Jodi teaches readers how to re-think the basics. (When’s the last time you re-evaluated how you introduce yourself on a phone call? Do you ask the person if it is a good time to talk?) to more advanced communication skills, including how to manage in a crisis, communicate about a missed deadline or how to recover when you aren’t prepared for a presentation).

She focuses on four concepts:

Generosity – thinking about the other person before you consider your own needs and focusing on how to make that person’s life better.

Initiative – being proactive without creating work for others, thus moving your career forward by “engaging in meaningful and productive work that contributes to the greater good” (p. xxiii).

Forward Momentum – creating, nurturing and sustaining personal relationships, even when you have no specific “reason” in mind, other than to just keep in touch.

Transparency – being honest when you mess something up and admitting when you don’t know something.

In easy-to-follow case studies, she describes scenarios and outlines exactly how to respond in each situation.

As a bonus, the book includes details about how to sell yourself. I loved the section, “Different Person, Different Pitch,” where Jodi outlines how important it is to identify which of your stories will resonate with your audience members. She explains, “Just as you probably have multiple online profiles — Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter — you should also understand that different situations warrant different pitches of stories.” She walks you through how to focus on determining what elements of your story to develop and use later.

To top it off, there’s a “cheat sheet” section at the end, outlining advice from each of the sections and reminding the reader of the salient points in each chapter. What a great resource for anyone reading the book and a way to be sure it’s easy to implement Jodi’s advice!

I highly recommend picking up a copy of Great on the Job to learn “what to say, how to say it — the secrets of getting ahead.”

Visit Jodi’s site to learn how to purchase a copy from your favorite bookseller.

Me: We’d like to see about scheduling an interview…

Her: I’m sorry…I can’t really hear you so well. It’s really LOUD here. Let me try to get somewhere quieter.

Me: Okay. (Waiting…thinking — why did she answer the phone if she can’t hear me?)

Her: Okay – I think this is better…

Me: We’d like to have you come in for an interview. When is a good time?

Her: Oh, this isn’t any better. Can I call you back?

Me: (Thinking…It hardly matters what I say — she can’t hear me.) Okay. Bye.

While it was great to b able to reach this candidate (in theory) while she was out and about — a communication revolution at the time — the reality was she would have been better of letting me leave a message and calling me back when she was in a quiet place.

That was probably 15 years ago. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem as if we’ve learned much about telephone etiquette in the interim. Just yesterday, I contacted a job seeker via a mobile number. He answered, and we proceeded with pretty much exactly the same conversation as above. While I am not hiring anyone, I imagine if I were, it would have been pretty much the same story.

It’s not rocket science – potential employers and everyone else will judge you based on anything you offer them. If you can’t hear to speak on the phone, don’t answer the phone!

Once your resume is out there, be aware that any time the phone rings, it might be your dream job on the line. If you’re in a bad or loud spot – let it go to voice mail (to your nice, clear, professional greeting), listen to the message and call back as soon as possible.

While providing a mobile number for your job search should prevent anyone else answering the phone, resist the need to answer your phone whenever it rings – even when we are driving or in the middle of a mob of screaming baseball fans. If you are job hunting, be aware that trying to scream, “I can’t HEAR you” or cursing the driver who just cut you off as you are picking up your phone does not offer the impression you want to give your prospective employer.

You (and the caller) will be glad you did.

photo by woodleywonderworks

Writing about job search and interacting regularly with job seekers, I thought it made sense to also contribute a brief blog with tips about how to be kind to job seekers. It’s very easy to make half-hearted offers to help someone in the midst of a job search. Everyone has made one of these offers in one way or another: “Let me know what I can do to help.” Or, “I’m happy to help, just let me know what you need.”

It’s easy to say, but unlikely to encourage the job seeker to follow through. We all know it’s difficult to ask for help — job seekers are no more likely to follow up with your offer than someone with a broken leg you tell to “let me know what I can do.” We’re all self-sufficient and don’t like to accept assistance.

What’s a better suggestion, in honor of Celebrating Kindness Day? Just do something nice! Here are some suggestions that came to mind.

• Invite a job seeking friend to meet for coffee with a contact who might be able to help him or her connect with a company of interest.
• Ask the job seeker what companies interest him or her. Review your own network; if there is a good contact, invite both to meet for lunch and facilitate an in-person introduction.
• If you’re attending an event that could be useful for your job seeking friend, invite him or her to go with you and make a point facilitate targeted introductions.
• If you’re a close friend, offer to do something nice personally — offer to babysit, so the job seeker can have some time alone – for job hunting activities or just to relax.
• Keep an eye out for useful information that could assist the job seeker, and pass it along. If you hear of well-suited opportunities, offer to forward a resume and actually make an effort to connect the job seeker with the opportunity.
• Peruse your own social networks — your LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook connections — for possible good contacts for the job seeker. Do everything you can to facilitate their connection.
• Keep an eye open via your own networks about resources such as Hiring for Hope/Job Angels — where volunteers offer to assist job seekers.

What other ideas do you have? What have you done to help a job seeker? If you ARE a job seeker, what’s the best thing someone could do for you? Also share tips of what is NOT kind — or not helpful — for job seekers.

Thanks to this group of Twitter users for co-hosting Celebrating #Kindness Day! Be sure to follow them and tweet some kindness today with the #Kindness hashtag!

Kim Wells @kwells2416 http://Twitter.com/kwells2416
Susan Smith @togetherwf http://Twitter.com/togetherwf
Dave Carpenter @Dave_Carpenter http://Twitter.com/Dave_Carpenter
Sarah Hodsdon @Sarahndipitous http://Twitter.com/Sarahndipitous
Georgia Feiste @feistycoach http://Twitter.com/feistycoach
Jacob Share @jacobshare http://Twitter.com/jacobshare
Melissa Cooley @TheJobQuest http://Twitter.com/TheJobQuest
Phyllis Mufson @PhyllisMufson http://twitter.com/phyllismufson

photo by the_moment

They reported growth in 17 of 18 industries; only Technology was down a bit (-2.0%). Reported large growth areas: Military (22.7%), Travel (20.9%) and Agriculture (20.0%)

Month-over-month, growth in job openings (based on posted jobs on Simply Hired) were up 3.8% and year-over-year (compared to February 2010), they were up 49.7%.

There are (statistically) 4 people for every 1 job opening nationwide. Top hiring companies nationwide included:

• Home Depot
• HCA
• Securus
• Starbucks
• U.S. Air Force

Top hiring sectors based on jobs listed on Simply Hired included: agriculture, automotive, construction, education, financial services, government, health care, hospitality and legal.

Statistically, the most competitive place to land a job was Miami and Fort Lauderdale, where there are 9 candidates for every one opening. Washington D.C. has one job for every one candidate. (Remember, this is a statistical analysis, which doesn’t necessarily mean you will or will not be able to land an opportunity.)

Daniel Greenberg, CMO, SimplyHired.com, explains how they calculate these ratios and what they mean for job seekers:

SimplyHired.com’s unemployment ratio is calculated by taking the average of the total number of currently unemployed persons in the U.S. (as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics) over the total number of job openings listed on SimplyHired.com each month. In February, the unemployment ratio was 4:1 nationally. This means that on average there were four job seekers for every one job opening. What this means for job seekers varies by location, if you’re looking for a job in an area like Miami, the unemployment ratio is actually 9:1, and in Washington, DC the unemployment ratio is an ideal 1:1.

This ratio also includes every job opening, meaning that part-time and contract work is considered – not just full-time jobs. Everything else being equal, job seekers in highly competitive job markets would be well served to relocate to areas that have more favorable job seeker-to-unemployment ratios.”

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If you’re looking for a job — or thinking you need to start using social media to propel your career, my book: Social Networking for Career Success is available on Amazon (at a great discount). Please order now!

photo by Redvers

Think about it. Are you more likely to want to hire Debbie Downer or Sally Sunshine?

Clearly, it is easy to feel discouraged and hopeless if you are in the midst of an unsuccessful job hunt.

Eve Tahmincioglu recently wrote about the issue of hopelessness in her MSNBC column:

The nation’s jobless rate has been hovering near 10 percent for many months now, but one of the most disturbing statistics is that as of October, 6.2 million, or four in 10 unemployed Americans, had been out of work for 27 weeks or more. That’s the highest number on record, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

However, keep in mind, as Eve notes in her post: “Feeling hopeless — and appearing hopeless to others — can actually keep you from landing a job, according to Savitri Dixon-Saxon, associate dean of the School of Counseling and Social Service at Walden University.”

A study led by Ron Kaniel of Duke and reported in MIT Sloan Management Review found that “Optimists fared better than their less-optimistic peers in some important ways…For one thing, the optimistically inclined MBA students found comparable jobs to their peers — but found them more easily, with less-intensive job searches.  Even better, two years after graduation the optimists were more likely than their less-optimistic peers to have been promoted.” (Hat tip: Maggie Mistal.)