Social Media

by

THIS THURSDAY’s Workshop: Achieving CareerFIT… Thursday, May 22nd at 8:45 AM @ The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison

Just what IS a good CareerFIT for you?

To achieve a good “fit” between you and any future opportunity, you have to ask yourself some basic questions about yourself and your prospective employers. The fit depends on how well the jobs meets your needs and how well your skills and abilities meet the employer’s needs. The employer will make a decision and extend an offer to you: now it is time for you to make your decision.

SHARE THIS POST with your network… and let them know about the scheduling AND content changes at DFWCareerpilot!… THX

***

This week Thursday, May 22nd, we will focus on a strategic, more career-oriented, definition of FIT,  answering your questions and concerns at each step of the way…  My colleague, Brian Allen will co-present.  Your Careerpilot has created collateral development: resumes, correspondence, etc. as a separate topic for our next event.

This is a great place to start for new-comers as the other Core Topics will follow in sequence… THIS WEEK’s Workshop…  Achieving CareerFIT brings focus to those elusive decisions regarding positioning and targeting your efforts.

The first five steps of the 12 step process, from assessment to beginning the evolution of your LinkedIn Profile, will be discussed.

***

Write out the factors that are important to you in a job… actually write out your list.  During your career transition, learn the value of setting your offer criteria, a key element of your Personal Market Plan:

  1. Creates an objective target for your efforts ahead;
  2. Gives you a meaningful set of questions to ask during research and networking;
  3. Provides an objective way to analyze and react to offers as they occur.

To manage your career wisely has you extending the same concept.  Consider some of the factors listed below … Examine each factor through the questions listed – and then ask, “does this opportunity fit me?”

Work Requirements and Expectations: What is the next  appropriate work for you? Is the work process or project oriented?  If it’s process oriented, are the requirements and expectations clear?  What kinds of projects will you work on? Will you work on one project at a time, or multiple projects? Are the projects long term or short term? Will you work on a project long enough to see the end result? Is it important to you to be able to see the project as a whole, including the result? Or will you be content to do the work without a big picture understanding?

Work Environment: Will the work space be a source of comfort and confidence for you? How formal or informal is the environment? Hectic, fast paced? Will you have the opportunity to have flex time, or to tele-commute? How many hours a week does the employer expect you to work? Will you have the freedom to wear casual clothes? What is a typical day like at the company you are considering?  Would they allow a “trial visit” or at least a site visit?

Career Path: Is there a defined succession plan? What position(s) can you move to next? How long do new hires generally stay in the same job? How quickly do people get promoted? Are your opportunities for professional development well defined and available to you? Are mentors available?

Training and Personal Development: what kind of training will you get from the employer to do the job? What kind of training will you get to stay current in your area of interest? Are the answers to these two questions different? Does it matter to you if the answers are different?

***

Please let me know you’re planning to attend by filling out this quick RSVP… THX

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

by

THIS Week’s Workshop: Turning OPPORTUNITIES Into INTERVIEWS… Thursday, April 17th @ 8:45 AM at The Egg and I Restaurant

Thursday, April 17th,  we’ll focus on telephone skills/ scripting, call reluctance, and appropriate follow-up… all wrapped around your ‘value proposition’ for a specific job.  This is a significant re-working of the significant strategies and models for this Core Topic… and a good place for new comers to start with DFWCAREERPILOT.

We meet  at The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison, located 1 block east of the Dallas North Tollway. See Map on the right ==>

GETTING TO The Interviews…

Most interviews follow a predictable format, with logical steps that both the interviewer and applicant follow to decide if both will benefit from working together. The best interviews are ones in which both participants are equal and have a mutually beneficial, interactive conversation regarding the opportunity at hand.

Think of an interview as the natural extension, the successful result of your effective networking. In fact, many networking conversations actually become screening interviews, where influential contacts are assessing your qualifications, skill sets and experience relative to an opportunity at hand. “Perfect practice” of the basics builds the confidence necessary to perform well in formal job interviews. Let’s break down the basics into four areas…

1. Pre-contact preparation/ research,

2. Greeting and rapport,

3. Questions/answers, and …

4. Meeting closure.

All four stages are equally important and deserve your consideration and preparation.

 Research the company/position

Second level research will help you to identify attractive companies. But, this is third level (in-depth) research. Learn as much as possible about the company, the position and the individual who will be conducting the interview. Your research goals ought to include developing information about the company’s products, people, organizational structure, successes (and failures), profits (and losses), capital spending, strategic plans, philosophy and labor climate. Showing your knowledge of some of this information can give you added credibility over other candidates interviewing for the job.

 Use the following research strategies:

  •  Research the company web site, looking for information relative to your function and level… a company’s financial and annual reports can provide clues to their stability and market share. Don’t forget directories, trade journals, the “business press,” and databases of articles and other news.
  • Ask a friendly recruiter, business acquaintance or stockbroker what they know about the company… and by extension, call people with whom you have networked and ask what they know about the company and/or individual conducting the interview.
  • Check with the local Chamber of Commerce or Better Business Bureau.
  • Call the company directly; request a sales brochure, annual report or other company information. Companies have to market themselves, too, you know!

***

Please SHARE this Post with a friend or two that you think may benefit from the information and interaction…

Come prepared to practice your telephone presence.   YOUR “PRE-session HOMEWORK” is to increase your first level contact list on LinkedIn by TEN NEW individuals… and add ONE NEW GROUP to those you have already chosen.

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

 

by

This Week’s Workshop: Implementing Your Personal Marketing Plan… Thursday, April 3rd, 8:45 AM @ The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison

This week, Thursday, April 3rd we will ‘conduct’ a job search in real time, drawing from actual experience of our participants.  This session provides an excellent OVERVIEW of our 12 step Process to regulars and new comers alike.  Our focus is on effective time management to create focus and efficiency in job search efforts.  We’ll be rolling in OPTIMIZING your LinkedIn usage.

Who Should Attend?

  1. Anyone who wants to create a strategic plan for the rest of their working life… job changes will occur!
  2. Job seekers who find themselves in a rut…rapidly crashing into the black hole of depression
  3. Any job seeker looking to create focus within their search efforts
  4. Any professional to give substance to their next steps
  5. Newcomers to DFWCareerpilot… including tire-kickers

Please SHARE this post with your friends.

by

THIS Week’s Workshop: In-Synch Personal Marketing Collateral Materials… Thursday, March 20th, 8:45 AM @ The Egg and I in Addison

Building on the concepts of ACHIEVING CareerFITness, next week’s Event will focus on content issues for high impact, productive collateral materials like a job seeker’s resume, verbal ‘pitches,’ and their LinkedIn Profile.

Actions requested:

Bring hard and soft copies of your current resume draft… bring your laptop (or other wi fi-enabled editing tool) if you want to do some self-inflicted, hands on editing of your resume or LinkedIn Profile… everyone will have the opportunity to practice their verbal collateral materials.

The 411…

Let’s consider the difference between good and GREAT.  Why agonize over the creation of “the perfect resume?”  You’ve seen sketch artists capture the real you in a matter of minutes… A traditional resume communicates what you have already done… sort of a historical epitaph of your past.  It is very easily written from old job descriptions.

However, Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), a Dutch painter, was NEVER in a hurry.  A masterpiece takes time.  I have never known anyone, including professional resume writers, who are capable of developing and writing a high impact resume within an hour or two.  The upside of getting a resume out quickly is that you don’t sacrifice early opportunities.  Such a “quickie” may work well… especially if you’re seeking a commodity job in a soft job market.  You need a job fast, right???

  Wrong.

  • The downside of a “quickie resume” — when your true objective is to find work requiring professional talent and skills — is that the output is seldom very compelling and persuasive, truly fitting your career objectives.  And in today’s digital marketplace, your quickie resume may have extended shelf life, once “mined” from the giant, online resume/job banks.  It’s a monster of a problem.
  • The time that you spend developing a GREAT Resume Template is some of the most valuable time that you’ll spend while in career transition.  A “GREAT” Resume is a dynamic documentation of your communication strategy, the vital epicenter of your Personal Market Plan. 
  • Developed in parallel with your two-minute drill strategies and your LinkedIn profile, your resume will have clearly positioned and targeted marketing collateral that will serve you well.  Yes, written and verbal collaterals that are in synch with each other, will create and dispense your marketing message.

This week’s workshop encourages you to communicate what you are capable of and motivated to do in the future, using your past as supportive evidence.  Its easy to make a resume look and read well… but does YOUR resume truly “FIT” your career objectives?  By learning and following the guidelines suggested this week, you will find the “journey” to your destination, successful career transition, to be smooth sailing.  

Plan to attend this THURSDAY at 8:45 AM…

Who should attend:

  1. Job seekers who have not achieved productivity in their ONLINE efforts
  2. NEW Job seekers who need to develop their collateral ‘arsenal’
  3. Those that understand they must ‘tweak’ their resumes from time to time… but don’t understand HOW
  4. DFWCareerpilot ‘regulars’ with specific questions

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

by

THIS THURSDAY’s Workshop: Achieving CareerFIT… Thursday, March 13th at 8:45 AM @ The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison

Just what IS a good CareerFIT for you?

To achieve a good “fit” between you and any future opportunity, you have to ask yourself some basic questions about yourself and your prospective employers. The fit depends on how well the jobs meets your needs and how well your skills and abilities meet the employer’s needs. The employer will make a decision and extend an offer to you: now it is time for you to make your decision.

SHARE THIS POST with your network… and let them know about the scheduling AND content changes at DFWCareerpilot!… THX

***

Write out the factors that are important to you in a job… actually write out your list.  During your career transition, learn the value of setting your offer criteria, a key element of your Personal Market Plan:

  1. Creates an objective target for your efforts ahead;
  2. Gives you a meaningful set of questions to ask during research and networking;
  3. Provides an objective way to analyze and react to offers as they occur.

To manage your career wisely has you extending the same concept.  Consider some of the factors listed below … Examine each factor through the questions listed – and then ask, “does this opportunity fit me?”

Work Requirements and Expectations: What is the next  appropriate work for you? Is the work process or project oriented?  If it’s process oriented, are the requirements and expectations clear?  What kinds of projects will you work on? Will you work on one project at a time, or multiple projects? Are the projects long term or short term? Will you work on a project long enough to see the end result? Is it important to you to be able to see the project as a whole, including the result? Or will you be content to do the work without a big picture understanding?

Work Environment: Will the work space be a source of comfort and confidence for you? How formal or informal is the environment? Hectic, fast paced? Will you have the opportunity to have flex time, or to tele-commute? How many hours a week does the employer expect you to work? Will you have the freedom to wear casual clothes? What is a typical day like at the company you are considering?  Would they allow a “trial visit” or at least a site visit?

Career Path: Is there a defined succession plan? What position(s) can you move to next? How long do new hires generally stay in the same job? How quickly do people get promoted? Are your opportunities for professional development well defined and available to you? Are mentors available?

Training and Personal Development: what kind of training will you get from the employer to do the job? What kind of training will you get to stay current in your area of interest? Are the answers to these two questions different? Does it matter to you if the answers are different?

***

This week Thursday, March 13th, we will focus on a strategic, more career-oriented, definition of FIT,  answering your questions and concerns at each step of the way…  Your Careerpilot has created collateral development: resumes, correspondence, etc. as a separate topic for our next event.

This is a great place to start for new-comers as the other Core Topics will follow in sequence… THIS WEEK’s Workshop…  Achieving CareerFIT brings focus to those elusive decisions regarding positioning and targeting your efforts.

The first five steps of the 12 step process, from assessment to beginning the evolution of your LinkedIn Profile, will be discussed.  Please let me know you’re planning to attend by filling out this quick RSVP… THX

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

by

THIS Week’s Workshop: Turning OPPORTUNITIES Into INTERVIEWS… Wednesday, February 12th @ 8:45 AM at The Egg and I Restaurant

Wednesday, February 12th,  we’ll focus on telephone skills/ scripting, call reluctance, and appropriate follow-up… all wrapped around your ‘value proposition’ for a specific job.  This is a significant re-working of the significant strategies and models for this Core Topic… and a good place for new comers to start with DFWCAREERPILOT.

We meet  at The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison, located 1 block east of the Dallas North Tollway. See Map on the right ==>

GETTING TO The Interviews…

Most interviews follow a predictable format, with logical steps that both the interviewer and applicant follow to decide if both will benefit from working together. The best interviews are ones in which both participants are equal and have a mutually beneficial, interactive conversation regarding the opportunity at hand.

Think of an interview as the natural extension, the successful result of your effective networking. In fact, many networking conversations actually become screening interviews, where influential contacts are assessing your qualifications, skill sets and experience relative to an opportunity at hand. “Perfect practice” of the basics builds the confidence necessary to perform well in formal job interviews. Let’s break down the basics into four areas…

1. Pre-contact preparation/ research,

2. Greeting and rapport,

3. Questions/answers, and …

4. Meeting closure.

All four stages are equally important and deserve your consideration and preparation.

 Research the company/position

Second level research will help you to identify attractive companies. But, this is third level (in-depth) research. Learn as much as possible about the company, the position and the individual who will be conducting the interview. Your research goals ought to include developing information about the company’s products, people, organizational structure, successes (and failures), profits (and losses), capital spending, strategic plans, philosophy and labor climate. Showing your knowledge of some of this information can give you added credibility over other candidates interviewing for the job.

 Use the following research strategies:

  •  Research the company web site, looking for information relative to your function and level… a company’s financial and annual reports can provide clues to their stability and market share. Don’t forget directories, trade journals, the “business press,” and databases of articles and other news.
  • Ask a friendly recruiter, business acquaintance or stockbroker what they know about the company… and by extension, call people with whom you have networked and ask what they know about the company and/or individual conducting the interview.
  • Check with the local Chamber of Commerce or Better Business Bureau.
  • Call the company directly; request a sales brochure, annual report or other company information. Companies have to market themselves, too, you know!

***

Please SHARE this Post with a friend or two that you think may benefit from the information and interaction…

Come prepared to practice your telephone presence.   YOUR “PRE-session HOMEWORK” is to increase your first level contact list on LinkedIn by TEN NEW individuals… and add ONE NEW GROUP to those you have already chosen.

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

 

by

NEXT WEEK’s Workshop: Turning OPPORTUNITIES Into INTERVIEWS… Wednesday, February 12th @ 8:45 AM at The Egg and I Restaurant

Please SHARE this Post with a friend or two that you think may benefit from the information and interaction…

Wednesday, February 12th,  we’ll focus on telephone skills/ scripting, call reluctance, and appropriate follow-up… all wrapped around your ‘value proposition’ for a specific job.  This is a significant re-working of the significant strategies and models for this Core Topic… and a good place for new comers to start with DFWCAREERPILOT.

We meet  at The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison, located 1 block east of the Dallas North Tollway. See Map on the right ==>

Come prepared to practice your telephone presence.   YOUR “PRE-session HOMEWORK” is to increase your first level contact list on LinkedIn by TEN NEW individuals… and add ONE NEW GROUP to those you have already chosen.

 Who should attend this workshop?

  1. Those who might ask… HOW do I break through my ‘call reluctance?’
  2. Those seeking a systematic, focused, more predictable way to perform well in their job search;
  3. “Regulars” who need a ‘booster shot.’… and bring a guest;
  4. New Comers and tire kickers… this is a great session to supplement your job search effectiveness with!
by

NEXT Week’s Workshop: Implementing Your Personal Marketing Plan… Wednesday, February 5th, 8:45 AM @ The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison

This session provides an excellent OVERVIEW of our 12 step Process to regulars and new comers alike.  Our focus is on effective time management to create focus and efficiency in job search efforts.  We’ll be rolling in OPTIMIZING your LinkedIn usage.

Who Should Attend?

  1. Anyone who wants to create a strategic plan for the rest of their working life… job changes will occur!
  2. Job seekers who find themselves in a rut…rapidly crashing into the black hole of depression
  3. Any job seeker looking to create focus within their search efforts
  4. Any professional to give substance to their next steps
  5. Newcomers to DFWCareerpilot… including tire-kickers

Please SHARE this post with your friends.

by

THIS WEDNESDAY’s Workshop: Achieving CareerFIT… Wednesday, January 15th at 8:45 AM @ The Egg and I Restaurant in Addison

Just what IS a good CareerFIT for you?

To achieve a good “fit” between you and any future opportunity, you have to ask yourself some basic questions about yourself and your prospective employers. The fit depends on how well the jobs meets your needs and how well your skills and abilities meet the employer’s needs. The employer will make a decision and extend an offer to you: now it is time for you to make your decision.

This week’s co-facilitator will be Brian Allen, Certified and EXPERT with a wide variety of assessment tools. He will be discussing the why and what  of wrapping your hands around knowing about YOU.  

SHARE THIS POST with your network… and let them know about the scheduling AND content changes at DFWCareerpilot!… THX

***

Write out the factors that are important to you in a job… actually write out your list.  During your career transition, learn the value of setting your offer criteria, a key element of your Personal Market Plan:

  1. Creates an objective target for your efforts ahead;
  2. Gives you a meaningful set of questions to ask during research and networking;
  3. Provides an objective way to analyze and react to offers as they occur.

To manage your career wisely has you extending the same concept.  Consider some of the factors listed below … Examine each factor through the questions listed – and then ask, “does this opportunity fit me?”

Work Requirements and Expectations: What is the next  appropriate work for you? Is the work process or project oriented?  If it’s process oriented, are the requirements and expectations clear?  What kinds of projects will you work on? Will you work on one project at a time, or multiple projects? Are the projects long term or short term? Will you work on a project long enough to see the end result? Is it important to you to be able to see the project as a whole, including the result? Or will you be content to do the work without a big picture understanding?

Work Environment: Will the work space be a source of comfort and confidence for you? How formal or informal is the environment? Hectic, fast paced? Will you have the opportunity to have flex time, or to tele-commute? How many hours a week does the employer expect you to work? Will you have the freedom to wear casual clothes? What is a typical day like at the company you are considering?  Would they allow a “trial visit” or at least a site visit?

Career Path: Is there a defined succession plan? What position(s) can you move to next? How long do new hires generally stay in the same job? How quickly do people get promoted? Are your opportunities for professional development well defined and available to you? Are mentors available?

Training and Personal Development: what kind of training will you get from the employer to do the job? What kind of training will you get to stay current in your area of interest? Are the answers to these two questions different? Does it matter to you if the answers are different?

***

This week Wednesday, January 15th, we will focus on a strategic, more career-oriented, definition of FIT,  answering your questions and concerns at each step of the way…  Your Careerpilot has created collateral development: resumes, correspondence, etc. as a separate topic for our next event.

This is a great place to start for new-comers as the other Core Topics will follow in sequence… THIS WEEK’s Workshop…  Achieving CareerFIT brings focus to those elusive decisions regarding positioning and targeting your efforts.

The first five steps of the 12 step process, from assessment to beginning the evolution of your LinkedIn Profile, will be discussed.  Please let me know you’re planning to attend by filling out this quick RSVP… THX

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

by

Enjoy your Holidays, but don’t lose momentum heading into the New Year…

Simply stated, the traditional ‘job market’ is loaded with traps for the normal job seeker: Applying on-line along with your competition, increasing the odds of rejection and causing a premature, YES-NO-MAYBE judgment…The digital HR screen that judges you by keywords instead of value proposition… and, by the way, what ARE the ‘right’ keywords?

This is precisely WHY your Careerpilot has elected to update the handouts for DFWCareerpilot in 2014.  While there will always be an attempt at keeping up with technology changes that might influence recruitment and job search, you will notice in our new handouts that the use of LinkedIn is fully integrated into the 12-step Process… your M.A.P. to career transition focus and success!

DFWCareerpilot integrates and models two basic philosophies.  One, it challenges the job seeker to utilize High TECH/HIGH TOUCH implementation tactics–we learn that technology is a tool… not a replacement for the personal relationship building prerequisite in the recruitment and hiring process.

And second, we learn to “Embrace The OTHER Job Market,” the one driven by hiring authorities who seek the most qualified and affordable candidates (would you expect less?)… THE ONE driven by the choice of pre-qualified candidates who have already established a relationship with appropriate professionals–with and surrounding the hiring authority!  A job seeker can ‘stand out’ because there is much less rejection (less competition) and controllable yes-no-maybe judgments.

You see, in every marketplace, there are buyers and sellers.  In the traditional job market, the one that our Department of Labor “analyzes,” job seekers are the sellers and their potential employers are the buyers.  The commodity is JOBS and the competition is fierce.

In the OTHER Job Market, buyers and sellers hold equal responsibility for the recruitment process.  When employers have a need for someone to fulfill a specific role, often the most desired candidates are employed individuals with the credentials they seek.  Thus the employer must sell their Company to potential employees in the marketplace in order to attract the best of the lot.  Once identified, they simply select their choice and buy their services. 

In other words, the commodity is productive WORK being assigned to the most qualified individual who ‘fits’ the employers needs.  Often, this WORK has not been clearly defined yet and the employer has not approved an open job requisition.

HAPPY Holidays and we’ll see you in the NEW YEAR ahead.