Mark Hirschfeld

A former colleague, Dr. Kenneth Liggett, had a wonderful metaphor about healthy relationships:

“Mark, let’s say you want to eat healthier. You know apples are healthy, so you create a diet where you only eat apples. But that wouldn’t be healthy, would it? To have a healthy diet you need a variety of healthy fruits and vegetables and proteins.”

He continued: “The same thing is true with your network of relationships. If you only have “apples” you don’t have a healthy network. You need different, healthy relationships in order to have a truly healthy network.”

Think about your current network—do you have diversity, or do you only have “apples”?

As a job seeker, having a more diverse network can help you in so many ways. A more diverse network can “see” things about you that a more homogenous network can’t. They may have insights about job opportunities that you wouldn’t be aware of otherwise.

Over the last several months I’ve been intentional about expanding my network. I’ve met some wonderful folks and learned a lot.

To expand your opportunities, diversify your network.

#career #careercoach #jobhuntingtips #jobhunting #careers #jobsearch #jobsearchtips  #jobsearchcoach #jobsearchhelp #jobsearchstrategies

The great comedian Groucho Marx said: “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can never live long enough to make them all yourself.”

To help you get off to a great start spend some time talking with your new colleagues and learning about the mistakes that others have made.

With one company I’ve worked with new employees would get into trouble if they were frequently late to meetings. In another company there were strict rules about safety that, if broken, would put you in hot water. And in another being less-than-attentive to a customer on the showroom floor would get you a pink slip.

If you’re like the rest of us, you’ll make your own mistakes when you start a new gig, but there’s no reason to make mistakes that others before you have made.

Groucho Marx was right—you don’t have enough time to make all those other mistakes. Listen and learn.

It’s a new day. Let’s make it a great one.

A friend of mine was looking at a job posting that had a “preferred skill” of using a certain software application. She didn’t have experience with that application but had used two others that she thought were similar.

She contacted a friend who had worked with both applications. He told my friend that if she knew the one application that she was 90% of the way to knowing the other. She also went online and found screen shots of the application, which gave her confidence that she was well prepared to learn the new solution.

She listed her experience with the other application, and when asked in the interview told the hiring manager she had reached to someone about how easy it would be for her to learn the new technology.

The hiring manager was impressed she had taken the time to learn about their preferred technology, and told her that “in your case I think you’ve shown you are a great candidate”.

None of us will meet every requirement for a job, but we can make the effort to show prospective employers that some of our gaps can be managed and, in doing so, showcase our candidacy.

#career #careercoach #jobhuntingtips #jobhunting #careers #jobsearch #jobsearchtips

 #jobsearchcoach #jobsearchhelp #jobsearchstrategies

Several years ago, I worked with a company to conduct their annual employee engagement survey. After I presented their results, I was asked to come back a few weeks later for another meeting. As I was waiting in the lobby, I noticed a book on the coffee table.

I opened it up and found copies of all the reports of the survey I had just presented.

I was stunned.

When my contact came to fetch me, I asked her why this was in the lobby: “We talked about it as a leadership team, and we decided that we wanted everyone who visits us, including prospective employees, to know how employees feel about working here.”

“As you know, not everything is positive in that report, but we wanted to be as transparent as possible.”

Then I was impressed.

Most companies don’t do this, but you can still learn about potential employers. Check out online company ratings. You can also talk with former and current employees.

Do your homework.

#career #careercoach #jobhuntingtips #jobhunting #careers #jobsearch #jobsearchtips

 #jobsearchcoach #jobsearchhelp #jobsearchstrategies

Know someone looking for work? Please pass along:

Within a year, Andy lost three jobs because of downsizings or mergers. In all cases his performance wasn’t at issue—he was a hard worker.

You would think that after the third layoff Andy would become upset or dejected, perhaps even giving up.

If he did, he didn’t show it.

Andy had a plan and he continued to work his plan. Whenever we met he was positive and had ideas about what he could be doing for the coming week.

I’m know Andy had bad days, but he didn’t let them get him down. He didn’t need to seek professional help, but if you need help please consider doing so. When prospective employers asked him about his changes, he was honest. He also had secured references from each of his employers.

Andy did land another and has been doing exceptionally well ever since. Throughout his challenges he kept his focus on what he could control and kept focused on making progress every day.

To the degree you can, take some inspiration from Andy. Keep working. Keep networking. Keep up a positive attitude.

#career #careercoach #jobhuntingtips #jobhunting #careers #jobsearch #jobsearchtips
#jobsearchcoach #jobsearchhelp #jobsearchstrategies

.This plea is to those of you who are fortunate enough to have a job. If someone asks for you for a few moments to ask for advice, please do so. If you know the person well enough and feel comfortable writing a reference or validating some of their skills on this platform, do it.

One exceptionally important thing you can do in a networking meeting it to provide connections to a job seeker from your network. I was trained by my father to understand and utilize the power of networking, a skill others may not have.

I have used this privilege to my own benefit over the years, and am now using that to help others navigate these often complex systems called employers.

I’ve heard some say they are uncomfortable taking networking meetings because of the fear they can’t help. You don’t need to have all the answers. In fact, just listening to folks who are searching can make a difference—you help them feel heard.

Reach out and help not because you may receive something in return (although you might); do it because it’s the right thing.

#career #careercoach #jobhuntingtips #jobhunting #careers #jobsearch #jobsearchtips

 #jobsearchcoach #jobsearchhelp #jobsearchstrategies

Have you applied for a job at a company, had an interview, and then never heard back?

You’ve been “ghosted”.

Sadly, many employers don’t follow up with candidates who aren’t moving forward on a job. It is, in my view, lazy, disrespectful and unprofessional on the part of an employer. It can hurt their brand. Even if you don’t get this job, you are still a potential future employee, referrer and a customer.

As a job seeker, what should you do?

~ If you had what you thought was a good interview that you think might lead to an offer, DON’T STOP SEARCHING. Keep looking. You are in control of your search.

~ Check your networking contacts to see if you know someone can help.

~ Finally, take the high road. Send one last note to the recruiter or hiring manager. Express your disappointment they have not followed up and wish them well.

Stick to your plan. Do your homework. Tell your story.

It’s a new day. Let’s get going.

#career #careercoach #jobhuntingtips #jobhunting #careers #jobsearch #jobsearchtips

 #jobsearchcoach #jobsearchhelp #jobsearchstrategies