The Girl With Too Much Time on Her Hands

Take a Hobby, Pick It Up - All Day Long You'll Have Good Luck!

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 02 Jul 2018 18:57:00 +0000

I love food. I love telling stories.

Every weekend I guide lucky South Floridians to their perfect cold dessert (or as some call it - dinner!!!). I jokingly refer to myself as an Ice Cream Sommelier, and apparently a Yelper who visited this weekend agreed with me!!!

post continues after photos

Located at 1445 Congress Ave.#4, Delray Beach, FL

How did I get here?

The backstory:
In 2015, one night after visiting my Upper East Side clients, I stopped by an establishment that got rave reviews. The "bearded alchemist," a Brooklyn hipster mixologist named Jacob and I struck up a conversation. He loved to concoct potions that he thought would intrigue the clientele. That night he made one, and asked me to describe what I tasted. When I did, he looked at me, flabberghasted.

"You just nailed that entire profile. You're a super-taster." So of course, whenever I was on the UES, that became my go-to spot. And every time (maybe half a dozen total) he would ask me to try something or name a drink. I was disappointed when I no longer had to travel into the city for work!

Fast forward:
I never thought that being a super-taster would actually have a use. A few weeks ago, I happened to be searching for opportunities locally on line (Linkedin cuts a broad swath of results even when you specify a zip code) and I came across a listing I couldn't ignore. An attorney who followed his passion went to Ice Cream College (yes, there is such a thing!), studied with Top Chefs and launched his dream business. I sent this cover letter:

He did contact me. And the rest is history! I try every new flavor and topping one teeny-tiny gelato-sized spoon at a time. I want to be able to describe what they taste like without adding too much sugar or dairy into my diet. Believe it or not, those tiny spoonfuls hit the spot. All the joy, none of the guilt!

Will my paid avocation turn into a vocation? I'd happily take all of my business-building, dedication to customer service, sales and marketing skills (and taste buds) with me into a new endeavor. When you have passion for what you do and have a joy for life, there are no limits to your success, because it doesn't feel like work! Stay tuned!!

But in the meantime...if you enjoy ice cream like I do and live in or visit South Florida, check out Proper Ice Cream in Delray, Thursdays through Sundays, and 4th of July! Nomnomnom.

For more information:

visit the Proper Ice Cream website here.

Six Years Goes By In the Blink of an Eye!

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 02 Jul 2018 18:19:00 +0000

Apparently for the last few years, my blog title wasn't quite accurate!

Since my last post, my arm healed, I WON an all expenses paid trip to Los Angeles during Oscar week for a much needed vacation, had another ophthalmology position that I loved for 2 years, traveled to Malta and Italy on my 'summer vacation,' lost three family members in the space of 14 months, and relocated to Florida, whereupon I ended up back in Los Angeles! It was a short lived consulting gig, so I returned to Florida to try and acclimate to my new surroundings.

Then--- life really took a detour, sidelining me again!! This time, with breast cancer. I was so lucky - no chemo and no mastectomy. Cancer is not a walk in the park - in addition to being a catastrophic health crisis, it's an emotional cyclone. It's painful and time consuming, especially when your radiation schedule, hellish enough on its own, is interrupted by massive power outages due to a record-breaking hurricane. In simplest terms, it SUCKED. I'm SO glad it's behind me.

You can blow on food to cool it down if it's too hot. My entire body was on fire, and I had no air conditioning for 11 days!! Fast forward past all that. Go ahead, it's OK, I did! A little cancer never slowed me down!

Now, I ride my bike to the gym, spend 15 minutes on the elliptical and row 15 minutes. EVERY. SINGLE.DAY.

OK, I don't actually ride the bike ALL the time. I am in Florida, after all--- sometimes it's too hot out! But then I add some tricep work into my routine. The only thing that keeps me showing up is that it's a 'prescription.' I equate it to opening up the medicine cabinet and taking my daily dose. You wouldn't skip a day if a medication was saving your life, would you?

I also cut white carbs (flour, rice, bread, pasta, baking potatoes), fried food and sugar out of my diet. I try to eat more plant based selections (minimal dairy, chicken, turkey and eggs and no red meat at all) and take a selection of carefully curated vitamin/mineral supplements chosen after copious amounts of my own internet research.

TIP: Ladies, squeeze your lemons monthly. You may find a warning sign BEFORE your mammogram, which you should never skip!

I daresay I'm in the best shape I've been in for a VERY long time. And I need to keep it this way, because besides taking tamoxifen, exercise is the #1 thing you can do to prevent recurrence. #2 is cutting out alcohol, but a girl's gotta live, you know! I feel I must do everything else religiously to make up for the one thing I don't want to. So, I'm still a red wine lover. In moderation, of course 😀

I healed, I worked, I traveled, I moved, I healed again, and now I'm starting over in Florida.

OK, so now you're all caught up. What have YOU been up to for the last 6 years?

Remembering Mrs. Piggle Wiggle!

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 22:00:00 +0000

A funny thing happened while I was IN New York! I had to keep myself from laughing while recording the story, or you wouldn't have been able to understand me. Laughter IS the world's best medicine!

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Oh, and by the way, I had such a good time, it felt like 2.5 days, but really was only 36 hours!!! This is what happens when you're outside on a NY street, PRETENDING you're at a sidewalk café in Europe. It makes for a REALLY good belly laugh!! I think I need Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle’s “I-thought-You-Saider’s” cure!!

Hear Yourself Think?

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 20:23:00 +0000

Don't know if it will catch on (or last!) but I started an audio blog. Figured this was the best way to broadcast it (no pun intended!). http://jerseygirl.podbean.com/2012/09/21/whats-a-bari-ism/

Murphy's law

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:56:00 +0000

(Special Note: This blog post is being composed by Windows speech recognition. I feel a little bit like a cross between Stephen Hawking and Roger Ebert!)

Wow. I was so excited that the year has been off to a great start. It's amazing to me how quickly things can change. As a huge proponent of networking I have always stuck by my guns that my next job was going to come through someone I had helped along the way in the process of looking for work.

In the course of doing my research for a really good opportunity about two years ago, through LinkedIn, I contacted a former employee of a company I was pursuing. She was extremely helpful, very thorough in her knowledge of the inner workings of the company, and on top of that, a very nice, friendly contact, who was willing to help in any way she could. Since that first e-mail, we have stayed in touch for two years, we've continued to look out for each other professionally, and she even offered me the opportunity to stay, at no charge, in her apartment in Connecticut when my current housing at the time fell through. We like and respect one another and will each do anything we can to help, when the need arises.

Apparently she had met up with a distributor of a very high-end French skin care line looking for an East Coast business development manager. She gave this woman my name and out of the blue, late last Saturday afternoon, my phone rang. The distributor wanted me to meet with her in New York without ever seeing my resume. So I made plans to hop on a train on Monday afternoon for a 5:00 meeting. In further 'as luck would have it' coincidences, when I went to the French Website to do my research, it turns out that I am personally connected to their newly appointed distributor in the UK. To me, all signs were pointing to YES!!

The weather that weekend was not very nice - it snowed most of the day on Saturday, was cold on Sunday, and drizzled on and off most of Monday morning and early into Monday afternoon. I got to the train station at 2:30 paid for my parking spot at 2:35 in the antiquated slot system setup that they have for people who need to park there for the day. From there the layout of the train station is such that you have to go down a flight of stairs through a tunnel and back up another flight of stairs to reach the platform where you purchase your ticket and wait for the train. The stairs are outdoors. Without going into a ton of details, basically I fell down the entire flight of concrete stairs due to the bad weather. I'm lucky to be alive right now, and not have a traumatic brain injury, or be sitting permanently in a wheelchair. I guess I should be thanking my lucky stars. But instead I am in pain. I have multiple traumatic fractures of my left proximal humerus and crushed the tuberosity to bits. In other words, I pretty much annihilated my left arm.

In the emergency room, the Dr. would not give me any pain medication until he had seen my ex rays-- which took forever. When he finally did approve pain medication, it was such a low dose it didn't help. He then send me home, without surgery, in nothing but a sling. It took me three days to get an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon. I cannot believe the unprofessionalism I encountered in trying to put my arm back together. Offices didn't call me back, another office told me they didn't want cash patients, and one practice with eight doctors told me that no one in their practice specialized in actual broken arm bones, they only treated sports injuries and muscle tears. What? What? What?

I finally was able to get through at one practice. As luck would have it, three of the doctors in that practice were names given to me by people when I asked them for recommendations of good surgeons. I figured I would start at the top, and I asked for an appointment with the name on the masthead of the practice. I was lucky I got in, and he could see me the next day. The minute he took a look at my ex rays and saw how much pain I was in, he scheduled me for surgery the next day. I was unconscious for 3 hours while he put a titanium locking plate and 10 screws into the head of the bone in my upper arm. Let me tell you, that is one big incision!He also had to sew my rotator cuff back together with internal stitches because the force of the trauma to the bone was so strong, it tore away from the bone. OUCH!

Every phone call I had made to that practice, every person I have spoken to, every technician who has walked me back past the front door, taken information or worked with me in any way has been so nice and so professional (so far), that I am beyond surprised. I can't even imagine how I would have been treated by these practices that never even called me back. So, maybe this is a case of "everything happens for a reason."

Unfortunately, my at-home experience immediately after surgery ran into a few snags. I was put on an automatic ice machine and told to leave it on with no more details than that and no instructions. As it turns out, I was given a model with no temperature regulator, and there is metal my arm. Now I'm not a scientist, but I know that metal conducts energy, and with that math, 'freezing' was probably just a little bit too cold for my newly reconstructed arm. I kept getting the chills (while on a continuous nerve block), but attributed it to the anesthesia wearing off and my nerves. Finally, after a weekend in agony, I called the emergency Dr. On call, and asked if it was OK to take it off. That was a little bit of relief. However, I still felt like my skin was burning, and I thought perhaps I had some kind of human freezer burn. When I went for my first post-op appointment, and they began to remove the dressing and surgical padding covering the incision, my entire chest was red and irritated and covered with welts, due to an allergy or some type of sensitivity to the glue on their non latex tape. No wonder!!!

Well, by comparison, that has made the last six days a walk in the park. I have a ton of bone pain, muscle fatigue, and general surgical discomfort that is more than manageable while awake. That's the good news. The bad news is that my bedroom, I now refer to as "that torture chamber." I haven't slept a full night since the day I broke my arm. I'm exhausted. But I'm healing. It's going to be a LONG road. And since I can't drive legally for quite some time, this MAY put a damper on my job search. I can't even go back to one of my part time jobs until I can put some real clothes on!

Happy New Year to me!

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:26:00 +0000

2011 was one year I was glad to see go. Granted, it wasn't the worst year on record, but it definitely had its highs and lows. I spent the holiday weekend in Manhattan with a friend from LA who's currently living there, in a perfectly adorable sublet in the East Village. The bustle of NYC is indescribable during this time of year (and no, I'm not talking about Times Square. I'm adventurous, not insane!). It was a nice change from coughing up a lung most of December!!

At the start of the year, I updated my Linkedin Profile, and have been busy moderating our group. We just hit SIXTEEN THOUSAND! In my last post, I reflected on how the jobs that are out there were just not lining up with who is available, and it was gratifying to see that an article was just published on-line today, confirming that fact. I love it when I'm right!
http://lifeinc.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/13/10142795-role-reversal-employers-say-they-cant-find-workers

I'm not one for resolutions, but I will say that my goal this year is to change the direction of things that were headed the wrong way. I've met some great people through the special needs group and enjoyed a great night out with several new people on Tuesday night. One of the things I wanted to fix is that I have not had a haircut since June (my stylist, who's over an hour away, blew out a knee and has been out of commission). One of the women at dinner used to own several salons in the Chelsea neighborhood (of Manhattan), so with the knowledge that she's got that "city" aesthetic - as opposed to 'bored housewife syndrome' - I've got an appointment with her tomorrow. Such a small thing, but it's been on my list FOREVER!

Also, a fantastic opportunity has just opened up, and I had a good phone conversation that is headed for step 2. Even after all this time, I still get hopeful when a new possibility shows up. I can't help it! Call me an 'eternal optimist.'

Happy New Year!! And a happy birthday to my younger brother!!

On Slippin' Into the Future

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 20:15:00 +0000

When I started this blog, I had so little going on that I needed something to fill the day, and I thought the blog-verse, specifically other people in the same boat as I am, would be able to relate to just not knowing what to do with oneself for all the waking hours in a day. Now, even with just part-time occupations, I actually find myself wondering where all the hours went! Amazing, isn't it?

I just realized I hadn't blogged since early October. My one month job-versary working with special needs kids came and went, and poof, so did the two month! Some days, when I look at the 40 pending membership requests to the LinkedIn group I manage, I just shake my head. Where before it was something to fill a half hour or so, now I look at it and think, wow, that's a lot of people. Forty people. Almost every day. The group went from under 5000 when I started, to over 14,000 two years later. That's some pretty exponential growth. And people join this group, ostensibly to network, but mainly, because they're looking for a job. The job market (for "good" jobs) just doesn't seem to be improving that much. As I look back at all the opportunities I've pursued that no one was ever hired for, and the job listings that keep reappearing (because there aren't people to fill them) it's easy to see the gap between what is out there, and who is out there. The two are just not coming together.

I feel really good about the work that I'm doing because I know that it is giving back to a very special community. It may not be the most effective use of my skills and talents, but at least they're being put to use, I am less stressed out financially, and I am still able to continue my quest for my next "best fit" in the time I have left over. Plus, integrating myself back into the groove of my current location (just a few miles from where I grew up, yet worlds away in some respects)is facilitated by the fact that many people who knew my dad are still around, and remember me. That's a little disconcerting to me, because I'm usually so good with names! It's different now, because people remember me as my father's daughter, but the last time I saw them was 30+ years ago!

I have probably said some of this before, but it's been on my mind so much lately that when I sit down to write, it's what comes out. Because the only other thing worth writing is the long list of MORE Prizes I've won over the last few months. Today's took the cake though: moisturizer with "elk antler velvet" in the list of ingredients. That's one heck of a magic potion. Part of me "doesn't even want to know." I think PETA is going to come after me just for accepting the package!!

On The Move

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 20:52:00 +0000

Go ahead. Chastise me. I deserve it. It's been well over a month since my last entry. There was a lot going on. Between getting settled in my new place, followed by a visit from Mom, then toss in some holidays and you've got one giant excuse why I haven't sat down to share what's been going on.
Mea Culpa!

The move went surprisingly well, thanks to some of the angels I call friends. They did great, and were more organized and helpful than I could have ever hoped for. I had two men and two football players loading the truck, and a very generous ex-roommate, and three generations unloading on the other end. Toss in an uncle who provided a truck and driver, and everything went without a hitch. I was the only one who was a neurotic worried mess. Will it fit? What time is it? How much is the gas? Is the Storage unit going to get damp? Everyone did their best to reassure me (aka shut me up!!) and at the end of the day, we enjoyed Chinese takeout and a few adult beverages.

That same week, I was invited to dinner by friends of the family. When they discovered I was STILL underemployed after all this time, I was introduced to a local organization that was looking for some help. The stars were aligned, and they asked me to come work for them part time (on a schedule) to help run the business office and oversee their children-with-special-needs program called HandInHand (www.hhnj.org). Since I have several friends and family members whom autism has affected, I'm happy to be helping out a group that means something to me. I'm just a little nervous because the special needs children themselves are a little outside my comfort zone. The teen-aged volunteers and event planning,I can manage - it's the autistic 6 year olds might be a bit of a challenge!

I started 3 days later and can tell that the help is very much appreciated, which is all I ever really ask for when I lend a hand (of course, a paycheck doesn't hurt!). Supposedly because the Program is run by Chabad, a spiritual organization dedicated to getting Jewish people more in touch with their religion, culture and heritage, it will bring good luck. Within the first week, I was going out to dinner with my Mom and found a necklace right outside my car door on the parking lot pavement!

I have continued my winning streak of beauty products too. Just recently I got a box full of Aveeno bath products, a new eyeliner pencil, some eye cream, and I got to be a mascara guinea pig for L'Oreal Consumer Testing. That's always fun.

But I think the most interesting part of this whole experience has been moving 'home' to the area in which I grew up. I am one zip code over from my actual hometown but it's only about 4 miles from my childhood home. I always said I would never come back here, but so far nothing bad has happened. As a matter of fact, one of my classmates from second grade found out I was coming back to the area and invited me to break the fast with her family, which I thought was very sweet.

Maybe that's a sign of things to come. I will be eternally happy if I underestimated coming back! I guess it's the
old "under-promise, over-deliver" scenario. We shall see!

Here's my new view:

I MUST be normal...

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 19:41:00 +0000

... because I *hate* moving! I have not been blogging due to the fact that even though I just moved into my current place on June 1~~~ on August 1, I was given 30 days notice. There are some issues between the owners and the decision was made to not have a renter, so I've been busy (more like scrambling) to find a place to live and re-packing - just when I thought I was done!

I've become a statistic. On such short notice, I'm moving in with family. Since the house is (beyond) fully furnished, I've had to make arrangements to rent a storage unit and decide what I absolutely must keep with me and what needs to be packed up again to store. Not fun. But necessary.

When I graduated from high school, in my little town of 18,000 people, I swore I'd leave for good. To be going back after (cough cough) years feels a little odd. My sprig of wisdom for the day: Never say never, you'll jinx yourself!

While I've been able to live in relative anonymity most of my adult life (except for when I WANT people to know me), going to a place where a good chunk of the population knows my family name is going to be a challenge. While I hope in the long run that it will work to my advantage, I'll have to think twice about going shopping in yoga pants with no makeup. Sometimes I can be *such* a girl.

Best Laid Plans...

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 17:44:00 +0000

Is there such thing as a "Birthday Mulligan?" I was so proud of myself for giving my 3 girlfriends advance notice that I wanted to have a few cocktails and some nibbles on the anniversary of my birth. A few days before my actual birthday, I either caught a heinous bug, or swallowed some deadly bacteria. I was down for the count with the worst stomach ailment I've ever had. It lasted ten days!! So, on my birthday, I was on the couch, forcing myself to drink gallons of gatorade and watching an "Indiana Jones" marathon on TV. By dinner, I had graduated to a warm bowl of plain white rice.

So I ask, is there such a thing as a Birthday Mulligan? If not, I'll find other reasons to celebrate in my life. That doesn't have to be the only one. It's grossly over-rated and anti-climactic.

I took the time to reflect over the last year and celebrated the few small victories I've eked out for myself. As in, I'm still here, fighting for my professional survival every day. People ask me how I do it. I have no idea. I just get up and keep going!! Word for the day: FORTITUDE.

I've been a bad, bad blogger!

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 15:20:00 +0000

How does a month fly by so quickly? I guess because I also keep a real life journal, I didn't realize that I'd been neglecting the electronic one. It's been an interesting month. Even though the jobs report is still dismal and the economy is not improving in leaps and bounds, it does feel like the employment market is loosening up a bit. There are actually opportunities out there that make sense for me, and I am getting responses to my inquiries.

I'm still uncovering hidden opportunities, trying to beat the rush, and get my name out in front of people. This month, I actually got a personal email back from the president of a company thanking me for my interest. That was a pleasant surprise. I have two opportunities currently in the works. The one that I was really excited about last month ended up fizzling out due to an internal hire. That one was a tough let down, because against my better judgement, I had let myself get excited about the possibilities. That'll teach me!!

A pleasant surprise from the interview I had last week: The VP of human resources that met with me prior to my sit down with my potential boss complimented me on my 'polite persistence' and pleasant demeanor. It was the first time in a long time where I felt like someone had taken an INTEREST in my diverse background rather than asking me to 'defend my resumé.' It's a very subtle difference, but the experience of someone being interested in my diversity and wealth of transferable skills was beyond refreshing. It will be interesting to hear the feedback on how that went.

In the meantime, I'm still winning stuff. A new foundation, an anti-static paddle brush, a bag of swag from a beauty company,and a whole jar of a high end moisturizer to sensory test as part of a panel! It's definitely fun when my roommate says, "Hey, did you know there's a package for you sitting in the front doorway?" I'm even going to get to edit a manuscript of a book that's coming out that I read about on Twitter. I love a red pen!

I spent the day with my brother yesterday. He is in town for a week because he had to use up a week of vacation or lose it. The weather was perfect, and we had sushi for lunch (my favorite!!). It's nice to know that I do have the support of a sibling. Not everyone in my family 'gets' how difficult it is to be underemployed.

I wish everyone a safe and happy Fourth Of July weekend. As we celebrate our independence, here's hoping acknowledgement of the things that make this country great find their way back into our collective consciousness. The doom and gloom of the last four years is really getting out of hand in the media. I'd not object to more happy stories in the news!!

I've been a busy "B"

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 30 May 2011 15:14:00 +0000

It has been a VERY busy month. I pounced on a career opportunity that is the closest fit for my experience, skill set, and personality that I've seen in a long time. It's slow going, but it's still in play. I also found a new ophthalmic device for an eye condition I worked with extensively, verging on FDA approval, where there may be a future opportunity in the making. I set out to build a relationship with the executive team after doing some sleuthing on Google and scored a return email from the director of marketing. I'm super excited that I was able to get my name in front of them so early in the process. I'll be looking to strengthen that connection over time so that when they are granted final approval and are ready to roll out the device, I'm in the right place at the right time. I also met a recruiter who has a pending opportunity in the dental realm that he thinks I'm a good fit for. With my smile, there's another potential slam dunk!

They say things happen in threes, so let's hope three offers are next!!

I'm finally all settled in my new place. I am incredibly fortunate that I had wonderful people to help me move. From the reporter who loaded me up with boxes, to the neighbor who loaned me cargo space in her Range Rover and an extra set of arms and legs, to the friend who drove all the way down from CT with his wife and 3 boys to help me load up furniture and Goodwill donations, my move went without a hitch. I'm ever grateful to my new landlord/roommate who let me move over in drips and drabs, loading up the crawl space in the attic with stuff I wanted to put in storage, and allowing me to move in fully a whole week early. I was able to spend two days detail-cleaning my empty apartment to ensure that I'd get back my whole security deposit (a hefty sum).

It feels so good to be done, to feel organized, then to look out and see trees and grass (and not parking lot lines and street lamps 6 feet from my window). A nice home on a quiet street seems like a good place to get a fresh start. I may be a little more removed from a big community, but I feel much more at peace when I turn out the lights at night.

Last night I watched, for the first time, "Julie and Julia" ~on a 50" HDTV. I think that to people in my network who saw this movie first run, blogging was a unique new phenomenon. After seeing this movie, many, many of my friends encouraged me to blog about my journey through being laid off, underemployment, and the search for a new position. Now that I've finally seen the movie, I have to say, THAT RARELY HAPPENS IN REAL LIFE. So many of them, while good-intentioned in their urging, didn't realize that not every blogger gets offered a book deal, an interview in the New York Times, or some major life epiphany as a result of sitting down to the keyboard. I Know their intentions were good, because they enjoy my writing and sense of humor, and want to see me succeed. But I obliged, as a means to have an outlet for my stress (or bad jokes!). Granted, I don't do this every day like Julie Powell did, but she's the exception and not the norm. Just as there are no overnight successes in Hollywood, bloggers do not get offered book deals every day. This has become a nice outlet for me, but I'm not expecting any miracles. I'm just grateful to all of you, my 13 followers and dozen or so stealth readers, for even bothering to read what I have to say. This is for me more than anything else.

And while we're on the subject of overnight successes, I'd like to give a shout out to two people I worked with in LA who are finally seeing the fruits of their labors. The very first feature film I keyed as a makeup artist in 1997 starred actor Eric Matheny in the lead role. I was so proud to see that he just landed a starring role opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in "J Edgar," after dozens of national commercials, launching an acting school and tons of hard work. Having your picture taken next to Brad Pitt at the "Tree of Life" premiere? Not too shabby!

In 2004 I did a photo shoot for Glamour Magazine called "The Red Dress" (an annual campaign to raise awareness of women and heart disease) and worked with a lovely hairdresser named David Gardner. He just landed a national Head and Shoulders commercial and has launched his own line of hair products. We recently got back in touch, and his positive energy and attitude are surely what have helped him get where he is today.

Both of these gentlemen are very hard workers, and deserve every ounce of success they have achieved for as long, and as diligently, as they've both been pursuing their dreams. I'm proud to be in such great company. There are many other friends, classmates and colleagues who have achieved great things after years of hard work, these happen to be two current examples. And just because I didn't mention others doesn't mean I'm not equally as proud of everyone I've known who has reached their own 'next level of success.'

Some days I really feel like chopped liver.

A Warped Perspective? Nope~ just a cracked windshield

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 22:32:00 +0000

I was hoping my little Northern getaway would give me some renewed vigor in my job search. What I got instead was a healthy dose of pollen, toddler snot, and lots of love.

It was a great trip. I spent some much needed me-time with an over-mommy-fied urbanite who was probably as happy to hear adult-speak, as I was to have some company. It was nice to not have to think about my own life for a while and just deal with teething, diapers, singing the abc's and making sure Toddlergate was secure when navigating the rest of the house. I got to connect with several other friends who live in the area, and have some semblance of a social life, if only for a few days. The food was great, and it was wonderful to just 'be' in the company of people that I care greatly about.

I came home to life just where I left it, with a few extra visitors (the green monsters in my nasal cavity). It took about a week, but I was able to kick whoever they were to the curb in time to treat my seasonal allergies and start packing for the move. With renewed connections, and the promise of better efforts to keep in touch, I once again feel a little less alone in the world.

Everything was swimming right along until this past Friday, when I got whacked with reality. Literally. The car in front of me on the road spun up a piece of gravel that hit my windshield with such force that I thought I had been shot at. The resulting hole actually LOOKED like a bullet!! Thankfully, it did not pierce completely through the glass, so even though I ducked reflexively, I was not in danger of being injured. Also to my pleasant surprise, my insurance agent informed me that NJ Auto insurers cover windshield glass repair as a policy benefit. With unseasonably hot weather upon us, and guaranteed usage of the car's air-conditioning system, the mobile repair shop couldn't get here fast enough. So, one holiday weekend later, she's back in fighting form, with only a small battle scar to commemorate her surprise attack.

I hope I look as good as she does when I return to the front lines. THAT can't come soon enough! Working on re-filling the pipeline, as the cupboards are bare at the moment (and yes, that is a double entendre, not a pun!).

I need moving boxes, so if you have any at your home or place of employment, and it's local, let me know. I'll come pick them up.

Get a Move on

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 20:11:00 +0000

How many meanings can one phrase have? For me this title has two, both figurative and literal, simultaneously. On one hand, I feel like life has been a little 'stuck' lately. On the other hand, I am anxious to start packing. My lease finally expires at the end of May. I was in the right place at the right time, and found a house to move into, a situation perfect for me at the moment. I'll be renting a room in home with tons of storage space so that I don't have to pay for a rental locker anywhere. While it does not change my basic geographic location (it's only two miles away), the rent is considerably lower, which will make my job search a little less painful from a financial standpoint. As I've watched my checking account dwindle, my stress level has certainly gone up - and exponentially so - every time a full-time job lead doesn't pan out. Underemployment is getting old!

Somehow, I dust myself off and keep going, even when I feel like I'm desperately treading water and what I really need to do is swim. I've made a few new contacts in the last several weeks, and some of my connections are still able to introduce me to professionals who might benefit from knowing me. I still enjoy helping people because there's definitely something to be said for having a sense of purpose, no matter how small. I feel good making introductions of my own, and when people fit, it's a nice boost.

I'm working diligently to follow up on all the leads, keep in touch with all the people I've been fortunate enough to connect with previously, and keep my current network engaged and involved. Wouldn't you feel like that's a lot of plates to spin? Letting all the plates crash is not an option, so I dart back and forth, from plate to plate, never letting the momentum die down from the first one feverishly spinning to the last, as it teeters dangerously on the verge of collapse. It's exhausting!

I'm grateful to one of my friends for inviting me to visit her for a few days. She lives just far enough away that I will feel like I've gotten a break. It's quite a drive, but sometimes a change of scenery is enough to shift perspective. Let's hope this trip works to do that, as well as swirl up some energy around me to get things moving again.

Remember that whirlpool I mentioned?

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 15:06:00 +0000

It has been a crazy couple of weeks. Unfortunately this was one of those periods at the low end of the roller coaster - the kind of cycle that makes you want to say, "Stop the ride, please. This isn't fun anymore." After several long phone conversations with various people from the company that contacted me through the newspaper article, I finally landed a face to face with one of the regional vice presidents. I had really psyched myself up for the interview, and could picture myself doing small business business development. The commercial VP took one look at my resumé and proclaimed, "I see you in a retail role." My heart sank. I left retail because I knew it required much more interaction with internal customers, which is not my strong suit. I'm GREAT with external customers, but learned from previous experience that managing younger people who are not necessarily career-minded is a challenge I don't face well. I even called a former supervisor to discuss it, because I didn't want to throw away a perfectly good opportunity. Her advice? "With your personality... RUN!" I had made myself sick, agonizing over whether it was the right thing to do. Once I had the follow up conversation with HR where I politely bowed out, I instantly felt better (physically). The catch was, now I no longer had a promising opportunity headed in 'the right direction.' This was really disappointing because the whole thing was sort of "their idea" to begin with, and then they said, "No thank you." I've got a few anemic leads in the pipeline right now, but that was a pretty big one that has now vaporized.

That was the first event in a series of them that led me to ask, "If things are supposed to happen in threes, did I just get super-sized for free?," because I'm nearly double that number. I got notice of a sizeable rent increase; my laptop's LED screen died (don't even get me started on Dell, you remember the hell I've gone through with a succession of hard drives); my washer and dryer both malfunctioned on the same day, leaving my apartment simultaneously flooded, and smelling like smoke; and if all that weren't bad enough, a good friend from college passed away unexpectedly while recovering successfully from a transplant. He was only 46 and has a wife and two young children.

I never got to tell him how much he had touched my life and that made me very sad. We shared a common love of music and had performed together many times. Music was a very big part of his life and when one of his friends eulogized him (there were FOUR eulogies at his funeral!),his whole speech was about this man's love for music. Since that is where he and I connected, I just lost it. I've been in a fog, and numb for several days. Grief is one emotion, that no matter how old you get, or how hard you try, that is still very difficult to deal with. His untimely death hit home for me because my father died at 44 in a very similar situation, and the anniversary of his passing is next week. The similarities were a bit too much for me to handle.

Someone once said I could sell a blow dryer to a fish. I'm definitely a chip off the old block...this is where I got it from!

Conventional wisdom says things get worse before they get better, but I feel like my limits are really getting tested lately.

Sunny Days

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 22:30:00 +0000

Today has been one of those gorgeous, hits-you-out-of-nowhere beautiful afternoons that takes your breath away when you step outside. It has been a much needed breath of fresh air, no pun intended. Nothing like some great weather to remind you that for every cloudy day, there's an unexpected sunny one to make up for it.

To top off the great weather, I had a FABULOUS lunch meeting with a woman who I've been trying to coordinate a get-together with for almost a month. She came via the networking letter I crafted to accompany the blast I sent out when I was profiled in the Courier-Post last month. A gentleman in my network actually picked up and used that square thing on his desk that has a microphone and an earpiece to contact me! It was so nice to hear a real voice and actually speak to someone, which becomes more and more rare in these days of text-centric communications.

He suggested she and I connect just for informational purposes~not knowing if they had any open positions, but because the company she worked for seemed like a good fit for my skillset. So I promised to reach out and handle the rest. Well, he was right.

The company is growing quickly. So quickly that they are still building a map and are not quite sure what their needs are. We agreed to keep in touch (which of course, I will diligently pursue) so that as things change, I'll be in the loop. I told her that I'd rather wait for the right position than take the wrong one and not be happy getting out of bed every morning. Thanks to my lunch today, I now have visions of getting out of bed every morning loving what I do. This is the sunny day in my professional life that just came out of nowhere, on a day where the weather mirrored my experience. I had zero expectations going in to this meeting and came out of it with a spring in my step as I stepped into spring!

"Things are going great,and they're only gettin' better. Doin' all right, gettin' good grades, the future's so bright.... I gotta wear shades!" ~~Timbuk3, One-Hit-80s-Wonders.

Good fortune and other signs from the Universe

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 17:13:00 +0000

I still wake up every day grateful for all the good people in my life, the good genes my parents gave me and everything that has happened since the article posted. My friends and connections have really stepped up to the plate, whether it's to share my story, give me names, or just pipe in with pep talks and other words of support. Even the good swift kicks in the rear are appreciated. The generosity of spirit I've encountered in the last two weeks has been mind boggling.

I'm speaking right now with one company whose Senior Vice President sent a letter to the newspaper to get in touch with me. It's a very promising opportunity, and this organization understands thinking outside the box, realizing that my skill set and personality seem to be a great fit with their goals and corporate culture. Very exciting.

As if to tell me that "my time is coming," the universe sent a very loud message over the weekend. I won a GORGEOUS Movado watch from a contest I entered over the summer. All I had to do was set a reminder on my computer to visit the Allure Magazine (Conde Nast) website a few times a day and click 'submit'... and I was in the running for a whole host of beauty goods, fashion and accessories. I joined a message board that helps people keep track of prizes and one kind soul was helpful enough to scan and post the 500 page winners' list!

I must commend Allure. While helping the 500 winners of a free disposable razor and the 32,000 other mass prizes can be a challenge, I'm happy to report that for the watch, where I was the only winner, they were VERY quick to jump on it and find out what happened to it. So was Movado~ I contacted someone in marketing through LinkedIn and had a return email within 24 hours, OVER A WEEKEND. That good will and excellent customer service will not go unnoticed.

There's no secret to winning contests. It's all luck. You just have to enter. As Ed McMahon said, "You can't win if you don't play!" I suppose finding them is the challenge, but Allure magazine is a no-brainer.

Here's my advice: if you have consumer brands you use regularly and like, follow them on twitter. Many times they announce sweepstakes there. There are also "freebie" message boards that tell you where to find deals, free offers and contests, like www.slickdeals.net. That's a good one.

After the Article: Part I - A Lesson in Gratitude

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 18:35:00 +0000

The responses to the article featuring my profile in the Courier Post have been surprising and overwhelming. Almost immediately on Sunday morning, emails started coming in. I have been so busy for the last 2 days; answering emails, following up, taking and making phonecalls and making appointments; it's dizzying. Yesterday, I started making breakfast and finally got to finish making it, and eating it, at 4pm. Yes, I know I should have stopped sooner, but I was on a roll!

People have been so helpful! The response has been mostly positive, with a few interesting events tossed into the mix. I'm very, very grateful for all the activity that's been swirling around me. I've got to seize on the momentum and maximize every lead, opportunity and suggestion that is being sent my way.

When I said

Sometimes people really know how to make your day. Selflessness is so rare and wonderful! A longtime friend just made mine. So grateful for a helpful soul. The last few days have shown me many of them. I want to be in a position to pay it back & pay it forward soon ~~and I KNOW I will!!

the response from a friend was "Give, Give, Get." It blows me away how much I'm GETting back.

There is a wonderful gentleman out there, named Brent Peterson. He owns a company called Interview Angel
www.interviewangel.com
which offers an organizational toolkit in a portfolio. It helps people land more jobs by interviewing like a pro. He is very active on twitter and has been very helpful to me. We first met electronically when he read my blog post titled Laboring for Labor on Labor Day back in September of 2009, and reached out after I tweeted about the post. This time he has offered to donate his product, so that I am even MORE prepared at my next interview, and has written about me in HIS blog! I strongly encourage you to take a look at his website if you are in job-search mode.
http://interviewangel.com/any-hope-for-the-unemployed-99ers/

I was also noticed via one of my tweets, which led to being included in another person's blog. I thought it was funny that someone took me seriously when I tied my story to Ted Williams. I meant it from the perspective that Social Media gets you noticed, not that I thought it would land me a job in 24 hours. I'm not quite that delusional. I just want to do whatever I can to get more exposure. It took getting portrayed a little differently than I would have liked, but at least my name is out there. Here's the link: http://www.evetahmincioglu.com/web/blog/2011/01/10/the-instant-dream-job-fantasy/

So, on I continue, in my quest to uncover more of the hidden job market and to find an employer who will appreciate and capitalize on my talents!

But if someone finds me first, I promise not to complain!

My Fifteen Minutes started Ticking

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 17:55:00 +0000

I hope that those of you visiting for the first time today will take the time to read some of the older posts I've written, as the last few sort of went off on a tangent or two!

Many of you probably found me through the article published in today's edition of the Courier Post paper. For those of you that haven't seen it yet, I'll post the link below.

The reporter who interviewed me was very thorough and gracious. Her goal was to portray me as someone bright and qualified who is very employable. Unfortunately, instead of her chosen headline,

Quality Candidates are Still Looking

her editor went with the much more negative (and in my opinion, completely tone-changing) choice of

Fear, loneliness rip at long-term jobless.

Any of you who know me know that nothing could be further from the truth. Hey, when you gotta sell newspapers, you do what you gotta do. And maybe there are a lot of people out there who are afraid. Am I lonely, sure--but only when I'm not out networking. That headline just made me cringe because it screams desperation...and we all know I'm anything BUT desperate!!

Oh, well. Another reason why newspaper writing is a profession not meant for me. I want to speak my mind when I write, not have someone draw a red line through my thoughts or intentions!I feel bad for the reporter. She was wonderful!

http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20110109/NEWS01/101090327/Fear-loneliness-rip-at-long-term-jobless
And here is the request that I sent out to my connections:

The timing couldn’t have been better, with Ted Williams’ story (the homeless YouTube sensation with the golden voice discovered on a street corner) making big news this week. What a perfect opportunity to share a candidate with the world who is ready and able to work. One with a much more stable past and no fears that a potential relapse could spoil the happy ending to the story. As you know, I'm much more upbeat, positive and proactive than the article infers, and Staar Surgical is an international company, but that's journalism creating an 'angle.'

As a valued member of my professional network, I would be forever grateful if you could share this article with key members of your own network who might know companies that could use someone with my skills and talents. It would be so wonderful if the 12 part series in which I’ve been included could publish a follow up story sharing with the world that I landed! Even if you decide to send it to a limited number of contacts, I ask that you share it with at least 3 people who don't know me.

We may be connected through more than one networking community (ie,twitter, facebook, my personal address book), so if you received this email through more than one channel, please take a moment to think which of your contacts in THIS community might be interested or able to help.

As you know, I’m willing to relocate for the right opportunity, so don’t feel unable to help if you’re not in the South Jersey area. I’m very flexible and open to discussion with any opportunities that may surface. Feel free to request my updated resumé and/or biography.

Thank you so much for your attention, assistance and support while I transition!

A Unique Gift For Me This Year

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 14:25:00 +0000

They always say, things happen when you least expect them. I experienced that this week, in a way I never expected. I say that because when you network, you do it to help other people, and it should come back to you, but you can't expect it to.

On Monday, I sat for several hours with a fellow job-seeker at Starbucks, sharing stories, offering tweaks to his resumé, tips on electronic networking, and comparing organizational systems that we use to keep ourselves on track. I've been 'for hire' for considerably longer than he has, so I guess that sort of makes me an expert in looking for work. What I realized is that I don't want to be an expert job-hunting, I want to be an expert in landing a job! So, while I left that meeting glad to have had shared some time with him and feeling good that I helped, part of me was frustrated that I've gotten so good at it. What I really want is for this period to be OVER!

Well, here's an interesting story. Through the same group that I met this gentleman, I've met many other people, and have been slowly building those relationships. I met a gentleman who owns his own public relations firm and a few months ago, in addition to connecting on LinkedIn, we sat down to lunch, to try to figure out how we could help each other. He is a very positive person who understands giving back, and is involved in many charitable and philanthropic organizations, which made it easy for me to want to help him. So of course, I sent him a few leads immediately.

Another of his associates, to whom I had also connected, chose to use our new LinkedIn connection to include me in a mass email soliciting her services. Not only was I not interested in being offered 'business deals' through this method (I don't believe in using LinkedIn as an email blast program), but also I am not her target customer. She was selling print ad campaign design services for small business owners!! I was upset that I was indiscriminately included to receive what amounted to basically LinkedIn junkmail, so I emailed and told her so. It really made me not want to help her. Even if I had small business owners in my contacts, this tactic is a sure way NOT to get referrals! At this point, the aforementioned gentleman became "guilty by association" and I "laid low" with him because I felt uncomfortable that she and I had not seen eye to eye. I hadn't discussed my feelings with him (though he does know about the subsequent disagreement, which they discussed~as they also have a personal relationship), so he probably just thought I was being quiet (it hasn't been that long).

One of his professional connections, a writer, and also a reporter for the regional newspaper in this area, is doing a story on joblessness and profiling several people. Not only did he offer up my name as a good story subject, she also shared with me that he thought I'd be a slam dunk for her article, and that he had nothing but nice things to say about me. She interviewed me for two hours on Thursday. I sent him a thank you note oozing with gratitude the moment I got home!

That's what I meant about a unique gift. I'm very grateful for the opportunity to share my story with a larger audience, and hope that more people will see how much value I bring to the table. This could open the door to some more opportunities, which would be a great way to end this year and start a new one. Plus, I am reminded about the lesson to let people stand on their own merits (or hoist themselves by their own petards in the case of his significant other).

I'm getting my picture taken, and the story is going to run in a Sunday paper in a few weeks. I'll blog a link when it's confirmed.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

'Tis the Season

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 18:48:00 +0000

Black Friday. Black Monday. Cyber Deals. Box Office results. Gadget reviews. New Smartphones. Flat Screen TVs. Laptops. iEverything. Positive spins on employment numbers and the economy. It's all fabricated! How can there be a holiday season if the world is afraid of going bankrupt, noone is working and retail sales crumble?

There can't. That's why every last media outlet from TV News to papers to webcasts are all touting the recovery of the economy. Even the tiniest little shreds of improvement are being heralded as giant steps forward. They're making mountains out of molehills. If everyone were running scared, nothing would sell because no one would be buying it. How else can you explain the movie "Tangled" bringing in over $50 million in one weekend? A remake of Rapunzel raking in the bucks? And Disney claiming that it's the last princess movie for a long time? Oh, puh-leez.

Unfortunately, all this focus on gifts and holidays and the joy of the season magnifies how crappy it feels to STILL be looking for work after all this time. False starts, dead leads and a clogged pipeline do not make for a happy holiday season.

At least I have my health? That's no consolation when I'm constantly bombarded with images and stories of things I don't have (not even that I want them, it's just that incessant messages of consumption designed to stimulate demand -- it's called marketing--are really doing little more than upsetting me due to the reminder that even if I DID want anything, it's all out of reach). I never thought I'd have a third 'giving' season of wanting nothing more than a job!

I said, 'tis the season, but this sounds more like "Bah, Humbug!"

A Funny Thing Happened on The Way to The....Bus

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 14:33:00 +0000

I attended an event in New York City on Wednesday evening. I had such a great time that I've been referring to it as my "reward for sticking with it" for the last umpteen months. I got invited to the launch of a new cosmetic treatment line through all the networking I've been doing.

The event was held in midtown at Nobu 57. Since I don't discuss a lot of my personal preferences, let me just say that I am definitely a sushi aficionado. So between my background in aesthetics, my addiction to cosmetics and my extreme love for sushi, it was like slipping into the most comfortable pair of slippers ever! I couldn't have asked for a better combination.

I was asked to be a 'before and after' of the new Chella brow treatment, called "Brow Full-Fillment" and tool kit~~~so I made sure to get in a few nibbles in before it was time to hit center stage for the press. It was a lot of fun and the response to the presentation was very positive. My fellow bloggers(most of them specializing in beauty) asked lots of good questions.

I was flattered to be asked to stay for dinner and looked forward to getting to know the Chella team a little better in a more intimate setting. It was a busy night, so by the time we got our table, it was time for me to go. Since I live so far south in New Jersey, the most convenient method to get into the city is the Bolt Bus, and the last one BACK left the New Yorker Hotel at 9:30. Well, I had already missed my window of opportunity to take the subway back that way, so I went out to hail a cab. 9pm on a Wednesday. Yeah, right!! There were no empty cabs for what seemed like an eternity (five minutes). One after another, people happily on their way somewhere else whizzed by. As I waited, peering into cars idling at the light, I realized someone was honking at me. I looked over and noticed a towncar driver waving at me. Yes, I know they're not supposed to, but he offered to zip me the 25 blocks I needed to go.

This gentleman was too funny. His name was Abdul and he was very well dressed. His car was newer and spotless. He asked me why a cute girl like me couldn't get a cab. I tried to make some small talk to find a way to let him know that I wasn't a rich New Yorker. I didn't want him to think he was going to land some big fish who threw lots of bills at him. He kept saying, "You so cute, You so cute!"~so much that I started to giggle (on the inside).

I mentioned that I had been at a meeting trying to get a job, and that I had been out of work for a long time, but was at the 'meeting' too long I didn't want to miss my bus~~ and I didn't usually take cabs. (Trying to build a story here, work with me!!) He asked what I did and where I live so I said, I'm in sales and I've been trying to get a job so long, it's embarrassing. I'm from New Jersey.

Well, since English wasn't his first language, and I talk pretty fast,he said, "Embarrassing? Let me look that up," and pulled out a book (which I assumed was a dictionary. His Nigerian (?) accent was pretty heavy)to look it up. So I'm trying to find other words to explain what embarrassing means--unsuccessfully, of course-- and he keeps looking for it in his book. He says I can't find it! So I look up, and he's holding a FARE book. He thought embarrassing was a city in New Jersey, and he was trying to find out how far away it was to see if he could drive me home without being gone from the city for too long!! Awwwwwwwww.

Once I realized,I explained and he saw that my town really was quite far. So at least he let up on that. But then he asked me for my phone number and wouldn't take no for an answer. He also wanted to walk me to the bus once we arrived at my final destination. I politely declined, of course (I mean, come on, it was 50 yards, the bus was RIGHT THERE).

This guy really needs to go into sales. He is the most persistent driver I've ever come across. Of any kind of car!! Thank goodness it never veered into "creepy" territory, just annoying...but I've got to give him credit for not taking no for an answer. I think when he called my voicemail 3x five minutes later, he got the hint.

I made the bus with about 5 minutes to spare. Whew!! And I networked all the way home!

Playing Catch Up

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 13:03:00 +0000

Media is starting to really annoy me. Mind you, I try not to even watch television news because it's almost never good. Except for the rescue of the trapped miners (which has been a symbol for 'never give up hope' lately), it seems as if the stories I read are increasingly pessimistic. Bad news sells more ads, yes, I know that. But with the economy the way it is, every day harbingers of doom deliver story after story about everything wrong with the world. It seems REALLY out of whack.

Depression, obesity, illness, mortgage and financial market crises, war, hunger, government problems~~~I have enough to worry about without being bombarded by doom and gloom on an hourly basis. Even when I log in to go on-line, all these negative stories find a way to creep into my consciousness. ACK! ENOUGH!!! It is incredibly difficult to maintain positive momentum when it seems as if the world is going to collapse around me at any given moment. Sometimes I just want to scream, "STOP THE WORLD, I WANT TO GET OFF!!" But we all know that the world will always spin, and getting off is not an option. The only way to get where you want to go is to KEEP GOING!

That's where playing catch up comes in. Losing any ground whatsoever is not a good idea, and I'm disappointed that I haven't made time to do this sooner. In the last three weeks, I have had two phone interiews and a face-to-face with a CEO. Nothing has materialized of it, but I am grateful for the practice. Even getting a face-to-face lately is a huge victory. I am hoping to land a good phone interview soon, as well.

I've been targeting a company since January of 2009. I read an article that a new medical device was in final stages of the approval process. I googled them and found out that they were looking for their top level management, so I sent an email to their general mailbox, addressed to the President of the company by name, expressing my interest in discussing a sales job with them. Six months later when they were searching for a Director of Marketing, I sent another email. Things were quiet for about a year until all of a sudden, the news of their FDA approval was plastered all over the medical pages. Well, armed with the knowledge that now they ready to actually SELL the device, I knew to be on the lookout. Sure enough, their West Coast Sales Manager joined the LinkedIn group I manage (which now has, by the way, just shy of 8,000 members!). I contacted her to enlist her help. She read my profile and wrote back, "I'm very impressed with your qualifications. I sent your information to the Director of HR and the East Coast Sales Manager. Good luck." Well, HALLELUJAH!! That was just over a week ago. So, today it's time to follow up.

Here's a unique networking story. All those beauty products I keep winning are generally a source of wonder (where I'm going to put them all) or laughter (do you REALLY need 3 pairs of false eyelashes?), but you never know where things may lead. Case in point: One of the products I won has a 'real' facebook page set up (not a 'fan page') for their company. I 'added them as a friend' when I won their product because I saw that it was the VP of the company running the page (small company). Well, they are re-launching their line as well as launching a new product. When I saw a tweet (I follow her on Twitter as well) that the launch was just a week away, in NYC, I re-tweeted it and gave it a thumbs up.

Well~~~keeping in touch with that page somehow got me invited to the launch as a VIP! Even better, I am introducing her to a very well connected woman from the Spa industry that I met on a previous trip to NY, also through networking. It could well be a match made in heaven for the two of them. Now THAT is some good Karma!

But that's how networking works. Find a target, and keep your eyes on the prize. Even if you don't hit the bullseye right away, at least keep your sights locked. You never know!!

Expect the Unexpected

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 14:12:00 +0000

Things happen when we least expect them. Sometimes, that's a good thing, and other times, being caught off guard can really take the wind out of your sails. In the last month, I have had so many occurrences in both directions (good and bad) that there were days my head spun out of control. A very dear friend was diagnosed with some major health problems that required immediate surgery. Unfortunately, the news came as she was returning home from being out of the country for an extended period of time, dealing with the death of her mother. It really shook me to MY core and for about two weeks I walked around in a fog. Then I met up with a college friend who has been battling another equally serious medical problem for about the last six months.

They are both strong-willed, intelligent, kind and grounded people. But what strikes me most is how they both have very matter-of-fact, whatever-it-takes attitudes in terms of dealing with their illnesses. Neither have fallen apart, and seem to be in good spirits considering the hands they were dealt. I am in awe. I think if it were me in either instance, I'd be a total basket case. I stand in complete and total admiration of both of them.

Ironically, while I was talking to my college friend and sharing the saga of my search for a new position, he told me that he didn't know how I did it. I don't think of being out of work as something that would shred me to pieces, yet he said if it was him, he'd be a mess. We both laughed and I said, "G-d doesn't give us anything we can't handle." I guess it's true. Neither of us wanted to be in the other's shoes, yet managed to deal with what we had been handed.

To that end, we talked about networking and he shared with me that he had not really understood the true value of 'power' networking until I had explained it to him. Apparently, a lot of people think that when someone is asking them for help networking, they want to know if that person is aware of friends with job openings. Oh dear. Does the world really think that's what networking is? Apparently so!! Once he realized that I just wanted to meet more people who could potentially be connected to companies I'd like to target, or to hiring managers at other companies and that all I needed was an introduction, he immediately gave me the name of one of his oldest buddies who is VERY well connected.

This gentleman was instrumental in making things happen quickly. Because he is leaving to go out of the country today, he set up a meeting with me within 24 hours of our introduction. After that meeting, he shared my resumé with at least a dozen of his connections. I was floored at how proactive he was, and how quickly he made introductions. You could have wiped my jaw off the floor! I am in the process of setting up some informational interviews with people in industries far removed from my experience. While that may seem odd, what this person and I share is the belief that "a good salesperson can sell anything." And while in this climate, most large companies want a sales staff with industry experience, there ARE smaller companies out there willing to take the risk of hiring someone with a learning curve. Especially with new technology, it might not always be possible to hire someone with direct experience. So we'll see where that leads.

I also had an interview in Manhattan for a temporary freelance project (locally) and a few networking events/meetings. At one of them, I even ran into someone I went to high school with. That was odd, since I am nowhere near my hometown. I recognized his name on a sign in sheet. We were not friendly in high school, nor would I have remembered him if I saw him on the street, but his name stuck. So that was about as close to a high school reunion as I'll ever get (let's just say I wasn't fond of high school). It turns out (I had forgotten) that he threw the softball in gym class that had broken my sister's nose weeks before the Senior Prom (her Marcia Brady "Oh!My NOSE!" moment). What a small world.

The biggest story of all is that a complete stranger read my LinkedIn profile and reached out to me because he liked what he read. We had a long conversation about two weeks ago, then I met with him on Saturday evening for several hours. While it is another business consultant who wants me to help him with business development, this person is so well-connected in his industry, and needs so much help with formulating and closing the deals (more-so than identifying prospects) that I am considering it. More on that as it develops.

With all that was going on, it was hard to sit down and find the common thread that pulled everything that's been happening for the last month together, which is why it's been so long since I've done it. But now that I'm over the shock of things actually HAPPENING, I hope to improve at sharing as things progress.

Laboring for Labor on Labor Day (Part Deux)

noreply@blogger.com (OneGreatSmile) — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 16:12:00 +0000

I've decided to mark Labor Day as my unofficial anniversary. Last year at this time, blogging was a new exploration into the digital world, as I embarked on a journey to 'go public' with my adventure transitioning into a new job. So far it's been quite a ride.

While intellectually, I understood networking, and had been actively seeking out former friends, colleagues and classmates, I had not yet ventured into the world of seeking new connections through events and people I had just met. My, how things change!

It's natural for a lot of people to stay within their comfort zone, and I've found that a lot of my contacts either don't understand 'true' networking, or are just not as adept at thinking outside the box as I am. That's not a derogatory comment in any way, just an observation on how different people can be from one another. When I've asked people for help, my goal was to be introduced to people I didn't know, in various industries, who might know other people. That's it. I thought, hmmm, for the most part that's a straightforward request; just introduce me to someone I dont' know professionally, and leave the rest to me.

What I encountered was "Gosh, I wish I knew someone who was hiring," or "Gee, I don't know anyone in the medical device field," "What? You're looking for a job in medical devices? I thought you were a makeup artist (no comment on that one!!)," which, to be honest, all gets a little frustrating at times. Even worse, when I ask, "Tell me, what can I do for you?," I get either a blank stare, a quizzical look that says "What's the catch?," or at worst ~ an evil snicker (I won't even go there). Now, in addition to trying to uncover opportunities in the hidden job market, I've realized that I've spent almost as much time trying to explain networking to people who don't fully understand how powerful a tool it is, or how to use it.

That's ok, because the goal of networking is helping people. So I look at it this way: if I can help people network more effectively, eventually they WILL be able to help me. In the meantime, I continue to help myself.Note: I've also realized that limiting myself to medical devices is not going to be the best use of my skills, since ophthalmology is such a small niche, and I'm not too great with the sight of blood.

I've been much more active in getting out and meeting people, I have fine tuned my resumé, created a bio, and re-designed my business card, all in an effort to focus on the talents and attributes that have made me successful. This way, when people are presented with my 'personal marketing materials' they A) have a better grasp on who I am and what I do, and B) the information they have acts as a tangible reminder that my energy and personality linger long after I've left the room. To that end, my new business card is my favorite tool. It's amazing to me that it took so long to capture my essence.

Sometimes, the best answer is the most obvious and yet it's the one that's hardest to see. That light bulb went off this week when I was speaking with a networker (my sales coach, who also happens to be a business development client of mine) trying to name a class, and a group. We were going over lots of abstract concepts and all of a sudden I realized, why not just name it what it is "City, Profession, Network" (personalized to his locale and target market, of course)? It was perfect, and so easy, yet it took us almost an hour to come up with it.

"If it was a snake it would have bit me~" has always been one of my favorite expressions. Now I see why. I've decided to stop looking for the forest since the trees are apparently right in front of me.

This year, with my awareness of my skills and talents clearer, my networking skills sharpened, and my focus more balanced, I feel more prepared than ever. And now, since I've seen the energy around me shift, I'm even more convinced that the right opportunity is closer than ever!