Practice Makes You Better

Remember the old adage, “Practice makes perfect.” Actually, I’m not a big fan of this statement, instead I would like to change it to: “Practice makes me better and more practice make me even better.” Okay, it’s not as catchy but it is more real. Perfection really isn’t the goal, excellence is!

Everything we do takes practice for us to improve. When we first learned to walk, ride a bicycle and even learn to read, it took practice to become proficient. Artists and athletes know this to be true. How much does Yo Yo Ma practice? Think of all the practice it takes to get to the Olympics. I remember Jerry Seinfeld’s 2002 documentary “Comedian” where he shows the amount of preparation and rehearsal that goes into creating a head-liner stand-up routine.  The film accounts for all the efforts, including the mistakes and bombs, in developing a completely new act from scratch.  It’s not easy and it takes a lot of practice to become good at unfamiliar skills, tasks and behaviors. Seinfeld took about a year to get his act down pat.

It’s not easy, it’s hard, so you’re going to have to work hard... to learn what you need to do to move to the next level. If you’re between jobs or looking to move up in your career, there are a lot of tools you have to develop and become proficient at. For some people saying hi and smiling at strangers is a new behavior. For others, introductions, elevator speeches, scheduling networking meetings and what to say in those meeting are all new and unfamiliar.

I find that when I’m not familiar with a new skill, I make mistakes, fail and sometimes embarrass myself. It’s painful to say the least... however, I’ve never died from making a mistake. For those of you who have to learn new skills, software programs like Microsoft Office, effective business writing, or presentation skills you’re going to meet a lot of frustration in the process of mastery. People will give you feedback that you won’t like hearing. You may even want to quit and give up...

When you hear yourself say something along the lines of: “This is stupid, I’ll never get this.” or “Who am I kidding, this is impossible.” You need to take a big deep breath and say to yourself, “Time to practice, if it’s going to be, it’s up to me. I can do it; this is new and I need more practice, that’s all.”

Christmas 2010 filled with hope

Christmas is in the air and have you noticed how warm and kind people are in the stores? I was at the movies tonight with my daughter and there was a traffic jam exiting the Mall at 10:15 PM. This is a lot different than just a year ago.  There seems to a sense of hope for the future. My wish is that you’ll experience the peace and hope of the Christmas Season. And may the new year be filled with success and prosperity.

I have worked with over 200 people this year. Many of the folks I coached, trained or presented to were motivated and invigorated in the hope of an improving economy. And a good number of my clients who had been in transition for over a year landed a full time jobs. They did that with some new tools, hard work and a commitment to working their network. They quickly found that the more they called their contacts and asked for help and support in their job search the more interviews they were getting. 

Making the calls

It’s easy to say it’s a numbers game... it’s hard to move out of your comfort zone, learn new skills, practice phone and networking scripts and ask for help. They tell me that it’s even harder to accept people’s help when you have nothing in return. But with me in their corner, cheering them on, they made the phone calls, got the meetings, did well in the interviews and landed the job.

This November I was privileged to give the Keynote Speech, which was an inspirational talk to the Career Stimulus Program’s 150 attendees. For weeks afterward, I ran into people who told me how motivated they were by the talk. They emailed me with accounts of how it gave them courage to carry on and trust in a higher power. As I said at the end of the presentation, I cannot guarantee when, but each one of your will find a job, if you trust in your God, your friends and family and most importantly, have faith in yourself.

Have a Merry Christmas and may the blessings of the Christ Child fill your heart, your home and your future. Happy 2011

The Gift of GAB

An Irishman & motivational speaker

   I have this friend, Conor Cunneen. We have worked together and offered each other support as we transitioned into new careers from our corporate gigs. Conor is a great example of someone who looked at his “transferable skills” and re-invented himself. Check out this example of Conor’s re-invention: Click Here


   The gift of GAB talk is filled with points that might be of benefit for us. GAB is an acronym for Goals, Attitude and Behavior.


Goals, 
   After a termination from your job, the structure, deadlines and routine of the job is gone. The discipline from the job is missing and we need to replace it with our own personal accountability. A refresher in the basics of goal setting is often all you need to get back on the wagon, so to speak. See Goal Setting for Job Seekers


Attitude,
   Having a positive hopeful attitude with expectations of success is essential for people doing a job search. It's where the smile comes from which is the most powerful non-verbal humans have to offer the world.  With so much competition out there why have anything other than a positive attitude. Drop your “stinkin’ thinkin’” and stop making excuses and start moving toward your goals. As Conor states in his book SHEIFGAB, “The key question is, What do I want my attitude to be?”


Behavior, 
By putting goals and a new attitude together your behavior becomes directed and more active. There lies the path to success. Job search is work. That’s why Conor challenges everyone he hears say that they are “unemployed.” In stead, he says that you are, “NIGEP = non-income generating employed person.” This is the most important work you have to do and may be the most important work in your whole life. 

WARNING

   Remember the old adage, "If you don't have anything good to say..." As a job seeker, you cannot afford to pass negative thoughts, actions or energy... you don't know where it will land. Like a stray bullet that hits an innocent bystander, a negative comment can paste you with a reputation as a whiner and complainer, in short, a problem,  when you want the reputation of a problem solver.  Remember you can choose your attitude and you have control over what you do and say. Take control over the things you can take control over and see what happens. Like the fellow said, “If you think you can you can, and if you think you can’t you can’t. Either way you’re right!”

Next week I’ll focus on developing and working from a job search plan. Good hunting. 

Tapping the Hidden Job Market

I always tell people the stat that only 20% of jobs are advertised and that leaves a hidden job market of 80%. Some people ask me how can that be true. Kevin Crews www.kevincrews.com explained this to a group of job seekers last Friday at Harper College.


Kevin said that if you look at the job requisition process it becomes very clear. In most companies the process follows a pattern similar to this:

1. A manager recognises a need in their department or area
2. The request to hire is written up and submitted to HR &/or Finance
3. The request is reviewed and passed on for executive approval
4. A job description is written and approved
5. The hiring manager reviews the needed skills and expected responsibilities with a recruiter
6. A job posting is created and presented as an internal opportunity and employee referrals
7. The job opening is then posted on-line and or in the paper or with an external recruiter.
8. Resumes are received by HR and screened
9. Phone screening and interviews

The Career Strategist

Steps one through six are where a large percentage of the “hidden” job market resides. These steps can take as little as a few days and as long as a few months before the formal interviewing process can happen. In some companies some of these steps are skipped and others where there are even more steps. It’s important to realize that during this process you have an opportunity to learn about the opportunity by networking with people who work there.

But why would people care to tell you about the position? That’s easy: companies pay referral bonuses to their employees, $500 to $5000 are typical, depending on the position and the company. So when you ask a contact if they’ll refer you; you’re asking, “Would you like to make $1500.00 extra by introducing me to the hiring manager?”

Now isn’t it a good thing that we stress the importance networking. Check out other entries in my Blog that cover how to of networking. Hint: use the search utility and search on the keyword networking.  Good Hunting and call me if I can help you with your job search or career progression.

A Coach or a Therapist

Some people are afraid of going to a career consultant sometimes called a coach. I had a client once ask me what is the difference between a “transition coach” and a psychologist or therapist. I believe this is why some folks are afraid of using anyone in a counseling role, they are afraid to deal with past issues.

Here’s the biggest difference I know of between a career coach and a psychological therapist: the career consultant is focused on your behaviors and not your motivations. I was reminded of this recently when I was facilitating a transition support group. We were discussing the importance of networking and asking for help and advice in the job search. One of the group members said that they couldn’t ask a stranger for help or advice. Another group member asked why this was a difficulty. As the first member began to respond, I interrupted the conversation. I pointed out that in this venue “the why” was not the right question; that is, “why” is the realm of the psychotherapist. The right question is, what will it take for you to make the change in your behavior and ask for help and advice in your job search.

Now, I understand that many people have issues and traumas in their past and others were conditioned by the events of their life into who they are today. As a career consultant, I am focused on my clients current behavior and changes that will be more productive in their career growth. The past may influence the present--as Freud said, “The child is the father of the man”-- but people can change their behavior without in-depth psychoanalysis.

I see people every day that have big issues and problems and their career crisis or job loss has brought those issues to the foreground. In some of these cases, the folks I am talking to are suffering from depression, either acute or chronic and really need professional psychological help and I refer them to a therapist or psychologist or psychiatrist for immediate help. The person in crisis needs to deal with the emotional problem first before continuing their job search.

Yet, many others have “issues” that don’t require medical or psychological attention. They need to adopt some new behaviors, change some bad habits and move on. That is were the coach is best suited to point out and direct the needed change. I point out things my client doesn’t see, help my client develop more skills and cheer on my client to overcome an obstacle and succeed. 

If you are struggling with your job search and it’s going on longer than you believe it should, call a career consultant, contact me. I’d be happy to work with you and aid you on your way to gainful employment.