Category Archives: Promotions

Why superman would lose his job today in a layoff

Posted on March 20, 2013 | Leave a comment

Superman would be fired today. As a matter of fact, Superman is the target for layoffs in many jobs. In today’s business environment there are times your job cannot be saved, especially if you are superior.

Peter was a highly skilled and paid IBM mainframe computer systems administrator.  EDS asked him to become a Unix computer expert. He took the courses and started gaining experience.  Nine months later he was laid off.  EDS decided they could hire a kid out of college for half of what they were paying him.  His high level IBM mainframe skills were not needed in Harrisburg.  EDS paid him well for 20 years, they didn’t figure they owed him anything.  Peter was “laid off” for following the career plan his company suggested.

There are 3 basic reasons one person is laid off and their coworker is not.

  1. You made too many mistakes. You were really fired for cause.
  2. You had fewer skills or less seniority.
  3. You were incredibly skilled, but too overpaid for the new role they needed filled.

Most people see number one or two coming.  They consider them fair even if it hurts horribly to lose a job.  Number three is the toughest one.  You are fired for your excellence.  Someone cheaper and less skilled is kept.  It feels wrong, but from a business point of view, it may be essential.  You can’t overpay to get a job done and stay in business.

Never lose sight of what exactly you are doing for your company TODAY.  If technology or cheap labor is turning your job into a commodity, start major retraining today.  As a matter of fact, never stop retraining and improving your skills.  It may seem like a lot of work, but if you are being paid more than $10 an hour, there is already someone else offering to do your job for less.  Make sure a cheap worker doesn’t have the skills to replace you.

Something to do today

If you have survived layoffs in the past, figure out why.  If you have received substantial raises or no raises recently, make sure you are still a keeper.

And as a thought about finding your next job:

There are three kinds of death in this world. There’s heart death, there’s brain death, and there’s being off the network. (Guy Almes)

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Later: 20 second interview prime time

Should I trust an HR recruiter?

Should I trust an agency recruiter?

You can learn from spammers, but don’t spam

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Posted in Economy, Promotions, Quitting or Fired, Raises, talent

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Are you too stinkin’ meek?

Posted on March 7, 2013 | Leave a comment

Are you too stinkin’ meek to get a job, a raise, or a promotion?

One PhD student conceived, executed and documented an experiment that was amazing. He also finished several other lesser experiments.  A week later the professor who supervised his PhD program came back from a trip and said, “You’ve come up with some wonderful results here.  Why don’t you publish most of these experiments in your dissertation, and I will publish this one as my own.  Don’t worry, you will get a footnote for your work.”  The student decided to be what he thought was “meek”.  He let the professor steal his work.  The professor got a Nobel Prize.  The student got a footnote. He resented it the rest of his life.  He became a respected professor of Physics, but never got a Nobel Prize.

Let’s redefine meek.  Meek does not have to mean you let others take advantage of you.  It does not mean you refuse to stand up for yourself.  Meek is not afraid, shy, scared or worried. Jesus Christ was called meek but he used a whip to clear the temple.

One definition of meek includes, “seemly and forbearing…yet strong enough to resist aggression.”

My definition:

Meek: someone who knows his place.

I don’t think scared, quiet, shy, and reclusive is meek. It is “crushed” instead of meek.  The “crushed” who do not believe in themselves will not inherit the earth.

The meek person who knows and fills his place WILL inherit the earth.  A King, CEO,  Senior Secretary or Mechanic who knows his value can be meek well paid and rewarded. If you know your place and capabilities, you will not accept less than you should.  If you know your place and value, you will expect and demand to be recognized and rewarded.

Be meek.  Find your place.  Fulfill it.  Accept nothing less than you deserve.  Don’t expect to be a Nobel Prize winner if you haven’t done the work.  Don’t accept being a footnote in a paper you wrote.  Be the author.  Be what you are.

Something to do today

Ask a spouse, friend or coworker if you undervalue or overvalue your own work.  Then just listen and thank them. Don’t attack them or defend yourself.  Just listen and say, “Thank you.”  Be meek. Your job is to listen.

 

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Later:             How to quit

The old boy network

Exploit the old boys

The money question

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Posted in Attitude, Interviews, Negotiating, Promotions, Quitting or Fired, Raises

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You should plan your career advancement like a 50 mile hike

Posted on February 15, 2013 | Leave a comment

Boys will be boys, and so will a lot of middle-aged men. (Kin Hubbard)

Boys on a 50 mile hike

2 1/2 pounds of trail mix per boy each day for a total of 90 pounds.  3 packages of hamburger helper for one meal for 6 boys.  Oatmeal every day for breakfast for 6 days on the trail.  Coyotes, raccoons, elk and a 20 acre meadow of ripe blueberries. It was a great adventure.  By the end the boys learned they had taken way too much trail mix and hamburger helper.  They also stopped liking banana flavored oatmeal.  They planned, saw, did and learned things they would never have known about without that 50 mile hike. Later most of the boys did 70 and 100 mile hikes. On the later hikes they carried less weight and had even more fun.

Job hunting

If you want to constantly move up you have to stop looking at your job search as an occasional sprint.  It has to become a planned excursion.  It may become a safari.

Job hunting does not get any easier at the next level up. When you get better at what you do, it takes longer.  The number of jobs decrease and the number of good people looking for the great jobs increases as you move up.  Moving laterally isn’t hard.  Moving up is hard.  Getting a promotion is tough.  Beating the 20 other people who want to be raised to Executive Vice President or be the highest paid technician in the company is very hard.

It takes one month of job searching for every $15,000 of salary in today’s market. That’s how hard it is to advance.  That is how much harder it gets later.

If you start now and decide to LEARN while you search for a job, you’ll do better next time.  You need to study and try different ideas.  Find out what works for you and what flops.  Everyone is different.  There is no reason for you to do things exactly the same as someone else.

My boys started out with 2 mile, 10 mile and then 20 mile hikes.  They got better, but kept learning.  The 50 and 100 mile hikes were a lot of work, but not as painful as the 20 mile hikes.  Your job searches may get longer, but they don’t have to be as difficult as your current one if you keep on learning.

Something to do today

Go to your job journal.  List your employment dates so far.  Also list your promotions.  You will probably see a pattern.  If the new jobs or promotions stopped, was it really your idea or did you just stop advancing?  Write down how quickly you really can earn that next 3 raises, promotions or jobs.  You may want to set up a personal progress program.

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Later:                         Was that bear scat?

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Posted in Finding jobs, Networking, Perseverance, Promotions

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How to demand more money and get it at your current job

Posted on February 11, 2013 | Leave a comment

A great article on exactly what you need to do to get a pay raise without waiting for your annual review.

read more here to get a raise.

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Posted in Promotions, Raises

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2 ways to get more vacation at your current job

Posted on February 8, 2013 | Leave a comment

Why doesn’t anyone ever get more vacation than they are scheduled for in their current job?  Yet some folks come in their first day with more vacation than folks who were there 8 years.

One reason is that very few people ask.  Even fewer ask it in the right way. Here are 2 ways to ask for more vacation that might actually get it for you.

The easy way

Ask your boss a month before you are due to get your next raise. Let your boss know that you are willing to give up part or all of your raise to get another week vacation.  A week’s vacation is the equivalent of a 2-3% raise.  If you are pretty sure you are not going to get a raise anyway, this is a great way to do it.

The hard way

A month before your next performance review, put together a great performance review package about yourself.  Put down all the ways and times you exceeded expectations, saved money, saved a customer, came in under budget, got done early, stayed late, trained someone, etc..  I assure you that he forgot more than half of what you did, so remind him.

Then call a recruiter and ask if there are any companies in the area that give someone like you an extra week vacation.  He will probably say, “Some do, do you want a job?”  Tell him, “Not now, but thank you.”

Then talk to your boss and say exactly this, “A recruiter was talking to me. He said that some companies in this area are offering more vacation than I am getting.  You have the performance review materials I gave you.  In addition to a raise, I would like another week of vacation.”

Notice that you do not say YOU called the recruiter.  That doesn’t matter. So if your boss asks if you called a recruiter say, “A recruiter was talking to ME.”  If he pushes it, sure you can tell him you called.  That isn’t real important, but I would avoid it if possible.

Now go see if you can get that vacation.

Something to do today

Find out from your HR department what your full benefits package is worth.  You need to know vacation days, personal days, sick days, pension contributions, 401K matching, their healthcare costs and what exactly is your contribution to healthcare.  You can add your salary, bonuses and expense allowances to the list.  You may be surprised at the cost of your benefits, and it will be a great thing to know when asking for more vacation.

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Later:                         Moth traps

                                    Slitting your throat with your own teeth

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Posted in Promotions, Raises

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3 things that prove you have to be hired

Posted on January 16, 2013 | Leave a comment

Great women are not considered so because of personal achievements, but for the effect their efforts have had on the lives of countless others. From daring feats of bravery to the understated ways of a compassionate heart, great women possess a common strength of character. Through their passion and persistence, they have advanced womanhood and the world. (Peggy Anderson)

Want to get hired?  Prove you are great.

Employers look at resumes for three things to do the initial screening for greatness:

  1. Basic job skills
  2. What you have accomplished
  3. What you caused others to accomplish

Basic job skills have to be easy to find on your resume.  Prove you can type, program in VB.Net, sell, do accounting or design widgets.  Make it so those skills will not be missed by a receptionist who has 100 resumes to plow through.

What you have accomplished is often harder to come up with.

What you caused others to accomplish is even harder to remember and very hard to prove.

My opening quote gives a great suggestion, figure out the effect you had on others.  Keep track of people you have trained, processes you speeded up and money you saved.  It will set you apart.  Most people won’t track those things because they are taught to be “humble”.  There is nothing wrong with reporting how well you do your job.  Correctly convincing an employer to hire you because you will make him more money is a great idea.  Don’t shy away from proving what you are worth.

The people, teams and companies you have helped are a great indicator of just how great you are.  Accept it and take advantage of it.

Something to do today

If you have not started a job journal, today is a good day to do it.  Start tracking all the people you help.  Keep a tally sheet with the number of people who drop by and ask for help each day.  Figure out how you make the workplace better.  Track it and report it.

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Later:               Oil drums on the horizon

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Posted in Accomplishments, Promotions, References, talent

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Use these 4 guerilla tactics to get promoted or a raise

Posted on January 8, 2013 | Leave a comment

Getting a raise or getting promoted is hard if no one notices what you do.  Guerilla tactics for quick advancements have to get you noticed in a nice way.  First a story, then the tactics.

Bill was one of the original guerilla advertisers.  Two decades ago he had a product that no one had in a PC.  Now every PC has one.  His company went from obscurity to a major buyout.  A lot of that happened because Bill and his partner figured out how to take the spotlight and become the talk of the town.  They also had very good technology.

We have been in contact for 4 or 5 years now.  His fortunes changed dramatically.  The buyout is over.  The money went into investments that didn’t work out. He spent the last couple few years learning new skills.  He started over at entry level and rose to team lead quickly.  Now he has broken into the big time. Again. When he was broke.  Again.

It is easy to break into the big time if you have a lot of money.  People come to you.  Bill wasn’t in that position. So what could he do?

We ended up talking about his original guerilla marketing.  At that time they had no budget for marketing.  He had to get the spotlight to shine on their product without paying for it.  So they did talk shows, magazine articles, press releases, trade association presentations and keynote addresses.  They even put together almost complete reviews of their products so that magazine writers wouldn’t have to work hard.

Bill did that same type of thing again.  He is attracte the change he wanted to see in his life.   He isn’t chasing change, he puts on pheromones and lets change chase him.

All successful employers are stalking men who will do the unusual, men who think, men who attract attention by performing more than is expected of them. (Charles M. Schwab)

You can do the same type of guerilla self-promotion.  You can attract change.  Here’s how:

  1. Write your own reviews
  2. Become an expert
  3. Become KNOWN as an expert
  4. Get published

First off, be sure and write your own reviews for your boss.  On a weekly monthly, quarterly and annual basis you need to give your boss a glowing review.  A simple report stating the wonderful things you did each week will help him.  He can’t pay attention to everything you do.  That weekly report and more summaries will make sure that he knows how much you are worth.  Write your own reviews.

You can become an expert.  Start studying the area you want to be an expert in.  One hour a day will make you a reference source in a month.  In 3 months you will be an expert.

Find out how you can become known as the expert.  Offer to teach a class, write a memo or attend a planning meeting.  Brief the managers above you in your area of expertise.  You can do it informally.  Talk to them before a meeting starts. The others coming to the meeting will hear some of it.  Catch him in the hall and give him a one minute tidbit.

You can also write articles about what you have learned.  Offer them to the office newsletter editor.  Don’t be afraid, offer them to the local newspaper, online magazines and trade magazines.  Publishers desperately need interesting articles.  When you get published make sure and give all your bosses a copy of the article.

My son was published in online programming magazines before he left for college.  They needed good articles and didn’t care about his youth and lack of experience.

Figure out how to become an expert and you will be surprised how quickly your prospects change.  You can become a technical consultant or a manager.

Put on the pheromones of knowledge and the aura of expertise. Attract change in your career.

Something to do today

Figure out what is worth becoming an expert about.  Ask your bosses and other experts in your field where they see it going.  You’ll be surprised how many people you are in awe of will talk with you about where they see the brightest future.

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Later:               Google to disaster

That loud sucking sound

How to tell who is great

55 gallon oil drums on the horizon

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Posted in Accomplishments, Promotions, Raises

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3 ways to find out if you are underpaid

Posted on January 7, 2013 | Leave a comment

I got a call from three business analysts from one international company in the same month.  Each of them wanted to leave.  The first thing cited was their low salary.  When I said, “You can get a different job, but you will have to take at least a $10,000 per year pay cut,” they backed off.  It was the awful truth. Each one of them had golden handcuffs.  They were earning at least 15% more than any other local business would pay them. Of course the problem wasn’t their low pay, the problem was the unpaid overtime they were putting in.  At least they thought it was unpaid until they found out the pay cut they would have to take to move elsewhere.

Contract employees often tell me, “I want a salaried job, but I’m not going to accept less than I’m earning now.”  They want to stop traveling, have health insurance, a generous training allowance, and get into a secure job with a future in one company.  Yet, they want to be paid the same as when they had none of those things.  Contract employees often earn twice what a salaried employee earns.  It is for the simple fact that contractors have to take care of themselves.

Certainly some are vastly underpaid.  I had one friend, Joe, who went from $35,000 per year to $50,000 per year in one salary jump because he was underpaid.  Yes, it happens.  More often employees are within 5% of the market rate for their job.  If an employer pays less, they start losing people.  Either they raise salaries or I come in and steal all of their best people.  Then they are left with a bunch really poor employees and maybe one great person who hasn’t found out yet.  When that great employee leaves, the company may go out of business.

To find out if you are really underpaid, first look at your performance. Only superstars get superstar salaries. If you are just average, you should expect average wages.  If you are below average, your wages will be lower.

Now do what Joe did, ask your coworkers how much they are paid, if you can.  Joe didn’t do it for 5 years.  When he finally asked, he asked workers he knew were lower rated than he was.  When he found they were all earning more than he was, he had a right to get mad and get it fixed.

You can also look in the employment ads.  Just remember that ads lie.  A range of $50,000 to $60,000 does not mean you magically qualify for the high end.  It means if you are a superstar you may hit the high end.  It means an average worker will get the bottom number.  A poor worker will not get hired.

Next, put together your resume and send it to a recruiter who specializes in placing folks like you.  Ask for an honest opinion, “Can I expect a raise going to my next job?”  Follow that up with, “How is my current pay compared to others doing the same job?”  If the recruiter gasps and says, “I will have you three interviews tomorrow,” you are drastically underpaid.  If he says, “It will take a while, but I may be able to find you a job,” your pay is within 5% of the norm or possibly high.

The ways to find out if you REALLY are underpaid are:

  1. Ask coworkers rated lower than you are, “What do they pay you?”
  2. Look at job ads.
  3. Get a great resume to a recruiter and see how he reacts.

Find out where you stand, but be prepared for the “bad news” that you are paid about what you should be paid.  If you get the “bad news”, fix it.  Do the better work that will get you a raise, or get a job with a brighter future.

Folks who never do any more than they are paid for, never get paid more than they do.  (Elbert Hubbard)

Something to do today

Do you have the guts to find out if you are being paid fairly?  Then do it.

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Later:               Attracting change

Google to disaster

That loud sucking sound

How to tell who is great

55 gallon oil drums on the horizon

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Posted in Negotiating, Promotions, Raises, Recruiters

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How to prepare your boss to promote you

Posted on January 4, 2013 | Leave a comment

Prepare yourself for the world, as the athletes used to do for their exercise, oil your mind and your manners, to give them the necessary suppleness and flexibility, strength alone will not do.  (Earl of Chesterfield)

Julie called my office.  She wants a promotion.  I’m a recruiter, it’s my job to help her find that promotion in a new company.  I hate to have someone turn down a job because their boss makes them a counter offer they can’t refuse. So, I asked her, “How often do you tell your boss you want a promotion?”

“I told him at my last performance review.”

“How long ago was that?”

“It has been over a year.  We’re so busy the managers just can’t find time to do them.”

She’s a superstar performer going nowhere.  When the office is jumping with activity for months at a time, no one counts her performance as exceptional.  They just know she isn’t any trouble.

So, I suggested she declare her candidacy in a way that makes her an obvious choice for that promotion. It will also make it easier to find a new job with a promotion.  First Julie needs to invite a few of her bosses out to lunch.  She needs to let them know she wants the promotion.  She needs to find a mentor.  Then she needs to get a plan put together with her mentor’s help.  She needs to prepare for promotion.

Deciding who to promote in an office of heads down hard workers is tough.  There is no standout leader.   No one has already taken the helm.  However, in an office with a bunch of hard workers, one of whom has been working with the boss to develop leadership skills for a year, which will get promoted?  Obviously the boss’s protégé.  The person who has declared themselves for the job.

Julie may need to take a bookkeeping course, sales training, management classes and take the lead in 5 or 10 projects.  What she needs can be determined with her mentor.  As she does these things, she will be seen as the obvious choice for a promotion.  Her bosses and her coworkers will both see she is the obvious choice for promotion.

If you want to be promoted ask one of your bosses to help you prepare now.  Find a mentor.

Something to do today

Invite your boss or his boss to lunch.  Ask him to mentor you and help you get ready for a promotion.

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Later:               You are underpaid, right?

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Posted in management, Promotions, Raises

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The best place to look for jobs or promotions

Posted on December 6, 2012 | Leave a comment

When I was a child I tried fishing in the water puddle in front of our house.  When the sun dried it up I could see there were no fish there.

At college I saw a video of a man fishing in one of the larger fountains there.  When people asked how the fishing was, he pulled up a nice string of large trout.  That made for interesting conversations, but no one believed him.  They could see there were no trout in that clear fountain water.

On a Scout outing John and I were lying on a creek bank and looking down into the water.  We could see 3 nice trout in the tree roots.  When a fisherman came by we asked how he was doing.  Only one fish so far.  John told the man to cast his lure at the tree root.  In a dozen casts the man caught all three fish.

To catch fish you have to cast your lure where the fish are.

This applies to new jobs and promotions

A recruiter can be that kid lying on the bank of the creek looking into the water.  He says “Cast your resume over here and you’ll get a job.”  He knows where the jobs are.

Ask your friends and acquaintances who is hiring.  They may have a good idea where to go. Look at the financial news stories and find out what industries are “going public” in the stock market.  Ask what companies are growing the fastest and look for a job in that industry.

Your mentor at work will tell you, “Volunteer for that project.  It has great visibility.  Avoid Jill Montoya, she’s poison.”  The mentor knows where the rewards and pitfalls are hidden.

Always be looking to the future.  Where are the jobs being created?  What do you need to learn to be in a high demand field?

Fish where the fish are.  You’ll have better luck.

Something to do today

Ask the people you respect most in your profession where the jobs are and where the industry is going.

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Later:              Mirrored windows

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Posted in Finding jobs, Focus, Promotions

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