Chef and Vosges Haut-Chocolat founder Katrina Markoff uses chocolate as a medium to tell stories. "For some reason, I went into my kitchen, and I made an Indian curry, coconut, milk chocolate truffle," she says. "And that was when the epiphany occurred."

More on Shine: Flour power: a healthier take on chocolate cake

Katrina grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana, near her grandparents. She says her grandmother was the one who taught her how to cook. Katrina studied chemistry and psychology at Vanderbilt University, but found herself struggling with choosing a career as graduation approached. Katrina moved to Paris to study cooking at the famed culinary school Le Cordon Bleu. She worked in top European restaurants, but took a leave of absence to embark on a round-the-world trip.

She spent nine months traveling through Southeast Asia, discovering the close connection between people and food. When she returned to the United States, however, she realized she didn't want to be a chef. K

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We've all been there. You get overwhelmed at work and feel like you just want to quit and storm out the office forever…but you can't. In this economy, we know good jobs are basically like one in a million, so career expert Cheryl Palmer offered some tips on how to keep your sanity and not catch a bitch fit.

By Ariel Nagi


1. Take a lunch break-every day
The days of eating lunch at your desk should be over-now. "If you're not regularly taking breaks, things can get very overwhelming, and you end up being more ineffective because your mind is not fresh enough," Palmer says. Take a walk or stroll through the park during your break. If you skip lunch because you feel you don't have enough time, you could end up making a mistake from being too tired and taking even more time to correct it, she warns.

2. Get involved in other activities
The biggest mistake people make is bringing their jobs home with them too often. "Work shouldn't be everything," Palmer says. Try getting involved in othe

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When it comes to searching for open positions online, big job boards can be a double-edged sword: You either find an overwhelming 200 pages of open positions (that you'll never have the time or patience to go through), or you find a total of two potential jobs in your desired field and location, neither of which pique your interest.

Sound familiar? Take heart-online job boards aren't your only option. Here are a few ways you can successfully seek out open positions without having to hit that search bar.

1. Enlist the Help of Your Social Network

Just like a thought-provoking status update can warrant a barrage of comments from your friends, family, and even long-lost classmates from second grade, a similar public inquiry can open your eyes to job suggestions you hadn't considered before. So, consider putting a call out to your social network: "I'm looking for a new career in marketing. Does anyone know of great companies in the area?"

You might be surprised by who pipes

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It starts out innocently enough-just a beer at happy hour after work with your boss. But the next thing you know, it's way past your bedtime and you're still pounding drinks, telling her who-knows-what deep, dark secrets that were definitely better left nice and dark.

And it's Tuesday.

So, here you are, Wednesday morning, having to face not only the way-too-bright fluorescent lights of your office, but your now-too-all-knowing manager. What now?

While the post-confessional morning is never fun, how you handle the work walk of shame is incredibly important-for making you both feel a little less awkward and for putting your relationship back on a professional note. So, if last night went a little too far, here are a few smart tips for navigating the morning after.

Get Back to Work

Regardless of what you may have revealed the night before-anything from your current job-hunting endeavors to your one-night stand with Bob from accounting-what your boss really wants to know is that you ...Read More »

Whether you're still in school and figuring out what career to pursue, or on the hunt for something new, we rounded up the absolute best jobs for women out there. Career consultants Alexandra Levit, author of How'd You Score That Gig? and Laurence Shatkin, coauthor of 50 Best Jobs for Your Personality, break them down.

By Molly Triffin

1. Reputation Manager
It's the hot new PR job-think Scandal on a smaller scale. Fine-tune a company's online presence by strategically tweaking its Website, social media platforms, and search results to making sure it has a positive image for average annual pay of $58,000.

2. Digital Strategist
Play around online all day…and get paid about $60,000 for it? Yes, please! Digital strategists advise clients on how to improve their tech presence-making Websites user-friendly and entertaining, etc. You don't need a specific degree to nab one of these jobs, but digital experience helps, and you have to be on the cutting edge of the latest technolog

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