Make your mom proud of you this
She is counting on you!
Katherine and Dan
Career Planning
Graduation Celebration: What if you don’t have a job yet?
Sure, we know. Your folks are on you back. You know you screwed up. You should have nailed down that job before school ended but you didn’t. Now what?
Actually I did the same thing when I graduated from college a million years ago. I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do with my history degree from Northwestern University. My parents understood but I knew they wanted me to get started with my life.
Don’t panic! Enjoy the party then finish up closing up last minute details.
Then get down to business. The job search business. Be prepared to devote at least 8 hours a day to your new job, finding a new job.
Be clear about what you want. I had to figure out how to use my history degree to create a career. Saying “I will do anything” will not work. Be specific about something.
Find the people that do what you want to do and talk to them. Connect with those people on LinkedIn and reach out to have coffee. Have lots of coffee as you meet people who do what you want to do or can introduce you to people who do the work you want to do.
Find companies that employ people who do what you want to do. Find them on LinkedIn and by asking people for names of other people you should meet.
This kind of activity is called “networking”. Do it often. Finding a job is a question of numbers. You have to talk to a lot of people to find the job you want.
In the long shot category are techniques that many recent college graduates depend on:
- Entry level jobs are often posted in job ads. Spend a little time each day looking for ads in your field and send in your resume. Although the odds are against you, it is still a possibility. Just don’t depend on ads.
- College career centers sometimes can be helpful but don’t count on it.
- Stay in touch with professors in your major. That is another longshot but still worth doing with a bit of your time.
We are describing a solid job search. This is hard work but eventually this method will work. It worked with me a million years ago. It works for experienced job seekers today. It will work for you too!
In the meantime, congratulations!!
What will you find if you Google yourself?
The other day I had a meeting with a fellow we will call Jose who wants to help us with an aspect of our marketing. When I got there he had opened a screen on his computer with my name. He Googled me!
I started sweating a little because I have not Googled myself recently. Here is what Jose found:
On the right side of the screen in a little box is my name, picture, my business tag line, that I attended Northwestern University and live in Canton, OH and my phone numbers and email addresses. I was horrified to discover some confidential information listed there too. Must fix that.
On the left is a list of places with information about me. My LinkedIn profile is at the very top. That makes sense because I use LinkedIn all the time. Then we find some pictures of me from various places – my publicity photos and photos of some people who are closely aligned to me like my business partner Dan Toussant and my business coach and friend Sherry Greenleaf. That makes sense.
Included in the pictures was a real surprise. There is another woman with the last name Burik who goes by Kathy. Isn’t that funny? I haven’t been called Kathy since college. I pulled up her profile and saw she lives in Erie PA. I made a note to connect with her just because.
The next listings are my Amazon author’s profile, my Pinterest account (surprising since I don’t use Pinterest much), a few slide presentations I posted, my Facebook account, and finally some blogs I wrote recently. The last listing on the first page is the link to our books, The Job Seeker Manifesto. Great! I am glad that is on the first page.
So what happens if we are not pleased about what Google says about us? A friend was haunted for years when details of his messy divorce appeared on Google. I do not want certain confidential information to be revealed.
So I Googled the answer to this question to share with you!
- Go to Google support “Manager your online reputation”: This support site contains instructions on how to remove unwanted content and control what people see. Check out the section on “Remove unwanted content and the associated search results” for instruction on how to remove personal information from Google.
- Fix social media profile information: Most of the details listed in Google come from the profile information you have listed in your various social media. If that information is correct then you have no problem. But if that information is not correct or for some reason includes too many details then you have a problem.
Go to each social media site and double check to be sure your profile shows only the information you want to share. Edit the information until you are satisfied. Then Google yourself again to see what changed.
- Double check Google-related products: The confidential information I did not want revealed was picked up on my Google+ profile. When I opened Google+ I saw that information clear as day in the “contact” section. It took me a while but I finally saw the little pencil at the top that allowed me to edit the contacts. I went in and erased the offending information. When I Googled myself again, it was gone. Thank goodness.
- Make your name unique: If you have a common name, consider including a middle initial so people Googling you will differentiate you from the other John Jones’ in the world. This will reduce the incidents of getting mixed up with another John Jones who might have a less than sterling reputation.
- Consider setting up a website with your name: It is not hard to set up a simple website plus it is a good way to include information about yourself that you want other people to see.
- Create a Google+ profile: You can customize your Google+ profile with your picture and other information that you want other people to see. You can post comments and blogs here. It is also a great place to network and connect with other people.
- Get notified when your personal data appears on the web: Google support gives the instructions on how to get notified when your personal data appear on the web. This can be useful for reputation management and for job seekers who want to track who is checking them out.
Let me know what outrageous information you find when you Google yourself!!
Happy Tax Day!
It is TAX DAY!!! Yipee!!!
Has she gone crazy? What is up with the exclamation points? These are taxes after all.
Everyone has a different perspective about taxes. My husband views taxes as some sort of theft but I do not agree. As with most things I have a contrary view! I don’t mind paying my taxes. Really, I don’t!
Here are five reasons why I love tax day:
- Assembling my tax filing forces me to put my house in order. I don’t keep track of every penny during the year. But assembling my taxes forces me to update my Quicken and QuickBooks and reconcile my checking accounts. When would I do that if I didn’t have a line in the sand date to focus on?
- I get to look back to see how close I came to my annual projections. Did I really spend that much on books? Ooops. My bad.
- I look forward to be sure my budgeting and spending reflects my goals. This gives me a chance to reinforce the goals I set at New Years and perhaps readjust my expectations or my spending.
- I feel like a part of the community. I am a member of my community, my township, my state, and my country. My taxes make my membership real. I feel like I belong.
- I feel like I contribute to the greater good. My small contribution is combined with other small contributions to turn into schools, roads, and services that help everyone grow stronger.
Adam Smith, the father of modern capitalism, outlined in his book, The Wealth of Nations, the idea that taxes promote an equitable, stable society. Taxes are the solid foundation that supports services that individuals cannot provide efficiently for themselves. It doesn’t make sense to ask me to maintain the road in front of my house. It is much more sensible to ask everyone in the community to pony up to support the services that everyone can use to learn, grow and support their families.
So today we celebrate TAX DAY! We revel in the opportunity to join together as Americans to support a healthy, stable prosperous community. YIPEE!!!
Say Good-Bye so you can say Hello to New Job Opportunities
We lost our dog, Rusty, last week. He was a dear friend for 14 years but it was his time to go. We will miss him dreadfully. As I go through all those familiar stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, sadness and finally acceptance) it occurs to me that I’ve been here before. I have lost both parents, some close friends and two dear pets, both long time members of the family. But I have felt this familiar feeling outside of death.
It occurs to me that we feel the same kind of grief and go through the same stages when we lose a job, particularly a job we have had for a number of years.
We get comfortable. We know the patterns, the people, the expectations with a job in just the same way I knew Rusty’s every look, every bark, and every gesture. I was comfortable. I loved that dog.
I have loved the people I worked with at many of the companies I’ve worked with. When I left those companies I felt alternately angry or sad until finally I achieved acceptance. I grieved for the lost job in almost the same way I am grieving for my lost friend Rusty.
Some people find it harder than others to reach acceptance about losing a job.
Recently I worked with a fellow out of work for six months. We will call him Brad. He had a great experience at his former company. He was with them for 29 years, almost unheard of these days. He knew every product, every person, and every customer. Brad was happy there… until he was no longer there. Now what? Brad is still mad. He desperately misses his friends. He doesn’t know what to do next.
Brad is grieving. Until he puts his grief in its proper place he cannot move on. It makes sense now why he can’t find a job. Grief, like anger, comes out of your pores like garlic. Brad must deal with his grief before he can move on to his next position.
Here is what I suggested. This might sound silly but bear with me. I suggested Brad collect some pictures or mementos from his past position, particularly some with the company name on them. Take them outside and put them in a large metal wastebasket or in his grill and set them on fire!! You heard me! Set them on fire while yelling at the top of your lungs all the reasons why you are mad. When it is all out of your system and the fire dies down, say good-bye softly. Shed a tear if you want. Then safely dispose of the ashes as mulch in your yard so the ashes of your former life can nurture something fresh and new.
It is time for Brad to look at life with new eyes, a new perspective. Then he can attack his job search with gusto!
After Rusty died my husband, Kermit, and I came home and opened a bottle of our best red wine, a bottle we’ve been saving for a super special celebration. We drank a toast to our lost friend, shed a few tears and shared stories of Rusty’s ornery antics. On the weekend we will have a party to celebrate old friends and a new perspective as we move on to take on life with new eyes.