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The Dream-Killing "No" is Often Illogical
Tweet Share on Facebook May 7, 2009 Comment (2)Want a simple tip to increase the likelihood that you will find a career that lights you up? One that is easy to implement and involves no risk whatsoever?
Resist the urge to say “No” prematurely.
Easy, huh? But too often I hear the glimmer of a dream start to show up, only to be followed immediately by some variation of “That will never work,” or, “That’s not realistic.”
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How to Look Smarter Than You Are
Tweet Share on Facebook May 6, 2009 Comment (12)Times are tough and everybody’s looking for an edge. So here’s an easy, and ethical, tip for looking smarter than you really are at work:
Talk more.
Yup, that’s it. Research shows that people who speak up more often in groups are viewed as more competent and more instrumental to a group’s overall success. Maybe they aren’t the smartest people in the room, and maybe what they have to say isn’t always 100 percent right on, but talkative people are perceived as more dominant. And, for better or for worse, dominant people are perceived as competent people.
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Yippee! We've Hit Rock Bottom
Tweet Share on Facebook May 5, 2009 Comment (1)Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said today that the economy seems to be bottoming. Evidently, there are several "tentative signs" of hope. No question, this is good news after months of bad.
But I am reminded of the New Yorker cartoon that shows a little boy just home from his T-ball game, carrying a huge trophy and announcing, “We Lost!!”
Nearly 9 percent of us are out of work. Every one of us can imagine how we would feel if we lost our own job. There is a sense of loss--grief even--akin to losing a family member or a divorce, experts say. At best, the out-of-work person is frustrated, maybe even angry. At worst, he or she is demoralized, with self-confidence and self-worth permanently affected.
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What It's Like to Make a Job Offer
Tweet Share on Facebook May 4, 2009 Comment (3)I love making job offers. It's a great feeling to call someone up and offer them a job that you know they really want.
There are several different types of reactions when you make someone a job offer:
1. The excited freak-out. I love this one. This is when you call and offer someone a job and they do any or all of the following: Scream with excitement, repeat "oh my god, oh my god" several times, and/or tell you when they hang up that they're going to go call all their friends. This is my favorite. I hang up as excited as they are. It's an awesome feeling.
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Don't Depend on a Miracle
Tweet Share on Facebook May 1, 2009 Comment (2)Miracles do happen. The young woman with a dream of acting is preparing milkshakes and bantering with customers in a Hollywood drugstore when a film director walks in and … you know the rest. The hidden genius with a briefcase full of ideas catches a key executive at just the right moment. Fletcher can’t make the meeting in New York so Barnes is sent, wows the company founder, and snares a special post at company headquarters.
It’s all right to believe in these moments of good fortune, but a huge mistake to rely upon them. The fact is there are legions of brilliant people whose merit is not automatically (or magically) recognized. That line about the world beating a path to your door if you build a better mousetrap never was true. If you want others to discover your talent, you have to make yourself easily discoverable.
So what can you do?
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The Dress Code Fight Isn't Worth It
Tweet Share on Facebook April 30, 2009 Comment (11)I work for a very well-known, worldwide, prestigious company. In our employee handbook, it states: "Employees should use their best judgment regarding appropriate dress for their jobs and the schedule for the day. When determining appropriate dress, employees should consider not only the task, but the appropriateness given a safe, accident-free work environment."
So on that note, I wore dress shorts to work. They come slightly above the knee but are made for the work environment. Today I was told that I could not wear them because they are against company policy. My boss said I can not wear anything above my knees and that my tattoo on my ankle can not show. However, this is not the first time I have worn those shorts...it is actually the 3rd, in which they have never said anything before. Also, there are others in my office that wear very provocative clothing and get away with it. What should I do?
You should never wear those shorts again, keep your knees covered, and make sure your tattoo is not visible.
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What If You'd Made No Mistakes in Your Life?
Tweet Share on Facebook April 30, 2009 Comment (2)As a recovering perfectionist, I know all too well the experience of making a mistake and proceeding to mentally flagellate myself for it. I can still be merciless on occasion. It has probably been one of the biggest obstacles I have faced. And I know I’m not alone.
The crazy thing is that it is all 100 percent self-inflicted. And it’s completely counterproductive.
In light of all that, one of my favorite quotes is one from jazz great Miles Davis: “Do not fear mistakes. There are none.”
What a liberating idea! What if we all lived our lives that way. Rather than berating ourselves when we made a mistake, what if we automatically shifted into roll-with-it gear? More than that, what if we automatically started looking for the gem coming out of our mistake that we can put to positive use?
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Take Control of the Job Interview
Tweet Share on Facebook April 29, 2009 Comment (2)The problem with many job interviews is that their substance is abstract instead of concrete.
Woo-woo questions like “If you were a breakfast cereal, what kind would you be?” might reveal something about your personality, character, or eating habits. But what do they say about your ability to do the job?
It may be up to you to steer the interview to the actual job at hand:
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Blinding Flash of the Obvious, One Day Late
Tweet Share on Facebook April 28, 2009 Comment (6)Yesterday's Air Force One flight over New York City illustrates several points.
“The FAA was told about the flight and approved it!!” was a sorry answer and excuse. Point is, if you are in a position of authority or responsibility, don’t throw anyone--and certainly not unnamed bureaucracies--under the bus. We expect better from our leaders. But there's more.
Evidently, many governmental departments “coordinated” on this photo-op flight over Manhattan. The circulated memo was, I'll bet, innocent enough, like all these kind of memos. It likely read something like: “The Air Force will be taking photos of the new Air Force One as it majestically flies over Manhattan on a beautiful spring day, showcasing the world’s most recognizable airplane against the backdrop of the world’s most recognizable city.” Or some such language. I bet hundreds of people read this memo in the days before the flight. You understand that the above account is fictional, but I am betting it is eerily close to the original. Yet not one person said….”Hmmm, let’s rethink this.”
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Why You Didn't Get Hired
Tweet Share on Facebook April 27, 2009 Comment (18)The job looked perfect for you. The description matched your experience and skills so perfectly, you could almost visualize yourself at your new desk. But now you're staring at a rejection E-mail and can't figure out what happened.
No matter how qualified you think you are for a job, there are all kinds of reasons that you might not have been chosen. Here are some of the most common:
1. Your qualifications aren't as strong as you think they are, so your assessment of your skills isn't in line with the reality of the situation.
