Back to the Future: My First Blog Post

I wrote my first blog post back in November 2008; problem was I didn’t have a blog to post it to at the time. The post was based on one that Seth Godin, the author and entrepreneur, posted on his blog, Marketing lessons from the US election, where he commented on the successful elements of the Obama’s campaign for the presidency. His comments really resonated with me as they relate to people in their job searches. With a few adaptations, below is what I drafted at the time. Read Godin’s post first; then read mine below. Regardless of your political persuasion, can you see the lessons for marketing yourself in your job search?

Stories really matter. People need to talk about their accomplishments rather than their responsibilities. Stories about what you’ve accomplished throughout your career add value to prospective employers. However, the stories need to be relevant and concise, to the point. If the audience can’t relate to the story it’s no good. If the story teller rambles on, they’re losing the audience and the story is no good.

TV is over. What Godin is talking about here is broadcasting. Tactics like direct mail are not effective. Hiring and HR managers are busy people and are selective about what they want to read. Saturating the airwaves / mail doesn’t do any good. While you need to employ technology more in your search, it needs to be strategic technology.

Permission matters. This is where social networks, like LinkedIn.com, come in. By reaching out to select folks on LinkedIn, FaceBook and Twitter, asking permission to connect with them and taking care of the list of connections, you build a network that can help in finding the next position. Frankly, this is where you ought to be focusing your job search efforts.

Marketing is tribal. By building the list of decision makers from sites like LinkedIn and nurturing the list, you identify your tribe. For example, PMPs (Project Management Professionals) know intuitively that their tribe members are other project managers with PMP certification. They know how other PMPs will behave, what processes they employ to do their work. Engineers are another tribe; as are IT folks (although with many “sub cultures” within them – developers, DBAs, network administrators, etc.). What about people looking to join a new tribe, those unsure about what they want to do next or knowing they want to do something else? Again, they can use social networks to identify tribes which they might want to join. Not create a new tribe, but find a new tribe. Identifying one’s tribe is critical to success.

Motivating the committed…By creating lists of decision makers who are asked permission to be on the list; by nurturing them and becoming a member of their tribe; by seeking their advice and keeping them apprised of the unfolding situation, you build a network of motivated tribal members who will act on your behalf.

So how is your search campaign unfolding? Are you using marketing techniques that are effective or are you doing the same old, same old? And how’s that working for you?

Ctrl_Alt_Del: Time to Reboot Your Search?

So you’ve been engaged in your job search for some time and you’re getting discouraged. Lots (perhaps hundreds) of applications have been completed – online and on paper – and nary a word from the HR departments. Frustrating no? So maybe it’s time to rethink your approach; to reboot your search.

Let’s review your basic tools and how they’re being used in your search.

First off, your resume: How’s it working for you? Does it tell the story about the value you bring? Does it differentiate you from others or are you just part of the pack? Are you specific about what you’re looking for or do you show that you’re so desperate you’ll do anything? Are you leaving it up to the reader- whether HR or hiring manager – to figure out what your strengths are and how you can meet their needs? If so, that’s unfortunate, as they don’t have the time to figure out how you can fit in their organization.

Second, your online presence: Oh, you don’t have an online presence? You’re not on LinkedIn for example? Hmmm, how’s that been working for you? You should have, at minimum, a profile on LindedIn.com. Your LinkedIn profile should complement, not duplicate, your resume. Together, they help establish your brand. You can scoff about this “branding thing,” but the reality is if you can’t demonstrate unique value, you’re part of the pack; no way will you stand out in the current competitive market for talent. Moreover, recruiters, HR folk and hiring managers are relying more and more on online searches to identify potential candidates. If you’re not out there, you’re not there.

Third, your network: How’s it working for you? Are you connecting with the right people – that is, are you connecting with decision makers who can either hire you or point you in the direction of someone who can? Are you letting friends and former colleagues know specifically what you’re looking for? Are you telling them the right story about what it is you do best? Conversely, are you helping those in your network? Are you expressing an interest in their concerns and challenges, or are your conversations all about you? Remember, networking is a process, not an event.

Interviewing: Often a new client will tell me “if I can get in front of people, if I can get the interview, I know I can get the job.” Many clients will halt their search once they have an interview. “It went well,” they’ll say; “we really connected, it turns out we both went to the same college and we’re both big Rockies fans.” “So,” I’ll ask, “what are their big challenges (the company’s, not the Rockies)? What was it about your resume they liked? What do they look for in building their team (again, the company, not the Rockies)? What’s the next step? How did you follow up afterwards?” Blank stares.

If any of this sounds familiar, it may be time to reboot your search. Start over. Develop a resume that expresses the value you’ve accumulated. Make sure it tells the story you desire – where you want to go; not where you’ve been. Develop an online presence that complements your resume. Post a profile on LinkedIn and participate in the community. Join groups and participate in their discussions; answer questions that demonstrate expertise; build connections that matter. Develop your brand. Use and nurture your network. Connect with people you don’t already know; get to know them. Find out what their challenges are. Be seen as a resource. Connect them to others who might help them. Research the company before the interview. Know what their challenges are. Ask questions about how they intend to address these challenges. Tell brief stories about how you’ve addressed similar challenges. Be seen as a resource. Follow up. Don’t just send a thank you note, but reiterate how you’re the best candidate for the job. Note how your past experience and current skills fit what their looking for; be specific. Create your brand.

So, is it time to reboot your search? To develop new tools that are more effective; that tell your story and identify your brand?

Change the Conversation

Whether networking or evaluating employment prospects we tend to assess how we feel about the opportunity: How can this new person I’ve met help me? Does the compensation for the new job fit my goals? Will I have the authority to accomplish what is expected of me?

As job seekers, we’re encouraged to know and articulate our value; tell our story; build our brand. And I’m among the guilty: working with clients to get them comfortable conveying the value they bring to the table.

An unintended consequence is the What’s In It For Me syndrome or WIIFM in today’s electronic shorthand; a rather egocentric approach to a conversation, where we’re pitching ourselves and our talents to anyone willing to listen.

How many of us want to engage in conversations where the purpose is for someone to pitch us on how good they are? How many of us are comfortable in conversations where we feel compelled to pitch ourselves?

But what if the conversation changed? What if, instead of pitching ourselves, our intention is to find out how the other guy is doing? What’s on their mind? What are their big challenges and problems? Maybe, instead of WIIFM, we ask HAYD – How Are You Doing – or WOYM – What’s On Your Mind?

Now how do you feel? If you’re asking someone what their problems are, are you more inclined to listen to how you might help them? Does your intention flow from being of assistance rather than from pitching yourself?

Shifting the conversation doesn’t absolve you from knowing and articulating your value. It just means that you’re not obligated to lead with you, but how you might help. So change the conversation. Ask about how they’re doing; and listen to what they say.

The New Normal

I’ve been participating in a conversation on LinkedIn.com on how the world of searching for new jobs has changed and how to define the “new normal” relative to career management and job searches. This discussion got me to thinking about the new normal and how it will play out in the world of work.

The first thing I did was Google “the new normal,” which yielded about 350,000 hits. When narrowed for “careers,” 128,000 hits emerged. The hits address everything from job search techniques by the unemployed to talent acquisition by companies. Clearly, the match of people to corporate positions and needs is of ongoing interest, even in a recession.

Two of the more interesting articles came from Stephanie Klein, of The Boomer Group, and Dan Finnigan, of Jobvite Blog. In a blog post about trends in the Denver employment market, Stephanie Klein noted that as companies begin to bring on additional talent, they are shifting in how they are finding candidates and what they’re looking for. In the “new normal, companies are seeking candidates who can have a direct and immediate impact on the bottom line.”

In a two part blog post, last December, Finnigan examined the new normal from the perspectives of both job seekers and employers. Finnigan began by noting that the new normal “means that we have to seriously rethink – and literally rework – much of what we do in business, including how we find, hire and manage people.” He noted that employers hire all the time; even in January 2009 – the worse month of job loss – when 741,000 jobs were lost, 4.4 million people were hired; many of these new hires were “strategic replacements” to bring in needed expertise and knowledge. In recruiting new hires in a recession or slow recovery, employers will focus on the highest quality candidates. In order to attract such candidates, referrals and relationships will be the preferred, low cost approach. These referrals and relationships will be created across the current and emerging social media platforms – LinkedIn, FaceBook and Twitter.

So what does this mean for the job seeker? According to Finnigan, “we are all jobseekers…all the time.” He mentions the need for “pro-active career management” where we’re “always looking toward the next assignment.” The key tool for this continuous career management? Networking – professional and social networking online, developing offline contacts, helping others, building a solid reputation. Moreover, we will need to continually “construct, discover and fuel” our networks; not relying on any one technology, but “weave” it into all we do.

So, as a continuous jobseeker that has to demonstrate bottom line impacts, what’s your career management strategy for the new normal? How will you let people know about the value you can provide prospective employers? What will be your new normal in a world of constant change?

Lemonade Video

My friend, Dan Larson, pointed me to this inspiring video about folks turning lay-off lemons into creative lemonade. Check it out.

Can you take a pink slip and make it into a blank page?

Are you inspired by the stories in this video?

What can you put on your blank page?

How can you make lemonade?

http://www.hulu.com/watch/120840/lemonade

Relaxed, Refreshed, Renewed

Camille and I have returned from our annual Mexico vacation. We’ve found a great little resort, Merece Tus Sueños, in the fishing village of Troncones on the Pacific Coast where we’ve stayed the past two years.

A critical goal of our vacation, of course, is to relax. I take a bunch of novels with me and plow through them. This tends to push out the stressed based work stuff and makes room for new thoughts, ideas and goals. Camille achieves her relaxation by heading to the beach and spending much of the day in the water, body surfing.

Another critical goal for us is to refresh; to begin the process of thinking of new goals – both personal and professional – we want to accomplish in the coming year. We spend a lot of time talking about where we see ourselves a year down the road.

Finally, we look to be renewed; to come out of our 10 to 12 days excited about tackling the goals we’ve decided upon.

As I thought about my goals for 2010, I borrowed a technique from Chris Brogan. Chris is a social media marketing expert, who recently wrote about his annual approach to goal setting. He basically comes up with three words to frame his activities for the year. You can read about his three words for 2010 here.

So, borrowing from Chris, I came up with my own three words to frame my activities for 2010: Partnership, Connection, and Networking. These are relatively interrelated words, meant to frame how I will work with clients and colleagues throughout the year.

Partnership reflects how I see my relationships with clients and colleagues. Rather than a subject matter expert who provides a specialized service, I see myself as a strategic partner whose skills and expertise complements those of my clients and colleagues. I hope to grow that feeling of partnership with those with whom I work. To me, this is the most rewarding aspect of working with people.

Connection relates to how I want to be in the world in which I work. As a partner to clients and colleagues, I want to relate to their needs and desires relative to the projects we’re engaged in. I don’t need to know everything that’s going on in their lives, but I do want to know what’s motivating them regarding the project we’re working on.

Networking is my third word. It refers to the fact that I need to take my own advice and reach out to people. I’ve been so busy working for clients the past year that I’ve neglected my own network. To this end, I will be reaching out to folks who are first degree connections in my LinkedIn.com network. For this idea, I thank my friend Erika Hanson Brown, networker extraordinaire, who started her own exploration of first degree connections on LinkedIn and has inspired me to do the same. So expect a call or an invitation for coffee over the next few weeks.

So, how are you framing your actions on your 2010 goals – especially those related to your career or job search? Do you have three words around which you can organize your efforts? What three words or concepts can inspire you and renew your energy around your career?

Not Your Father’s Career

My father had three careers, but with the same organization. He worked for the federal government, 20 years in the military, another ten as a civilian. In fact, one week after retiring from the Army, he went back to the same group at the same desk as a Department of Defense civilian employee. When he retired from that position, he worked another three years as a Defense contractor.

About a year ago, Dad and I had a conversation about what I do. I explained that I worked with clients, many of whom were looking for their next career and that many of these folks were in their mid 40s to early 60s.

“Shouldn’t these guys be thinking of retirement?” asked my father.

“Dad, you’re 86 years old; hopefully I’ll live at least as long as you, as will many of my clients. Most of them expect to work another 15 to 20 years. How long have you been retired?”

Dad replied, “Geez, about 20 years.”

“That’s a career in itself,” I noted. “How long was your father retired before he died?”

“Just 10 years.”

That conversation showed how, in three generations, the concept of careers and retirement has changed. Both my grandfather and my father worked for one employer their entire career. My grandfather worked for The Phone Company – there was only one then – and lived on his pension for ten years after retirement. My father has enjoyed two retirement pensions – with cost of living allowances – from the federal government. Moreover, he receives pretty good medical benefits (as does my mom) as a retired military officer. Now those benefits, the COLAs and medical, have been subject to changes throughout his retirement, but he and my mother enjoy a good life as senior citizens. They are not burdens to my sisters or me.

I don’t begrudge my father and mother their well being in retirement. I have memories of my dad, as an Army NCO stationed in the Washington, DC area, working a second job to support a growing family. He spent most of his Army career overseas, separated from his aging parents; and a year in Vietnam in the 1960s separated from us. In my mind, he’s definitely earned the benefits he enjoys now.

However, how many people currently working, regardless of their age, feel they can live on their retirements for over 20 years? Not many of us. How many of us can expect to work for one employer throughout our career, one who will provide the pension for us to live on? Again, not many of us. We will experience, if we haven’t already, more than one career with more than one employer throughout our lives. The model of our fathers’ and grandfathers’ careers (and retirements) doesn’t apply any longer.

We need a new model, one that doesn’t yet exist. Moreover, one model will not, most likely, fit everyone. So, in effect, we require new models that can work for people as they progress throughout their careers. In a report last fall, completed for the MetLife Mature Market Institute, entitled “Buddy Can You Spare a Job, researchers noted that Boomers “may both need and want to work longer than previous generations, or longer than they may have anticipated.” The average age workers between 55 and 70 expect to retire is about 70; workers between 66 and 70 expect to retire at 76. So as Boomers, we plan – or need – to work 10 to 15 years longer than our parents did. Our kids may even have to work longer.

How do we plan to remain productive in a rapidly changing economy? How can our past experience provide value to employers? How do we promote our value?

The MetLife report identifies five critical success factors for older job seekers. They are actually great factors for workers of all ages to keep in mind:

1. Realistically assess the changing local employment markets in your region;

2. Translate past experience into future value for a potential employer;

3. Update your technology skills;

4. Keep your network of contacts fresh and active;

5. Manage your ambivalence about work.

My father and grandfather basically did the same thing throughout their careers. They both had clearly defined career paths. They knew what to expect next. We don’t. We can’t rely on the loyalty to an organization or from an organization to support our careers.

The old model doesn’t apply any longer and we need a new one. Any new model will be developed for and by individuals for their particular careers.

What’s your new career model? How will you sustain productivity and value for employers? The five factors outlined above are a good start.