Conversation leads to ?

Tim asks a great question:

How much time and attention are we wasting as a nation on “great conversations” that aren’t going anywhere?

You meet someone at a networking event. You have a great conversation, it really feels good. But then what happens? You can read his full post here.

Do the follow up. If it doesn't go anywhere, worse case, you can at least build upon the confidence boost the conversation provides for the next one. That one, hopefully, will take you somewhere.

Don't be deceived!

Most days, we are deceived into believing that changing the world is reserved for a “special type” of person. For people who are fearless and do no wrong.  But that’s certainly not true.  It’s reserved for a small contingent of very normal people who make the deliberate and difficult choice to believe, to risk failure and to endure.  For those people who finally understand the fact that our lives are always just one brief moment of audacity away from remarkable.

From a great post by AJ Leon that you should click through to read all of.


You are that 'special' type of person. 
It takes a little effort to believe in yourself.
It is possible!

You are not alone

Carrie Krueger writes at Jobfully

It’s powerful to know we are not alone. When I think about completing a long race with supportive partners, bands, cheerleaders and “free sprays” of cool water versus setting out alone to go that distance, it is obvious to me I could not do it alone. Job seekers often feel they are on a long, lonely run. The most important encouragement you can give is to let the job seeker know he or she is not alone.

YOU are not alone. 


Given the state of the economy, the number of unemployed, the growing number of under-employed and the slow growth of real jobs, it will be some time before we get back to full employment. 

There are resources around you, reach out. Use those resources. Network. Make connections. Eventually, you will find the spot where your talents and skills are appreciated and valued. 


It man take some time. Be patient, be positive. Remember, you are not alone!

How to prepare your stories

Jason Seiden has some great advice on how to prepare your stories. The stories you need to have ready to share when you meet with someone to leave them with the impression that you are distinct from other job seekers out there and the one they need to consider for the opportunity.




Good info! Should be easy enough to prepare.

What do you think? Worth a try?

patience is a key to success

Having patience is a key to success in networking. Don’t expect overnight results. Develop your relationships for the long haul. In due time, these relationships will be very fruitful for whatever needs that you may have. You want to build relationships that you can take with you to any company that you are involved in.

Yes, I agree. Patience is a necessity!

Read more job search information from Jason at Networking Insights

How to deal with rejection

Rejection is hard to take.



Remember this is business, analyze and reflect. Don't take it personal.

Be positive, be resolute!

Thanks to Jobfully for sharing this good information!

In your eyes

When you meet someone for the first time, do you look in their eyes?

Do you maintain eye contact while you talk?



Business comes down to personal relationships. How are you doing?

Be positive, be resolute!



Inspired by HRMargo's post linking to the same song.

How to answer the dreaded salary question

Matt Youngquist solicited input on how to answer the dreaded salary question. Amongst the responses he received was this one:

Answer #2: “Either give a range covering your needs or state that you are sure their offer will be comparable to similar jobs and that you are confident in reaching an agreement should all else be right for you. Employers are wanting to make sure your expectations are not out of line or that you are not asking too much based on your experience so be conservative until you know they want you.” 

My take: This was the best answer of the bunch and pretty similar to my own thinking on the matter. I’m glad somebody is taking the time to actually try and explain the EMPLOYER’S point of view on this issue, since having an empathic understanding of the needs/agenda of your “customer” is always a great thing in any sales situation, including an interview. So bravo, answerer #2!

Click through to read his full posting. I am aligned with his thinking on this question.

How would, how do you answer this question?

"there is no job search silver bullet"

Jessica Miller-Merrill, writing on the TweetMyJobs website says:

Twitter is an essential tool for the job seeker and is described as social network where members post micro-blogs in 140 characters or less similar to a subject line of an email. As a user of the platform, you have instant access to millions of other business professionals who are eager and open to talk to you. 

While Twitter an ever-evolving chat room and uber networking tool, it can sometimes be overwhelming. Here are five job search focused ways to connect with others, learn about job openings, build your brand, and land a job you love.

While there is no job search silver bullet, I do believe that Twitter is one good tool to have in your job search tool kit. Click through to read the remainder of what Jessica has to say on using Twitter for your job search.

Hopkinton Network Group meets Fri - Feb 18th at 10:00 AM

Now that the winter is upon us, and the inclement weather has arrived, there will be no Hopkinton meetings if the Hopkinton schools close due to weather conditions. Listen to the radio or watch the TV for school closings, if there is a delay, the meeting will still occur. Whenever the weather conditions are poor, please stay home. There isn't anything worth risking an accident over.

The agenda for this Friday's Hopkinton Networkers Group (HNG) meeting will be featured by our speaker, Agnes Rivera . The facilitator for this week will be Gil Krispien. We will devote the first hour, from 10 to 11 AM to the following agenda: Welcome, Landings, Announcements, New Member Intros, and Needs & Leads. Please arrive early, so we can make every effort to start on time. In the second hour, Agnes will talk about "Insurance Resources for the Uninsured."

"Insurance Resources for the Uninsured"

Agnes has a power-point presentation that will provide details of her talk.

About Agnes Rivera:

Community Outreach Team Lead

No one is more focused than Agnes Rivera on making a project come together - securing that challenging Partnerships: successfully surpassing Community expectations, and motivating teams to execute the vision and exceed goals. A master fixer, she tackles problems head-on, work smart and hard to develop winning solutions, and maximizes community wellness performance.

"As a project management leader, I always try to be clear of my objectives in order to create a win- win situation in the interest of community ."

Agnes tells it straight. She is driven by a fundamental belief in honesty - offering her colleagues, partners, and associates direct viewpoints on where the opportunities stand; providing accurate feedback and evaluation to all teams;

Born of Puerto Rican Parents in Queens,

New York , Bi-lingual and Bi-Cultural in Spanish.

Residing in Worcester, Massachusetts since 1988.

A graduate of Springfield College School of Human Services, Graduate( 1993) and Undergraduate (19910program in Human Services Administration, with a thesis in Civic Participation: Worcester Latino voter Registration Project

Have received special recognition from the National Minority AIDS Conference, 1988; Centro Las Americas Community Service Award 1989

Agnes has worked in establishing successful interagency collaborations, in the area of Latino and Diabetes, Tobacco Control,

Certified trainer:

It Takes a Village to raise a child -Community parenting curriculum

Latino health Institute Latino Diabetes educator

Center for Substance Abuse Prevention -multicultural community prevention strategies

In all of her work and community initiatives Agnes has had a focus on developing marketing and recruitment plans -establishing success in the following: Worcester Community Connections , Worcester Future Teachers academy, Massachusetts department of Social Services Advisory Council, Worcester Fights Back-Substance Abuse prevention , career ladders for community Health Centers , Central Massachusetts Area Health Education Center- Certified Alcohol and Drug certification seminars for minority counselors , Worcester Latino Festival first Latino festival ,

Currently working for Boston Medical Center Health Net Plan in the Marketing Department, supporting State wide efforts to promote services as a managed care organizations. This serves as a model for national Health Care Reform.

Schedule for HNG Meetings:

March 4, 2011 Ed Yee Tax Talk
March 18, 2011 Fran Ganek "Refreshing the Body, Mind, and Soul during Unemployment (and any other Time)"
April 1, 2011 Elaine Jackson Workshop for PMP Application
April 15, 2011 Joellyn Schwerdlin
May 6, 2011 Dr. Paul Power
May 20, 2011 Stephen Balzac "Interviewing For Success: How to Find, and Land, Your Dream Job"

General Information:

The networking group meets in Hopkinton, at St. John the Evangelist Church parish hall. The meeting occurs, from 10 to 12 noon, and will meet the first and third Friday of the month. The parish hall has a capacity for 250 people and there is plenty of parking spaces in the parking lot and on the street. Around the perimeter of the parish hall are rooms to allow us to have focused network groups or for any other purpose we need. We chose every other Friday to allow everyone to attend the Acton Networking Group or any other networking group, if they wanted, on the Friday we do not meet.

We will maintain our close affiliation with Acton Networkers by using the same list-server to share information between the groups. Any e-mails specific to the Hopkinton Networking Group (HNG) will be indicated in the subject line either by "Hopkinton Networking Group" or "HNG"; this way anyone attending these meetings will know the e-mail is intended for them.

We will follow the following agenda items:
Welcome
Landings (with doughnuts)
Announcements
New member introductions
Needs and Leads
Speaker(s), Workshop, or Focus Group
Cleanup

For those new members who give their introductions, this is what we would like to know:
Name
Skills and Value Statement
Where have you been?
Where are you going?
Your title
Your target companies
Geography of search
Name and e-mail address

If anyone wants to join our team, please let one of us know; we could always use the extra help and input for ideas.

Directions:
Take Rt. 495 North/South and get off Exit 21A. Go through three traffic lights. Colella's Supermarket is on the right at the third traffic light. The first street after the third traffic light is Church Street, take a right turn. The church is on the right. Go around to the left of the parking lot and go into the side entrance of the parish hall.

Depending upon where you live, perhaps you may want to use Mapquest for a more direct route. The address of the church is:
St. John the Evangelist
20 Church Street
Hopkinton, MA 01748

Regards,
Hopkinton Networkers Group (HNG) Coordinators

“Well, they built all these tools for me"

Neil Schaffer writing at Windmill Networking says:

From a social media perspective, I have found a lot of great takeaways from Seth. The funny thing is that he never blogs or writes specifically about social media marketing, but his thoughts are so applicable to the situations that many of us social media practitioners face on a daily basis. 

What have I learned from Seth Godin’s blog posts which, like Twitter, are so short and concise yet full of such deep insight?

Click through to read the full post and find the top ten things that Neal learned from Seth Godin.

What have you learned from Seth?

Make it the YOU STORY

Ronni Ann writes at Work Coach Cafe:

Of course, there are also lots of ways to screw up relationships of any kind – including networking. While any given networking relationship can last the life of your career, for this post, I’d like to focus on initial networking contacts and meetings.

She continues to list 8 mistakes you can make with your initial contact. There may be more but these come to mind quickly. Any one of them can be a problem to avoid. Click through to read the remainder of the tips to avoid.

If you have something to add to the listing, let Ronni Ann know!

What do you think is easier to find these days: a date or a job?

Matt Youngquist continues with this line of thought:

Now granted, I’m about 12 years removed from the dating scene myself, and hopefully won’t be back on the circuit anytime soon (unless my wife dumps me, deservedly, for constantly working on weekends) but I raise the issue, regardless, since I think there are some strong parallels between these two areas of life.  What’s more, I’ve found that by comparing job hunting to the dating process, and studying the correlations, many people gain an even better handle on how to market themselves to employers in effective fashion. 

Simply put, both situations involve trying to locate somebody out in the big wide world who wants to enter into a certain type of relationship with you.  In the first instance, it’s a romantic partner.  In the latter case, a hiring manager.  But the challenge of finding your “other half” in either case is extremely similar.  In both situations, if you’re normal, you’ll experience a certain amount of anxiety.  You’ll also have to beat out your fair share of competition.  And push through doubts and insecurities.  You’ll be scared at times.  Nervous at times.  But also quite excited, at times, too, when you allow yourself to think about what the future might hold for you.

Matt continues to list four channels to compare the two searches, for a date or for a job. The takeaways are not that different.

Click through to read Matt's full posting here. And consider subscribing to his work, or the writing you find here. Both should provide some worthy advice to find your next opportunity!

Lessons from William and 1,000 job applications!

Don't be turned off by the cartoon like approach, the message is real. The learning from William's job search is one to walk away with in confidence. Watch the brief (less than 2:00 minutes) video.





Yes, it is not a numbers game. It is a relationship game. You need to meet folks, get to know them, let them get to know you. Give them some help, learn from them. Be gracious, share what you know. Eventually, you will find a place where you match the requirements of the position naturally.

It will take time. Be patient. Be positive!


Thanks to Paul Diamond for sharing this update!

Make the effort, good results will happen!

From Twitter on Thursday came the good word:

RT @valnelson: Yay! Good folks. RT @mmpartee: @shersteve FYI, @jprotalks is now an intern for@theCSAgency because of PodCamp! #pcwm #WesternMA

Jocelyn took the initiative to go and participate in PodCamp last Saturday. The connections and information gathered there resulted in her obtaining an intern position.

Next time one is one the calendar, consider going to PodCamp (an unconference). It just may be the opportunity you've been looking for!

Use LinkedIn to change your career path!

Supposed you did want to change your career path, how would you do that?

There was an article I found earlier this week that I shared as part of #the5 for that day:

Jobs before they were president of USA http://bit.ly/fza0ar me: good idea look at how someone got there, not always a direct path! #the5

This is a great example of one of the hidden or not so obvious uses for LinkedIn and especially relevant for those looking to change careers.

When you want to change, what does the career change path look like?

Since most folks on LinkedIn have included at least three prior positions (to get the 100% complete profile), you can look for the position where you want to be. Search for it, then look into some of the folks who hold that position now and see how they got there. The mileage may vary for your but the information on how they got where they did is open.

If you want more details, there is a warm call or contact you can now make! The odds are, with a good lead like you can craft, they will be most willing to share some of their story.

Your online presence

Your online presence can be key to your success. This brief video clip from Jobfully gets into the basics.



How are your presenting yourself online?

I'm on LinkedIn - Now What?

The presentation document for "I'm on LinkedIn, Now What?" shared with the PodCamp WesternMA group can be viewed here:



If you have questions, please feel free to contact me.

PodCamp Western Mass - video sample

Lesley Lambert did this video during her session at PodCamp WesternMA last Saturday. Note the plug for the Job Search Jam Session track there!




The Tech Resources MA site referenced is here

For the older job seeker

The Hopkinton Networking Group meeting today will address looking for work as an older job seeker. For both of the Job Search Jam Sessions, this topic was requested an well attended. The plight of those of us north of 40 finding work these days has been documented and talked about. 60 Minutes did a piece not too long ago on the 99ers, many of whom were in that age category.

So when in the course of my cruising around the internet, I found this site, my eyes perked up right away.

WorkForce50 - Is a job search tool targeted for the 50 and older person.

Check it out, it may be the tool you can use!

Internal versus External customers

Tom Peters, one of my business heroes, takes on the internal versus external customers debate in this brief video (less than 3 minutes). I think he has a compelling argument.



How does this relate to the job search?
Who are your internal customers for the job search? Your spouse and other members of your family! Your close friends.

How well do you take care of them?
In Tom's point of view, taking care of these folks will in turn allow you to take care of your external customers.

Who are you external customers?
Those hiring managers, recruiters and networking reference points that you need to work with to get the interview and win the job offer.


What do you think?

Hopkinton Network Group meets Fri Feb 4th at 10:00 AM

Now that the winter is upon us, and the inclement weather has arrived, there will be no Hopkinton meetings if the Hopkinton schools close due to weather conditions. Listen to the radio or watch the TV for school closings, if there is a delay, the meeting will still occur. Whenever the weather conditions are poor, please stay home. There isn't anything worth risking an accident over.

The agenda for this Friday's Hopkinton Networkers Group (HNG) meeting will be featured by our speakers, Bill Lippincott and Anne Crawford. The facilitator for this week will be Cheryl Harvey. We will devote the first hour, from 10 to 11 AM to the following agenda: Welcome, Landings, Announcements, New Member Intros, and Needs & Leads. Please arrive early, so we can make every effort to start on time.

In the second hour, Bill and Anne will talk about two topics:
1) "Getting discouraged when times are tough and no phone call or responses are received from submitted resumes to good fit positions", and
2) "Although age discrimination exits, how should one overcome this and not be a stumbling block in the job pursuit."

"Getting discouraged when times are tough and no phone call or responses are received from submitted resumes to good fit positions"

Bill and Anne will provide information how to overcome this dilemma.

"Although age discrimination exits, how should one overcome this and not be a stumbling block in the job pursuit"

Bill and Anne will explain this issue which many of us experience during out job quest.

About Bill Lippincott:

Bill Lippincott is an Investment Advisor Representative with Merrill Lynch. He is an expert in exit planning strategies for small business owners and IRA distribution planning for individuals. Prior to his current work, Bill has held various managerial & executive positions with Boston Edison and GE Capital. He has held industry association leadership positions including a national speaker regarding data standards in a deregulated electric environment. Bill has authored several technical works adopted by the industry.
Bill is married to Pam his bride of 28 years with two grown children. He is active in his community, his church including the Employment Support Group of Norton and with Boy Scouts of America. When not working he enjoys sailing, golf, woodworking and outdoor activities.

About Anne Crawford:

Anne will provide information about herself at the meeting.


Schedule for HNG Meetings:

February 18, 2011 Kelly Nevins
March 4, 2011 Ed Yee Tax Talk
March 18, 2011 Fran Ganek "Refreshing the Body, Mind, and Soul during Unemployment (and any other Time)"
April 1, 2011 Workshop
April 15, 2011 Joellyn Schwerdlin
May 6, 2011 Dr. Paul Power
May 20, 2011 Stephen Balzac "Interviewing For Success: How to Find, and Land, Your Dream Job"

General Information:

The networking group meets in Hopkinton, at St. John the Evangelist Church parish hall. The meeting occurs, from 10 to 12 noon, and will meet the first and third Friday of the month. The parish hall has a capacity for 250 people and there is plenty of parking spaces in the parking lot and on the street. Around the perimeter of the parish hall are rooms to allow us to have focused network groups or for any other purpose we need. We chose every other Friday to allow everyone to attend the Acton Networking Group or any other networking group, if they wanted, on the Friday we do not meet.

We will maintain our close affiliation with Acton Networkers by using the same list-server to share information between the groups. Any e-mails specific to the Hopkinton Networking Group (HNG) will be indicated in the subject line either by "Hopkinton Networking Group" or "HNG"; this way anyone attending these meetings will know the e-mail is intended for them.

We will follow the following agenda items:
Welcome
Landings (with doughnuts)
Announcements
New member introductions
Needs and Leads
Speaker(s), Workshop, or Focus Group
Cleanup

For those new members who give their introductions, this is what we would like to know:
Name
Skills and Value Statement
Where have you been?
Where are you going?
Your title
Your target companies
Geography of search
Name and e-mail address

If anyone wants to join our team, please let one of us know; we could always use the extra help and input for ideas.

Directions:
Take Rt. 495 North/South and get off Exit 21A. Go through three traffic lights. Colella's Supermarket is on the right at the third traffic light. The first street after the third traffic light is Church Street, take a right turn. The church is on the right. Go around to the left of the parking lot and go into the side entrance of the parish hall.

Depending upon where you live, perhaps you may want to use Mapquest for a more direct route. The address of the church is:
St. John the Evangelist
20 Church Street
Hopkinton, MA 01748

Regards,
Hopkinton Networkers Group (HNG) Coordinators:
Steven Hakar hakar4@hotmail.com
Gil Krispien g.krispien@comcast.net
William Lam wmlam508@yahoo.com
Madeliene Moore madelienem@yahoo.com

Put your best voice forward

Just in from my run this morning. I spent time on the run reviewing interview best practices. (Yes, I am wired like that). One thought in particular came to mind. It recalled the study done about communication and what percent of conversation is text (about 7 percent) with 15-23 percent tone of voice and the remainder body language. 


Anyway, in order to take advantage of our natural body tendencies, I would recommend doing phone screen interviews blind folded. Yes, you read that right. Blind folded. Recall that when you go into the dark, when you are blind folded your body is more aware of your surroundings. Your other senses tune up because sight (your major input) is not longer available.


By taking the phone interview blind folded, you can focus on the conversation solely with your hearing. You'll be more aware of their text and tone of voice. You'll be less distracted by your own surroundings. 


Notes?
You shouldn't need them, You are the expert on what you have done and how you can do it. 


You should be able to focus on the voice of the person on the other end of the line and glean as much information as possible while putting your own best foot (in this case voice) forward.

If you are looking for work and want to explore how to use social media in your search, consider applying for a free ticket to PodCamp WesternMA.

How do I get one of those tickets?
Send an email to Steve (shersteve at gmail dot com) and state your case:

Clearly and concisely, explain what you have been doing as part of your job search and how participating in PodCamp would help your effort.

"Everyone handles stress differently"

Looking for a job is often the hardest job you have ever had. For most people, having to be “on” during networking and interviewing activities constantly takes a toll. Dealing with the ambiguity of the job search process, the rejections, and the bad news in the media can also be challenging.

One way to look at your job search is that essentially, whenever you interact with someone whether it’s in networking or interviewing situations, what you are “giving” that person is your energy. So if your energy is genuinely positive, vibrant, and peaceful, you will get a more positive response no matter where you go. Think about the times when you walk away from talking with someone and say to yourself “Boy, she has great energy! I really like being around her.”

Of course, I’m sure you have experienced being around people who are chronically negative and you feel “drained” after spending time with them. Which candidate would you hire? Which person would you be more willing to help and refer to someone? The rub is that when we are looking for a job, we often don’t feel good about ourselves. Our self esteem tends to go down since a lot of people judge our self worth by our job and the salary we make.

By now you recognize a common theme here. Be positive. Yes, it is hard. Continue reading the full article to pick up some additional info on how to be positive. You need to be! You can be!

 If you are looking for work and want to explore how to be positive in your search, consider applying for a free ticket to PodCamp WesternMA.

How do I get one of those tickets?
Send an email to Steve (shersteve at gmail dot com) and state your case:

Clearly and concisely, explain what you have been doing as part of your job search and how participating in PodCamp would help your effort.

Second Scholarship to PodCamp WesternMA

Gary writes:

I feel the different workshops at PodCamp 2011, Saturday, February 5, 2011 would benefit me greatly. I am an avid user of technology and the more I can learn the better I will be prepared in the new job market to enhance my skills. 

You can find Gary on:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gwboisseau
Twitter; http://twitter.com/GaryWBoisseau
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/garyboisseau



You can also meet Gary at PodCamp WesternMA on Saturday, Feb 5th. Gary has been awarded the second of four scholarships available. If you are looking for work and want to explore how to use social media in your search, consider applying for a free ticket to PodCamp WesternMA.

How do I get one of those tickets?
Send an email to Steve (shersteve at gmail dot com) and state your case:

Clearly and concisely, explain what you have been doing as part of your job search and how participating in PodCamp would help your effort.