now2planBlog

Rebuilding Your Network

Great article below on the importance of keeping your network up-to-date and tips to make it easy to do.

Rebuilding Your Network 

Posted using ShareThis

Google Thyself

To find out what your online presence looks like, go to Google.  Customers do it.  Friends do it. Parents do it.  And so do POTENTIAL EMPLOYERS.  

What if...?

Several weeks ago, you may have allowed yourself the luxury of thinking about finding a new position.  Can't stand my boss, want more meaningful work, a better commute, higher pay. 

Now, with 401k's turning into 201k's, you have abandoned such thoughts, haven't you?  You're hoping that you can survive this economic instability (okay... mess) with your job intact.  Maybe you're telling yourself, my job isn't so bad... what was even thinking?  Leave my job and my generous/kind boss?!?

What if you get fired?  What if tomorrow you are called into HR, walk in to a room with a group of somber looking co-workers who tell you, "This isn't your fault, it's a business decision.  We're going to have to let you go."

What if they cannot pay you a severance?

An old saying states, "Hope for the best; prepare for the worst."  So how do you prepare for the worst?

1. Update your resume.  Invest your time in thinking about your accomplishments, the projects in which you participated, and your unpaid work.  The best accomplishments are ones that you can quantify.
2. Think about who you will ask to serve on your list of references.
3. Is your contact management system up-to-date?  (What is a contact management system??)  It can be as simple as a basket full of business cards (I confess - this was my 'system.') or your email address book.
4. Have you stayed in touch with friends and colleagues?  Perhaps now is a good time to reconnect - coffee before work, lunch with friends.  You will be glad that you have made the time and effort IN CASE the 'What If" happens.

What if you are stuck and can't get moving to prepare for the worst?  A good career coach can partner with you on your journey.

Hiring a Professional Resume Writer

The Wall Street Journal's Career section is a great resource for career seekers. In last Tuesday's print edition, there was a helpful article written by Joann S Lublin. In her article, Finding a Master Resume Writer, Ms Lubin states, "in today's tight market, the right resume can land you the right interviews..." She correctly suggests that job seekers who need resume writing services do the following:

• Shop carefully and ask for writing samples.
• Ask for recommendations from satisfied customers.
• Know what you are paying for. Ask for a proposal in writing and find out when you will receive your initial draft.
• Make sure your resume accurately depicts your background and accomplishments. In most cases, your deceptions will be discovered.

The purpose of your resume is to get you an interview. It also serves you when you network and interview. Want to know how? Hire and ask a reputable resume writer.

You are a "New" Leader

Congratulations! 

You have just been promoted by your company to Manager of your team of three individuals.    You have been wanting and hoping for this opportunity - dreaming of sitting at the head of the conference table giving out wise directives...

What is your plan for leading your team in the first 60 days?  How can you jump-start team cohesiveness and solidify your position as a leader?  You want to look confident even though you probably don't have a clue.

Craft a specific plan for the next 60 days.  Calendar in brief meetings, intelligence gathering over lunch, time with your supervisor and each team member.  Begin to do the following:

1.  Get to know your team members.  Describe each member of your team.  What makes them tick?  What motivates them?  Don't know?  How do they like to be recognized?  appreciated?

2.  Get to know yourself.  What motivates you? What are your priorities?  Do the members of your team know you?

3.  Learn expectations.  What are your department's, boss' and company's business goals?  How do you and your team fit within the yearly plan?

4.  Communicate.  Communication is a 2-way street and most employees want a supervisor who will be up front with them.  Tell the truth in a respectful way.  Ask for feedback without recrimination.

Assess yourself after completing your 60 day plan.  What did you learn?  What can you do differently?  What can you improve?

Spending time and focus on these important tasks will help you succeed as a new leader.

 

I Like LinkedIn

As a career coach, I am always looking for resources to help clients.

About a year ago, I began receiving “invitations” to join friends’ LinkedIn network. At the time, I thought that accepting invitations meant even more email to handle and lots of additional information to retain. My attitude was skeptical and I had to admit that I was unwilling to explore online networking.

We career coaches push face-to-face networking because it really is the best and most effective way to make a move in your career. But now that there’s online networking… It can hyper-speed-up your search in many ways.

I describe LinkedIn as the adult/professional version of Facebook – certainly an inadequate description but one that my brain can digest.

This is scratching the surface but here is how I use LinkedIn:

1. For now, it serves as a description of me as a professional, an entrepreneur, a provider of coaching services. In other words, it's my small window to the web.

2. It links to my Weblog!

3. It allows me to post recommendations of my work, my work history and credentials.

4. It helps my clients to research and find companies and individuals; find “real” job openings; post questions and get noticed.

I found LinkedIn to be very user friendly. To get started, consult this fabulous book, Seven Days to Online Networking (see the sidebar at left.) The authors, both career coaches, teach you how to "make connections to advance your career and business quickly."

Try LinkedIn - I think that you will like it too.

Executives Need a Plan B

You are an Executive and a realist. You know that it is in your best interest to have a Plan B when, not if, the time comes and you will look for your next opportunity. You've seen colleagues blind-sided and immobilized by change.

Time is lost and opportunities missed.

Most senior-level folks obtain positions by networking and seeking out opportunities to make a difference in the leadership of an organization. Some never have a need for a resume, bio or list of references. Their reputation and character are well-known. Do you know for certain that you won't need these important documents?

Wisdom dictates that you be prepared in advance so that you can start networking for opportunities right away. You will want the following in your "briefcase." These should be written professionally and updated regularly.

1. An Executive-level resume. This is more than a list of your positions and where you have worked. It is an active document that illustrates your value to your company. Your executive resume should have a distinctive look and feel.

2. An Executive Bio. Again, your Bio will have a unique look to it and written in a way that brings your contributions in focus.

3. Contact/Reference List. These are your sponsors and advocates.

4. A Positioning Statement. Who are you? What unique value will you contribute to your next organization?

You will save yourself countless hours and money if you are prepared in advance for your next move. An executive career coach can work with you to create your Plan B and achieve your professional goals.

The Joy Spreader

I am fortunate to live in Nashville – a city known for its entrepreneurs and creative energy.

Recently, I picked up a new magazine called HerNashville - a “local women’s publication offering intelligent, inspirational editorial content.” The article featuring Tara Stouder-Milam, owner of Lavish Events, a wedding/event planning company that Tara founded two years ago, fascinated me.

You see, Tara was a corporate cub-ee with looming sales quotas and endless meetings. Safe and well paid, Tara describes that job as killing her creativity. With the encouragement of her husband, Tara quit corporate life and took steps toward realizing her dream of owning her own business.

Here’s the point so beautifully described in the article. Tara took classes, a bridal consulting course, and worked for NO pay at a flower shop – all in preparation to launch her business. Wisely, Tara spent time learning the business, making connections and establishing her brand. Two years later, Tara “glows” as she describes herself as a ‘joy spreader.’

When we think of changing careers, we sometimes ignore that change is a process of steps, planning and preparation. We want to leap across the creek to the other side and land on our feet! Sometimes the best course is to take small steps, balance on those teetering stepping-stones and refocus on where we’re going.

A career/life coach can help you with your plan, hold you accountable and believe in your goal. A coach can partner with you so that you, too, can be a joy spreader.

Needed break

It's 4:30 am and I am up early enjoying the solitude and quiet of this new day.

Since launching my business, now2planB, I have chosen to work many hours - networking, writing, meeting new clients, volunteering. I am blessed because I am in a career where work does not feel like work. Daily, I am given the privilege of partnering with clients who in pursuit of their dreams and change in their lives.

But today, I am going on a break - I am taking a road trip with three dear friends. We have a couple of destinations planned but that is not really the purpose of our little get-away. Among us, we have 9 kids - 7 of whom left within the last days to go to college or graduate school. In our group, we have an adult child living in Israel and another who is a Senior in high school. We have full lives with much to fret over and manage.

As you can imagine, our road trip is for us. The car won't be packed to the gills with dorm decor and nervous, edgy family members. Our trip takes us back to ourselves, to who we are, to a needed break. We'll tell war stories about family, talk politics and religion, and giggle a lot. We will be out of our routine for a short time but it will feel like the refreshment of a cold glass of iced tea on a hot, late August day.

What will you do for your much needed break? Many times, clients will tell me that they should work harder, longer, faster on whatever they are pursing. I ask about their down time, their break from pushing themselves. Most just look at me with a questionable stare...

I have a request of you, will you plan for and take your needed break this Labor Day weekend?