Accelerate Your Search™ Now

In the last post I shared what deepened my understanding of the importance of setting intentions.

If you have already set your intention for your next position, declared it publicly and are thinking and acting differently AND you are still struggling to land your next position — keep reading.

Several years ago we moved from Texas to New England.  In November!  It was the toughest winter of my life and I could not wait for spring to plant a lovely spring garden at our new home.  My simple desire for a garden and what I learned from that garden (heretofore referred to as “the adventure of my garden”) forced me to deal with thoughts and things I thought were dealt with — things I thought were in the past, but were not.

These same issues keep popping up for clients, so I decided it is time to share my experience in this blog.

OK, so the adventure of my garden . . . It was March and in my mind it was time to plant, but there was still snow everywhere.  How was I going to get my garden?

I started to ask questions about gardening in New England, got information and quickly rejected most of it.  Then April arrived and still no garden — I whined, fussed and got very frustrated.

Finally, I set the intention, used the information I gathered and planted the garden.  I got a few flowers and plants, but definitely not what I would call a garden.

Intention, information and action were not enough to produce a garden.  What was holding my garden back?  Maybe it was the bad weather.  Maybe I just needed more information.  After all, there was still snow in May — how could a garden grow in this harsh environment?

Surely, the lack of a full, lush garden was not because of me.  I decided the factors were out of my control and got increasingly frustrated.  Gardening in New England was just a bear!

For my clients this is just like updating their resume, researching job openings and getting an interview or two, but no job offers.

Do you see job searching as a bear?

Have you said the same things about your search that I said about my garden?

Have you given up because of things you believe are out of your control?

Is what’s holding you back really out of your control?  Really?

Join me next week as I share more of the “adventure in the garden . . . ”

That is a great question.

Employment firms can be a solid resource for finding potential employers, especially if you are in a specialized field or niche industry.  The type of firm and how that  firm interacts in the  market varies, so do your homework and ask questions.

Here are some questions to help you determine if a particular employment firm might be a good strategic partner in your search:

• Does the firm handle some or all of the human resource functions for one of your target employers?
• What is the firm’s reputation?
• Where is the firm’s office located?
• What references does the firm offer?
• Can you talk to current and past customers (both candidates and employers)?
• How long has the employment firm been in business?
• Where does the employment firm advertise for the jobs you are targeting?
• Does the employment firm have expertise in placing people in your field?
• Does the employment firm have a relationship with the companies and employers you are targeting?
• Is the employment firm a local, regional or a national organization?
• What services does the firm provide to you as a candidate?
• What services does the firm provide to the employers and companies it serves?
• What are the terms of your agreement with the firm?
• What will the firm expect you to do?
• Does the employment firm focus only on hiring applicants to perform contract work on a temporary or project basis?
• Will you work for the employment firm if hired or for the company you are targeting?
• Are there opportunities for on-the-job training or other skill development from the employment firm?
• How long has the person you are working with been with the employment firm?

What other questions do you have?   Post them below.

Check out the look and words of a newspaper headline.  It is designed to help sell newspapers and get readers to at least scan the article.  Your LinkedIn headline serves the same purpose.  It helps you be found, favorably communicate what you do and why someone should care.

If your current headline is relevant and doing its job, leave it alone.  On the other hand, if it is advertising you are out of work and begging for a job,  its time to change it.

Those interested in interviewing you will look you up online.  Your photo and headline will determine if they read or scan your profile.  Your headline may be the only thing they read.  Does it make a favorable impressions?  If not, they may just move on.

Your LinkedIn headline communicates your brand and gets your profile read!

Which profile would you read?

Your photo is critical.  People are visual.  A LinkedIn profile without a photo seems as if something is missing.  In fact, something is missing – your photo!  Today everyone needs a good professional head shot.

If your head shot is old, consider updating it.  If you are still a “no photo” hold out with one of these excuses  …

• no time to schedule a portrait appointment
• hate having my photo taken
• have a head shot but don’t like it
• worried about age discrimination
• or …  <add your excuse here>

Here are the top four tips to getting a great head shot:

1. Look at the work of potential photographers.  Do you like it?  If not, keep looking.  They are not the photographer for you.
2. Like their work?  Interview them.  Ask questions, learn about their style, studio and rates. Tell the photographer about your photo’s use and the look you are seeking for your head shot.  Do you click?  Will you enjoy working with them?
3. Set an appointment — do it a good time of day for you — then do some planning.  Think about hair, clothes, and the look you want.   Love the clothes you wear for your head shot.   I thought this was interesting advice because in a head shot you don’t see much of the outfit.   One photographer pointed out that if you don’t like what you pick to wear, it will ‘show’.  Another  photographer had a note in the studio that said “If you don’t like the outfit – neither does the camera.”  Great point!
4. When you arrive for your appointment think “Showtime!”  Be on-time, listen to the photographer, be coachable and have fun.  If you drop the self-consciousness and enjoy the session, odds are you will get a great head shot.

Have a comment?  Post it below.

Are you still on target with your intentions?  Why or why not?

I recently read there are two factors that impact your success of achieving a New Year’s resolution more than anything else:

1) Do you like and want the end result of the resolution and

2)  Do you believe the change is good for you?

Dictionary.com defines belief as “something believed; an opinion or conviction.”

Belief is a powerful factor.  How are your beliefs impacting your job search and/or your New Year’s resolution results?

Recently, a client shared he preferred the freedom of unemployment over receiving a weekly paycheck.  With this realization he created a new plan.  He would not seek a new job and instead was planning on selling his home and moving in with his elderly parents to serve as their caregiver.  This would allow him to continue to enjoy the freedom of his current lifestyle.

His conviction, as he shared it, was that his freedom was more important than receiving a paycheck and he decided finding a way to have the freedom was more important to him than finding a job.

What is important to you?  How is it impacting your career-related New Year’s resolution(s)?

I’d enjoy hearing your thoughts on the topic.   Post a comment or share your resolution and your progress.

Yes, it is!   Boring is out for 2013 and WOW is in!

Everyone needs an Elevator Speech.  It is your commercial and often serves as your only introduction.

Used when you meet and greet, it answers the question,“Tell me about yourself.”   The term “Elevator Speech,” as I understand it, comes from the Venture Capital world.  It was developed as a marketing pitch, customized to the people and situation and designed to secure funding for the next great idea or product.

Has your Elevator Speech lost its WOW (or maybe never really had it)?  If so, it’s time to ditch it!

What is the WOW in your branded Elevator Speech?

WOW stands for your Worth (what you do and the impact of it), the Opportunities you are seeking, and What you can do for the person (or someone they know) experiencing your message.

Your WOW makes you memorable, helps others connect with you and understand why they should care about what you have to say.   If the WOW is missing, odds are you will be forgotten or the conversation will fizzle quickly.  Without a strong WOW your brand awareness is diminished and it takes longer to have influence in any situation.

Remember, you only have seconds to connect, set the stage and share your WOW.  Your first impression is vital — make it count or you will be forgotten!

Ditch your boring Elevator Speech.  Be relevant.  Gain favorable attention.  Ensure that when you meet someone they understand what you do and the impact you have.

Ready to ditch boring and add WOW?

There are thousands of formulas for an elevator speech — pick any formula you like.  Draft your initial speech.

Then slice it, dice it, edit it, and make it yours.    Deb Dib co-author of “Ditch Dare Do!”  recommends being ruthless when editing — every word should count!

Now it is time to hone your elevator speech.  Practice it.  Use it.  Change it as you grow.  You need to be comfortable delivering it, yet if it sounds canned it will impact the impression you make.

This formula will get you started:  “I <what you do> <the problem you solve> and the <results you produce>.

Here is an example a client started with:

“I train rescue dogs to serve as companions for recent widows struggling with a lifestyle change and who want a friend around the house, but no more laundry in their life!”

The above message includes humor that may not fit you.  It fits the person who shared it.

In 25+ words you know a great deal about her brand and what she does.  When she speaks you will decide to continue a conversation or not.  Yet the message is long.

After some editing, she now delivers her WOW in 12 words.   Less is often more!

She revised it as follows:

“I train dogs to serve as companions for widows who hate laundry!”

You get the idea.  Ditch boring and the extra words.

Does your Elevator Speech have WOW?   Is it on brand, clear and to the point? Does it tell your brand story?

Have a comment or thought?  Post it below.

“The world cares very little about what a man or woman knows; it is what a man or woman is able to do that counts.” ~ Booker T. Washington

What makes you indispensable?  (Hint:  it is not what you know.)

You already know building a strong personal brand illustrates you are indispensable and influential.  So, what are you doing to build your personal brand?

Your personal brand tells others about you — what you are able to do, the impact of your actions, and why it matters to the world.

The impact?  You become vital to the right people.  You become a key player in their organizations, not because of what you know, but because of your actions, the results they garner and the far reaching impact of what you DO!

And, all this doesn’t just happen — you have to make it happen!

As 2013 begins, are you ready to be influential, indispensable and have more fun?

Here are 3 tips to help you start leveraging your personal brand:

1)  Assess your personal brand and decide how you want to leverage what you DO.

2)  Take one action per week that positively impacts your personal brand and makes you indispensable.

3)  Want 66 tips to help you execute on number 2?  Read “Ditch. Dare. Do!” by William Arruda and Deb Dib.

In fact, if you call me by Saturday, January 12th, 2013 and request a copy of Ditch. Dare. Do! by Personal Branding Guru William Arruda and CEO Coach Deb Dib,  you will be added to the list of my executive clients that are receiving a free copy of the book when it is released next week.   Don’t wait!  Call me by Saturday, Jan 12, 2013.

When calling, please leave your full name and complete mailing address [don’t forget the zip code] and I will send you a copy of the book.  No catch, simply my gift to you as a reader of my blog.

You’ll love the book.  You’ll learn the same tips top executives know and use to leverage their personal brand.  Make 2013 the year you land the job you want, with less stress and earn the salary you deserve.

Want to know more about Ditch. Dare. Do!?  Listen to this interview with William Arruda and Deb Dib.

What will 2013 bring for you?   Will you achieve your goals?

Is a new or better job on your list of resolutions?  If your goals include building, accelerating and sustaining your career or finding a new or better position in 2013, here are three steps to help you:

1.    Assess your current situation.

• Where are you today?
• Where do you want to be at the end of 2013?
• What’s next for you and your career?
• What is the right fit for you now and 10 years from now?
• Why is changing your current situation important?
• Do you have career-marketing materials that promote you in a credible and distinctive way or do they need to be created?

2.    Create an action plan.

• How will you get in front of the people who need to know about you?
• What is the quickest path to get from where you are to where you want to be?
• How do you manage future positions so you don’t end up in this situation again?

3.   Set up an execution strategy.

• What are going to do every single day to execute your plan?
• How will you measure and evaluate your results?

Have a wonderful 2013.  If I can help you, let’s connect.

Who knows your name?

Being known in the marketplace is critical to job search success.  Your name, what you do and your reputation are intimately intertwined.

What are people saying about you?   If the answer is Zilch, Zip, Nil,  don’t you think you should change that?

If no one knows you or can’t say anything about you, your odds of being hired may go down to zero!

Jeffery Gitomer, author and president of Charlotte-based Buy Gitomer, says that when someone asks about you or says your name the response will be one of five things:

1. Something great
2. Something good
3. Nothing
4. Something bad
5. Something really bad

Gitomer believes these responses determine your fate.

I agree — what people say about you impacts your providence.  More often than not it is because people say nothing about you or share too little.

Building your name recognition and a great reputation takes dedication, execution and time.  Are you putting time and effort into being known by those who need to know you?

When someone asks about you, my theory is that most people say nothing for one of two reasons.  One, they don’t know anything about you – Zilch, Zip, Nil – therefore have nothing to say.  Or two, they are unsure what to say and therefore say Zilch, Zip, Nil.

What if you converted either of those groups into people who said something good?  WOW!  You would double the number of brand ambassadors you have in the world.

Why not start today?

Here are three easy steps for getting known:

1. Define your personal brand.
2. Consistently communicate a clear message.
3. Connect with the people who need to know you — on and off-line.

Oftentimes, it is easier to listen to the voices of doubt and sit still than it is to have the courage to listen to your REAL call to action and move forward with faith, completing what you really need to do.

Everyone desires success and wants life to be easy.  Me too!   I would love it if I could just wait by the phone or my Inbox and clients would come flooding in.  However, without continuous and innovative marketing and networking, I don’t land the job — and neither will you.

You can’t just keep fussing with your résumé of filling out online applications and expect someone to call you.  Unfortunately, time is not on your side.  Being out of work for a period of time does impact your value in the market.

If you are ready to stop making excuses and be back to work soon, it is time to take action!

Where to start?

First, you must BELIEVE!  Believe that results will come as a result of your actions.  Have faith that you are enough.  By nurturing and believing in your vision you become a magnet for success and prosperity.

Next, feel CONFIDENT in your values, skills and the job you perform.  Be aware of your doubts and negative feelings or you may miss out on available opportunities.

Then you must ACT!

Begin by assessing your network.  Take inventory of the people you know.  Do you need to grow and nurture your current network?  As in any business, inventory is an asset and impacts your bottom line.

Create a plan to connect and stay connected.  Who knows you?  Who likes you?  Who trusts you?  What is the best way to connect?  How will you stay connected?

Execute your plan.  Who will you call this week?  Pick up the phone.  Connect with people.  If you don’t have opportunities for a job in your pipeline you need to expand your network.

At the end of the day, stop listening to your doubts, decide what results you want and take action to achieve it!