So...What's Next?!?

Job Search Strategies from the Trenches

Several weeks ago I set up a private social networking site to support job seekers. It is private so that the members can freely express themselves without their comments showing up in Google searches.

I re-purposed the book I wrote about how to find a job into several groups. I have posted videos about social media basics. I have an RSS feed of articles related to finding a job in today's market, and a few times a week I post a blog based on something I have observed.

If you, or someone you know would benefit from this site, please let me know (sherryheyl{@}gmail.com) and I will invite you in. In the meantime, here is todays' message.

Are You Working Your Plan?

I work from home for the most part, and I am always looking for a job (i.e the next client). There are a number of traps that I fall into and I know I am not alone in doing so.

Trap 1: Distractions

The house needs to be clean, bills need to be managed, and projects need to be done.

When we are not leaving our house at 7am to get to an office where we have 100% focus on the job at hand, we tend to allow our minds wander into weekend mode. Remind yourself, you are NOT on vacation. You have a job to do and your job is to find a job.

Find a place where you can focus on that task. It might be your home office, the kitchen table, the back porch or in your bed. For me it is whichever room is the cleanest at the moment. I stay away from the ones that have projects calling my name.

Also, as well all know, Starbucks is many people's office of choice. If you know other people looking for a job, organize times where you meet and work together, as long as you are working and not socializing. Make sure you have an agenda set of tasks you would like to complete together. In fact, make a check list everyday. It is a great opportunity to allow yourself the feeling of accomplishment during a time when you might occasionally be feeling displaced.

Trap 2: Exploring your creativity.

I am all for taking this time to figure out who you are and what you want to do in the next phase in your life, but at the same time you also cannot take your eye off of the ball. I have seen so many people, including myself, fall down the trap exploring a creative path where there is no pot of gold at the end.

The trick is to set priorities and justify your actions. Have you found that you finally have the time to explore you family tree? Great, use the time and opportunity to learn new tools (um social media, Internet search tools...) during the process. You will be teaching yourself a new skill that you can leverage to get your next job. Work on things that will get you to your next step. It does not have to be all drudgery, just make sure you keep your eye on the ball.

Trap 3: Hopelessness.

Last night I went to my son's High School for 9th grade parent night. I heard the college counselor tell us the many ways our kids can screw up and not get into college. THEN she told us even if they do everything right, they most likely will not get into any of the well known colleges such as: UGA, GA Tech, FSU, UF....and so forth.

At that time I realized why I screwed around in High School so much. What was the point, ME getting into college was absolutely hopeless.

These are the messages well meaning teachers, friends, peers and reporters tell us ALL OF THE TIME.

I have 2 degrees from FSU.

There is ALWAYS A WAY! Do not listen to what the chances of success are, just focus on striving for success. Nothing is hopeless until YOU decide it is.

You Cannot Teach A Person to Fish Who Does Not Want To Learn How To Fish

I am embarrassed to admit, but we just recently signed up for Netflix. We are LOVING it.

My husband and I never can get our act together to watch whatever the latest, greatest television show is at the time. We watch House, but that is because it seems like there is always an episode on.

Last week we started watching Lost. We stream the episodes on my laptop, plug in speakers for surround sound and project the video onto our bedroom wall.

Last night we watched the episode where everyone was starting to realize that they might be stuck on the island for a real long time and they had run out of food. There is a young, pretty, spoiled brat on the show who wanted to prove to her brother that she could catch a fish. Her way of catching a fish was to convince a poor male hormone to catch one for her.

I started thinking about this more today. So often we see people who we feel need to do something that would be best for them, and we try to get them to do it the way we think it should be done. You need to learn to fish in order to feed yourself. Really? Is that the goal, the end game that the person has to  learn to fish, or is the end game that the person learns to get fish?

Those are really two separate issues.

As leaders and managers we tend to expect our teams to get things done the way we tell them to. This does not take into consideration that there may be hidden talents and ideas amongst our people that enable them to get things done in a more effective and efficient manner.

Beyond that, we often face resistance when we ask a person to do a job they do not want to do. So often I have told people that to reach their goals they need to be a good sales person. I immediately see people shut down, because for many people,  sales is still perceived as a shady business. But what is the end goal?

• Educate our market
• Provide better service
• Assist our clients to meet their goals
• Find new clients that need our help

What if we position what we feel is best for others by focusing on the goal that would benefit them, the end game, and then stand back to watch how they use their knowledge, talents, and drive to reach that end game? Perhaps we may learn new ways to catch a fish...