In the Business of You

Just a few months ago, I’m betting that the conversations around your holiday dinner table did not at all include a serious pandemic or the global economy taking a gut punch as a result of pretty much everyone on the planet being told to “stay home”. Well…here we are, watching unemployment claims being filed at a pace well beyond anything in history, duct taped “X’s” on the floors of grocery & drug stores to help ensure we don’t get too close to each other, cancellation of basically every imaginable event, including church services, along with the delay or cancellation of the seasons for all professional and amateur sports. Some experts are predicting that unemployment might go as high as 32%, which is nearly ten times what it was in January…just three months ago. If your employer isn’t included on the list of essential businesses, you’ve most likely been furloughed. Although none of that news breeds much confidence, it’s not time to throw your hands up in the ...

Source: Fotolia The job of an interviewer is to find that “needle in a haystack” candidate that clearly differentiates him/herself from what can be a large pool of applicants. It’s the job of the candidate to use the tools available to present a strong case as to why he/she is that special hire, the game-changer. Unfortunately, even with the overabundance of information that is easily accessible to today’s job seekers, the majority do not put in the time and effort necessary to create a “wow” experience for the interviewers and hiring manager. It takes a lot of work to find and ultimately be offered a great job! Out of what continues to be dozens or hundreds of applicants vying for each open position, often only a half-dozen or so will actually get the opportunity for a face-to-face interview. And, only a few of those will be asked back to continue the interview process. So, how does a candidate become one of those few and then “knock it out of the park” during the int...

Just returned from a trip to Florida and had the opportunity to meet a number of people who used to live elsewhere, but now call the Sunshine State their home. The vast majority of those folks moved to be with or take care of parents or just became tired of six months of snow and cold weather every year. One thing that each had in common was that they had found a job that was a great fit for their personality and skill set. Not coincidentally, each of these people seemed very happy with their job and demonstrated an above average level of customer service. Funny how that works! Whether you are passively or actively seeking a new place of employment, one of the most critical factors that cannot be ignored is being a great fit for an organization’s culture. Culture is not just a bunch of words in a mission statement or some slick poster on a bulletin board in the break room; it is the day-to-day energy that truly drives a company toward greatness. If you don’t fit well into a ...

Everyone who has experienced a forced job transition knows that there are a host of emotions to deal with during that period, many of which are not very pleasant. For the majority of the people with whom I do job search coaching, the most powerful of the “not too pleasant” variety are a lack of self-confidence and growing sense of self-doubt . Both of these emotions can stop a job search in its tracks. A good interviewer/hiring manager can quickly detect self-doubt or a lack of self-confidence in a candidate through tone of voice, body language, lack of eye contact, lack of passion in the delivery of answers/exchange of dialog and weak resume or LinkedIn profile. That said, the real question for candidates then becomes, “OK, then how can I overcome these negative feelings?” Start by embracing what we've all heard so many times over the years that we control our own destiny. Try thinking of that concept in this manner, “ E+R=O ”. What this short equation really means i...

There is a popular exercise program that has been out on DVD for a while called P90X, that displays the words, “Bring it” at the beginning of the first disk of the set.  This is done to establish the tone for what the instructor, Tony Horton, is going to put you through as you perform each of the suggested exercises.  And, the key is not so much the exercise itself, but the energy that Horton tells the listener they need to bring to really make the program produce the desired results. Understanding human nature the trainers promoting such programs quickly disclose that, “individual results may vary”, with the knowledge that only a small percentage of those who start the process will have the commitment and energy necessary to accomplish something meaningful. How true…not only for exercise or diet programs, but also for the many challenges that come out of searching for and landing a new job. In just the last few months, I've run across an increasing number of ...

A couple of weeks ago I witnessed an “interview implosion”, which was painful to watch.  Yet, this squandered opportunity could have turned out very differently, had the candidate just put in some prep time prior to that discussion. Because I happened to arrive fairly early for a breakfast meeting, I wound up being one of only five people in this particular restaurant thus, overhearing the discussion (which turned out to be a job interview) from one table over was inevitable. As it turned out, I had a front row seat for an interview regarding a Research/Analyst position at a local venture capital group. The interviewer was in his mid-to-late 40’s, while the candidate was no more than early 30-something.  Both were dressed in shirt and tie, with the interviewer being very professional in his appearance and the candidate…well, that is where the problems began.  The candidate’s dark tie was sticking out from underneath the collar of his white shirt and was...