There are a number of interview questions about multitasking that get asked all the time. And if you want to give yourself the best possible chance of getting an offer, you need to be ready for them! This list will go over each of these questions, and how you should structure your answers. 1. How […]
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Personal leadership is taking responsibility for all aspects of your life and leading it in the direction that is best for you. In order to be successful in leading at work, having strong personal leadership skills is critical.
When you are able to take responsibility for your own life decisions, you are better able to have a positive and inspiring impact on others. You are also able to be a role model for others in the leadership arena.
There are three factors that impact strong personal leadership skills…
Mindset is defined as “a fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines a person’s responses to and interpretations of situations.”
Having a positive attitude and perspective about personal leadership and making decisions that are in your best interest is your first step toward strong personal leadership skills. Having positive beliefs and expectations about what will result when you make choices is part of having a positive mindset about personal leadership.
Having the right attitude about developing your personal leadership skills is a great first step on the path to success. Then, you can transfer that success to your leadership skills at work.
The next important area is your energy. How are you managing your energy? Are you taking time to renew yourself? This all supports you in being able to make the best decisions.
This, again, translates into your leadership skills at work. Managing your energy in all areas of your life enables you to give your bestâboth personally and professionallyâand to be at your best when you are both at home and at work.
The third important area of personal leadership is your support systems. Having strong personal leadership skills means you have a network of people to support you through making choices that are in your best interest.
These people are your sounding boards, your trusted colleagues, your family and friends, and really anyone who you define as part of your inner circle of confidantes. These are the people who know you and trust. They are the ones with whom you can share ideas and seek guidance.
This, again, translates to your being a strong leader at work. We all know the importance of having a strong network in our careers. When people advocate for us, listen to us, and help us, we repay the favor. Strong personal leadership skills require the same type of network.
Strong personal leadership is about being the best leader in your personal life in addition to your professional life. Having strong personal leadership skills also makes you an outstanding role model for those you lead at work and demonstrates vital skills they can incorporate into their own lives.
Development Tip: How are your personal leadership skills? Do you have the right mindset about leading your own life? Are you managing your energy well and do you have a support system behind you? Take some time to think about whether or not you are leading your own life as well as leading your work life.
Are you looking to land a leadership role soon?
Join our community to learn how to UNLEASH your true leadership potential to get what you want from work!
This article was originally published at an earlier date.
Being prepared for common business development interview questions is essential. It doesnât matter if youâre applying to become an associate or a manager, youâll certainly get asked a few of these! This list of questions will help you impress during the interview by having fantastic answers ready to go. 1. How do you stay up […]
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Career counselors are an invaluable resource for guidance as you prepare to enter the workforce. As a college student, you have likely stopped in to pick […]
The post 3 Remarkable Services College Alumni Can Access Through Career Services appeared first on Blog Job Hunting Career Management Solutions | CareerShift.
When you become an adult, unless you come from old money, you will need a career. Most people face this challenge, and some do very well with it. You might find something that you love. Maybe you have a passion that you follow, and it makes you money. You can find your own place in […]
The post Career Choices That Fundamentally Change Your Fortune and Happiness appeared first on Jobacle.com.
Most people think experience is the most important factor in getting hired. And yes, having the right skills and experience is essential to land a job interview. But experience won’t be the thing that gets you the job.
This is why the most qualified job candidates often don’t get a job offer. Experience is important, but it’s not the deciding factor in the hiring process. Hiring managers consider other factors when deciding who to hire for an open position.
@j.t.odonnell Replying to @malice.in.chains Why personality wins of experience in job search. #jobtok #careertok #career #job #personality #experience #aptitude ⬠original sound – J.T. O’Donnell
People get hired based on personality over experience all the time. In fact, there are three things that hiring managers evaluate you on: personality, aptitude, and experience (in that order).
Why doesn’t the most qualified candidate with the most experience get hired? It doesn’t work that way. Companies tend to get a whole bunch of people who all have relatively the same experience, so they could all do the job. So what they have to do is discriminate. And I know you hate that word, but that’s what hiring is. Hiring managers look for other attributes like personality as a way to figure out which person will be the easiest to work with on the job.
This happens every single day. Only 39% of people who get placed in jobs have the exact experience. Think about that number. Sixty-one percent get placed because they have other things like personality.
Now, you can’t convey personality on a resume and LinkedIn profile. Don’t even try, because when people do that, it’s kind of like thinking you have style and a sense of humor. When you don’t, it can come out all wrong. Instead, you need to learn the tools for conveying your personality in the job search. And Work It Daily can help.
Join our community to learn how to convey your personality in the job search and UNLEASH your true potential to get what you want from work!
Job search shouldn’t be so hard. But it is. You have a million questions about what to expect and how to do it right. The bottom line is, it’s highly dependent on you, the types of roles you are looking for, the companies you are dealing with, and the preferences of the individuals you interact […]
The post Summary Sunday: Issue #509 appeared first on Career Sherpa.
Needing to explain what makes you qualified for the position is something that will happen in every interview. You donât know when this question will come, but it will get asked eventually. This means itâs crucial to work on your answer ahead of time so you can make a great impression and nab the job. […]
The post Why Do You Think You’re Qualified For This Position? appeared first on Career Sherpa.
In life, if you want to achieve your goals and get where you want to be, you need to take risks. This includes taking career risks. For many professionals, making a big career move is a risky decision, but it might be necessary in order to reach one’s career goals. The most successful people you know took a big risk, and it paid off. If you want to reach new heights in your career, you might need to ask the leaders in your industry how they made it to the top.
We recently asked our leading executives what the biggest career move they ever made.
Here are their responses…
Iâll cheat once again just a little bit and reference two different moves that turned out to be pivotal to my career.
First, early in my career, I was approached through a tentative connection within my professional network with what essentially amounted to an offer for trial employment. That meant leaving a full-time job with benefits when I was young and single, relying solely on my own income.
Still, I had been ready for a change for quite some time and gambled that this was a move worth making. I made that move, and it turned into multiple promotions, positioning me for where I am today.
Secondly, later in my career, I gambled on a new role for which I didnât feel entirely qualified. I actually ended up being hired into the role and, ultimately, it too was transformative in shaping me into the leader I am today.
Both anecdotes, I hope, serve as advice to early and mid-career professionals that risks wherein youâve amply measured the pros and cons can really pay off. Iâm not necessarily one to take bold jumps in life, but sometimes there is that leap of faith that you simply have to try. And my experience has been that itâs oftentimes more than worth it.
John Cox has 20+ years of performance excellence in advertising and marketing, leveraging Google-certified skill sets in pay-per-click (PPC) advertising and paid search strategy, web planning and conversion measurement, and creative direction and graphic design.
My BIGGEST career move was when I decided I wanted to work in sports.
While working at KPMG Peat Marwick, I was not fulfilled doing the debits and credit. I wanted to do more than record the monthâs transactions. I wanted to be the one to make the transactions happen.
I had a unique opportunity to join the Football Operations Department at the National Football League. I learned some new skills, such as payroll and budgeting. I was putting budgets together from start to finish.
During my years at the NFL, I developed and expanded the role by doing analysis and forecasting. These skills allowed me to forecast year-end outcomes.
My newfound skills allowed me to summarize multi-page excel spreadsheets into one page.
Making this career move has ignited a new fire inside of me. My passion for this work allowed me to serve the game officials at a very high level.
Michael Willis has 18+ years of experience working with accounting & sports organizations and has managed P&Ls of $10M – $125M+ with budgets of $3M-$50M+. He worked for the NFL for 22 1/2 years, mainly with the game officials working on the financial/accounting side of the business.
My first BIG career move came as a regional sales rep for a packaging and supply distributor in the Pacific Northwest, the mecca for the U.S. lumber industry. My territory included a handful of lumber mills, so I was riveted when a new supplier attended a sales meeting offering lumber wrap as a new product to sell.
Other reps reacted with âmeh,â but for me, it was magical! As a large, essential spend for these mills, I made it my mission to become their supplier, learn everything about the product and competition, then kicked off my sales campaign. I quickly discovered that printed wrap was a must, so I found a needed sourceâ¦which my company didnât buy into.
I saw an enormous opportunity; they saw uncharted territory and risk, so I bet on myself! I spent the next six weeks writing a business plan in my off-hours, partnered with domestic and offshore manufacturing sources, got a HELOC on my house, gave my notice, and became an entrepreneur!
Lynn Holland is a business development executive with 18+ years of experience taking operational, IoT & retail technologies, products, & consumer engagement to market with a focus in petroleum & convenience retail.
Going back to school for my MBA changed the trajectory of my career (and of my life).
A golden opportunity came along to join an internal start-up team while working as a marketing creative in the publishing industry. I helped to ideate and test a new digital product and pitched it to the senior leadership of our Fortune 500 company.
Along the way, I learned basic business principles not taught to commercial artists. Dazzled, I vowed to learn more. I aimed to incorporate research, strategy, and data analysis into my everyday job.
Thatâs when I was laid off. While job searching, an agency specializing in business innovation interviewed me twice. I didnât get the role. But again, I was fascinated by new ideas brought to life through business. I read all of the staff bios from that company. Every single one of them had a graduate degree.
Soon after, I had a new job, but it wasnât challenging. Always wanting to go back to school, I casually interviewed people with MBA degrees to see if that path might work for me. Those I asked highly encouraged it, and my new journey began.
While getting an advanced degree, quitting your job to go back to school full time, AND moving across the country to do so arenât for everyone, in my case, I wanted to accelerate as quickly as possible. Throw a pandemic into the mix (bad timing, just as I was graduating), and I still came out transformed, with a new career I love, and happier for it all.
Andrea Markowski is a marketing director with specializations in strategy development, digital tactics, design thinking, and creative direction. She has superpowers in presentations and public speaking.
The biggest or certainly one of the biggest career moves I ever made was offered to me and I didn’t even see it coming!
I was working as a senior HR manager in a global organization, handling different responsibilities regarding management and leadership development, onboarding, talent acquisition, talent development, etc., and one day, I had to go talk to a newly promoted sales director, about the profile she would be looking for in the new talent who would fill the position (her old job).
As the conversation about the role and her expectations, timing, and process was being discussed, after about 40 minutes or so, she offered me the job! I was shocked to be honest since I did not have any experience or training in the sales space, yet she was offering me what seemed to be the opportunity of a lifetime.
I was a bit concerned thinking about this option (wow!), and she offered me 1) the chance to think about it for a week or so and 2) to come on a trip with her and the VP. They were going to evaluate and learn about how other regions in the U.S. were implementing a new selling model.
I went on the trip, had a blast, learned a lot, and decided to say yes to the opportunity!
As a leader, there were two very important learnings with this career move: 1) this hiring manager saw something in me, talent potential that I didn’t know I had myself, and 2) taking this opportunity gave me a chance to try a completely different function, which challenged and stretched me in many ways.
I’m thankful for the experience. It has allowed me the possibility to have a customer-centric approach to the HR and people experiences, initiatives, and strategies I’ve led or been part of.
Ana Smith helps people & organizations achieve their full talent potential by developing and co-creating people strategies and customized solutions, and turning them into impactful outcomes and collaborative relationships, using coaching as the “red thread.”
Moving to the U.S. from the UK with my job.
Iâd always wanted to live in Manhattan and, when the opportunity arose, I seized it.
Looking back, what did I learn:
The difference one word can make. I âwantedâ to goânot I âshouldâ go…
There were a number of challenges that I came up against once I arrived, both personal and professional. However, because I wanted to be here, thatâs what they were, âchallenges”: situations that drove growth in all aspects of my life.
If Iâd come here because someone had suggested I âshouldâ to further my career, the challenges would have felt more like persecutors. I would have hated the city and the workâand hightailed it back to the UK as fast as I could.
So, dare wisely. Get out of your comfort zoneâand make sure your decisions are aligned with what YOU want…
Mark Taylor has 20+ years of risk, technology, and product management experience working in global and regional financial services firms in the UK and the U.S. He’s managed teams of 40+, successfully addressed 100+ regulatory issues, and has saved companies $15M+.
I spent decades in corporate America in fashion, advertising, and financial services. My heart and passion stayed in fashion, and I knew I wanted to get back into it. In 2020, I left my position as a trust officer at a bank to start my personal styling business. It wasn’t even scary. I felt so comfortable like it was meant to be.
I had my first client within a week of announcing my new career, and she has worked with me ever since. I continue to grow my business and work now more than ever but can’t imagine doing anything else.
Carla Biasi is a personal stylist living on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. She currently has her own business and works part-time at an upscale women’s boutique and as a virtual and kit stylist for a womenâs specialty brand.
My biggest career move was to start my business. I had worked for a boutique executive search firm for eight years and planned to grow with the organization. When the partners decided to move the company to another state, I found myself unemployed and looking at three options: corporate recruiting, executive search, or do something on my own. My husband and I were trying to start a family so I was looking for something that would provide work-life balance (it was the early ’90s and no one was talking about this yet). I was able to take my expertise in recruitment research and pivot from the executive search path and introduce the approach to corporate America. I was able to work from home as we adopted our son and 18 months later gave birth to our daughter. I was able to grow a workforce of professional mothers who wanted to balance work and life. Thirty years later, we are still 100% remote with work-life balance as the foundation of our culture. I didn’t start with a plan but I knew my “why”…to be in control of my career and ensure I was able to be the best wife and mother possible.
Kathleen Duffy is the founder, CEO, and president of Duffy Group. The company’s vision is to elevate recruitment research as an alternative to contingent and retained search. Since its founding, Duffy Group has been a remote workplace and a culture of work/life harmony.
Several big career moves impacted my overall career, but the biggest was my first job, which set the tone for my career trajectory. I got my BS in Marketing from San Diego State University and searched for that perfect job. I interviewed with several companies while being on a roller coaster of emotions, waiting to hear back. I finally accepted a position with Enterprise Rent-A-Car within their manager trainee program. Four days before I was to start, The Walt Disney Company reached out with a job offer. I was faced with many challenges. First, it was a secretarial position, not a manager trainee program that I wanted. Second, it was The Walt Disney Company (a Fortune 100 company). How could I pass that up? Third, I had already accepted the job at Enterprise Rent-A-Car. What was I going to do? I called Enterprise and let them know I couldn’t move forward with the job offer and then picked up the phone to accept The Walt Disney Company’s job. Even though I was a secretary, it was the best career move I ever made. Having the Walt Disney Company on my resume opened up many job opportunities. I learned from some of the industry’s top marketing leaders. And to this day, I still maintain connections that have benefited my career.
Lisa Perry helps companies build leadership brands, driving loyal customers & delivering profitability. She does this through a process that builds brands consumers love. Her goal is to help companies develop, monetize, and grow their brands.
My career move at 28 was my most significant decision ever. Even though I loved my TV and event production work, the company I adored, now in its fifth year, had changed. It became routine. I felt disenchanted. It was a tough call, but I had to trust my gut and follow my heart. I loved working with start-ups and wanted to travel to become a freelance producer. I craved the challenge of working on new projects and new companies and collaborating with talented people to build something unique for every show.
It wasn’t always easy by any means but, today, as a creative producer, I get to cherry-pick outstanding teams for one-of-a-kind projects. We combine music, theater, TV production, advertising, marketing, PR stunts, and live experiences into lifestyle-branded entertainment. But, of course, the can-do attitude and love for the work and the people I work with are everything. That start-up passion, energy, and togetherness have always driven me to improve everything I touch. I learned this lesson early on, and it still holds true today.
When you enjoy what you do, it’s not just a job. It’s your life’s work, so why not love it? Follow your heart, trust your gut, and keep striving. It’s the best way to make your career feel like a living, breathing part of who you are. My oxygen is creating, mentoring, improving others, and loving my family. And I breathe deeply every breath.
John Hoffman has 15+ years of leadership experience creating and producing video content, branded entertainment, PR stunts, and experiential and live events. At his core, he’s a storyteller who has mastered the creative map and can scale logistical mountains.
What’s the biggest career move you ever made? Join the conversation inside Work It Daily’s Executive Program.
Sometimes in life, our actions are completely counterintuitive. For example, deciding to go on a diet. The first thing most people do is think they must eliminate something or cut back. In reality, the challenge of a diet is you must add more good foods versus taking away bad foods. The good naturally replaces the bad. But, it’s a huge challenge to plan and add good healthy foods to your diet five to six times a day versus going to the drive-thru two times a day.
The same is true for your job search.
Are you going to get “job healthy” by adding good habits to your daily routine, or are you going to stay fat, miserable, and unemployed by choosing the âfast food” route? Of course, the challenge is to know what is healthy and what is not.
Here are the top five unhealthy job search habits and how to replace them with healthy ones:
Yes, eventually you will likely have to talk to those folks, but they should be the last group you actually try to get in front of. Most people think they make the hiring decisions. They don’t; the hiring manager does. And not only that, but the hiring manager is the one who has a vested interest in filling the position. They are the person who will lose sleep if the position is not filled.
So, change your habit of going to HR and instead start going directly to the source, or even better: get a referral to the source (that gives you the inside edge). You can accomplish this by networking your way into the company. Reach out to and connect with current employees on LinkedIn. Mention things you have in common, and explain why you’re passionate about the company.
Also, HR and recruiters should be reaching out to YOU. Make sure your LinkedIn profile is optimized so they can easily find you on the platform.
In reality, your objective should be just like a salesperson when they are trying to make the sale. Your number one job is to serve others. And, the better job you do of proving that, the better you will be received.
You are a business-of-one. The interview has very little to do with you and everything to do with how you are going to solve the problems the company is facing. You find that out through research and good Socratic and behavioral interviewing.
Honestly, the most qualified person rarely gets the job. First of all, the most qualified person probably didn’t even apply. Second, he or she may have the best technical qualifications and years of experience, but be an absolutely horrible fit for the culture and objectives of the company.
The best candidate is the best fit, the one who can help the organization meet its goals, not cause a huge rift, and stay for a long, long time. Simple enough, but more challenging to prove than just copying the qualifications from a job description and expecting an offer.
The list goes on and on and includes “resume distribution” services, fancy resume writing packages, and SEO services. Unfortunately, all of these quick fixes have one thing in common: they are passive (and ineffective) ways to get a job.
That is also called gambling. Sure, sometimes they work; and sometimes people win the lottery. Instead, do what 80% of successful job seekers do and get proactively involved by researching and contacting as many companies and individuals as you possibly can.
It’s always been about who you know. So, get out there and make new connections!
This may be the most unhealthy solution of all! Why? Because it serves our need for immediate gratification, yet gives us virtually no benefit. We feel like we have done something, but in reality, we just took a shortcut and went through the drive-thru. By taking the time to continually post your resume and apply for jobs you are taking valuable time away from healthy, proactive solutions.
Think about the act of posting a resume online. It’s not even as good as buying a lottery ticket. At least when you play the lottery, you find out in a week or so why you didn’t win! Taking the easy way out is what most people do (you know, because it’s easy).
For true success, you have to do just the opposite of what most people are doing. Customize your resume for each position you apply for. Include the hard skills and transferable skills the job requires that you can quantify from your previous work experience. It may not be the easiest thing to do, but it’s the best strategy to get your resume past the ATS and in front of the hiring manager.
Wow, we can see the job search fat just melting off! Congratulations, you have now joined the ranks of fit, active, fulfilled job seekers.
Need more help with your job search?
Join our community to learn how to UNLEASH your true potential to get what you want from work!
A good friend recently sent me the link to an article all about the value of coaching. I’m sure it’s no surprise to all of you that I loved it. However, it also reminded me that I should be reminding all of you why having a career coach is the best thing you can do for your professional development.
Here are the top 10 reasons you need a career coach right now:
According to a survey in the article I mentioned above, wellness programs have been shown to provide approximately a 300% return on investment (ROI). In other words, companies that spend $1 on a wellness program earn $3 as a result of decreased turnover, fewer sick days, reduced health insurance costs, etc.
It’s no wonder wellness programs have experienced such tremendous growth; it makes financial sense. The same can be said about career coaching. If you invest in yourself and your career by getting a coach, you’ll see a return on investment in the form of professional growth and development.
Another study shows that professional coaching has an even greater impact on things like relationships and teamwork. The study says recipients of coaching saw a 77% improvement in relationships, 67% improvement in teamwork, 61% improvement in job satisfaction, and 48% improvement in quality.
Getting coaching on one aspect of our lives, like career coaching, can have a positive effect in many different areas. It’s a good kind of domino effect.
Career coaches are trained to focus on positive outcomes and be a source of motivation. They tailor their efforts to help you find greater satisfaction. Since no two people are the same, having a career coach ensures you are getting assistance that speaks to your wants and needsânot someone else’s. More importantly, it’s been proven that the best way to get what you want is to surround yourself with positive people.
Unfortunately, that’s not always the case with family and friends. So, hiring a career coach ensures you’ve got at least one positive influence in your life!
One outdated stigma about career coaching is that it’s for people who are underperforming or troubled. On the contrary! Most smart folks who seek out career coaching do so because they want to be high performers and feel satisfied with their efforts.
In the article mentioned above, Paul Michelman, editor of Harvard Business School’s Management Update, says, “whereas coaching was once viewed by many as a tool to help correct underperformance, today it is becoming much more widely used in supporting top producers. In fact, in a 2004 survey by Right Management Consultants, 86% of companies said they used coaching to sharpen the skills of individuals who have been identified as future organizational leaders.”
So, by choosing to invest in coaching, you are saying to the world you believe in yourself and your ability to be a star performer!
Many people assume coaching is like working out: you need to do it daily to see any results. That’s true! But the good thing about career coaching, like working out, is that it doesn’t take much time if you have a plan, know what you’re doing, and have the right mindset.
Good coaches understand that you need to work professional development into your schedule. Moreover, studies show that just a few hours per month can have a huge impact.
At Work It Daily, for example, our slogan is “If you want to win, you’ve got to work it daily.” Working on your career for just a few minutes a day is enough to transform your professional outlook. This is the strategy we promote at Work It Daily, and it has helped thousands of our members find jobs and grow their careers.
While you may be friendly with your career coach, they are not your friend. They are your advocate for change.
Unlike your family and friends who are opinionated and biased about you and your career, a career coach will look at you objectively and strive to empower you to take the necessary actions to achieve your goals.
In short, while the people in your life tend to tell you what you want to hear, your career coach will be honest and tell you what you need to hear to make your career goals a reality.
For the longest time, companies have only paid for their executives to have career coaches. But that trend is changing. According to the article previously mentioned, online shoe and clothing company Zappos.com, known for their outstanding commitment to creating a culture of unparalleled customer service (they even teach this through Zappos Insights), has a full-time goals coach who works with any employeeânot just managementâon helping them create better lives.
Now is the time to see if your company is considering budgeting for career coaching services as part of its benefits program. With all the surveys showing the positive impact it has, there’s a good chance your employer may see value in footing the bill for your career coach.
In the event you are laid off, you should still ask your employer if they will provide outplacement services to help you find your next job. Career coaching at any stage in your professional life, no matter what kind of challenges you face, can be a true game changer.
A good coach will never tell you what to do. Instead, they’ll help you identify habits that are holding you back from success. Then, they’ll coach you on the actions you should take to learn new, better ways to accomplish your goals.
In short, career coaches teach you how to remove roadblocks to success on your own, ensuring you can do this for yourself both now and in the future.
The article I mentioned above indicates some executives will pay as much as $3,500/hour for a particular coach. Yikes! That’s too rich for my blood. But the article goes on to say that most personal coaches charge a monthly retainer between $500 to $2,000 a month. What this means is either there are a lot of really silly executives wasting their money on coaching each month or they are getting results that make them feel it’s worth the investment.
At Work It Daily, our goal is to make career coaching accessible to everyone, not just executives with deep pockets, so you can think like an executive without worrying about the price tag.
Forget the economy for a second and just ask yourself, “Do I deserve better?” If the voice in your head says, “Yes!” then you need to take action.
Let’s face it: if you could have found greater career satisfaction and success on your own, you would have by now. So, why not give yourself some well-deserved support that will help you get what you want and deserve?
We spend a third of our lives at our jobs. Isn’t it time you felt good about your career?
Think career coaching is for you?
Join our community to learn how to UNLEASH your true potential to get what you want from work!
There are a number of supervisor interview questions that get asked all the time. That means if youâre applying for a role that oversees others, you need to be prepared to answer them! This list of interview questions for supervisors will help you get ready and impress on the big day. 1. What do you […]
The post 17 Supervisor Interview Questions & Answers For 2023 appeared first on Career Sherpa.