Interviewing skills presentation of your work history

Your work history becomes a key focus in a job interview, usually right after the requisite pleasantries of whether you had difficulty finding your way, comments about the traffic and weather, and an offer of coffee or water. As you settle back in your chair, trying to look a lot more relaxed than you feel, the interviewer picks up your resume or application and starts to ask for details about your prior experience. If you have a resume that specifies quantifiable results, now is your chance to expand on that. If you increased sales by 20% per quarter or completed a departmental reorganization that resulted in a budget reduction of 10%, you are on your way. Obviously such achievements outlined in your resume impressed the potential employer enough to call you in for an interview, so your amplification of the details of actions you took will be eagerly welcomed. Unfortunately, most of us perform work where the results are less obvious. If you have worked in production or customer service or retail, it is very difficult to tie your efforts directly to company results. In such a case, try to highlight any personal successes or management recognition that demonstrates your competence. Any promotion is excellent, even if only to a lead position or being put in charge of a special project. Describe what you did so that the interviewer can appreciate your prior employer’s belief in your ability to take on new responsibilities. If no promotions were made (often none are readily available), identify any situations where you were singled out for recognition. That may range from being employee of the month to being asked to train new coworkers or receiving a written or verbal recommendation from a customer you assisted. If you received positive feedback from supervisors, describe the details. While each job applicant tries to represent themselves as a super-achiever, the fact remains that many of us work quite competently for years without ever receiving a genuine promotion or even much recognition. Employers are aware of that. In fact, if the position is routine without much room for upward mobility, they may be wary of an over-achiever who is going to chaff against the lack of promotional opportunities. One of “The Apprentice” applicants looking for work in a manufacturing environment would be viewed with more than a dose of suspicion. If such is your case – a good solid worker (or even somewhat marginal), find some personal strengths to describe. If you seldom take sick leave or have a reputation for always being on time, now is the time to focus on that. Perhaps you take off time whenever you can and run perennially late, bring up another aspect of your character such as an ability to work as part of a team or outstanding relationships with coworkers (those jawfests around the water cooler or the three beers after work with your cronies, complaining about the management monkeys you have to tolerate, are finally a positive reflection on you!) If you have worked for one employer for an extended period of time, you don’t have to stress your stability, the interviewer already knows that. Instead, concentrate on answering the unasked questions in his mind, his fear that you are set in your ways. Stress your flexibility and desire to learn new skills and procedures. If you changed departments or job title or responsibilities during your long tenure, give the details and how well you adapted to change. If your work history is varied with many jobs for short periods of time, explain how much you learned from each separate job and stress your current desire to blend your experiences into a long-term, stable career. Describe how you are looking for a company where you can hunker down and commit for the long haul. It may take you some time and self-exploration to identify it, but there are always some aspects of your work history that carry a positive spin. Don’t be afraid to dwell on your strong points no matter how unimpressive you fear your prior jobs may seem.

Finding fulfillment at midlife the second chance career

For more than twenty-years, Carla’s primary focus was working her way up the corporate ladder in the Human Resources department of a large publicly traded company. Day after day she worked hard to meet the demands of her superiors and colleagues, until one morning she woke up with a sickened, sinking feeling in her stomach. It was her career, she realized. Having spent nearly half of her life working in an unsatisfying job, with few genuine accomplishments and the goals of her youth long forgotten, Carla had hit midlife and she didn’t like it. To alleviate the feeling in her stomach, Carla began making a conscious effort to pay more attention to the gap between the reality of her life and the dreams and passions she once had. She was determined to pounce on her one last chance for a career that could make the second half of her life more meaningful and fulfilling. In 2004, Carla decided to nourish her passion to serve the elderly and today, is the owner and operator of an adult day care facility in Houston, Texas. She is now planning her next venture—an assisted living program for low-income elderly residents. Is Carla’s story unusual? According to a study reported in Prevention Magazine, not in the slightest; “79% of baby boomers will expect to work at least part-time well into their golden years,” the study has revealed. “A growing number of adults are looking at their 40s, 50s, and 60s as the right time to start fresh in an entirely new field.” What drives adults to change their careers? The answer, in a word, is midlife. Craving a more fulfilling and meaningful career is just one area of focus during midlife adjustment. As adults reach midlife, at a time when parents and older relatives begin to die, the realization that their lives, too, will come to an end begins to hit home. Suddenly the importance of achieving goals and doing what makes us happy becomes much more important. This is the time closet authors, entrepreneurs, musicians or artists will begin thinking about careers to match their energy, vitality, and passion for life. The life cycle is, for most of us, fairly predictable. From adolescence to age 30, most of us are consumed with learning how to become who we think we want to be. We go from our 30s to our 40s working and living that role. But at age 40, midlife, after having reached this goal, many discover it wasn’t what we wanted to do after all. At this midlife point, after having worked so hard only to find ourselves wanting, many are willing to take on the challenge of more risk and freeing ourselves from the burden of other’s expectations. Longer life expectancy plays a part, too. At midlife, says Deborah Carr, sociology professor at Rutgers University, people realize they still have nearly half a lifetime yet to live and wonder how they will spend those years. “They know they’re going to have lots of healthy years, so I think it’s a period of making choices to live out one’s dreams that got put on the shelf during younger years.” Women are well represented in this mindset, with more women than ever using their midlife as a springboard to experience positive career transformations. They want a career that matches their energy and allows them to be successful as individuals. More and more often you will find women starting businesses, gaining respect, and finding purpose in their midlife. The lesson we can take for Carla’s story is that midlife should not be feared, and that the sinking feeling in your stomach should not be ignored. Both are an accepted call to action. Changing your job, career, or lifestyle may take some work. But if you truly follow your passion, the effort will provide infinitely positive results. Are you ready to make a change? Here are a few tips for getting started on a successful second career. Make a list of the things missing in your life Do you long to revive a passion from your youth that you never found time to pursue? Is it music, a sport, writing, cooking, entrepreneurship? It doesn’t matter what, as long as it’s something you truly have a desire to do. If you've already got a clear picture of the passions you'd like to pursue, then identify small, achievable ways you can start incorporating them into your life. Imagine that you already have one million dollars in the bank How would you spend your time each day? Think of the environment you'd like to be in, the people you'd want to know, and how you would relate to them. What activities would you engage in? Chances are your passions come to the surface when you play-out your “winning the lottery” fantasies. Although we’re not all destined to be millionaires, that shouldn’t hold you back from following your desires and placing more value in yourself, regardless of your bank account balance. Tap into your wisdom and experience to re-evaluate your current career Ask yourself what’s not working and what you want to change. Use this time to reflect on your life. Are there any passions or dreams that you abandoned in your youth? If you don’t know what you want to do, try volunteering as a way to develop new interests. Find a way to live your passion everyday. I once heard someone say, "You don’t get what you want out of life, but what you believe." Understand your passion, but also where your strengths lie. It’s critical to take an inventory of your life and to determine what is really important. Make a list of the things you are passionate about, and then narrow the list to items that present an opportunity to generate income. If you’re not pursuing your passion, what’s in the way? What do you need to do to move forward with pursuing your plan? Keep your day job You don’t have to quit your day job to focus on your passion. It’s not an all or nothing proposition. I meet people all the time who say they’re working full-time and pursuing their dreams on the side, in their free time. You may still need to earn a living while you transition onto your new path. This is true whether you’re planning to start a business or preparing to establish a new career. Start right now Over the next 30 days; make a commitment to yourself to identify one thing you can do to begin pursuing your passion—and start doing it! Research ways to integrate your passion with your current obligations and take those first steps into your second career with achievable goals. You’ll soon discover that living and working your passion is being in control of your own life.

Networking the core of your career

After you’ve created all your “self-marketing documents” and verbal presentations, you’re ready to take your job search “to the street” and begin networking. The goal is to contact people who can help you reach the hiring managers inside your target companies. Networking can be done on the phone, in person, via e-mail or even “snail mail.” Ford Myers, M. Ed., president of Career Potential, a Haverford, PA-based career consulting firm and developer of the “New Year, New Career Power Plan to Achieving Career Success in 2006” states, “Networking is a lot simpler and less scary than many people think. You do not need to be a good ‘schmoozer’ to network effectively. In fact, the best networkers are often great listeners, as opposed to great talkers.” And no matter what, don’t ever let-up on your networking efforts. Ninety-five percent of my clients land great jobs through their networks. It’s not worth risking those odds to NOT be continually networking! Remember: If you’re in career transition, networking IS your job. It should be the primary focus of everything you do. The quantity and quality of your networking time is directly related to the personal, professional, and financial satisfaction you’ll have in your next job.” Who should be on your contact list? Who should you be reaching out to? The answer is: everyone you know. Everyone? Yes, everyone! Every single person alive who knows your name should be on your contact list! (The only exception is people who clearly don’t like you)! It doesn’t matter what these contacts do for a living, or where they live, or how much power or money they have. The key is not to pre-judge people or make assumptions about who can and cannot help you. After guiding thousands of clients through the networking process, I have learned that most new jobs are secured through people who were least expected to be of help! Let’s “de-mystify” the networking process, so it won’t seem overwhelming or confusing to you any longer. What follows is a highly-structured and purposeful approach that consistently produces excellent results! Using your Contact List to focus on the specific people to contact, here are the basic steps you’ll need to follow: 1. Build Rapport. State, “I was referred by (give name of mutual friend/colleague), or “I was referred by our mutual colleague/friend (give name), who suggested that” …. (Find some area of common interest to discuss). I’m contacting you about a career matter, but let me assure you that I am not calling to ask you for a job – nor do I expect you to even know of any job openings. Let me start by telling you a bit about myself and my professional background.... 2. State “where you’ve been” by using a Positioning Statement. This is a succinct, pre-prepared verbal statement that explains “who you are” professionally. Example: “I am a senior Financial and Operations Professional and graduate of Western General’s Financial Management Program. I have more than 15 years of experience in the Manufacturing and Services industries. My strengths include analysis, problem-solving, communication and innovation. I have specific expertise in Financial Analysis and Reporting, Cash and Risk Management, and Productivity Analysis. I am seeking a leadership position with a focus on Financial Reporting.” 3. Share “what happened” with an Exit Statement. This is a concise explanation of why you’re no longer at your previous position, or why you’re interested in leaving your current employer. Example: “As a result of a merger between two business units, over 1,500 positions have been affected, including mine. I now have the opportunity to explore other career options in Financial Services that will leverage my proven strengths in analysis, problem-solving, communication and innovation.” The Exit Statement must be expressed in positive terms, so there will be no suspicion that you “did something wrong” to lose your job. 4. Ask for help. “Would you be willing to help me?” 5. “Decompress” – take the pressure off – reassure your contact again that you are not asking for a job. Reiterate, “As I said, I am not asking you for a job, nor do I expect you to know of any appropriate positions. However, I am interested any advice or guidance that you could offer, in addition to any networking contacts you could provide. (Give name of mutual friend/colleague) told me that you’d be a great person to talk to for this purpose. Would you be willing to review some of my credentials, and give me candid feedback? I could send the materials right over.” 6. Ask again for help, i. e., expanding contact network, guidance, advice, feedback. Leverage the notion of “six degrees of separation” – ask for contacts from your contacts! And always “come from generosity.” This means you should be on the lookout for opportunities to offer something of value in return. 7. Share your main documents, and set a time to get back to them. State, “I’ll e-mail (or fax) a one-page Professional Biography and list of Target Companies to you. Then I’d like to follow-up and have another conversation – when would be better for you, Wednesday afternoon or Friday morning? I know your input will be of great value, and I appreciate your willingness to help. Follow-up after your networking meeting and keep the conversation going with two-way value exchange. Note: if the contact is a “center of influence,” try to have your follow-up discussion face-to-face instead of on the phone, unless the contact is outside your geographic region. It’s a smart career move to always be networking, no matter what’s going on for you professionally. If you don’t need help at this time, build-up your networking power by helping others. In general, people will want to help you. It makes them feel good about themselves. It boosts their self-esteem to be considered “a connector” of people with opportunities and information, and it makes them feel important.” Networking is a great investment in your future, and over the long-term, it always pays big dividends!” ------------------------ Permission to Reprint: This article may be reprinted, provided it appears in its entirety with the following attribution: Copyright © 2006, Ford R. Myers and Career Potential, LLC. ------------------------

Consulting expanding the definition

In my book “Anyone Can Consult!”, it has been brought to my attention that I use the masculine pronoun “He” in my writing. That’s because it was traditionally a male dominated industry, but that has changed now! As women have broken the glass ceiling in almost every industry and enterprise over the last 30 years, so has the consulting business become more accessible to the fairer sex. I wouldn’t dare proffer the case that ANYONE can consult and leave out half of the population! Until about a decade ago, the title “consultant” was more or less limited to retired diplomats and top corporate officers, recruited more because of their “contacts” rather than their practical knowledge. In other words, until recently, the consultant’s position was more honorary than actual. But that has also changed dramatically. The number of consultants for almost any problem in life has increased tenfold or more during the past ten years and the field of consultants is continuing to grow. In fact, independent consulting is one of the fastest growing businesses in the country today! Let me give you a simple and easy to understand definition of a consultant: A consultant is an expert at recognizing problems and shaping solutions to those problems. The need for problem solvers among large and small businesses worldwide has never been greater. The ever-changing moods of the buyer plus the myriad of crisis situations that business people face almost daily, have created a “seller’s market” for the alert consultant. So, in expanding our definition of what a consultant is and what he does we come to the inevitable question: What area of work have you been involved in over the years? Remember, you don’t have to have a quarter of a century of work behind you in order to consult. Consultants come in all sizes and with all manner of backgrounds. My mission has been to convince my readers that it’s true; anyone (YOU) can consult, using what you already know to help others and make a substantial extra income! You can consult on any subject that you have top-notch experience in. Maybe you know how to sew with great precision; you have tons of tips and tricks that other seamstresses can take advantage of. You may start to consult clients on a part-time basis. You could offer a booklet of those sewing tips and tricks to clients. In other words, if you’re an expert in any field, you can ‘farm out’ your expertise and gather increasing amounts of revenue in the process. Reaching for a consultant when problems arise is as natural as looking for the sun to come up every morning. When you’re not feeling well, you call for the services of a doctor. If your car isn’t running right, you take it to a mechanic. And so it is with a businessman when he encounters a problem – whether it is in the field of accounting, legal, sales or customer relations. Your field of expertise is valuable to some person or company right now! Let’s stretch the commonly assumed boundaries of what a ‘business consultant’ is and realize that experts are needed for almost everything a person tries to accomplish in life: Car Repair Homemaking Studies Travel Employment Hobbies Another side of this need for consultants is in the case of the over-enthusiastic entrepreneur who rushes headlong into a business where he has little or no experience. Many such dreamers invest their life savings in questionable projects without even considering the idea of bringing in a competent business consultant to analyze and evaluate their plans. Even experienced people are prone to over-rate their own ideas. The image of the end result, and dedicated enthusiasm toward the attainment of one’s goal are prime requisites for success; however, un-merited enthusiasm and dedication can also be very dangerous; if it is not based on solid research, it may cause people to chase headlong after non-existent rainbows. And that’s where you can fit in as a business consultant. Please accept that it is not necessary for you to have owned or operated a successful business to become a successful business consultant. Nor is it imperative that you have been in management or have a titled position. You will, however, need the ability to sell yourself, and an up-to-date understanding of the area in which you intend to assist others. Finally, I’d like to paint a picture of what the consultants’ life can be like. Though each consultancy is unique, just as each human being is different, there are some things that you can look forward to experiencing. Another title for a consultant is: an ‘Independent Professional’. Let that title troll around your lips for a moment, say it out loud. It has a nice ring to it, don’t you think? That all-important independence is delicious. You are truly your own boss. While others may have to punch a time clock, adhere to many frivolous company policies and find themselves in a rut of sameness, the independent professional never does! You don’t have to play ‘office politics’ because you’re independent. You never have to go against your own inner truth to placate some ‘boss’. In fact, you will be PAID to ‘speak your mind’. You can shock, surprise, and discover whole new areas of development for your clients. You never get bored because you’re always finding yourself in a fresh environment with new faces, new personalities and new projects. The independent professional finds deep satisfaction in the work he or she does because each idea, projection, and solution comes from within them and has his or her unique style and content stamped to it. Finally, as we expand our definition of consulting, it is important to know that it can be taken as far, or as little, as you decide to go with it. You may find yourself on the international stage traveling extensively, or you may work right in your own backyard a mere stone’s throw from your client base. You will set the perimeters of your lifestyle; no one else will control your destiny.