Category Archives: talent

How much can you make proving your attitude on your resume?

Posted on July 5, 2012 | Leave a comment

Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it, for that determines our success or failure.  The way you think about a fact may defeat you before you ever do anything about it. You are overcome by the fact because you think you are.  (Norman Vincent Peale)

How much can you make from the attitude on your resume?

Many people earning over $150,000 each year cannot do the jobs of the people they supervise.  One of the reasons they are paid so much is that they can change the attitude of everyone who works for them. Creating the right attitude is so essential they may hire consultants, psychologists, and motivational speakers.  If you can help those higher level managers to create the right attitude, they’ll hire you.  You might even get that $150,000 job.

Prove your attitude

People who love their job prove it every day.  They volunteer to help, come in early and leave late.  Some people get involved in associations, online help forums, and job networks because they enjoy their job so much.  I’ve given college recruiting seminars because I wanted to tell others about my great job.  Put on your resume how you have shared your enthusiasm and knowledge with others.

If you have a great attitude you can think of several “proud moments” at work.  I still brag about the time I set a new production record for putting herbal powders in gelatin capsules.  It was a smelly unpleasant job where I loved breaking records. My setting those records got everyone else’s competitive spirit up and production soared.

At another job I remember finishing 4 months of being on-call for a new computer system.  I stayed up every night and babysat the system.  I helped bring the nightly problems from 10 or 15 down to 2 or 3 per night.  I’m proud of what I did.

Those are accomplishments that get you hired even if they don’t apply to the job you want to get.  They show a great attitude.

Go back through the jobs you have had.  Prove you had a great attitude. On your resume put moments you were proud of: helping others to work faster, training beginners, being on-call, working extra hours, and going beyond the job requirements. Prove your attitude.  Put the proof on your resume.  Mention the proof interviews.  Prove that you really want to change things for the better.  That alone may get you hired.

Something To Do Today

Make sure your attitude is obvious on your resume.

Use this resume planner to figure out how.

————————–

Tomorrow:     Show ability

Later:              Show cost cutting and budget saving

Show increased revenue

Show better customer service

The Heisenberg uncertainty principle

Post-it notes

Leave a comment

Posted in Attitude, Resumes, talent

Tagged , ,

How to get rewarded or punished for suggestions

Posted on June 28, 2012 | Leave a comment

Steve points out problems in customer service and manufacturing and gets rewarded.  Tom has pointed out the same problems time after time and he gets poor performance reviews and has been put on probation once. The difference is in their approach.  Tom says to his supervisor, “I can’t believe anyone is so stupid that they let this happen.  What kind of idiots are running this company?”  His boss would have to be superhuman to take criticism like that without being offended.  Steve says, “I think we can save some time and money if we make this change. I’ll go talk to the supervisor in that other area and see if he thinks it makes sense.”

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes. But the half-wit remains a half-wit, and the emperor remains an emperor. (Neil Gaiman)

Do you put sand in the gears or grease?

It is the same problem seen from two different perspectives.  The situation happens in every department in every company.  One person complains, another makes suggestions to the right people and shepherds through the changes. One is rewarded and the other is ignored or possibly punished.

It really does come down to putting sand or grease in the gears of progress.  If you get a reputation for solving problems and cutting costs you will be rewarded.  If you keep track of the improvements you bring about, you will be rewarded more on this job and can use those improvements to help you get the next job.

Something To Do Today

Check to make sure that all the improvements you started are documented in your job journal.  Make sure and estimate how much money or time was saved or earned because of you.

Leave a comment

Posted in Accomplishments, Attitude, talent, Uncategorized

4 Technical Career Mistakes

Posted on June 4, 2012 | Leave a comment

These mistakes apply to IT, accounting, engineering, and other careers.

Here is the link.

Leave a comment

Posted in Promotions, Quitting or Fired, talent

Tagged

Are you just like this trumpet where you work? Or like the band teacher?

Posted on May 18, 2012 | Leave a comment

It was in my mother’s garage.  A trumpet.  We have no clue where it came from.  We took it to the band teacher who said, “That’s a nice old German trumpet.  It should be cleaned and fixed.” We still don’t know where it came from.

The trumpet may play beautiful music again. It only takes up space and makes noise until its value is accurately assessed.  Then a master appears and music dances in the air.

Two things about jobs to learn from this.

  1. You have skills that still are waiting to be discovered.  I don’t know what they are.  If something comes easily to you, if you see things others don’t, then you need to explore those skills and where they lead. Unexpected gifts should be tested and developed.
  2. Other people have great potential to fix the very problems you can’t get your arms around.  The person who can help may already work in your office.  They only need some training and an opportunity.  Give them that opportunity and you have changed their lives.  Plus, they’ll work cheap for a while.  Look around you for talents others are not using.  You don’t have to be a manager to help people develop skills.

Are you the trumpet or the band teacher who can spot a great trumpet?

Something To Do Today                                              

Take a fresh look at your personal skills.  What do you pick up most quickly?  What do you see or hear that others can’t fathom?

Also take a fresh look at the people around you.

————————–

Nest week:           Brass knuckles and the law (and resumes and interviews)

I only allow reality on my desk

Double your value, make more money

Surveys

Please discriminate against me

Leave a comment

Posted in Attitude, Promotions, talent

Tagged , , ,

Politics (is networking)

Posted on April 18, 2012 | Leave a comment

University politics are vicious precisely because the stakes are so small.  (Henry Kissinger)

You have to understand office politics to understand networking.  Here is an example.

“Don’t get Joe in the IT planning office upset.  He can delay any project by 6 months.  Now that I think of it, he can kill any project.  He’s politically connected to everyone in the company.”

Everyone, including the boss, who lets Joe “get away with it” think they are doing what is best for the company.  And they really may be.  Often you don’t see the power struggles at upper levels.  When someone becomes the traffic cop and decides which projects get done and which get delayed, it is because of their networking ability. They know how important each person and project is.  They know the alliances between leaders and departments.  They know who has the “golden” projects that take precedence over all else.  They know what combinations of projects are also essential.  These political “beasts” are the ultimate networkers.

CEO’s cannot take the time to make decisions on every project.  They tell others to make decisions.  Those people, in turn, tell others to make decisions.  Inevitably resources become scarce.  The scarce resources can be clerks, programmers, salespeople, floor space or money.  The person who controls the scarce resources becomes the center of a very strong network.  They have to bow to the will of many people, but control the projects of others.  They are often the most abused figure in a company.  Occasionally they are the most abusive, for a while.

There are several things to learn from these people.

  1. Controlling scarce resources gives you power
  2. Dealing with that power can get you entrenched, promoted or fired
  3. You always control one scarce resource, your time

The first two have just been discussed.  The third point is fodder for several more days. Politics may get ugly, petty and mean.  It may also preserve the company you work for.  Instead of avoiding politics, network.  Through building a network you will find out who to worry about and who to avoid. Politics always includes networking.  Networking can help you rise above petty politics.  Networking can help you get your projects done.

Something To Do Today

If you dare, ask around.  Find out who the political masters are.  Ask them to lunch and find out why they got their reputation and power.  You may be surprised at their attitude.  They may be visionary, vindictive, or both.

————————–

Tomorrow: Your scarcest resource

Later:  Short term rewards

What motivates me

Waiting for the “help wanted” sign

Leave a comment

Posted in Focus, Networking, Promotions, References, talent

Tagged , , ,

How to read a useful book

Posted on April 17, 2012 | Leave a comment

In school I always felt guilty if I skipped one sentence in a reading assignment. Books must be read in their entirety.  I got the message.  Too bad it was the wrong lesson.

In a college class I only needed to get two answers right on an extra credit test about a book to convert my grade to a solid “A”.  There were 10 questions.  I picked up the book and looked at the cover.  I realized I had heard a review of the book and its contrarian theme the week before.  I decided to take the test without ever opening the book.  I got 6 questions right. It was an easy “A”.

Did I cheat?  No!  I knew the author’s bias.  I knew what he would say about historical events.  I didn’t even need the “Cliff Notes” to get what I needed out of the book.  I only needed two correct test answers for an “A”.

There is a great deal of difference between an eager man who wants to read a book and the tired man who wants a book to read. (G.K. Chesterton)

You are out of school. Now you need to learn for a living.  You need to learn things that will help you financially.  You need to be effective and efficient. Your next pay raise depends on it.

Before you read a book, read the cover and intro.  Read the table of contents.  If you are not sure you will get much out of the book, read the first and last paragraph of each chapter.  Look at any charts or illustrations.  Go back and only read the chapters that you will learn the most from.  Don’t be afraid to use your time wisely.

Time is a precious commodity.  Every hour you spend learning about your career will pay off in the long run.  Spending those hours carefully will give you a much greater reward than slogging through books that aren’t really going to help you.

Something To Do Today

Make a list of books that will help your career.  Get the first one today.  Preview it.  Read the book, or the parts of it that you can learn from.

————————–

Tomorrow:     Politics (is networking)

Later:              Short term rewards

What motivates me

Waiting for the “help wanted” sign

Leave a comment

Posted in Promotions, talent, Time management, Training

Tagged , , ,

What is your portfolio?

Posted on April 11, 2012 | Leave a comment

…rejection without proof is the fundamental characteristic of Western science. (Gary Zukav)

 I recommended Ben for a job as a programmer.  He had been programming intensely for 6 years.  He had proof of his skills with C++.  He had produced a video game that was more complex than many in the stores at the time.  I was enthusiastic and said he was a junior, perfect for a 3 month programming job.  The hiring manager agreed to an interview.  I forgot (really just forgot) to mention he was a high school student, not a college student.  The manager, out of courtesy, let the interview go on anyway.  The portfolio (the game), the enthusiasm and knowledge of the kid were so great, that he was hired.  Let’s not forget he was cheap too.

How can a high school junior get a job as a college junior?  It took an enthusiastic mistake and a portfolio.  You can create your own enthusiasm.  See my post about motivating your friends to help. Don’t try to make a mistake, just capitalize on them.  The portfolio is not as easy as it looks.

Your portfolio is separate from your resume.  Your resume is a list of accomplishments. It is a list of what happened because you were at a job, a list of improvements.  Your portfolio is concrete examples of your output.  In marketing it is letters, brochures, ad campaigns and internet links.  In programming it is websites you created or programs that actually run, all with examples of your coding.  Graphics artists often carry a huge folder of their art with them.  Some leaders actually write a book about their performance and get it published.  A network technician can dial in to the five computers in his basement from the interviewer’s office. A writer should have documents he produced.

Put proof in an envelope, on a CD, or in an internet site.  Show what you have done.

Proof can flat out get you hired.  No question about it.  Can you prove what you have done?

Something To Do Today

Ask your boss what you could put in your portfolio that proves you deserve a raise.  Put together that portfolio and see if he gives you one.  If he doesn’t, show that portfolio to other employers and get a new job.

————————–

Coming next:     Blackmail your boss?

I just quit and my old boss wants me back!

Quit or be fired?

Leave a comment

Posted in Accomplishments, Attitude, Interviews, Resumes, talent

Tagged , , ,

How to motivate your friends to help you find a great job

Posted on March 29, 2012 | Leave a comment

Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with enthusiasm.  (Winston Churchill)

Would you recommend someone for a job if you were sure they would fail miserably?

Do you want to work with someone who is unable to deal with problems?

No one else does either.

On the other hand, it is fun working with someone who is trying to learn, who goes the extra mile on the job, and who wants to do what they have studied.

If you are excited by your possibilities, your friends will be also. That’s how you motivate your friends, be excited.  For example:

We place a lot of programmers in new jobs.  The ones who are so excited that they create programs in their spare time always find jobs.  It doesn’t matter if they ever went to college.  Their enthusiasm gets them jobs. They love programming.  Employers love them. Everyone who knows them is going to bat for them.  People they don’t know call them up to see if they can help them find a job.  Their enthusiasm is contagious.

On the other hand are programmers who took courses in programming in college.  They passed their courses. Programming doesn’t excite them. It’s just a job. If their college degree can’t get them a job in programming, they’ll never look at a computer again.  For them there is nothing exciting.  Their friends and contacts hear them complaining about the jobs they supposedly turned down.  There is no way they are going to get a strong recommendation for a job.  Sure enough, the job market stinks for them.

Motivate your friends.  Find out what is exciting about the jobs you are applying for.  Do the job for free for a charity.  If you are a computer technician, go looking for broken computers and tear them apart.  Put together a network in your basement. Offer to teach at your library or a nursing home.  Salesperson? Do what my partner did, became a charity “hit woman”.  Get the job of calling on businesses for donations.  You will talk to a lot of leaders of industry.  And guess what?  If you do a good job, they’ll be impressed.  Your friends, family and acquaintances will see what you are doing.  They’ll tell other people.

Be excited.  Do your job for free because you love it. Help others and demonstrate your love of your desired job.  You will motivate your friends and mere acquaintances to help you.

Something To Do Today  

Really evaluate how you have been acting.  Are you a member of the “beef and whine club”?   Find something you enjoy doing that is related to the job you want.  Do it with enthusiasm for free.

Leave a comment

Posted in Attitude, Finding jobs, Focus, Networking, Perseverance, References, talent

Tagged , , ,

Talent war heats up in Silicon Valley

Posted on March 27, 2012 | Leave a comment

Yes, talent wars are starting again.  See this article about Silicon Valley.

Are you prepared to be stolen away?  Programmers and accountants are being snatched everywhere.

Can you protect your teammates from being pilfered at a critical point in your project?

Leave a comment

Posted in Finding jobs, Networking, Quitting or Fired, Recruiters, talent, Uncategorized

Tagged , , ,

The war for talent is starting, it is getting ugly.

Posted on March 20, 2012 | Leave a comment

The talent war is starting up again.  I’ve been seeing it this month as I try to find highly qualified programmers and accountants.  Click here for an article about how it will destroy many teams and employers.

Leave a comment

Posted in Economy, Finding jobs, talent