If you have expertise you want to share, and be paid for, you’ll want to present yourself as the organized professional you want to be. Your clients and customers will feel they can trust you and what you’re bringing to their lives if you take these simple steps. Everything you do and say needs to be clear so that your potential clients feel like you are experienced, trustworthy, and care.1) Do have a website that people can visit after they meet you; have a business card with your name, website address and phone number? You can design a simple logo for yourself that you’ll have on your website, business card and other materials, or you can also use a website like www.99designs.com to find a designer who can create your visuals for you.The website can be as simple as a one-page site, including a professional photo of you, a short… Read More
Career
Why MBA Programs, and Major Companies, are Investing in Mindfulness Training
It’s been several years since I wrote an article about mindfulness becoming the new yoga. Indeed, this has continued to be the trend; mindfulness meditation practices are now mainstream, whether used via one of the many popular apps or delivered through Zoom classes, YouTube videos or podcasts. So many of us, this year alone, have found mindfulness practices to be one of the most essential ‘vitamins’ for coping with the heaping pile of crises we’ve been living through.As a long-time mindfulness practitioner and instructor, sitting meditation feels like a connective tissue in my being. This doesn’t mean that I’m a better human being than you or anyone else. I do have this, and other practices, to readily call upon to help me look at my experience with a larger perspective that helps me to cope with challenges. But it would be wrong for me, or truly, any of us, excepting maybe the Dalai Lama… Read More
Finding Remote Work
With orders to stay at home as the “new normal,” and plenty of businesses temporarily shuttering to protect staff and customers, many people are suddenly out of work… And even with unemployment programs, furlough pay, and other sources of income, remote work is looking like the best option to earn a living.So, how do you find a remote job? The search can be a bit overwhelming because there are a ton of great resources available. Like any other job search, there’s a degree of toil and combing through your options. Diligence is often the name of the game here, where hunting through search results and filling out lots of applications is just part of the process. Break up your day so you aren’t spending too much time on the job search in one sitting. Job searching of any kind can be exhausting and especially these days you need to pace… Read More
Having Courage, Even When Writing Your Resume
The first time I heard the saying ‘the way you do one thing is the way you do everything’ I immediately dismissed it-how could that be true? But I’ve come back to this again and again because upon reflection I do find truth, something to learn, and even wisdom, here. Right now, during our sheltering-in-place, it’s a good time to look at how we do anything and everything and learn from it. We’re ‘stuck inside’ in more ways than one, which offers a lot of rich opportunity to discover so much about ourselves, what we want, and how we do things.I have worked on a gazillion resumes since 1991 when I first started working as a career professional. One thing I’ve consistently noticed throughout these many years is that no matter how many years of work experience, degrees and additional training one has, everyone bumps into the discomfort of judgement… Read More
Being with the Questions
I’m sitting here thinking of all the people I’ve listened to and talked with over the past two weeks. I’m privileged to hear and share with so many; these conversations have replenished my deep appreciation for our shared humanity, the commonality of resilience, intelligence and heart of people everywhere. This means, also, that I’ve witnessed and felt so much sadness and fear, disappointment, irritation, anxiety and anger in myself and others. Undeniably, we are all in this – no one is left out – no matter how rich or poor, truly. So, what do we do with our questions? How can we be with them so they don’t hijack our minds to places that don’t serve us? We all have our own coping mechanisms, but I’m here today to share what I’ve heard while on the Zoom calls I’ve co-hosted with my colleague Julie Cohen. We are continuing to… Read More
The Danger of Living Up to My Potential Thoughts aka LUMPT (and other crazy-making thoughts)
Have you ever woken up, or laid awake at night, or sat at your desk with the thought ‘Ugh. What am I doing? I’m not living up to my potential like [fill in the blank with names of others you admire]. What am I doing with my life?’ This is one of the cruelest thought tunnels you can get lost in. Possibly, it’s worse if someone else you know – a parent, a friend or spouse – tells you, or alludes to, this belief about you. I know. I’ve been there – on all accounts. It’s awful. I’ve really wondered about this phrase because I’ve heard it so many times; what does ‘your potential’ mean? That because you’re educated, clever, funny, attractive, got a good mind and heart you should ‘be someone?’, ‘do something extra-ordinary?’, ‘make more than a million dollars?’ Your potential just seems like a loaded couple of… Read More
Vulnerability and The Job Search
Hunting for work is tough…No matter what. In most cases, the job search is happening because you’re 1) out of work, 2) feeling stuck at your current position and want to move up and into more challenging work, 3) need more money, 4) are moving to a new place, 5) can’t stand your boss or the politics at work. All of these situations come with their own stressors. Even if you’re just ready for new challenges and are ready to move up and out, looking for a new job without the pressure of needing to move – it still isn’t easy! Whether you recognize it or not, the very act of job searching makes anyone feel vulnerable. From the online search, to asking friends (or others we don’t even consider friends) and family for advice or help, from dusting off the resume, to the awkwardness of being interviewed… pretty much… Read More
Your Burnout is Real: What It Feels Like, and What You Can Do About It
Burnout is real. Sometimes people don’t recognize what their burnout is. If you’re feeling cynical, bored, and exhausted, like you just can’t muster the creative mindset you once had, focus on anything for very long at all…you’re probably in the midst of experiencing burnout. This kind of exhaustion or dullness can be debilitating, and is usually kept secret from employers until the damage has been done. If this sounds like you, trust that you’re not alone. A Gallup poll of 7500 employees found that 23% of participants feel burnt out all the time, and 44% feel burnt out at least some of the time. Other studies cite that as much as 60% of workplace absenteeism is related to stress and burnout, with 40% of employees considering quitting their jobs because of these feelings. This is a BIG problem and if you’re avoiding looking at it, it’s only going to make… Read More
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For
What Do You Want?Do you feel like you still don’t know what you want to do when you grow up? You’re not alone. While actual statistics of the number of career changers is hard to pin down, roughly 30% of adults 25-44 are looking to make a career change! This aligns with my recent client stats; the average age of my male client is 35, and it’s 37 years old for my female clients, with a 50/50 split male and female. This includes the 50-somethings who are ready for a wholesale life change, and the 25-year-old folks who think they’ve already fallen WAY behind. Some of us are just seekers, always looking for new ways of creating and delivering something of value, so the word career is somewhat amorphous for them. There’s Always a WayIt’s way too easy to believe there’s no way you’re ever going to get where you… Read More
How to Manage Up Without Being a Pushover
What Does It Mean to Manage Up?The concept of managing up can be a bit tricky. For a simple definition, we can look at it in two related ways: on the one hand, it’s taking action to make leadership’s jobs easier, and on the other, it’s about managing your manager with feedback and solutions. Both sides of this definition look pretty much the same. As a valuable team member, it’s important to be proactive, to follow through, and to adhere to organizational policies. The closer team members follow management’s vision, the more neatly they fit together like cogs in a machine…But is that always a good thing? Putting too much focus on managing up, and thereby satisfying the wishes of the leaders of your organization at any cost, can quickly turn you into a pushover – a proverbial “yes wo/man” who doesn’t resist against bad ideas, or speak up… Read More
