Secrets of the Job Hunt

Jobs, Sisyphus, Routine, Structure, and Freedom

CM Russell — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:06:58 PDT

It’s the fourth of July, and I’ve been thinking a lot about how freedom ties into job searching. In a lot of ways, being out of work can feel like a total lack of freedom. You feel constricted from every corner, and nothing feels like enough – there is always a burden to do a little more to change the situation.

You feel a little bit like Sisyphus, the character from Greek mythology that was cursed by the gods to spend all eternity rolling a giant boulder up a hill. The boulder would never reach the top, and he never achieved this goal.

These feelings occur most often because job search lacks structure. There is only one big goal, which is to find a job. Until that goal is met, you feel like progress isn’t being made. This isn’t a fair amount of pressure to put on yourself. Finding a job does take time, and the fact that you aren’t done with the process yet doesn’t mean you aren’t making good progress towards that goal.

My advice is to set for yourself shorter term goals. For example, imagine if Sisyphus could say, “I’ll roll the boulder up to that tree, and then lodge it against the tree for the night. Tomorrow I’ll roll it up to the next tree.”

The best goals are based around actions, as opposed to results – because you can control actions, and you can’t always control results.. So, for example, a daily goal might be to send ten resumes and cover letters out to prospective employers. This is completely within your control, and once you’ve done the ten for the day (or whatever goal you set), you can step away and feel like you’ve accomplished what you set out to accomplish – because you have!

Note: This post is extracted and adapted from the post by the same name on Tough Economy Jobs.

I Want to Make a Career Change… But to What?

CM Russell — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 06:28:06 PDT

Reposted from Career Essentials from ResumeWonders

There seems to be endless possibilities for those having to make a career change. When this opportunity becomes available some know exactly what they will do and where they will do it, while others become overwhelmed by the unlimited options and don’t know where to begin.

Three ways to help narrow down those seemingly endless possibilities:

1. Find out what you are interested in. If there are 2 or 3 industries that have always been of interest to you, check them out. Find out the main players in the industries and start doing research on the companies and industries to see if there is an environment that will fit your talents. You will love your job, be fulfilled, and be more productive if you find what it is you love doing.

Research industry associations, and related groups on LinkedIn, Facebook, Yahoo Groups and Google Groups to learn, get involved and begin to make new contact in the fields. These contacts can shed the truth on what the actual jobs will entail and may be a great source of opportunity.

2. Take an assessment to find where your natural strengths, likes, and interests lie. Are you a people person and need to be in a team environment or prefer to work alone? Are you good with people or numbers? Do you like large companies or small? Left brain or right?

There are several types of assessments including DISC, Myers-Briggs, 360, and many others that focus on you behavioral preferences, skills, values and who you are inside. Maybe try a few of these assessments to really delve into your core wants and needs.

3. Learn what is available in your geographic area. If you don’t know the current hot and hiring industries in your area of the country then you need to find out. Read local business magazines and newspapers or begin to pay more attention to your local news. For great source for statistics on your area and to find out more about industries, fields, and positions you are interested in, I recommend you spend some time at http://www.bls.gov/oco/.

Although there are more ways to find out where you’ll fit best for a career change, these 3 tips will get you started learning about yourself, your preferences, the area around you and companies to look into. With just these 3 tips you will be able to weed out the areas that don’t fit and begin to see a pattern of what type of jobs, environments, and industries are of interest to you.

Let your curiosity explode as you search for a new fit. The more open minded you are to your potential, the more opportunities you will find. Enjoy the challenge and change.

The Best Companies to Work for - How Does Yours Rate?

CM Russell — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:28:26 PDT

Reposted from CareerAlley

We've had a number of posts on "the best companies to work for" which should help you focus your job search. But how do the companies rate that are not on the list? In fact, what do the people who actually work at these companies have to say? Every company, even the "best companies to work for" has their share of disgruntled employees, but you may want to find other sources when researching companies in your job search. Thanks to a reader for letting me know about the first site reviewed below. As with anything on the web these days, there are several sites that perform similar functions - I've added a few others to provide some balance.

Jobbala.com - This site is like three websites in one. The left hand side of the page is dedicated to "rate your job" (or company). The reviews are written by people who work at the company (so you do have an inside view). And there are balanced reviews. The center section of the page (the 2nd of three roles this site plays) focuses on "find job reviews", to see if an employer is write for you. There is a short list of top rated companies followed by the "wall of shame". Below this you can search by category. The right hand side of the page has a listing of job and career resources. This is an interesting site and worth a review.
JobVent.com - A similar concept to Jobbala.com, this site also has reviews (by employees) of companies. The left hand side of the page has links to rate your company or to search for companies based on the first letter of their name. The middle of the page is divided between "I Love my Job" and "I hate my job" with a listing of the top companies for both. You can search by name or by City/State.
Workedhere.com - Not only can you rate your company, but you can map it too! The top half of the main page is a map of the world with pop ups of rated companies. The map is interactive and will expand/contract by using the scroll wheel on your mouse. Below the map is a listing of Top Rated (left side), Worst Rated (center of the page and to the rate is a "Get Started" section.
Rateyourcompay.com - Makes sense that there would be a website called "rateyourcompany" for the topic rate your company. This first page of this website provides a map of the world, below which is a list of countries. Click your country on the map (if you are brave) or use the links below the map. Once you've clicked, the next page has tabs at the top for Home, Rate, Companies and Search. Below this there are four grids: I love my company, I hate my company, The latest ratings and The Most rated.
Glassdoor.com - Last, but not least, is glassdoor.com. The site started with salaries (everyone shares) but also has company reviews written by employees. Main page has recent salary reviews followed by recent company reviews. You can use a quick search at the top of the page (salaries, company reviews or interviews) or use the tabs for Salaries, Reviews and Interviews (this is new).

Good luck in your search.

Visit my site www.CareerAlley.com

Keeping Momentum during the Holiday

CM Russell — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:02:46 PDT

Holidays can be tough when you’re looking for work. It seems like you can’t get anything done and each time you call or send an e-mail you get an out of office reply. Those two weeks before and after a major holiday can be frustrating for setting appointments and making calls, but they don’t have to put a halt to moving your job search forward.

1) Send an e-mail note to your contacts, wishing them a safe and happy holiday weekend. It’s a perfect opportunity to stay in front of them without feeling like a pest. Building good will goes along way when the time comes to cash in for a reference, contact or lead.

2) Write your elevator speech and practice it at the family picnic.

3) Read the latest press releases from the companies you’re interested in. If they’ve won an award, or been named in an article, prepare a message to someone you might know in the company and congratulate them on the good news.

4) Check out the Inc 500 & 5000 index for small, private companies in your local area that are experiencing large growth. These companies have made these lists due to their great growth, which often translates to jobs. Many times they’ve grown so fast, they don’t have the sophisticated recruiting processes of large companies and are more open to accepting direct inquires for informational interviews.

5) Sign up for some professional groups on LinkedIn. If there are alumni groups or professional associations you’re affiliated with sign up to get updates from the group. These groups are free and provide a wealth of information such as job postings, articles, discussion boards and local meet-up groups.

6) Set up a Twitter account, play with how it works and find people in your industry to follow. It’s an invaluable source of information for sharing and learning about trends in your profession. Once you get accustom to its functionality and participating in conversation, you’ll begin to build your own following and professional network.

7) Check out meetup.com for any local networks that schedule regular meet-up events. This can be a group with a shared hobby, such as photography or reading, or more professional groups for realtors, marketers and lawyers. Either way, it builds your network and provides a forum for learning and development.

And finally, have a hamburger, hot dog and enjoy some free time. Just because you’re not working doesn’t mean, you’re not working.

Who's Hiring in Criminal Justice

CM Russell — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:24:41 PDT

Reposted from CareerAlley

Criminal Justice is a career category we've not covered before in this blog. What does it include? ATF Agents, CIA/FBI Agents, Corrections Officers, Police Officers, Criminologists, US Marshall, etc. Today's post will cover a few search options. A reminder that the full range of job functions exist within Criminal Justice (like administrative assistants, financial analysists, etc.).

CriminalJusticeJobMarket.com - This job search engine has tabs at the top for Career Training, Explore Careers, Resume Help and Search Jobs. There is a basic job search engine on the mid-right hand side below which is a listing of criminal justice jobs. The left hand side of the page (mid way down) has Job Banks and Job Market Resources.
Police Employment - Another job search board, this one specializes in police jobs (state, local and Federal Government). The center of the page has a search engine followed by recent jobs. The right hand side of the page (bottom), has law enforcement tips and advice. Top left hand side has a Job Seeker dashboard followed by jobs by category.
Law Enforcement Jobs - "Recruiting tomorrow's heroes today" is the tag line for this job search site. You can register on this site and post your resume. The main page has a number of resources on the left hand side (Newsletter, Education and Career Resources). The center of the page has a Job Seeker link for posting your resume, followed by a quick job search function and search by popular positions. The right hand side has featured jobs and jobs by sector. There were over 2,900 jobs when I checked.
Private Security Jobs - This job search site has the same structure to the one mentioned in the last paragraph. The main page has a number of resources on the left hand side (Newsletter, Education and Career Resources). The center of the page has a Job Seeker link for posting your resume, followed by a quick job search function and search by popular positions. The right hand side has featured jobs and jobs by sector. There were over 5,000 jobs when I checked the site.
Secruity Recruiter - "Providing Exceptional Security Talent" is the tag line for this recruiter. In addition to recruiting services, this site has a link to a blog and industry publications. Click Security Jobs at the top of the page followed by Job Seekers on the bottom right of the next page to leverage the search function. Click "Submit Resume & Profile" at the bottom of the page to forward your details to this recruiter via a web-form.

Good luck in your search.

Visit my site www.CareerAlley.com

CareerBuilder Going Green?

CM Russell — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:56:41 PDT

With all the buzz around "green this" and "green that" these days, it was only a matter of time before someone dedicated a job board to a green JOBS category.

CareerBuilder has just launched a new site dedicated to green, or environmentally friendly jobs. Now job seekers can search for jobs within companies that apply sustainable energy practices. Even the salary calculator from ERI is slanted towards the green jobs with their custom drop down box.

The site doesn't appear completely fleshed out yet, but it appears that one can look up specific jobs, employers and check out resources, primarily articles and recent news items pertaining to green jobs and green industry in general.

This could be a real growth area as, according to Cheezhead, more than $98Billion has been earmarked by the Obama administration to fund energy and environmental projects. Many of these projects will spur the creation of future green jobs.

Do you qualify for a green job?

If you've ever thought about green jobs, you might want to listen in to my recent green jobs podcast interview with Jim Cassio. Jim is a man who should know about green jobs. He has extensive experience in the green industry and has lots of answers. He is also author of the recently published Green Careers: Choosing Work for a Sustainable Future.
It remains to be seen whether this idea has wings, but $98Billion could fund an awful lot of jobs.

Interview Dilemma

CM Russell — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:29:41 PDT

A true story:

You get a second interview six months after push and pull with the company telling you, they’re interested in you, then pulling the position, only to re-open the position, consider you again, then tell you they offered it to someone else who turned it down, but would like to consider you a candidate for another time. After all this you’re still interested in speaking with them and you finally have a date set to meet with the hiring manager. It’s a lunch interview, but nonetheless, you’re there to show ‘em what you’ve got.

A scheduled time and place are established and you anxiously pull out your best suit and shoes to put forth your best showing. You map out your route and leave extra time for any unforeseen accidents or delays to ensure you arrive on time. All systems are a go and you arrive on time. You find a sit near the entrance so you can be assured the interviewer sees you as soon as they arrive. You wait patiently for them to arrive, understanding that sometimes meetings run over and people do run late. Five minutes passes, 10 and 15. Sipping on your ice tea, you’re wondering if you’ve been stood. Your phone rings. It’s the manager and she tells you, “The scheduler gave you the wrong address.” Bewildered, you say, “the message I got said 555 Friendship Blvd.” She says back, “You need to come to K and 8th, that’s where I am.”

You’re not overly familiar with the area and not quite sure how long it will take you to get there. You think at least 15 minutes on foot and you have no cash for a cab, and the train is running on delays. Despite the logistics, you feel rushed and flustered. What do you do? Do you go on to the interview? Or do you kindly respond that you’d prefer to reschedule?

Career advice from Glassdoor's Rusty Rueff (podcast)

CM Russell — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:38:09 PDT

I recently spoke with Glassdoor’s employment expert Rusty Rueff. Rusty offers some unique commentary from both sides of the company table – 1. from the employer with perspective of the tough staffing decisions companies are facing in today’s environment as well as 2. tips for employees and job seekers to navigate the tough climate. Rusty previously ran the HR departments for PepsiCo and EA, and is the co-author of Talent Force: A New Manifesto for the Human Side of Business. (20 min) (download mp3)

Visit glassdoor.com.

Take Control of Your Job Search

CM Russell — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 02:56:43 PDT

If you've been in job search, you've discovered that feeling vulnerable, victimized and useless can really impact your ability to look for work.

Over on Career Hub, Billie Sucher lists 21 things every job seeker needs to do. I added one to her wonderful list.

22) Be enthusiastic if not passionate about what you are pursuing.

Being enthusiastic will require that you know what's going on in the company before you go in for the interview. Do some serious research on the company. Be able to explain (without being asked, hopefully), who you really are, what makes you special and what can you do for the company. There's a post to read to better understand this logic. Ace the Executive interview with Visibility, Value and Vision.

There is so much great advice out there. There's no reason to feel sorry for yourself. There are jobs for the right people. Take control today.

Who's Hiring at the Most Admired Companies - Vol V

CM Russell — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:23:05 PDT

Reposted from CareerAlley

It's funny how events can so quickly change our views on topics that seemed iron-clad when first presented. What I'm thinking about, specifically, are financial services firms (many of whom are no longer with us) and the general public view of Banks, Brokerage Firms and Insurance Companies. The Most Admired List includes companies from some of these industries, but not every company in these industries had their reputations tarnished (although their industry will be tarnished for some time). You know how the saying goes - "Don't judge a book by its cover", or in this case, "Don't judge a company by its industry".

Costco Wholesale - Not everyone has heard of this specialty retailer, ranked 22 on this year's list. Their careers page has quite a bit of information running down the left hand side of the page. Some examples are: About Costco, Locations, Employment Opportunities and much more. The center of the page has a company overview, and then goes on to describe each of the major job functions with some embedded links. This makes it somewhat difficult to read, but if you are patient you will find the catagory and links that apply to you.
Nike - Number 23 on the list, Nike is a well known brand. It's main career site is graphically (optically) appealing. The left hand side of the page has a number of links to topics such as Regional Links, Career Areas, Diversity and Inclusion, Internships and more. The center of the page provides background on the company with a number of embedded links. Click Career Areas on the left hand side of the screen for a comprehensive page listing Areas (left center) with links to background on those areas, with Latest Postings listed down the center of the page.
Nordstrom - This high end retailer is ranked 24 on the list. Their main career page has a quick search on the right hand side of the page with Store Openings, Career Paths and New Opportunities links at the bottom of the page. With Career Path you can create your own path. From quick search you can set your own criteria. There were 525 jobs when I checked the site.
Exxon Mobil - The giant energy company ranked 25th on the list. A global company with over $442 Billion in revenues, they top many lists, including the Fortune 500 list. The main page on their career site is fairly simple - browse careers worldwide is on the left hand side, career development is in the center and that's about it for this page. Click "browse careers" to link to the meat of their site. The top of the page has a map where you can click on the country of your choice. Below the map the regions of the world are listed with the countries in each region. Click the country of your choice to search for jobs.
Bank of America - Okay, this may be one of those companies that was a most admired when the list was generated but would likely not make the list if it was made today (at least that's what I think). 26th on the list (let's see what they do next year), their career site has links on the left for Job Search, Job Areas, Campus Recruiting, Global Careers and more. The center of the page has a simple search engine (with a separate link for their Merrill jobs).

Good luck in your search.

Visit my site www.CareerAlley.com

Craigslist and Your Job Search

CM Russell — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:04:43 PDT

A friend asked me the other day what I thought of Craigslist as a job searching venue.

Actually, Craigslist can be a pretty good place to look. People who are comfortable with the site tend to use it when they want to meet a need right away, so the job postings there tend to be available on a fairly first-come first-served basis.

If you’re looking for work, it’s a good idea to go onto Craigslist and look through all of the job categories that are remotely related to the work that you’re looking for (postings are often filed under the not exactly right category).

Do this twice or three times per week – it only takes 10-20 minutes, and you can sometimes get lucky and find a real gem. I’ve personally found several interesting opportunities over the years on the site, and I’ve found good talent for my businesses there as well.

The only word of warning that I will offer is that since there is no quality control whatsoever, scams can often work their way onto the site. Don’t post your personal details publicly on the site, and watch out for network marketing and other “opportunities” that ask you to buy into their program, or work exclusively on commission.

Note: This post is extracted and adapted from the post by the same name on Tough Economy Jobs.

Whats new on JobRadio?

CM Russell — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:31:53 PDT

6 New shows this highlight our stream. Download them here >>

1. SECRETS OF THE JOB HUNT: Job Search Roundup June 2009

2. TOTAL PICTURE RADIO: Donna Sweidan on LinkedIn and Todays Job Hunt

3. TOTAL PICTURE RADIO: Trendwatcher – Social Networking at the Office

4. CAREER RENEGADE: Profile of Charlie Guillebeau

5. JOB SEARCH GUY: Working with Recruiters, Show #11

6. CAREER COMMUNIQUE: How Recruiters Source Candidates

Also we're testing a new iphone app for the station. Stay tuned for details!

Interesting things about LinkedIn

CM Russell — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 08:22:56 PDT

I heard Reid Hoffman, CEO of LinkedIn speak at a recent conference. He told us some interesting tidbits about the popular business networking site.

* 1 person joins Linkedin every second

* 1 million new members every 17 days

* 41 million total users

* Job tenure is on the decline

* "Your network = your R&D, your marketing, your sales team"

* Linkedin profiles are more accurate than resumes - "people dont lie as much in public" Reid says

* their new company buzz app will search twitter streams, company profiles will be "search engine friendly soon"

Get Your News

CM Russell — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 03:35:09 PDT

How are you getting your daily dose of news? I don't mean sports and weather news. I mean the news that impacts your job search, career, industry?

One of my favorite weekly sources of news is a magazine called "The Week". It arrives on Fridays and I can't wait to read it cover to cover. It is well written and covers both sides of the story.

If you want another weekly digest sent to your inbox, try Smartbrief. It covers the key stories within industries. Free! Here's what the homepage looks like, the email digest looks a bit different, but you get the drift.

If you are looking for a collection of blogs to read about a particular topic, my friend, Mike Lally recommended Alltop in a recent comment. I agree. Great collection of some of the best blogs on a topic. You can even build your own page to read with all the information in one spot based on your interests.

Become an information sponge. Learn as much as you can about current events and new trends. It makes it so much easier to have great discussions with people while networking.

Read and learn!

The Essential Resume Tool: KEYWORDS

CM Russell — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 12:16:49 PDT

Keywords are an essential piece to a well-written resume. Why? Because they are the words that describe what you do. They also let the reader know immediately whether or not you are a potential candidate for them.

Keywords are “buzz” words or industry specific jargon that communicates a message about your qualifications, accomplishments, credentials or responsibilities. They are action-driven and demonstrate your value to the company.

Each keyword has a message attached to it. For example: Operations Leadership message is– process performance improvements, operational compliance, cost reductions, safety implementation, etc. They help tell the story in conjunction with action verbs (created, developed, launched, delivered…) to pack more of a punch and keep the reader interested.

With companies receiving thousands of resumes per job opening, they have come to rely on keyword-searchable databases to weed out candidates that don’t fit the position and save the candidates that do. These machines are programmed with certain keywords and receive “hits” for resumes that match the data. Keywords are also being used on job boards and professional networks like LinkedIn. Hiring managers can go to LinkedIn and type in “Pharmaceutical Sales Representative” and if you have those words in your resume, you become a match.

Keywords can be used throughout the resume. You can add them to your career summary at the top, or in your job description, and within your accomplishments to bring out your strengths. Here is an example of keywords within a career summary. I added bold so you could tell which ones they are:

“Dynamic executive leadership career of diverse organizations with a rich mix of finance, operations, internal/external processes, sales and business development. Intimate knowledge of financial processes, accounting practices, operating results and profitability. Expert in executing team-driven process improvements to increase revenue growth, operational efficiency, and overall profitability.”

See how keywords are peppered throughout? This resume will be able to stand up against company keyword machines.

Take a close look at your resume and make sure it is keyword-saturated. If you need help with keywords, go to Amazon and buy a book of keywords. Definitely worth the money.

Graduation Day is Here - Do You Have a Job (yet)?

CM Russell — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 18:37:09 PDT

Reposted from CareerAlley

Congratulations to all of you College Seniors who are graduating this month. How quickly four year (five years for those of you who are on the "extended" plan) flies by when you are having fun (and maybe studying too). If you already have your job lined up, well a double congrats for you! if you don't, time to focus on that job (because the last thing you want to hear from your parents is the last six words of this blog title). For all of you Juniors, you still have a year but why wait? And for everyone else still in college, time to think about internships. Covering four main topics today:

Alumni (and soon to be Alumni) Resources
College Interships and Summer Jobs
College MBAs
Students and Recent Grads

Lots to cover this post - let's get started.

Alumni Job Search - Beyond.com to the rescue again! Another site by our friends and this one has an amazing number of resources. Top of the page is the usual links - Search Jobs, Post Resume, Job Seeker Login and Career Resources. Below this starts the long list of links. First section is "Choose Your Career Channel" which is your field of study or interest (almost 30 are listed here). This is followed by Job Seeker Tools (center left hand side) and Featured Companies (center right hand side). Last, but not least, Career Center Resources. But wait, where to begin? Not to worry, on the right hand side of the page are "3 Quick Steps to Job Seeker Success"! Need I say more?
Internweb.com - It's a very good idea to have as many internships during your college education as possible, but if you are graduating this year and don't have a job, you could certainly still do an internship over the summer until you find full time employment. This site has tabs near the top for Intern Listing, Intern Jobs, College Intern and Intern Board. Below this there is an Intern Search bar to the left and below that is a section for students with plenty of resources. Center section is your main search area where you can subscribe or look at some internships now.
MBA Careers - The name is self-explanatory. This site has links at the top for Job Seeker, Post Resume (register first) and Search Jobs. Job Seeker provides some tools and links, but you should also click on Search Jobs. This link provides a simple search engine on the left with a list of featured employers on the right hand side.
CampusCareerCenter.com - Jobs, Guidance and Networking is this sites tag line. There are links at the top of the page for Post Resume and Students. On the left hand side of the screen is the Student resource center with a number of links, including Job Search, Resources and Tools. Center page is a listing of featured employers while on the right hand side of the page is a rotating "Who's Hiring" logo. Click on Search Jobs (under Job Search) to search for jobs (you need to register first in order to do this).
College Central - "The nation's largest network of college job seekers" is the tag line for this site. There are two main sections - "Connect To" and "Content Links". Connect To includes Alumni Center and Student Center. Click on these for specialized job search resources and search tools. As an example, the Alumni Center has over 77,000 jobs and over 100 career videos. Content Links includes links to a number of resources including Career Corner with a number of relevant articles.

Good luck in your search.

Visit my site www.CareerAlley.com

When Your Elevator Pitch Has A Pitch Problem

CM Russell — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 09:21:21 PDT

Is it safe to assume that everyone in America has watched American Idol? Based on the vote tally each week during the season, I think it is a fair bet. And if you've seen the show, you've seen the caricatures that do the judging. The caricatures include hip/cool, sure/sensible, loving/kind and rude/contrarian. They play their roles pretty well, actually. As if they were reading off a script . . . hmmm.

One of the key things we are supposed to be listening for during American Idol is something called "pitch". According to one caricature (Randy), singers on idol can be a little "pitchy". Well, I never really looked for a specific definition for the word. So tonight as I began to think about your elevator pitch, I figured this was a pretty good time to get the definition right.

So, if you want info on pitch, where do you go? Well, here at Spin Strategy, we went to the folks at Sing Like A Pro. Why? Wouldn't you?

The link above tells you everything you'd probably want to know about pitch. But, a short summary from the site can be found below:

"Going off pitch when singing is also called going "off key", and it means that you sing a slightly different note then you intended to. Usually, you end up hitting a note that's a little bit higher or lower then what you were aiming for.

This is called going sharp (a little too high) or flat, which is a little too low. Everyone goes off key sometimes, but some people have a hard time controlling their pitch. Of course, there are ways to correct pitch problems."

We all do our own judging when out at networking events, don't we? I know I do. I love to listen to the variety of voices and accents. I also love to hear what people actually say and wonder whether that was what they planned to say. Are they off key or just new at sharing their careers with others?

So, in this post I'd like to to help you with your pitch problems. If you have them, that is. I'll tell you my top 10 keys to an effective elevator pitch. So, without further delay . . .

Top 10 Keys To An Effective Elevator Pitch

Speak up! If everyone in the room or around the table can't hear you, you've already lost. Use your outside voice when inside or outside. It helps you command the group's attention and makes a statement that what you are saying is worth hearing. And, you know what, if I can't hear your first few words, I'll stop trying too hard.
Look at your audience! Yes, every one of them if you can. If the group has a leader and you address all of your comments to them, well, you lost me again. Oh, and everyone else in the room who was previously open to learning about you is also off in wonder land.
Like to talk? Engage your filter! If the rules say 30 or 60 seconds, please don't take twice that time. It is unfair to the others especially as networking groups get larger and require more time for this part of the meeting. Even more important? You lose people after a minute and you may not even have reached your best information yet.
Stand up and move around! Please don't sit. Don't stand next to your seat. And once up in the front of the room, try to move around a bit. Your physical movement, like the strength of your voice, helps to send a message that you are sharing something interesting. What does it mean to move around "a bit"? Two or three steps each way is fine. If you find yourself across the room after 10 seconds, rein yourself in.
Pauses, small breaths and other ways to create emphasis. I've heard a few people give an elevator pitch that sounded more like a speed reading. Remember, this should be conversational. So, pause after an important point or a big accomplishment. Place emphasis on certain other points you want people to remember. Be in control of what people hear and what ends up on the floor.
Smile and be approachable! Being in transition does not warrant a eulogy. Your elevator pitch is not a time to be solemn, over-confident or otherwise serious. You can be confident about your skills and experience but make sure your delivery creates interest and followers. Ever heard the "how great I am" elevator pitch? Ever want to go up and introduce yourself to that person after? Me neither.
Offer to help others! An elevator pitch that is solely focused on your transition needs will not garner the genuine attention and interest of others. Nope. Everyone has something to offer. So make sure you include something selfless in your words.
Include your specific job objectives! What are you looking for in your search? If you don't provide specific and tangible objectives to your network, they will likely forget about you. Or at least forget why they thought they should remember you. How do you do this? Build the objectives into your one sheet or networking card. Also, make sure to throw out the names of a few target companies. Oh, and share your Watchlyst with the group. That way they can keep track of you and others much easier!
Be Interesting! Find a way to make your career accomplishments relevant and interesting to everyone. Avoid using industry specific jargon that only you and a few others will understand. Use brief and specific examples of what makes you different from everyone else who sat in those chairs. I am sitting here waiting for you to say something that will allow me to remember you. What are you passionate about? Really!
Recognize others! If you heard something interesting from another networker who spoke before you, re-emphasize it. That says to the group that you were listening earlier and have more than just your own success in mind. You may also create an opportunity for further networking with that person as the open networking portion begins. This is networking with a purpose.

Of course this discussion has been almost entirely focused on the most common format for the modern elevator speech.

You. Standing in front of 10-50 people. No elevator. And a timer (if the group is lucky).

Really this is more of an introduction, isn't it?

You are introducing yourself to the network that may be able to help you find your next job.

So here's a format for your introduction that may help. It's called BigPitch™ because it's just you.

In front of a big room or a big group of people . . .

Download BigPitch

Nice to meet you. I hope.

How To Bring Your Career to a Crashing Halt

CM Russell — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:48:50 PDT

Reposted from http://www.ActAsIfBlog.com

In my new book, Act As If It Were Impossible to Fail, I provide proven strategies for accelerating your career growth and for getting faster promotions and bigger raises. In this post, I want to offer the opposite advice. I am going to share some strategies that will surely cause your career to come to a crashing halt. These strategies are as valid as the career acceleration strategies in my book. How do I know? I have used each strategy personally and many people I have mentored and coached were once using them as well. If you are using any of these strategies, please pull over to the side of the road (take time off to evaluate how you got there), get out your map (seek guidance from your network of mentors), and set yourself back in the fast lane to success (create a plan to eliminate your bad behaviors).

Foolproof Crash Strategies

1) The "That's the Dumbest Idea That I Have Ever Heard" Strategy -- I was an engineer in college and was taught "black and white" thinking. Additionally, I was taught to defend and debate my view of the truth aggressively. So, in my first three or four years in the business world, my associates and clients would regularly hear me blurt out from the back of a meeting "That's the Dumbest Idea That I Have Ever Heard" regarding any idea that wasn't mine. Needless to say I created more than a few hurt feelings and, sadly, I even made a couple of people cry. Over the years, I learned a much better approach.

To Correct: Instead of blurting out, "That's the dumbest idea that I have ever heard" I learned instead to say, "That's a really interesting perspective, but what if we thought of it like this..."

2) The "My Boss is An Idiot Campaign" Strategy -- Because I was a consultant, I had occasion to have many bosses over the course of the early part of my career. Many of these men and women were terrific and still mentor me in my career. But, in all honesty, there were several bosses that clearly were not qualified to be in their positions. I applied the same "black and white" thinking mentioned in the previous strategy to take it upon myself to communicate loudly and brashly just how incompetent I found those bosses. What I learned over time is that everyone already knew what was going on and my negative campaigning only brought my stock down and there were much more effective approaches.

To Correct: Instead of campaigning about your boss's lack of capability, use all of your energy to make your boss more successful. In most cases, your boss will be tremendously appreciative and will have no alternative but to recognize your superior performance. And, everyone else will recognize your contribution, your leadership skills, and your team play.

3) The "I Got Screwed" Strategy for Performance Reviews -- Early in my career, I ignored the performance management process at the companies for which I worked. My thought process was that if I worked the hardest and accomplished the most, my boss would SURELY recognize my efforts and I would get terrific raises and early promotions. Guess what? When I got performance reviews, my reaction was often "I got screwed". I was very slow on this one; this occurred several times before one of my mentors showed me a better approach.

To Correct: Instead of waiting until I got a review that I didn't like to talk to my boss about my performance. I talked with my boss at the beginning of the year about what his expectations were and about what I would have to do to get promoted and a big raise. I documented those expectations and then I checked in regularly and continued to document our discussions. This way, I was able to course correct and eliminate the chance that I would be surprised at review, raise, and promotion time.

Look, I have yet to meet anyone who is perfect, so it would not be reasonable to expect that you will not find yourself in one of these situations or a similarly destructive situation. What is important is that you identify when you are on course for a crash and that you course correct as quickly as possible so you can get back to accelerating your career. Please contact me if you are in a situation in which you need help before someone has to extract you with the "jaws of life".

Good luck to you and always Act As If It Were Impossible to Fail!
Joe Lavelle

Advice on Navigating the "Real World": Lessons from Onions, Hepburn & Junior High

CM Russell — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 08:47:54 PDT

One of my favorite pastimes in May and June is to read commencement speeches, and scout for anecdotes. Put together a diverse audience of parents, grads, and visitors, combine it with the need to be concise, interesting, and not "too preachy"--and voila--a unique challenge for even the most seasoned of speakers. It's a unique challenge. (Here's some advice on how to do it well if you ever find yourself in this position.)

My favorite commencement speeches are ones that are short, funny, and provide concise "timeless" advice. Without further ado, here are three of my all-time favorite snippets of wit and wisdom.

RISK HUMILIATION

During her undergraduate years at Dartmouth, author Louise Erdich worked as a cook for a campus dining hall. Here's an excerpt from her commencement address at her alma mater in which she recounts peeling 60 pounds of onions before going to class--and what the experience taught her.

My problem that day was that I smelled like an onion. You know how it is when you smell like an onion. You can’t smell how badly you smell. I walked into class and everybody moved away from me. I was frozen with embarrassment. Now, I was sure anyway, coming from North Dakota, that everyone was smarter than me. And at the moment, not only were they smarter, but I was the only one who smelled like an onion.

Lesson? If you smell like an onion, hold your nose and take notes. I passed the class, but did not become a philosophy major. Instead, I became a writer. Even if people were smarter, I had the advantage of knowing onions. I had stories. Most important of all, I had humiliation. If there’s one this we all have in common, it is absurd humiliation, which can actually become the basis of wisdom.

The experience caused me to invent The Law of the Onion. It goes something like this: you have to risk humiliation if you want to move forward. But the Law of the Onion also states: don’t take things personally. If other people’s opinions are not personal to you, good or bad, you have a kind of freedom to be who you are. You have the freedom to do the work that is most meaningful to you.

BET ON YOURSELF

ABC News Correspondent Cynthia McFadden was the first in her family to go to college. Her father worked for a telephone company in Maine. When she graduated from Columbia Law School, her dad told her: "just remember one thing little girl, you've struggled real hard to get this degree…. Now it is up to you to find work that gives you joy. Anyone can have a job they don't like. " Her advice: Make sure you don't.

In a 2008 Commencement address to Columbia Law School graduates, McFadden provides additional "life lessons" that may play out particularly well in a "down economy" (as many job offers today start out as contract or "temp to perm" assignments). This advice comes from a glamorous source--her friendship with Katherine Hepburn.
I was offered a new job. My first as an on-air reporter. I wanted it desperately but was afraid I would fail. I went to Kate's for dinner. --- I told her--- "the good thing is he's offering me a three-year contract--- so even if I stink I am still employed!"
She looked at me with horror. "HEAVENS NO! You must sign for as short a time as you can. If you're good you want them to have to pay you a lot more money and if you're bad you want to be able to get the hell out. "
'When you are young," she continued, " you must always bet on yourself.' I signed for one year. I was good. And he did pay.

So ... Bet on yourself. Take a chance. I hate to quote a greeting card on an occasion as important as this one but here goes "what would you do if failure weren't an option." What indeed.

EXPECT SEVENTH GRADE TO REPEAT ITSELF

I'm often surprised by how much "grown-up" life resembles childhood. I've had jobs where corporate e-mails sent by senior leaders ended up in the wrong in-box--and the result has felt like a "passed note" gone bad, and I've worked for companies which have changed bathroom policies based on poor "seat behavior." And, never mind the fun of occasional office politics...

And with that, here's my all-time favorite piece of graduation advice, courtesy of Tom Brokaw's 2005 Commencement speech at Dartmouth College:

...You have been hearing all of your life about this moment - your first big step into what you have been called and told is the real world. What, you may be asking yourself this morning, is this real life all about? Ladies and gentlemen of the Class of 2005 at Dartmouth, it's not college - it's not high school. Real life is junior high.

The world you're about to enter is filled with adolescent pettiness, pubescent rivalries, the insecurities of 13-year-olds and the false bravado of 14-year-olds. Forty years from now, I guarantee it, you'll still be making silly mistakes, you'll have a temper tantrum, you'll have your feelings hurt for some trivial slight, you'll say something dumb and at least once a week you'll wonder, "Will I ever grow up?"

You can change that. In pursuit of passions, always be young. In your relationship with others, always be a grown-up. Set a standard and stay faithful to it.

What are your favorites? Share...

Desperate job seeker or a creative way to job hunt?

CM Russell — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 07:24:39 PDT

While working today I came across this ad from a job seeker on craigslist. This isnt the typical job hunting method. Does it seem desperate to you? Does it seem creative? Leave a comment and tell me what you think.

Career Guidance from our Friends

CM Russell — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:24:09 PDT

Every Thursday night, for 10 years, I spent 30 minutes laughing and commiserating with the relationship and job mishaps of my best friends: Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Joey and Phoebe. Back then, when I had a job, I watched for the entertainment-value, often wondering if Ross and Rachel will ever get married and get off the “we were on a break” merry-go-round. But today, as my Friends continue on in syndication, I watch with a closer eye to their challenges in the job market. Looking closer, I’ve found that at some point throughout the 10 year series, each character comes to a career crossroads. They were either fired or they just couldn’t do it anymore, and each had to come to terms with what am I going to do next?

Ross was put on sabbatical after a meltdown at the museum. Yes, the meltdown was over someone eating his post-Thanksgiving turkey sandwich, but what seemed like a tragedy for someone who lived for dinosaurs, losing his job at the Museum of Natural History, eventually opened doors to a fulfilling career as tenured professor at NYU.

We never really knew what Chandler’s job was, but we all knew he hated it. After falling asleep in a meeting and forced to move to Tulsa, he decided he just couldn’t do it anymore and quit. He spent several episodes trying to figure it out, while he lived off Monica’s salary as a chef and a rent-controlled apartment. Ultimately, he took an unpaid internship and was offered a job in advertising, something he discovered he was pretty good at.

Rachel thought marriage to a wealthy doctor was her ticket to happiness, but after a few floundering years waiting tables in a coffee house, she found the courage to pursue her passion for fashion. Quitting her job as a waitress on a whim of a bad day, forced her to focus on moving forward where she eventually landed at Bloomingdales and then Ralph Lauren as a Buyer. Like Phoebe said, this job was “the mother ship calling her home.” Rachel never looked back.

Monica and Joey followed their passion whatever it took. Monica worked at a 50’s theme diner with fake boobs to stay close to her passion for cooking. She would eventually meander through many New York restaurants, but by series end she was Head Chef. The job she had always wanted. Joey went on every audition in New York even when he knew he didn’t have the skills for the role. He even volunteered for a telethon in the hopes of being noticed on TV. This after, he discovered he was not the host. The point however, he kept at it because he believed in himself. By the series end, he too had been discovered and had made his way into the big leagues of acting by landing a gig in LA.

And Phoebe, although somewhat a free spirit, she was the classic entrepreneur and survivor. A coffee house singer and freelance masseuse, she took on whatever challenge came her way, and never let disappointment get her down. Even when she decided to be a surrogate for her brother’s baby, that turned out to be triplets, she strategized on new business ventures such as selling knives and opening a Saturn dealership. She was the constant optimist in a group of friends that rode the career ladder like a bucking bull.

It’s been five years since my Friends left, but I find that in today’s tough job market, we can still learn a lot from them. They all faced challenges whether in love or life, but at the series finale they all found their niche while trusting the process. Yes, it’s a process that will frustrate us, annoy us, and anger us, but just remember that when it gets to be too much, you’ll always have your Friends.

Who's Hiring Now in Energy!

CM Russell — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 15:47:53 PDT

Reposted from CareerAlley

Targeted job search by industry / job function seems to be a favorite, so I will continue today with the Energy Industry. I've probably mentioned at least a dozen times that there are many job functions in each industry. As an example, you may be an accountant or a risk manager who specializes in the Energy Industry or is looking to get into a different field in your job function. So don't immediately write-off a field in which you haven't worked, there may just be a job for you.

Energyjobsportal.com - This site is a job search board for the energy industry. The main page has at the top which are for employers. Directly below this is a section called "Find a Job" which allows you to filter your search by company, location or job category. Click "Advanced Search" to broaden the search criteria. There were 183 job opportunities when I check (from systems analyst to engineer).
Utilitiesjobs.com - Another partner of Beyond.com, this site focuses on public utilities and energy jobs. The main page has a simple search engine on the top left hand side of the page with Member Login, Post Resumes and Career Resources directly to the right of the search box. According to the site, there are over 1,000 jobs on the site with 1,071 added in the past 14 days. Post Your Resume and Job Alerts are located on the left hand center side of the page with industry information and articles directly below. To the right of this are recent job listings.
Energy Headhunter - The name says everything. This recruiter seems to cover the full range of jobs. Their website has links on the upper left hand side for The Firm, Our Practice, How We Work, Resumes and Contact Us. Click on Resumes for information regarding how to forward your resume. There is also a snailmail address and telephone number in the Contact Us section if you would rather use one of those methods of contact.
Energy, Petroleum and Gas Industry Jobs - The Job Beat... - This is the mother lode of job search resources for the Energy Industry. Scroll down the page (past the ads) and you will see an amazing number of links to resources (company websites, job search boards, by industry and by region). In the center of these resources is a simple job search engine.
EnergyCentralJobs.com - Another industry focused job search board. There are tabs for Job Search, My Resume and My EC Jobs. You can login or register from the right hand side of the page or use the simple search engine to start looking for a job. Below this is stats on recently posted jobs (982 jobs with 127 posted last week when I checked). Below this is a listing of featured jobs followed by a listing of featured employers.

Good luck in your search.

Visit my site www.CareerAlley.com

Why Group Job Hunting Doesn’t Work

CM Russell — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:39:48 PDT

For those of you who are familiar with the work that I do (career coaching, resume writing, and promoter of the group job hunting concept), my title probably seems a bit surprising. After all, how can one of the biggest fans of group job hunting claim that there are times when it doesn’t work?

Well, most great concepts require more than just theory to make them beneficial. You can talk all day about how wonderful something is, but without true application, it will fall flat. The same is true for group job hunting.

The idea is that job seekers, who are all essentially in the same boat, will join forces and assist each other through the job search process. This assistance can be anything from swapping leads and resources, making introductions, and even offering referrals.

To me, it’s a no-brainer. In this age of social networking and nonstop talk from career pros about the importance of building contacts during your job search, you would think group job hunting would be taking the Internet by storm. Although we have seen “pay-it-forward” attempts pop up across many social media sites, by and large, you are still hard-pressed to find job seekers really banding together.

Why is that?

To help put some perspective on this, I’ve compiled a few reasons I think job seekers might be struggling to get this concept working for them:

1. Job seekers are worried about competition. I hear this a lot when I speak with job seekers about networking with other job seekers: “But aren’t they my competition?” Of course, you could always meet someone else who is going for the same position as you, but with the amount of virtual social networking websites for job seekers, I think it is a pretty safe bet that you are going to meet candidates from all backgrounds and industries. Many job seekers only look to people in their field for support, but that is a big mistake. People know people from all walks of life. So if you are in IT, don’t be shy about meeting up with another job seeker in marketing. Maybe that person is married to someone with strong IT connections or has contacts in that arena from past employment experiences.

2. Job seekers only want to speak with employed people. We seem to have this perception that currently employed people are “in the know,” whereas unemployed people are “out of the loop.” Considering our unemployment rate at the moment, I would say that this thinking is pretty shallow. In fact, often employed people are the least likely to help job seekers. It is other job seekers who can empathize that are more willing to offer assistance. In addition, it is other job seekers who are hearing about leads and exploring opportunities that are often much more aware of what’s going on in the job market as opposed to the employed professional who spends all day working at his or her desk.

3. Too many job seekers are too worried about receiving help and not about giving help. When people are stressed (and a job search is no doubt stressful), true character often comes out. And sadly, all too often, people only want to be helped. They can’t be bothered with helping anyone else. I see this a lot in my firm. I often will recommend job seekers to connect with one another, particularly if I think they are a good fit for supporting each other. Too often, one client will reach out to the other and then come back frustrated that “she didn’t do anything for me.” It doesn’t take much to find out that this client didn’t help out either. Sometimes it is amazing how they even neglect to respond to each other’s e-mails!

4. Job seekers are obsessed with online job boards. As much as this drives us career pros nuts and as much as we report the appalling statistics (less than 4% effectiveness rate), candidates continue to insist on devoting the bulk of their time job searching to applying for job postings. It doesn’t matter that many of these jobs are not real; job seekers are infatuated with them anyway.

And I can understand why. It seems so straightforward. Company has position available. Job seeker applies. Company calls for interview and makes offer. Job seeker takes the job. But it is a little like playing the lottery. You can spend a lot of resources and never win the reward. At some point, you have to ask yourself, “What are the odds? How can I create a better balance of my resources?” By all means, you can still dream, but you also need to be realistic.

5. Job seekers are afraid group job hunting is too much like a support group. For this last reason, I blame career counseling. Although the intention is nice, helping job seekers, the application often comes off like an addiction support meeting. Job seekers are already often feeling down; they don’t need to be treated like they have fallen off the wagon. Instead they want to attend networking functions with other professionals who are united for a common purpose. That is support and encouragement, but it isn’t patronizing. These people haven’t failed; they are looking for jobs. We tell them to represent themselves as top talent, but then we have meetings where we all sit in a circle and look lost.

It really has become my goal to see job seekers utilize the group job hunting concept with success. I know that it can be a powerful tool in the job search arsenal. But in order for that to happen, we need a shift in mindset for how we go about conducting our job search and where we place our time and resources. Truthfully, without this shift, very few tools will work for us.

So who am I anyway? Why do I think my advice is so valuable?

My name is Stephen Van Vreede. My company is called No Stone Unturned, and I have spent 15 years on both sides of the corporate hiring experience.

The short story is that I have an MBA in Marketing from Villanova University and a dual B.S. degree in Finance & Logistics from the University of Maryland. I am a certified professional résumé writer (CPRW) and a member of the Professional Association of Résumé Writers and Career Coaches (PARW/CC). As I mentioned, I paid my dues in the corporate world eventually running a large-scale call center for a major truck rental company, and I have spent the past 7 years with No Stone Unturned, assisting job seekers in achieving their goals.

In February 2009, I launched a new group job hunting networking site: NoddlePlace.com. It is absolutely FREE to join, and you have access to everything on the site. Come check it out at NoddlePlace. You can also follow me on Twitter.

cover letter template: its all about how you start it

CM Russell — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 19:11:52 PDT

Crafting a winning cover letter or cover letter template is very much how you start it. Listen to these 2 career coaches talk about the importance of hitting the reader right off the bat with a strong opening.

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Search the rest of our site for cover letter advice.

Job Search Roundup for June 2009 (podcast)

CM Russell — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:24:00 PDT

Got 6 minutes to hear whats new in the online job search world? Job search news you can use: the rise of job postings, unusual tactic survey, Justjobs.com, Tweetlancers, new job seeker blog services, New service delivers jobs by email amd more useful information.

Listen on demand? download mp3

More on how to write a cover letter

CM Russell — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 07:13:48 PDT

Judi Perkins, author of How to Find Your Perfect Job writes in with some cover letter writing tips.

Here are three tips, although the way I teach my clients to write cover letters (I have a course in it) involves much, much more than this.

DON’T WRITE A GENERIC COVER LETTER. Yes, they’re easier but they win no points and accomplish no forward movement. You’re hoping that telling them all these great things about you will catch their attention, but the ad is the company telling you exactly what they want. Writing a generic cover letter is similar to you telling a Best Buy salesperson you want a digital camera that takes great outdoor pictures, and then he starts telling you all about the camera’s long battery life. Yes, it’s a great feature of the camera, but it’s not what you want. So do you care? Not much.

Pick two important aspects of the ad’s job requirements and give an example of each from your career. Lead with their words, not your synonyms. Most people just say they have experience, which is too subjective. Or they do it laundry list style, which is also too subjective. You need a specific example or two and you need it with results. This is objective and carries much more credibility.

Keep your paragraphs to 6 lines max. More than that is too much text for the eye to follow and rather than read or skimmed, your words are skipped.

The debate these days about cover letters being important is coming up not because cover letters are a mere formality or unimportant, but because they’re all so worthless and uninteresting. They all say the same thing (which is to say “nothing”) with the same phrases. With all the resume submittals these days, what’s the point in reading them? There isn’t one. An effective cover letter whets the appetite for the resume by speaking specifically about your experience and directly in relation to the ad. Most people think they do this, but the operative word is think, because cover letters are so odious to write, that eventually people become enamored of their finely crafted sentences and stray from each new ad.

If this is Roxanne - hi! I'd love to help you out again! And if it's not Roxanne, I'd love to help you out anyway! Either way, please let me know what else I can provide or if you need clarification on anything.

Judi Perkins
The How-To Job Coach
SIGN UP FOR YOUR FREE NEWSLETTER NOW!
www.FindthePerfectJob.com
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http://www.findtheperfectjob.com/webinars.html
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Changing Jobs, Changing Careers, Changing Industries

CM Russell — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 03:21:24 PDT

Change is something we tend to avoid like the plague (or perhaps more timely, Swine Flu). Yet job seekers right now will have to investigate something different.

The job you had before doesn't exist any longer. There were unique sets of circumstances that led to the evolution of your last job and in many cases the employer worked around your strengths and weaknesses to allow the job to suit you. This time, you will want to position your skills into a job defined by the employer.

So my advice, stop looking for what you used to do and focus on what you want to do. There are millions of opportunities out there, really. The likelihood of your finding the right one for you or even just a job, requires that you fit your skills into their round hole. If you focus on the skills you most like using, you will be far more successful in finding someone who can use them. Think outside your previous job title, career and industry.

Thinking outside the box can be difficult. You will most likely need some help. Enlist the advice of those you trust. There was a great posting on Life at work about change. In it was a listing of examples of changes her clients had made. Here is the list:

From mechanical engineeer to attorney to manager at a start-up specialty beverage company
From college athletic coach to self-employed personal trainer
From journalist to law school student
From full-time instructional designer to contract instructional designer
From laid off administrative employee to self employed retailer
From technical writer to TV production
From hi-tech manager to at-home parent
From corporate training manager to self-employed consultant and professional speaker
From working for corporations to working in two-person partnerships in law, management consultancy and architecture
From full-time high school teacher to part-time curriculum designer
From biotech marketing to self-employed chef-for-hire
From community college dean to e-learning consultant and retiree
How did they make these transitions? Each story is most likely different, however, they all started the same way, Once upon a time... no, no, no. They assessed their core strengths. They focused on what they really enjoyed doing and from that discovery became energized and passionate about making the change.

What was your transition and how did you get there?

The Fastest Growing Companies - Who's Hiring Vol VI

CM Russell — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 15:44:57 PDT

Reposted from CareerAlley

So where are we in the recession life-cycle? Not sure that anyone really knows the answer yet, but we are all hoping that we are about at bottom and this recent quiet period is not just a temporary lull in the downward spiral. That being said, jobs will still be lost - especially in the automotive related industries. So hopefully the fastest growing companies are the fastest at job creation too. Picking up where we left off on the last volume in this series.

Gulfport Energy - Ranked 23rd on the list, Gulfport is an independent oil and gas producer. Their career page has a brief overview along with a snailmail address and email address for sending resumes. There is no listing of job openings on their website nor can you register on their site.
Google - No explanation needed here. As large as Google is, they still managed to make it to the fastest growing list. Their career site has a company overview along with a link for "What's it like to work at Google". Left hand side of the page has links for Life at Google, Office Locations, Joining Google and Student Jobs. The middle of the page has links for locations (US and International) as well as links to find out more about specific job functions. Click on any of the job functions to search for specific jobs.
Blackrock - The money management firm, ranked 25th on the list, still managed to grow fast in a down market. Their main careers page has links on the left for Analysts & Associates, Professional Opportunities, New Hires and more. The middle of the page has company information with a few links for additional information. Click on any of the links on the left to go to a function specific page. Once there, click your location from the Apply for Jobs box on the right hand side of the page. This will lead to a job search page for that location.
Metalico - Not to be confused with the band (similar name), Metalico is "is a Ferrous and Non-Ferrous scrap metal processor operating in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Texas and Mississippi. Metalico, Inc. is also the nation's largest fabricator of lead based products, other than batteries. " based on their main page. Their career page is, to be frank, not worth the space. There is a brief paragraph on the company along with an email address for resume submission.
GameStop - If you ever wanted to play games as a job (and get paid for it), now's your chance. Gamestop, ranked 27 on the list is not only a fast growing company, but it is also on the Fortune 500 list. Their main career site has a brief over view (center page) and tabs on the left hand side of the page to select where in the organization you would like to work (Stores, Home Office, Distribution, etc.). There are additional links for benefits and Application Paperwork. So your mother was wrong, you can make a living playing games!

Good luck in your search.

Visit my site www.CareerAlley.com

Three million (3,000,000!) jobs available, right now!

CM Russell — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:58:49 PDT

That’s right. It’s a little-known fact that in the midst of the current economic crisis and rampant unemployment, there is a labor shortage. This paragraph is taken from an article titled “3 Million Unfilled Jobs in the US” on TimesUnion.com, by Wally Altes:

“One of the great under-reported/unreported stories about the economy is that American employers have 3 million jobs they can’t fill. What we are seeing in the midst of the weakest economy in several decades and a national unemployment rate approaching 10%, is that employers have huge numbers of jobs which can’t be filled.”

This raises some important questions: “Where are these jobs?” “What are these employers looking for?” “Why aren't these jobs being filled?” And, most importantly: “What do I have to do to get one of those jobs?”

I wrote a free special report called “Where are the JOBS?” to answer those questions. Click here to get it!

Note: This post is extracted and adapted from the post by the same name on Tough Economy Jobs.

Laid off and done Badly

CM Russell — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 06:36:37 PDT

As the economic condition continues in its turbulent rant and rave cycle, the consistent flow of layoffs seem to effect and detract from every sector without relief. In this, I try to look for the benefits that are offered to those employees in their transition. How do employees view their employers and how did the layoff go in terms of process and respect.

Well, to no ones surprise, least of all mine - they do not do a good job. A recent poll suggested the following figures which are a testament of poor process and even poorer strategic planning.

* 88% of the people polled said that they would rate the process with their layoff poor or very poor
* 72% of the people polled rated the severance packages poor or very poor
* 94% of the people polled rated the outplacement services poor or very poor

Now the review went on to speak about several other factors around remaining employees morale and other factors but these three I think list a hard line truth of the short sighted view that many employers are taking in today’s market. One of immediate cost cutting with no regard for future business and employee need.

One thing is for sure, and most people are not speaking about it - the employee pipeline in the US is getting smaller not larger and companies need to position and act accordingly. Public companies are thinking of this weeks numbers vs. strategic planning and work force development and talent management. Instead of laying people off since the numbers are not there, look at the projected years business and the following year, where the market is headed and better yet what your multi-billion dollar company will look like 5 yrs from now. Executives need to head the word of the people and know that with constant layoffs come a smaller and smaller labor force to hire from when things start getting better.

Now no one is saying that layoffs never need to happen and if they do manage them well. What we are seeing above is that the process is handled badly. I personally only want to discuss the first bullet point of the above listed three. The other two are very subjective since the amount of money paid in severance and outplacement will never meet the expectations of the laid off workforce no matter what is done. But the first one is the process and I hear consistently of the horror stories of some of the poorest run programs anywhere. A few things I notice that are consistent through the layoffs and make for a poor process are as follows:

1.Poor communication or a total lack of in most cases
2.No consistency
3.Poor management left in place

Well the major themes above are not only common but executed with no accountability nor regard for the longer term impact. I would be interested in knowing how layoffs would be executed if the people managing the process would keep their role or lose their job based upon the exit survey of the group being ousted. I know one thing for sure, people would be more like people and a great deal nicer dealing with the issues of the work force.

Poor communication is the leading cause for many issues. However it appears that there is a larger issue here that no one is pointing to. The reason for the lack of communication comes from the executive leadership wanting to hold things close to the vest, not lose productivity during the transition, and maintain control during the process. Hmmmmm….sorry folks does not work that way.

Consistency. There appears in most cases to be little reason for certian people being laid off and others kept. People with similiar roles are left not knowing why their co worker was dismissed and the desk next to them empty. In conjuction with no communication, they are paralyzed with the uncertain future of their role and when they might fall under the axe.

Poor management left in place. All the time!! It happens everywhere I turn that the management left in most cases is the least expensive to the payroll and therefore the most in experienced or the poorest. Not the people you need during one of the more crucial times of your company’s history. Again, cost is the ruling factor here not thinking of the loss of talent, knowledge and increased inefficiency that will permeate through the environment for the coming years reducing your competitive advantage.

Where does this leave us? Who knows? Honestly the people that are in the trenches, see the people for who they are, and understand the masses either are let go or forced under fear to conform to the strategies of the people that do not know any better or choose short sighted cost cutting as the only solution. Whether you are one or the other, or even part of the laid off work force - feel empowered or become empowered. Things will change, the employee will once again rise to the occasion and things will get better. It never happens as fast we like, but it will happen as history teaches. My hope is that all of the good people are not burned by then and don’t feel like working for the corporate empires that have brought such low morale standard upon how we treat people.

Written by Jason Monastra at LambentPath