Category: Job Search

Here’s A Simple Way to Be More Influential, Persuasive, and Convincing.

And in the process, disarm one of the most common argument strategies.

Do you keep losing Arguments you think you should win? Here is a simple way to be more influential, persuasive, and convincing, and in the process, disarm one of the most common argument strategies.

In The Art of Being Right: 38 Ways to Win an Argument, 17th-century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer proposed that: It would be best to give your opponent an opposite counterproposition to make them accept a proposition.If the contrast is glaring, the opponent will accept your proposition to avoid being paradoxical.

The key is to recognize a glaring counterproposal for what it is: an attempt, whether intended or not, to shift the argument away from logic and reasoning — away from its original form — to an either/or proposition that has nothing to do with the initial disagreement.But you must indicate that you agree with the counterproposition offered to get around it. (To paraphrase President Eisenhower, agree to what you agree on first, then work through what you don’t agree on.)

The critical lesson is this: just because you agree with someone that a situation exists does not mean you have to automatically agree on how to fix, or overcome, or improve that situation. Explore the entire article by Jeff Haden at Inc.com on How to Better Influence, Persuade, and Convince. @jeff_haden https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/keep-losing-arguments-you-think-you-should-win-a-simple-way-to-be-more-influential-persuasive-convincing.html via @Inc

As Summer Heats Up, Your Job Search Should, Too

People are questioning more than their salaries; they’re questioning their purpose. They are questioning the amount of emotional labor their career demands, and They’re fed up with workplace toxicity and hierarchies. They are fed up with workplace toxicity and hierarchies.

They want to do something utterly cool that makes them feel like they are making a material difference in the world. If that’s you, now is a good time for a rethink. Tens of thousands of professionals have been unceremoniously laid off this year. And yes, there’s self-righteous anger in the air in that sector, and not for no reason! These people know their worth in the marketplace (even if their C-levels don’t). Many of them are sick of being treated like a devalued commodity.

They are aggressively looking at other areas where they can apply their insane talents in programming, data science, marketing, and engineering. If that’s you, now is a good time for a rethink. And if you’ve been sitting back since the pandemic because “sitting back” is now what you’re used to? Get up. Your competition is lounging poolside with a mai tai pitcher. Hit the pavement, and hit it hard.

There are great jobs out there for you, and you can take advantage of your colleagues’ case of Summer Syndrome. As Summer Heats Up, Your Job Search Should, Too. Read the entire article via @forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2023/08/02/as-summer-heats-up-your-job-search-should-too/ written by Cara Heilmann President of the International Association of Career Coaches (IACC)® and CEO of Ready Reset Go®. Article Photo from Forbes article.

What should your approach to the job application process be?

Admittingly, creating job applications is very time-consuming, repetitive, and boring. And what’s worse, there are times when all you are getting for your diligent work is rejection letters. So, what can you do to make the best use of your limited job-searching time?

Here are five recommendations that could make a difference and improve your results.

  • Be very clear on why you are leaving your present position and what type and level of new position you seek.  Maybe you are happy with your current role but unhappy with your current employer, then it is possible that you are not sure you must leave, and your search is a want, not a need.
  • Don’t create “just in case” or exploratory applications. Your reason for leaving and the urgency to act will influence how you approach applying to jobs, which will influence the type of responses you receive. So be sure that you are genuinely job searching and not exploring your options.
  • Research the job, compensation, and company before you apply. Then apply only to the requisitions that match your career goals. Do not create “why not or just incase case applications!” Try to ascertain whether the company’s expectations for success in the role align with your ability to deliver and be a success in the role based on your skills, career expectations, and personal strengths.
  • Do not apply to jobs based on the job title alone. Job descriptions for positions with similar job titles can vary tremendously. So it is important that you read the entire job description carefully. Compare the jobs you are interested in with similar titles to decide on a proper match. Focus on companies and jobs where there is symmetry between your value system and the company’s values.
  • Above all, create fewer applications and more complete applications. Creating an untidy or unfinished application can doom your applications at the company for the current job you are applying to and any other position you may apply for in the future.
  • Job searching is very boring and time-consuming, too, so be prepared to spend considerable time doing it to achieve the desired outcome. Try to maintain a light, thoughtful approach throughout the process since job searching is probably the most un-fun thing you will do this year.

How to prove you are the right fit for the JOB?

Extensive experience as a Career Strategy Consultant, recruiting operations manager, writer, and developer of development of career tools has taught me that our ability to hire and retain the right consultants (or employees) and nurture them to value their talents, explain their skills, and offer resolution suggestions, is necessary to the successfully delivery of projects, and it can enhance employee retention.

In addition, teaching consultants and employees how to present their interests and career goals is an essential skill and one that is necessary to achieve one’s career goals. Working for oneself or developing one’s own business takes the fine-tuning of employee talents to another level.

Success also depends upon choosing my clients well, which helps to ensure that the job is done correctly and delivered in the agreed timeframe. Extensive experience in management roles at major corporations, small and large consultancies, and my current position helps. Writing a resume is more than cataloging skill sets and expertise. The resume is an advance picture of the person who will attend the interview. Hence all of our resume services include interview preparation.

In addition, to providing Resume Writing and Interview Preparation to jobseekers, my current projects include training managers in interview practice. These projects allow me to continue to learn from managers regarding what they seek in a resume and their goals when interviewing candidates. This combination of manager and jobseeker client interactions informs and continually updates my resume writing and interviewing training skills.

Where candidates often go wrong is thinking that they need to sell themselves at the interview. The resume has already done that, and since no one interviews an unqualified candidate, your job at the interview is to validate the fit. Let us help you by creating a resume that will parse well on ATS’ and work with you on interview preparation, so you can validate that you are the right choice/fit for the role for the team.

Successfully Managing Your Business Meetings

One of the things I truly appreciate about webinars is that they usually start on time, rarely run into overtime, or fall into the meeting that births another meeting category.

Nothing is more exasperating than a meeting that goes into overtime. So how do you keep a meeting within the allotted time frame without squashing creativity and discouraging interactions by meeting members?

Keeping your meeting on topic and within the allotted time takes discipline and effort, but not everyone takes the time to get it right. Plus, with so many ad hoc meetings, few people have the time to think through their meetings in advance and have a structured plan.

Here are a few helpful meeting tips:
1.      Along with invites, make the purpose of the meeting clear by sending out the agenda points to attendees in advance. It also helps to include the items that will not be discussed at the meeting.

2.      Pay attention to the number of possible attendees. Invite too many people, and vital topics may end up short of air time. Invite too few people; you may need a wider variety of opinions.

3.      Pay special attention to people who are prone to long-windedness. It is a good idea to inform attendees that they should keep their comments short and to the point so that others can get equal time.

4.      Setting the right tone regarding contributing input at the meeting will help attendees see you as the steward setting the direction of the meeting and the leader who encourages attendees to share their ideas.

5.      It helps to acknowledge when topics go off on tangents. Acknowledge the speaker but let it be known that an in-depth discussion of the info the person presented cannot be accommodated at the current meeting. Addressing the elephant in the room head-on can help appease the dissenter and get your meeting back on topic.

6.      Be careful as you transition from topic to topic, and above all, work towards ending the meeting well, which sets the stage for continued conversation on the topic discussed and for the work to continue.

After the meeting, document the conclusions, email attendees the follow-up steps, and who is responsible so no one can say they are unsure what findings were identified at the meeting.