He's tired and dusty and everyone knows his story. Nobody perks up when they see him walk through the door. Nobody expects anything new from him. Nobody believes he can do anything different. Nobody holds long conversations with him. In fact his stories are the same and they are indeed quite boring now. The world has changed but he seems stuck in a time warp reliving his past glory - if indeed it was past glory. He relives past trespasses against him - perceived and real. Unable to move forward because of his anger. He dresses the same, acts the same, talks the same, and works the same - and he's getting nowhere fast. His rebellion grows daily in thought, word, and deed. He seems to be applying 1999 tactics to 2009 challenges. He's using a 56k modem to download a 10 gigabyte file when everyone else is using Broadband. This is an example of becoming more efficient at doing the wrong thing.
So now he's stuck in a rut and reality has finally smacked him square in the mouth. He wonders where it all went wrong. So he begins to reflect. And then he realizes that for many years, his friends, colleagues, and family tried to give him good advice. Teachers warned him of his erratic behavior and the consequences. Past supervisors warned him of his negative attitude and the repercussions. Team members warned him of his unprofessional image and the message it sent . But since he didn't think anything was wrong he shunned them. Surely they must all be mad! He was doing just fine in his career. Sure, he hasn't been able to change jobs or get promoted in the last 3 years but that's not his fault. The companies are just too foolish and short-sighted to see his talents. Their loss he says! Yeah, he really hurt them, didn't he? Those companies will surely be worse off for not hiring him. And if you believe that then I have a bottle of snake oil to sell you.
Many of you might not know who J.R. Rider is but he was once a promising NBA player. A scoring machine he was! A good team mate he was not! Rider was not coachable and built a stellar reputation for not showing up to practices or following team rules. The talented fool. He was a freelancer in a team sport. And sure, teams continued to pay him because of his talent. But after awhile, his act got old and he eventually was bounced from the league and into a life of personal turmoil. How about Adam "Pacman" Jones of the NFL? Another talented fool who refused to listen to wise council and was eventually bounced from the league. No matter what sport you follow you will be able to find an example of a talented fool who refused to listen to those who care most about him/her. And if you don't follow sports then think of your favorite musician or actor who self-destructed.
Such talented fools they are and were! And if you think their lives are so different from your own then think again. Professional Sports and Entertainment are industries and are no different than any other business. There are rules and consequences for displaying certain career limiting behaviors. Don't be the talented employee who nobody wants to work with. Don't be the talented job-seeker who nobody wants to hire. Don't be the talented employee who nobody wants to recommend. Don't be the talented job-seeker who nobody wants to mentor. In a nutshell, don't be the talented fool!
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Back to Basics: Reapplying What You Know
I read an interesting article in the Financial Times about the woes of Boeing's 787 -- dubbed the 7-"late"-7. To make a long story short, Boeing has moved from a "sales & marketing" business approach to an "engineering" business approach. Basically, the former CEO overpromised and underdelivered because his background was in marketing. So while he was able to dazzle customers with all the features and benefits of the 787 and get hundreds of pre-orders - while outsourcing most of the design and engineering to global partners - he apparently didn't count on the numerous quality control problems that would occur. Another example of a CEO whose bonus was probably tied to the number of pre-orders the company obtained.
How does this tie into your career management? This is a call for you to go back to basics. Go back to what made you successful. Many companies are doing this because as a business grows and gets more complex it eventually gets away from its roots. And companies are just larger representations of individuals. So take a look at your core competencies and what you are really good at. Are you using all of your skills? Whether you are currently employed or job searching this still applies to you. So many times we get away from our natural gifts. Sometimes we are so eager to get away from a past experience or educational training that we forget how valuable that experience could be if applied in the right way.
The real skill these days is in applying your knowledge in creative and unique ways to the benefit of your employer and yourself. That means skills, concepts, ideas, applications, products, technologies, people, etc. You don't have to be an expert in everything, you just need to know how to apply things in ways that give your employer (or yourself) the competitive edge. You don't have to create new technologies, you just need to know how to identify ones that would be good for your business. Take a cue from the successful businesses I say! If ever there was a model for a business that went back to basics to become a global icon, it is Apple. I mean, Apple was written off more times than I can remember. But Steve Jobs went back to basics and capitalized on what the company does best - listen to its customers and create cool products!
How does this tie into your career management? This is a call for you to go back to basics. Go back to what made you successful. Many companies are doing this because as a business grows and gets more complex it eventually gets away from its roots. And companies are just larger representations of individuals. So take a look at your core competencies and what you are really good at. Are you using all of your skills? Whether you are currently employed or job searching this still applies to you. So many times we get away from our natural gifts. Sometimes we are so eager to get away from a past experience or educational training that we forget how valuable that experience could be if applied in the right way.
The real skill these days is in applying your knowledge in creative and unique ways to the benefit of your employer and yourself. That means skills, concepts, ideas, applications, products, technologies, people, etc. You don't have to be an expert in everything, you just need to know how to apply things in ways that give your employer (or yourself) the competitive edge. You don't have to create new technologies, you just need to know how to identify ones that would be good for your business. Take a cue from the successful businesses I say! If ever there was a model for a business that went back to basics to become a global icon, it is Apple. I mean, Apple was written off more times than I can remember. But Steve Jobs went back to basics and capitalized on what the company does best - listen to its customers and create cool products!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Job-Seekers' Folly: A Failure to Communicate
Hey, are you tired of using technology? I mean, do you ever feel like you are addicted to all things simple and easy? Isn't that what the goal is nowadays - to make things simple and easy? Well, let's take a step back and look at how over reliance on technology can be bad for your job search health. Indeed, technology has allowed job-seekers greater access to job openings at virtually no cost. In fact, you never need to leave the comfort of your room. Just upload your documents and click send. And wait for a reply...
Most job seekers measure their job search activity in terms of how many jobs they applied to online. So by that measure, someone applying to 25 jobs per week is more productive than someone applying to 2 jobs per week, right? Wrong!! How about we use another metric to illustrate my point. Whose activity would yield more results in the long run - the job seeker applying to 25 jobs per week or the job seeker having 25 conversations with people about his job search? Tú dirás!
What is the failure to communicate? The failure to communicate is the failure by most job-seekers to seek face to face interactions with people who can aid their job search. It's the failure to talk to people about your job search. It's the failure to keep people informed about what you are doing professionally. It's the failure to conduct business (and in this case, your job search!) through personal contact. It's the failure to build meaningful relationships with people based on sincerity and trust - and not based on desperation! Be the master of technology but don't let it master you! Technology is a means to an end - not the end! So use technology to facilitate your job search by identifying and connecting to the right people. Develop a long-term networking strategy based on mutual benefit. Do you know how many free products and services are given away each day by businesses? The old saying holds true - you have to give someting in order to receive something.
I recently read an article in the Financial Times about the late management thinker Russ Ackoff. It was a well-written article by Stefan Stern and provided several sacred jewels of knowledge. But there were four jewels that stood out as exemplary. Ackoff was not only a management thinker but also excellent at communicating his thoughts into powerful, life-changing statements. These statements are applicable to many areas of our personal and professional lives - and especially to you, my dear job seeker.
Most job seekers measure their job search activity in terms of how many jobs they applied to online. So by that measure, someone applying to 25 jobs per week is more productive than someone applying to 2 jobs per week, right? Wrong!! How about we use another metric to illustrate my point. Whose activity would yield more results in the long run - the job seeker applying to 25 jobs per week or the job seeker having 25 conversations with people about his job search? Tú dirás!
What is the failure to communicate? The failure to communicate is the failure by most job-seekers to seek face to face interactions with people who can aid their job search. It's the failure to talk to people about your job search. It's the failure to keep people informed about what you are doing professionally. It's the failure to conduct business (and in this case, your job search!) through personal contact. It's the failure to build meaningful relationships with people based on sincerity and trust - and not based on desperation! Be the master of technology but don't let it master you! Technology is a means to an end - not the end! So use technology to facilitate your job search by identifying and connecting to the right people. Develop a long-term networking strategy based on mutual benefit. Do you know how many free products and services are given away each day by businesses? The old saying holds true - you have to give someting in order to receive something.
I recently read an article in the Financial Times about the late management thinker Russ Ackoff. It was a well-written article by Stefan Stern and provided several sacred jewels of knowledge. But there were four jewels that stood out as exemplary. Ackoff was not only a management thinker but also excellent at communicating his thoughts into powerful, life-changing statements. These statements are applicable to many areas of our personal and professional lives - and especially to you, my dear job seeker.
- All of our problems arise out of doing the wrong thing righter.
- The more efficient you are at doing the wrong thing, the wronger you become.
- It is much better to do the right thing wronger than the wrong thing righter.
- If you do the right thing wrong and correct it, you get better.
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