5 MORE SECRETS OF LUCKY JOB SEEKERS

Last week, I posted Five Secrets of Lucky Job Seekers. This week I give you Five More Secrets. Taken together, this gives ten ways to improve your chances of improving your luck in the job hunt. If you use all ten, you will get a job sooner, rather than later.

The short version of my story is that I know what you are going through as I once had a three-year stint of unemployment. As you now know, I kept busy. I also created new skills and broadened old skills. I will always consider these three years to be an amazing period in my journey through life. It was during this time that I found my dream job – coaching people to find their dream jobs and teaching job search skills.

It is also some of my darkest days. I felt lost and alone in an extended unemployment and seemingly, unable to get a job. I could find a job, many times “dream jobs” for everyone but me. What was wrong?

What was wrong is that I didn’t have me as a coach. I gave great advice. It was when someone (trying to be funny) said, “You need to coach yourself and take your own advice.” I did just that and got a training job within three months.

Below are my final five tips to imbue yourself with greater resiliency in your job hunt and that in turn will make you lucky. They do require a bit of work and persistence. All are winners in making you prepared, so you can be lucky.

“Luck is preparation meeting opportunity.” This statement by Oprah Winfrey still resonates with me. You can get the luckiest break in the world, but if you aren’t ready for it, it isn’t your lucky break.

6. Connect People Together
This is essentially networking. If you hate networking and are therefore, reluctant to do it, Get over it already. Here, in the 21st Century, employers are slow to hire. When they do hire, they want a sure thing. Someone they don’t know is not a sure thing. They are an “unknown quantity.” If Bob introduces you, you are still essentially unknown. However, they do know Bob and all his good qualities reflect back on you. That makes you more of a sure thing. That is why networking – works.

“If you know many different types of people, you will hear about many more opportunities,” Malcolm Gladwell says. “Sociability, energy, and openness breed luck.”

“Connectors” are sociable people who come across “lucky” situations because they are likeable and know very many people, according to Gladwell, author of The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference. They’re essentially people who have mastered the art of networking. “Connectors” interact with big groups of influential people who have access to vital contacts and information. You don’t have to orchestrate a big social situation, but networking isn’t rocket science. All you need to do is be conscientious of other people and industry news. Send an e-mail about a news item to a new acquaintance or write a birthday card for your old boss. Simple. When networking, it’s the little things that count.

7. Be Optimistic
See the glass as half-full. To have the mindset of a “lucky” person, you must have an optimistic perspective of not just the future and your current situation, but of your past as well, says Matthew Smith, professor of psychology at Liverpool Hope University in England and co-author of a 1998 study on luck.

In this study, researchers found there was a positive correlation between considering oneself “lucky” and the propensity to remember more of the good things that happened to them rather than the bad. Smith found that when something bad happens to these “lucky” people now, they still think that even though it’s bad, the situation is better than the worst that could have possibly happened.

8. Stay Realistic
Now you’re connected, optimistic, spontaneous, and prepared. Woo hoo, lady luck is here! Not so fast. Literally. Patience and persistence are the keys to being a truly “lucky” person. Connections and relationships take time to build. Give them the time to grow and produce fruit.

If you’ve been negative, it takes time for people to realize and respond to the “new and improved” positive you. It takes time for you to develop a consistently positive approach to life. These changes take time. Give them time.

9. Have a Plan
Have a plan for your job hunt. Set realistic goals for yourself, like “At the job fair, I will introduce myself to someone who works at Citibank.” Or “I will make three new vital connections in the next month.” See my recent article for two approaches to goal setting.

The framework of your plan should be robust and set a clear direction. Within that framework, your goals should be adaptable to new situations in which you find yourself. I have a friend who has been out of work for a little over two years. He considered teaching high school science. He felt the year and a half of additional college work needed to add to his B.S. to get his teaching credential was “too long.” He could be teaching in September, if he had carried out his plan. He could have been flexible enough to take another job, if one had presented itself.

10. Assemble a Support Group
Create a group of people that you can rely upon to keep you upbeat and focused on a successful job hunt. I suggest adding a person who is also looking for your type of job to the mix. Make this person your “job search buddy.” Share job leads with each other. Go to job fairs together. Compare notes.

Help this person get a job. By helping this person get a job, you will get a job. Guaranteed.

You can do this. Job search is hard. If you let it, job hunting can suck your soul dry. The gentleman, Robert Mathis, in the newspaper article is quoted saying, “Finding a job is the hardest job you can do.” So true. Keep working your résumé. The only perfect résumé is the one that gets you a job. What works for one hiring manager, may not work for another. Go to your local career center for retraining. Sign up with a local temporary staffing agency, and volunteer. All these are proactive steps you can take.

Most importantly, find and do things that make you happy. Cook a meal, garden, take a walk or whatever else makes you happy. Remember, just as you are not your job title, you are not this situation. This is what is happening to you. You are still that great person with valuable skills you have always been. You can do this.

This Week’s Coaching:
1. Answer the following questions. Be honest with yourself.
• Are you prepared for opportunity?
• What else can you do to be better prepared?
• More prepared?
• Seek feedback on how others see your attitude and demeanor. Make sure your inner optimism is on display.
• Make a list, and every week add at least two people that you have connected.
• What have you done to make yourself happy?
• Do you have a job search buddy? Why not?

Let me know what is or is not working for you. What is the best tip someone ever gave you? What is the worst? Let me know, I care. Write to me at eal@ealcoaching.com. Thanks!

All things are possible,
Elisabeth

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

5 SECRETS OF LUCKY JOB SEEKERS

Recently, in my local newspaper, there was a front-page Business section article on people who are long-term unemployed. The definition of long-term unemployed is six months or longer. The statistics for the long-term unemployed are the highest they have been in 62 years (not just in sheer numbers, but also in percentage of the workforce that is unemployed). During the last “recession” in 1983, 2.6% of the work force was long-term unemployed. Today it is 4.3 %. Is this you, or someone you know? Help is here.

 

I know what you are going through. I was once unemployed for three years (03/2000 – 12/2002). I must confess that I didn’t seriously look for work the entire time. Some time was spent going through the grief of losing my job and then later on of being unemployed. I also took chunks of time out to do other things that ultimately made my life richer and provided great satisfaction.

 

One of the things I choose to do was provide hospice care. Just before I lost my job to downsizing, my mother was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic breast cancer. Suddenly, I had lots of time to be able to care for her. I was no longer constrained by a job with when I could visit her or for how long. Rather than hire a stranger, something my parents were reluctant to do, I volunteered to help care for my mother. I saw it as a time to make a partial payment to Mom for all that she did for me in raising me. I found this time to be profoundly spiritual and yes, uplifting.

 

Another thing I did during this time was join a volunteer job search group. I did every “job” offered, from answering the phone to teaching classes to becoming president of the organization. I initially joined the Education committee to teach the courses in job search that we offered. I did that to overcome my fear of public speaking. I blossomed in this group. People sought me out to help them not just find a job, but to help them find their dream job. My natural leadership was noted and I was elected president repeatedly for over a year and a half.

 

I am not telling you my history of this period, to give you my résumé. I tell you this, to illustrate what I did to keep busy and productive. Yes, there is a “paid work” gap on my résumé and applications, but I can also demonstrate what I did and what skills I used and developed to employers during these three years. I also know down in my bones how it feels to be out of work for so long that it feels like you have lost a piece of who you are. I know how your self-worth takes a dive.

 

Below are my first five tips to imbue yourself with greater resiliency in your job hunt and that in turn will make you lucky. I am only providing tested and proven tips. Some things sound good, but really don’t make a difference. The tips below have proven to make a difference.

 

As Oprah Winfrey has said:

“Luck is preparation meeting opportunity.”

I think we can all agree she is one lucky person. That is because LUCK does not rely on the plans of the universe or fate. Luck is all about the way you think, your outlook on life and what you see in that life.

 

1. Truly Believe You Will Be Lucky
Start living life from the perspective of a “lucky” person, and maybe you’ll come across that opportunity for an interview or meet the person you need to know to get that job. Do you actually believe the phrase, “Mind over matter?” All those self-help coaches, like me, telling you to “Stay positive! Be optimistic!” may be annoying and seem disingenuous, but we are onto something.

 

“If you believe you are fortunate much of the time, you are likely to exhibit behavior that makes people more responsive to you,” says Martin Seligman, professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and author of Authentic Happiness.

To get in the right mindset of a “lucky” job seeker, you truly have to believe in the likelihood of good things happening to you. People like to be around upbeat, positive people. When you look for the positive, you are more likely to recognize the door of opportunity when you see it.

 

2. Be Grateful for What You Do Have
First of all, to whom do you compare yourself? Wrong! Compare yourself only to yourself. Look at all you DO have. Be grateful for that. Be grateful for the people in your life. Be grateful you know technology and are able to navigate to this blog article. If you found me, what else, who else, can you find to help you? Start a gratitude journal. Five things. Every. Day. Preferably, find five different things everyday. Repetition is allowed after two years.

“Instead of comparing our lot with that of those who are more fortunate than we are, we should compare it with the lot of the great majority of our fellow men. It then appears that we are among the privileged.” – Helen Keller

If you’re constantly comparing your life with the lives of others, of course you’re going to feel unlucky! However, winning the lottery or getting a job does not guarantee happiness or luck. Often, lottery winners are miserable from the media attention and all the people seeking handouts. How happy were you at your last job? Maybe that “sweet” job you applied for isn’t so sweet.

 

The grass always seems to be greener on the other side, but always keep in mind, just because something might seem great for somebody else, it doesn’t exactly mean it’d be great for you too. You need to travel your own path, not somebody else’s. That is a very good thing.

 

3. Stay Positive
Some luck-inhibiting emotions are resentment, anger, jealousy, bitterness, blaming, criticizing or shyness. People want to help you. But, if you show these emotions, they will run away. No one likes to be brought down by others.

 

Notice when negative emotions arise. If possible, avoid those situations that bring up these feelings. Consciously choose a positive emotion to counter it. For example, another rejection comes to your email. Don’t think, “I’ll never get a job.” Instead, think, “At least this one was well written.”

“It is one thing to feel these negative emotions but another to show them. If you recognize what triggers these emotions — recognize that you tend to get upset in these situations — you can take steps to defuse or overcome them before they are expressed.” Raymond DePaulo, chair of psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and author of Understanding Depression.

 

You’ll be more optimistic, confident, and extroverted — all qualities people find attractive.

 

4. Embrace Spontaneity (Opportunity)
Keep an open mind to the random events that happen and the random people you meet in your life. See every instance as a potential situation for improving your luck. Look for the opportunity in these events.

“Always keep your options open and be prepared to make mistakes,” says John Krumboltz, professor of education at Stanford University. “You get more in life when you are willing to learn than closing everything out.”

Striking up a conversation with a person in the grocery line can be the start of an important networking relationship with someone who may know of a job opening in your area of expertise. Taking a new route, hanging out with a different social group, or even attending something you come across randomly — all of these spontaneous events can easily pave the way to new “luck” and opportunity.

 

5. Be Prepared
OK. You’re embracing spontaneity and looking for opportunity. Nothing is happening for you. Before you go, “Ah-HA!” Ask yourself, “Am I prepared for opportunity?” The opportunity in these random and your other everyday events will only work for you if you are prepared. Imagine you strike up a conversation with the woman sitting next to you on the airplane and find out she’s a marketing manager at a company you’d love to work at. Yep, opportunity is knocking!

 

Are you prepared to impress her with all your knowledge about that company or industry? Do you have interesting and intelligent questions prepared about the workplace culture and industry news? Do you have a good elevator speech to highlight your skills, knowledge and abilities? Or, are you going to fake your way through it or not even bother telling her you’re looking for a job in her field? That is missed opportunity.

 

If you’re prepared, this chance encounter could be a major break and a giant step toward your dream job. If not, well, sadly, but there may not be a next time.

 

You can do this. Job search is hard. If you let it, job hunting can suck your soul dry. The gentleman, Robert Mathis, in the newspaper article is quoted saying, “Finding a job is the hardest job you can do.” So true. Keep working your résumé. The only perfect résumé is the one that gets you a job. What works for one hiring manager, may not work for another. Go to your local career center for retraining. Sign up with a local temporary staffing agency, and volunteer. All these are proactive steps you can take.

 

Most importantly, find and do things that make you happy. Cook a meal, garden, take a walk or whatever else makes you happy. Remember, just as you are not your job title, you are not this situation. This is what is happening to you. You are still that great person with valuable skills you have always been. You can do this.

 

This Week’s Coaching:
1. Answer the following questions. Be honest with yourself.

•  Are you prepared for opportunity?
• What else can you do to be better prepared?
• More prepared?
• Seek feedback on how others perceive your attitude and demeanor. Make sure your inner optimism is on display.

 2. Begin, or resume, a Gratitude Journal. Write down five things you are grateful for every day. Don’t repeat items. Find new things everyday. You know you have turned a corner, when you become grateful for adversity. Or, the return of the ordinary.

 

3. Ensure you do something just for you, every day. Self-care is an important part of keeping your enthusiasm and optimism up. It is just like the skates you had as a child. When you didn’t take care of them (put them away, oil and clean them) they rusted out and you couldn’t skate anymore. Take care of yourself, so you don’t rust out.

 

Let me know what you are doing for self-care. I am planning an article on self-care and need some additional ideas or tips that you could share. Things that are low cost would be most beneficial. Write to me at eal@ealcoaching.com. Thanks!

 

All things are possible,

Elisabeth

 

Elisabeth Adler-Lund

Executive and Life Coaching

Telephone: 916 • 803•1494

E-mail: eal@EALCoaching.com

“THE JOB-HUNTER'S SURVIVAL GUIDE”

This is the title of a brand new book by Richard N. Bolles, of “What Color is Your Parachute?” fame. He has sold over ten million copies of Parachute and has been in the career search business for over forty years. He wrote this book, as he says, “I felt there was a need for a much shorter, less expensive book to help job-hunters who were hanging on the ropes during this brutal Recession.” … ““If I were job-hunting tomorrow,” I asked myself, “what would be the most important things for me to know?” I wrote the book accordingly.” It is just that, a small book (100 pages) of pure job-hunting gold. He writes as he speaks, so it reads easily and quickly. There are internet links on almost every page for you to get more information or detail on what you need. Here are some highlights from the first half of the book that I would like to pass on to you. THERE ARE ALWAYS JOBS OUT THERE That is also the title of chapter one. Across America, there are approximately 1,250,000 jobs available per month. In April 2009 (when he wrote the book), there were 13,200,000 unemployed and officially looking for work. Now before you give up, realize that there are always about 8 million people who fail to find work in the US even in the best of times. So, there is always competition for jobs. It is just a lot more fierce right now. What you need, are greater job-hunting skills. Mr. Bolles says there are four pillars to greater job-hunting skills.

1. Assume finding work is your job.
2. Be willing to work hard on your job-hunt. This means time and persistence. Lots and lots of time. Days, weeks, months.
3. Do a thorough and detailed inventory on yourself. (more on this later)
4. Learn everything you can about job-hunting in the 21st century. Things are constantly changing, stay current. Do you know the eighteen ways to look for work? Remember, the familiar ways may not work. The ways that worked the last time you were out of a job, may not work this time. “Be ready to observe, to learn, to change your way of doing things. Be ready to reinvent yourself, with a new identity. No longer, ‘I am an auto worker (or whatever), but ‘I am a person who can do …” (you can also read about branding yourself on my blog – click here)

ON KEEPING HOPE ALIVE The secret to keeping hope alive is to have alternatives. Have at least three. If you have only two alternatives, it can cause paralysis, as you don’t know which ONE to choose. Have three and you can easily alternate among them. Research has shown many people give up after one or two months. If you keep alternating between your chosen alternatives, you are more easily able to keep hope alive. This principle of having alternatives works in every situation you may be facing in this economic downturn. Stop and ask yourself, “What are alternative ways for dealing with this challenge?” Then come up with two other ways and use them all. Here are Mr. Bolles eighteen alternative ways of looking for work:

1. Self-Inventory. Before you do anything else, do a thorough self-inventory of the transferrable skills and interests the you enjoy most and do best, so you can define in stunning detail exactly the job(s) you would most like to have, to your family, friends, contacts, network, and employers. And then use this knowledge to focus your search for work.
2. The Internet. Use the Internet to post your résumé, look for job postings or vacancies.
3. Networking. Ask friends, family or people in your community for job leads.
4. School. Ask a former professor or teacher for leads.
5. The Feds. Go to state/federal unemployment services or to One Stop Career Centers (http://www.careeronestop.org/).
6. In Your State. Go to private employment agencies.
7. Civil Service. Take a civil service exam to compete for a government job.
8. Newspapers. Answer local “want ads” (online or in the paper). Sunday editions are usually the most useful.
9. Journals. Professional journals in your profession or field. Answer any ads that intrigue you.
10. Temp Agencies. Go to temp agencies for short-term assignments (work) for companies that need your skills temporarily. This is a good way to get your foot in the door and you build experience for your résumé.
11. Pickups. Go to places where employers pick up workers. These are usually well-known street corners in your town (ask around) or union halls, etc. These are usually manual labor jobs. No job is too humble when you need money.
12. Job Clubs. Join or form a job club where you will receive job leads and weekly emotional support. Excellent directory at Job-Hunt.org (http://tinyurl.com/7a9xbb )
13. Résumés. Mail them out.
14. Choose Places That Interest You. Knock on the door of any employer, factory, store, organization or office that interests you, whether or not they are known to have a vacancy or not.
15. The Phone Book. Use the index in your phone book’s Yellow Pages to identify five to ten subjects, fields or interests that intrigue you in your town or where you want to relocate. Then call and visit the organizations listed under these headings.
16. Volunteering. If you’re okay financially for a spell, volunteer to work (for free) for a short term at a place that interests you, whether or not they have a known vacancy, with the hope that down the line they may want to hire you.
17. Work for Yourself. Start your own small business, trade or service after observing what your community needs, but lacks.
18. Retraining. Go back to school and get retrained for some other type of occupation.

Research has shown the importance of having at least four alternatives is particularly true when looking for work. It’s probably going to be a long haul this time around. Keeping hope and having alternatives will help you conquer any challenge, with time. You can and will do this. Your unemployment may last twenty-one weeks or more. Make frugality your friend. (http://www.alwaysfrugal.com/) And Buyer Beware. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Checkout http://www.ripoffreport.com/, to look up any company that has a get-hired-quick scheme. Especially if they want you to send them money. Be sure and sign up for unemployment insurance. DO NOT hire someone to do this for you. It is a simple online form or a phone call. Just know your salary per hour and have your last paystub handy. Mr. Bolles' other resources include food stamps, health insurance, financial counseling and maybe moving back in with the parents. Let’s not forget getting a stop-gap job. This is also known as a bread-and-butter job. Something you may detest (that’s actually a good thing, you won’t linger in it too long) but, it will pay the bills short term. Next week I’ll reveal the Five Best ways and Five Worst Ways to search for a job. Or, go out and buy the book for yourself. It is worth every penny! “The Job-Hunter’s Survival Guide: How to Find a Rewarding Job Even When "There Are No Jobs"”

by Richard N. Bolles $9.99 ISBN: 978-1-58008-026-2 For Borders books or For Amazon.com If you want help to sort through your skills, experiences and your dreams to get your dream job. Don’t wait, contact me now. A dream with a plan is a goal. A goal without a plan is just a dream. Warmly, Elisabeth Elisabeth Adler-Lund Executive And Life Coaching Telephone: 916 • 803•1494 E-mail: eal@EALCoaching.com

Sophisticated Job Hunting

A recession rewards those who are sophisticated at job hunting and limits those whose skills are undeveloped. I will support you in developing those skills. If you limit yourself to only one job-hunting method, you'll likely stay out of work. Go for at least two and preferably three of the most effective. I can help you determine which are best for you and your situation. We can polish your job hunting skills to maximize your efforts and assist you in getting your dream job. Remember too, looking for work is a job in itself. So spend six hours a day on your job hunt. The more effort you put into it, the more productive (and effective) you'll be. The Five Worst: 1. Search only online. It doesn't work for most of those who try it. Of every 100 job hunters who use the Internet as their only search method, only four will find a job. The exception: Jobs in engineering, finance and health care or technical, computer-related jobs. 2. Mail résumés at random. There are millions of résumés floating around, like lost ships on the sea. No one's bothered to count how many resulted in a job. 3. Look only in professional/trade journals. For every 100 job hunters who use only this search method, seven will find a job; 93 will not. 4. Answer newspaper ads. Success varies by salary level; the higher the salary you're seeking, the lower the success rate finding it through a newspaper ad. 5. Use employment agencies or search firms. The success rate has risen slightly in recent years – for women but not men. One study found 27.8 percent of females found a job within two months through private employment agencies. The Five Best Use three to four of these methods. Any more and you may spread yourself too thin. As you gain mastery, add another method to your tool box of job hunt skills. That way you will build your skills and not have to learn everything at one time. 1. Ask for job leads. Talk to family members and friends or visit career centers at schools where you graduated. Ask one question: Do you know of any jobs where you work or elsewhere? 2. Knock on doors. Go in person to employers that interest you, whether there's a vacancy or not. By going face-to-face, you have a seven-fold better chance of finding a job than if you only sent out résumés. 3. Use the phone book. Make targeted phone calls or visits to employers in fields you're interested in, asking if they're hiring. 4. Create a "job club." Join together with other job seekers and follow the above. 5. Do a self-assessment. Identify the skills that you most enjoy using. Decide the job environment where you would thrive and do your most effective work. Find the job titles you're interested in, the companies that offer such jobs, and the people who have power to hire you. How can your skills help solve their problems? Source: Richard N. Bolles, "What Color is Your Parachute?" from Ten Speed Press Job seekers, don't give up. Richard Bolles is on your side. His life's work has been about how to find a job. And not just any job, but the career of your dreams. He is the renowned career-hunt specialist, speaker and author of the best-selling book "What Color Is Your Parachute? (Job-Hunting in Hard Times)." With 10 million "Parachute" books in 20 languages across 26 countries, he's now busily scouring the Web for new ways and new technologies to make hunting for work more fruitful. He's also putting out another book – his 38th on the topic, "The Job-Hunters Survival Guide" – that's due out at the end of this month (March 2009). I highly recommend his books. They are packed with helpful information. If you can’t afford to buy them, check them out of your local library. Do the exercises and follow the advice. It is gold. If all of this sounds too overwhelming, call me and I'll help you through the processes. I can breakdown the steps for you into manageable chunks. We can set intermediate goals that will build upon each other to maximize your success rate. Together, we can craft a sophisticated package of job search tools that will get you on the path to your dream job. —  — This is a great time to contact me to get an action plan together to get your Dream Job. I can help you sort through your skills and your dreams to get the right job for you. I can assist you in creating a skills inventory, crafting a polished Brand You Sound-bite, getting you on the path to your dream job. Contact me now. A dream with a plan is a goal. A goal without a plan is just a dream. Warmly, Elisabeth Elisabeth Adler-Lund Executive And Life Coaching Telephone: 916 • 803•1494 E-mail: eal@EALCoaching.com