PerfectJob Job Search Techniques

Small Changes Add Up

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 16:00:00 +0000

Today, when researching a start-up idea, I came across a quote by Marian Wright Edelman:

We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.

She is a longtime children's rights advocate, and was talking about activism, but her advice is equally good for every job seeker.

There are moments, and even days, where big progress is just not happening. You have to stay dedicated and have faith that all the little things that you are doing will pay off. We all try to second-guess the process and work on the 'biggest bang' items, the big things. But we can't foresee everything, and sometimes just keeping going creates success.

Introverted Job Search: It's not a High School Dance

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 19:27:00 +0000

Remember those high school dances, the ones where you used to sit trying to get up courage to ask someone to dance (or waiting for someone to ask you)? Remember that feeling: not being sure what to say, feeling awkward, worrying that you’d embarrass yourself and the person you wanted to ask?

But, do you also remember all the energy there? The hundreds of things that you could think of to say, the cool lines that would ease the conversation, how you could see in your mind just how great you’d be on the floor?

A few weeks ago I read a good article about the value of introverts (25% of population are introverts, but 60% of gifted children are introverts) and their job search challenge when companies check their ‘influence score’ in making a hiring decision. As the author puts it, “the extroverts have won the values battle.” (Christian Science Monitor, “Introverted Talent in America, Buried by the ‘Influence Score’” by Jim Sollisch).

So, what’s an introverted job seeker to do? How do you translate all those great ideas into a successful search?

Play to Strength. You have a wealth of advantages in your job search. Maximize them:

Deep thought: Planning and problem-solving are strengths. Use them to be totally ready when going into new situations. Use them to help other people in your network – it will reap benefits.
Memory: Actually, Introverts typically remember better. So use that memory to remember birthdays and other key facts to help others.
Energy from Within: Because introverts get their guidance and inspiration from within themselves, they can be more resilient in their search – because you don’t rely as much on other people, you don’t get disappointed as badly.
Thinking before acting: Provide the analysis for your social networks. Become the go-to person to make sense of breaking events. Remember, everyone is suffering from information overload. An introvert is perfectly suited to sort through the data looking for information that will help everyone.

Mitigate Weaknesses. And, you can still work on the places that aren’t your strength:

Metrics are your friend: Actually, the new metrics are your friend. Go check out Klout and PeerIndex, then go all introverted-crazy on it – do the things that move your score.
Leverage Interactions: Ok, meeting people is tiring. Take time after every meeting to maximize your return by following up online, both one-to-one (emails, tweets) and broadly (LinkedIn, Facebook, a blog, Twitter).
Ignore your ‘stay-at-home’ impulse: Do whatever you need to do to ignore or get over your objections to getting out. Just go. And when you get back, do any analysis you want but stick that meeting in the “plus” column: By definition it was a worthwhile get-together because it got you out and talking to people.

5 Tips to Calculate Job Search Time

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:10:00 +0000

I was recently talking to a partner who mentioned one of her clients who received severance when he was let go from his executive position at a media company. My partner commented that if Sue knew how long it would take to find a job, she would probably take some time off.

Time off to think about what she really wanted to do. Time off to unwind – she is the type of person that rarely takes vacation, never takes sick time, and is on the go constantly. She would love time to re-set her career and life.
But the problem is there is no guarantee or even prediction of how long a job search will take.

The conventional wisdom is to plan for 1 month per $10,000 of compensation. So if you were making $30,000 a year, on average your job search will take 3 months. If you were making $100,000 you should plan on 10 months of searching.
Ok, tell that to the financial services people who have seen their entire industry crash. Tell it to the people who are fresh out of college or in an industry with low growth.

In short, everyone is different. But here are some things to start thinking about as you plan your job search campaign:

If you have no safety net (few savings or no severance, even if you have a good network and job prospects): Take massive action immediately, and build your contingency plans as you go. I know people who found work quickly, in as little as two weeks, even as unemployment was spiking. But for each one of them I know many people who have more time than normal.
The clearer you are about your job objectives, the faster your search will go. This is true no matter what. With clear vision, you avoid pursuing opportunities that are not what you want, and you will present more forcefully. But see #3 below.
Fighting economics will slow your search. If you are pursuing a job opening in a field that is contracting, or one where the number of candidates far exceeds the number of openings, your job search will be slow. This is one place where I believe that you should carefully look at your job goals against the wider reality and decide how best to move forward. Careers that everyone wants are not necessarily a bad idea, but to be successful you need to be one of the best. All else being equal, if you’re competing against a lot of other candidates for a few slots, your job search will take longer.
How easy is it to describe and evaluate candidates for your target job. Some jobs, for instance some computer programming jobs, are relatively easy to describe and it is relatively easy to judge the candidate’s capabilities. Job searches that target these types of job go more quickly – each individual job opening get processed more quickly and the market moves faster. If you are seeking a job that is harder to quantify, describe, and evaluate, the job search will typically take longer.
Size of target companies. In general, smaller companies make decisions more quickly. The only real exception to this rule comes when big companies are hiring lots of people for a similar role. In these cases, often the process is streamlined and completed more quickly.

Job search time can vary dramatically from person to person, and even for the same person from one search to another. The best way to get a sense of the job search landscape is to network with people who are pursuing a job search similar to yours. Use what you learn to guide your own expectations.

Gerbil Job Search

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 18:48:00 +0000

It has been a long time since I took a vacation where I could unhook from work and the Internet for a long period. I’ve just gotten back from two weeks’ vacation in Alaska (cruising in Inside Passage with Lindblad/National Geographic and then traveling with my family at Denali – wonderful throughout), during which my team handled all the day-to-day operations and I had little access to the Web.

So I’m returning to work with renewed energy and a broader perspective – everything one could want from a good vacation.

My vacation-rested brain gives me better discernment of busy work and critical work. I can see what parts of my day are activity without results, and I’m in a better and more critical frame of mind to evaluate all parts of our business.

I’ve said before that running a small business is a lot like a job search. There is a lot of marketing to be done. Few things are pre-established so we have to figure everything out as we go. If we are not successful, we don’t get paid and our careers suffer. There is too much to do and it’s easy to get overwhelmed with minutiae and the stress of the big picture.

So what does that have to do with gerbils?

Gerbil Wheels

When I had gerbils they spent a good deal of time running on the wheel we had set up in their cage. Hour after hour, usually late at night, they would scamper and the wheel would squeak as it came around. Lots and lots of energy went into that wheel as they continued to run. And if they stopped, they got swept backward, turned upside down, and dropped. So they had to keep running harder.

But they never got anywhere.

Only from our perspective outside the wheel can we see that it wasn’t producing any results. Instead of being miles down the road, the gerbils were still where they started.

Effective Job Search

Effective job seekers keep evaluating their progress. They keep stepping outside the wheel to make sure that they’ve moved forward. The best organization tools help them stay on track, working on the things that matter to progress instead of the unimportant. Good job search software shows you what is working in your job search so you are more effective. So companies are calling you. So you are setting up interviews instead of throwing another round of resumes into the gerbil wheel.

Effective job search makes the time you spend on your seach productive, so you can have a life as well as a triumphant job search. Try PerfectJob when you’re ready to step off the wheel.

Resume Black Hole at Ignite Chicago

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:12:00 +0000

I had a great time at Ignite Chicago last week. 20 slides, 5 minutes, talking about the "Resume Black Hole" that sucks in resumes and applications, but never gives any acknowledgement or information back. I recommend this for anyone who likes a good time, or needs more practice speaking.

See the video at blip.tv. (last one in list)
See the slides.
About IgniteChicago.

Steve

When to Buck the System

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:12:00 +0000

If you are a candidate for a job you really want, but you know that you’re not the strongest candidate, what do you do?

One thing you don’t do is play by the rules. The May 11th issue of The New Yorker had an article by Malcolm Gladwell about how smaller countries can beat larger countries in armed conflicts. When the smaller opponent (we’re talking 1/10 the size of the bigger one) used a conventional strategy, they lost 71.5% of the time. But when they chose an unconventional strategy, one that maximized their strengths and avoided their weaknesses, they won 63.5% of the time.

So, what does that mean for you pursuing a job you really want, but for which you’re not the favorite?

Assess where your strengths and weaknesses are with respect to that job. This isn’t as simple as which skills you are strong in—you should think about every aspect of yourself as a person. If you’re outgoing in an industry of mostly socially-awkward people, that’s a strength. If you don’t have the experience that the company wants but have lots of energy and enthusiasm, those are strengths.

Brainstorm your message: How can you succinctly highlight how important your strengths are for the job, while downplaying (or ignoring) the areas where you are less strong?

Figure out how to deliver your message. You will probably need to take an uncomfortable risk—but if you don’t, you’re not going to get the job anyway. Put an innovative package or video together, find a way to meet a decision-maker socially, or ride a train with a key decider.

Make a splash. You need to make a strong impression. Remember, you’re trying to change the rules of the evaluation process. You can’t do that by being timid.

MBAs: What Would Warren Buffett Do?

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:24:00 +0000

This is our first guest blog posting from Julie:

There’s a game I like to play in grad school. It’s called: Who Would I Hire. There are no formal rules. I just think about the people I’ve worked with in previous jobs, and then observe those in my classes, and think about if I’d want to work with them.

Warren Buffett proposed an interesting scenario in a talk he gave to second-year MBA students. You can read about it here. Buffett suggested that the MBA students think about which classmate they would choose, if they were entitled to 10% of that classmate’s earnings for the rest of their life. He also wanted the students to think about which classmate they would go short.

His point was that you would choose qualitative factors. You would pick someone you responded well to – someone who is generous, who motivated you to do your work, and who gave you credit for it too. You would choose an honest and kind person over a greedy, egotistical, off-putting person.

Go ahead and try this out. Think about your classmates, and write down the qualities that you admire in them, and those you dislike. When you look at your list, realize that you have the power to cultivate all the positive qualities in yourself. They are behavioral, achievable qualities. And, with some conscious effort on your behalf, they can be all yours.

It worked for Warren.

Guest Blogger Julie Introduction

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:20:00 +0000

We have started a guest blog column this month. Check out the next article for great insight into the challenges of an MBA job search in “What would Warren Buffett Do?” Julie is a Job Search Guru, with great insight into the job search for people at the beginning and midpoint of their career. Julie tells me that she is looking forward to sharing her wisdom to help more people find and win the job of their dreams. Please join me in making her welcome. Here is Julie's bio:

With a degree in English and Rhetoric, and no plans to teach, Julie began her search not only to find a job, but also a direction. It took her nine months, hundreds of resumes, and 40 interviews to secure her first full-time job as an encyclopedia editor.

Unfortunately, beginning a career that coincided with the 9/11 economy meant no job security – especially for a writer. Julie felt the pain first hand as she went through the layoff process. Twice. Rather than despair, Julie used each change as an opportunity to expand her job search skills and land an even better job.

To help enhance her skills, Julie enrolled in graduate school to study advertising and develop a creative portfolio. To pay her her way through graduate school, and with her personal experience as a foundation, Julie works with clients writing and creating editorial content including resumes, coaching and interview tips.

Use Updates to Re-Energize Your Search

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:14:00 +0000

I received a very professional and upbeat ‘spring’ status update this week from someone I assisted in her job search early on. I was delighted to get the email, and immediately began to think (again) about what I could do to help her. Here’s what she did well:

The note was upbeat: While it was clear that she was still in transition, it talked about what she had done (two sets of smart training classes, exploring a new field that’s hiring, and specific job search activities). It was not so much that she didn’t need me, but that it sounded like she would make the most of any opportunity I sent her way.

She elegantly thanked us: This email was clearly a general message to her whole network, but it talked about a “lesson learned”, how important friends, colleagues and other people are in her job search. And she came out and thanked us for our support—that’s always nice to hear.

The note was informative: In addition to information about her upgraded skills and search focus, it also talked about her strategy and targets. So I again have a clearer view how I could help – that makes it more likely that I will help, and more likely that my help will be what’s needed.

She offered to help: She said that if there was anything she could do to help me, to just let her know.

That was enough to get me back in her active search network again. If you haven’t tapped them recently, think about a similar note to re-energize everyone you’ve encountered.

Distraction from Job Search News

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 21:14:00 +0000

The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics for March came out today, and they're not good. So despite some signs of improvement in the economy, the labor market is still suffering.

Since there is nothing that you can do about it, rather than read the statistics, you should go over to YouTube and see Susan Boyle win the world's heart on Britain's Got Talent. It's wonderful, and she deserves all the positive attention she's getting.

Spring is here in Chicago, so it's a good time to get out and recharge. Bless us everyone.

Quick Tip: Call Sales!

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 21:30:00 +0000

Whenever you need information from a company, and you really need it, call the sales department. In many cases they're best positioned to help you:

They're in the business of giving out information and interacting with outsiders.

They like talking to you -- you might be the only person they talk to during the day that genuinely wants to talk to them.

They are well connected -- a good salesman knows how the company operates and who can help you.

One caveat: be professional. Assume that the details of your call will get back to your hiring manager. Make sure that will be a positive report.

Getting Job Search Focus

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 21:41:00 +0000

One of the hardest things to do when starting a job search is to set up goals, schedules, and plans. Mary Elizabeth Bradford, over at No Job Jitters has outlined some of the basic things we all need to think about.

Steve

Quick Tip: Business Cards Do it Right

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 21:25:00 +0000

Massimo, over at Massimo's Job Search Project has some good reasons to get a business card when you're job searching. There are a lot of places where you can get them very cheaply, so there's no real excuse.

Here are some things I've seen that you should avoid:

Sub-sized Cards: I got one at a networking event that I swear was 1/2-sized. That one also also suffered from the next problem.

Tiny Text: Make sure everyone can read it, even those of us who should
be wearing bifocals. If you're doing reverse print, especially white on a pattern, make the letters even bigger.

Coating All Sides: I was guilty of this. The recipient may want to write a note about you. Make it easy, or carry a Sharpie with you!

Forget to Give them Out: Whenever you talk to someone about your job search, make sure they get a card.

Give them to Everyone: Trust me, the bus driver doesn't need a copy of your card, unless you've talked job search.

Anyone have other tips to add?

Unemployment: Personal Circle

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 16:31:00 +0000

The unemployment rate reported on Friday is the worst it’s been since 1983. That’s an interesting statistic for me personally, since 1983 was the year that I graduated from college. So, we’re just now hitting the type of market that I graduated into – that’s helpful for me to gauge how I can help.

In the next couple of blog postings I’ll talk about what I did given the market, those long years ago, and what it might mean for all of us job hunting today. In the meantime, I thought it might be worthwhile to talk a little about my work history.

As I said, I graduated from college in 1983. I’ve pursued 9 successful job searches since then. According to census reports, that is about average (typical is about 10 job changes, some of which are internal, in the first 15 years of an American’s career). Here are a few observations:

Only 1 Not By Choice: I was laid off once, a year after the company I worked for was acquired by another. They were clearing house of most of the management of the acquired company, and I was on the list. When everything was over, I was not unhappy about the action, but even so it took me a little time to get my job search in gear.

Networking: I found 4 of the 9 jobs through networking. In two of the opportunities, the company was not really looking for anyone, but after I talked to the company heads, explained what I could do, they hired me. The other two opportunities were jobs that the company wanted to fill, but I got into the process earlier than most, and it wasn’t really a contest. These were the most fun job searches, in part because I knew much more about what was going on—I wasn’t just a piece of paper or a name.

Using Job Ads: I actually found 2 opportunities through job ads – one of those was an online BBS in 1985. There were no internet job boards in 1985. But, both of these were technical jobs (much easier to reduce to paper requirements), and both during a better market than we are currently facing.

Career Center: I found my job after business school through on-campus interviews set up by the career center.

Walk-in: I worked in a factory just after college (one way I handled the fact that I didn’t know what I wanted to do in a difficult hiring market). I got that job by walking in, telling the foreman that I could do the job, and being a little lucky. But luck came in part because I was persistent: I came by and visited the foreman for a couple of weeks before he hired me. I was there at the right time in part because I was talking to him and getting the information I needed to be successful.

Entrepreneurship: My last job search I ended by creating the company and position. This job is the most fun, and most rewarding. Thanks for letting me help you.

Job Search Like a Whale

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 20:10:00 +0000

To hunt for food, some whales dive half a mile into the depths of the ocean. They stay in the depths for an hour, then return briefly to the surface to breath before diving once more to the depths. We job hunters can learn a lot from this behavior.

While in a dive, whales are focused on one thing: hunting their prey. They are not worrying about whether this is the right place to be hunting. They cannot focus on whether they dove too soon, or were "ready" to hunt. They are on the prowl, the pressure is crushing, and they need to continue until they find what they need.

When we are in a job hunt, we should be like those hunters: focused on finding and landing job opportunities that come our way. We shouldn’t wonder if our resume is good enough as we hand it to someone. We certainly shouldn’t apologize or explain it. We should be in hunt mode – positioning our candidacy as best we can.

But the whale comes up for air every hour. We should also come up periodically.

Once in a while we should assess what we’ve been doing, whether we're hunting in the right place, whether our hunting techniques are appropriate and working. Maybe once a week, it’s appropriate to assess our search and make adjustments as needed.

The whale surfaces for air for 10 minutes out of the hour to breath. We need to do our assessment less often, but can take one tip from the whales: we should time limit the time we spend assessing and reviewing. The goal is to see where we are, determine if we need something different, make the change and get back to work.

Note that I’m not advocating sending out cookie-cutter resumes. The whale doesn’t swim to the bottom and swim in a straight line with his mouth open. We are hunting, and need to take that seriously. Our challenge is to maximize our hunting time while still making sure that we are adjusting course as needed.

Karen Reid's Job Search at WSJ

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 18:10:00 +0000

Karen Reid, over at the Wall Street Journal is documenting her career transition from Citigroup to whatever comes next. Read her latest entry here.

She's taking a rational approach to manage her networking and follow-up time, which is smart. In addition, Karen's being flexible about that opportunities that she's considering, which is something I've blogged about recently.

There are a few critical comments about her search, many of which appear to be from people who are generally frustrated with the state of our financial institutions rather than comments on Karen's search in particular.

I recommend following her journey and posting supportive comments when you are so moved. We all need help.

Job Search Resources

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:26:00 +0000

Curt Rosengren, over at M.A.P. Maker has put together a nice set of Job Search resources. They are mostly blog entries and other static information. You can access the list directly here.

Curt has organized the job search resources into the following categories:

Planning your search
Career planning
Resumes & cover letters
Interviewing
Networking
Using the internet
Organizing your job search
Working with recruiters
Maintaining a positive attitude

All of the categories contain useful information. I think the only place that he goes a little astray is by recommending a spreadsheet to track opportunities. Unless you have a very simple job search that will finish soon, get PerfectJob. We will ensure that you can track everything to completion, and help you maximize your opportunities.

PerfectJob. Better Jobs. Faster.™

Job Search 2.0

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 17:51:00 +0000

Rachel, over at The Social Organization has a nice post about the importance of networking and attitude. Our focus should be on helping other people, and Rachel does a nice job of laying out how that works in practice.

Of course, we think that having some tools to help with the follow-up and tracking is important, so we recommend PerfectJob. It's the start of the month, so we're taking a minute to support our sponsor.

Great Job Search Video

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 18:46:00 +0000

If you haven't done it yet, check out Jason Seiden's video on how to "Job-proof Your Recession." The video is fun, and the tips that go with it are good job search advice.

It's easy to lose track of the key things that are important in a job search. Sometimes we read the advice to let everyone know that we are in transition, and think that we should essentially rent a bulletin board that announces it.

I'm starting to call that the "Ghengis Khan" approach to a job hunt: Sweep in with thousands of warriors, crash through everything, and move on.

This is going to get uglier before it gets better, so applying (or developing) your own style will put you in better stead.

Anyway, check out Jason's video and tips. Well worth it.

Job News This Week

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 20:14:00 +0000

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its latest Mass Layoffs News . This holds statistics about layoffs of more than 50 people during January.

Overall, the number of layoff 'actions' -- companies laying people off, dropped, but the number of people affected increased. So it's fewer, larger, layoffs. In this one, Temp Help Services were hardest hit.

The BLS summary was:

In January, there were 2,227 mass layoff actions, involving 237,902 workers. Mass layoff events decreased by 48 over the month, while initial claims increased by 11,785. Over the year, mass layoff events increased by 751, and initial claims increased by 88,834. Forty-eight states registered over-the-year increases in average weekly initial claims.

Steve

Job Search in Context

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 21:44:00 +0000

I was at a wonderful session over the weekend, sponsored by First Presbyterian Church of Lake Forest, focused on how we manage in a time of crisis. In Pastor Christine Chakoian’s opening remarks she talked about context, how we are facing one of the toughest challenges in the last 25 years. But also that if we expand our viewing horizon to a hundred or more years, this is still a crisis but maybe not the most monumental one that we’ve faced as a society. And if we expand our horizon even further, we begin to realize that we have faced many tough challenges and prevailed.

Bringing that thought to job searching made me think about context. I talk to some people for whom the prospects look bleak. “I work in banking, and no one’s hiring.” “I work in hospitality and everyone is shedding workers.” I get that. It’s true. In context.

But, people are hiring. People are working. Just maybe not in the place that we are looking.

After college I travelled around for a while, and for a short time I traveled with an English Podiatrist and her sister. She was traveling in part because she hadn’t found a job yet (it was a tough market that year as well). She admitted that there were jobs, but just not where she wanted to live, or doing what she wanted to do. Her position was that she had trained for a specialty by attending medical school, and that it was society’s problem if she couldn’t find a job doing what she trained for.

To me, that was nuts. I still think it’s a nutty approach.

Being flexible is one of our best ways to be resilient, for us to land on our feet. For me, flexibility is all about stepping back and seeing things in context, or in a different context. We all have a set of filters that we use to interpret everything we see. But when those filters aren’t working, when the context is wrong, they prevent us from seeing better ways forward.

So, let’s all try to step back a little, try to look at our job searches with new perspective, and try one or two new things. They may work, and even if they don't, they may give us new perspective, and a new context for our search that will work.

Cold Calling for Job Hunters

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 17:50:00 +0000

I've talked before how job hunting is a sales process. The difference between a job search and "traditional" sales is the product; in a job hunt, the product is you.

Even in the best job searches, the ones conducted by the best-networked among us, there is a lot of cold calling -- calling people that we don't yet know.

The best summary of how to succeed at cold calling that I have seen is over on the Bnet Sales Machine Blog.

The other articles there are also full of ideas how to shine when we have an opportunity to sell ourselves.

Check it out. PerfectJob software can help us prepare and organize our job search, but at critical points we have to step up our game and sell ourselves.

Soup is Networking

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 15:26:00 +0000

On Sunday I made soup. A lot of soup. We had it for supper, but there are a lot of people in our neighborhood who are sick--here's been something going around that laid Laurie and Tommy low for a week, and has hit several other nearby families.

So, I took soup to everyone that I knew would need it.

Yesterday I got a call back from Sue, who was sick, saying that after I dropped the soup off she had to pick up her daughter at an event because she was coming down with something. The two of them sat together, eating soup and feeling better.

Networking's like that. I'm well tied to the people in my neighborhood because we do these things for each other. I'm not always home to shovel the walk -- others sometimes do it for us. We do things for them, and help where we can.

Even in the middle of a job search, we have a lot to offer. So we should make offers, and help where we can. We offer to help because it is the right thing to do, not because we expect something in return. It's the offer to help, and the actual help, that builds networks, and gets passed on from person to person.

Rowing as a Metaphor for the Job Search

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 18:23:00 +0000

When I was in college, I was on the crew team—racing in 8-man shells. There was a time in my life where I saw everything that happened through the metaphor of racing, and although that time is well in the past, I want to dust it off to see if it can help.

Most collegiate racing is a sprint for 2,000 meters, beginning with a standing start where the boat is not moving, through 2000 meters (about 1 ¼ miles). Depending on conditions, the race takes about 6 minutes, or about the speed of a typical run.

The Start: Crew races have standing starts—we begin the race prepared but without any momentum. That is how most job searches start—often there is no warning, and we have to assemble a plan quickly. When a race starts, there is a flurry of motion as crews strain to get the boat moving. A job search often starts this way as well—lot of motion, trying to get something moving.

The Settle: Typically crews start the race with very fast strokes. But that is not sustainable—after a minute or so there is so much lactic acid built up in muscles, and so little oxygen in our bodies, that our muscles are on fire and we have tunnel vision. At this point, crews ‘settle’, they lower the stroke rate, lengthen out their strokes, and get a chance to breathe. When everything is working, the boat leaps forward.

This point for a job search typically comes in the second month. The initial flurry of activity is done, but the responses from the market are less than we hoped for. We realize that we might not find a job immediately, and begin to worry that we might not ever find a job. We need to “settle.” That doesn’t mean stop. That means find an efficient pace, and continue to work without giving up. When we start to be deliberate in our search, we often start seeing results.

The Middle: In a race, one crew or another may try to challenge and pass the other. Whoever is in the lead needs to increase the pace to keep their opponent at bay. Although a crew is pulling at full strength all the time, still they can always find another 10% to challenge or hold off another crew. Likewise in a job search, times come where we must put in an extra effort—to reach a critical contact, get a new resume in front of an opportunity, or just get to a meeting that is critical. In those times, no matter how much effort we have put in before, we have to have the discipline to make it happen.

The Finish: One of my teammates always told a story about a race that he should have won: his boat was ahead going into the finish, but their coxswain mistook where the finish line was, and they stopped rowing about a stroke short of the finish line. They didn’t win. From that point on, I always make sure that I’m still working on any opportunity until I’m sure I’ve crossed the finish line. The same must happen in our job searches. When we are the leading candidate for an opportunity, there is no room to relax. We need to ensure that we continue to respond positively, and smartly, to questions and opportunities before us. Only when the race is really over and we have a job, can we relax and celebrate.

The Splash: In crew, there is a tradition to throw the winning coxswain into the water. I’m not sure what the equivalent celebration should be for finding your next opportunity, but make sure you do take a minute and celebrate your win.

Why Network? Video

noreply@blogger.com (Steven D. Davies) — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 22:12:00 +0000

I've been meaning to share this video for a while. It's from a blog over on BNET, which is a great resource for insight into business.

The video is here and shows Keith Ferrazzi, author of Never Eat Alone, talking about networking: what it is, and why it's the key to success in just about all of life.

Finding a job is a sales activity. You're selling your abilities. If that's not a comfortable thought, I recommend reading BNET, or some other material on sales. Good selling is a learnable art.

Check out the video, it's good.

Steve