ARE YOU IN LOVE?

Are you in love with your job? “Choose a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” This was true when the wise man Confucius said it hundreds of years ago and it is still true today, in the New Year of the Tiger. 

When you are doing something you love to do, the time just flies. When you have a big problem, it is just a fun puzzle to figure out. If the challenge is big enough to take several days to solve, it doesn’t weigh you down. You just happily find different perspectives, mentally try various solutions and finally choose one to be the answer. You may be preoccupied, but you are gladly and willingly engaged and satisfied. 

Is that you? Is time flying by at work or does it drag by with lead feet? Are you gladly and willingly engaged and satisfied on the job? Or, are you just putting in time? Did you choose your career? Or, did someone choose it for you? Are you doing what you love to do, or what “people” expect you to do? 

Hard questions 

Some of those questions can be very hard questions. They can be especially difficult if the money is very good. Perhaps it is hardest when you have followed a parent into their line of work or into the family business. The weight of the expectation alone can be crushing. Even to think of doing another line of work can be tantamount to a betrayal. 

And, really. Is this the time to be thinking about … quitting a job? I mean, look around. There is a recession going on and jobs are scarce. Shouldn’t you just suck it up and carry on? 

You are the answer

Only you know the answers to these questions. I’m just asking the questions. Let us review a few facts. 

• It is your life, and only you can live your life.
• Life is short.
• Your life is your legacy. What do you want that to be?
• Life is short.

One of the wonderful things about doing a job you love, is you will find you are good at that job. When you enjoy what you do, you do it well. It is just like the old saying, “practice makes perfect.” When you enjoy a job, you do it more often. This builds in practice that you may not even be aware you are doing. So you get even better at that job, which makes it even more enjoyable. Talk about your win-win solutions – this is it!

How do you find your "dream job"? How do you even know what that is? Perhaps you only know what you do not want to do. Maybe you are burned out trying to push round you into a square hole.

Looking At Yourself In A New Way

What do you love doing? What would you like to eliminate from your next job? What inspires you? If you could do anything – money is no object – what would you do? When people ask you who you are, what do you call yourself? What do you want to say you do? What do you want to be when you grow up?

What are your answers to these questions and are you willing to take steps in changing your view of yourself? There is no magic bullet; no magic test that will tell you what is the best job for you. Only you know what will work for YOU.

Dream and DREAM BIG!

I am a career coach because I know what it is like to dread Monday because of being miscast in a job that doesn't fulfill you. I can help you find your passion and a job that is fulfilling. I can help you break free of other people's expectations of what you "should" be doing and help you find what you were born to do.

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

IS YOUR RÉSUMÉ SHARP?

No matter what your current status is: happy in your current job, seeking a new career or unemployed and eagerly looking for a job, it is a good time to update your résumé.

We are in a new year and things expire or become out of date. “What things?” you ask. Well, experiences, accomplishments, certificates, memberships and so forth all have a shelf life.

SHELF LIFE

New experiences and accomplishments take the place of old ones. Some times the new experiences are more relevant to your job search. They are more recent and more indicative of who you are now. You learn new and better ways of doing things every time you do it. You need to reflect that on your résumé. Be clear about your accomplishments and use statistics to back it up whenever possible (e.g., reduced downtime 25%).

For the same reasons, your most recent accomplishments need to be documented on your résumé also. Document your growth and dedication to the job. A cutting-edge accomplishment five years ago might be business as usual today. An example is “doing more with less.” If a company is still in business, it is doing more with a lot less. That is no longer an accomplishment, but an expectation.

Certificates and memberships expire, and you may not have renewed them. Even if you did renew them, ask yourself, “Are they still current for the job I am seeking?” Sometimes we just renew our memberships without thinking of its relevance to our future. If you have decided that you need a break from human resources to pursue writing, your membership in SHRM is no longer relevant. Save that money or at least don’t put it on your résumé. Or, maybe it is time to join a professional organization.

THE PROCESS

Start at the top of your résumé and look at everything. Is your name and contact information current? Do you want to put in your cell phone number rather than your home phone? Do you use a different email address more frequently now? (DO NOT use your email address at your employer’s business.) If you want to be taken seriously, use a serious email address (e.g., not PartyAnimal@abc.net).

Is everything relevant for your current job search? If still employed, is it the most recent information about you? What new classes have you taken or new information do you now use on the job? Is everything spelled correctly? Is it the right word?

HOMEWORK

Go to some of the big job search boards (CareerBuilder, Monster, etc.) and look at some job ads in your field. Notice what buzzwords or keywords are being used. Incorporate these keywords into your résumé. What are the core competencies and skills that are asked for? Putting all this into your résumé ensures that employers will see that you have the ‘right stuff’ for their job. It also means that your résumé will pass the scanning process.

KEEP IT CURRENT

Update your résumé every six months. Just knowing it is current means you won’t be caught off-guard if someone asks for it or you suddenly need it. It is also a good time to review your career progress. Are you on track? Do you need to make a course correction or pay for the class that you had expected your employer to provide?

What differentiates one applicant from another is how well they can do the job. What contributions they’ve made to the organization, key projects they’ve led what financial (and other) successes they’ve had on the job. You have to tell the reader of your résumé not what you do, but tell them how well you do it.

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

NEW YEAR, NEW POSSIBILITIES

What are your new possibilities for the New Year?

Today I want you to take a step back from your life and look at the bigger picture. Look at all the events that have brought you to where you are today. I’m sure you’ve had some crooked paths, some back-tracking, some do-over’s and a few straight and narrow paths. Thinking about just 2009, have you advanced your cause? Are you closer to your goals? Or, did the year just disappear into busy-ness?

This is the traditional time to take stock and think about resolutions. So, we promise to live like monks (not spending money, saving all we can, going to the gym, not eating as much as we want to) and then find out in February, we are NOT cut out for the monastic life. No surprise there. This year I am taking a different path.

My theme for 2010 is, “All things are possible.”

I am going to focus on all the things that I am good at now and improve them. I spent a lot of time trying to improve my weaknesses in 2009. I think now, that I just wasted my time. Why work on something I am not good at or is not in my character to do, when I could accomplish so much more by focusing on a strength? I think that by reinforcing my strengths, I will correct some of weaknesses as part of the process.

One of my (many) weaknesses is I don’t have a neat office. I have a tendency to stack stuff. I get busy and don’t file things away. One of my strengths is being organized. I think by shifting my focus to “being more organized,” I will file things away as part of the process of being more organized.

This is not just semantics. It is really a shift in how you see the world and yourself in that world. It is shifting from attacking yourself to accepting yourself. It is shifting from being part of the problem to being the solution. It is shifting away from fear and towards love.

I invite you to think positively too. Instead of trying to change who you are, go with your strengths. Improve the best parts of you and the rest will take care of itself.

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

“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

Is Your Résumé Current?

Is your résumé reflecting current trends? Even though we have covered résumés previously, since this is one of your main job search tools, another look is in order. THE RÉSUMÉ – REVISITED There have been a number of articles lately about résumés. The résumé is being updated for the 21st century. Are you current? There is no such thing as the perfect résumé. Sad but true. If there were, it would make life so much easier. You could just use that format; plug in your information, and voilá! You’d be done. Instead, you are faced with having to create the perfect résumé for the particular job you are applying for, for the particular person who will be reading it. You often can do research on the job and company to target your information for that particular job. You can use the company’s buzzwords; you can highlight your experience and accomplishments so that you will be the perfect fit. You will very rarely know who will be reading your résumé and what their preferred style is however. What to do? Keeping current on the styles and society’s lingo will get you far. What do I mean? Glad you asked. Remember back in the 1990’s and the TQM craze? Everything was about tying your accomplishments to Total Quality Management. If not directly, then you referred to how TQM informed your work, policies, etc. It was nauseating to read. The human resources professional will read a lot of … creative writing. They become cynical about accomplishments, they tire of reading the same trite words and clichés, they tire of the same old, same old on every résumé. THE OBJECTIVE Unless you are the seeking only one job, delete this tired old dinosaur from your résumé. What is the point of a résumé? The point is to tell the hiring manager what is in it for them (WIIFM) to hire you. This is YOU in your absence. This is a representation of you, who you are, and what you can do for the hiring manager. The point is to pique the hiring manager’s interest, to have them want to meet you. The function of a résumé is to get your foot in the door and get you an interview. An objective is all about what you want. The hiring manager doesn’t care about you at this point. They want an answer to their vacancy. Be the answer with your targeted résumé. Instead of The Objective, put in a Summary or Profile. This will summarize your key attributes, accomplishments and skills. Think of this as your written elevator speech or Brand You Sound bite. Résumé real estate is too valuable to waste with what you want. Everyone knows you want the job. That’s why you applied. Don’t waste space with the obvious, or as Homer Simpson would say, “Doh!” CLICHÉS Résumés that have clichés may prevent you from being hired. You know the ones:

• Results-oriented professional
• Team player
• Excellent communication skills
• Strong work ethic

These are trite phrases that won’t get you a second look from a hiring If you’re looking for a job as a communicator (sales, writer, HR, manager, etc.) saying you have “excellent communication skills,” won’t get you noticed. Demonstrating excellent communication skills will. Be clear and specific. Describe how you are a team player. Use a thesaurus for better word choices that are dynamic and action-oriented. Results will make you stand out. That’s how to move your résumé to the top of the pile. When everyone uses the same words and sound alike, employers can’t get a good read on who you are. It sounds cookie cutter or as if you all used the same résumé writing service. That is deadly. Provide specific terms and concrete examples to show you are a “goal-oriented” person. We are now living in a fast-paced, dynamic world. Demonstrate that in your résumé. Provide a bulleted list of your import skills (important to the specific job you are applying for). Make it easy to see who you are and what you can do for the employer. A résumé should be a branding document. It should be the best version of YOU that it can be. FIRST IMPRESSIONS Have your most cynical friend or family member read your résumé. If it won’t convince them, it won’t convince an employer. Employers look for skills, knowledge, abilities and experience. Make your results stand out. Ask yourself the following questions as you critique your résumé.

• Is it clear? Is it concise? Does it make you look good?
• Is it inviting to read, with clear sections and ample white space?
• Is the design professional? Does it contain bullets, boldface and lines to help the reader?
• Are your sections clearly labeled and placed to highlight your strongest credentials?
• Is the work history in reverse chronological order (most recent job first)?
• Are your accomplishments quantified with numbers, percentages, dollar amounts or other concrete measures of success?
• Do your accomplishment statements begin with strong, varied “action” verbs?
• Are your grammatical tenses consistent?
• Is it free of typos, spelling, grammar and syntax errors?

Start your computer, get set and start writing! Is your résumé is selling you to the hiring manager? Need help? I can help you sort through your skills, experiences and your dreams to get the right job for you. 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

Reverse Planning

Or, Why do informational interviews? Reverse planning – what does that mean? Perhaps you are more familiar with the term reverse engineering? Either term means you take apart an object or process to see how it works in order to duplicate or enhance the object or process. The practice has been borrowed from older industries and is now frequently used in a variety of settings and industries. Let’s say you want to design a better mousetrap. You put an existing mousetrap in front of you, see how it works, evaluate the parts that make it up and then you reverse the process of building it. As you are taking it apart, you see ways to improve on the design. Then, when you go to rebuild it, you incorporate those changes and voilá – build a better mousetrap! The same is true of planning. You start with your goal. What are all the elements needed to accomplish your goal? How long does it take to learn what you need to learn? Where do you go for learning? Is there more than one path to obtaining the goal? Are there milestones that need to be reached before the goal? You figure out the steps and time needed to complete the goal. Then you assign deadlines for each of those steps. As you are doing your reverse planning, you may find you have a need for some intermediate steps to accomplish and set those goals too. If you have a really BIG goal or a complex goal, reverse planning can be an invaluable aid to getting where you want to go or what you want to accomplish. Career change can be just such a complex goal. This is really the point of informational interviews. You interview people in careers that appeal to you. In the process of interviewing them, they will often share the path they took. They will tell you how long it took to get them there. People will often tell you they took a “hard way,” or the “long way,” and then tell you how to take a short cut or an easier way. Or, they may say how easy it was because of … something. And then go on to tell how to get that something. You can use that information to reverse plan your foray into that career. People are naturally helpful and informational interviews are a great resource for you in your job hunt. When you set up your informational interview ask for ten to fifteen minutes of their time. Tell them you are NOT looking for a job right now. Tell them it is research for your future. BE ACCOMMODATING. They are doing you a favor, so even though you are not a morning person, if that is the time slot they have open – take it, gladly! Here are some questions (10 minutes worth) to ask during an informational interview.

• What education do you need?
• What experience do you need?
• What would be nice to have?
• What is mandatory to have?
• What is the best part of what you do?
• What is the downside to this job?
• What skills do you need?
• What abilities do you need?
• What is your best advice for someone like me?

Then you take the answers home and develop your career plan. What resources do you need to contact? What learning do you need to do? Are there intermediate steps you need to take? You assign deadlines so that your goals can be accomplished. Then, voilá, your new career! I can help you find a career you want to investigate with an informational interview. Getting to that point is the most work. I can help you narrow down your options to chose the best fit for you and who you are. I can help you demonstrate how your skills are unique and marketable. We will create an action plan to get your Dream Job. I can help you sort through your skills, experiences and your dreams to get the right job for you. 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