Blog [ Original ]

Impromptu Speaking Can Affect Your Professional Impression

November 8, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

Imagine the situation.

You are invited to say a few words in support of a friend. A recommendation. You have some advanced notice. You think your friend is amazing so this should be easy. What do you do?

That was the scene recently at a workshop I attended. The facilitator asked three people to say a few words in support of her service. They went on and on and on, rambling all around the point without actually landing anywhere. I know the speakers meant well but I missed the point because they never made a point.

This was a failure on many levels. The speakers reflected poorly on themselves. Every time you open your mouth you give people a chance to evaluate you. Whatever recommendation the speakers wanted to make was lost, representing a lost opportunity for the facilitator.

When given the microphone, like anything in life you need a plan. Here are some tips to make the best impression next time:

Know what you want to say. Write it out to make sure you make the points you need.
Practice out loud. The words never come out of your mouth the way they are arranged in your head.
Know and respect your time limit. If you allowed to speak for five minutes don’t take ten minutes. It just makes you look unorganized and undermines your message.
Don’t repeat. Say what you want to say then sit down. You don’t reinforce your point through repetition; you just bore your listener.
Be sure your stories relate to the point you want to make. Stories for the sake of stories are just boring.
Seek help. Toastmasters International provides a safe environment to practice. And practice makes the perfect impression.

Actually these tips are appropriate for anyone who has to talk off the cuff regularly. For anyone this can be terrifying. Practice, practice, practice!

Get the confidence you need with a FREE copy of The Interview Doctor’s “Job Requirements Comparison List” and prepare yourself to prove with evidence that you can do the job!

Passive Recruiting is Proactive Recruiting

November 4, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

You have an important opening on your team.

Maybe you need a specialized chemist to work on an important R&D project. Maybe like one of my clients, you need a sales person who is a hunter, the sales person who lives for the kill then moves on to find the next opportunity. This is not a person who loves to talk with existing clients and respond to their every need.

You have a few options.

The traditional recruiting method is to advertise. Maybe the right person is checking job ads that day and sees your ad. Great!

This reactive method of recruiting attracts active candidates.

But what happens if your ideal candidate, the one with the elusive skill set that will make the difference between success and failure, is NOT checking the job ads at that moment you have a need?

You can either make do with the best of whoever responds to the ad or you can try something different. You can reach out to candidates who fit your ideal profile who might not be looking for a job right now. These are called “Passive Candidates”.

Passive candidates are not actively seeing a new job but are open to the idea if you talk with them. 79% of US workers are passive candidates these days. Your ad misses them completely.

Passive candidates are best qualified for the skill set you seek. You have less competition for their attention because they are not looking for a job right now. Research shows passive candidates stay longer and produce better results.

Not to knock candidates actively seeking work but why are you ignoring this high quality source of talent for your candidate pool?

Here are four questions to ask yourself before embarking on a proactive method of recruiting to attract passive candidates:

What can you offer that makes your organization different?

Passive candidates have to be motivated by something in your organization. Otherwise why leave their current role? Can you offer a better fit for their skill set, more challenging work, greater opportunities for advancement, maybe a better work / life balance or better pay or benefits?

You need to know what makes your organization difference so you can have a meaningful conversation with passive candidates.

Which positions are appropriate for a proactive form of recruiting? Consider positions with very specific skills where it is hard to find qualified candidates or positions where you have multiple incumbents.

What knowledge, skills and abilities does your ideal candidate have?

Where do these folks hang out? Are they likely to be found in certain places on social media or have specific interests where they gather? Do these passive candidates know anyone already working in your organization?

Consider whether your current method of recruiting meets your business needs or whether you are open to finding passive candidates.

To view this video, or to view other videos featuring other strategic job search tips and tools from The Interview Doctor click here.

Resisting the High-Tech Work World

November 1, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

Perhaps you know my cranky Uncle Frank.

He hates technology, constantly railing against social media. He can’t operate a smart phone. Don’t get him started about texting. He still has an AOL email address!

In actuality, Uncle Frank can be any age. But technology is here to stay. We all must have a working knowledge of technology to be relevant in the workforce today.

No LinkedIn profile? Then you must be old and uncomfortable with technology. An AOL email address? You must be ancient since everyone who is anyone has a Gmail account. Put a (C) after one phone number and a (H) after another phone number on your resume? Who does that anymore? Only old folks have landlines.

Stereotypes? Yes. Unfair? Maybe. But why get labeled?

We must learn to text so we can communicate with folks who communicate via text. That means we must learn to handle a smart phone without the aid of a twelve year old. We must be active in at least one social media venue. Pick one that younger people enjoy and you can stay relevant to them. If you are in business, it is very hard to find a job without a decent LinkedIn profile. Employers look at your social media footprint before hiring to assure themselves that you will fit in with their workforce. They draw conclusions about you based on your social media foot print.

If you want to fit in to the modern workplace you have to be up to date on technology. Stop resisting. Ask a younger person for advice. Get a smart phone and learn to use it. Practice texting until it becomes comfortable. Select a social media platform that sounds interesting and learn to use it to communicate with younger people. At work, participate in social media used by younger co-workers and get involved. Share ideas and information via social media to boost your credibility.

What are you doing to demonstrate you are relevant in a high-tech work world?

If you would like tips on a successful job search, check out a replay video of our recent job search training – it is free and has tons of job search tips in it.

Measuring Time in a Multi-Generation Workforce

October 28, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

Life’s Journey Magazine: The Dream Job – Happy Life Series

Our recent article in Life’s Journey Magazine the Dream Job – Happy Life series is “Measuring Time in a Multi-Generation Workforce“.

How old do you feel inside? Don’t think about birth- days, or your aches and pains, or your insecurities. Think about that person inside you; the one other people cannot see. How old is that version of you?

Right now I am about 28, on the inside.

I remember so clearly my first real job out of college. I was 22, cute as a button with long hair that ran to the middle of my back. I wondered how soon everyone around me would figure out I was a fraud, unqualified to sit in that chair. I felt about 14 inside, maybe 15, no matter that I was already married, a college graduate, and earning a real paycheck. Inside I felt like a kid pretending to be an adult.

My inner child grows a little older every year but not nearly as fast as I do.

Read the rest of the article here.

If you would like more tips on a successful job search, check out a replay video of our recent job search training – it is free and has tons of job search tips in it.

Different Ages Working Together

October 25, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

These days the typical workplace, maybe your current workplace, includes four or maybe five generations.

This is an unprecedented array of people working together. Talk about time in a bottle.

In the past, older generations might have stepped away from the workplace by this time. But people live longer these days. Older workers might not have the funds to stop working given the financial crises in the last 15 years. Increasingly people enjoy what they are doing and want to keep doing it. [i]

Some experts say that the timespan among generations will grow shorter as technology changes so quickly bringing new challenges and opportunities.

As I write this in a local coffee shop I see representatives of each of these generations behaving with more similarities than differences across time. Regardless of generation, people are drinking coffee, laughing, talking with friends, reading and working. All generations in one room figuring it out.

Odds are, like this coffee shop, your workplace will contain four or five generations. The vast size of the Millennial generation has pushed the median age of the working population in the US down to around 36.7, according to Jeanne C. Meister and Karie Willyerd in the 2020 Workplace.[ii]

The Millennials get all the attention these days like the Baby Boomers when they entered the workforce like an invading army. Odds are you work with or perhaps are supervised by someone younger than you. How does that make you feel?

How do we deal with the impact of time on the workforce and work relationships?

If my inner child is 28 and my boss (or daughter!) is 28 does that make it easier or harder to communicate?

What are you supposed to do if you are a job seeker whose 28 year old inner child is packaged inside a 58 year old body? Maybe like many Baby Boomers you are not ready to retire. But you feel out foxed and surrounded by aliens younger and more energetic than you.

We hear these kind of question from every age group, not just Boomers. The Gen Xer in his 40s sick of dealing with a 20-something boss who has different work habits. Or acknowledging that she HATES her life. These folks imagined a different outcome by their 40s. Twenty-something folks striking out on their own with the natural misgivings and fears of someone new to the game, not sure what to do next.

What do these multi-generation workers have in common? Apparently everyone feels vulnerable. Work is fast paced with a strong emphasis on technology. And yet everyone needs to work together. Seems like a problem worth exploring on this journey.

What do you think? Share your answers so we can all learn and grow!! After all, an engaged inner child reflects a fascinating person engaged in their workplace.

Get the confidence you need with a FREE copy of The Interview Doctor’s Job Requirements Comparison List and prepare yourself to prove with evidence that you can do the job!

References:

[i] https://www.geteverwise.com/mentoring/cross-generational-mentorship-why-age-should-be-no-object/

[ii] http://www.forbes.com/sites/rawnshah/2011/04/20/working-with-five-generations-in-the-workplace/#13b17fb3759f