Job Search Confidence and The Smell of Blood

Job Search Confidence and The Smell of Blood Monday I blogged about not ever allowing one person to have control over my income again.   Thom Allen has seen me go from job seeker to business owner and professional career manager over the last few years.   I was surprised to see this in the comments from him: I have seen [Jason (me)] change over the past few years. Oh boy here it comes what exactly has changed?   Im still the same brilliant (lol) person I was three years ago.   He continues: He’s more confident, which is probably a far cry from where he was when he started JibberJobber. Hm.   Interesting observation. I thought that when I started JibberJobber I was pretty confident (or, cocky).   But Thom has seen me in various network settings and lunches over time, and hes got a different perspective than I do. As Ive thought about it I wondered where my confidence level was at back then and where it is at today.   I admit today Im more confident because Im three years into my business, and I have accomplished a lot.   Back then I really had no idea if could measure up to the challenge. I wonder what people would say about YOUR confidence level, right now? If you are in a job search, or an extended job search, I bet your confidence level is lower than you might think. This week at my networking event I met plenty of capable, accomplished executives who seemed to have low confidence levels. Do me a favor go read one of my favorite blog posts talking about this very issue its called I Smell Blood. And think about how you can change your confidence level because it really does make a difference. Job Search Confidence and The Smell of Blood Monday I blogged about not ever allowing one person to have control over my income again.   Thom Allen has seen me go from job seeker to business owner and professional career manager over the last few years.   I was surprised to see this in the comments from him: I have seen [Jason (me)] change over the past few years. Oh boy here it comes what exactly has changed?   Im still the same brilliant (lol) person I was three years ago.   He continues: He’s more confident, which is probably a far cry from where he was when he started JibberJobber. Hm.   Interesting observation. I thought that when I started JibberJobber I was pretty confident (or, cocky).   But Thom has seen me in various network settings and lunches over time, and hes got a different perspective than I do. As Ive thought about it I wondered where my confidence level was at back then and where it is at today.   I admit today Im more confident because Im three years into my business, and I have accomplished a lot.   Back then I really had no idea if could measure up to the challenge. I wonder what people would say about YOUR confidence level, right now? If you are in a job search, or an extended job search, I bet your confidence level is lower than you might think. This week at my networking event I met plenty of capable, accomplished executives who seemed to have low confidence levels. Do me a favor go read one of my favorite blog posts talking about this very issue its called I Smell Blood. And think about how you can change your confidence level because it really does make a difference. Job Search Confidence and The Smell of Blood Monday I blogged about not ever allowing one person to have control over my income again.   Thom Allen has seen me go from job seeker to business owner and professional career manager over the last few years.   I was surprised to see this in the comments from him: I have seen [Jason (me)] change over the past few years. Oh boy here it comes what exactly has changed?   Im still the same brilliant (lol) person I was three years ago.   He continues: He’s more confident, which is probably a far cry from where he was when he started JibberJobber. Hm.   Interesting observation. I thought that when I started JibberJobber I was pretty confident (or, cocky).   But Thom has seen me in various network settings and lunches over time, and hes got a different perspective than I do. As Ive thought about it I wondered where my confidence level was at back then and where it is at today.   I admit today Im more confident because Im three years into my business, and I have accomplished a lot.   Back then I really had no idea if could measure up to the challenge. I wonder what people would say about YOUR confidence level, right now? If you are in a job search, or an extended job search, I bet your confidence level is lower than you might think. This week at my networking event I met plenty of capable, accomplished executives who seemed to have low confidence levels. Do me a favor go read one of my favorite blog posts talking about this very issue its called I Smell Blood. And think about how you can change your confidence level because it really does make a difference.

Personal Branding Weekly - Less is the New More - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Personal Branding Weekly - Less is the New More - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Raise your hand if you are so done with the selfie! Me, too.   In fact, I find the most interesting people are not the compulsive selfie takers, they’re the ones actually focused on the conversation and the connection. Yes, I’ve met Chris Brogan and yes, I know him by name. The same with Jon Loomer, Mari Smith, Dennis Yu, (and yes, Dan Schawbel) and even Mike Tyson (purely by chance in line at a local UPS store).   And, I don’t have one photo of me with them. Sure, I could have stopped the conversation and asked for a photo, asked someone to take the photo or done it myself and taken a moment to get the right angle, and then gone on with our conversation but I didn’t want to lose the precious time of our interaction. I think the best relationships you have are those with people that don’t show up in any selfie or “social proof” that they’re a friend. The proof is in the greeting, the interaction, the fact that they’ll answer your call or text in a heartbeat. People get the concept of quality not quantity, it just doesn’t show up in their actions  [tweet this] They’re constantly seeking more followers, or fans, or likes or business contacts instead of deepening the relationships they already have. This week I challenge you to not meet anyone new. This week spend time with people you already know and have connection with. Make that connection deeper, move the relationship along from visibility to credibility with focused effort. Who haven’t you have contact with in two months that means something to you or your professional life? Make contact with them this week. This week we had some great insights shared by the Personal Branding Blog authors. Pay special attention to Jeff Shuey’s article on “How to Become a Followup Artist”. Immediately Increase Your Efficiency and Effectiveness with Three Actions  by Crystal Washington The One Word that Truly Predicts Success  by Nance Rosen Want a China-focused Career? Stay in the US  by Joel Backaler How to Deal with a Difficult Boss  by Ceren Cubukcu 4 Ways To Know You Chose The Right Job  by Heather Huhman Speak Softly Using Strong Technology Techniques  by Elinor Stutz Rookie Dining Mistakes for the New Professional in Business  by Eddy Ricci Five Ways to Improve Your Career Networking Results  by Richard Kirby How to Become a Follow Up Artist  by Jeff Shuey Expand Your Personal Brand on LinkedIn  by Susan Gilbert Dealing with Difficult People In Your Career  by Leslie Truex Don’t Just Go Through Life’s Transitions-Grow from Them  by Beth Kuhel 5 Job Search Mistakes and How to Fix Them  by Glassdoor.com Daniel Pink: We’re All Secretly Sellers  by Katie Konrath

Why You Need to Have Friends at Work

Why You Need to Have Friends at Work Having friends at work is great, it gives you something to look forward to when you get up in the morning and provides you with an incentive to actually come into work. You want to stay at work if you enjoy spending time with your friends that you have made there and it makes your job easier to cope with. So how  does having friends at work become beneficial to your work ethic? This infographic by Officevibe  explains in detail, 11 incredible reasons why it is important to have friends at work. Takeaways: 70% of employees say friends at work is the most crucial element to a happy working life. 74% of woman and 58% of men, would refuse a higher paying job if it meant not getting along with coworkers. +25% increase in morale and productivity for simple things like larger lunch tables. 50% of employees with a best friend at work reported they feel a strong connection with their company. 1/3 of adults has met at least one of their closest friends at work. Employees that have a best friend at work:  1.4x more likely to receive praise in the last 7 days. Benefit from 137% more personal development support. +35% higher commitment to quality. 1.3x more likely to receive feedback about their progress in the last 6 months. +27% higher perceived consideration of their opinions at work. 1.2x more likely to say that they have the opportunity to do what they do best every day. RELATED:  Why Friends at Work are Important

Peers Are The Strongest Network We Have But Often Neglect

Peers Are The Strongest Network We Have But Often Neglect Unless you live under a rock, chances are, your everyday activities will involve some level of networking. Networking is critical. It provides the knowledge, resources and support system that can sustain your  personal development. Everyone does it, even unconsciously. From what Ive observed, however, is that most people have a flawed perception of networking. Many people think the act of sharing information goes only one direction and are often confused at who they should even be networking with. During events, they tend to target either prominent attendees or panelists, as if they are the only people who can help them achieve their goals or learn something from. Ive had many elevator chats with people who went home with their stack of business cards almost untouched because they didnt get to speak with the people they wanted to. The truth is, effective networking runs on a give-and-take basis. Anyone you see on a daily basis or at a networking  event can offer valuable insight for your career. Most importantly, the biggest network that we too often dont take advantage of is the one that is the most accessible to us: our peers. Why Peers Are The Strongest Network We HaveBut We So Often Neglect Who are they? At a networking event, they are the people who, like you, are either looking to make a connection, find a mentor or learn about a particular topic. Our peers include classmates, friends and colleagues. We tend to underestimate our peers because they are generally at the same stage in life and have similar goals so we have. We assume they cant help us in any significant way, but that couldnt be further from the truth. Our peers have knowledge, experience and talents that can benefit us. For example, an old classmate could be the one who refers you to their manager for potential hiring. We shouldnt underestimate how much our peers can contribute to us or how much we can help them. The other benefit of utilizing this group for networking is that its easier to maintain relationships with this group because they are people you already know. Here are some ways in which you can successfully network with your peers: 1. Take interest and ask questions The best way to find out how you can help someone (or vice-versa) is by asking questions. Ask about their background, their current jobs, their career aspirations, short or long-term  goals  and really anything to keep the conversation going. You can send monthly check-in emails to a group of old connections or send out invitations to coffee or lunch dates to get to know whats going on in their lives. People love talking about themselves so be there to listen. You can learn a lot from them and at the same time, be sure to participate in the conversation as well. 2. Organize mastermind groups When youre lucky to meet a group of like-minded people, its worth exploring that connection. Start a meetup group and get together frequently to openly talk about your goals, the obstacles that you encounter and your progress. Being part of support groups can only move you forward. Its a great way to stay motivated and not fall behind as you hold each other accountable. 3. Share your experiences I recently connected with someone after sharing my experience interning at Hearst Magazines. She was offered a position there and wanted to have a better understanding of the companys culture in order to make a decision on whether or not to take the internship. She was wise to ask someone who had been in that position before. When you share your experiences, you open yourself up to constructive feedback as people can point out mistakes that you wouldnt have otherwise realized you made. Or they can praise you for accomplishing things that you might not be giving yourself enough credit for. Always be open to listening to people and sharing your story because many life lessons  are found through just doing this. 4. Exchange knowledge and information When you make it a habit of listening to people and voicing your goals, you position yourself to be a contributor and to also stay on top of industry news and important events. My friends and I consistently email each other useful articles, links to job postings or important events happening because we know each others interests. Having this kind of support is very enriching and it helps stay focused. 5. Peer-to-peer coaching I heard that term for the first time at Eventsys Womens Empowerment Summit. If your peers have particular skills, use that to your advantage. If an old classmate knows how to design business cards, ask for their services before hiring a professional. The same way, if youre good at cover letter writing, for example, help your peers proofread their job applications. Harnessing your networks abilities will cost less and be more beneficial to all of you. 6. Attend networking events together Attending networking events with your peers have its perks. It makes it easier to spark a conversation with someone. You can also spread out and speak to as many people as possible and then share the things youve learned. We are constantly surrounded by our peers and its a network that we interact with daily. Learning how to optimize it is a worthy investment. Do you find yourself neglecting your peers during your job search or career development? What do you think? I would love to hear your comments below. Related Post:  Quick Guide: How to Network at Networking Events

Technical Resume Writing

Technical Resume WritingAs a new technical resume writer, you probably have a lot of questions about what to write on the cover page and what to include on the resume. Before you can begin to learn the various types of technical resumes you need to know what to write on the cover page.One of the first things you should do is put the title of the position you are applying for at the top of the cover page and in the first sentence of the body. This will help the reader understand who you are, what you do and what your qualifications are.The second thing you should do is explain your job title and all the responsibilities that go along with it so that the reader understands the technical resume is for a technical position. Make sure you add these responsibilities to the first page of the resume. They are the most important information and you want the reader to be able to see them.Once you have written the title and responsibilities on the first page, make sure you include all the skill s and experience that are relevant to the position you are applying for. This will make your technical resume stand out from the other technical resumes out there. You should also describe what you can do. For example, if you are a writer, include a chapter on writing for technical publications or a chapter on writing for others.When people read technical resumes they need to be able to see in a flash what you are writing about. They need to know in their mind what the job entails, how long you will need to have the job and how much responsibility you will be expected to take on.Also, make sure you write in a friendly tone of voice so that the reader will want to read your resume. When you are a technical resume writer, you need to find a way to reach out to your target audience without sounding too aggressive or too slow paced.If you are a professional resume writer, you should have a way to reach out to your readers to give them useful advice about their careers. For example, if y ou are a technical resume writer, you should have a section on 'Getting Started With Technical Resumes' so that your readers can get some pointers on how to start to write a technical resume.A good technical resume writer should always know when it is appropriate to sell a particular product or service or when it is appropriate to offer your reader information. The more education you have on the subject you are writing about, the better.

Career Development Plan Using Four Stages of Competence

Career Development Plan Using Four Stages of Competence Look back at your career and see if you can identify the moments when your career took a big leap forward. We help our clients achieve these moments by creating a career development plan. A good career development plan requires a grasp on what stage of career awareness you are in. Lets use a model to help us identify your stage. This is where I talk about the Four Stages of Competence with almost all of my clients. It is one of my favorite models. ?? My reasons for using this model to build the foundation for a career development plan include: its easy for clients to understand it applies to many career situations it often makes us feel better it puts context around the emotions we are experiencing in our current career I use this model in the context of career change, but also in the context of personal or career development plan â€" learning about a limitation, limiting belief, liability, old assumptions, or an area for improvement and wanting to overcome it. Stage 1: Unconscious Incompetence The first stage is Unconscious Incompetence â€" when we don’t know what we don’t know. In career change work: This is often the case before starting a new position. There is excitement, maybe some fear, but generally we are happy because we are moving into something new. In career development work: We aren’t aware of the limiting belief, liability, assumptions, or improvement area yet. We are operating as we always have, blissfully unaware that there is development work to be done. Stage 2: Conscious Incompetence The second stage, Conscious Incompetence, is a tough stage â€" when we are beginning to realize what we don’t know. In career change work: This often happens when we get into the new position, a lot of new information is coming at us (drinking from the fire hose feeling) and we don’t know how to do many aspects of our job yet so we are slower at it. We are noticing our failings more, we are second guessing the move . . . it is just tough. We want to skip through this phase as fast as we can. Unfortunately, this is a necessary stage for us to experience a move forward. In career development work: This is when we recognize the liability, limiting belief, assumption that has been holding us back. We have uncovered it and now understand its impact. We want to rush through this phase as fast as we can. Just like in career change work, we cannot rush through this phase and ‘fix it’. It is a painful part, but a necessary part to truly understand what is behind the liability, limiting belief, assumption, improvement area before we can take action on it. Stage 3: Conscious Competence The third stage is Conscious Competence â€" when we have learned how to do it, but it still takes concentration. In career change work: This is the fun part. The learning slows down, our confidence is up, our ability to do our job in the way it needs to be done increases, etc. Life is good. Sure there is some learning left to be done, but that learning is like a ‘good challenge’ compared to the amount of necessary learning in the stage before. Our engagement level in the actual job is likely at the highest level. In career development work: This is where we are taking two steps forward in our progress and one step back or one step forward and two steps back. It is where we get to try out or test new behaviors, new assumptions, or new beliefs. We are still conscious of these choices. We are not automatically making new choices, but we aren’t automatically reverting to our old way of being either. Stage 4: Unconscious Competence The fourth stage is Unconscious Competence â€" when the new learning is second nature. In career change work: Interestingly, this is the stage where eventually many of us become disengaged in our current work. We seek out new challenges, whether increasing responsibilities in this position or seeking out new positions. In career development work: Congratulations, the new belief structure or new behavior is happening automatically. The joy of human development is we now have the opportunity to celebrate this success and begin to uncover the next limiting belief, liability, area for improvement that we want to tackle next. Your career development plan When you understand which of these four stages you reside, you can begin your career development plan. Think of the steps youll need to get to the next stage of competence and make those steps the focal point of your plan. This is a powerful model for career development but you can actually use it in other areas too. So look at your career AND life. Where do these stages fit in with your other parts of your life as well as your career and areas for development? Please share in the comment below!

Is THAT what I loook like when I speak - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog

Is THAT what I loook like when I speak - The Chief Happiness Officer Blog No wonder people are always laughing at my presentations :o) This was taken at EuroGEL by Gene Driskell who besides being a great photographer is also an amazingly nice person, so I cant even blame him, dammit! Check out Genes pictures from EuroGEL theyre that good. Thanks for visiting my blog. If you're new here, you should check out this list of my 10 most popular articles. And if you want more great tips and ideas you should check out our newsletter about happiness at work. It's great and it's free :-)Share this:LinkedInFacebookTwitterRedditPinterest Related