Build a Better Career

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.

 

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…

Create Your Elevator Speech

 

Principles of a Values Focused Elevator Speech

 The Value Statement, often referred to an Elevator Speech for career transitions, is a way of introducing yourself that describes your distinct characteristics, such as personal strengths, experience, expertise and accomplishments. It is by its very design meant to be a short and succinct statement of what you have to offer – of what sets you apart.

Several principles of a high quality Value Statement:

1. It is designed for a specific purpose and audience. More than one version may be necessary. 

2. It is organized with a time frame in mind. Example, if giving an allocated 5 minute introduction at a professional meeting, then that would be the time frame. If casually meeting people at a networking meeting or otherwise introducing yourself in a gathering, the time frame is generally 30 – 60 seconds for the statement. Done well, it will lead to additional conversation. 

3. It projects a professional image.

4. It is descriptive. The listener can picture your value. 

5. It has a purpose. What do you want the listener to think, feel, know about you and why?

6. It has been practiced, but does not sound scripted.

Value Statement Content

• Who are you?

• What do you do?

• How do you do it?

• How will your abilities benefit the listener or others known to the listener?

• What do you want the listener to do?

Value Statement Development

1.      Create

Just start writing. Use MindMapping or other techniques for capturing whatever comes to mind as you consider your strengths, unique abilities and experience.

a.      Dialogue with a career specialist who can ask the right questions to bring out the value of your abilities and identify your uniqueness.

b.      In the absence of a career professional, it can be very helpful to talk to people who know you and know your work. They will often identify achievements and exceptional abilities that you have overlooked.

c.      Self Assessment is essential. Use the results of your Values and Accomplishments Assessments. Review your transferable skills. A Strengths Assessment may validate your self-identified unique characteristics.

2.      Practice:

Once you have created your value statement, try it out. Friends and/or appropriate colleagues can help with this. How does it feel to say it? What reactions do you get from others?

3.      Revise:

You may find a better way of saying what you want to say as you go along. And, if will be necessary to revise it for different audiences and purposes.

Looking for a Job While Employed

I am a Human Resource Manager for an electronics communications company that is at risk of declaring bankruptcy. I want to help the company stay solvent by doing as good a job as possible. I like my work very much but my spouse thinks I should be looking for another job. How can I do that while working full time?

This is a concern often expressed by my clients. The one thing I know is that in today’s work environment, managing one's own career is not an option, it’s a requirement. That means that you can't depend on lifetime employment with one employer, so you need to be aware of the current labor market, expand your work experiences, continually update your skills, and have a resume ready. All of this, while performing well in your current employment. Sounds like a tall order and yet, every day it’s being done.

CAUTION! There are important guidelines to consider when searching while employed:

1.      Use your personal email address for all job search communications

2.      Limit your workday phone activities to your lunch hour or other free time.

3.      Set aside time during the weekend for online research.

4.      Use only your personal phone number on your resume; not your employer’s.

5.      Work out a schedule of half-days or late starts in order to keep appointments for information interviews or other activities

6.      Keep a tracking sheet of all contacts. It’s especially important to keep well organized records when juggling a job and a job search.

7.      Create an efficient job search plan.  Think of it as a business plan; assess what activities have the greatest return on investment.

8.      Research the best resources for making a job change. Check out the resources page at www.rcmassociates.com

Is it easy to manage a successful career transition while working? No. Is it possible? Yes and thousands of people nationwide are doing it every day.

Is Your Job Search Stuck?

Is Your Job Search Stuck?  Check your Readiness Factor

 

Perhaps you lost your job recently. Or maybe you can see a loss in your future. Or maybe you just want to make a change. For any of these reasons, you may have begun a job search. You update your resume, you start cruising the Job Boards, and you talk to friends and family. But you just can’t get around to following up on those resumes, contacting folks in your professional network or making direct contact with potential employers.

 

Judy expects to be laid off in July and is concerned about getting another job that she really likes. Each week, she and her coach develop a weekly action plan. Judy decides how many contacts she will make that week, how many resumes she will get out in response to openings, and how much follow up she will do with others in her network. Judy sets the pace and only schedules what she thinks is reasonable to do in a week. But, more often than not, she does not complete the activities. In fact, she finds that she accomplishes very little toward her objectives. Why is that happening?

 

Judy’s coach suggests that they assess Judy’s Emotional Readiness. Using a process developed by Heather Wieshlow, they examine Judy’s feelings about the job loss, identify existing life distractions and address interfering issues.  As a second step, they do a Financial Urgency Analysis. The Emotional Readiness score and the Financial Urgency ranking yield what Heather calls the JSUN – Job Search Urgency Number.

 

Judy identified the cause of her “stuckiness.”  She needed time to acknowledge the loss and to clear away some important life distractions. Her financial urgency score gave her a framework for determining a reasonable timeline. Based upon the findings, Judy and her coach established a workable plan determined by her JSUN ranking, which provided the incentive to meet her weekly objectives.  

 

It’s a fact: there’s a direct correlation between the time spent in weekly job search activity and the number of weeks it takes to get an offer.  Weekly activity determines the length of the search.  But, it is clear to me that my clients cannot participate fully until they have reached a readiness level. It’s my job as their coach to help them get there. Then, and only then, do they enter the process with gusto!