3 WAYS TO WIN AT A CAREER FAIR

The economy must be improving, because I’ve noticed some announcements for career fairs. Yeah! How do you succeed at a career fair?

Let’s start with: what is a career fair? It is a place where many employers come together to look for prospective employees. The companies that attend have a need for people to come and work for them. They usually send the recruiter from the human resources department to work the fair. What exactly does this mean for you? It means they are looking for that one person to stand out from the crowd and be their answer to a job they have open.

This article is all about how YOU can be the answer to the company’s open job.

One: Be Prepared

When you enter a career fair, it will be crowded. People will probably be jostling each other. How do you stand out in this crowd? It starts at least two days prior to the job fair. In the notice are usually the top (meaning biggest) employers. See if you can find a more complete list. Then research those employers (big and small) that you want to work for in your field or job category. These are your target companies. Look at the “Jobs” page of these companies. Is there anything you qualify for there? Create a targeted résumé just for that job. If your job isn’t there, create a résumé for the job you want at that company. Put the company name in a cover letter to go to that company for that job at the job fair. Repeat for the top five to ten companies you qualify for and for where you want to work. Also, print out a few résumés that are more generic for other companies you discover at the fair.

This research will impress the recruiter. A mistake as simple as mispronouncing the name of the company, can be deadly. By knowing, how you can provide value to the company will sell you to the recruiter. It demonstrates you know for what they are looking. And, at an even more basic level, what they do and their concerns.

When you are at the target company booth at the career fair, be sure to meet the recruiter. Say your name slowly and understandably. Shake their hand and look them in the eye. Be pleasantly memorable. Ask for their business card (to send a follow up question, thank them for their time at the job fair and to remind about you to a specific job. Attach your résumé too.). Give them yours (another piece of paper to remind them about you). Talk about how your experience and skills match the job openings you researched. Ask about others that may not be posted online. If they have the time, ask when they anticipate interviewing for the job you targeted and one of those follow up questions you have during interviews. Listen to the answers they give you. Make notes during the meeting or between company booths, so you capture all the information they give you.

Remember too, recruiters only have so much time per person. If you go on too long, they will stop you. Don’t take it personally. If you acknowledge this up front in your conversation, “I know you need to see many people today. But, I just have a question. What is the status of the corporate training job?” Then they may be more willing to spend a minute answering your question. That may lead you to a follow up question.

If this whole face-to-face thing makes you nervous, practice at a company you didn’t do research at first. Practice the whole thing, or as much as you can. If it goes well, then it is time to launch at one of your targeted companies. If you flop, try again at another company before you go on to a target company. Remember, it likely will not be comfortable. So pay attention to the reactions you get from the recruiter. Do they engage with you, or do they keep scanning the crowd? Do they ask you questions? These are your measures of success.

Two: Dress for Success

Speaking of success. People will be watching people. Think of yourself as a walking, talking, breathing résumé. So mind your manners. You don’t know who will see you cuss at the person who just stepped on your foot or who you elbowed out of your way. Just because you don’t see the recruiter, doesn’t mean they didn’t see you.

Dress professionally. Choose one of your most conservative outfits to wear. Cover up any tattoos. Do all the personal hygiene stuff before you leave your home. Look like the professional you hope to be at their company. Look ready to go to work tomorrow. Look like you belong at their company. Yes, you will probably be dressed better than your average day at work, but looking ready to interview shows your commitment to working. It will make you stand out from all the people who just show up. Remember, studies show it only takes the first 10 seconds for someone to form opinions about you. Make your first impression a good one.

If you attend with your spouse or a job buddy, remember your goals. Your goals are to make a series of good impressions at your targeted companies. Then you canvass the fair for any jobs that may be a good fit for you. Then you pay attention to the person you came with to the fair. Agree to split up and met back at a certain time and location. This automatically means, do not take a child or baby to the career fair. Find someone for that time period. If you pay too much attention to your companion, you won’t maximize your attendance at the fair.

Stay focused and upbeat. Use your sense of humor and keep it in the crowds. It is easy to get distracted at a career fair. Smile frequently and often. Companies want happy and energetic employees. Look like one.

Three: Marketing 101

Among the details of research, behavior and résumés for attending a career fair above, I sprinkled some points about marketing yourself. A local public relations firm used a great definition of marketing in an advertisement for themselves.

“A great product without marketing is like winking in the dark. You know what you are doing, but no one else does.”

You are the Great Product. How you get that information to the recruiter is through your actions.

One of your actions is to have a short commercial about yourself. By short, I mean, 15-30 seconds. It should contain your name, how you are qualified for the job what you are looking for at that company. So, Name, qualifications, job. Something like the following (exclamation points equals smiles),

“Hi! My name is Lennon McCartney! I am a dynamic trainer and excellent curriculum developer for retail companies, with over 10 years of experience! I received my master’s degree in communications! At Widgets Unlimited, I created the entire curriculum in 15 different subjects and delivered training to all 150 employees. I am looking for a corporate training job with XYZ Company!”

Twenty seconds of pure gold. (She said modestly.) It can stand alone after each sentence. Name. Experience (what, type and how long). Education (if relevant). Job that I’m seeking. Additionally, come prepared with a challenge a former employer had and how you (and the team) solved this problem. Include how this solution saved the company: money, time, resources, etc.

You’ve done your homework and researched the company. You know what they want and you know what they do. You know how you fit into the company. Now, put yourself into a busy recruiter’s shoes for a minute. You’ve been standing for a couple of hours on a cement floor. You have a ton of work back at the office that is not getting done, because you are working the career fair. You are overwhelmed by all the people coming up to your booth wanting a job. You are hungry, thirsty and tired. How do you imagine a job seeker could stand out to this person? Right, by being the answer to a job opening.

You stand out by looking right for the company. First impression, remember? Then you pleasantly introduce yourself with your commercial. You acknowledge they are busy. You ask a relevant question. You get their business card for follow up. You thank them and say good-bye. You ARE the answer to their job opening!

You are no longer “winking in the dark.” With the business card in hand, go to your computer and send a thank you email to the recruiter. If they asked a question you didn’t have the answer for at the fair, answer it now. Type out your commercial, adjusting it to any new information you received at the career fair. Attach your résumé, just in case. Every action is telling the recruiter you are the right person for the job. Even if, your experience isn’t exactly what they are looking for, your actions are what they want in an employee. That gives you the winning edge.

A dream with a plan is a goal. A goal without a plan is just a dream.

All things are possible,

Elisabeth

Elisabeth Adler-Lund

Executive and Life Coaching

Telephone: 916 • 803•1494

E-mail: eal@EALCoaching.com

HERE’S THE ONLY THING YOU NEED TO KNOW:

That’s a pretty strong statement, isn’t it? So, what is the only thing you need to know?

We get what we expect.

A person with a poor attitude becomes a magnet for unpleasant experiences. Those bad experiences reinforce the poor attitude. Think about the last time you had a “bad day.” It all started with … what? Maybe it was breakfast on your pants. You had to change clothes, which made you late to drop the kids off at school, which further delayed your arrival at work. Then you began looking for more bad stuff to happen to you. Like a train wreck, you couldn’t help yourself from looking for more bad things happening to you. Then you didn’t have to look. Bad things just snowballed and hit you from every direction. Yep, you’d become a magnet for unpleasant experiences.

When a person has a bad day, everyday, they end up living defensively. They live a dark, unhappy life. They become an example of a self-fulfilling prophecy. It is hard to break that cycle. But, you CAN!

Attitude Is Everything

We get what we expect. Think of your outlook as a kind of paintbrush of how you paint your world. We can paint a happy, prosperous world, filled with hope and satisfaction.

People have a hard time believing that the world is a reflection of their attitude. They think, “If people were nice to me, I’d be nice to them.” But, that’s like sitting in front of a cold stove waiting for heat. Until you put in some fuel, there isn’t going to be any heat. It has to start somewhere. Yes, it has to begin with us.

Let me tell you a story. I was walking on a beach, just looking at the ocean. A woman walked by. I stopped her and asked, “What is it like living here? I’m thinking about moving.” She said, “The people aren’t friendly at all. My neighbors never greet me. I’m moving away to find a better place, myself.” Oh my. I thanked her and walked on. A second woman approached me, smiling. I asked her the same question. She said, “The people here are just wonderful. Everyone is so kind and friendly. It’s a lovely place to live.” That is two very different views of the same place. Each woman got what she expected.

We get what we expect.

Expecting Success

Successful people have a successful attitude. A person who has success, whether it’s at home, work or both, have a good attitude about themselves and about life and the things they want to accomplish. You will find they expect things to work out, so they do. If they experience a failure, they shrug it off, knowing that is just part of life. Then they move on to try again. They have the right attitude.

Because they expect success, they are constantly preparing. That is what luck is: Luck is what happens when preparedness meets opportunity. And, opportunity is there all the time. You just have to be able to spot it and know it when you see it. Because you are now expecting success, you will see it and recognize it.

We get what we expect.

You also need a definite purpose. Success always comes when you reach a goal you have worked for long and hard. It’s putting the intangibles into reality. Put your dream in motion; don’t listen to naysayers at temporary defeat. Each defeat has the seeds of success inside. Keep on keeping on. Do you remember Edison and the light bulb? What if he had quit after a thousand tries? Or, two thousand attempts? He made his intangible dream of a light bulb into reality after three thousand tries to find a lasting filament. Edison expected success, and he got it!

This Week’s Coaching

A Chinese proverb says, “You see what you look for.”

Notice what you see this week. Are you looking for success? Are you looking for problems? Are you preparing for success? Or, have you given up already? The next time you “get up on the wrong side of the bed,” say what a friend of mine says, “I’m glad I got the bad thing that was going to happen today over with already. It can only be a good day now.” What is your attitude? What are you expecting?

A dream with a plan is a goal. A goal without a plan is just a dream.
All things are possible,
Elisabeth

Elisabeth Adler-Lund
Executive and Life Coaching
Telephone: 916 • 803•1494
E-mail: eal@EALCoaching.com

FIVE WAYS TO BE MORE PRODUCTIVE

Did you know most people waste six weeks out of every year's worth of labor looking for things? Add that to the chat sessions at the water-cooler and the extra ten minutes you take at lunch, and you're looking at a significant amount of time lost annually. I’m not going to even touch your lunch “hour,” I’m here to reduce your stress at work by giving you back those lost six weeks.

STRESS
You have stress when your expectations and reality falls short creating disappointments. For example, let’s say you drove to work today and after work, you expect to find your car where you left it this morning. Let’s imagine your car is stolen. Will you experience stress? Absolutely! That's because your expectation and reality are out of sync. Let’s say, however, you find your car where you left it. There is no stress because expectation and reality match up.

The cause of most of our daily stresses are not by big disappointments but rather by all the little disappointments, things like work piling up and not getting to the things you want to do.

Well, you don't have to chain yourself to your desk to be more productive. Instead, try implementing some or all of these five strategies:

1. Plan in your action steps when you make up your daily to do list, to address the little things and bring your reality more in line with your expectations. You will get more done and reduce your stress level.

2. Get a better filing system. You file to retrieve, not to store. So create your system so that you can effortlessly retrieve what you file. Take moment to think about how YOU think about these subjects and file them in a way that is easy for YOU to find. Alphabetical may work for Alan, and by subject may work for Zoe. What works for you? Make sure you can effortlessly file your things away, and that you can also effortlessly retrieve them. Remember: if it isn’t easy to use, you won't use it. The point is to reduce the clutter on your desk and in your email, while simultaneously reducing the time that you spend looking for things.

Bonus Tip: Set up your folders (paper and electronic) as soon as you have decided on a system that you think will work for you. Then begin filing all the new stuff as it comes in your email and across your desk. Then do the catch up filing of all the old stuff later on, in batches. This will convert you to your new system much more quickly and efficiently. You will work out the “bugs” as you go. That way, that mountain of old stuff can be tackled much more effectively. As you go through stuff, you may find a bunch that can just be shredded or recycled.

3. Take breaks. That's right. A ten-minute break for coffee or a snack is in order every three hours. These set distractions will make you more productive when you are at your desk. The important part is to take only a ten-minute break, and to leave your desk when you do it.

4. Leave your desk for lunch. Studies have shown that employees, who leave the office for lunch, even if only for a walk around the block, are more productive than those who cram down a quick lunch at their desk. You'll return to your desk mentally refreshed and ready to tackle the most difficult of projects.

5. Work with your nature. Do you ever feel completely unwilling to tackle a project? Then don't attempt to do it just then. Do it when you're more in the mood for it. Your body is best at different things at different times of the day. If you're energized in the morning, work on your most important tasks then. If you're a bit sluggish after lunch, use that time to return emails and telephone calls, or to do any clerical work that has amassed (see Bonus Tip above). Don’t fight with yourself by working against your nature. If you are slow to get started in the morning, do your emails and phone calls then. Then when you get your energy spurt in the afternoon, tackle that big project then.

Increased productivity is just a day away. Notice two of the tips are all about taking a break from work. When you truly take a break from work, you will come back refreshed and will work more effectively. Planning in the action steps just is better planning. Plan the work and work the plan, as the saying goes.

Most people use filing to store information. These are the same people who have lots of piles on their desk. Because they file-to-store, they can’t find what they need. So, they keep all that stuff “handy.” Is this you? File-to-retrieve will be a revelation for you. You’ll be so much neater and things won’t get lost in the piles. Keep a section in the file cabinet near your desk of current projects. When the project is “done,” then file it in your system.

By using these tips and minimizing the time you spend looking for the things you need, you will add significantly more productivity to your workday. You might even get a promotion out of it.

This Week’s Coaching
Add one of these tips to your workday each day this week. Stay with them for a couple of weeks. Give them a chance. Which ones make you more productive? What will your filing system look like? Is it an improvement? If you can’t afford to lunch out, take a walk during your lunch break. It will clear your head just as well, maybe better.

A dream with a plan is a goal. A goal without a plan is just a dream.

All things are possible,
Elisabeth

Elisabeth Adler-Lund
Executive and Life Coaching
Telephone: 916 • 803•1494
E-mail: eal@EALCoaching.com

THREE WAYS TO MANAGE CHANGE

“Change is constant; nothing remains the same.” – Heraclitus (c. 535 BCE – 475 BCE)

We Are Not In Kansas Anymore
As the current working generations, we have not been here before. The economy is not recovering in a way we can see in our daily lives. If we lost our jobs, we are probably still unemployed. “We” have not recovered. If we are employed, current changes in our organizations might cause some anxiety and disruption to the workplace, as well as to personal lives. We might experience new or different work expectations and priorities, fewer resources, reassignment or layoff of colleagues and co-workers, and/or the emotion of grief or loss.

“We live in a moment of history where change is so speeded up that we begin to see the present only when it is already disappearing.” – Ronald D. Laing (1927-1989)

The Role of Work
We spend a great portion of our lives working, including commuting. We often look to the workplace to meet some of our needs for social contact and support. In addition, our identities in our professional life contribute to our sense of personal fulfillment. Work therefore plays a significant role in self-esteem, personal wellbeing and social wellbeing. When the work environment changes, you can feel challenged or threatened, and will respond according to how vulnerable you feel. This is why it is so devastating when we lose our jobs. For some of us, we are our work.

When our work changes, we are anxious until we absorb or process the change. The level of anxiety is usually in proportion to our acceptance or resistance to the change or to the quantity of changes. Here in 2010, change happens so fast we often don’t have time to assimilate the change into our life or repertoire when the next one comes along. This is future shock. It is this personal perception that we are constantly bombarded with changes (large and small) in too short a period of time. Future shock is a term for this psychological state of individuals and entire societies, introduced by Alvin Toffler in his book of the same name. (Future Shock, 1970)

"The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who cannot read or write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn." – Alvin Toffler

How do you cope with everything from your family life and your job to the daily time-crunch and the mounting complexity of everyday life? Change is all around you. You are told, “Change is good.” Then last year’s “miracle medicine” is suddenly yanked off the shelves for being harmful. Is change good? How do you know? What do you accept and what do you reject?

Know this: change is inevitable. Resistance is futile. Survival is optional. What follows are some ways for you to understand change and tips for adapting to change.

“If you don't develop a strategy of your own, you become a part of someone else's strategy.” – Alvin Toffler

Step one: Breathe. When we get anxious, we often hold our breath. Breathing is good. When you travel with a child by airplane, you are instructed to place the oxygen mask on yourself first, then on your child. Good advice. You can’t help others until you take care of yourself. You can’t make a decision or think unless you breathe. By taking a moment to slow down and deliberately breathe, you also give your brain a much needed pause to process and assimilate the information that you just received. All good.

Step two: Research. Gather what information you can about the change. You know the formulae: who, what, where, when, and why. I would also add “how” to your list of things to find out. You may not receive information about each of these components, but do the best you can. Oh, when I say research, I don’t mean asking your co-workers. They are usually not a good resource for reliable information. They are usually the source of wild speculation and rumors.

Here are some questions to get you started.
• Who is affected and who is involved in initiating the change?
• What is the change and what is it affecting?
• What will be lost? What will be gained?
• Where will this change happen? Is equipment required?
• When will the change happen? And, will it happen all at once or over a time period?
• Why is this change happening?
• How is this change going to affect you? Your job? Your family?

Step three: Resilience. Change is a process that occurs over time and involves themes of loss, uncertainty, newness and control. Adaptation to change comes in phases and your reactions may fluctuate greatly. Understanding what people around you typically experience and need when facing transition can help you to plan for the work and personal issues related to change. By developing a resiliency strategy, you will not just survive during times of change, but thrive.

Change is often external and situational: the new manager, the new policy, the reorganization. Unless psychological transition occurs, change will not be successful.

Inward psychological transition occurs much more slowly than situational change. Understanding what happens during this transition time, and allowing yourself to work through it, is key to coming to terms with change. See Step One above.

The questions I offered above and those you come up with on your own will help you identify some of the losses, nature of the newness and provide a degree of certainty in uncertain times. Sometimes the certainty is only, “I am certain I don’t know and no one else does, either.” Look for the opportunities in the change. Sometimes change is just different, not better or not worse.

Understanding your reactions to change, transition, and the reactions of others will guide you toward helpful approaches to coping. Here are some suggestions to consider for yourself, family and if you are a manger, to encourage your employees.

• Give and get support from co-workers, colleagues, supervisors, family and friends.
• Understand and define personal and organizational limitations. Let go, even if only temporarily, of those areas that are out of your control or influence. Take action, if appropriate, in those areas where you do have control or influence.
• Maintain self-care strategies (e.g., diet, rest, exercise, relaxation).
• Take advantage of opportunities to learn new skills required to adapt to the changes, or for achieving personal or professional growth from the challenges that the changes bring.
• Establish short-term goals to minimize uncertainty and provide a level of accomplishment during the transition.
• Talk about what is happening. Find people willing to listen and talk about what you think and feel.

“You cannot step twice into the same river; for other waters are ever-flowing on to you.” – Heraclitus

Change is inevitable. Getting a strategy to cope with change only makes sense. It will make your life easier. It might be a different river, but at least you’ll know the currents.

This Week’s Coaching:
1. What do you need to know about an upcoming change?
2. Will you adjust your usual approach to change?

Let me know what works or not for you. Let me know. You can reach me at eal@ealcoaching.com. Thanks for reading.

All things are possible,
Elisabeth

Elisabeth Adler-Lund
Executive and Life Coaching