JOB SEARCH TIP: Tell stories with happy endings.

1 Nov

I always wanted to be Indiana Jones, but like him I don’t much like snakes.

I liked that those movies delivered a happy ending, and as a job seeker you’ll need to tell stories with happy endings to prospective employers.

You’ll be often asked to tell those stories when they ask you a question that starts like “tell me about a time when…”

Those happy stories will need to have four parts:

1. What was the problem or challenge you faced?

2. What did you do?

3. What were the results you achieved?

4. What did you learn that you could apply here?

To get ready, write every story down, then learn them and practice telling them. You’ll need several, because maybe an interviewer wants the Star Wars story and not Indy Jones.

People like stories. Give them Indy and Yoda and snakes and light sabers and all.

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JOB SEARCH TIP: Job opportunities based on budget cycles.

1 Nov

Opportunities will open and close based on a factor not always obvious to the job seeker…

The business cycle.

All organizations run on some kind of year, either a calendar or fiscal. Jobs can become available in a new budget cycle, and they can also go away if not filled within the budgeting year.

Knowing the cycle for a potential employer can be helpful to your search.

One former client knew a job wasn’t going to open up for a couple of months, but proposed they hire him with a start date when the job became available. Another I know took a job with a company that was a temporary role while still staying in the running for another job at the same company that was coming open in a few weeks when a new fiscal year started.

Since we’re coming up on the end of the calendar year there may more of these opportunities out there.

Keep your head up. Keep telling your story. Keep showing how you add value.

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JOB SEARCH TIP: What are transferrable skills and why should I care?

30 Oct

I recently corresponded with a friend who heard a colleague of mine talk at job fair about a concept back in the 1990’s that was important if you wanted to make a career change, a concept that is just as important today.

That concept is called “transferrable skills”.

Transferrable skills are those you have acquired in your current and prior work that could be applied, or transferred, to a new employer and/or industry.

A friend of mine had just finished a management training program. He also had been involved in coaching. Although those two experiences, at first glance, might not tell a story, I saw an opportunity for him to combine those experiences to tell a prospective employer about his leadership training and experiences. He showed them how those experiences made him a strong candidate.

He got the job.

You too may have a story to tell, where you can show an employer how seemingly unrelated experiences or skills can be just what an employer would value.

P.S. Having trouble articulating your transferrable skills? Drop your resume into your favorite AI tool and prompt!

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JOB SEARCH TIP: Is their mission statement just expensive wallpaper?

29 Oct

You walk into a company for your job interview. You see a poster, often nicely framed, in the lobby. The poster presents the “mission and values” of the organization—the investments they are supposedly making in their employees.

Although they are generally well-intended, I’m often surprised at how little these statements represent what it is like to work there. There is a gap between what they present and what they actually deliver.

That might feel like no more than expensive wallpaper.

As you are considering a potential employer, find out if there’s something more to the place than nice wallpaper. There are numerous online sources, but also talk to former employees, to current vendors or providers of other services to the employer.

No employer is perfect, but if what they are representing as behaviors they value and what they actually deliver to employees is so glaringly different you will want to take that into consideration.

A colleague of mine has a term for this—he calls it propaganda.

Do your homework.

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JOB SEARCH TIP: Bring value to networking contacts.

28 Oct

In describing relationships, Dr. Gale Muller said that “relationships should eventually be equal but are never equal at any one time.”

When you are networking in search of a new job, you may feel the exchange is one-sided, where a networking contact is only helping you.

Although it may feel that way, that doesn’t mean you can’t add some value or be of help to your contact.

How?

~ Perhaps you can offer information about a former employer or a contact of yours,

~ Maybe you can bring an article about an industry trend the contact hadn’t seen,

~ Or you make an introduction to a contact of yours that would be of value.

Be proactive. Show you are willing and potentially able to reciprocate.

The exchange may not be perfectly equal, but you can make an effort that will be noticed.

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Call for Volunteers in MSP!

27 Oct

The U.S. Special Olympics summer games are going to be in Minneapolis/St. Paul next June! As many of you know, our Jacob has been in Special Olympics for many years, currently participating in softball, bowling, basketball and track.

My firm, BI WORLDWIDE, has the tremendous honor or producing the opening games this year We will need lots of volunteers to help with this awesome event. If you’re in the MSP area, I would love for you to check out the volunteer opportunities here: https://2026specialolympicsusagames.org/

A few years ago a friend wanted to watch Jacob’s softball team. He is a big sports fan. After the game I asked him what he thought. He said: “Mark, it’s possible I’ve seen better ball played before, but I’ve never seen so much joy.”

THAT’s Special Olympics!

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JOB SEARCH TIP: Answering the “Weaknesses” Interview Question.

27 Oct

How do you answer the question “what are your weaknesses?”

Please don’t answer “I don’t have any”, because we all have them and that response will not go over well.

Two approaches:

· talk about a weakness that you are aware of that either wouldn’t be a big problem in the job for which you are applying; or

· a weakness you have learned how to manage. For example, I’m not very organized, but I’ve developed systems and techniques that help me stay organized.

Make sense?

What it comes to naming your weaknesses, tell your story and tell it well.

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JOB SEARCH TIP—Even the best athletes have a coach… get one.

26 Oct

Recruit someone to act as your coach, who can provide accountability and support along with way. Your coach can also help with some job search tasks, such as prepping you for an interview.

The only requirements of a coach are they care for you and are willing to help. A good coach could be a loved one, co-worker, or neighbor.

Have at least one meeting with your coach every week. Show them your work plan and talk about where you’ve made progress and where you fell behind. Your coach doesn’t need to show up with a ruler to wrap your knuckles, but are there to listen, to support and to inspire.

What do you pay your coach for their efforts? I’ve found a heartfelt thank you, and maybe some homemade cookies, to do the trick. You might also want to keep in mind that although you may not be able to help the coach right now, you could sometime down the road.

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JOB SEARCH TIP: Skills + Interests = Strengths.

25 Oct

I’m sure you’re worried about getting a job and want to spend most of your time responding to postings and networking, but I’d like to encourage you to take time to consider jobs that fit your skills and interests.

How are skills and interests different? I love to play golf (interest), but for the life of me I can’t make a three-foot putt (poor skill). On the other hand, I’m actually pretty good at project management (skill) but I hate doing it (not an interest). If we find a job where skills and interests align, we’re likely to be happier and more successful.

There are several free self-assessments out there and some for a nominal fee. None of them are perfect, but they can give you guidance. Additionally, ask others who know you to provide feedback on what they see in your skills.

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JOB SEARCH TIP: Hate practicing for an interview? Do it anyway.

24 Oct

Practicing for an interview can be painful, but rather you get feedback from a friend who cares for you that your answers don’t make any sense than in front of a recruiter or hiring manager.

Give your coach a list of questions. There are lists on the internet you can access and also write your own questions! Write questions that ask you to explain how your past experiences and successes can be applied to the position. Write questions that are specific to the job for which you are interviewing.

To make it more spontaneous, have your coach throw in a surprise or two. They could do that by mixing up the order of the questions, or dropping in a question you didn’t expect.

You’ll need to get good at this, so practice, and then practice again. Heck, practice some more.

As it is said: “by failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” When it comes to your job interviews, don’t let that be your epitaph.

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