The ABC's of Career Management - Part Three

Here's Part Three:

• O Have you mastered on-line tools? Hot Jobs, Career Builder, Dice, Monster and local job boards are excellent tools to see who is hiring. Just posting your résumé may not deliver the result of landing your dream position. Building a circle of influence, which takes networking at the next level, may be just the boost your career needs. Keeping in touch with your contacts and managing your contact base may poise a challenge. If you have not gotten into social networking via the web, might I suggest that you spend a few minutes or hours learning about Facebook, LinkedIn and others? But a word of caution might be in order. Companies may get a window into your ethics, work style, character and personality traits by reviewing the pages of your contacts.

• P Would you agree that having a good plan is much like having a pattern for success? Agreeing with the importance of planning and taking the time to put together a plan are two entirely different matters. Do you have a career plan? If not, why not? Have you taken the time to write down seven things you want to accomplish in your career this Year? Quarter? Month? Week? Day? Why not try it and see if you can measure your success? One other note, there is a difference in a realistic plan and a fantasy plan. Dreams are important, but your strengths need to align with your goals. Through education and training new strong points emerge and dreams are realized.

• Q If you find yourself in an organization that is downsizing, you may need to develop a quick start plan to assess your strengths and quickly market your skills. What would you want to include in your quick start plan? Would you start by developing a list of contacts, polishing your resume, researching job boards, reading local newspapers or even perusing company websites - all to get an understanding of the type of positions available at this point in time.

• R Will your résumé make the cut in today’s tight job market? If you have researched résumés, are you confused? Do you need a chronological format or a functional style? How many pages should your résumé be? Does paper color or texture matter? Who will read a paper résumé? Aren’t all resumes on-line today? Is the conflicting information baffling? Résumés are customized work histories and overviews that address your ability to contribute to corporate goals. The skill sets required are fluid depending on swings in the economy as well as industry demands. A well-written résumé reflects not only what you have done, but what you CAN do. Recent studies indicate that a well-designed resume combined with job coaching can decrease the time between jobs by as much 30%.

• S As you review your life, what would you say is more important Success or Significance? Will you agree that to complete tasks and projects successfully allows you to build a solid foundation for future success? As you look through the rearview mirror of life, making a difference while finding significance in your life’s work can motivate you to accept new challenges and stretch your capacity for contribution to group goals.

• T Tempo, like pace, is an interesting word, isn’t it? What is the tempo of your work ? Does it match that of the team? Does it match the expectations of your team leader, customers or management team? Have you considered the importance of finding a career position that benefits from your work tempo? If you are methodical and pay attention to details, does your team value your contribution? If you set a fast pace, do others on the team struggle to keep up with your pace? Is the tempo of your work style fast like a Rock Band or slow like easy listening? Finding the job with the right tempo can go along way toward job satisfaction.

• U Do you have a sense of urgency when you approach tasks? As you review tasks, do you understand deadlines and have a record for meeting target completion dates? There is nothing more frustrating than being put in the position of having to become a firefighter when a little planning and efficient execution would minimize disruptions and facilitate the smooth completion of a task. Whether it is completing projects at work, evaluating your career options or managing a job search, you need to approach the project with a sense of urgency.

Next time, we'll wrap this up with the last few letters of the alphabet and some thoughts on how to make sure you are properly managing your career in 2009!

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