You may also remember the movie Groundhog Day from the 1990s, which was about a weatherman who lived the same Groundhog Day over and over.

Does this describe your career — going from one job to another, but it feels like the same drudgery over and over? How can you break out of this rut?

1. Don’t settle. You need to pay the bills — I get that. But your work life doesn’t have to be a drudgery. Even those who don’t have to feel an all-consuming passion about their work still find enjoyment in what they do. You can, too!

2. Align your career management efforts with today’s realities. There are a lot of myths about what good career management looks like. Granted, they may be rooted in truths from decades past, but practices that were commonplace even 10 years ago are now obsolete.

3. Embrace change. This is a tough one, given that our natural tendency is to want to stay in our warm, cozy comfort zones. Sadly enough, this even holds true if we are in a bad situation. But, if you hate slogging through the days, don’t you think it’s worth moving from what is known into unchartered territory?

4. See potential employers as they really are. I’ve talked before about job seekers who wear rose-colored glasses on the job hunt and delude themselves into believing that nothing could be as terrible as their current situation. How can you avoid another bad position if you won’t permit yourself to view it in a realistic light?

5. Cut out the Debbie Downer act! Yes, being in a job you hate can be downright depressing, but having clouds of doom and gloom emanating from your every pore won’t make things better. Negativity begets negativity.

What else can you do to end your “Groundhog Day” career? And are you ready to make those changes?

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

I read a post today entitled “Why Are We So Obsessed With Finding ‘Passive’ Job Candidates?” My first thought was, “Still?”

I mean, honestly — why would companies stigmatize a person simply because s/he was a victim of the terrible economy we’ve been having for the past few years? Shouldn’t the focus be on the person’s skills and the potential value that could be brought to the company?

And then it hit me. How companies are acting now is really no different than how people have acted from little on.

I noticed around the time my youngest turned two that my children would both go after the exact same toy and then bicker about who got to play with it. It didn’t matter if they both had been happily playing with different toys, nor did it matter if we has a second toy that was similar to the one that was wanted by both of them. What mattered is that they both had to have that toy right now! And now, at 4 and 6, the behavior has abated a bit, but it still continues…

The post I read described the fascination with passive candidates this way:

“It’s all about the notion that the very best candidates are the ones who are working away at their job, accomplishing a great deal, and not particularly engaged in looking for new employment.”

See, there’s this idea that if something appears to be unattainable, it must be superior in some way. You know, the whole “the grass is greener on the other side” mentality that leads kids to fight over the same toy, or to perceive that their friend’s new bike is better than their old, cruddy one, or to pine away after the most popular person in high school.

Other objects or people may possess virtually the same attributes that are admired in “the one” that is being held up on a pedestal, but those characteristics are not recognized. Maybe it’s too easy to get or it “feels” ordinary. There’s little cognition that goes into thinking that way; it just naturally happens.

Isn’t it time that companies stop falling back on this innate behavior that leads to an idolization of the elusive candidate?

Image courtesy of frankenstoen

Does your job search feel like it’s stuck in neutral? Hit a road block with your career? Get the customized help you need to get on the path to success! Learn how Melissa can help you achieve your goals!

Some have known what they wanted to do since they were very young, and that vision they had for their future never wavered. Others faced a bit of indecision in college and tried out a few majors before settling on something that felt like a good fit. Still others were swept up by life circumstances that deposited them into a career they hadn’t considered before, but they find the work enjoyable and they pursue the path as far as they want to go with it.

To some degree or another, all of these folks have been actively involved in leading their careers, in shaping the direction they took. It makes sense, really – who better is going to know your likes, dislikes, and aptitudes than you?

And then there are those who have not taken much (if any) initiative in their careers. They have let other people talk them into what they should do because “there’s a lot of opportunity in XX field” or “you’re really good at ______” (math, working with kids, whatever). They go to school and enter the workforce all at the behest of someone other than themselves.

What’s wrong with this picture?

What’s wrong is that somebody from the outside is calling all the shots. The ones doing the advising could have the best of intentions, or they could have some hidden agenda that benefits them more. Regardless of the motives, the person saying, “Do this! Go there!” doesn’t have the inside scoop on you. Only you possess that knowledge, even if you don’t think you do.

Sure, it can feel easier to take the career path that is suggested for you. After all, you are probably going through a state of self-doubt and confusion regarding what you want to do, and that outside advisor seems so sure this route is just perfect for you. But where are you going to be 5, 10, 20 years down the line? Are you going to be satisfied in your career?

The truth is, maybe you will. Maybe the person who gave you a good shove into this career got lucky and hit on a career that works well for you. But maybe you won’t be happy. Maybe you will find yourself in a soul-sucking job that makes you wish for any reason in the world to not have to go to work each day.

Do you really want to gamble with your career – your life – that way?

Instead of leaving your career happiness up to chance, be an active part of leading your career in the direction you want to take. Not sure how to begin? Follow these tips:

1. Take a piece of paper and write two lists: one of all the things you are good at, and the other of the things you enjoy doing. Circle the items that are common to both lists.
2. Go online and explore career options that would involve the items that you circled. Find specific jobs within the general fields. Try to find job descriptions for the specific positions and determine what the requirements are to be hired for such a position. Ask yourself if you would be willing to do what is necessary to become qualified for the job(s).
3. Talk with people who are working in the field. Don’t only ask them about why they like their job. Ask them about what they don’t like about it and about their worst day on the job. Ask about the day-to-day tasks, not just the high points. Then ask yourself if you think you could deal with the minutia that comes with the job and the parts that you would have outright disdain for.
4. If schooling is a necessary part of breaking into the industry, contact an advisor at a school that offers degrees in this field to make sure it’s the appropriate education for what you want to go for specifically.
5. Are there opportunities to volunteer in the field (or close to it)? If so, find a nonprofit that provides them. Not only will this help build some hands-on experience, but the community involvement will look great on your résumé!

There is no reason to hand the reins of your career over to someone else. Take the lead in your career and drive it in the direction that is the best fit for you!

Image courtesy of becksshaw

Originally published on LeadSwag

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

If you’ve been on social media for a while, I’m sure you have. But this is a topic that’s worth repeating. I’ve been getting quite a few followers over on Twitter lately who are pretty new to that medium; if this applies to you, you may be wondering why it’s a good idea to connect Twitter and LinkedIn. After all, they are used differently and can have distinct purposes.

1. It gives you an easy way to update your activity stream on LinkedIn.
2. By sharing your thoughts about your industry, as well as articles and posts you found interesting, you are adding value to your connections. This, in turn, further establishes you as a person of knowledge in your field.

Let’s get you up to date on this effective way to build your personal brand on LinkedIn! I found this brief tutorial that walks you through the process of connecting LinkedIn and Twitter. It’s very current, so the screen shots on the video will match what you will encounter when you do this:

Regarding the setting options you have with the Twitter/LinkedIn connection, I really like what he had to say about the “showing rich link display” option. It does allow you to further engage your audience (aka your connections) because seeing the short description of an article or blog post will give them an immediate sense of the piece’s value. Make sure that box is checked.

One thing the video didn’t emphasize was the “sharing tweets” option.

You really want to have this option checked.

For one thing, if you are using Twitter for it’s intended purpose, you’re not just tweeting and retweeting information related to your industry. You’re also having conversations with people, and sometimes the tweets you are posting have nothing to do with your field. That fine and good for Twitter, but not for LinkedIn. On LinkedIn, you want to keep it professional. Folks don’t care about your kids or your cat on LinkedIn.

Another reason to check the “shared tweets” option is to limit the number of updates you are sending to your LinkedIn profile. If your connections are getting 20 Twitter updates every day from you, they won’t like how it clogs up their feed. Limiting yourself to sharing only those tweets that you mark with a #in or #li will ensure that what you are sharing is targeted, and that you won’t be annoying your connections with too many LinkedIn updates.

Questions or comments about connecting Twitter and LinkedIn? Leave a comment in the section below!

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

Living in Wisconsin, I am one of many who follow the Green Bay Packers. And this season has been a pretty amazing one. Until Sunday night, that is. Not only did they lose the game, they were trounced. I’m guessing that not many people thought that the highest seeded team would go out in their first playoff game.

But, you know, that stuff happens, just like it does when you are job seeking. There were a few lessons that came to me as a result of that game.

1. Don’t rest on your laurels.

I’m not saying the Pack did this, but they were flying pretty high after going 15-1 in the regular season. It wouldn’t have been unusual if they had already been looking at the NFC Championship game and considering the one before it as a formality. I’m sure many of the fans were.

If you are currently employed but exploring opportunities, it can be very easy to kick back and say, “I’m doing great things in my current job, so it will be easy for anyone to see the value I bring!” The problem with this thinking is that you are focusing too much on yourself and not enough on the unique needs of a company that may be talking to you. If they have to work at figuring out how you can make them better, chances are that they will pass you over for a candidate who makes it easy for them to understand how s/he will help them solve their problems.

2. Don’t assume you’re better than the competition.

Again, I’m not saying the Packers did this (and I highly doubt their coach would let that thinking go unchecked). But again, human nature being what it is, folks tend to make comparisons.

If you find yourself doing this, stop right now! You never fully know what others are bringing to the table, so it’s pointless to artificially inflate your ego this way. Plus, thinking you are better than the others who may be applying for a particular position will lead you to violate tip #1. Don’t trip yourself up this way!

3. Figure out what went wrong.

So you went in to your interview with your head held high, and you came slinking back out because you knew you blew it! Don’t just let the fact that you did badly eat at you — use it as a learning experience.

4. Fix the mistakes.

This one just makes sense. What would be the point of IDing your problem issues if you don’t devise strategies to ensure you get it right the next time? Sometimes fixing the mistakes also means doing a little digging to find out why you screwed up. It’s not always important to get at the “why,” but there are times that it can provide insight that leads to the right solution for you.

5. Be ready to come out and do it all over again.

Just like the Packers have another season to look forward to, you will have another interview. You want to make sure that you are prepared when that opportunity presents itself.

Bonus: Keep the faith!

What’s done is done. You know that you have skills and talents that will benefit employers. Just because you had one setback doesn’t mean that you are doomed to fail from here on out. Following the tips here today will help you play the job hunt game well!

Image courtesy of Sarah Reid

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

I came across an interesting article on the benefits of smiling. It listed 15 reasons why smiling is good for you. Here’s a few of them that apply to job hunting:

“Smiling makes us attractive.”

Put yourself in the shoes of an interviewer for a moment. What would you think about a candidate who did nothing but scowl throughout the interview? And now picture a candidate whose smile simply radiates. Who would you rather talk to? Now, as a candidate, how do you want to be perceived in an interview?

“Smiling changes our mood.”

This comes from the whole “fake it ’til ya make it” line of thinking. And, you know, it really does work. Take the other day, for example. I was sitting with my four-year-old son on my lap, and just because I was goofing around with him, I started to laugh. It was a fake laugh, to be sure. He loved my silliness, so he joined in. Pretty soon, we were both laughing hearty, genuine laughs. By the end of it all, my sides hurt from all the laughter. Especially if you are in active job-seeking mode, you need this lift to your mood.

“Smiling is transmittable.”

You want your interviewer to be happy and relaxed, so use your smile power to help get him/her there! (Just make sure you then have something of substance to say, too.)

“Smiling reduces stress.”

Right now, I want you to frown. Really furrow that brow and get into it. And now — smile.

Notice the difference in the tension in your face? You have less stress and tension when you are smiling than when you are frowning. While this may not take away all the stress you may be feeling from looking for a job, smiling will certainly give you a little lift from your stress. And really, every little bit helps.

“Smiling makes you seem successful.”

The author of this post said, “The more you smile, the more you will look confident…” That’s very true. And when you look confident, people perceive you as being successful. Certainly, confidence in yourself and success are two things you want to convey to others (especially in an interview) because then they will be more likely to believe that you can be successful for them.

“Smiling is welcoming.”

Think of the last networking event that you attended. Outside of folks you already knew, who were you likely to approach? Of course, those who made you feel comfortable and welcome. And how was their demeanor? Certainly not sour, or you wouldn’t have spent much time with them. If the people you approached were smiling, you were much more likely to feel welcomed to the event.

That’s the same kind of feeling you want to encourage in others when networking and in interviews. When you smile, you are inviting others to interact with you.

What are some other ways that smiling can benefit you on your job search?

Image courtesy of Dawn Huczek

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

The first part of his tweet makes perfect sense and is something that I have talked about here, but the second part — the “unsolicited call” — intrigued me. So I asked Steve if he would be willing to share more on that topic. And he was more than happy to do so!

At the start of our conversation, he qualified his tweet by saying, “One measure of a successful job search is the unsolicited call… The ultimate measure is ‘Do you get the job?’”

That’s a good point — none of it matters if you don’t land a job. But, intermediary measures do indicate if you are heading in the right direction, and the unsolicited call can be one of them.

So, what exactly is an “unsolicited call?”

“It’s not someone calling you and saying, ‘I saw your profile on LinkedIn,” Levy said, “you should have a cursory connection.”

That connection, he explained, could be that you and the recruiter/hiring manager both participate on the same industry discussion board, or you follow each other on Twitter, or you have both commented on the same blog. And that is an important part to getting an unsolicited call; being online and contributing to the field through discussions show some initiative to have a presence, which facilitates the connection that leads to a job seeker receiving a call without having to respond to an ad or send a résumé first.

Is being online the key to getting unsolicited calls?

Not exactly. “There’s also the brick and mortar,” Levy replied. “Can you do something one night a week for your career? [With] so many meetups, you can find one.”

So getting out from behind your computer is a good thing because, according to Levy, the “social media tools for 2012 will be the telephone and the handshake.”

How does unemployment play into getting an unsolicited call? How can job seekers overcome that stigma?

Levy started, “Only a recruiter with backbone will say ‘You really need to talk with this person.’”

It’s more than hoping to find a recruiter who works to advise the companies they represent, however. Job seekers need to put forth some effort. “If they have been out of work for a year and done nothing but job hunt, that’s a problem,” stated Levy. “There are plenty of things to do [like volunteering or taking classes]. But they’re going to have to work extra-hard to do these things.”

Another way to get a call? Hit on the company’s pain points. Levy explained, “‘Can you solve the problems I have?’ If your job search is focused on that [question], you will do well.”

There are a lot of scams out there. When a person receives an unsolicited call, how should they go about verifying that it is a legitimate inquiry?

In a word: performance. “Ask the recruiter to get a sense of performance expectations. Ask, ‘What specific problems will I be asked to solve in the first 90-100 days?’” suggested Levy. “They should be willing to tell you more about the job beyond the descriptions. If they don’t know, tell them to find out and call you back.”

That is sound advice. And if you are actively job hunting, you should still heed it. If a recruiter can’t give you more information, “that’s a red flag. How do you effectively recruit if you don’t know?”

Here are some final words of wisdom from Steve Levy: “Start with the end in mind. Start developing relationships when you are happy. If you don’t, you are SOL. If you manage your brand well, people will find you.”

Thanks so much to Steve Levy for shedding some light on this metric of the job hunt!

About Steve: Steve Levy, as Principal of outside-the-box Consulting, is focused on recruiting, career counseling, social media, and organizational development consulting – and has been referred to as “the recruiting industry’s answer to Tom Peters”. Steve is an incurable blogger (recruitinginferno.com and RecruitingBlogs.com among many others) and social media participant who is passionate about veteran issues. Steve has been a COI with Armed Forces recruiting for many years, a Navy volunteer “fitness consultant”; his family has a storied history of service to our country.

Steve is a Tau Beta Pi engineer from the University of Vermont (there is no such thing as a former Engineer, Marine or Jesuit) with his graduate degree in Industrial/ Organizational Psychology from Hofstra University.

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

In my last post, I talked about the importance of using numbers on a résumé or cover letter.

Now does that mean that you should always be looking for accomplishments that have big numbers attached to them? Not at all. Sometimes, achievements with small numbers have just as much (if not more) of an impact. So which should you include on your résumé?

The accomplishments that best show the value you bring to the table.

That value is oftentimes found in those things you have done that go beyond the scope of your job description. Or, it can be performance that exceeds what is generally considered to be acceptable for your position. For example, I included this accomplishment on a client’s résumé:

Decreased down time related to program issues from six half-days per year to five minutes every three months.

I think you would agree that, while the number we are talking about is small, what he achieved in terms of a time saving was very significant.

And yes, you could turn this around to demonstrate how large the time saving was. But let’s compare the two side by side:

• Decreased down time related to program issues by more than 98%.

or

• Decreased down time related to program issues from six half-days per year to five minutes every three months.

While the accomplishment written the first way is accurate and impressive, the second one makes more of an impact because of how concrete it is and because of the smallness of the outcome. Anyone reading it will clearly understand the value brought to the job and anticipate the potential for the same thing happening in another position.

What achievements are you using in your résumé that would be better stated emphasizing something small?

Image courtesy of Windell Oskay

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

I wanted to share with you some statistics from activity on my blog over the past couple months:

Blog posts consistently in the top ten for the day:

• The #1 Thing You Need to Do to Avoid Landing a Bad Job
• Three Ways to Add Value to a Company before Getting Hired
• 5 Ways to Add Value to Your Employer
• The One Time that Burning a Bridge Will Benefit Your Career
• 3 Reasons You Shouldn’t Put a Photo on Your Resume

Top ten blog posts since March 2010 (when The Job Quest migrated to this URL):

• Three Ways to Add Value to a Company before Getting Hired
• One Very Important Question to Ask During an Interview
• 3 Reasons You Shouldn’t Put a Photo on Your Resume
• Four Reasons Why Focusing on Goals Leads to Failure

Notice any similarities among these posts?

They all have numbers in the titles. This matters because people tend to be attracted to numbers. Why?

Because numbers are concrete. With numbers, you have a much better idea of what to expect. The quantity of whatever you happen to be discussing or reading about is clearly defined right away.

Now transfer this idea to your cover letters and résumés. By using numbers when describing the outcome of a project or explaining why a particular assignment was considered successful, you ensure that the audience members looking at your résumé will hold the exact same picture in their heads about your accomplishments as what you did when you wrote about them.

There is no grey area, no need to make assumptions. When you use terms like “several” or “significant growth,” you require your reader to interpret what that may mean.

While language like that can have a place on your documents, too much of it could cause you to run the risk of a misinterpretation, hurting your candidacy. If the HR rep or hiring manager underestimates your accomplishments, you could be eked out before the first round by other applicants who appear stronger. If your achievements are overestimated and you are brought in for an interview, you may be viewed as someone who was intentionally trying to deceive them with your vague language. Either way, you lose.

Consider one of my clients. On the original résumé I received from her, it said:

• Provide high-level customer service for participants.

After talking with her and rewriting her résumé, I was able to include accomplishments like:

• Achieved first-call resolution rate of 98% within first month of employment.

Which one clearly paints an accurate picture of her work? Which is more likely to be noticed by HR reps and hiring managers?

Image courtesy of Janet Ramsden

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!

The end of a year always brings about round-ups that highlight the best of the best. As a kick-off for 2012, here is a compilation of the various round-ups that contain quality information that will help you in your job search and managing your career:

The 51 Best Job Search Blog Posts of 2011 | JobMob

The Best Job Search Websites of 2011 | Career Sherpa

Job Search, Career and Life: Your 11 Favorite Posts from 2011 | Tim’s Strategy

Most Popular Posts of 2011…and My Own Favorites | Ask a Manager

Top 10 Diva Columns of 2011 | CareerDiva

The Top 11 JobMob Articles of 2011 | JobMob

Top 100 Twitter Accounts Job Seekers MUST Follow: 2012 | The Savvy Intern (blog of YouTern)

The Top Career Advice of 2011 | FINS Technology

Are there any other round-ups from the end of 2011/beginning of 2012 with great job hunt/career advice that should also be included here?

Image courtesy of Bill Ward

Does this article resonate with you? Let’s work together for you and your career!