The Career You'll Love » job hunt

Visibility for your expertise

Carl — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 15:15:17 +0000

I had a wonderful opportunity last week to deliver a presentation to a bunch of software company CxOs who were gathered for a conference in Denver. It generated a whole lot of excitement and good interest in my coaching services.

The primary value was to show a lot of people in different companies what kind of expertise I have. The same concept can be applied to others as well.

There’s a good chance that you won’t be working for your current employer for the rest of your life, so it’s wise to start building visibility for what you can do. Sorry, a résumé or CV isn’t nearly as powerful as getting out there and showing people.

Of course, giving a presentation ALSO looks good on your CV, because people will expect that you’re more expert in your field when you’re able to go outside your current company.

I understand that a lot of people are terrified at the idea of giving presentations. So even though it can be quite powerful, perhaps it’s not quite within your grasp yet. Look into other opportunities:

Writing an article for an industry journal
Becoming a member of a small cross-company mastermind group
Mentoring others
Writing a book
Leading a discussion group at your church or kids’ school

It’s really only limited by your imagination.

I’m going to be presenting for an Entrepreneurship class at the local University – just an hour talking about my experience in setting up businesses, successful or not, and leading a discussion with the students. It’s a chance to contribute to the community and build my presence in general. Is it likely to bring in coaching clients for me? Not especially – although it certainly can’t hurt.

You have expertise that most others don’t. How can you start showing others outside your current employer how useful that might be?

P.S. If you’re interested in my presentation I gave last week on employee retention in the software industry, go check out my other blog.

Carl Dierschow is a Certified Small Fish Business Coach and author of the career management guide, Mondays Stink! 23 Secrets to Rediscover Delight and Fulfillment in Your Work. He is a career coach for those going through interesting transitions, and works with small business owners who need to create breakthroughs in achieving their business goals. Find out more at www.Dierschow.com and www.SmallFish.us.If you are interested in individual career coaching, group coaching, or other resources which might help you with difficult choices, please contact Carl at carl@dierschow.com.

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If the job’s posted, it’s too late!

Carl — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:09:59 +0000

You’ve heard this advice before: If you wait until a job opening is posted, it’s too late!

How frustrating! You’re following the rules, and I’m saying that there’s no possible way to win. What – you’re supposed to break the rules and sprinkle magic dust in order to find a job?

Read more on my Workbloom blog»

When to leave your job, and when to stay

Carl — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 21:38:12 +0000

You’re frustrated. Work has become less and less enjoyable, it looks like you may never again see a pay raise, and everyone around you is just miserable.

But you also feel locked in, unable to leave your job lest you enter the Great Ranks of the Unemployed.

Read more on my Workbloom blog»

How Social Media Helps You Get Hired

Carl — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 15:02:30 +0000

The conventional wisdom these days is that social media – LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube – is critical for every business interaction, especially for job-hunting.

Let’s get realistic.

Read more on my Workbloom blog»

How to design a fantastic informational interview

Carl — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 13:24:38 +0000

Do you like interviews? Me neither.

So it’s rather unfortunate that this technique is called “informational interviewing,” because that can leave you with a rather unpleasant image. It sounds almost like you’re going through the pain of an interview, but with no useful result.

Read more on my Workbloom blog»

Focusing the message

Carl — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 01:35:00 +0000

I’ve been playing with a number of interesting techniques lately to develop powerful, focused messages.

The Elevator Speech
The New Business Card
Beyond PowerPoint

How to Remove Competition for Your Next Job

Carl — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 15:59:51 +0000

There’s huge competition for almost every job opening. No doubt you’ve experienced this yourself, or have watched as others struggled in their job search over the last few years. If you now are back to work, congratulations.

Now it’s time to be planning your NEXT job, so you have a much better chance to reach your career goals.

Read more on my Workbloom blog»

The Worst Career You Could Possibly Have

Carl — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 20:21:09 +0000

There are some careers that are held up as the most attractive. Those kinds of lists are often based on monetary reward, or power and influence, or popularity. Sometimes they look at reputation, like the ones that used to put bankers at the top and have moved them near the bottom.

We don’t tend to talk much about those careers on the bottom of the list. Presumably no sane person would want to do those, because they’ll never get rich, they won’t be popular, or they won’t get respect and recognition.

Read more on my Workbloom blog»

How to find a great group to work for

Carl — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 01:04:23 +0000

In almost every company, there’s some really wonderful groups. The manager has the right balance of knowledge and heart. Employees are motivated, productive, and helpful. That group gets stuff done.

Unfortunately, this seems to be a rarity in most companies.

Read more on my Workbloom blog»

Ten ways to get a promotion

Carl — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 01:02:42 +0000

Many people would like to get a promotion at work, whether for recognition, change of job, or the additional pay. These days such opportunities can be hard to come by, as companies generally aren’t growing, and layers of management are being eliminated.

Positioning yourself as the favored candidate for promotion takes time, though, so it’s good to get started well before a position opens up.

Read more on my Workbloom blog»