TransformationSummer is in full swing.   If you are ready to move to the next level, now is the time.  Life is ready for you — it always has been.

Enjoy the weeks of summer.  Be ready to jump into fall, spend a few minutes this week setting the stage for your personal transformation.

Transformation only happens when you are truly ready to shift and take action.  

Here are three steps that will help you be ready for your personal transformation in the months ahead:

  1. Listen to yourself.  Listen carefully to what you want and what you feel, then write it down.
  2. Jot down your concerns about what is next for you.
  3. Be truthful with yourself about each of your concerns.  Did you note all your concerns?  Did you note the real concern(s)?  Don’t stop with the surface issues and concerns.

Review your notes.  Reflect on the data.  For example, if you want a new job and you are concerned about the salary, make sure this is your real concern or your only concern.

Then ask yourself, “What can I do to address the salary of the job I really want?”  Often the limits people initially see are easily overcome.

These steps can help you accelerate your transformation to the life and career you want.

If you want to create personal transformation faster you can partner with a coach, a trusted advisor or mentor.

Try the three steps and share you comments below.

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move forward

Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are“― Brené Brown

The above quote is from a book by Brené Brown.  Her book ‘The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are’ is, in my opinion, a must read — as is her newest book Rising Strong that was published at the end of August.   Brown is a researcher, author, and at least in my view, a person who likes herself.  She is willing to speak, write and share the challenges of her own journey and what she learned from others during her research.

Brown speaks and writes about having the courage to step forward in the world — embracing and telling your story.

If you are someone ready to move forward, embrace it!

Stepping authentically into the world, the marketplace and your next position is not just about using the right tools, connecting and networking, it is also about being who you are, embracing it, and sharing it with those who need to know.

You can like the work you do.  You can step forward and tell the world you like yourself and do so in a positive, productive way. You can also enjoy the journey, have an impact and be fulfilled.

Are you ready to smooth out the peaks and valleys in your life, career and business?  Would you like to ditch the stress, have impact and do work that supports your purpose?

Embrace your story; share who you are and what you do.  Need a little inspiration?   Read any one of Brené Brown’s books.

Need an action plan?  Maybe is time to pause and ask, “What is holding me back?”

If you are ready to move forward isn’t it time your embraced who you are on LinkedIn, in the board meeting, and in those important meetings with senior leaders in your organization.

What will you embrace this week?  I’d enjoy hearing about your work, purpose and impact.  Share your comments below.

Need support to step forward to the next level?  Let’s talk.

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beliefDo you believe you are special?  Talented?  Different?  Unique?  Better than someone else?

I believe every person on earth is talented, different and unique.  I believe what sets people that are happy and fulfilled apart has much to do with how they unlock and use their uncommon talents, gifts and unique human potential.

Additionally, I believe it is not necessary for people to compete with one another to have the life you desire.  No one person is better than another and all people matter.  The knowledge of that is very powerful.

How do you use your potential?  Is your performance directly connected to what you believe about yourself and others?

Belief is a game changer.  Belief (some call it faith) in an experience, interaction, or event can change your impact.

What do you believe about yourself?

Those climbing to the next level realize where they are today is only a point on the journey.  Those who have impact consciously choose and believe in the next step.

For those that believe they “have arrived” or have reached the pinnacle of their potential, growth may have stopped.  They may begin to believe that only the status quo needs to be maintained.  This pause or stop in growth may be a steady roll into a valley.  It might look like a glorious golf shot hit high, long and straight with grand yardage that ends up rolling into a low spot of tall thick grass that is very tough to hit out of.

What do you believe?  Have you arrived?  Are you in a valley working to maintain the status quo?

Are you growing to the next level and not at your intentional target yet?

Eduardo Briceno has a powerful short TEDx talk on this subject, “The Power of Belief — Mindset and Success.”  Check it out.

After you watch Eduardo Briceno’s TEDx talk, share your comments or thoughts on the power of belief below.  If you found this post or the TEDx talk interesting, please share it with others.

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notes
 Summer is ending and fall is a time of transformation.  If you are ready to move to the next level, now is the time.  Life is ready for you — it always has been. 

If you want to enjoy the last few weeks of summer and be ready to jump into fall, spend a few minutes this week setting the stage.

Transformation only happens when you are truly ready to shift and take action.  

Here are three steps that will help you be ready for your personal transformation this fall:

  1. Listen to yourself.  Listen carefully to what you want and then write it down.
  2. Jot down your concerns about getting what you want.
  3. Be truthful with yourself about each of your concerns.  Did you note all your concerns?  Did you note the real concern(s)?  Don’t stop with the surface issues and concerns.

Review your notes.  Reflect on the data.  For example, if you want a new job and you are concerned about the salary, make sure this is your real concern or your only concern.

Then ask yourself, “What can I do to address the salary of the job I really want?”  Often the limits people initially see are easily overcome.

These steps can help you accelerate your transformation to the life and career you want.

If you want to create personal transformation faster you can partner with a coach, a trusted advisor or mentor.

Try the three steps and share you comments below.

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picnicAt the end of the week we, in the United States, will celebrate July 4th — our Declaration of Independence in 1776.

What will you celebrate on July 4th?

Will it be freedom, independence, awareness or . . .

How will you celebrate?  A concert, parade, picnic or . . .

Have you given thought on how to really enjoy this day?

Will you be reviewing the past, reflecting on history and past experiences?  Or, will you be looking to the future, perhaps to a July vacation or your next amazing position?

I will be present and celebrate the freedom I have as a citizen of the USA and of the world.  I am grateful to be an American and to also celebrate an “Independence Day” of my own journey of freedom.

July marks when I first realized the power and freedom of being present — intentionally being attuned to the current moment. I recognized that the past holds history, experiences, and memories and that the uncertainty of the future will never arrive.

Awareness of NOW guarantees freedom, choice, joy, and much more.  Whatever and however you celebrate at the end of the week, may you have the blessings of celebrating each minute in the present.

Have an amazing 4th of July!

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four

We all need help from time to time.  Here are four tips for getting the support you need and finding the necessary resources to assist you:

Prioritize your needs and act early.

When it is avoidable, don’t wait until you are in crisis.  Write down your needs and decide what action you will take today to find support with your top need.

Be very specific in your ask and be willing to share requested information.

When you are vague or reluctant to provide requested details you may be misdirected.  You may also miss out on support or information.  People are smart and, given specific information, it is easier for them to ask different questions to help you.

Understand your emotions and deal with them first, when possible.

You own your emotions.  Others don’t have the power to control or create your emotions — unless you give them permission to do so.  Remember your emotions may trigger emotions for others.  You can’t control their choice or reaction, however you can choose yours.

Receive what is offered, be grateful and willing to ask, “Do you know someone else who might be able to help?”

Be open to receiving what is offered.  Be grateful in the moment.  Say “thank you” aloud — even when the support is not what you hoped for or wanted.  Follow up and ask who else might be able to help.

Allow the conversation to flow.  We all need help and support from time to time.  Connection, community and caring are often easier to find than you think.

Specific communication and action are key elements to getting support and finding resources.  When you need support to overcome obstacles and solve problems that may be blocking or slowing your flow to success, pause, prioritize and pose the specific request.  Then identify the role your emotions play and receive with gratitude what others can and will share with you.

Here’s to your accelerated success.  Have an amazing day!

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Resume Help CIndy KeyA friend, business associate, or recruiter calls you with a great job opportunity.  They ask you to send your resume TODAY.  Yes, NOW, right now.  Are you ready to leverage this opportunity?

I regularly get calls where the caller says, “Cindy, this is Joe XX.  My friend, Dan XX referred me to you and I need a resume today. Can you help?”  I both love and hate these calls.  I love that the caller is a referral from a client/former client and I love to serve and help people.  I hate the call because often I am busy and I know my key referral partners are busy, too.  Most of all, I hate these calls because I can hear the panic in the caller’s voice as she describes a great position only to have a resume that is not updated, not ready to send.  Then, when I ask about her LinkedIn profile, the stress I hear doubles.

On this issue, here is my one suggestion:  act like a Boy Scout and “Always Be Prepared.”

If you have not looked at your resume in the last 6 months, it is time to give it an update.  Do it before you need it.

Business owners, this goes for you, too.  Banks, investors and strategic partners might ask you for your resume.

Also, if you are looking for a new position or seeking a promotion and you have been in the market for the last 90 days and are not landing interviews, it is time to take a serious look at your resume.  Your resume may well need an update.

Here are just a couple of reasons why you should update your resume:

  • The studies, research and technology that will be used in addition to a human looking at your resume have changed.  There have been many changes in just the last six months.
  • Many changes were implemented during the Great Recession and even more has changed since it ended.  With the growth of ‘Big Data’ there is even more information you can leverage to help give your resume more IMPACT and help you land an interview.  There is data on everything from eye-tracking studies, to keyword usage, to word count studies — confirming every word on your resume does indeed count.  New research is released all the time.

A recent study by Modestino et. al highlights what the study calls ‘upskilling’ by employers.  It paints a clear picture that employers are not looking for the same skills today that they were seeking in 2007, 2010 or 2012.   If you have not updated your resume to reflect your new skills, you might miss a good opportunity.

The study notes that employers have raised the skill requirements within specific types of jobs.  Understanding these changes in the market place, as well as the impact of time to hire for top professionals like you, is important.  Should you be working with a coach or other HR professional who keeps up with what employers are doing and what they are seeking in the candidates they want to hire?

I understand you are busy.  Most days it is tough just keeping up with your areas of expertise.  That is why I ‘keep up’ for my clients, past and present.  Don’t wait for the phone call to update your resume.  That added stress to your life is completely unnecessary — unless, of course, you are a stress junkie.  Update your resume regularly.  Do so on your time frame, not someone else’s.   If you are looking for information and resources on updating your resume, check <here>.

Even in a tighter labor market (think declining unemployment rates), employers continue to search for highly skilled workers for many different positions.  Employers call it ‘raising the bar.’

If it is time to you to update your resume, we are ready to help you.  If you are a do-it-yourself person, you might find these resources <link to the word “resources”> helpful.

If you want to avoid missing an opportunity that only comes along once in awhile, update your resume this month.  You can leverage your most recent experience, insure your resume is ready to go and communicate your unique value at a moments notice.  Go <here> to take advantage of one-on-one support with our May only special.

Summer’s coming — be ready for fun, relaxation and to take advantage of opportunities.  Avoid the run-of-the-mill update that looks like you haphazardly plugged in your last job and attached it to an email with little or no thought.  When you land the interview you may be scrambling to explain why your resume looks tossed together.

If you aren’t ready for the call when it comes, you may miss out on increased earnings, a great culture, and the launch pad for your next 5 to 10 years of success.  Employers who are seeking to hire professionals with relatively high skills expect you to be ready.  Are you?

Ditch the stress of missing out on something you want to do.  Ditch the stress of staying up all night to update your resume (you are not a college co-ed these days and paychecks of that size are, thankfully, gone). Get help now and be ready to land the job you want at the salary your desire FAST and with less stress.

Do you have a question or comment?  Post it below or give me a call.

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Networking Cindy KeyDo you dislike networking?  Why is that?

Do you lack skill in this area or is something else holding you back?

Do you want to be a more effective networker?

Often professionals considering a career move or seeking a new position ask how important networking is to success.  My reply?  “Networking is critical to your career.”

When I inquire as to why they are asking, their answers vary.  Here are the most common replies from my clients:

“I am not a skilled networker.”

“Making small talk is not my thing, that’s why I don’t like to network.”

“Starting a one-on-one conversation is frightening.  I just can’t do it.”

“I find silence dreadful.”

“Networking seems like a waste of my time.”

“If networking is what it takes to get a promotion, I am worried about being promoted.”

Do any of these sound like you?

Professionals need networking skills.  At work, and in the world, you need to be able to effectively connect, engage and communicate with different people in various settings.  One of the best ways to develop networking skills is repeated practice of solid techniques.

Though, for many of my clients the challenge of effective networking is not totally about skill.  The actual issues can range from less than effective venues to support their goals to the type of networking they have selected to poor networking techniques.  Any of these issues can result in time invested with limited results leaving your feeling like networking is just a waste of your time.

For other clients, the challenges revolve around fears or beliefs about networking.  The big fears that show up for my clients are:

  • Fear of starting a conversation
  • Fear of not knowing what to say
  • Fear of saying the wrong thing
  • Fear of trying something outside of your comfort zone

Here is a quick assignment to help you see what you need to tackle first.  Jot down your answers to the following questions:

  • What do you dislike about networking?
  • What do you believe about networking?
  • Do you want to improve your networking skills and/or networking venues?
  • Are you happy and content with your current level of networking success?

Now that you have noted your answers, you will know what to tackle first.  Your answers will also help you determine if skill, fear or some combination is your biggest challenge.

Your next step is simple.  Decide what, if anything, you want to change.  Is this an area worth tackling?  You can start today and be networking more effectively by the end of the week.  You can discover more about tackling your challenges <here>.

Do you have a question or comment?  Post it below or give me a call.  I am happy answer your questions.

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time“Make each minute count.”Dave Edwards

Do you make every minute count?  I hope you do.

Most of us waste time, work on minor things, and focus on things other than people or high value work.   I fall in the ‘most’ category more days of the month than I would like to.

Over the years, I have looked to the masters — CEOs, COOs and other peak performers — to see what they do in areas where I need to improve.  Using my time more effectively is an area where I always look to improve because I want more time for the most important things in my business and life — people.  Interactions with people are what count the most to me and those minutes are also how I am most successful in my work.

Below are the best time management strategies I’ve shared over the years.  When executed effectively, they do indeed accelerate your search.  May these help you have more time for the things that count in your job search and in your next position.  Here are the tips I’ve found helpful in making every minute count:

  1. Say NO without explanation.

You can say “no” in a simple, polite manner to more email, more stuff, and those non-specific requests (i.e., those things that don’t align with your current goal of finding your next position).

For example, when someone at your child’s school says, “Mr. Brown, sorry to hear you lost your job.  We are looking for someone to volunteer at the school on several projects. Would you like to help?”

Quickly assess the request.  Is it specific with a clear goal?  Will it help you talk directly to someone who can hire you?   Will it help you hone a skill you need to move into your next position?  If the answers are “no,” say “Thank you for asking and thinking of me.  No, I am not available to help now.”

  1. Monitor your energy.  

Know your natural rhythms, sleep patterns and eating habits.  Be aware of how moving away from a former work schedule can impact these.   Use your peak times each day to work on your top 3 priorities.

Move, walk, stand.  Leave your desk and computer screen at least once an hour.  Hydrate: Drink water hourly.   Take breaks.  Go take a walk and eat lunch.  Schedule meetings at a park in lieu of a coffee shop.

  1. Set short periods of time for EMAIL.

Batch email.  View your email two to four times a day, delete, handle if it takes 3 minutes or less, learn that replies to all messages are not needed.

Mark or flag what is important and requires action beyond what you can do at this time.  Then schedule a time to complete the action needed.

Allowing your phone (email or otherwise) to take attention away from an important task makes you average or second rate on the things that matter and require your best.

  1. Build processes.

For any task you do a second time, assume you will do it again.  Stop and write down your process, with as many details as necessary.  Example:  researching a company and their challenges.  Take my word for it, you will definitely repeat this process.

If you write down what you do, the next time you can simply execute the steps.   You will not need to waste time guessing.  You will know what you did and what got results.   If you want to be able to repeat amazing results, write down what you did.

Knowing what you did to get your first interview will help you get a second one.  Knowing how you reached the CEO at one company will help you reach a CEO at another and so forth.

  1. Meet with people and follow-up with people you meet.

Leverage the 80/20 rule.  Spend 80% of your time connecting and talking to people who can hire you face-to-face.  That is the work that moves the needle.

Get out from behind your computer.  Spend only 20% of your time on email, job boards, LinkedIn, or the phone.  Stop seeking perfection on your resume, cover letter, email, etc.

Call and meet people — you need to establish relationships to receive introductions and recommendations.  From each meeting, take away the knowledge you need to continue to grow the relationship.  Ask about them.  What do they do?  What are their professional challenges?  What is happening in their industry?  What do their customers face or care about?  Work to create deep connections and make notes when information is shared.

Then, follow up.  Create the opportunity to reach out again, stay in touch, have another meeting.  A personal touch is what it takes to build that connection and deepen it.  Few relationships are built via email or LinkedIn.

End your meeting with a recap and plan your next step(s) and how you will follow-up with your contact.

In a job search there are many things you don’t control.   You do control how you use your time.   What will you do different this week to make every minute count?

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to doFinding yourself without a job and in a job search can be fun, exciting and full of adventure.  It can also be filled with fear, questions and be a very unproductive time.

Our jobs, families, and communities go at a frantic pace.  Western culture, especially in the U.S., seems to call out, in a very loud voice, that success means doing more, being busy, and dashing here and there with not “enough” time.  Days are full, 8 -10 hours of work, a commute, and taking family members to this and that.

Often the impact of being the family member without a job is additional new expectations and tasks. Tasks like carpool, shopping, picking up the dry cleaning, and walking the dog.  Then there is the “fix-it” list and the forgotten jobs like cleaning the basement that hasn’t been cleared in years.  No one item is bad, nor an unrealistic expectation if the same is expected of you when you are working.

However, if this is a shift due to your unemployment, use caution and quickly set up a job search schedule.  Your schedule should include the average number of hours you intend on working once employed and one that follows you own internal rhythms.  For example, if you are a morning person, do critical thinking tasks in the morning hours so that you are able to fully step into your power.

Then, add your new tasks and activities into your search schedule at a time when you are not searching for work.  Don’t allow non-employment tasks to rule your schedule — just as these things would not be done on your employers’s time when you are working in your new job.

If, after looking at your skills, the labor market and your bank account, you assess you will be okay if your job search takes about a year, you may have just set a goal in your mind that you need a job in a year.

Telling yourself you have a year to find your next position and then taking action to make that happen is great.  However, if you decide can can do any number of things in lieu of putting all your time, effort and energy into your current job — finding a new job — I will bet you lunch that you just extended the time you will be out of work.

It’s healthy to add fun, relaxing new projects into your life — even if the project is simply relaxing.  I do caution you that if you allow these things to take the place of meaningful work, your days will be filed with tasks and activities that leave little or no room for a new job.

Add valuable career-focused actions and practices to your day to accelerate your search.  Here is a practice I created for myself and my clients after reading Deepak Chopra’s book Seven Spiritual Laws of Success:

  1. Daily, set aside time for quiet meditation or reflection.
  2. Start with 3 – 5 minutes of sitting still, taking in a deep breath and listening to the sounds in the room.
  3. Pause, write down what you heard and felt.  Then write down what you are grateful for from the prior day and in your job search.
  4. Set down you pen, take 3 deep breaths.
  5. Pause, expand your awareness, and be open to possibilities, new ideas, and flashes of insight.
  6. Be still for as long as you wish, then set an intention for the day, take 3 deep breaths.

Suggestion: add a few minutes to your practice until you can meditate at least 10 minutes a day.

Don’t sweat the process.  It is okay for your mind to wander.  Don’t worry if you find it difficult to relax when starting out. Ten full minutes is a long time at first.  Work up to it and if you don’t get to 10 minutes, that it is okay, too.  There is magic and benefits found in even a few minutes.  Try it and do what works for you.

According to a study conducted by the Kyoto Convention Bureau, those who meditated at least 10 minutes prior to a meeting were better at focusing, listening, retaining information and completing projects [Source: Deepak Chopra post, EliteDaily.com].  My clients who have never done meditation are always amazed at the results.  Clients often share that after beginning this practice they were able to complete a nagging project or were able to the connect with someone new thanks to an idea that came to them in quiet reflection.

Do you have a reflection or meditation practice?  Post a comment and share what works for you.

Do you have a question about your search?  Look to the right and sign up for next Q & A session, join the session and ask your question.

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