Social media speaker, social media consultant, job search coach
So, you work for a jerk? But, it’s a recession, so you aren’t looking to change jobs or it is taking longer than you’d like. So, some tips to help you try to build a relationship with the person you probably spend a lot of your time trying to avoid…
Read the rest at my blog on GreatPlaceJobs…
Nothing works? Then, you need to get ready to look for a NEW job. Contact me…I can help!
photo by joeshlabotnik
In today’s economy, it is tough to counsel “choice” to job seekers. When bills need to be paid, and jobs seem few and far between, many don’t consider “options” as part of their job hunting mentality. That said, taking a bad job probably is not the wisest career move.
Forbes.com recently advised that it is “probably never” a good idea to take a job out of desperation.
Read the rest on my blog at GreatPlaceJobs…
Don’t get to the point of being desperate! Get help for your hunt today! Need a resume? Don’t know how to get started on your search? Keppie Careers is here to help!
photo by paperbackwriter
Thinking about waiting out the recession by getting an MBA? A recent Newsweek article may may you think twice. The article, Happy Birthday, Harvard B-School reported on an 18-month study on the state of the M.B.A. conducted by Harvard professors David Garvin and Srikant Datar. They interviewed deans, recruiters, faculty and alumni from several dozen top business schools.
Their conclusions?
At some companies, longer-tenured employees without an M.B.A. face better odds of getting promoted than newcomers who hold the degree, and some employers now dissuade star employees from returning to school for an M.B.A. at all. Recruiters say the M.B.A.s they do hire have learned little about such skills as giving presentations, navigating corporate politics or leading co-workers. “The M.B.A. degree may be at an inflection point,” Garvin says.
The article goes on to say:
In the symposium’s most thoughtful remarks, Civil War historian and Harvard president Drew Faust suggested that B-schools may teach their students to become so focused on competing against colleagues and tallying individual rewards that they suffer “a kind of blindness” to “the fundamental interconnectedness of humankind, of societies and of economies.”
Not exactly a ringing endorsement of higher business education.
Clearly, in the working world, being able to communicate and lead are two crucial “soft” skills employers seek. Having written about the importance of being connected, I’m intrigued to note the focus on the “fundamental interconnectedness of humankind.” In his book, Never Eat Alone, Keith Ferrazzi says, “…Community and alliances will rule in the twenty-first century…[success is] dependent on whom you know and how you work with them (291).” He asserts that living a truly connected life is a prerequisite to success. If this is true, it looks like the M.B.A. may not be the path of choice.
Could it be that all we really need to know are the lessons we learn in the sandbox? Is the poem “All I Ever Really Need To Know, I Learned in Kindergarten” turning out to be really true?
What do you think? When do we learn our most important skills – the sand box or the ivory tower?
Need help to jump start your search? We can help you with a successful job hunt. Need a great resume? Career search advice? Mock interview? Visit Keppie Careers online for information about our services: www.keppiecareers.com.
photo by patterbt
Have you ever known someone who doesn’t ever seem to know just what he or she wants? I know someone like that. In fact, I know him really well. He’s my 2-year old. He is in a constant state of not knowing exactly what he wants. A typical conversation:
Him: I want peanut butter and jelly. On bread.
Me: You want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Can you ask in a nice way?
Him: No. I want a waffle. (He proceeds to start removing an apple from the refrigerator.)
Another typical conversation at our house:
Him: I want orange juice.
Me: What’s a nice way to ask? (Pouring orange juice.)
Him: Please! No, I don’t want orange juice. I want GRAPE juice. In a cup.
I think you get the picture. If I’m lucky, he changes his mind before I prepare what he initially requested, but more often than not, I’m faced with trying to convince him to eat what he originally wanted or starting over. If I had a dollar for every time I say, “Oh…I should have known that when you asked for orange juice (and took it out), it really meant that you want grape juice!” – I would be on some island somewhere – someone would be serving ME drinks!
So, what does this have to do with the topic at hand? What does it have to do with your job?
Think about it – Do you really know what you want? Are you like the 2-year old who is asking for orange juice, but really wanting grape juice? Are you impulsive, asking for (or wishing for) the first thing that comes to your mind? Unlike my 2-year old, whose only real consequence for his indecision is needing to say a few extra “pleases” or being stuck with whatever he first requested, there are real consequences for professionals who either don’t know what they want or don’t know how to ask for it.
What to do? Stop and think! Tiffany Monhollon writes that you should “stop, listen and move.”
It isn’t always easy to figure out what you really want. It certainly isn’t easy to decide to make a major change in the hopes of accomplishing what you really want. It is worth it, though. Don’t let life, or your job, just happen TO you. Stop. Listen. Move. If you want grape juice – don’t just ask for it – do what my 2-year old does when he is really desperate and I’m taking too long – get it out and pour it yourself!
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Need help to jump start your search? We can help you with a successful job hunt. Need a great resume? Career search advice? Mock interivew? Visit Keppie Careers online for information about our services: www.keppiecareers.com.
I’m working with a client whose documents include a note about a specific role that she performed in one of her positions. She indicates that this was “her single biggest professional accomplishment.”
This led me to ask: How many of us can identify our single greatest professional accomplishment? Can you? What if someone asked you in an interview what work experience made you the most proud? Could you pick one?
Maybe we are all too busy trying to identify our weaknesses to describe in an interview, when we should be focusing on the best things we have to offer. Think about it…If you don’t know your greatest strength, who does?
photo by ducktourer