Executive Career Suite Weblog

CAREER JUMPS

Bonnie Kurka — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 22:02:32 -0500

Reflections

I had Rheumatic Fever when I was in Kindergarten. I don't remember the "sick" part, but what I do remember is the bitter taste of the medicine since I didn't know how to swallow pills whole; and most of all I remember the gifts that I received during this time. I was not allowed to play or walk around - something to do about the heart, so I spent a lot of time reading and playing games in bed.

One of my favorite books that I received was Dr. Goat. The first lines of the book were: "Dr. Goat put on his coat and went out to make some calls. He went to the house of a mouse who had the mumps and cured a frog who had the jumps."

Have you ever had The Jumps?

Career Jumps Diagnosis and Treatment

Recently a client came to me - let's call her "Jane." She was interested in beginning a search for a new position but was concerned about the Jumps. We talked about her history and I looked at her resume and was happy to report to her that she was free from that syndrome. I coached her through some strategies for her job search and sent her on her way to success.

Now, let's look at "John." He came to me wanting something different in his career. He had worked in several career fields taking mostly lateral moves in quick succession. He was once more looking for something different.

Diagnosis: The Jumps

Definition: Several positions in a short amount of time without progression - mostly lateral moves in different industries.

The Treatment: John and I worked through a personal branding program to help him discover his true passion and strengths. Then together we drew up a plan of action to reach his career goals. One action item included developing an online identity with his new brand so people would begin to see how his diverse work history complimented his goals. This was an investment for John. He had to stop going to Starbucks every morning and out to dinner two or three nights each week, but he knew the ROI would be worth it. I am happy to say that he has settled into a new career, one that fits and one I am sure that he will stick with for several years.

If you think you might have "the Jumps" or if you want to avoid them, contact me for a free "diagnosis."

Turn Your Experiences into Soundbites

Bonnie Kurka — Mon, 21 May 2007 06:53:39 -0500

Why go into an interview situation unprepared?

Have you had numerous interviews but no offers? Do you find it difficult to sell yourself in an interview?

This is YOUR CHANCE to hear EXACTLY HOW to answer questions in a POWERFUL way. You'll hear me talk about:

1. A specific step-by-step approach to developing anwers for interview questions.

2. The keys to making the most of your answers - the must haves.

3. How to gain the most points with the interviewer.

Turn Your Experience into Soundbites Teleclass

I'll show you an easy five-step method for preparing answers to interview questions so you can breeze your way through an interview with flair and style. No more embarrassing pauses while you try to think of something to say.

My upcoming teleclass will be an hour of powerful information that can truly impact your life!

For a small investment of $45, you will gain confidence in yourself and be able to take control of your career!

EVENT DAY & TIME

Wednesday, MAY 30, 2007

4 pm EDT, 3pm CDT, 2pm MDT, and 1pm PDT

SIGN UP NOW

* If you are not able to attend this class, don't despair! We will be recording it and sending out the MP3 file to all those who are registered!

SIGN UP NOW - DON'T DELAY - LIMITED SEATING

Managing Your Career

Bonnie Kurka — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 15:40:14 -0500

We've talked before about how individuals should be in charge of managing their own careers.Here are some facts to think about:

25% of people will google someone before meeting with them.

75% of hiring managers, recruiters, etc. will google applicants before interviewing them.

Part of career management is managing your on-line presence. For some, that means "creating" an on-line presence; for others, especially new college grads, that means cleaning up the "digital dirt" they have made for themselves.

There are many ways to create an on-line presence: blogs, webpages, web portfolios, etc. There are strategies to enhance your visibility too. It is important to ensure that your personal brand is visible on-line.

Go google yourself and see what comes up. Contact us to learn more about our strategies.

Which Sports Car Are You?

Bonnie Kurka — Mon, 15 May 2006 12:57:56 -0500

This is just for fun! I took an online quiz to see which sports car I am. Mine came back a Ferrari 360 Modena: You've got it all. Power, passion, precision, and style. You're sensuous, exotic, and temperamental. Sure, you're expensive and high-maintenance, but you're worth it.

I don't know if I would call myself "high maintenance" .....but I'm sure that my husband would go along with the "expensive" attribute.

Go ahead and try it out. It only takes a minute or two! Sports Car Quiz

Fortune in Follow-Up

Bonnie Kurka — Mon, 06 Mar 2006 09:01:45 -0600

According to a survey of 150 hiring executives, recently conducted by Robert Half International, a whopping 82% said job seekers should follow-up within two weeks of submitting application materials. Only 5% said professionals should refrain from communicating once a resume has been sent.

Executives were asked, "How long should a job seeker wait to follow up with the hiring manager after submitting a resume?" Their responses:

One week or less 37%
One to two weeks 45%
Two to three weeks 9%
Three weeks or more 3%
Don't follow up 5%
Don't know 1%

Executives also were asked, "In your opinion, what is the best way for a job seeker to follow up with a hiring manager after submitting a resume?" The top three responses were via e-mail (38 percent), telephone (33 percent) and a handwritten note (23 percent).

Bottom line? Executives expect you to follow-up. Don't fall into the trap of thinking you're being a pest by checking on the status of your application.
Source: Jobs and Moms Newsletter, March 1, 2006

IF THE TRUTH HURTS. . . .

Bonnie Kurka — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 11:53:10 -0600

Well, another CEO has outed himself and admitted that he lied on his resume. The Radio Shack executive said he "believes" he earned his theology degree but is as yet unable to document it. Give me a break! I don't know anyone who has earned a bachelors degree or higher and doesn't know it!

In this world of electronic everything it's very easy to check credentials. So why try to get by with a lie on your resume? What was he thinking?

If the truth hurts, go out and do something about it--like finish your degree!

Seriously, I have had several clients ask me to "embellish" their resume to make it sound good. One client in particular, kept after me to add a certain degree to his education section "because it sounds good and once I get the interview, I can wow them enough that the lie won't matter!"

Some people believe that they can lie on their resume and then state the truth on their employment application--they feel that nobody reads the applications. The application is a legal document that requires a signature. What they don't consider is that the resumes become part of the employees official file. You might think you are within legal limits by leaving the lie off of the application, but what about ethics, integrity, trust....

Learn from the CEO - don't take a chance with a lie on your resume.

Being Prepared

Bonnie Kurka — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 14:47:43 -0600

I've been working with a few of my favorite clients lately, the ones who contact me about every 12 months or so to update their resume. They aren't my favorite because they pay me once a year. I love them because they are taking care of themselves. They are always "prepared."

If someone asked you today for your resume, could you send it right away? One client in particular has been promoted from a basic sales position to National Sales Director in just two and half years! Part of his success is that he is ready with his resume when an opportunity comes along.

I have had clients come to me after working with a company for 15 years -- and they haven't updated their resume in that same amount of time. Of course, they're always in a hurry--gotta have it tomorrow. They have to scramble to find the right information, and some of it can't be found. Plus, many people don't remember what they had for breakfast let alone what accomplishments they had on the job a few years back.

Besides being prepared for possibilities, here are some other benefits to an updated resume:

A current record of your accomplishments
Self esteem builder to see what you've done
Use it to ask for a raise
Great tool for preparing for your performance appraisal

As for my "prepared" clients, they'll reap another reward. When it comes time to do a total resume upgrade, the investment will be much smaller since so much of the information is already there!

For more information about resume upgrades click here

Personal Values and Career Choices

Bonnie Kurka — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 10:31:49 -0600

Each generation seems to have different motivators for work/career choices. My father's generation looked for stability - get a job and stay with that company for 40 years, retire and get the gold watch.

Then we moved into a money motivated society, and then the money and benefits era. Not only did we want the money but we wanted lots of benefits. We went from vacation and health care benefits to life insurance, childcare, disability insurance, petcare, concierge services. Those extra benefits came at a price - instead of the traditional 40 hour work week, salaried employees found themselves working more hours and taking work home too.

The new generation of workers is saying HOLD ON! NO MORE of this! They want a balance of life and work AND in that order.

Research has shown that some will take a lower salary in order to have that balance. The new generation wants their careers to match their values.

I say, BRAVO for that! As I coach my clients and work with them through the personal branding process, one of the first steps is to determine their values. I have found through the years that when someone is unhappy in their job, most of the time it is because there is a value that is not being met.

A benefit of completing the personal branding process is that the employee will be able to identify their strengths and their values and then match that to an employer's value system. This synchronization will lead to a more meaningful culture and each person's role and contribution will take on a new importance. The end result is happier employees who want to stay.

Digital Dirt

Bonnie Kurka — Thu, 12 Jan 2006 10:05:01 -0600

Did you read my last post on googling? This morning I read two articles about hiring managers and recruiters using google to research candidates. What they find can keep you off of the "interview" list.

It amazes me what people put out there. Most people think about teens "telling all" - but the dirt can be found in all age groups.

One of the articles reported that a survey by ExecuNet revealed that 75 percent of executive recruiters use search engines to uncover information about candidates, and 26 percent have eliminated candidates because of information found online.

What can you do about digital dirt? You can contact some sites and request that incriminating information be removed--they probably won't do it. Or you can create an online presence with good information through a web portfolio and a weblog. At Executive Career Suite, we specialize in helping you define your true value and getting that information out for people to see.

Here are the links to the articles:

http://tinyurl.com/c6qta

http://tinyurl.com/dup3c

Do you have digital dirt?

Bedazzled?

Bonnie Kurka — Mon, 09 Jan 2006 11:03:31 -0600

I spent Saturday evening watching movies with my teenage sons. If you have teenagers, you know how rare this occurrence is! Not wanting to chase them away, I watched the movies they chose.

One of those movies was Bedazzled—a comedy about a guy who is granted several wishes in exchange for his soul. He goes through various personas trying to be Mr. Perfect so he can catch a certain woman. Every “wish” ends in disaster.

As we watched this movie, it was apparent that this guy just needed to be himself—he needed personal branding!

How many of us have tried on different personalities or different careers or even started new business looking for success and happiness, but have fallen way short?

When we brand ourselves, we discover our true strengths and learn to give ourselves permission to be authentic. Being anything other than authentic is exhausting and leads to mediocrity. So, don't sell your soul, just invest in personal branding!