Build a Better Career

If managing your career were an Olympic Event, would you know how to compete? Part II.

What does it take to "stand out" ...to get a gold or silver or bronze?

In my workshops and job search teams, I have the privilege of meeting many diverse people in job search. No matter what their educational level, professional status, job identity or age, it’s clear that some are stronger contenders than others. This post addresses the last four of the eight Olympic Medal Winner characteristics identified in a previous post.

Study the environment (the slopes, ice composition, etc.)The strong contenders in a highly competitive job search do their homework. Before networking events, resume submissions, information meetings and job interviews, they research the organization, the individual, the topic, the industry. They ask intelligent questions, name trends, identify commonalities and provide solutions to problems. They know whether to say “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Hanukah”. 

use the best tools (skis, snowboards)  The strong contenders in job search create a customized resume for each job opportunity – designed for that specific organization. The Marketing Plan is focused and designed to elicit helpful information in all networking meetings and events. They are dressed for success wherever they go; they practice and prepare vigorously.

be distinctive - perhaps in style, personality, history, experience Did you notice who stood out at the Winter Olympics? Even among the winners, some got more media coverage than other. In Job Search, the heavy contender has spent time identifying unique qualities, demonstrated strengths and life assets. These are displayed in the Unique Value Proposition (see earlier post), the Resume, the LinkedIn Profile, a Blog, Articles, etc.

be supported by others committed to your goals Behind every medal winner at the Winter Olympics were families and friends that believed in the goals of the contender. This support is just as important in career transitions. Family, associates, former colleagues and friends can all be a great help, but there is nothing as helpful as a peer group of selected members. This might be in the form of a job search team, a self-initiated advisory board, a selected professional development group. Having someone to meet with on a weekly basis to share ideas, provide resources and offer encouragement can make all the difference. No one wins an Olympic Medal alone!

 

Does your job search need a tune up?

Does your job search need a tune-up?

 

You’ve been working hard at your job search, you’re getting tired and discouraged, you expected to be working by now and your energy level is low and getting lower. What to do?

 

Perhaps just like that engine in your vehicle, you do your best when everything’s working well: the right oil, steering fluid, brake fluid, coolant and window washer. And sometimes parts need recalibrating – a tune up. Could your job search be helped by recalibrating? Do you need to assess what you have been doing and determine what needs modification? Do you need to remove some “road sludge” that’s sapping your time and energy?

 

The Job Search Tune Up

 

Review your activities over the last three months. Identify the percentage of time spent in job search activities listed below:   

• Searching online at Monster and Career Builder
• Searching aggregate job boards – Indeed and SimplyHired*
• Searching on a niche job board*
• Submitting resumes and applications to postings
• Attending networking events with other job seekers
• Attending events in professional specialties*
• Attending presentations and other events open to the public*
• Looking up contacts on LinkedIn
• Customizing your resume for specific jobs*
• Revising your LinkedIn Profile
• Following up on Leads
• Meeting with referred contacts*
• Answering questions on LinkedIn*
• Participating in Groups on LinkedIn*
• Writing a Blog*
• Administration/Paperwork/Follow-up correspondence

 

While all of these activities (and others not mentioned) are required to manage a job search, those with the asterisk are considered the more important – high yield activities. What percentage of your time is going to those? If you are tracking/recording your search activities, you can do a good analysis and determine where most of your time and energy are going. If not in the high-yield activities you need to tune up your job search? (If you are not tracking carefully all activities, leads and planned follow-up, you are weakening your search results.

 

It’s understandable that job seekers today can begin to lose momentum. Even when doing everything right, the search may take a long time in this market. And just like that vehicle, we can get sluggish. Don’t blame yourself, no negative self- talk, just fine tune that calendar and add/increase premium activities.

 

Questions about high yield activities?  Just contact me.

The Good and the Bad of Social Media

 

In the new World of Work, getting hired is no longer a simple “find a job posting and submit your resume.” Today, getting a job requires a proactive marketing perspective, relying heavily on Social Media such as LinkedIn, FaceBook, and Twitter. But the impact of misinformation about a job seeker can have disastrous results as it moves beyond these sites.

 

THE UPSIDE:  Social Media has tremendous value for getting your name and expertise out there.

THE DOWNSIDE:  Social Media exposes our identities to the world.

 

I believe that the UPSIDE is worth the risk, since our identities are out there anyway. – just google your name!

 

However, there is a recent emergence of sites that have no authenticity at all – one of which is getting a great deal of attention - Spokeo. I checked it out and what I read about myself was FICTION. My first thought:  OPT OUT of Spokeo – that is, until I learned that if I did so from my email address, the site would capture that address for its own purposes. BUMMER!

 

Yitz Francus (www.ASAPedit.com) to the rescue with OPT OUT instructions.

 

1. Set up a new Gmail Account. (instructions at Google)
2. Go to www.spokeo.com from your new account.
3. Enter your name (first, last) in the search box and click “Search”
4. Select and copy the URL from your browser’s address Bar.
5. Click on the Spokeo log at the top left corner to return to the Home Page.
6. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the small “Privacy” button.
7. Ignore the sales pitch for “ReputationDefender” and scroll down to the bottom.
8. Paste the URL you copied into the “URL” box.
9. Enter your newly created email address in the “Email” box.
10. Enter the code they provide into the “Code” box.
11. Click “Remove Listing”
12. Check the inbox of your new email account, open the email from Spokeo and delete your name by clicking on the URL they provide in the body of the email.
13. DELETE THAT GMAIL ACCOUNT

 

 

 

Does extended unemployment make you less marketable?

 

In the midst of the search: Are you keeping up -  professionally?

 

It’s very clear that the job search has become an extended process, taking much longer than is typical in non-recessionary times. Job seekers are concerned that extended unemployment will make them less marketable. A reasonable fear, isn’t it?

 

My response: First, employers are very much aware of the situation and people do find good jobs after as much as two years of searching. Not that anyone is happy about a two-year job search, but I want people to know that a positive outcome is possible.

 

On the other hand, I caution them. Two years with nothing to show on your resume or in your conversations demonstrating that you have been adding to your professional knowledge, skills and abilities is definitely a red flag. So what is the job seeker to do? A few possibilities:

 

1. Be active in the Professional Associations related to your field/industry. Take free seminars, go to presentations, give a presentation in your area of expertise.

 

2. Find and participate in free or low cost training related to your industry. If you’re an IT professional, are you participating in the online community at www.techrepublic.com  where you can find the latest trends and up-to-date industry information? A great resource for demonstrating your current knowledge at Interviews.

 

     If you're in Human Resources are you a member of the Human Resources                                          Association in your geographical area and/or the national association? Do you attend relevant             presentations? Is your SPHR certificate current?

 

3. Have you taken advantage of free college courses online? Example: MIT offers open courseware on a range of occupations including Architecture, Engineering, Health, Sciences and Technology. The American Management Association offers free Management webinars at www.ama.org

 

If your resume lists no professional development activities in the past two years, you are at a serious disadvantage. Your extended unemployment may cause the employer to question what you have been doing with your time. I know…today’s job search is complex and takes up a lot of your time…but you can’t list that on your resume!

 

 

Would you qualify for the Winter Olympics?

If managing a career transition were an Olympic Event,

                                                                 would you know how to compete? 

I watched in great anticipation as snow boarders danced in the air and skiers swirled around curves this past week. I found myself trying to analyze exactly what one had to do to increase speed or height or balance. Amazing feats left me in awe.

What does it take to "stand out" ...to get a gold or silver or bronze?

These were my conclusions.

To be a medal winner (or to qualify as a contender) you have to

• be willing to fail...with the world watching!
• engage in rigorous, time intensive preparation and practice.
• set priorities.
• monitor progress
• study the environment (the slopes, ice composition, etc.)
• use the best tools (skis, snowboards)
• be distinctive - perhaps in style, personality, history, experience
• be supported by others committed to your goals

This is exactly what it takes to compete in today's job market.

In my job search teams and workshops, I can't help noticing what makes the difference between the strong contenders and the not-so-strong. It's so obvious.

A comparison to the Olympic contenders:

Willing to fail: The strong contenders know that when they make that phone call to a company decision maker or send an email requesting an appointment or seek information from a networking contact or submit a letter of interest ...that they may not get the desired results. they also know that they may not handle the phone conversation as well as they would like... they may mess up...but they do it anyway.

Rigorous preparation: They increase their success rate by researching and practicing. 

Setting Priorities: When I look at their Action Plan for the coming week, the events are scheduled based upon those activities that are most likely to get them down the slope in the fastest time. 

Monitor Progress: They keep good records (a tracking sheet of each week's accomplished objectives and those not accomplished; a list of contacts, follow up and next steps.

Watch for my next post on the last four bullets - perhaps the most crucial and, typically, the least developed.

 

Where is your job search time going?

The Highly Effective Job Search

 

In a previous post, I mentioned that some job search activities yield a higher return on investment. Searching online is not one of them. Although online searching may be easier, more comfortable and less stressful than out meeting with people, in the long run it becomes not only disappointing but very discouraging.  

• If less than 2 - 3% of good jobs are posted on job boards, then how much time should be allocated to that activity in your weekly action plan?

 

• If most good jobs are not posted, how can you learn about them?

 

• If employers prefer employee referrals as their primary source of hire, how do you get a referral?

  It’s not complicated; you need to be known by others.   So what activities yield the highest return on your investment of time?   Assuming that you have a great value statement (see earlier post: Elevator Speech), a robust, descriptive profile on LinkedIn that shows what you can do for an employer or client, and a Marketing Plan, you will get the greatest return on your investment of time in the following activities:  

• Meetings with decision makers in targeted organizations
• Meetings with people who know decision makers
• Attending community events
• Adding value to your connections and groups on LinkedIn: giving recommendations; asking and answering questions; joining and contributing to professional groups; creating a visual (slideshare) presentation

  There are additional activities that can add even more value in some cases, but these are the essential steps for finding your next opportunity.   So where are you spending your time? I propose that you spend it in Quadrant 2 of Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits for Highly Effective People:

• Preparation
• Relationship Building
• Identifying New Options
• Planning
• Recreation

 

For more information about each of these Quadrant 2 Job Search Activities, watch for my next post…

 

Reference: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change, Stephen R. Covey, Fireside, Simon & Schuster, 1990.

 

Seven Habits of Highly Effective Job Seekers

What habits have you created for your job search?

In a roomful of jobseekers last week, I proposed that Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits as described in his book, Seven Habits for Highly Effective People, has relevance for managing an effective job search. Especially significant are the four quadrants that identify activities by Important/Urgent; Important/Not Urgent; Not Important/Urgent and Not Important/ Not Urgent.

 

Dr. Covey states that “hanging around” in the Not Urgent/Not Important and the Urgent/Not Important Quadrants leads to failure to meet our goals. Although Covey’s work looks at these concepts from a “life” perspective, they apply to the job search process as well.

 

In a highly competitive, high tech market, old practices do not work. Looking for jobs online, and sending out resumes in response to job announcements yields few results. It is estimated that less than 2% of good jobs are posted on job boards today. When a search team member shows me his or her activity tracking sheet from the previous weeks, I am dismayed to see that so much time has been spent in the online job search and so little in

1. creating a dynamic profile on LinkedIn and maximizing their online presence by using LinkedIn features and
2. little time is spent “out and about.”

 

Each week in newspapers you can find multiple opportunities for meeting people who can offer suggestions, contacts and referrals. You can attend a presentation at the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary, or the library…there are so many possibilities.

 

How are you spending your time these days? Watch for my next post with a list of the activities that yield the highest return on investment – those that get the best results.

 

LAID OFF WITHOUT A GOLDEN PARACHUTE – TEN CRUCIAL ACTION STEPS

Almost everyone knows someone who has lost a job recently. As it becomes more common, it is no less stressful. I’d like to suggest a few essential steps for a safe landing, even without the golden parachute.

 

 

1. Get letters of reference and recommendations from managers, supervisors, coworkers vendors and clients. Do this quickly; timing influences the results.  

 

2. Gather your past performance reviews. These will help you create language for your resume and interviews.

 

3. Determine what may be negotiable. It may surprise you to know that people often are able to negotiate for an extension of paid health care coverage or severance.

 

4. Enhance your professional network. Are there non-proprietary business contacts whose contact information you should acquire before leaving?

 

5. Think about how you want to be remembered. Counter-productive behavior in the last day(s) can blow a stellar performance record.

 

6. Contact your coworkers: send a brief email. Let them know that “Thursday will be my last day. I’ll be back in touch” Let them know how to contact you. Get personal email addresses.

 

7. Nail down health care. You may be eligible for assistance with COBRA under the recent stimulus package.

 

8. Register for Unemployment Insurance. While UI benefits are usually taxable, you may qualify for several weeks of non-taxable UI under the stimulus plan.

 

9. Look for your nearest

One

Stop

Career

Center

. Go to www.careeronestop.com. These centers are paid for by your tax dollars and many offer a full menu of career transition services. Service vary from Center to Center, but don’t overlook this resource.

 

In my next blog, I will discuss how to create a plan that is workable and effective.

 

Watch for my free teleconference at www.rcmassociates.com

 

Laid Off without a Golden Parachute: 10 steps for a safe landing

Almost everyone knows someone who has lost a job recently. As it becomes more common, it is no less stressful. I’d like to suggest a few essential steps for a safe landing, even without the golden parachute.

 

 

1. Get letters of reference and recommendations from managers, supervisors, coworkers vendors and clients. Do this quickly; timing influences the results.  

 

2. Gather your past performance reviews. These will help you create language for your resume and interviews.

 

3. Determine what may be negotiable. It may surprise you to know that people often are able to negotiate for an extension of paid health care coverage or severance.

 

4. Enhance your professional network. Are there non-proprietary business contacts whose contact information you should acquire before leaving?

 

5. Think about how you want to be remembered. Counter-productive behavior in the last day(s) can blow a stellar performance record.

 

6. Contact your coworkers: send a brief email. Let them know that “Thursday will be my last day. I’ll be back in touch” Let them know how to contact you. Get their personal email addresses .

 

7. Nail down health care. You may be eligible for assistance with COBRA under the recent stimulus package.

 

8. Register for Unemployment Insurance. While UI benefits are usually taxable, you may qualify for several weeks of non-taxable UI under the stimulus plan.

 

9. Look for your nearest One Stop Career Center. Go to www.careeronestop.com. These centers are paid for by your tax dollars and many offer a full menu of career transition services. Service vary from Center to Center, but don’t overlook this resource.

 

In my next blog, I will discuss how to create your flight plan that is workable and effective.

 

Watch for my free teleconference at www.rcmassociates.com

 

Are you ready for the new world of work?

Recently, in my workshops, I've been reminded of the “readiness factor”. When I present Job Search Best Practices – those activities most likely to give a return on investment – to groups, individual reactions vary greatly. In my 50+ (or nearly 50) Workshops, the differences are influenced by (1) the length of time in the previous job; (2) the number of organizations employed by; (3) the position status; (4) the company/organization status; (5) time spent in active job searching.

 

For example, when John insists that his lengthy experience is an asset and that putting “Over 27 years experience in the field of…” will give him an advantage, I can surmise three things about John: (1) he has not been actively engaged in the search for three or more months; (2) he is very proud of his previous service and does not want it to be dismissed lightly; (3) he does not yet understand the new marketplace.

 

This is not a criticism of John; his reaction is a reflection of his past experience. John believes that his long standing relationship with a Fortune 500 company is an asset…something desired by future employers. In reality it is more likely to be seen as a negative - in today’s market. Most job growth is with small to medium companies and John’s lengthy experience with a high status organization may label John as an expensive, outdated commodity. If the resume highlights those years, at the outset, John may never get a chance to demonstrate that he adds value and not cost; that he is contemporary and not dated, and that he is a strong candidate for the interviewing process.

 

Months into the job search, when many resumes have been submitted that do not lead to interviews, when John is questioning his beliefs about how to market his value, he will be ready to try a new approach. But not yet…

Career Progression: Talent, Risk and Support

The Artist at her Grandmother's Table

If you ask Christine Waara how her love of art began, she will tell you it all began at her grandmother's table. As she describes it, everything important took place in that Italian kitchen and she often found herself there, surrounded by adults - "doodling"...and she never lost the love of it. Easel and brush fill her life today, as paper and pencil did then.

Of course, Christine did not emerge from her Grandmother's kitchen as an artist, but her love of creative expression through form and color remained strong. And, as with most careers, she had the encouragement of special people along the way. There was the grade school art teacher, Bobbi Ameen, who showcased her work in the school hallway. And Nheena Ittner, who added to Christine's appreciation of art by exposing her to various artistic styles. And, perhaps most important to her ongoing artistic development was the encouragement of her husband, Pat.

When young children became an essential part of her life, you would find Christine painting at 3 a.m. before the family awoke. Whenever she could, she increased her knowledge and ability through classes, reading and mentoring. Eventually, Christine realized a long time ambition and started painting with water colors, studying with her mentor, Wendy Gwirtzman.

Today, Christine is a recognized artist in Rochester, NY, where her work is often selected for juried art shows and where one of her paintings was recently awarded "Best in Show."

A deep love of any form of work can lead to a satisfying and rewarding career, if supported by others along the way. Christine received that support, but she is quick to say that hers was not a seamless process of artistic accomplishment: "Talent takes a lot of practice!"

It also takes a willingness to risk scrutiny. When you put your work out for critique, you're putting yourself out there...not unlike career transitioners who, faced with the need to market themselves to potential employers, must paint a picture of their value and worth. And, just like Christine, they need encouragement, ongoing development and willingness to be scrutinized.

See Christine's artwork at www.christinewaara.com