http://directyourcareer.com/blog from MEA Strategic Solutions, LLC Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:48:52 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/it-is-hard-but-why-is-retail-it-so-much-harder.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/it-is-hard-but-why-is-retail-it-so-much-harder.html#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 08:58:51 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=2386 I have been in IT for my entire career, and I love it.  Right out of college, after studying computer science at Indiana University, I got my first programming job in a hospital, and I loved that job.  I loved writing programs and watching my users’ faces light up when I made their lives just a little easier.  I loved a clean compile after days of cleaning up bugs and syntax issues.  Yes, I love IT. Throughout my IT career, I worked in several different industries.  I worked in healthcare, insurance, distribution, manufacturing, and retail.  Mostly, retail.  I held many different technical positions during my time, ranging from the help desk to programmer, and eventually to the top position, called the Chief Information Officer (read that while letting the words echo ceremoniously in your head).  The CIO is the big cheese. Each industry in which I have worked, has its own challenges, and its own rewards.   In healthcare for example, it seemed we had endless access to great doctors, nurses, and technicians.  I remember once telling a doctor, while eating lunch in the cafeteria that I had a pain in my neck, and he scheduled me to come by that [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/it-is-hard-but-why-is-retail-it-so-much-harder.html/feed 0 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/your-bosss-dog-house.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/your-bosss-dog-house.html#comments Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:45:38 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=194 Does your boss have a dog house? No, not the kind that he keeps his Black Lab in. I mean does he need to keep someone in the figurative dog house all the time – the one you go into when you are in trouble? Woof I have worked for several bosses that keep a dog house. They seem to need to keep someone in the dog house to stay focused. They target a person or an area of the business with all of their energy, and as long as someone is in the dog house, everyone else is just fine. Sit! I remember working for one such guy. He was one of the meanest people for whom I’ve ever worked. He was belligerent, insulting, and had a very short fuse. When he would get upset with anyone, they basically went in and stayed in his dog house until someone else messed up. I remember spending almost all of my spare time working to stay out of the dog house. What a waste of time, but it did make me better. So, how do you stay of out of the dog house? First, keep to your commitments. If you sign [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/your-bosss-dog-house.html/feed 3 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/chain-of-command.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/chain-of-command.html#comments Tue, 03 Jan 2012 13:48:26 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=260 I spent four years in the United States Navy. I learned a great many useful life lessons during that time, but the most significant lesson I learned was to respect the chain of command. In a military context, the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed within a military unit and between different units. Orders are transmitted down the chain of command, from a higher-ranked soldier, such as a commissioned officer, to lower-ranked personnel who either execute the order personally or transmit it down the chain as appropriate, until it is received by those expected to execute it. In general, military personnel give orders only to those directly below them in the chain of command and receive orders only from those directly above them. Thank you sir, may I have another? The concept of chain of command also implies that higher rank alone does not entitle a higher-ranking service member to give commands to anyone of lower rank. For example, an officer of unit “A” does not directly command lower-ranking members of unit “B”, and is generally expected to approach an officer of unit “B” if he requires action by members of [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/chain-of-command.html/feed 1 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/get-ready-for-that-interview-3.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/get-ready-for-that-interview-3.html#comments Wed, 28 Dec 2011 08:28:00 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=729 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/get-ready-for-that-interview-3.html/feed 80 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/divide-and-conquer-management-style.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/divide-and-conquer-management-style.html#comments Sat, 24 Dec 2011 04:56:15 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=250 I guess you could say that all managers can be put into general management styles. Some are funny. Some are yellers. Some are dictators. Some manage by committee. Some never communicate face to face, but via email. So I suppose that since people are different, so should there be a variety management styles. One of the most dysfunctional management styles I have seen is what I call the Divide and Conquerer, aka the D&C. The D&C is a manager that chooses to have no structure in his life. He conducts no staff meetings, no structured one on one discussions, any meetings that are scheduled are without an agenda and normally called at the last minute so you can’t prepare. The D&C likes to walk around a facility and get his information by talking to staff, junior managers, or in some cases, complete strangers. He asks for opinions and tries to piece together the “truth” much like I would imagine a cold war era CIA agent has to get his information from a variety of enemy sources named Natasha and Boris. He never believes anthing his staff tells him and pits one against the other.He never gets the whole picture, but [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/divide-and-conquer-management-style.html/feed 1 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/do-you-know-where-the-greatest-treasures-in-the-world-are-buried.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/do-you-know-where-the-greatest-treasures-in-the-world-are-buried.html#comments Wed, 21 Dec 2011 01:33:55 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=276 I heard a guy ask once “Do you know where the greatest treasures in the world are buried?”They are not buried in the diamond mines of Africa.They are not buried in the oil fields of the middle east.They are not buried on sunken treasure ships deep in the Atlantic. No, they are buried in the billions of graves all over the world, along with the books that were never written, the businesses that were never started, the athletes that never reached for the stars, relationships that were never fulfilled, and many more unfulfilled dreams because the people buried there took their dreams with them to their graves, afraid to fail. We are each blessed with so many talents that come standard with who you are. The irony is that most us don’t know what that talent is because it is something so natural and easy for us to do that it just doesn’t “can’t” be a talent.Talents are obvious, right?I used to listen to people sing and think “oh, I would love to be able to do that.”I used to see beautiful art and think “oh, I could never do that. I don’t have that talent.”I never thought I had [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/do-you-know-where-the-greatest-treasures-in-the-world-are-buried.html/feed 2 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/is-college-worth-it.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/is-college-worth-it.html#comments Tue, 20 Dec 2011 00:40:05 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=240 Obviously, that is a loaded question. I can assure you that all of the people who have dedicated their lives, professions, and livelihood to education will and should give you an emotional “YES”! But what of the rest of us that worked hard in high school to get good enough grades to get into a top notch university? What about the parents and students who pay something south of $100,000 to get a four year degree with absolutely no promise of a job afterward? And lastly, what about the 60 credits you are required to take, called electives to augment the 60 credits of your major so as to give you a well rounded education? When is the last time you used “The Planets, Stars and Universe” in your new job as an accountant? I have always held that there are two parts of the university environment. There is the education part, the one we all understand whereby college professors teach classes, do research, and publish papers. This is the part where crochity old people who don’t work essentially inculcate young heads of mush with the important facts they will need to succeed in the real world. Then, there is [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/is-college-worth-it.html/feed 2 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/get-ready-for-that-interview.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/get-ready-for-that-interview.html#comments Sat, 17 Dec 2011 22:16:42 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=149 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 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? Preparation You have 72 hours to prepare for your interview. I guess its too late to lose ten pounds, or work on your tan, huh? Too late to get that MBA or latest certification I suppose. But, all is not lost because there are many things you can do that your competition is not doing, and I will tell you what that is. What to wear First, you need to decide what you are going to wear.  No matter what the dress code is of the company to which you are applying, you must dress in business attire. For men, that means you need a conservative dress shirt, a tie, and a suit or sports coat/blazer.  Make sure all of your clothes fit [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/get-ready-for-that-interview.html/feed 2 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/just-another-manic-monday-and-your-job-search.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/just-another-manic-monday-and-your-job-search.html#comments Wed, 07 Dec 2011 14:05:06 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=162 I got up this morning and had a somewhat odd flashback to a time about ten or fifteen years ago. Like most people, I never liked Monday’s. After spending a weekend doing what I wanted to do, and maybe sleeping a little late, I had to get up early and head back to work. The only exception to that rule was when I was looking for a new job. In the old days (or back in the day as they say now), I would be somewhat excited about Monday, because I had spent Sunday pouring over the Sunday want ads looking for jobs. Because newspapers ruled the day at that time, the Sunday classifieds was where you would see America’s largest companies advertising for their best jobs. You could search the ad in alphabetical order or by job class and find the best openings. The companies would give you the skill set and experience for which you needed to apply, and their contact information to submit a resume. Most wanted resumes via “snail mail” (the post office) or via fax. Some really advanced companies had email, but few had any online application systems. The Monster But all that changed when [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/just-another-manic-monday-and-your-job-search.html/feed 2 http://directyourcareer.com/blog/do-you-inspire-fear-or-do-you-inspire-confidence.html http://directyourcareer.com/blog/do-you-inspire-fear-or-do-you-inspire-confidence.html#comments Sat, 03 Dec 2011 11:17:39 +0000 Mike Anderson http://directyourcareer.com/blog/?p=293 I have worked with and for a lot of people.  Each brings his or her experiences and personality to the position they hold.  That life experience shapes that person and their reaction to the stresses of the day.  One of the bosses I had in my life was a tyrant.  He felt compelled to humiliate subordinates and inpire nothing but fear in his workers.  That fear paralyzed decision making, and prevented people from doing their best.  Most of his employees spent half their time looking over their shoulder to see if they needed to protect themselves, therefore only spending 50% of their time doing their jobs.  Their productivity was terrible. Fear not! I like to inspire confidence in my people.  I know that when my direct reports are confident in me and that I will not undermine every decision they make, they will grow and lead their own areas more effectively.  I have had some team members make some rather bad decisions that I had to help clean up, but I would rather do that than to be the bottleneck, making all those decisions myself. I think that the managers that rule by fear are probably pretty insecure in their own skills.  [...]]]> http://directyourcareer.com/blog/do-you-inspire-fear-or-do-you-inspire-confidence.html/feed 0