Work Smarter \\ David Pachter

Embracing Risk and Creativity

2010-11-21T12:16:00.000-05:00

Really thoughtful talk by Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert. In the process of finding herself by leaving home and writing the memoir she recognized that society links "creativity" and "suffering" much to the detriment of achievement. Her thoughts captured at the TED conference are worth the 19 minutes. My best take away: Creative genius is not something bestowed on an individual for a

"Two Weeks Notice"

2009-10-24T10:40:00.005-04:00

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Adapt Evolve Succeed

2009-08-02T09:15:00.005-04:00

Jennifer McClure wrote a post for Fistful of Talent about recruiters that is equally applicable to many careers and industries. In good times I would often consider a business that is not growing a dying business. Lately, I prefer to suggest that businesses and executives that are not adapting to the changes in the economy, technology and the changing demands of the markets, will go the way of

Business in Context

2009-03-01T12:50:00.003-05:00

A few weeks back I hosted a 2 round table discussions among owners and executives of recruitment firms. The level of candor and honesty was more surprising than the widespread level of hardship. It’s oddly reassuring to hear from other people sharing the same hardships. Most of the 20+ business owners did also have stories of people in their organization who have had continued success but all had

The Collapse

2008-11-14T23:11:00.004-05:00

Michael Lewis, (Liar’s Poker) succeeds at explaining what went wrong in his article on portfolio.com link here. He walks in the shoes of the guys who saw it coming and made a bundle on the crash. Their revelation and explanation of how CDO market grew large enough to bring down the house is stupefying.

Collaboration & Systemic Change

2008-09-13T22:07:00.008-04:00

Peter Senge has had a big influence on my understanding of leadership and ability to impact change. The book he is most closely associated with is The Fifth Discipline. I found a review on You Tube . The book was updated in 2003 and is still is required in many graduate programs. (If you get bored - Chapter 3 starts at the 5 minute mark of the video.) Companies are living organizations constantly

using email when prospecting

2008-08-02T21:10:00.003-04:00

Gavin Ingham says "People are really good at ignoring email" - A truism as far as I can see. The people you are trying hardest to connect with are probably the best at ignoring email.Of course, this assumes you are prospecting... if you are in a client facing sales role and are succeeding without prospecting then let me in on the secret. If you set the bar high, then you prospect all the time and

When to build your network: All the time

2008-06-27T08:27:00.006-04:00

Jeremiah Owyang's blog discusses how web tools enable companies to connect with customers. He is a Forrester Analyst focused on the social computing industry. In a recent post Build Your Network Before You Need Them raised a prescient point that you can't expect to become a great networker if you only reach out when in need "It’s pretty easy to spot those that are just joining the network purely

"Consistency is critical for sales and business success"

2008-06-01T14:49:00.003-04:00

Gavin Ingrham has a rather obtuse post that I thought applicable to a number of scenarios in (the staffing) business. I'll leave the links for you to draw from your own experiences but as he says (in reference to the BBC changing the air time of The Apprentice: Consistency is critical for sales and business success.Your clients need to know what to expect from you. People thrive on certainty. If

Say What you Mean, Mean What you Say

2008-05-17T20:30:00.003-04:00

If you have something to hide, people are likely to feel it before you tell them and tacitly question your authenticity before you realize it. Many people struggle with Saying What They Mean (whether for fear of being candid or intent to mislead)and are not so good at concealing their thoughts. This is something that's likely to be impeding their ability to achieve. The most successful people I

CONTENT IS (NO LONGER) KING?

2008-04-29T23:16:00.005-04:00

In his post on The Warshaw Curve, my friend Douglas writesWhat percentage of the time do you think people are spending on Facebook and MySpace ingesting "content"? That's not what's driving them there, or driving them around and around the sites once they get there. They're showing up and sticking around for activities (i.e. utilities).On the money comment. Douglas continues....Instead of

Are You Making Your Life Easier By Using RSS?

2008-04-23T22:07:00.004-04:00

if you are not using an RSS, it's a good post. with good commentsalso...follow up post: How I Use RSS To Make My Life Easier"So I’ve tried my best to explain what is RSS and why it’s important to learn how to use. And as I said I find it hard to explain probably because the power of RSS is really something you need to experience first hand."

When to fire your clients

2008-04-22T08:48:00.007-04:00

In many services businesses and certainly in the Recruitment and Staffing business, the customers you choose determine the level of success you achieve. In the search business we are always looking to add clients who are responsive to our efforts (we only get paid if we are successful) and in the temporary staffing business we are always looking to add clients who pay their bills on time and

Turn Off Distraction

2008-04-22T01:58:00.006-04:00

When I was in high school I had cable tv, 2 phone lines and my stereo in my bedroom. Not to go without mention, I also had a bench press/place to hang my pants and a chin-up bar/place to hang shirts. When I needed to study, I would first try to do so while on the phone and watching the Knick game but after my first test scores would come back I would need to turn off the tv and avoid the phone in

Digesting Media post AOL, Yahoo, Google and You Tube

2008-04-10T11:13:00.027-04:00

Why the hype about Digital Media? If you are still bookmarking your favorite web sites please read on. The way media is being created, digested and monetized is undergoing dramatic change and is why venture firms are investing in media start-ups. Also developing rapidly are specialty services firms to support the industry. For the past few years the digital media buzz has been driven by User

Randy Pausch

2008-04-09T22:12:00.011-04:00

Randy Pausch's inspirational "Last Lecture" has inspired millions of people. He was featured on Prime Time Live last night and was an ABC person of the week some months back. "I've never known anger to make any situation better"--Randy Pauschmore links to Randy Pausch

Negate the Recession Impact - Outperform the Competition

2008-03-30T22:36:00.005-04:00

Over the past weeks I have met with 3 industry professionals in our office and received unsolicited compliments from all on Bond’s front desk operations. I am glad our first corporate impression is such a positive one and am hopeful we are sustaining that level of excellence throughout our clients’ experiences. Thank you Martha for making our clients and candidates feel welcome. There is no

Companies, Employees, and Social Media requires Trust

2008-03-23T20:26:00.005-04:00

Jeremiah Owyang's post raises issues for many businesses. "In this new world, where Social Media is going to be part of many of our communication fabrics, we need to establish trust, as the lines are never going to be fully black and white"Many businesses try to build processes that remove trust from the equation. I hear examples everyday. My best friend works for a company that blocks employee

If selling is so simple why can’t everyone do it?

2008-03-19T21:49:00.003-04:00

Fantastic article by Gavin Ingham . certainly makes me think about the people I have hired who have not succeeded in Recruiting. I'll ask everyone at Bond Street Group to read it. Success in our business is linked to a combination of skills and experience but exceptional performers all have the attitude Gavin articulates. What he describes as the required attitude is something that no amount of

credit crisis - best explanation yet - NYT today

2008-03-19T07:23:00.002-04:00

Can’t Grasp Credit Crisis? Join the ClubBy DAVID LEONHARDTPublished: March 19, 2008 NYT.This may not be comforting, but your confusion is shared by many people in the middle of this financial crisis

What kind of word-of-mouth advertising drives sales?

2008-03-18T10:15:00.002-04:00

— Martha Lagace writes on the HBS blog:"According to new research by HBS professor David Godes and Yale colleague Dina Mayzlin, word of mouth that is most effective at moving sales forward "is created by less loyal customers, not loyals, and occurs between acquaintances (not friends)." As for whose opinions most make a difference, the researchers found a wrinkle in the common wisdom that opinion

solve my problem and land the job

2008-03-17T21:20:00.004-04:00

Ovation Travel CEO Paul Metselaar says: "You can't believe how many resumes are sent to me by people who want to meet with me but who don't make any effort to understand our business. About three years ago a woman looking for a marketing position spoke to some of our executives and then came to me unsolicited with a proposal to lead an effort at our company to market travel services to hedge

Economy Impacts Hiring - revision

2008-03-16T10:27:00.007-04:00

One day after my last post, Bear Stearns implodes and the fragility of the hiring market in New York was exposed like a bad rash. While the unemployment rate for college grads remains in the 2% range we may clearly be in the midst of a significant hiring slowdown that would create shakeout in the recruiting market.In anticipation of possibly significant Wall Street layoffs, strong staffing

Bond Recruiter to lead Panel at Streaming Conference

2008-03-11T17:32:00.004-04:00

On Wednesday, May 21 at 1:45 PM. Janet Hagan from Bond's Digital Media team is hosting a program panel on Independent Content called: "Creating New Revenue Streams" at Streaming Media East in NYC.The preamble to the discussion reads as follows:What does the landscape look like for writers, content producers, and video creators who want to use the internet as the next broadcast medium? What are

Dare to be Different

2008-03-10T09:48:00.004-04:00

At the end of a relatively uneventful conference (The Staffing Industry’s Executive Forum ) was a keynote speech given by Kevin Freiberg about succeeding by daring to be radically different. Dr. Freiberg, Executive Coach and Author of a book called “Guts, Companies That Blow The Doors Off Business-As-Usual”, spoke on doing things differently and why that matters. I am fortunate enough to work