Many people seem to believe networking is only about visibility, i.e., the more people that know of you, the more successful you are. Visibility to a targeted audience may come through a dressed up LinkedIn profile, personal website, Facebook page, resume or through conversation (blog, group post or in person), but it doesn’t automatically result in “relationship”. Nor does visibility necessarily lead to an accurate repres...

Nailing the job is just the beginning. It’s always a great celebration when someone lands the role of their dreams. Then the real work begins: keeping it. Sometimes the joy of securing the role clouds the need to pay attention to what is happening in the moment as time goes on. Complacency may set in. Things get overlooked. Verbal cues are missed. Then things can start to go downhill. Working with my clients over the expans...

Networking is typically the best way to learn about new opportunities, whether it is work related or otherwise. But random efforts produce random results. If you are not getting the results you had hoped for by attending events or “hanging out” with friends, then perhaps your preparation for those meetings needs a little work. Being open and available to meet new contacts is a large part of what it takes to become aware of...

Jack, be nimble, Jack, be quick, Jack, jump over The candlestick. Jack jumped high Jack jumped low Jack jumped over and burned his toe. Although there are probably not many candlesticks to be jumped over in today’s market, most of us are faced with “mini-fires” every day. Although there are specific disciplines that follow trained approaches to working in Lean or Agile environments, the average worker...

Every couple of years, my husband and I get in a debate about the term “common sense”. I believe common sense is something people either have or don’t, and he believes that it revolves around skills that are learned. Regardless of wherever it comes from, the question still remains: why don’t more people use it? Each week I receive communications from people that are in dire straits financially. Most have waited more than a...

Networking is an active process. It requires engagement, follow through and follow up. With all of the technology in the world, it still requires time for planning, thinking and responding. If I had the talent, I would draw a picture of this example, but since words are my medium, this analogy will have to be represented without visuals.Imagine researching the web or purchasing books about putting in a lawn. You can learn a...

How many times have you heard “information is power?” If you agree, then hopefully it will prompt you to take a new look at how you are pursuing your job search or your efforts to advance your career.A posted job announcement is only an inkling of the information a person needs to consider before initiating their pursuit of an employment opportunity. Although many people believe that gaining access to more job boards create...

Is it Ageism or Your Attitude?There is an ongoing debate about age discrimination in the work place that has been around for a very long time. Since we will continue to have younger workers enter the workplace, it is likely a case will continue to be made either way. My position is it doesn’t do anyone much good to simply buy into it and give up on their pursuits without, examining the situation more carefully.It is helpful...

The job search process can be a mystery for people returning to work after a long absence from the work place or for those who have found themselves in the middle of a stalled search. The following is a quick outline of steps to help guide you if you are wondering where to begin or have gotten off track.1. Determine which skills you prefer to use, are current, you are good at, and are marketable or competitive, based on...

The thing about a missed opportunity is that you typically only figure out that it was missed in hindsight, and many times, there is no going back. The following are a few examples of what can happen from a job seeker’s perspective and from a sales perspective when assumptions are made and not investigated. I’ve co-mingled examples of both because the aspects of an employment opportunity are very much the same as with sales...