A free inside look at jobs and companies. Find jobs and see company salaries, reviews, and interviews posted anonymously by employees.
If I had one wish that could be fulfilled by every job candidate I see, it’s that he or she would want to earn a million dollars a year, plus bonuses. I’ve asked lots of other business owners and they seem to agree that there’s one quality sorely missing from job seekers. That quality is ambition.
Did you enjoy the Super Bowl this past Sunday? The Giants and the Patriots were well prepared and well coached. For instance, when was the last time you saw a team allow the other team to score to get their hands on the ball with some time while the other team considered not scoring in order to run the clock out. The game is fluid and coaching decisions must reflect the ebbs and flows. That’s why Coughlin and Belechek make the big bucks, the decision stops with them. Couldn’t help thinking about the number of executive coaches there are in the market today to help executives with their personal and staff development. It is not a new profession, just one that has expanded out of need. And why is the number growing? There are a number of reasons including the fact that companies of all sizes do business in a complex global environment and a number of executives have not been well trained to manage growth in this environment – they need coaching.
This ‘us against them’ thing has really gotten out of hand. We live in an ‘Occupy Everything’ world where 24/7 transparency is occasionally clipped by anonymity and the Anonymous movement to disrupt supposed social injustices while complaints of retaliation by employers trumped race for the second consecutive year, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Now breathe and let’s start again… In the world of work, whether you’re looking for a new job or looking for advancement within, you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t.
You know the feeling. That co-worker of yours has been driving you nuts all day with constant chatting. Or perhaps it’s a subordinate who can never get it right. Or maybe that last demand from an unreasonable boss. So one day, you lose it. You explode in anger and frustration because things just aren’t going right. Tension is running high in workplaces these days as fewer people take on more work, often for less pay. Whether or not you handle that tension gracefully, however, can make or break your career.
While December 2011 employment data (released in January 2012), showed the U.S. unemployment rate was continuing to trend down, the number of long-term unemployed held almost steady at 5.6 million. This group is comprised of individuals who have been jobless for 27 weeks or more, and makes up 42.5 percent of the total unemployed. The commonly flawed hiring process—lack of an acknowledgement of resume receipt, hiring managers who do not know what they want, inept interviewers, and little follow up by companies—is particularly frustrating for this group of individuals and the reasons are understandable.
Standing out is hard to do, especially when you are competing with a million other people. Online work sites like Elance and oDesk offer a venue for freelancers of all walks to bid and compete for short and long term projects. While these sites afford people the freedom to work when they want, they aren’t void of competition.
Technology-fueled people power has come of age and is quickly transforming the old saw “Buyer beware” into “Seller take care.” And this has very real implications for you and your future livelihood (more on that in a moment). But first, a little background. What do Netflix, Bank of America, and Verizon all have in common? The answer – the wrath of their customers and the public at large.
This week, Glassdoor is merging two other streams of data to create a single environment for job hunters. Glassdoor has always had a flow of millions of job listings. When people come to research jobs and companies, they get the web’s most comprehensive picture of the inside of the company, the jobs available, what it’s like to work there and the details of the hiring process. With Inside Connections, Glassdoor allows job hunters to harness their Facebook network to round out the rest of the services. Using Facebook to log in to the site makes it possible for Glassdoor to evaluate your Facebook network to see who can help you with the job hunt.
Talk your way into the job you choose….qualified or not! Could you hear yourself saying….? “Sir, my goal is to succeed. I plan to do that by working hard to provide value and service to our clients and my co-workers. I will fall and stumble at times, however I am determined to use these opportunities to learn and improve myself. I would be honored to work with your firm and hope I am blessed with the opportunity.”
Reading the CNN article, “Six Tips from Your Future Self,” started me thinking about the career lessons I’ve learned over the years. As a career coach, I now understand how experience is a teacher, but may also be a curse. Sometimes we become so rooted in our ways based on past experience that we fear taking the risk to go after something better or something more. Questions arise such as: What if I fail? What if I lose? What if I don’t like “it” after I achieve it?
Follow us:
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? by Personal Branding Blog February 10th, 2012
6 Ways To Establish A Private Career Coach by Hank Stringer February 10th, 2012
The Power Of Social Network Transparency by Kevin W. Grossman February 9th, 2012
Anger Management: How To Keep From Losing Your Job by FINS from The Wall Street Journal February 9th, 2012
The Hiring Process May Be Flawed, But You Can Still Land Your Next Job by onTargetjobs February 8th, 2012