How I Got An Internship With A Millionaire

How I Got An Internship With A Millionaire

Everyone will admit that working for money is better than working for free. But sometimes, you have to do something crazy in order to make your career dreams come true.

I want to share a story with you about the one mindset change I made to go from feeling rejected and hopeless as I tried and failed to break into my chosen field, to getting my dream job working for a millionaire.

It all started with a sandwich.

And a short, simple conversation with a friend.

She had just returned from a life-changing internship in Costa Rica, where she spent a month living in a paradise jungle estate working with 20 other young people.

I was about to graduate and had no idea how I was going to get into my chosen field. It was a pretty small niche where everyone knew each other, and the skills you needed to do it pretty much had to be acquired on the job.

As she was telling me her story over lunch, she shared a piece of wisdom that changed my life forever.

“(The guy who hired me) thinks that a great strategy for new graduates is to figure out exactly what they want to do and pick their absolute dream company, and then get their foot in the door by offering to work for free for three months.”

I vaguely recalled hearing a similar tidbit of advice at some point from both Robert Kiyosaki, author of the bestseller, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, and Tim Ferriss, author of The Four Hour Work Week, and not taking it very seriously.

But then, months later, I was sitting in a hotel room in Hawaii for an event, listening to a speaker who moved me so much that I knew I absolutely HAD to work for him. He was an incredibly successful CEO of company with a mission that really resonated with me, and he was doing really amazing things for the world.

Later that night, there was a party for the event at a local bar, and I wound up introducing myself and getting mentored by this rockstar of a guy for 45 minutes. And at the end of the conversation, he gave me his e-mail and told me to contact him about a position.

I had an “in,” but I knew that I still couldn’t leave anything to chance. I 100% had to work for this guy, and I was willing to do just about anything to make that happen. So, a couple of days later as I was reflecting on our conversation, that tidbit of wisdom from earlier popped into my head.

“Just offer to work for free for three months. There’s NO WAY he’ll say “no” to that!”

The unappealing thought that of living on ramen noodles for that time period came up, but it was outbid by the next thought that crossed my mind, which was:

“Dude, within two years of working there, you’ll literally be able to do anything that you want.”

And, thankfully, that 2nd thought won.

Before I could change my mind, I sent him an email offering to work for free for three months. And after a couple of follow up emails and the easiest phone interview ever, I got the job (he was even nice enough to counter my offer to work for free, and instead gave me a decent starting salary).

And now, two years later, I’m writing this blog post… having partnered up in a new business with the guy who originally hired my friend for the internship in Costa Rica, and who that little piece of wisdom that changed my life came from.

We’re helping other young people get their dream jobs with some of the most amazing companies in the world, and I feel like I’ve come full circle.

See, I can tell you with confidence right now that if you’re in a place where you’re not sure if it’s going to work out for you…

It will. Have faith, and keep going.

And when you know for sure that you absolutely have to do something, be willing to offer whatever you have to in order to guarantee that you do.

It doesn’t have to be a three month unpaid internship, or even working for free. All it has to do is be an irresistible offer… one you know they can’t refuse.

It worked for me, and it just might work for you, too.

For more free information and tips on how to get your foot in the door with your dream company, click here.

7 Tips For Successful Virtual Informational Interviews

7 Tips For Successful Virtual Informational Interviews

What would you say if I told you that in one 20-30 minute conversation, you can…

• Expand your personal network
• Gain valuable insights about your chosen career or industry
• Secure an industry expert’s help in identifying potential fits within their company or their own personal networks

It’s true. Informational interviewing can be a powerful, yet often overlooked, tool in your career management arsenal.

Recently, it’s becoming more common to do these career-boosting interviews by video. The beauty of conducting a virtual interview is that you’re not limited to contacts you have the time or budget to visit in person: you can speak with knowledgeable contacts anywhere in the world. All you need is a computer with an Internet connection, a video camera (included with many newer laptops and computers), and a willingness to further your career.

If you’re a technophobe, the thought of conducting a virtual informational interview may make you tempted to chuck your computer into your closet, but don’t worry. Today’s video technology is surprisingly easy to master. Whether you use Skype, FaceTime, Google+ or another video communication application, checking out their tutorials and downloading the software will have you on camera in no time.

For both the technologically-challenged and tech geeks, mastering these tips for virtual informational interviews will give you another useful tool for directing your career:

1. Reach out

Identify people within your network, or within a company or industry you’d like to work in. Then, contact them by phone, e-mail, or through LinkedIn to see if they’d be willing to talk to you about their company and careers. Be upfront about how much time you’d need, and what you hope to talk about. Make it clear that you’re after information, not a job interview. You might get turned down, and that’s okay. Just look for people in similar positions within that company or industry.

2. Do your research

Knowing everything you can about the company, its products, and the person you’re speaking with will help you focus your questions and obtain the most helpful answers. You’re not likely to impress your contact if you ask questions that could be easily answered through a quick Google search.

3. Prepare your questions

Remember, this is an opportunity for you to get an inside look at how the company or industry operates and what it takes to be successful in your contact’s profession. Since many people enjoy talking about themselves, showing interest in your contact’s personal career path may be a great way for you to gain some valuable insights while helping them warm up to you. It’s perfectly okay to ask about typical salaries and benefits for a position, but steer clear of asking your contact for specifics on their personal pay rate.

4. Practice (with a partner, preferably)

Set up your monitor or laptop screen so that it captures your head and torso, and make sure the camera angle is straight-on. An up-the-nose shot won’t do you any favors. Make sure that what appears behind you looks neat and pleasant, without any distractions. Check the audio level to make sure you can be heard clearly. And while you may be tempted to look at your computer screen while talking, you’ll appear at your best if you look into the camera instead.

5. Dress the part

You may be Skyping in your bedroom, but you’ll still want to dress as if you’re meeting your contact face-to-face. If a car alarm blaring through your open windows or the dog scratching and whining at the door forces you to get up, you don’t want your interviewer to catch a glimpse of you in your skin-tight yoga pants or ratty boxers. (Even if you have nice legs.)

6. Ask for help

Keep in mind that your contact has agreed to give you information, not a job offer. Don’t pressure them for help getting your resume in front of key decision-makers. Instead, ask them if they know of other people you could talk to within their company or industry. When you really do want a job, this may feel counter-intuitive. But the whole point of the informational interview is to find out more about the company or industry you would like to work for… while helping make connections with people who may remember you later when a position does open up.

7. Express appreciation

Make sure you thank your contact for their cooperation during your conversation. It’s also a smart move to follow up with a handwritten note or e-mail to thank them for their time, and to update them on any successes you may realize as a result of their help. They will be more likely to remember you favorably when you’re appreciative of their willingness to speak with you, and that will work to your benefit if they later learn of an open position that may suit you.

Don’t be afraid to come out of your comfort zone and into the world of virtual informational interviews. With a little courage and practice, soon you’ll be making connections that will help inform and guide your career choices.

Top 3 Tips For Phone Interviews

Top 3 Tips For Phone Interviews

More and more companies are relying on phone screens, or phone interviews, as a preliminary gauge of whether or not a candidate should be invited for an in-person interview. Phone interviews are generally less expensive and time-intensive for the company, so don’t be surprised if you are contacted for this type of interview.

Related: #1 Secret For An Interview-Snatching Phone Screening

Some candidates don’t feel a phone interview is a real interview, but nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, this may be your gateway for getting in the door at a company, so don’t blow it on the phone!

Tips For Phone Interviews

Here are some tips to help you navigate the world of phone interviews:

1. Treat the phone interview the same way you would an in-person job interview.

This means that you should be focused and come prepared with knowledge of both the company and the job. One benefit of having a phone interview is that you can have company materials in front of you for handy reference. Some people like to have the company’s website in front of them on a computer screen and others like to have a copy of their resume or job description.

Figure out what works best for you and have those things available before you take the call. Be sure that you aren’t typing while you’re doing the phone interview. The interviewer may be able to hear your keyboard clicking, so pull up all the necessary websites and documents a few minutes before your scheduled call time.

2. If you must take the call from your cell phone, make sure you are in an area that has good reception and you’re in a quiet environment.

Background noises are very distracting to the interviewer and you want to make sure that the interviewer knows you are taking the interview seriously. If you take the call at a coffee shop or restaurant, you really aren’t in control of the ambient noise. Would you want a screaming toddler to interrupt your train of thought and be distracting to the person on the other end of the phone? Probably not.

If you don’t have a quiet space available in your home, check with your local library to see if they have a meeting space you can reserve for free.

3. Eliminate any distractions while on the phone.

For example, turn off your computer’s speakers, find a babysitter for your children, put your dog outside, etc. You should only be focusing on what the interviewer is saying. It’s very difficult to do so when there are other things competing for your attention.

After the phone interview concludes, send a quick e-mail to your interviewers to thank them for their time. This goes a long way in indicating that you are still interested in the position.

3 Things To Modify Or Remove From Your Resume

3 Things To Modify Or Remove From Your Resume

As a career coach, I’ve come across so many poorly formatted resumes. It’s unreal.

I don’t say that to poke fun at people. I say that to point out a big problem.

There are some conventional ideas that millions of employees have adopted as it pertains to the proper formatting of a resume’ that are just absolutely ludicrous.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is their mindset. They seem to be unaware that before a resume is ever seen or read by a human being it goes through an A.T.S., which stands for Applicant Tracking System. Every online job posting board uses an A.T.S. to categorize, file, and present the most qualified job applicants to prospective employers.

By adding a bunch of unnecessary information to your resume and leaving off the stuff that matters, you’ve lost the game before it ever began.

1. Your College Degree:

We get it. You graduated from college Summa Cum Laude with a 4.0 GPA in blah, blah, blah. Here’s the problem, an employer doesn’t care. They’ll give you a raised eyebrow and a job well-done, but on a 100-point scale, your college degree will earn you 25 points at best. The remaining 75 points is based on your work experience.

The one exception to the rule is if you are extraordinarily genius, gifted, and talented and the company you want to work for requires educational prowess. A good example of this is Google. I’ve worked with several colleagues who’ve worked at major tech firms, including Google, who have said that unless you have a Harvard degree, they won’t even consider you.

The thing to keep in mind is that 98% of people are not extraordinarily genius, gifted, and talented, including me. I don’t have a Harvard degree on my wall and, chances are, you don’t either. So, don’t over-index on your college degree, because your employer won’t.

When you over-index on your college degree, it gives off a vibe to employers that you think that you can buy your way into a job because you paid for a high-dollar degree and know how to read books and take tests well, all of which is non-applicable to a job.

Remove the excess clutter. Simply stating your college name and field of study is all that is necessary.

2. Your Objectives:

Remove this paragraph entirely. In most cases, employees fill this paragraph in with five sentences of fluff, which comes off as delusions of grandeur. No one cares or believes that you’re going to “change the way marketing is done” or that you will “lead a new trend in mobile media.” You’re not Steve Jobs. Do not turn your resume into a self-obsessed keynote speech.

3. Your Interests:

This is a big no-no. Your potential future boss doesn’t care that you like cats or that you enjoy reading a good book at the local coffee shop. They also don’t care about your long romantic walks on the beach with your husband.

Leave off any personal topics and interests off your resume. It shows that you’re overly-emotional and confused about the boundaries of professionalism.

6 Things To Do Before Leaving Your Job

6 Things To Do Before Leaving Your Job

There is a reason for the term “short-timer.” Whether you are in the military and ready to separate, or in the corporate world and ready to leave your job, it can be a struggle to keep both your body and mind engaged.

We’re notorious for apathy, disregard, and detachment once the decision to move on has been made. In fact, some short-timers have been known to toss all workplace standards out the door. They begin showing up late, conduct long personal phone calls, and have a blatantly disrespectful attitude. We’ve all seen this (and maybe we’ve even done it ourselves).

Is being a short-timer really that bad? In a word: YES.

Our professional and personal brand is showing all the time, not just when we are in the middle of a job, but also as we make our exit. How we leave is as important to our career as how well we do when we’re fully embedded in our position. This is the time for leaving a lasting impression and making them want you to stay.

Even if you hated the place and everyone in it, you never know what the future holds; so you don’t want to burn any bridges. You might want references, referrals, or even a job at some point.

Why do we become short-timers? Interesting situation, isn’t it? There are really two forms of change. One form is the actual act, like leaving your job or moving.

The other form is the internal transition or emotional component. These two forms of change don’t necessarily show up at the same time. When you have gone through whatever process that has led to departure, at the point you made the decision, the emotional train has left the station. You start seeing yourself as less a part of where you are and more a part of what’s to come. You start disengaging and disassociating yourself. When that happens, unless you are aware of it, the other behaviors I mentioned start creeping in because you are no longer as attached or invested.

Things To Do Before Leaving Your Job

So, how can you leave a job without burning bridges? Here are six things you can do to keep both your body and most of your mind on the job until you leave the building:

1. Be Aware Of The Shift

As mentioned, we start shifting and disengaging. Check in with yourself or a trusted co-worker daily to stay aware and focused on your work.

2. Make A Departure Plan

The best plan will be made with your manager to incorporate what their needs are for completion and cross-training. To ensure your engagement during this time, make sure you have included things you want to accomplish before you leave. All items need dates for when you will have them done. Keep track of those dates every day.

3. Collect Materials

Since you are leaving, think through the types of information and materials you might want to have in your next position or in the future. The types of things to consider collecting:

• Performance appraisals
• Atta-boy letters
• Copies of supporting e-mails from bosses
• Reference materials that aren’t proprietary to the company, but you may want to reuse
• E-mails and phone numbers of people you will want to keep in your networking circle

4. Finish The “To Do” List

Now is the time when you need to complete those pesky lower-priority items you never got to. We all have them and somehow wait for the day when we have nothing else better to do. Get these done now.

5. Clean And Organize Your Desk And Office

There is nothing worse than the chore of cleaning up someone else’s left-over mess when they leave. Make your goal to leave your desk ready for move-in of the next occupant. Label files, toss out materials that only you found of value, and refill anything almost on empty.

6. Make Your Goal To Be There Completely

To make your last days the best for you and everyone, commit yourself to be fully involved until the day you leave.

In order to have a great career and personal brand, you have to think of the work you do in all of its phases. Clearly, leaving is a phase that you will have more than once in your career. It can be the lasting impression you make on the current boss, as well as future bosses who may be your peers right now. Make that lasting impression as impressive as the work you do.

How To Tell When It’s Time To Find Another Job

How To Tell When It’s Time To Find Another Job

When is it time to move on to bigger and better things?

This is a question that most people never contemplate, which leads to one of three things happening:

1. They get burnt out
2. They lose better opportunities at other jobs
3. They earn less income over their lifetime

Notice how nothing on that list is positive? That’s right. Nothing positive comes from staying at a job past its expiration date.

So, when is the right time to call it quits?

There are several valid reasons to find a new job. Many reasons are circumstantial and depend on the individual, but there is one universal reason to find another job that applies to everyone.

You should find a new job when new experiences begin to diminish. Once you begin to notice that you’ve done the same thing year after year it’s time to move on.

Why you might ask? You should move on when things become stale because doing the same thing over and over doesn’t show diversity and growth in your career, which makes you less valuable to future employers.

When you make decisions about your career and you choose certain jobs, you should always look at your experience through the lens of your resume. You should constantly ask yourself these three key questions:

1. Is this job and this experience adding value to my resume?
2. Does this job illustrate a pattern of growth?
3. Have I learned any new valuable skills that can be utilized by other employers?

One very crucial thing that many people forget about employers is that they have zero interest in enhancing your career experience and they are not interested in making you more marketable for somebody else’s company.

That being said, it is up to you to be your own advocate and look out for what’s in your best interest.

If you’re curious about the timeframe you should stay employed at the same company, it’s generally 4-5 years. This is half a decade, which is plenty of time to illustrate to future employers that you are dedicated.

One thing to consider as well as it pertains to your tenure, is to think about it the way executives do. Executives rarely stay employed at the same company for longer than 4-5 years before they’re on to the next company that offers them a higher position with a better title, more pay and more perks.

If you want to climb the corporate ladder, approach your career like those who do it best and you’ll be well on your way.

5 Quick Tips For Better Listening Skills

5 Quick Tips For Better Listening Skills

In today’s rushed world, good listening skills can fall to the wayside. Everyone is concerned with only one thing: number one.

However, these bad listening habits that we develop can damage our intelligence, relationships, and reputation. Not to mention, it makes for bad conversation.

So, what are some easy ways to train your brain to be a better listener? Check out these easy tips for better listening skills:

1. Be An Active Listener

“If we are conscious of listening actively, our conversation skills improve,” writes Susan RoAne in her book, How To Work A Room: Your Essential Guide To Savvy Socializing. “Working a room will be less work and more fun.”

Here are some easy ways to be a more active listener:

• Make eye contact
• Smile
• Occasionally, paraphrase what you’ve heard
• Ask relevant questions
• Take notes
• Be present and give the speaker your full attention

2. Reflect The Speaker’s Emotion

Emotions are very powerful, especially during conversation. If you’re not listening, you might not be getting the whole message behind what’s actually being said. This can make you appear insincere or cold, which can hurt the conversation and/or your relationship with the speaker.

Here’s a great example of the difference of physical listening versus emotional listening:

A: “Sorry I’m late. As I was leaving the house, my dog ran into the street and was hit by a car.”

B: (reflecting the content): “So your dog got hit by a car?”

A: “Right.”

B: “Is he dead?”

A: “Uh-huh.”

B: “So what did you do with the dog’s body?”

In this example, the listener is getting the information, but not the emotional message behind it.

“Reflection of feeling tells your partner not just that he’s been heard but that you have ‘plugged into’ his life and experienced it in some way, which is essential to his satisfaction,” says Dr. Phil McGraw in this article.

Here’s an example of how the listener can reflect the speaker’s emotion:

A: “Sorry I’m late. As I was leaving the house, my dog ran into the street and got hit by a car.”

B: (reflecting the feeling): “Oh, my gosh—you must feel terrible.”

A: “Well, I do. We’d had the dog for 12 years, and my kids really loved him.”

B: “I’m sure they must be so upset; I’m sorry you’re going through this.”

“Being able to reflect the feeling, not just the content, is essential to the success of your communication,” says McGraw.

3. Fight The Urge To Think Of Your Response

We all do it. How many times have you forgotten the names of the people you get introduced to? Chances are, it’s because you were so focused on saying your own name that you didn’t even pay attention to what the other person said.

Sometimes, we’re just more interested in what we have to say. When you’re talking with someone, do your best to focus on what he or she is saying instead of planning your reply. If you need to, pause for a second and absorb what was said. This will not only help your listening skills, but it will also help you determine the most appropriate answer or reply.

4. Become A ‘Whole Body’ Listener

In her book, The Fine Art Of Small Talk, Debra Fine encourages readers to listen with their ears, eyes, and hearts.

“Listening is more than just hearing,” Fine writes. “It’s a level of involvement that goes beyond reciting the contents of the conversation.”

5. Practice, Practice, Practice

As with any skill, learning to listen takes practice. If you’re aware of your poor listening habits, make a conscious effort to sincerely listen to others every day, using the tips above.

How To Prepare For A Job Interview

How To Prepare For A Job Interview

It’s perfectly normal to be a little anxious when you’re preparing for a job interview. In fact, many people rank interviewing for a new job with other nerve-wracking activities like public speaking and going to the dentist. There’s a lot riding on your interview performance, so it’s understandable to feel this way.

However, there are some simple steps you can take to better prepare for a job interview.

1. Do Your Homework

Most companies have an online presence, so it should be relatively easy for you to learn about the company. You should also familiarize yourself with the position for which you are interviewing. If possible, print out a copy of the position description and take it with you to the interview. Be sure to bring a few extra copies of your resume in case an interviewer needs a hard copy during the interview.

2. Practice Makes Perfect

Interviewing is a learned skill and the best candidates practice, practice and practice some more to prepare for a job interview.

For college candidates, there may be opportunities through career services to participate in mock interviews. A mock interview is usually conducted by an employer, a career services professional or a professor. Essentially, you will be interviewing for a pretend job. Mock interviews are helpful because they can relieve you of nervousness and the interviewers usually are able to provide some feedback on your interview skills.

For more seasoned candidates, opportunities to prepare for a job interview may also exist with local workforce services offices and career coaches. Another option is to ask a friend or family member to “role play” an interview with you. If you have access to a webcam or video camera, try recording your “performance” and reviewing the areas where you need improvement.

3. Know The Interview Lingo

Many companies are utilizing behavioral interview techniques. Behavioral interviewing requires the job candidate to provide a situation and then describe the task that comprised the situation, the actions that were taken and the result or outcome.

Questions may be posed to you in a format of “tell me about a time when…” or “give me an example of a time when…” This allows you to share previous work (paid or volunteer) or classroom experiences and the interviewer is able to ascertain what you learned from the experience. Many companies prefer to use this interviewing technique because it provides information on a candidate that isn’t likely to be included on a resume.

4. Sell Yourself And Build The Business Case

Candidates should think about the business case of why they should be hired. The interviewer needs to have a compelling reason to extend an offer to a candidate. Job candidates should think about their knowledge, skills and abilities and how these would benefit the organization that is hiring.

7 Dangerous Decisions That Ruin Careers Before They Begin

7 Dangerous Decisions That Ruin Careers Before They Begin

In life, whether it’s your career, your marriage or a litany of other situations, often times it’s not the decisions you make after the fact that can destroy you. It’s the decisions that you make before entering into situations that can destroy you.

Here are seven dangerous decisions that ruin careers before they even begin.

1. Choosing the wrong degree.

If you’ve graduated from college and have chosen a degree and a field of study based on a career that no longer exists when you graduate or you didn’t thoroughly research the career your degree is based in, you could be in for a world of trouble.

2. Pursuing your passion.

No one is a bigger advocate for pursuing their passion than I am. In fact, sometimes I think I over-index and over-emphasize the importance of pursuing your passion. The fact of the matter is that passion rarely pays the bills, because most people are passionate about things that don’t have a strong correlation to income opportunity. That being said, be sure that before you pursue your passion, you understand your income opportunity. It’s great to want to ‘help people’ by becoming a therapist, a nurse or a social worker, but those fields may not pay you enough to live the lifestyle you desire.

3. Chasing cash.

I love money. Who doesn’t? Everybody wants more of it. However, earning a high salary comes with tremendous sacrifices. Your stress-levels will increase, you’ll lose personal time and in the end you have to ask yourself is it worth it? For some people it is, and that’s okay. Just know what you’re getting yourself into.

4. Choosing the wrong career.

Uh oh. You chose the wrong career. This decision is a great ‘catch-all’ as it sums up the bigger picture problem. Perhaps you didn’t research your career thoroughly and now you’re knee-deep in it and you absolutely hate it.

5. Ignoring your aptitude.

Your aptitude is critical in determining the career you should pursue. However, no one ever thinks about this. It’s never discussed in grade school or in college. Instead, teachers, professors and guidance counselors ask students “What do you want to be when you grow up?” or “What are you interested in?” Those are the dumbest questions anyone could ever ask themselves as it pertains to making the biggest decision of their life, which is choosing their career.

When you’re a child, you have no idea how many different career options are truly available, and as far as choosing your career based on what you’re interested in, that could change by the second. If you focus on your aptitude, you’ll choose a career based on your natural gifts. It’s a great starting point for determining a career field that will best suit your natural talents, gifts, and abilities.

6. Outlandish expectations.

So many people go into their careers with outlandish expectations. I blame this on the fairy tale that’s presented by high school and college guidance counselors. Psych majors and nurses know about this fairy tale all too well, as they’re told how incredible it will feel to help people and change or save their lives. That sounds great and it is, but eventually the ‘feel good syndrome’ wears off and what’s left is long hours and low wages. If you’re okay with that, then that’s fine, but what happens if you’re not?

7. Silly salary demands.

Lawyers are intimately familiar with this issue. It’s not their fault though. At least not entirely. Over the past few years, law school students and alumni have been suing their colleges left and right for misleading them about the salary expectations of their field. While a tremendous amount of blame can and should be placed on the universities who mislead these students, that doesn’t negate the responsibility of the individual who should be conducting their own independent research.

9 Biggest Excuses Holding You Back From Your Dream Job

9 Biggest Excuses Holding You Back From Your Dream Job

Everybody wants the dream job, but most people have nothing but excuses to validate why they’re still at a dead-end job.

Here are the nine biggest excuses that prevent people from achieving the job of their dreams.

1. You’re too young.

Success doesn’t have a minimum age requirement. Don’t believe me? Ask Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Richardson Branson, and Steve Jobs. If you’re looking for an example of someone who’s a mere mortal, I’ll throw my name in the ring. I was earning $48,000/year at the age of 21, which was eight years ago when $48,000 was worth considerably more than it is today.

2. You’re too old.

Just as success doesn’t have a minimum age requirement, it also doesn’t have an age limitation. Everyday, Corporate America and the news media tell 55 year-olds that their time is up. This is nonsense. Veterans have something young bucks don’t have, which is experience. Where older people go wrong is they don’t market themselves and position their experience properly. They over-index on the importance of their shiny resume when a resume is no longer good enough. What about your website portfolio? What about your pile of reference letters? What about your blog or your book? I could go on and on. Veterans shouldn’t feel bad though because young people aren’t doing these things either.

3. You don’t have a college degree.

Neither do I, but that didn’t stop me from landing a highly-coveted position in a Fortune 10 big business. Yes it’s true, a college degree is still important and it still helps you get your foot in the door, but it’s becoming less and less valuable to employers as there’s too high a supply of people with college degrees and not enough people with verifiable skills and experience. If you want to get the job of your dreams, stop dwelling on your lack of education and begin focusing on gaining experience. Be willing to start from the bottom, bust your hump, and work your way to the top. Don’t take this advice to heart too much though.

While you may not need a college degree to get you the job of your dreams, that doesn’t mean you don’t need an education or skills. Consider sites like Lynda.com, Udemy, Skillshare, or a number of other online education options.

4. You’re not smart enough.

What does ‘smart’ even mean? I know tons of ‘smart’ people who make really stupid choices, get into thousands of dollars of debt attending over-priced private colleges and amounting to nothing more than a notch above average. ‘Smart’ is meaningless, and the effort put behind the measurement of your self-worth based on being ‘smart’ is worthless. You are just as capable as anyone else.

5. You don’t have what it takes.

Are you willing to work hard and do whatever it takes? If so, then you have what it takes.

6. You haven’t paid your dues.

This might be true. However, more often than not it’s an excuse that’s often times planted into people’s minds by jealous and bitter co-workers who had to stab backs just to get a sit in middle-management. No two people’s experiences dictate the outcome of one another. Paying your dues also shouldn’t be indicative of taking part in a multi-year hazing experiment. Your only job as an employee is to do your work, provide value and achieve results. If this has been accomplished and you still haven’t found your dream job, continue searching; you will eventually find it.

7. You haven’t ‘gotten in good’ with the bosses.

If you’ve accepted the ridiculous notion that you must kiss upper management’s rear-end to get ahead in the game, you’ve already lost, because behind closed doors somebody else is kissing the boss’s rear-end better than you, and when it comes time for a promotion, you’ll be sidelined.

8. You’re not qualified.

This is a mind game used by managers who intend on de-valuing your self-esteem and self-worth so that they can obtain your employment for less than market value. Don’t fall into this trap. If you’ve read the job description and you meet the qualifications, then you’re qualified. Keep your head held high and go for what’s yours.

9. You’re unskilled.

If you lack the skills necessary to provide you with better job opportunities then obtain more skills. Problem solved.

10 Things You Can Do To Improve Your Career TODAY

10 Things You Can Do To Improve Your Career TODAY

The dog days of summer are a great time to take stock of your career and its trajectory or lack thereof. There are times in the summer where things slow down as teammates and managers are taking their requisite trip to the beach. And as stewards of your own career, you should be consistently managing their career.

Your manager is not responsible for your career, you are. They are responsible for your output. So waiting until annual review time to determine your goals and accomplishments is a bit foolhardy. But here are 10 things you can do today and this year to improve your career.

1. Set small goals regularly

When it comes to annual reviews, there is so much focus on goals for the year. A year is a long time; too long in fact to set tangible, achievable goals. Therefore, it is far more wise to set smaller goals throughout the year. Think about your day-to-day work. What could you be doing to elevate that work? Are there skills you could learn to help you advance? Think about this for a bit and then make a list of goals that relate to these items.

And then, once you’ve set the goals, give yourself a deadline to have learned these things. When you’ve hit the deadline… give yourself a grade. Seriously. It works. Did you do it? Did you do it well? Then ask someone else how they would score or grade you on these new skills. Then rinse and repeat.

2. Stretch yourself

The smartest of us say that success is just outside our comfort zone. So, it goes without saying that you must stretch beyond your area of expertise. Do something that scares you. Don’t like public speaking, start signing up for presentations at work or networking events. Does it terrify you to put your industry thoughts out there? Ask someone for the opportunity to guest post. Whatever gives you the collywobbles; sign up for it, today.

3. Get feedback

While self-assessment is important, it is also important to get feedback. And it is important to get feedback all the time. I happen to ask at the end of each and every meeting I lead with the following questions: “What really worked for you?” and “What would make it even better if?” You can learn a lot from these two questions. So much about your work product and performance can be gleaned with these two questions. Give it a try and see what you learn.

4. Curate your work

Do you have any idea how many amazing things you’ve done this year? Probably not, because you aren’t curating that great work anywhere to revisit it. There are countless places for you to store this work in a cloud. Check out Dropbox, CredHive, or OneDrive and start curating your work. When you’ve got a great file of work you’ve produced and are proud of, it’s like writing your resume as you go. It is also easy to share with your manager at review time. You’re better prepared to wow them when you’ve got yourself visual proof of your awesome-ness.

5. Be curious about your industry

Spend time each and every week as a student of your industry or company. Study your industry and company as if there is a constantly approaching final exam. Ask questions of people in your space. Ask questions to your manager and colleagues. Ask your companies customers how they feel. Develop thoughtful insights about the industry and your company. And don’t be shy about sharing those insights.

6. Read

Spend time reading blogs big and small. Spend time reading books about your profession. Read business books that stretches your thinking. But at the end of the day… read. Reading new things can start conversations when you’re networking and can also build your own career with new ways to do things and different work and life hacks to make life flow a little more smoothly.

7. Network brilliantly

Never, ever, ever send a standard LinkedIn invite. Ever. Cannot stress this enough. Personalize the message and tell the recipient what you need from them and how you can help them as well. If you do not know someone, ask someone in your network for an introduction. Networking brilliantly is about leaving a positive impression. And it isn’t just LinkedIn. Attend industry events, local events and meet as many people as you can. This will also help in being curious about your industry.

8. Get a mentor

Mentors are great resources for all of these elements. Need feedback? Ask your mentor. Need to bounce off industry or company insights? Looking for ways to stretch… Mentor!

9. Get a protégé

Conversely, a good protégé can also be a tremendous resource to learn from as well. A protégé can bust some of your paradigms. They can also expose you to new thinking and present you with new ways to solve problems and look at things.

10. ABL (Always be listening)

Even if you are really happy in your current role, it never hurts to listen to other opportunities and build relationships with new people in the industry. These relationships may build in the future because you never know how you will cross paths in the future. Always be open to new opportunities and people, plus it feels really good when you get noticed!

4 Tips For Deciding Whether To Accept Or Reject A Job Offer

4 Tips For Deciding Whether To Accept Or Reject A Job Offer

It is so exciting the day that the recruiter calls you to offer you about a job. You feel so excited all day. You’ve been noticed and sought out for your expertise. And because you are actively managing your career, you always take the interview even if you are happy where you are. Taking that first call or phone screen is always a good idea. The benefits are endless. You get to practice telling your best work stories and you can get immediate feedback on them to continually hone in on that accomplishment-based narrative that makes you stand out. And now, you’ve been asked to progress in the process and have been extended an offer. Here’s where you should pause.

This might be the hardest thing to do. But, it is so important to take a little time to process the offer you’ve been given. Despite the frequency in which we are all changing jobs these days, leaving one job to join another company is still a big step.

You spend a lot of time at work and with your co-workers. You not only make money at your current role, but you also know the ins and outs of the company. You know where you fit for the most part. And while jumping ship on some days sounds glorious, you never know if there’s a better boat your stepping onto or if you’ll end up with no inner tube in the deep end of the ocean.

So, when that job offer comes in, you need to do a little soul searching before you accept the job offer on the phone right away. Here are some tips for doing that:

1. Take stock

If you want to take the job, it’s important to know why. So, I always ask myself a series of questions to be sure I am doing this for the right reasons. I usually ask myself:

• Why am I looking to change?
• Is it better money?
• Shorter commute?
• Looking for more growth opportunities?
• Am I no longer challenged or appreciated at my current job?
• Am I not satisfied with my job?

When you know this, you can better evaluate the offer. The challenge is that, if you aren’t looking to make a change, what makes this opportunity so appealing? This is where you should do some extra digging to make sure it isn’t just something bright and shiny and new, that the grass could really be greener.

2. Look harder

Don’t jump until you have a really good sense of who your next employer or more importantly manager will be. Did you interview them fearlessly? Look back at your notes. Was there anything that made you question who might be your new manager? The jobs that I’ve taken that I’ve regretted are when I have ignored my gut about the manager. It is a 100% fail rate on my part. And do not under any circumstances convince yourself that the manager will change. There is a good chance they were on their best behavior for you and if they weren’t? Um, no!

3. Determine your fit

What are you best at? How can this company help you hone in on those skills? What makes you happy at work, will you get opportunities to do work that addresses those passions? Do you know what the culture is of the company? How do they live it? Are there examples you could point to in the interview process that validates the company living the culture in the interview? These will help you assess your fit into the company. Culture is not the words on their website, but how they actually behave at work, in meetings and even in interviews.

4. Step away from the bark

Talk to the people most important in your life about the opportunity and your current situation. These people know you really well, but they also have the gift of distance from the day-to-day life you lead at work. You are frankly too close to the bark of the tree to make this all on your own. You need some outside perspective to help inform your decision.

If, after all these things, you determine that it is worth it… by all means, call that recruiter and take the job. If you aren’t sure, talk to your recruiter about what it would take to make the offer a no-brainer. If you see this is a no for any reason, call that recruiter and graciously bow out. Tell them how honored you are to have received their offer, but, this is not the right fit for you right now. But, keep honing your best work stories. Keep taking those calls.

10 Outrageous Lies We Tell Ourselves About Our Jobs To Stick It Out

10 Outrageous Lies We Tell Ourselves About Our Jobs To Stick It Out

Everyday you go to a job you can’t stand, you tell yourself one (or more) of 10 outrageous lies just so you can stick it out.

This is not a ‘feel-good’ article. It’s down and dirty and ‘real.’

As negative and off-putting as this article is intended to be, there’s a silver lining.

It’s time that you got real with yourself.

How long will you continue going to a job that you hate?

Believe it or not, there’s a way out. There’s a way to take control of your career and live the life you’ve always wanted. It starts with confronting these 10 outrageous lies.

1. “It’s really not that bad.”

Maybe it’s not, or maybe you’re just delusional. When was the last time you received a raise or a promotion? When was the last time your boss gave you a pat on the back without following it up with a new set of tasks?

2. “A raise will come in due time.”

Unlikely. At best, the average person can only expect to receive an annual raise of between 2.9-4%. Once you include inflation and cost of living increases, you’re not truly getting a raise. You’re lucky if you’re breaking even.

3. “My hard work will eventually pay off.”

Maybe it will, but maybe it won’t. Has it paid off in the past? If so, how so? What metric are you using to determine that it has paid off? Have you received a raise, a promotion or at least a “job well done”?

4. “I’ll eventually get the promotion because I deserve it.”

This statement is riddled with entitlement and based on a common fallacy. No one deserves anything. The only way you get ahead in your job and in your career is by continually proving your value. No one cares about how many years you worked for the company and they don’t care how hard you work. All they care about is results.

5. “The hour long drive to work really isn’t that bad.”

Why do people consistently sit in traffic driving 30, 40, 50 miles to work? This time could be better used exercising or spending time with your family. The reason people find themselves in these situations is because they’ve limited their job opportunities by virtue of not building a valuable personal brand, which attracts more job opportunities in more locations. Build your brand, get more job offers, and work closer to home.

6. “My boss isn’t disrespectful, he’s just direct and straight-forward.”

That’s very nice of you, but don’t kid yourself. Your boss is a jerk and you know it! Why are you still working for him/her?

7. “My hard work will eventually be noticed.”

Maybe it will, but maybe it won’t. The longer you sit around hoping you’ll be noticed, the more opportunities you’re missing at a company who will notice you.

8. “If I hold out another 2 or 3 years I’ll get the promotion.”

Maybe you will, or maybe you won’t. What data do you have to indicate that your promotion will happen in your specified timeframe? If it’s based on other colleagues whom you’ve witnessed then that’s great, but if you’re just making up an arbitrary timeline for your promotion, you might want to think again.

9. “I go above and beyond, so I’m safe.”

What makes you think you’re the only employee who works hard? It’s truly rare that you find lazy employees, especially in professional workplaces. That being said, just because you work harder than most, that doesn’t mean you’re ‘safe.’

10. “My manager likes me so I’m all good.”

Teacher’s pet stopped after the 5th grade. No one is ever ‘all good.’

Top 3 Tips For Telephone Etiquette

Top 3 Tips For Telephone Etiquette

In today’s busy world, employers don’t always have the time or the budgets to bring in every candidate they are considering, so an initial screen may be conducted over the telephone.

This phone screen can be the deciding factor on whether or not a candidate advances to an in-person interview, so savvy candidates should be mindful of telephone etiquette.

1. Treat A Phone Interview Like An In-Person Interview

You should come prepared with knowledge of both the company and the job. Be available at the scheduled time and ready to interview.

Preparation is key for in-person interviews and it’s just as important for telephone interviews.

Do your homework on the company and the position.

Try to be as knowledgeable as possible about what the company is looking for and why you’re the perfect choice for the job.

Manners matter, too, so speak clearly and be respectful of the interviewer.

Many of the regular etiquette rules we’ve learned over the years, like saying please and thank you, also apply to telephone etiquette.

Because you won’t have the luxury of seeing the interviewer, you’ll need to remember to listen especially well.

Allow for brief periods of silence as the interview collects his/her thoughts and avoid interrupting the interviewer.

2. Make Sure You Have Good Reception

If you must take the call from your cell phone, make sure you are in an area that has good reception and you are in a quiet environment. Background noises are very distracting to the interviewer and you want to make sure the interviewer knows you are taking the interview seriously.

If you must be in your car or in an environment that is noisy, address this with the interviewer at the beginning of your conversation. The interviewer may offer to call you back at a more convenient time.

Cell phones sometimes amplify sounds, so make sure you’re not chewing gum or eating while trying to answer questions. It’s acceptable to have a glass of water nearby in case your mouth goes dry, but try to drink quietly and not slurp your beverage in the ear of the interviewer.

You should also be cognizant of your movements. If you’re prone to fidgeting or nervous energy motions like tapping a pencil, keep in mind that these things may be heard by the interviewer and could be distracting.

3. Focus

Eliminate any distractions while on the phone. For example, turn off your computer, find a babysitter for your children, and so on. It’s unlikely you would take your children to an in-person interview, so telephone etiquette dictates the same protocols.

It may be helpful to have a printed copy of your resume and the job description in front of you so you can refer to these documents throughout the conversation.

Also have a pen and paper available to jot down any notes or follow-up instructions from the interviewer. Since you won’t be able to request a business card, you may want to ask for the interviewer’s contact information at the conclusion on your interview.