My career management consulting colleagues and I have been comparing notes recently on workplace trends, issues and challenges.  A trenchant summary came from one client quote:

“The pressure is to drive productivity and assure quality.   At the same time, we need to stay attentive to the “soft stuff” with fewer resources, more job loss anxiety, steeper deliverables, while operating around the clock and around the world in virtual teams.  Something’s got to give.”

The obvious solution is more attention to leadership and engagement.  Yet, one of the biggest complaints we hear is that there is no time even to schedule regular one on one update, review, planning and development meetings with highly valued talent. Why?

• Multitasking on multiple platforms is the Standard Operating Procedure that limits time to plan, dream, or interact

• Many leaders, managers and employees are going on automatic through their day, defaulting into a task, check the box, transactional mode

• People display frustration and insecurity when they don’t have enough time to properly prepare, think, get or give information or feedback, leading to communication, confidence and trust gaps

And the irony here is that at a time we need leadership commitment to drive results, engage employees and increase morale and motivation, we risk draining our talent because:

• Teamwork, mentoring and feedback and leadership development suffer

• Overload and inadequate “touch” time bread misunderstandings, misaligned action, procrastination, risk aversion and inhibit collaboration and collegiality

• Talented and highly valued executives and managers too swamped to take advantage of development programs, organize off sites or meetings with career management consultants

If your to-do list is overloaded with transaction, and you and your people are suffering, whenever possible, put people and relationship as a priority in your schedule.

Here are five creative ways to schedule interaction by re-framing the time you think it will take:

1. Plan shorter and more frequent conversations
2. For anything that requires tone or nuance, wait, breathe, compose and then communicate by voice or in person
3. Use emails only for quick, factual, short transactions
4. Demonstrate concern and interest in others by really listening
5. Provide on the spot feedback and appreciation—it will go a long way

Have you thought about the impression you are making in your every day life?

How conscious are you in the elevator, talking with the receptionist or lobby guard, walking on the street or down the hall, answering the phone (particularly when distracted or in a hurry), or shooting off that quick email response?

Rarely will others tell you what they really are thinking about you. Yet, these brief encounters can create lasting influence.

It is in these unconscious micro moments that we create our personal and professional “know-ability”. Malcolm Gladwell, in his book Blink calls this phenomenon “slicing.” Others create inferences and conclusions about the most subtle body language and voice tone and then develop their own response to what they perceive quickly and unconsciously. These reactions lead the observer to experience feelings, conclusions, responses and reactions that we might do well to consider before we act.

Behavior that is consistent with your desired impact becomes increasingly important in today’s workplace.  Glass offices, crushing goals, long hours, the ever raising bar and demanding deliverables are the perfect storm for interpersonal sensitivities, reactivity, and abrupt shooting from the hip.  Brief, unpleasant encounters can provide long lasting reactions which include distrust, avoidance, and poor performance at a time when collaboration, innovation and engagement are critical to business success.

Tips and Tools

Here is a very simple five step way to make your own impression consistent and conscious.

I call this activity “Your Impression Ping”

1. First, think about the impression you want to create around you–how you want to be known, remembered, spoken about.
2. Write down 5-7 adjectives that you want others apply to you in every interaction, in a “slice”, when they talk about you to others, and particularly when there is intensity, change or conflict in the workplace.
3. Envision the behaviors that support these descriptors. How do you need to speak, act, interact to elicit your desired colleagues’ conclusion?
4. On one of those very convenient Post It notes, or in your to-do list, memo or note book, write down your adjectives. Some of my clients like to create a secret code word, anagram or mantra. Place your “Ping” someplace where you will see it several times a day.
5. Particularly when stretched, stressed, tired or busy, take a moment before reacting to “reset” your behavior in line with your desired impression.

Try it and let me know how it works for you!

Is Your Resume Working for You?

Writing a resume is still considered proforma and a primary job search tool.  Often, composing and distributing resumes is the first step in making a transition.

Most resume writers use well-established chronological plus achievement formats and distribute their resumes as a way of introducing themselves, to gain third party introductions, and in response to position postings.

Resumes are offered and often requested with the expectation that the reader will thoroughly review the resume and then grant you an interview, make an introduction to contacts, or provide information about appropriate opportunities.

And then…..the waiting starts.

Unfortunately, in many cases, instead doors opening, there is a silent slam.

What is actually happening with the many resumes out there?

Here is what busy executive search, hiring managers and human resources leaders tell me:

They skim the document to see if they know of or have a position right now that matches the writer’s background.  If they do, they respond.  If they do not, they might do any of the following:

• They take out a red pen and critique the resume (too long, too short, style easy/hard to read)
• They read the resume in detail and decide why not to meet, refer or interview the job seeker because there is no fit with existing and immediate positions
• They file the resume in the hope that someone may have a future need for the job seeker
• They might tell the writer that they are overqualified, under qualified, or make an observation about the tight job market
• They might not respond to the writer because they don’t want to give bad news

Or, they might forward the document to others who they think might have an interest in the writer’s background, and who will, most likely do one of the above.

Obviously, there is a mismatch here between expectations and results.

I call it “resume roulette”.

If your resume is opening doors to interviews and job opportunities, great!

If you are looking for other ways to create entree, consider these:

• Biography
• Targeted marketing piece
• Compelling on-line profile
• Fact sheet
• Self-marketing plan
• Portfolio

Details for these resume alternatives can be found in:

Leave Happy:  Making the Elegant Executive Transition.

Are you seeking meaningful work, and having difficulty finding a job where you can do it?

Daniel Pink, in his new book, Drive, helps us see a brighter workplace future, which he calls “Motivation 3.0”. In this world, we can bring innovation, enthusiasm and meaning to our companies and clients. While traditional, job centric (Motivation 2.0) workplaces drive employees with extrinsic motivators (security, financial rewards, structure), Pink envisions the workplace of the future that supports our intrinsic motivators, such as innovation, autonomy, mastery and purpose.

Work in Motivation 3.0 may reside in a job, but one with variable hours, flexibility, time to reflect and create. Motivation 3.0 is ripe for interim, independent workers and project-based engagements.

Why wait for the future? You can instill energy and excitement in your work, whether employed or seeking a new position by re-designing the “daily grind”. As a matter of fact, this mind shift will make you more valuable to organizations, before job specs are defined and additions to head count are made. You can craft, propose, and deliver projects that meet immediate, and unmet needs. You can remove yourself from the “waiting game” that is so frustrating and demeaning. And, you can leverage your strengths and growth potential paving the way for the future.

Some of my happiest clients have decided to stop waiting for things to get better. If they are in transition, they have found or proposed meaningful projects that keep them visible, active and fresh. If they are stalled out at work, they propose a role expansion that might include a global initiative or contribute to productivity or profit. Some are taking vocation vacations to explore new fields of interest. Yet others are doing volunteer work connected to their expertise, to enhance their relationships, or to experiment with something of interest. They express renewed energy and engagement which makes them more attractive in their present role, or as opportunities emerge. And their renewed enthusiasm and energy are attractive and noticed.

Create your next step by answering these questions:

• What matters to me?
• What is going on in my field/company/community that calls out for my talents and ideas?
• What do I uniquely do well that I enjoy?
• Who needs this expertise?
• Why do they need me?
• How can I connect to the stakeholders who can help me make it happen?

Now, create your work opportunities!

Need a career lift?  Try this:

Every day for two weeks (weekdays and weekends) list:

What you find satisfying that you want to do more of.  Note what makes it enjoyable or meaningful to you.

What you dislike and would like to do less of or stop doing.

What prevents you from doing what satisfies you.

What distracts or derails you.

Your day dreams.

After you have compiled this information, review it (perhaps with a career consultant or friend). Look for patterns of interests, your unrealized desires and the experiences and relationships you would like to diminish.

With your list in mind, you may find you can alter your present job or non-work life to make room for more positive activities or even build a new direction.

Want more ideas?  Go to www.notime4theories.com or Amazon and pick up a copy of The Portable Executive: High End Career Management.

Now that year end is completed and bonuses distributed and unemployment reports are looking more optimistic, you are most likely thinking about what you want to achieve in 2010.

These have been tough times to be thinking about getting ahead. Many of you may be thankful you have a job….but are building up a mountain of resentment because you are working harder, with fewer resources, for less money, in flatter organizations, with no “promises” or promotions to keep you motivated, other than an ongoing paycheck and health benefits to sustain you.

Yet, you see others getting ahead, despite the economy. You watch co-workers being tapped for advancement, called by recruiters, or offered big assignments and interesting projects.

What are they doing that you could as well?   They are not waiting for someone to notice.

Working hard and waiting to be recognized and promoted leads to a lot of output with little forward momentum, and eventually bitterness and poor morale. Believing that their contributions go unappreciated is one of the three main reasons people lose their drive or seek other positions. While it would be great if all managers were focusing on their employee engagement and advancement, in reality, getting promoted is the ambitious employee’s responsibility, particularly when resources are low and demands are high.

Achieving great results is only part of the advancement equation. Being unable or unwilling to consciously connect and self-promote is a major career limitation.

If no one knows you are contributing, then your efforts will go either unacknowledged or others will take the “credit”. If you get frustrated and then demand advancement and are perceived as pushy or competitive, you will be moved aside. Self-promotion is a delicate and critical career management skill which requires observation of how others get recognition, patience, persistence and a strong belief in your self.

The key is to build awareness with stakeholders, connectors and decision makers. This effort extends beyond doing your job. Strategic self-promotion requires a focus on articulating your value with decision makers in ways that they find compelling; understanding and addressing the linchpin issues; and cultivating positive buzz about what you do through your manager’s peers, your colleagues and reports. And in today’s volatile economy, you will benefit from being known beyond your own organization, as well.

So, if you want to get ahead and believe you are being limited, do some of the following:

1. Look for a way to be a unique contributor based on an unmet business need.
2. On a regular basis, initiate a career discussion with your manager, mentor or sponsor in which you review what you have achieved, what you would like to do and how you can contribute going forward .
3. Don’t ask what the company will do for you, propose what you can contribute to the company/department.
4. Think in terms of what skills and relationships you want to develop and volunteer/request to be on some interesting project or part of a team that will expand others’ knowledge of what you can do.
5. Eliminate the complain, compare, criticize routine. Instead, plan, propose and position yourself in a collaborative and positive way.

These five steps would be terrific 2010 resolutions!

For more inspiration, read Staying Power: Executive Fit and Flex

William James said it succinctly over a hundred years ago:  motivation follows action.

How can you marshal your energies when you are overwhelmed with negative news, overworked, in transition or underemployed?  According to Shawn Achor, the answer may be in the pursuit of positive psychology research and tools.

I was fortunate to take an all day One Day U course with Dr. Achor last weekend and will share just a few of his ideas with you.  Try them and you may find it takes less energy for you to accomplish the career-related challenges and tasks you find yourself avoiding or procrastinating.

First, get thinking.  Shawn shared the concept of “emotional hijacking”, which is when you find yourself caught up in emotionality, negativity, fear or avoidance, based on the fear/flight response. He suggests that you move your brain waves from your emotional center to your intellectual center by creating a counterfactual internal dialogue.  The key is to put voice to your emotional reaction and to then use language to process your experience differently.

Try this:  today as you fight the traffic, avoid the crowds, go into a busy store or restaurant, note what is making you stressed, negative and unhappy.  Write down the words you say inside your head about the negative experiences on the left side of a piece of paper.  Note what you say made this experience unpleasant.  Then, on the right side, write down an opposite way of interpreting the events.  This exercise will neutralize your irritation.  In effect, you are moving your reaction from the emotional part of your brain to the cognitive part.

Now, apply this exercise to one work-related experience.  Feeling helpless and rejected because no one is returning your calls?  What are you saying inside your head?  What might you say that is positive, uplifting and motivating?

Second, get acting.  It is not just what you are feeling and thinking, it is how you are behaving that counts.  Studies of people that overcome adversity, manage difficult transitions and are resilient and productive show that they have three basic characteristics:

1. A belief that their behavior matters
2. Strong social support systems
3. Positive stress management habits

The irony is that when in a personal or career crisis, these three qualities suffer. And, it takes more energy to avoid a constructive and productive action than it does to just do it.

The good news is: it is within your control to re-instill positive experiences in your life.  Of course, you cannot control external forces like the economy, difficult co-workers, truncated career advancement options.  But, within the constraints of reality, you can manage your thoughts and actions to create a more positive situation around you.

Here is where the third element comes in:  the phenomena of “mirroring.”  You will notice that when you are positive, others reflect your mood and actions.  The resulting feedback loop spreads—or at least neutralizes negativity.

This, being the holiday season, is a good time to experiment.  You can overcome your inertia using one of these emotional hijacking techniques:

Action Steps:

• Start each day by writing down three things about which you are grateful.
• Do one random act of kindness
• Call a friend or relative and get together
• Have that “difficult” conversation that you have been delaying
• Clean up your desk
• Do one thing on your task list you have been avoiding.

For more ideas, go to Aspirant http://www.aspirantworld.com/resources/tips.cfm

Enjoy the holidays!

October Blog

The New Career Security

In his October 21st Op Ed column, Thomas Friedman challenged us to provide an education system that makes Americans so competitive in the global marketplace that we would become leaders again.  He noted that successful workers now and in the future “invent smarter ways to do old jobs, energy-saving ways to provide new services, new ways to attract old customers or new ways to combine existing technologies .”

His words started me thinking about how his observations could be applied to our thinking about career management.  Seeking compelling, valuable and interesting work to replace our standard focus on getting and keeping an “ideal” job would require a radical shift in perspective and action..

The problem with the current (pre-Recession) job model is that is depends on an historical rather than future focus.  Resumes and personnel files recap past work assignments, titles, functions and achievements without connecting the reader’s mind to the possibilities.  Applicants for positions get screened in or out based on whether they fit the requirements of a slot on an organizational chart before they ever get a chance to talk with a recruiter or manager about relevant  issues and what their skills could do to address them.  Interviews are conducted in  much the same way and the interviewee often feels like he is at an inquisition rather than a more preferred problem-solving dialogue.  Internal succession plans work in a similar way, adding in the element of sponsorship and politics to the mix.

The job shortages compel us to change our approach.  While they may not be adding to “head count”, organizations, large and small, still need expertise and hunger for innovation and new methodologies.  Many managers cannot get to all the things on their plate, much less be strategic and thoughtful. A thoroughly researched and prepared interview is the opportunity to offer your ideas, to make a pitch for how you will add worth.

Broaden your options and open up work opportunities that do not exist on a job board.  As you have meetings, informational interviews, professional discussions, and attend networking events here is a technique you might try that will expand your focus from “selling yourself”, asking about opportunities and circulating your resume:

• Focus on potential rather than problems.
• Inspire your listeners, engage their interest, find out what they need now and next.
• Start a discussion about what’s going on in your industry.
• Have a point of view based on your research and other conversations.
• Think beyond the job you want (your own needs) and your career history and expectations.
• Become an inquiring reporter, elevate your curiosity, find out what people and organizations are struggling with.
• Figure out ways you can save money, time, increase sales, uncover opportunities, make a difference based on both current challenges and future needs.

And if you are in transition, think beyond getting a job.  Look for work that you can do right now on an interim or project…or even volunteer basis…that expands your reputation, exposes you to the possibilities, puts you back in the game.  While there, figure out how you can make yourself indispensable to your organization or clients by putting their agenda, their needs, their success first in your mind. and deeds. That is the new career security.

“All my life I’ve wanted to be someone; I guess I should have been more specific”
– Lily Tomlin

Are you waiting for your “passionate calling” to call to you?

Does the structure and stability of the status quo you sought now restrict your future?

Are you exhausted by a protracted job search and thinking about “Reinventing Yourself” but not ready to jump into the breach?

Are you looking for a new way to work and to live while having to maintain your ideal life/style?

Have you re-defined success but are not sure how to re-direct your work to reflect it?

You may be considering “Reinvention”.

Redirecting your career to doing what you love can be a ticket off of the treadmill. And, if you have been “liberated” from your job either through a reorganization, retirement or business shift, this may seem like the right time to do “something else”. A complete career/life conversion, particularly if your current work is dissatisfying, derailed or just plain dull is a very compelling.

But, you may not be ready or able to “pull the chord” on your lifestyle or career just yet.

Don’t let that stop you! Reinvention does not have to be a radical step. You can begin to integrate your “new self” is small steps.

If you are in a dead end career or unproductive job search, sometimes a full fledged change of direction is necessary and possible. Alternatively, such a radical move might be out of reach or inadvisable.

You can experiment with new direction without going the whole way. Try devoting a few hours to your desired pursuits and activities in small bites. Gradual is less risky and can lead to additional relationships and directions.

Here are some examples of what some of my clients are doing to re-energize:

• Getting on a not for profit board
• Studying for a Bar/Bat Mitzvah
• Taking trumpet lessons
• Joining AmericaCorps (Vista)
• Helping an entrepreneur whose business has expanded
• Singing Cabaret
• Studying Fashion Design
• Starting a Web Site
• Joining Toast Masters to learn how to be a motivational speaker
• Writing that novel
• Interviewing experts publishing an opinion piece or white paper
• Starting a book group
• Working on a political campaign

You may find, as others have, that when you choose to do something fun, interesting and new, you feel that you can take control of your destiny. Exploring avocations re-instills curiosity and purpose. A mutual focus naturally builds and enhances relationships. People are drawn toward others who are enthusiastic and interesting, not those who are needy and at an impasse.

Passion and curiosity are magnetic.

The Dog Days of August do not have to keep you in the Career Doghouse!

Usually, the end of summer is a time to hang back, take a break or enjoy the last few weeks before the Post-Labor Day energy of September.

Whether you are just getting started in a new position, seeking advancement or in transition, this August, career management challenges may seem more daunting than in the past.

So, here are some ideas that will keep you cool despite the career stifling job market predictions.

Seven Tips to Refresh Your Career energy:

1. Expand your perspective beyond seeking job security and focus on building work continuity. Look beyond the limits of role, responsibilities and position for ways that you can do work that is challenging, enjoyable and needed. Others’ problems are magnets for your expertise.  Read opportunistically, speak with contacts about their most pressing issues to identify unrealized situations before they become openings.
2. Reframe career currency. Keep track of your valuable career assets that include contributions, ideas, results, and leadership acumen valued by your key stakeholders, current and potential clients and employers.
3. Don’t wait to be advanced or recruited. Promote yourself through relevance, relationships and reciprocity.
4. Balance hard work, pressures and fewer resources. Do the opposite of your instinct to keep your head down and churn the work out. Instead, increase interaction, keep your boss or board informed, hold casual conversations with colleagues, and constantly be thinking about what you can offer that will make a difference.
5. Maximize time with contacts. When you meet, chat, phone, check in, focus on them and be generous and interested in response to their concerns. Actively maintain your professional voice and visibility through social networking, follow up, idea generation, personal and professional events, writing, publishing, and contributing in your field.
6. Keep a cool head in the heat of intense work, demanding meetings, interviews, deadlines and periods of inactivity. Maintain your personal life, take short breaks during the day, exercise, relax, enjoy nature, spend time with your family, call a friend, see a movie, enjoy an avocation, learn a new skill.
7. Do it now! Waiting for the market to rebound, employment statistics to improve, or to be recruited is a recipe for career derailment.

Three Tools for Action:

1. Keep track of expertise, experience and exposure. Email me at info@sherylspanier.com for a complimentary Quarterly Career Tracker.
2. Are You Maximizing Social Networking?
   This month’s blog is all about ways you can use Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter to define and distribute your on-line image for greater visibility and ongoing impact. Check it out at sherylspanier.com/blog.
3. A great way to help yourself, your friends and contacts who can use a career boost is to own a career guide which can stimulate thought and constructive action.

Find the right one at notime4theories.com.

Sheryl Spanier