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Career Hack: How To Make The Most Of Your Next Networking Event

An annual conference, a monthly professional association meeting, or that brand-new speaker series you decide to check out…if you have a networking event on your calendar, you might be faced with the challenge of how to make it a success, and leave feeling like it was time well spent.

Instead of: Standing awkwardly in the corner, fiddling with your business card, and hoping someone will make the first conversation move…

Try: Being intentional and proactive.

Consider these three steps for making your next professional event a success and leaving with a greater sense of fulfillment:

1. Set a goal. Having a clear, realistic goal of what you want to achieve forces you to do some important pre-work and set the stage for reaching that goal. Introduce yourself to the speaker at your conference’s morning plenary. When checking in to the event, make a point of telling someone in membership how much you are looking forward to the event. Check out how to volunteer at an upcoming meeting. These are just some ideas. Making these connections will also stretch your networking skills with a more diverse group of people.

2. Ask questions. People love to talk about themselves, and they will remember you for it. “How did you get into your career? What is the best part of your job? Why did you decide to come to this event?” By making your questions open-ended, you will get more useful information from the other person that triggers what you have in common, or that you can follow up on later. You will appear as a great listener and someone fun to talk to – even if you don’t say much.

3. Sit at the front of the room. Sitting in the back of the room might feel safe or allow you to duck out easily, but it won’t do much to broaden your network. Head for the front and you’ll be closest to the speakers, the moderators, and those introducing the speakers. I have found this is where the energy in the room resides. The front is where you’re more likely to meet participants who are eager to be part of the event, and these are the people who will converse with YOU more easily. Catching their enthusiasm will make you feel more engaged and give you a stronger sense of belonging.

Networking among a sea of unfamiliar faces can feel daunting, and walking away from a professional event “empty handed” sure is dissatisfying. However, by changing up your approach you can relax, enjoy the event, and leave with a much – much – bigger sense of fulfillment and accomplishment.

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How a Personal Brand Can Transform Your Career in the New Year

Ready for a Brand New You in 2018? There is a lot of buzz around personal branding. What is it? How can it help your career? Why do you need one? As Tom Peters wrote (way back in 1997!) in his groundbreaking article “The Brand Called You”: “It’s time for me — and you — to take a lesson from the big brands, a lesson that’s true for anyone who’s interested in what it takes to stand out and prosper in the new world of work.…We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc… It’s that simple — and that hard. And that inescapable.”

Peters wrote this during a time of shoulder pads and strict company dress codes, dial-up internet services, and generous company pensions. Fast-forward 20 years later to our modern era of globalization, virtual workplaces, flattened organizational structures, social media, the “gig economy” — and constant change. Career paths today resemble anything but a straight line, and they require skillful navigation in getting from one career transition to the next. This comes in part from answering a highly introspective question: “Who am I?”

Discovering your answers to that (admittedly profound) question is key to developing your personal brand. Why? Identifying your strengths, clarifying your values, and pinpointing your passions illuminates who you are at your very core — and what makes you, you.

The concept of branding is all about authenticity, credibility, uniqueness, and consistency. It doesn’t matter if you are a retailer, a clothing label, an insurance company, or an individual. If you know what you do well, what makes you unique, what you are known for — and who needs what you have — you will begin to think and act like a successful brand.

Let’s personalize this concept: Think about a brand you regularly buy. Maybe it’s the pasta you choose for a favorite recipe, the grocery store where you do the majority of your shopping, or the restaurant where you and your family dine together every Friday night. What do you like about this brand? It could be great customer service, good value, fair price point, safety, luxury, comfort, convenience, or quality. No matter what draws you to it, this brand you choose somehow resonates with your values. And it delivers on the promise that you will receive the same great experience every time — or you would take your money elsewhere.

Now think about your personal brand. Whether you are aware of it or not (or like it, or not!), your brand is out there already. It is found in what you have written and shared about yourself, from your resume to your social media profiles. It also includes what other people have written, shared, or said about you.

Curious about what your brand reflects? Here’s a great way to find out. Collect all the information that you have authored or created: your resume, bio, LinkedIn profile, elevator pitch, social media posts and profiles, and so on. What stands out? Now, take it a step further and add what other people have said about you. Find your performance evaluations, read what other people have posted about you on social media, locate old letters of recommendation, or think back to some memorable career milestones (good or bad). What stands out when you view the totality of the message you are sending? Is it consistent? Does it sound like you? Is it who you want to be?

Building a brand can take time and reflection, but the benefits are endless in helping you enjoy greater career satisfaction. As Tom Peters reminds us, it’s about Me Inc. It’s that simple — and that hard. But once you start taking ownership of your brand you begin honing and sharpening a message that comes from you, and not somebody else. And that starts feeling pretty great.

Creating your personal brand is one step toward taking charge of your career. Creating your personal brand means you stop trying to be like someone else, or following in the footsteps of someone else’s path to success. Best of all, your personal brand allows you to be authentically, wonderfully you, and it’s one of the best career strategies you will ever learn.

Ready For A Brand New You?

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How to Succeed When Returning to Work

The thought of returning to work can be challenging, not to mention the many steps it takes to get there. While returning to work does have its unique challenges, it’s also an exciting time to recognize newly acquired skills and strengths, and possibly even enjoy an entirely different career from the one you left.

If you find fear holding you back, know that employers of all shapes and sizes need your skills and what you have to offer. Putting one foot in front of the other is the way to find that exciting new opportunity.

If you are pondering returning to work, but don't know where to begin, here are five great ways to get started!

  1. Assess what you want to do. Do you want to return to the profession or industry you left, or does the thought of that make you cringe? Do you want something part-time that is flexible enough to sync with your kids' schedules? Maybe you want a position where you can contribute your newly developed fundraising and people management skills from all those years leading 5K’s and silent auctions at your child's preschool. All of this is important to assess and collect before beginning your search.
  2. Assess what you DON'T want to do. Remember that cringeworthy feeling associated with going back to the same profession or industry you left? That feeling is ultra important in setting the stage for a successful job search. Lots of people will have advice for you. The more people you ask, the more advice you will get: Go back to work full-time! Get your degree in microbiology! You will have to start all over in an entry level position and prove yourself and work day and night and THEN you can get the job you want!  Bottom line: Pay attention to what you want - and don't want - to do.
  3. Gather your strengths. This is part psychology and part practical. Focusing on your strengths will give you more strength. Focusing on your strengths will help you move your job search forward more quickly. Let's revisit #2 above to illustrate this more clearly. For example, you asked a friend for career advice and she tells you must get a technology job in healthcare. The healthcare industry is booming and she can help you get in. It’s absolutely perfect for you, she says. Except…. you are not interested in healthcare, the thought of hospitals (because that is where your mind goes when you hear "healthcare") makes you feel faint, and now you are cringing. Instead of relying on someone else to guide you, take out a piece of paper and start writing down your own strengths. Decide you know yourself best.
  4. Review your resume. Can't find it? On an old computer you got rid of? Stuffed in a manila file folder circa 2000 and who knows where that is anyway? It’s easy to abandon the quest of finding your resume since you more than likely don’t want to LOOK at it. If you find your old resume, however, it will show you where you left off, and how you illustrated your employment history. If you find yourself panicking at what you see and asking yourself how in the world you can possibly update this thing after so many years… just breathe. It’s only one piece of the process, and taking a look at what you have written down IS important. So is updating it. If you find yourself at a loss, start listing out ALL you have done as a volunteer, community leader, soccer coach, board member, 5K organizer, parent spring fling team lead, committees you were a member of, and part-time positions you may have held. This is all great information to work with when it comes to building out a resume that WILL fill the gaps in your work history, demonstrate your unique skill set, and illustrate your story.
  5. Put a plan together. When will you get your resume done? Give yourself a deadline. When will you start networking with others to share your background or ask for help with your search, or ask to make an introduction to someone who can help you? Pick one person. What is your goal for when you would like to have a job? If you need to, keep it loose, but have a timeframe thought through. What is the one thing you will do FIRST? Pick a place to start. And do it.

Contact us today to learn about career coaching and interview preparation.

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FEB 2019 | BY ELLEN DUNAGAN

Back to work post-furlough?
Now’s the time to work on your career…

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