. READ MORE AT BUSINESS2COMMUNITY

Recently, a 30-second AT&T television ad, “Vivir Sin Compromisos,” caught my attention. It shows young, appealing, Latinos talking about themselves and reacting to the company’s cellular service.

What makes this ad stand out is that the actors speak in English, Spanish and mix of the two — Spanglish.

Because of that, we wanted to understand how the ad resonated with Spanish-Preferred Hispanics, English-Preferred Hispanics and Bicultural Hispanics, so we tested it. READ MORE AT MEDIAPOST

The season of holiday parties is coming up, and with many professionally oriented events, it may be time to brush up on your networking skills.

There are some strategies that can help you make connections, while still having fun. Here are eight tips that will make the most of your party time:

1. Get to the event early.
Catch people when they are fresh and before it is too crowded, READ MORE AT BUSINESS INSIDER

This is a great time of year to look for a job. I was hired for all four of my corporate jobs in December for a January start.

I know that companies are hiring for Q1 - they have new budgets and projects. It is a slower time in the office and employees have more time to network. In addition, holiday parties are frequent and you can meet new people.

I would like to share 7 proven tips to getting your online presence ready, putting your best smile forward and getting that fabulous job for 2015:

1. BE MINDFUL - I have networked with over 78,333 people and I can quickly assess their intent. I have an assessment I call TUGS: I have found that people are usually in one of 4 areas: Takers, Users, Givers or Sharers. READ MORE AT LINKEDIN

Laura Gomez has a quarter-million Twitter followers and has worked for some of the most powerful companies in high tech.

She belongs to the 3% — the 3% of workers in the industry who are Hispanic.

The 35-year-old entrepreneur came to the USA at age 10 from Mexico and didn't gain legal status until her college years. Encouraged by her teachers, she looked headed for a career in computer science. She took a detour into economics and sociology, with an emphasis on race.

This background has given her a singular voice on how to transform a Silicon Valley workforce that's largely white, male and Asian. READ MORE AT USA TODAY

At a time when wages are down and job growth has been sluggish, one group is upbeat about its future in America: Latinos.

A survey of 1,000 Latinos found that respondents were optimistic about access to health care, economic opportunity and education, saying that those things had improved over the past five years. The surveyed included undocumented immigrants to Latinos who have been here four generations or more.

U.S.-born Latinos are aware of discriminations and inequities they face, and most were upbeat about social progress and money, according to the survey released last week from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in partnership with Univision and The Denver Post. READ MORE AT DESERET NEWS

At a Marian University retreat last year, college leaders mulled: Where are we going, and what is our future?

For the private religious university, the clear focus fell on a group that is both the fastest-growing student population and the fastest-growing Catholic population.

"The burgeoning Latino population has to be recognized and is very important to our future," said Dan Conway, Marian's senior vice president for mission, identity and planning.

One goal in attracting more students, Conway said, is creating a $50 million Latino scholarship fund to help students — including undocumented immigrants — pay for a private education. READ MORE AT INDY STAR

Academy and GRAMMY Award winning artist Jennifer Hudson helps unwrap store and launch holiday season

CHICAGO (Nov. 15, 2014) - Today, Verizon Wireless unveiled its newest Destination Store on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile (840 N. Michigan Ave.), with Jennifer Hudson attending as the store’s first customer. At 10,000 square feet of retail space, it is the company’s largest store. Verizon’s Destination Store spotlights technology through interactive “Lifestyle Zones” where shoppers can learn about and experience wireless technology in action. Each Zone depicts ways technology can be incorporated into busy lifestyles. These Zones include Amplify It, Customize It, Get Fit, Have Fun, Home and on the Go, and Anywhere Business.

“We are excited to make this new retail experience available to Chicago residents and visitors, ensuring customers can discover all that wireless technology can do to enhance their lifestyles,” said Chris Baron, Midwest Area President for Verizon Wireless. “This new store is truly a landmark destination and we are honored to have it serve as the perfect gateway to Chicago’s ultimate shopping experience.”

As part of the grand opening celebration Verizon made a $250,000 donation to WINGS Metro. The grant was made possible through the company’s HopeLine® program, which provides funds and support to domestic violence prevention and service programs throughout the country. “Domestic violence can be a silent epidemic and through our HopeLine program we are able to provide support to organizations helping those in need,” said Brian Pascoe, president, Verizon Wireless Illinois/Wisconsin Region. “As we open our doors to our new Destination Store, we found this to be a perfect opportunity to give something back to the Chicago community. And what better way to show our support of the city than by helping others in need.”

To further extend its support and involve holiday shoppers, Verizon also announced it will provide additional funding to WINGS through an in-store and social giving program. From November 15 –

December 1, Verizon will donate an additional $5 to WINGS for every new line activated at the Michigan Avenue Destination Store. Additionally, for every message of hope for victims of domestic violence posted on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #VoicesHavePower, Verizon will donate an additional $1 to WINGS. The program will culminate in a final donation to be provided on “Giving Tuesday,” December 2.

Technology is constantly evolving, and so is the retail experience. Each lifestyle zone is staffed by highly trained specialists who will demonstrate applications, gadgets and gear with a goal of enhancing each visitor’s wireless life. Customers can also take advantage of a station dedicated to learning more about technology through Wireless Workshops.

“We want customers to feel empowered to explore technology and try things they may not have known existed,” said Pascoe. “We are breaking new ground here in Chicago and putting the customer at the center of all we do. They will definitely experience a difference.”

Located at 840 N. Michigan Avenue, the store will offer extended hours for holiday shopping through December 23 (hours are listed at Verizon.com/magmile). Thereafter, standard operating hours will be Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s largest and most reliable 4G LTE network. As the largest wireless company in the U.S., Verizon Wireless serves 106.2 million retail customers, including 100.1million retail postpaid customers. Verizon Wireless is wholly owned by Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ). 

For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. For the latest news and updates about Verizon Wireless, visit our News Center at http://www.verizonwireless.com/news or follow us on Twitter at

http://twitter.com/VZWNews.

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Media Contacts:

Andrea Meyer, Public Relations, Illinois/Wisconsin Region

Wireless: 312-771-2441

Email: andrea.meyer@verizonwireless.com

Twitter: @vzwandrea

Rebecca Eckhart, Core Creative

Wireless: 312-720-7666

Email: rebecca@corecreative.com

Twitter: @sunskits