The Power of You Podcast: Recent Episodes
Win Sheffield: Career Strategist and Coach
Career coach Win Sheffield brings you concise, comprehensive answers to your questions about the 21st Century job market, interviews, resumes, your letters, networking and negotiating.
When we are first laid off, it can be overwhelming. Our income is going or gone. And we face the prospect of going through a painful, barely understood process to get a job.
This Power of You microcast sorts through the many things that are happening when we find ourselves out on the street and offers some ways of dealing with the crisis in a productive and positive way.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- When people ask me what I have done, I draw a blank. What can I do to remember more of my accomplishments? (TPOY006)
- How should I tell a story about what I have done so I don’t have to brag ? (TPOY027)
- How can I talk about my experience without bragging? (TPOY005)
- Can you make any recommendations how I can organize my time to make my career campaign more productive? (TPOY064)
- Can you give me some ideas how I can keep up my morale while I am working towards my next job? (TPOY047)
The post I have just been laid off and don’t know where to turn; what do I do? (TPOY071) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Those familiar with The Power of You will know that learning more and more about the positions, industries and organizations we are interested in is the most effective way to engage our network. For those of us sticking with a well honed expertise, the questions we want to ask are slightly different. This microcast looks at questions the expert will ask, in more detail.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- Can you give me some good questions to ask my networking contacts? (TPOY053)
- I am letting my network know that I am available for any & all types of work. What else can I do? (TPOY007)
The post As an expert in my industry, what questions can I have for my network besides ‘Do you know anybody with a job’? (TPOY070) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
As with many difficult questions, the main point of asking a nonsense question is to see how we handle the unexpected. While nonsense questions may seem impossible to anticipate and have no set answer, this Power of You microcast reviews some ideas for ways to prepare nonetheless.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- Is it really necessary for interviewers to torture us with such difficult questions? (TPOY021)
- Can you recommend how to handle behavioral interview questions? (TPOY024)
The post How do I answer nonsense questions in an interview? (TPOY069) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
In a continuing series on Difficult Interview Questions, this Power of You microcast addresses how to answer future oriented questions like what we will be doing in five years.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- Is it really necessary for interviewers to torture us with such difficult questions? (TPOY021)
- I have a really important interview coming up. What can I do to prepare beyond looking at their website? (TPOY011)
The post How do I answer interviewers’ questions about my future when I don’t know myself? (TPOY068) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
At various times in the interview process, we may suspect, that we are being viewed as a flawed candidate. This Power of You microcast addresses how to approach this sensitive topic.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- How do I approach learning where I stand in the interview process? (TPOY066)
- How can I do better in interviews? (TPOY010)
The post I can imagine some objections to my candidacy; how do I tell which, if any of these I need to worry about? (TPOY067) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Interviews are the gateway to any job and so it is a good idea to know how we are being seen by our interviewers and what’s going on with the process generally. This Power of You microcast looks at how to get an idea of how we are doing.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- How can I do better in interviews? (TPOY010)
- What questions should I be asking in an interview? (TPOY020)
- What do I need to put in my interview follow up note? (TPOY065)
The post How do I approach learning where I stand in the interview process? (TPOY066) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Everyone knows that we need to send a thank you note after an interview. This Power of You microcast shows how to go beyond thank you and create a note that furthers our candidacy and gives us a competitive advantage over other interviewees.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- What should be in my cover letter? (TPOY022)
- Can you give me an example of a good accomplishment story? (TPOY059)
- What’s the best way to make my resume effective? (TPOY003)
- How can I make updating my resume easier? (TPOY029)
- I can imagine some objections to my candidacy; how do I tell which, if any of these I need to worry about? (TPOY067)
The post What do I need to put in my interview follow up note? (TPOY065) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
In a job there tends to be a focus on what we do. This is rarely true in a job campaign where unfamiliar and last-minute tasks arise regularly.
Other than our overall goal of landing a job, our priorities in our job campaign are often in flux. This Power of You microcast explores some ways to organize a campaign so that we can manage unanticipated opportunities while ensuring ongoing efforts get the attention they need.
The post Can you make any recommendations how I can organize my time to make my career campaign more productive? (TPOY064) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
We may choose to keep our personal life personal and not mix business with pleasure. It does not have to be that way. Many of the people we know socially would be glad to assist us professionally, if they could and, if they are approached in the right way. This Power of You microcast covers some ideas for appropriately leveraging social contacts professionally.
The post How can I appropriately leverage non-work social media and social settings for help with my career? (TPOY063) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Being open to a variety of options gives us more scope for success. At the same time, it can spread us too thin. It turns out that being persuasive about our ability to do a job requires more than a cursory understanding of that job, to be competitive. We definitely need to start by listing our options. Then we need to select one to delve into it intensely. By doing this fairly early on we get practice presenting a deeper and more nuanced picture of what we have to offer.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- If a resume gets only a 10 second glance, how do we grab the reader’s attention? (TPOY002)
- I need to know more before I can put myself out there in the job market. How can I do this without feeling foolish? (TPOY056)
The post I am frustrated by my progress even though I am pursuing a variety of job options. What can I do to improve my results? (TPOY062) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Many of us feel the urge to move on from our current job and don’t get very far because we don’t know what else we could do. This microcast identifies some ways to look at what we have done to get new ideas for ourselves.
The post How can I find ideas for my next job? (TPOY061) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Whenever we are in a new or unfamiliar situation, like being out of a job, we tend to doubt ourselves and pay more attention to our fears than when we feel secure and in familiar territory. The bad news is that, in this state we naturally have more negative thoughts. The good news is that a shift in attitude can move us out of negativity relatively painlessly.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- Can you share some examples of functions and skills to help me think about what I like? (TPOY037)
- Can you give me some ideas how I can keep up my morale while I am working towards my next job? (TPOY047)
- I have very little idea who I should be meeting with or what to ask them. Can you help me get started? (TPOY051)
- Can you give me some good questions to ask my networking contacts? (TPOY053)
- I need to know more before I can put myself out there in the job market. How can I do this without feeling foolish? (TPOY056)
The post I sometimes feel I am getting in my own way with my negative thoughts – what can I do to overcome this? (TPOY060) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
This microcast is the first in a series of samples that provide some ideas for the components of a good story. This story is a little over two minutes and 300 words.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- How can I talk about my experience without bragging? (TPOY005)
- When people ask me what I have done, I draw a blank. What can I do to remember more of my accomplishments? (TPOY006)
- How should I tell a story about what I have done so I don’t have to brag ? (TPOY027)
- Why isn’t sharing my results good enough? Why do you say stories are more effective? (TPOY026)
- If telling stories is so important for my job campaign, how can I tell a good story? (TPOY045)
The post Can you give me an example of a good accomplishment story? (TPOY059) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
We hear a lot about selling ourselves when it comes to the job market. This can be a daunting prospect, but with some up front work, can be very manageable. This microcast shows us how to get a much better grasp of the product that we are before we go out and try to sell it.
- How can I talk about my experience without bragging? (TPOY005)
- When people ask me what I have done, I draw a blank. What can I do to remember more of my accomplishments? (TPOY006)
- How should I tell a story about what I have done so I don’t have to brag ? (TPOY027)
- Why isn’t sharing my results good enough? Why do you say stories are more effective? (TPOY026)
- Can you give me an example of a good accomplishment story? (TPOY059)
The post How do I get to the point where I can speak about myself with confidence? (TPOY058) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
We tend to think of our network as the people we know professionally and assume that building our network involves cold calls to people we do not know or becoming some kind of super salesperson. In fact, networking does not need to involve total strangers at all, as this microcast lays out.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- How can I network when it turns me into someone I don’t like? (TPOY004)
The post Who is in my network and how do I get other people in my network? (TPOY057) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
It is tempting to think that a job campaign is like a lot of other things we deal with in the 21st Century: Do the necessary work up front, push a button and your result appears. A 19th Century analogy involving investment up front and then much learning by trial and error is a closer analogy. This microcast looks at the job market as a place we explore, as opposed to a place we look for something and then, act. Seeing it this way can make our career efforts less tedious and much more productive.
The post I need to know more before I can put myself out there in the job market. How can I do this without feeling foolish? (TPOY056) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Many interview questions can take the form of what is the Best? What is the Worst? Or the Most, or the Least. Don’t fall for it. This microcast describes how to answer the question, and change the game a little to lower the stress and show you can handle difficult situations.
The post Interviewers are always asking me what is the best or worst or most important this or that – What is my best strategy to answer these kinds of questions? (TPOY055) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
A job campaign has so many moving parts that it is easy to get lost in the process and end up feeling like we are engaged in random activity.
In this microcast we take a step back to put our efforts in perspective so we can reach a successful result more quickly and efficiently. We do this on three levels: the approach we take, the actions we pursue and the way we organize ourselves.
On all three levels this means taking an active, not a passive approach to the job market. We are in charge. We need to present ourselves to the marketplace, impressing our listeners, rather than hoping someone will take mercy on us in our helplessness.
The post How can I get confidence to sell myself in the marketplace when I feel unfocused and unproductive? (TPOY054) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
There are many questions we can ask our contacts. While we will ask no two contacts the same questions, it is useful to have some basic questions to stimulate our curiosity. The questions in this microcast are designed to remind us of questions we may have forgotten we had.
The post Can you give me some good questions to ask my networking contacts? (TPOY053) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Negotiation begins long before we receive our offer. This microcast reviews how we can best position ourselves to improve our negotiating position starting from the time we target an organization.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
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I have received a job offer and want to negotiate my salary. What is the best way to approach the negotiation? (TPOY019)
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How can I avoid the ‘salary’ question? (TPOY018)
The post What can I do to improve my negotiating position prior to getting the offer? (TPOY052) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Meeting with people is key to most job campaigns. This microcast covers how to make the most of our contacts and how to manage our network.
The post I have very little idea who I should be meeting with or what to ask them. Can you help me get started? (TPOY051) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
While many interviewers may ask difficult questions as part of the interview game, some interviewers will ask illegal or inappropriate questions which we may not wish to answer. This microcast outlines strategies and gives examples of ways to handle these questions.
The post How do I handle it when I am asked illegal or inappropriate questions? (TPOY050) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Meeting with people is key to most career campaigns. This microcast covers the basic components of the meeting so that we can get the most out of the conversation.
The post Now that I have gotten someone to agree to meet with me, what do I say in the meeting? (TPOY049) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Classes may have us to working in teams or we may have friends we study with, yet in the end, the grade we receive is ours. In the same way, just because the job we get is ours alone, getting to it is best done with the support of others and not on our own. This microcast reviews the components of a job campaign and how to get the support we need to take the rough edges off the process.
The post Being new in the job market, I don’t know enough to land a job on my own. Who can help me? (TPOY048) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
A job campaign commits us to change and often exposes us to all kinds of negative feedback, not least from ourselves! These things can undermine our efforts.
This microcast suggests some ways we can support ourselves so we can achieve our desired result more quickly and with less pain.
The post Can you give me some ideas how I can keep up my morale while I am working towards my next job? (TPOY047) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
To make the best use of our scarce career time it is worth taking a closer look at the process of getting a job. Breaking what we need to do into its basic components allows us to have a better perspective on what we are doing so we can be most productive in the time allocated. This microcast focuses on knowing the components of our job campaign so we can do a better job executing it.
The post I am doing everything I can to study and enjoy my last year in college – How do I manage a job campaign while I am doing all that? (TPOY046) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
As much as stories are part of our daily life, we can lack the understanding or confidence of how to tell a good story in a work context. The microcast illustrates techniques and flourishes to bring our stories alive and further draw in our listener.
The post If telling stories is so important for my job campaign, how can I tell a good story? (TPOY045) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
It is common to identify a few people who we can bring ourselves to talk to, to talk to them and when that does not lead to a job, to feel stuck, feeling like we have nowhere to turn and are left looking at ads and throwing ourselves on the mercy of anyone who might have a job, any job. This microcast shows how to turn our contacts into repeat sources so we do not kill off that resource.
The post Being a student, I have run out of people to reach out to – How am I supposed to get a job or find out what I need to know? (TPOY044) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
It is a good idea to remain positive about bosses, colleagues, clients, and most any aspect of work. Yet many of the examples of our abilities and character that we would want to share involve dealing with bosses and others who were not so positive. We rightly want to show these off, as the strengths that they are. This microcast illustrates how to present the negative in an interview.
The post How do I handle interview questions about problems with my boss? (TPOY043) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
In our role as candidates we are focused on providing answers to the interviewer’s questions. Without experience we need to learn those answers. After a certain point that leads to having to ask someone. And yet, in asking we are showing our ignorance. This microcast clarifies how we manage the roles of being the person answering the questions in one case and asking the questions in the other.
The post How do I find the information I need to successfully interview and at the same time appear ready to do the job? (TPOY042) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Recruiters, sometimes called headhunters, offer the very attractive prospect of jobs that we do not have to find. To take best advantage of recruiters, it pays to know how they work and how to deal with them. This microcast reviews the three truths about recruiters, the types of recruiters and the best ways to cultivate a productive relationship with them.
The post What is the best way to work with recruiters? (TPOY041) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
As new participants in the job market, we lack experience. Even after an internship we don’t know enough about most jobs to be convincing about why we would be good for them, or whether we would like them.
This microcast looks at what we can learn so we can make better choices, and present ourselves better as candidates.
The post How I am supposed to convince someone I would be good for something when I don’t know the first thing about much beyond my major? (TPOY040) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Work is a place where we spend a significant part of our waking hours. While many things about work are given, there are aspects of the culture, the environment and other intangibles that could be as important as what we do, and, over which we have some say. This microcast allows us to review a number of job characteristics and identify their importance to us.
The post Can you share some examples of Values and Preferences to help me think about what I like about my work beyond what I do? (TPOY039) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Everyone wants an internship not just for the experience, but because if things work out, then we are not required to look at all those ads and reach out to all those people. While we hope that our internship turns into fulltime employment, in case it doesn’t, this microcast will outline some other ways to get interviews.
The post I’m a recent grad. If I don’t get a job through my internship, do I have any good alternatives to answering ads and networking to land a job? (TPOY038) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
When we are used to just “doing” our job it is sometimes easy to lose track of what is important to us and what we do well. This microcast goes into some functions and skills so that we can better articulate what is important to us.
The post Can you share some examples of functions and skills to help me think about what I like? (TPOY037) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
| It sometimes seems like only an act of kindness can get us a job in the “real” world. Why would anyone take a chance on us unless they know us? What we have achieved in the academic world seems largely irrelevant. We tend to rely on people who know us or the reputation of our school, or the ability implied by our grades or some combination of outside interests or previous jobs or internships to get us hired. Yet, we have another potentially very effective means at our disposal: telling people the stories of how we achieved the successes in any context. This microcast explores what makes those stories relevant and how to deliver them. |
The post Being newly graduated and without experience, how can I convince anyone I would be a good employee? (TPOY036) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
| Not everyone who seeks a job is an extrovert, which is just as well, as employers need introverts to make their organizations run smoothly. Many of those introverted skills and abilities, useful on the job, are also useful for advancing our job campaigns. There will be times when we have to draw on our extrovert sides as well. This microcast reviews how to maximize the strengths that come from our introversion and how to minimize extroverted activity. |
The post I am not an extrovert and wonder how I can execute a successful job campaign. (TPOY035) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Being new to the workforce, we may feel powerless and at the mercy of the job market. Some would say ‘Beggars can’t be choosers.’ It turns out, though, that the most important quality in a candidate, as the head recruiter for Goldman Sachs said, is “Enthusiasm.”
What this means, is that if we can show the interest or excitement we bring to a job, we can be selected over the apparently more qualified candidate. This microcast explores how our desire to do the job matters.
Other Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- I’m a recent grad. If I don’t get a job through my internship, do I have any good alternatives to answering ads and networking to land a job? (TPOY038)
The post As a recent grad I feel I have to take any job to get started. Is that right? What if I hate it? (TPO034) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
It is easy to think that networking events are about becoming a guy who strides up to people, thrusts a business card into their hand while introducing themselves and delivering a hearty “Pleased to meecha!” before turning to their next victim. This is not what we have to do. The key to effective networking is our relationships and that just isn’t the way to develop productive relationships. There is no need to have a personality transplant to make these events a success.
While we may choose never to attend a networking event, this microcast reviews which ones to choose, how to prepare for them and have them serve our interests.
The post I hate networking events – Do I have to go to them and if so, what do I do ? (TPOY033) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Some students have the good fortune to get an internship in their industry of choice and many do not. Yet employers only seem to be looking for candidates with experience. How do we cross that gap? This microcast addresses how to show that what we offer is relevant.
The post I have just graduated and have no experience in any industry I want to work in – How do I compete without any relevant work experience ? (TPOY032) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
The job market is overwhelming for everyone, especially when coming from the academic world and entering the wider working world with its different culture, rhythm and requirements. This microcast lays out a few key truths about the job market to make approaching that world somewhat easier.
The post I am just graduating from school and am overwhelmed by the job market. What should I do? (TPOY031) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Age prejudice can be a problem. Many clients somewhere over 40 ask how they can obscure their age when in the job market. It is sometimes helpful to downplay our age and sometimes not. This microcast covers age considerations and some simple things to do to deflect attention from age if it could be a problem.
The post How do I mask my age on my resume? (TPOY030) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Because of its centrality to our job campaigns and as our only means of communication with some audiences we need to reach, a resume can be overwhelming to approach. This microcast lays out a step by step approach to developing a powerful resume. The post How can I make updating my resume easier? (TPOY029) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
‘What is a resume?’ seems like an odd question to ask. Everyone knows what a resume is. ‘It’s that annoying document without which we cannot talk to anyone about a job.’ I hope to this microcast gives you a more nuanced understanding by distinguishing the two main purposes of a resume.
The post What is a resume? (TPOY028) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Bragging is seldom effective. It is better to relate the facts, that is, to tell a story. Stories are our most effective way of conveying our value to our listeners, be they our contacts or interviewers. This microcast reviews the 5 basic steps a story must contain so it can effectively convey how we work.
The post How should I tell a story about what I have done so I don’t have to brag ? (TPOY027) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
This microcast shows three ways to convey value: claims, results and stories. Listening to all three helps us to understand what we get from each and why stories are the most valuable.
The post Why isn’t sharing my results good enough? Why do you say stories are more effective? (TPOY026) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
The ‘greatest weakness’ question is one that job candidates fear the most and yet it is the favorite of many interviewers. There are a number of approaches we can take to this question which are covered in this microcast.
The post How do I answer the ‘What is your greatest weakness’ question? (TPOY025) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Many people fear Behavioral Interviews (these are where the interviewer asks you what you would do in specific situations). This microcast will show you why you should hope for these behavioral questions.
The post Can you recommend how to handle behavioral interview questions? (TPOY024) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
With the double whammy of being tired of our job and it being the only thing we know how to do, it might seem like we should give up. Yet, much of the current workforce is in exactly this position. This microcast addresses why a desire to jettison our current expertise is not a showstopper and how our expertise is not even the most important criterion for employers.
The post I am so done with my current profession but it is all I know; How can I get a job I want? (TPOY023) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Our cover letters need to be brief enough to match our reader’s attention span and interesting enough for them to want to know more. This microcast cuts to the essence of what a cover letter needs to be.
Other The Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- If a resume gets only a 10 second glance, how do we grab the reader’s attention? (TPOY002)
The post What should be in my cover letter? (TPOY022) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
We sometimes imagine interviews as a meeting where we are trying to be oh-so-perfect and the interviewer is trying to outwit us by asking difficult questions they learned in classes in advanced cruelty. While I cannot vouch for all interviewers, this microcast presents some ways to make difficult questions easier to address.
Other The Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- What is the most effective way to introduce myself professionally? (TPOY012)
- Help! I am trying to put together a pitch and don’t know where to begin. (TPOY013)
- How can I avoid the ‘salary’ question? (TPOY018)
The post Is it really necessary for interviewers to torture us with such difficult questions? (TPOY021) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
When we prepare for an interview it can feel a lot like cramming for finals. In a final exam we have to have the right answers to pass. As important as preparing answers is for an interview, it is not the only thing we need to focus on. We also need to find out about the job we are interviewing for and determine if it is one we want. This microcast focuses on questions we can ask in an interview.
The post What questions should I be asking in an interview? (TPOY020) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
With all that we have to do to get to the point where we receive a job offer, it is easy not to be prepared when it finally comes. This microcast provides guidelines on how to handle the negotiation so that it turns out for the best for both parties.
The post I have received a job offer and want to negotiate my salary. What is the best way to approach the negotiation? (TPOY019) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
We are all concerned that we might be disqualified from a potentially great job because we mention a salary that is too high or too low. Except for external recruiters, with whom we need to share out salary, we will want to avoid the question as best we can. This microcast addresses some ways to deal with questions about our salary, whether it is a past salary or what we are seeking.
The post How can I avoid the ‘salary’ question? (TPOY018) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
With building our network, thanking people we have spoken to, responding to ads, keeping track of our mail campaigns, researching organizations we are interviewing with, keeping track of versions of our resume, developing pitches or intros for different situations, exploring new career ideas and new companies to look into, revisiting our priorities, looking into long and short-term options, informing our fans of progress, following industry news and trends and somehow finding time for the rest of our life, we need all the help we can get to be efficient in our job campaign time. This week’s microcast gives a suggestion of how to do that.
The post My job campaign takes me in a million directions; what suggestions do you have for keeping myself organized? (TPOY017) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
There are many reasons why seeking work feels so hopeless. Besides our increasing insecurity due to the lack of a paycheck, we have lower self-esteem since we are no longer contributing in the way that work allows. Add to that, entering into a process where rejections are the norm, and we might have good reason to be discouraged. This microcast offers approaches and changes in point of view that can moderate some of that unpleasantness and let us find some more acceptable ways to be in the job market.
The post How can I keep up my morale when my job campaign is so discouraging and seems never-ending? (TPOY016) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
With all the pressures of a job campaign, our time is at a premium. Anything we can do to save time is worth investing in. LinkedIn should be at the top of that list as it is the go-to place for professional social media. This microcast covers how to establish your LinkedIn presence. For how to use LinkedIn once you have set it up, please listen to The Power of You microcast 014.
Other The Power of You microcasts referred to in this microcast:
- If a resume gets only a 10 second glance, how do we grab the reader’s attention? (TPOY002)
- What’s the best way to make my resume effective? (TPOY003)
The post What can I do to make myself visible on LinkedIn? (TPOY015) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
LinkedIn can be a great help in our job campaign. This microcast reviews the information LinkedIn provides and how to use it. For information on how to set yourself up on LinkedIn, please refer to The Power of You microcast 015.
The post How can I best use LinkedIn for my job campaign? (TPOY014) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
When we try to sit down and come up with the way we introduce ourselves (often called a “pitch” or “intro”) we find ourselves going around in circles. The reason we get overwhelmed is because in practice there is not one way to introduce ourselves. Depending on the person and the circumstances, we need to highlight different things in what we say. This microcast shows how to streamline the process and come up with the intro you need.
The post Help! I am trying to put together a pitch and don’t know where to begin. (TPOY013) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Everyone knows they need an elevator pitch or a two-minute pitch in the job market. The problem is that this is taken to mean a hard-boiled sales pitch. In fact most people do not want to hear that any more than most people want to deliver it. This Power of You microcast shows another way.
The post What is the most effective way to introduce myself professionally? (TPOY012) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Everyone knows that research is important before an interview. We need a good sense of what the organization and the area we are interviewing for do. This microcast covers a simple 3-step preparation strategy that provides a strong foundation for a solid interview performance.
The post I have a really important interview coming up. What can I do to prepare beyond looking at their website? (TPOY011) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
There are a number of things we can do to improve our performance in interviews. This microcast spotlights our attitude. The key is extending our focus beyond on our ability to do the job, to our enthusiasm for the job.
The post How can I do better in interviews? (TPOY010) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Job ads and listings are the most visible feature of the job market and yet surveys tell us that about 25% of new hires get their jobs through ads. Our goal then might be to spend 25% of our job campaign responding to ads. This microcast goes through some techniques and strategies to make sure that 25% is well spent.
The post What is the best way to respond to an ad? (TPOY009) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
You may have heard that less than a quarter of people get their jobs through ads or job listings. You may wonder why the number is so small.
In this microcast we look at ads from the point of view of the person placing them. In looking at why they are placed in the first place, we can adjust our strategy for the greatest return on our time invested.
The post Why don’t I see more jobs I like in ads? (TPOY008) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
When we have many capabilities and are not sure where they might be in demand, it seems prudent to advertise our versatility and our flexibility. It turns out that this strategy can cause unintended consequences. This microcast covers ways to adapt the strategy using approaches that have been effective for others.
The post I am letting my network know that I am available for any & all types of work. What else can I do? (TPOY007) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Often when we try to remember our successes we cannot recall anything. In this microcast we explore how to recall those long forgotten accomplishments.
The post When people ask me what I have done, I draw a blank. What can I do to remember more of my accomplishments? (TPOY006) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
It can feel very uncomfortable to talk about how we have contributed at work. It feels conceited and seems to force us to be a person we do want to be. The fact is, there is not just one way to communicate our experience. This microcast explores three basic forms our communication can take: (1) Make a claim, (2) Share results, and (3) Tell a story.
The post How can I talk about my experience without bragging? (TPOY005) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Although many job seekers wish it were not so, statistics reinforce that networking is the most common way to land a job. What is not as well understood is what networking is. There are many types of networking which are ineffective or counterproductive and these give networking a bad name. There are basically three types of networking that have been proved effective and which you want to have in your job seeking toolkit They are outlined in this episode.
The post How can I network when it turns me into someone I don’t like? (TPOY004) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
A hiring manager, when considering our resume is looking for how we can add value. The best way to convey our value is to use the bullets of our resume to give examples of our accomplishments. The best examples illustrate WHAT we did and HOW we did it.
The post What’s the best way to make my resume effective? (TPOY003) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
Surveys tell us that resumes get an first look of only ten seconds. What if we can re-think the top of the resume so a reader will give it more time? This microcast shows how introducing a Title and Key Accomplishments section can do that.
The post If a resume gets only a 10 second glance, how do we grab the reader’s attention? (TPOY002) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.
To the busy and single-minded, small talk may seem like an unaffordable luxury. In fact it is a necessity that you cannot do without. Here are the basics of what you need to know.
The post Interviewers all seem to expect small talk in an interview. Is there any way to avoid it? (TPOY001) appeared first on The Power of You - Answers to your career questions.