Keppie Careers

Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach

Resolutions and Job Change Advice for 2009

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Who can resist resolutions for the new year? It’s a fresh slate, a brand new calendar. A chance to start over. An incentive to really get started on something you have been putting off for too long.

Many of my colleagues have some great suggestions for those of you looking to make a career change or find a new job in 2009. Lindsey Pollak, CareerBuilder and Quintessential Careers all have great resolution ideas. Barbara Safani suggests working “towards a plan for 2009 that aligns hard work, improved timing and even some “premeditated” luck to help facilitate your 2009 goals.”

I’d like to simplify it even more. In the U.S. this past year, you could not escape the topics of “change” and “experience.” Yes, these tended to be political issues, but what better concepts to focus on for your career resolutions? Do you need a change? Do you have the experience you need to get where you want to go? Do you know how to communicate that experience effectively?

Change. Focusing on a need for change is the most important step you must take if a new job or career will be in your future. Write down your goals and carry them with you. Recognize that change does not happen without effort. Decide if you are ready and willing to take that next step.

Experience. Clearly, experience comes into play when looking for a job. However, more often than not, it is more important how you communicate your experience. Can you effectively explain what you have to offer? If not, work on your pitch. If you can’t explain what you can contribute, it will be very difficult for you to network effectively,to write a great resume and to interview to get the job.

I hope that narrowing down your resolutions to:

  1. Choosing change and
  2. Understanding and communicating your own experience

will help you make 2009 the year that you make your career goals come true!

I want to wish everyone a happy and successful new year! All the best for 2009!

Don’t forget that we are here to help you with your goals! If you’ve decided on a change, Keppie Careers can help you identify and communicate your skills. We can write your resume and coach you to a new job. Contact me to see how I can help!

I’m offering a free teleseminar with coach Carolann Jacobs to help you dive into your job hunt. Click HERE for more information!

photo by atomische

Free Teleseminar to Help You Dive Into Your Job Hunt

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Are you ready to dive into your job search head first? You are really resolving to make a career change this year, but you’re still not sure where to start or how to make heads or tails of all the things you need to do?

Help is on the way!

I am excited to announce that I’m collaborating with certified coach Carolann Jacobs, whose business is Vivid Epiphany, for an 8-week FREE teleseminar: Land Your Dream Job: 8 Strategies For Outrageous Success in 2009.

We’ll be talking about how to set yourself up to win and describing a series of steps to help get your job hunt off to a good start!

We will cover the following topics (each seminar begins at 6:30 p.m. Eastern time):

  • Create a Winning Mindset – January 8th
  • Craft a Magnetic Marketing Portfolio – January 15th
  • Design a Strategy, Devise a Plan and Take Focused Action for Results – January 22nd
  • Change Who You Are to What You Do – February 5th
  • Become a Sought After Expert Using Social Media – February 12th
  • Interview to Triumph - February 19th

Remaining seminars:

  • Secrets to Getting in the Door -  February 26th – We welcome special guest, Stephanie Lloyd, a recruiter with 15 years of experience, to give you the inside scoop from her side of the desk!!
  • Command What You’re Worth – March 5th

Participants will have an opportunity to ask questions during each session.

We are thrilled to report that two of our participants have already landed jobs since joining our calls! One participant who landed her “dream job” notes that the calls helped her become “more confident in interviews and focused on jobs that matched [her] skill set.”

Register HERE.

Keppie Careers is here to help you get your job hunt going. Need a resume? Mock interview? Contact me!

photo by JennyP

Free eBooks for Job Seekers

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If a new job is one of your resolutions for 2009, you won’t want to miss two free resources to help you achieve your goals:

Chris Brogan, community and social media guru, is giving away a free eBook about using the social web to find work. If anyone can advise about the subject of social media, it is Chris. CLICK HERE to learn how to download this free resource.

I am offering a free eBook on the topic of holiday networking. CLICK HERE to learn more about how to receive a copy of Drive Your Own Career Bus – Holiday Networking for Success. My eBook will only be free until the new year, so don’t delay!

Between my book on in-person networking and Chris’ tips on using Web 2.0, you will be well positioned to network your way to a new job in the new year!

Happy Holidays!

A new career is one of your resolutions? Contact me to see how I can help you!

If you need help with your job hunt, visit my site, www.keppiecareers.com.  NOTE: I’m offering a FREE 8-week teleseminar with coach Carolann Jacobs – Land Your Dream Job. Tuesdays starting 1/8, 5:30 pm CST. Register HERE.

photo from Chris Brogan’s ebook

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You Control Your Job Hunting Destiny

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I recently received an email from a former colleague. He’s an empathic and caring professional who never has an unkind word to say and is one of my mentors in the career world. So, I certainly took notice of his strongly worded comments.

He wrote:

I was watching Good Morning America this morning, (not a normal part of my routine), but on the show I learned they are sponsoring/promoting job fairs across America…I only saw one segment, but it was very revealing and certainly blog-worthy.

DRESS!!! Attire was absolutely HORRIBLE. What are these people thinking???? The men were less than business casual. One man Robin Roberts interviewed had no tie and literally 4 buttons undone on his shirt. He has been unemployed for over a year and has no idea why. Sure, he was in construction, but he has to dress when meeting potential employers. Overall, of the people they showed in line, at least 2 – 3x were more inappropriate than appropriate for a job fair. It was SHOCKING!!!!

Then came the interviews. Robin Roberts talked to 3 people. Talk about depressing. Sure they are unhappy because they have been unemployed since February or longer, BUT, that is NO REASON to have lack of energy and purpose. They will never get hired with the hang-dog pessimistic attitude. Who wants to hire that??? People need to suck it up and get a burst of happy because being morose will not earn them work. Someone needs to shake these people and wake them up. It was awful…terrible…pathetic.

Think about it: are YOU one of these job seekers? You don’t even try very hard anymore because you’re so tired of looking for a job? I often think about all of the clients I meet who blame the economy or any number of other factors when they can’t get a job, when there are some very basic things that job seekers can do to improve their chances.

In your efforts to focus on resume standards and interview questions, are you forgetting the basics?  You MUST make an effort to appear positive and not down and out at the interview. Appearing desperate won’t win you points, and most people wouldn’t purposely choose to work with a sad sack. In fact, career columnist Anita Bruzzese said, “Most hiring managers I have interviewed say they won’t hire desperate candidates, although they can’t exactly explain why. They also say they really take notice of people who give off a positive energy.”

Are you giving off a positive energy? Would YOU want to hire you? Think about it…Take control of what you DO control. Dress up for interviews. Smile. Sit up straight and look confident. Stay tuned for tips to help you stay positive and use your time well while in a longer than expected job search.

If your job search is getting you down, consider partnering with me to help get you on the path to landing a job. You will be amazed at the things you could be doing that you are NOT doing that can help you get where you need to go.

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Ethics and Your Job Search

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Having grown up in the Chicago suburbs as a kid a little more interested in politics than average, I certainly encountered more than my share of information about crooked politicians and the notorious “Chicago Political Machine.”  So, it’s with particular interest that I follow the story of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, who was arrested in Chicago on two counts of Federal corruption charges because he may have been trying to sell Barack Obama’s vacated Senate seat.

The first thing I always think about when a politician gets into trouble is, “What was he (typically, it is a he!) thinking?” Don’t these people recognize that there are rules and laws for a reason? Did they miss some all-important lessons about following the rules back in kindergarten?

As an employee or job seeker, it’s a good idea to remember what you (should have) learned in kindergarten! While you may not be a high-profile personality, your ethical compass is just as important to set. In a recent post, author and Alexandra Levit shared a link to a quiz testing your business ethics. Alexandra also offers a link to a primer on ethics from the Josephson Institute. She notes that the primer has, “realistic examples and a step-by-step decision making model, [and] examines the hows and whys of making choices that withstand ethical scrutiny.”

Consider how you conduct yourself at work and in your search. Are you truthful in your application? Do you lie on your resume? You know it’s not a good idea, but maybe you think it’s okay as long as you don’t get caught? My advice? Stay on the up-and-up and you won’t have to worry about getting caught!

Need help with your search? I can help get you ready for a new career in the new year!

photo by janerc

P.S.

In the category of “the things I never thought I’d learn while blogging,” did you know that there is a  plant nicknamed “honesty?” (Pictured above!)

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