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Are You Unemployed – Take action – ANY action

February 4, 2012

Many years ago, the U.S. economy was suffering through a recession. It was not as bad as many previous recessions, but to be honest, if a recession has affected you, the size of it isn’t really important. Whether unemployment is 5%, 8%, or 10%, if you are unemployed, it is 100% for you. During that recession, I remember articles about the lengths unemployed people will go to to get jobs. I was impressed with the guy who volunteered at the YMCA a few hours a day to stay busy. I loved the guy that decided to help out at his church, or simply the woman who contacted her kids school to read to little children. The one story that really impressed me was the unemployed executive. This unemployed executive reportedly spent more than a million dollars of his savings to cover his and his family’s expenses while he was looking for work for more than a year. That million dollars represented all of his savings. When the article was written, he bemoaned the fact that if didn’t find a job in a month, he would be out of money, have to cut back, and put his house on the market.

The hidden secrets of applying online for jobs?

January 31, 2012

Many, many companies today have taken to accepting only on line job applications. It reduces paperwork, resume reading, and all the time it takes to decide whether or not you are qualified. It gives those wacky, overworked HR guys time to have a second cup of coffee, a quick smoke, follow-up on harassment complaints, reduce your benefits, and weed out lesser qualified candidates without ever having to read the application. I just love technology, don’t you? The On Line Application But there are some secret things you need to know about filling out an online app. The most important thing you need to know is to make sure you use important keywords in the application that are very particular to the position for which you are applying. You see, that great software not only creates a nice little online resume for you, but it looks for words in your application that it can match against a job description or position announcement in an effort to hook you up or kick you to the curb!! For example, if you want to work in a restaurant, make sure all the keywords pertaining to restaurant work are in the work history part of

Do you always live your values?

January 14, 2012

Do you always live your values? Now that is a difficult question to answer. What are your values? Wikipedia says that values can be defined as broad preferences concerning appropriate courses of action or outcomes. As such, values reflect a person’s sense of right and wrong or what “ought” to be. “Equal rights for all” and “People should be treated with respect and dignity” are representative of values. Values tend to influence attitudes and behavior. For example, if you value equal rights for all and you go to work for an organization that treats its managers much better than it does its workers, you may form the attitude that the company is an unfair place to work; consequently, you may not produce well or may perhaps leave the company. It is likely that if the company had had a more egalitarian policy, your attitude and behaviors would have been more positive. Many people have two sets of books where values are concerned. One set of books contains the values they live with their family, in front of their spouse, and their children. They are “God fearing” people who have a clear sense of right and wrong. They live in a

Take charge and don’t name drop

January 12, 2012

I have been in business for some time now. I love business and I love management. I have had my fair share of challenges, but I have learned something from each one. Some years ago, as a new manager, I had a bad tendency to drop my boss’s name anytime I had to deliver bad news. I used to say “Ken said we need to work overtime” or “Ken said that we need to improve our quality.” In my mind, I was not the bad guy, so that would make my staff love me. I never had a problem delivering good news, only bad. One day, after a particularly tough meeting, a meeting I probably dropped Ken’s name 15 or 20 times so to avoid being the bad guy, I had a visit to my office shortly after the meeting had ended. Tena came in, sat down and sheepishly asked if I had a minute. I had a good relationship with Tena, so her visits were normally pleasant and I invited her in. I could tell from her body language that this was not a normal visit. YOU are the boss! She began by telling me that she really liked me, and enjoyed working with me, but… A

I need a new job!!!

January 10, 2012

In recent weeks, several of my clients have asked my help in finding them a new job. They each have different reasons for wanting to change jobs. Some just want more money. A few are not comfortable with the financial health of their current employer. And, I have one entry level client and one recently “outplaced” client that just need help getting started. Finding a job is not necessarily that hard, but finding the right job does take a plan. There was a time in the recent past when people would just shotgun resumes or respond to every job ad they saw. That method does work, but it is a lot more painful in terms of time, and success. If you think about it, you need to hit the right company at the right time looking for your credentials. Odds seem a little against you. So, it is best to create a plan of attack, and to work your plan. The first rule of thumb that people need to know in the job search is that, as non-scientific it may be, you should expect to spend about one month per $10,000 of salary hunting for that new job. If you

Persistence – Don’t leave before the miracle happens

January 7, 2012

I learned the hard way that the primary key to success is not talent. It isn’t brains, looks, or education. It isn’t any of the things that you are taught growing up. No, the key to success at any level is persistence. To succeed, one needs to continually strive to get what they want. And when I say continually strive, I don’t mean work harder, etc., I mean picking yourself up when knocked down and continuing the fight until you get what it is you want and to expect and learn from your failures. Some people call it suit up and show up. When I was a freshman in high school in 1776, I played soccer on the school’s soccer team. I didn’t go out for soccer because of some deep love of the game. No, as an American I played soccer because I knew it would force me to get into excellent physical condition for my first sport love, basketball. Even then I understood my own shortcomings and knew that if I didn’t have someone or something driving me to workout, I would not have been in good enough shape for basketball. Before each practice, our soccer coach made

Career advisors (aka In-flight Consultants)

January 1, 2012

I have had far too much experience in my career with people who believe everything that they see and hear is fact, before actually doing any research to find out the truth. I have had bosses, co-workers, subordinates, and friends who will declare something as fact when the facts are actually in opposition to their point. I will give some examples of someone’s perception being their reality. Some years ago there was a new fad in toys called pogs. It was a game where you would try to flip disk shaped pieces of plastic into a cup. Our CEO at the time came back to the office and said he had a conversation with a 16 year old kid on a flight who told him that pogs were the next big thing. A 16 year old kid? Our CEO then ordered the toy buyer to go out and corner the market on pogs. He directed him to buy millions of dollars of the stupid little game. The buyer argued that we should test the product before buying that many, but the CEO over-ruled him and forced him to move ahead. Well, I’m sure by now you have guessed the end

Are you ready for your Interview!?!

December 28, 2011

So, you've spent hours and hours searching job boards for openings. You contacted all of your friends, joined social sites like LinkedIn, and expanded your network. You've read my book "The Professional Guide to Creating a Killer Resume" and tweaked your resume to the point that you are really happy with it. And you've sent it out more than a dozen times. All that hard has work paid off and you've finally received a call back. They want you to come in for an interview. Yikes! Are you ready?

The Best Management Personalities

December 11, 2011

As I have studied careers, business, and management over the years, I have come up with four personality types of leadership. The first is positive, the next two are neutral to negative, and the fourth is a disaster. The first management personality type is the manager who wanted to be the boss, and once there, likes being the boss. This personality type is normally very qualified for the job. They have a comfort level around their employees and around their peers. This is a very effective manager. The second and more neutral personality is one that wanted to be the boss, but once their hates it. They campaigned or pursued the job for much of their career, and in fact may have spent many years preparing for it. But, once there, for some reason they found that they really dislike or hate the job. Maybe they don’t like the politics. Maybe they don’t like dealing with or directing people, maybe they were very good at the job they had, but found management was not what they thought. This manager is effective, but not great. The third management personality is also neutral to negative. This boss who doesn’t want to be

Gratitude in your attitude

December 8, 2011

One important and often overlooked factor in your job search is gratitude. “Learn everything you can, anytime you can, from anyone you can – there will always come a time when you will be grateful you did.” Very few people understand the moment they are in, good or bad, will bring them grattitude in the future. Understanding that is the key to a happy life, but also the key to getting what you really want. If you are unemployed, you most likely are not feeling grateful for very much. The pressures that come along with unemployment make it hard to feel grateful. But, that attitude also comes through in your job search. Whether it is in a phone interview, a face to face interview, or just that you have stopped working hard on your job search, that lack of gratitude will negatively affect your success. The same holds true if you are under-employed or just not happy with your current job. The feeling that you will not have success will most assuredly play itself out and continue to bring you a lack of success in your job or job search. Periodically, throughout the day, and everday, say out loud “I am very

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Career and Management

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