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Where Is It You Work Again?

June 7th, 2010 :: Robin Ferrier

by Robin Ferrier

Photo courtesy Mara 1. Flickr Creative Commons.

Today’s advice, gleaned from my 10+ years in the working world…

Where you work is as important — no, scratch that — it’s MORE important than what you do.

What do I mean by that?

If you’re the typical job hunter, you probably know WHAT you want to do. You want to work in marketing… in business development. You’re an accountant… an engineer… an architect… So you go to job search sites and look for jobs that sound interesting. You discount many jobs because the description doesn’t match exactly what you want to do. BAD IDEA!

Because here’s a secret most employers will never tell you: a job description can change in the blink of an eye.

I can’t think of one job I’ve had where the job I ended up doing matched the job description for which I was hired. My job — and the description of what I do — has always evolved, be it because I’ve exceeded expectations, because together we’ve discovered a new talent, or because the department itself has evolved to meet new company needs.

My point? Don’t go out there looking for the perfect job. Because even if the job description sounds perfect, chances are it’s not what you’ll end up doing.

Instead, figure out WHERE you want to work. Because the corporate culture at a for-profit company is VASTLY different from that of a non-profit. (I know this because I’ve worked in both.) Higher education is a far cry from Wall Street. And the opportunities that pop up in a smaller company are going to look different from what you’ll find in a large, Fortune 500 company. Research companies and organizations in your area. Visit their web sites. Read company blogs. Find employees on LinkedIn and connect with them. Use the newly launched LinkedIn “Follow a Company” feature. There are A LOT of ways to do your due diligence and find out more about potential employers.

Finding a corporate culture that matches your personality is as much — if not more — of an indicator of future career/workplace happiness as finding the job where your assigned “duties and responsibilities” are a perfect match for what you think you want.

And last, realize some of your best times and your best assignments and your best career discoveries and realizations will fall under the very real job responsibility known as: “Other duties as assigned.”

Robin Ferrier is the editor of What’s Next, Gen Y? and Communications Manager for the Johns Hopkins University Montgomery County Campus. She is also the President of the Capital Communicators Group, co-chair of the Marketing Committee for the Tech Council of Maryland, and chair of the PR Committee for the Gaithersburg Book Festival. She has inadvertently become a frequent career / professional / job hunt resource for friends and colleagues due to a career path that has included five jobs in 12 years.

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Tags: first job, job hunt, Job Search, networking, questions, Robin Ferrier, Working World
Posted in Job Search, Robin Ferrier, WhatsNextGenY, Working World | No Comments »

Why I will reject you…

June 2nd, 2010 :: Robin Ferrier

by Patrick Madsen

Photo courtesy smemon87 / Sean MacEntee. Flickr Creative Commons.

I am a part of what is known as “Generation X.” I am supposed to be your ally, part of the generation in the working world that understands you best. After all, we both come from a time of computers and the internet, and according to everything you read, we share a number of other characteristics and abilities. So why is it that I would reject your application, reject you during the interview, and may not even respond to you at all? Easy… because you are not showing me why I should.

Here are just a few reasons you may get rejected by me:

Professional image: Yes, business attire has changed and business casual has become more of the “norm” in corporate American. BUT that doesn’t mean that you can wear flip-flops to work, not brush your hair, or wear “Saturday night” attire to an interview or to networking occasions. The people that are still in charge and making the hiring decisions will look for the professionally dressed.
Your attitude: Just because I am not standing in front of you does not mean that I will not hear about EVERYTHING you said and did. I remember a student who showed up to our building for an appointment only to discover that I was not in the building. He threw a temper tantrum in front of our reception team, demanded to see my boss, and wrote a two page grievance letter to the dean. While printing this letter, he decided to check his email only to find out that he had mixed up the appointment day/time. He didn’t turn in the letter to the dean. But I still heard the whole story. So be careful about the image you are projecting AT ALL TIMES as it can affect your career opportunities in the future, especially when you don’t yet have a proven track record. No one wants to hire someone with a poor attitude or who cannot act professionally. (Side note: Even had I been wrong and gotten the date messed up, the temper tantrum in the lobby would have immediately put this student in the “no” pile had I been a hiring manager.)
You don’t care: I can quickly pick out those who really care about the job and those who just see it as a means to an end. Find something you are passionate about and go after it. Don’t settle for something that you will hang onto only for a short time and then move on. Your passion, or lack thereof, can be seen on your face, your demeanor, and presentation. That said, I also don’t want you to think that your first job will be your “dream job” and will meet your every criterion. But there is a mid-point between those two extremes.
Spelling and grammar: You’ve heard this before, I’m sure, but it bears repeating: One negative trend that technology has created is the lack of professional writing. With people instant messaging, tweeting, and texting, their ability to coherently develop structured writing based on the “rules” we learned in school has gone by the wayside. Emails that are poorly developed, resumes with one spelling mistake, or even a connection request on LinkedIn that has errors often will land you in the “no” pile vs. the “yes” pile.

People forget that a job interview is a sales call. You need to sell me your “value”! Why should I want to hire you if you cannot sell me on the idea of you? Think about yourself as a product. What would make a consumer purchase that product?

And remember that you are still playing in the world developed by those from the Baby Boomer Generation and Generation X. Learn as much as you can about how they think, how they work, and what motivates them. The more you know, the more it will help you interact with those from the generations doing the hiring.

Patrick Madsen is the Director of Programs & Education in Career Services at the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School. He manages the Programs & Education curriculum to include career advising services, speaker series, brand management training, and other events to help students prepare themselves for the world of work. His background includes a degree in Psychology from North Carolina State University, a masters degree in Counseling from East Carolina University, and a doctorate in Organizational Leadership/Student Affairs from Nova Southeastern University.

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Tags: Cover Letters, first job, Interviewing, job hunt, Job Search, Life Transition, LinkedIn, networking, online persona, Patrick Madsen, Personal Brand, Reputation, Resumes, Working World
Posted in Cover Letters, Interviewing, Job Search, Networking, Patrick Madsen, Personal Brand, Resumes, WhatsNextGenY, Working World | No Comments »

All good things must come to an end

May 12th, 2010 :: Robin Ferrier

by Patrick Madsen

Image: CarbonNYC / David Goehring Flickrstream. Creative Commons

Finishing up this stage of your life seems like the easiest thing to do, but many forget to look at what’s involved with the next stage. Life after college can become a real bear if you are not ready for it. Many of you are beginning to feel the pinch of student loans coming soon, to worry about the big move to somewhere new, or even to fret over the lack of a job to transition into. Stress will creep into your mind, this is normal—but there is something you can do to lessen the effects it may have. Prepare yourself as early as possible.

Thinking about the future is always the hardest part because you are never sure what you are leaving out or forgetting. Let’s generally talk about what you are going to need:

Budget: No longer can you just spend money on whatever you want at the moment. Bills will begin to fall on your lap – not only for those pesky student loans, but also for rent, utilities, and food… you know, all those things mom and dad used to cover! Create a budget so you can figure out how much money you’ll have left over each month after you pay your bills.

Insurance: Make sure you have health insurance, car insurance, renters/home insurance, and even disability insurance. Extras could include vision, dental, and even maternity insurance. If any of these are not included in your benefits package, then you might want to measure the pros and cons of having it.

Sharpen the saw: Keep mentally, spiritually, and physically fit. Exercise and proper nutrition, no how busy you are, will assist you in coping with stress and living a healthier life. Remember to use those vacation days! They exist for a reason.

Office Politics/Culture: Observe your surroundings and find where you fit in. Do not come in like a gangbuster and expect to change the world. Remember there are formal and informal rules throughout each job. Pick your battles… your job is not your life!

Thinking of the future: At some point you are going to want to retire… or will be forced to. Consider your future when planning your budget or career. Start saving now. Think about IRA plans, mutual funds, stocks, and a comprehensive portfolio to make sure you are comfortable as you age. Remember to plan for extras such as family, car breakdowns, moving expenses, sudden illness, or whatever else life throws our way.

Let me leave you with a few things my father liked to bore into my mind. Remember, this is a man who has been in the work world for more than 35 years — most of those years with the same company. He has had many experiences and passes these experiences on to my siblings and myself. So here they are for you:

10 commandments of my dad

When you get done with work, be done.
Be prepared for the working world.
Understand what it is you want from life and take it.
Have a life.
Network, network, network.
Continue to learn new things so that you never get bored or stuck.
Respect your boss, don’t kiss ass.
Don’t be the same as everyone else. Those who are different get seen the most.
Relax… after all, what’s the worst that can happen?
Sometimes we have to do things we don’t like… SOMETIMES

Have a lesson you’ve learned from a parent, professor, friend, or your own working world experience? Add it below in the comments section.

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Tags: first job, graduation, insurance, Life Transition, networking, Patrick Madsen, Personal Brand, post-college, reitrement, Reputation, Working World
Posted in Life Transition, Networking, Patrick Madsen, Personal Brand, WhatsNextGenY, Working World | 1 Comment »

Personal Branding and Your Online Persona

May 4th, 2010 :: Robin Ferrier

by Patti Nuttycombe Cochran

Image: emdot / marya, Flicker Creative Commons

You need to be vigilant 24/7 on all sites where you have a presence, profile… or where you’re adding “interesting commentary or banter” publicly on friends or colleagues’ sites.

I know it’s cool to engage in “exhibitionist-speak” on Facebook or Twitter. You know what I’m talkin’ about: those self-absorbed status updates that completely don’t matter to anyone but the author?? Or posts from those whom I’m sure feel superior or RELIEVED when they’ve just blasted off on someone on some social media platform.

Stop thinking these are private sites where you can have a one-on-one confidential conversation or exchange. Always assume that whatever you post is visible, viewable, usable and confusable by the entire free world! When you operate under this assumption, your posts will be less hip, cool, clever and funny and boomerang-like…

But a lot more acceptable, safe, generic and worry free. With the fabulous internet, things are out there forever — good or bad. There are no make-goods, “ooops-I-didn’t-mean-its”! It’s forever. Always. Undeniable. Attributable.

So, with that annoying fact out in the open, here are a couple examples of career-ending blunder statements that one can’t recover from. I offer these in the spirit of helpfulness. Translation: DON’T MAKE THESE MISTAKES!

Career Ending Social Media Status Updates…

“I hate my client” – Never use the word HATE! Anywhere… but certainly not on a Social Media site! And, HATE and CLIENT in the same sentence???? What are you thinking? Goodbye direct deposit from your paying gig…
“I don’t want to deal with anymore STUPID customers” — Okay, this is only SLIGHTLY less incendiary than the example above! Goodbye direct deposit from that paying gig, AND you’ll never work for any of those clients, either!
“Supposed to be working” — now THIS ONE seems benign, right? I hope you answered No. Yet, Twitter is riddled with this dumb comment! Clients, bosses and others who might be depending on you read this and think, “Wait a minute… we’ve got a project to finish… he/she’s on our dime…”
Updating Facebook when you’re supposedly ill. This one’s particularly stupid, too, when the person has “friended” their Boss on FB! Nice. So all through the day that you’re “illin’”, the boss is watching your updates about the fun stuff you’re doing. Makes the next day at work interesting!

Remember: don’t put your brand AND your relationships at risk. Be extremely self-aware and DEFENSIVE of your image: In the flesh AND online!

Patti Nuttycombe Cochran is Vice President-Client Services Consultant at Right Management, a global provider of Career Transition services and consulting expertise on Talent Management, Leadership Development, and Organizational Effectiveness. Patti is an avid networker interested in building the region’s business and philanthropic communities.

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Tags: Facebook, first job, job hunt, Job Search, networking, Patti Nuttycombe Cochran, Personal Brand, Reputation, social media, Twitter
Posted in Job Search, Life Transition, Networking, Patti Nuttycombe Cochran, Personal Brand, social media, WhatsNextGenY | No Comments »

My First Job… or Learning to Appreciate the "Menial" Tasks in Life

April 8th, 2010 :: Robin Ferrier

http://www.flickr.com/photos/valerianasolaris/ / CC BY 2.0

A recent post by blogger Tom Madrecki has generated some conversation — both on the blog and in other outlets — so I thought I’d respond by reflecting on my experience at my first job.

Like Tom, I left college ready to take the world by storm. After all, I had a college degree. What more could I need in order to make my mark on the world, right? Yup, you guessed it. That would be a big, fat WRONG.

I quickly learned that college degree = menial labor when it comes to your first job. And though I wasn’t happy about it, since my parents made it clear that a paycheck was key to my survival, I knew I had no choice. (I grew up in a very practical household. Aspirations were great and all, but first you paid the bills!)

My first job was as a literary assistant at a literary agency. Don’t get me wrong, I got to do some fun things. My favorite was reading the unsolicited queries from authors seeking representation and writing memos as to why I thought the agency should or shouldn’t sign the authors as clients. But that was a small fraction of my time, and it was often done at night or on weekends because the other, menial, have-to-get-done-now tasks took priority during the work day. These were things like inserting my bosses’ fixes to book contracts (using a typewriter!), answering phones, filing, ordering supplies, organizing (read: cleaning) my boss’s office, sending royalty checks and statements to clients… tasks I’d always thought of as “secretarial” — the sort of thing I’d gotten a college degree to AVOID doing.

At the time, I hated those menial tasks. Now, I can appreciate them for what they were: an incredible learning experience.

I learned more about the business by performing what I’d before thought of as “menial tasks” than I ever would have otherwise. One reason was that I decided if I had to do these things, I would do them well. (Not to mention I had a boss who was a stickler for details.)

What I found was that once I proved I could handle those detail-oriented tasks, my boss gave me increasing responsibilities. I was given the opportunity to edit one of the proposals, which was so much fun. And eventually, she asked me to supplement the public relations activities being done for her authors by the publishing houses. It was my chance to shine… and boy did I. It’s the reason I have the career I do today.

So what’s the moral? Or morals?

Those “menial tasks” you may think are beneath you right now present some of the best learning opportunities… if you let them.
Everyone has to work their way up the ladder, and sometimes that means taking a job that isn’t “ideal” just so you get your foot in the door.
Oh, and those “menial tasks” you think are beneath you? Trust me. They aren’t. Those “menial tasks” are often part of some of the most difficult jobs out there, and it takes a special person to be able to do them well and do them gracefully. (Case in point: When my current boss’ assistant goes on vacation, I handle my boss’ calendar. It’s time consuming. It’s challenging. I do it without complaining, despite being 10+ years into my career. And I’m always more than relieved when her assistant returns!)

Now I’m going to call on all of you. Please comment below and share your first job stories — both the good and the bad. I’m sure we’re all learn something from what you have to say.

Robin Ferrier is the editor of What’s Next, Gen Y? and Communications Manager for the Johns Hopkins University Montgomery County Campus. She is also the President of the Capital Communicators Group and the co-chair of the Marketing Committee for the Tech Council of Maryland. She has inadvertently become a frequent career / professional / job hunt resource for friends and colleagues due to a career path that has included five jobs in 12 years.

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Tags: first job, job hunt, Job Search, post-college, Reputation, Robin Ferrier, Skillset, Thomas Madrecki
Posted in Job Search, Robin Ferrier, WhatsNextGenY | No Comments »