Part Two

Step into another pair of shoes

Imagine for a moment that you’re the boss – you’re the person who is looking for the ideal candidate to fill the role you have in your team. Imagine taking yourself out of your own shoes, and stepping into theirs.

So, now you’re the boss. As the boss, what are you looking for? What sort of skills do you want the person working for you to have? They must be competent – of course. Able to get results, solve real problems in real ways, someone who is up and running in the shortest possible time. Potential to develop? Naturally. The aptitude for life-long learning is a given in today’s career environment, as is the ability to take initiative, have a go, move beyond your comfort zone.

What sort of person are you looking for? Someone who will fit in, who will be a great team-player, and also willing and able to work on their own? Yes. Someone who will be easy to manage? Absolutely. Someone who is thoughtful, who makes a personal contribution, a difference – someone you’ll like, respect, value? I should think so. A good attitude and the ability to get on with people cannot be underestimated.

Let’s explore this some more.

Part Three

What questions, as the boss, would you like to ask your ideal candidate?

• How do you handle pressure, conflict, roadblocks?
• How do you respond when things don’t go your way?
• How do you persuade others to do things they don’t want to do?
• Can you handle change positively?
• How do you respond when you don’t agree with the changes?
• How well do you deal with difficult people, including ‘political animals’ and people who want to give the least they can?
• Are you self-motivated, a self-starter?
• Will you be a conscientious and flexible partner in the company?
• Are you enthusiastic, positive, ‘can do’?

Now think about what sort of fears you may have as that boss.

• What if you recruit the wrong person for the job? Someone who isn’t up to what the job demands, who will be a job’s worth type, only doing the absolute minimum they can get away with, who won’t get along with their co-workers?
• Horror of horrors, what if you recruit someone who will be a discredit to you and your team?

What else? As the boss, what other questions would be in your mind before you start reading the stack of CVs in front of you, before you start interviewing potential candidates? Get yourself fairly and squarely in the boss’s shoes and see the situation from their perspective.

Part Four

How well do you shape up?

Next, think about you.

• On a scale of 1 -10, how employable are you?
• How do you shape up to these expectations you’ve now set yourself?
• What skills do you have to offer?
• What examples of using and getting results with those skills can you demonstrate?
• What sort of person are you?
• How can you illustrate your great attitude and people power to a potential employer?
• Would you recruit you?

Employers want to recruit. The last thing they want is a position that sits empty not getting done with an extra burden on everyone else in the team while it does so.

Our task, in this course, is to develop and present you in a way that will show them that you’ve got exactly what they want. That you’re the perfect candidate.

Action!

Actions of the Week

1. What do Employers Want?

Write down all the things you can think of that a potential employer might be looking for. Ask your family and friends for their thoughts too. Scan job adverts and notice the type of words that employers are using to describe who they are looking for. Spend time imagining yourself in the employer’s shoes and understanding the world from their perspective.

2. Put the searchlight on yourself.

Who are you? What do you have to offer? I guarantee that you have a lot more going for you that you think. Don’t invalidate yourself for what you’re not – appreciate yourself for what you are. 

3. Commit now to landing a job that will make full use of your skills, interests and motivations.

Not for you the defeatist mentality that says work is what you do 9-5, life is what you do the rest of the time. From now on, decide to ramp up your attitude, to expect more from yourself – take responsibility for the quality of your life at work.

4. Take a reality check.

Where can you improve? What skills can you develop? Assess your attitude at work right now – on a scale of 1-10, how do you score yourself in terms of your ability to get on with other people, make a positive difference, go the extra mile? How can you up your rating to 10? And remember, repeating something makes it a habit. It’s never too late to form good habits.

Start now.

Walk your talk. Get focused. Be that perfect candidate. Don’t wait until you’ve landed your next job. Use the time and opportunities you have now.  Do thoughtful things that make your colleagues see you anew.

5. Don’t follow the whingers

Don’t waste an iota of mental energy on negativity or complaining.

Take control and focus your energy on improving things.  Stand out from the crowd. Forge your own path. That’s what the perfect candidate does.

• Your job’s boring?
  Great! Get creative and think of ways to make your job more interesting.
• Your boss is awful?
  Wonderful! You have a terrific opportunity to cultivate your personal skills in handling your boss.
• You haven’t actually got a job at the moment?
  Great again. Just think – you have all that time to develop yourself! Doing this course is an excellent start; how else will you choose to spend your time to make sure you’re getting the most from each day?

Brilliant! You’ve taken the first bold steps on your exciting journey.

Next week we’re going to look more closely at who you are and what you have to offer. We’re going to uncover what’s special about you, and how you can present it in a way that grabs the limelight – by creating a winning CV. Until then, walk your talk and have a great week!

Part Two

Up Close and Personal

Imagine that you’ve just watched a wonderful feature-length film of your favourite person’s life story. Now imagine that a friend has asked you to tell them about that film. In ten minutes. You haven’t the time to tell them the whole story, no matter how much you may want to – so you tell edited highlights, don’t you? And what highlights will you choose? Ones that you know will appeal to them, of course – ones that will bring the life story alive in their eyes.

And that’s the essence of a great CV. The edited highlights of your working life, chosen to appeal to the employer of the job you have in mind.

Recognise Your Specialness

You’re special. You are. You’ve lived a life that no-one else has. You’re a resourceful and versatile person with a stack of qualities. Let’s get in touch with them shall we?

At this point, revisit last week. When you stepped into the employer’s shoes and drew up your list of expectations for the perfect candidate. Read through that list slowly, absorb what’s on it. Add to it if you want to. Be aware of the words and phrases on your list as the backdrop to everything you do next.

Now let’s clarify who you are and what you offer that makes you special.

1. Take a look at your skills and knowledge portfolio.

What are you qualified in, what do you have experience in, where do you get results? What have you learnt in each job you’ve held? Where do you excel? Go back on that one – you certainly excel in some areas – where are yours? Where would you be chosen above other people in your team to get something done? What are your natural talents and abilities?

2. What’s in your contribution catalogue?

Where have you done things that made a difference, achieved something you’re proud of? What improvements have you made in each job you’ve held? How about your personal attributes? What do you contribute simply by being you? How do you make work easier or more pleasant for your colleagues and your boss? Ponder on this one. You will definitely have made more contribution than you think you have. What would your boss and colleagues miss about you if you weren’t there?

3. What’s your pleasure profile?

What makes you feel good when you do it? What brings you the most personal satisfaction at work? When time flies, what are you doing?

For all three, go back and re-live what you felt, heard and saw as fully as possible. Write down everything you can remember about what you did, why you did it, and the results. Get as many experiences recorded on paper as you can before moving on. Make sure they’re fresh in your mind. Bring them alive. Renew your acquaintance with that dynamic and positive person who takes action, assumes responsibility and achieves results – you.

This is your unique configuration of skills, qualities and interests – what makes you so special.

Part Three

CV Makeover – Part One

This week I’m going to coach you on the three decisive features that make the difference between an okay CV and an outstanding CV. Get these three things right, and you’re on your way. Using your skills and knowledge portfolio, your contribution catalogue and your pleasure profile, we’re going to create your ‘edited highlights’.

Firstly, think achievements.

Rather than making your CV a dull narrative of the duties and responsibilities you had in each of your jobs, make it a vibrant dialogue of the contributions you’d like to be remembered for. Take care not to boast – but take even more care not to underrate yourself.  You’re an achiever. You wouldn’t be doing this course if you weren’t.

Secondly, use power verbs to start each point

Action-packed and personal ‘doing’ words, like initiated, devised, developed, identified, implemented, negotiated, organised, improved, resolved, won…

Thirdly, add quantifiable evidence that shows you can get results.

You improved the efficiency of your department? Great. By how much, and how are you measuring it? By a percentage reduction in costs, headcount, time – or by something else; what evidence are you giving of the improvement? For example, you could say:

‘Initiated and implemented a training programme for analysts’

Or you could say,

‘Initiated and implemented a training programme for analysts that achieved a 10% increase in staff productivity’.

Which one stands out more to you?

Scan once more the list of qualities you drew up for your perfect candidate. Does it prompt any further ideas for your CV?

If your work experience is a little slim – perhaps you’ve recently left college or are returning to work after a career break – don’t worry.

As well as your work, what else have you done that merits attention? Consider voluntary work, clubs and associations for instance. Tease out points that will be attractive to employers. Your task is to shine the light on the things that make you you.

And always remember – somewhere out there is the right job for you. Somewhere, someone is looking for their perfect candidate. You. Making it easy for them to spot you is your mission.

On the radio recently, I heard an engaging story about a famous philosopher who was visiting Cambridge University. Sitting at dinner one evening, he was faced with a creamy textured but indeterminate dessert. As he hesitantly explored the surface of the dessert, a waiter leaned over and said, ‘If you dig a little deeper, sir, you’ll find a peach.’ The philosopher was said to have considered this as good as any philosophical advice he’d ever received.

The same goes for you, here, now.

Dig deep – you’ll find a peach.

Action!

Actions of the Week

1. Be true to you
It makes you special. Your uniqueness is your gift to the world.

2. Grab your pen and paper and define:

• your skills and knowledge portfolio
• your contribution catalogue
• your pleasure profile
• the things that make you special.

Let your thoughts flow.

Paper filling up nicely? Fantastic. Keep going.

Feeling stuck? No problem. Keep the questions in your head and let your subconscious mind deliver the answers over the next few days. Or enlist support – from friends, colleagues, your coach. You have a wealth of skills, experience and personal qualities – it’s simply a matter of recognising them.  

3. Create your edited highlights

Incorporate power verbs and quantifiable evidence. Spend time on this; it’s worth the hard work.  

4. Edited highlights looking a bit lean?

Check you’re not cheating on yourself first – are you taking for granted your value and significance? Sure you’re not? Okay. Then it’s time for action. There’s no time like the present.

Go with what you’ve got and in the meantime take a good look at yourself and your current job. What can you do right now to start building your skills and knowledge portfolio, your contribution catalogue, your pleasure profile? Don’t hang about – go, do, be.    

5. Sit back and read what you’ve written.

Really look at it. This is you. Feel proud of yourself. Acknowledge yourself – you have heaps to offer, and this is just the start.

Excellent. Well done – that’s stage two of our journey completed.

Next week, we’re going on to the second part of your CV makeover, including how to present your CV with pizzazz. Til then, have a terrific week!

Part Two

CV Makeover – Part Two

Last week, we worked on three attributes that will make a vital difference to your CV – your achievements, power verbs and quantifiable evidence.

This week, we’re going to look at three more techniques you can use to get ahead and open the doors to landing that job: your profile, your interests, and the way you tailor each CV you send out.

1. Make sure to include a short personal profile of yourself.

This succinctly says who you are and what you have to offer. A tip: if it doesn’t make you blush, it isn’t challenging enough.

Your profile describes the person you know you can be on a good day, and the person you’ve committed to being from now on.

This is a good time to look again at your expectations’ list. What words will you choose to describe you? Resourceful, flexible, self-motivated, enthusiastic, pragmatic…? Get intimate with your Thesaurus. Keep in mind that employers want to employ people who make things happen, not passive bystanders.

Choose words that feel right for you and that in a nutshell describe you and what you can do for them. Here’s an example of a profile for one of my recent clients:

“A resourceful and flexible manager with over 10 years proven people and customer management ability, who delivers inspirational leadership and excellent organisational skills. A first-rate communicator focused on root-cause problem solving and making things happen, with an enthusiastic and pragmatic approach.”

Do you catch the idea? And yes, it made her blush a lot, but it was true and it was definitely what she could offer.

2. Pay attention to the interests you put down in your CV

Here is a small but potent opportunity to stand out, to grab attention. Your interests are what you write about at the end of your CV – and the last thing the person receiving the CV will read. So make them distinctive, memorable, interesting.

In the words of George Eastman, the founder of Kodak, ‘What we do during our working hours determines what we have; what we do in our leisure hours determines what we are.’ So make sure that what you do when you’re not working does you credit. If you’re in a rut, make a promise to yourself to get out of it – now. In CV terms, it could make the difference between the ‘maybe’ pile and the ‘yes’ one.

3. Tailor each CV you send out to make it personal to each employer.

Think of your list of edited highlights like the pick ‘n’ mix counter in a sweet shop. For each job application you make, adapt your CV by choosing the highlights that will taste best.

After each and every point you’ve made, say to yourself, ‘so what?’ What difference does this make to the person who is going to read it? How will it be relevant to their particular business, this particular job? Choose what’s most pertinent and significant.

Enhance this by preparing a covering letter that briefly draws attention to your personal and professional strengths – the ones that will be most attractive to that particular employer. We all like to feel special, singled out for special treatment; employers are no different. So make that little bit of extra effort to show that your CV has been specifically prepared for them.

Part Three

Pull it all together

Presentation, presentation, presentation. Works of art are placed in beautiful frames. Quality perfumes are enclosed in luxury bottles. Silk ties are laid out in elegant displays. It makes sense to take care over the presentation of your life’s work too, doesn’t it?

So, make sure you get the basics right.

• Use quality stationery, in white or pale cream.
• Check that your CV is clear and well organised
• Spell and grammar check
• Be brief – 2 sides of A4 works well
• Make it easy to read
• Avoid fancy fonts, overcrowding, superfluous detail.

Organisation of a CV

• Start with your name right at the top, centred, in capitals and bold. Follow this with your contact details.
• Next comes your personal profile – 5 or so lines should be about right.
• Then specify your employment history in reverse chronological order: your job title, your company (with a few words to draw attention to something significant about it – it’s a software company? So what’s its claim to fame?), the month and year you started and left.
• Under each job heading, concisely outline your achievements in bullet format, using your power verbs and quantifiable evidence.
• Finish with a brief summary of your qualifications and interests.

Remember, CVs are the key resource employers use to select candidates for interview. Ask yourself these questions:

• Does your CV make it easy for them to spot the experience and skills that relate to their needs?
• Do your personal qualities stand out to them?
• Does the last thing they read catch their eye and make them look again?

Interviewers are only human; make their job easy and interesting and you’re half way there.

Part Four

A few words about confidence

Whenever I coach on creating an outstanding CV, a lot of the time I find myself coaching on confidence too. You may find that to begin with it’s quite a challenge to see all the fine things you’ve done because you take them for granted and for you they are the norm.

So too you may find that it’s a little alarming to showcase yourself at your best: the self-doubt gremlin has a tendency to make an appearance just at this point. Can you live up to what you’ve said? Will you fall flat on your face…? This is another good time to step outside of your own shoes again and observe yourself as others see you.

Widen your perspective once more, away from the dark tunnel of fear that is holding you back; move into a kinder, bigger place. Have you noticed how much easier it is to give support to someone else rather than to yourself? You’re very good at shining the torch of kindness outwards, now it’s time to be kind to yourself. Turn the spotlight inwards. You can use the same voice which knows your friend can do it to let yourself know you can do it too.

Now’s the time. Blitz your gremlin. Go for it.

Part Five

Action!

Actions of the Week

1. Take your pen and paper and define your personal profile.

Make sure you’re blushing – this is you at your best, remember. Some people make things happen, some watch things happen, some wonder what happened. Show that you’re a person who can make things happen.

Pick ‘n’ mix the right combination of edited highlights to suit each job for which you apply. What would truly add value? Spend time on presentation. Elegant, not flashy. Neat, not muddled. Simple, not complicated. Make space, don’t clutter. 

2. Add some spice to your life

Every month, promise yourself that you’ll do something completely different, something you’d never dream of doing. Participate in a sport, go to an exhibition, take a workshop on something you know nothing about.

You’ll meet different people. You may just find too that you develop some lasting friendships.

Less than a year ago, I met a woman from Finland on a workshop and the following day I sent her a short email to say how nice it had been to meet her. She responded, we continued, and now we have become close friends.

You’ll also learn new things and widen your perspective. Most of all, you’ll have fun. And sooner or later, I’ve no doubt you’ll find something different, memorable, interesting, to add to your CV. When you spice up your life, there’s always an added bonus – you naturally spice up your CV too.

3. Keep vigilant

Your confidence gremlin is ready to ambush you at any time. It revels in holding you back. It loves to paint pictures of failure in your head. It shouts with glee to see you sidetracked from your purpose. It uses every tactic it knows to bring you misery, where you can have happiness. So, stand tall and choose not to be seduced by its misery-making ways.

4. Once you’ve created your CV, read it through, slowly

Absorb, savour it. You’ve just created your own personal movie on paper. What will you do to acknowledge your hard work? How will you celebrate? Don’t stint on this bit; it’s important.

5. Keep it current

Remember that your CV is like a movie with the pause button pressed. Make a commitment to take your CV out often and review it, update it, improve it. Never stand still. It’s always evolving. Just like you.
Fantastic. You’ve got your CV. Well done you! That’s stage 3 of our journey completed.

Next week, we’re going to look at how to make friends and influence people: the art of personal marketing. In the meantime, remember to shine that kindness spotlight inward and blitz that gremlin. Have a great week!

Part Two

Now you see it…

Let’s talk ‘visible’ first.

What papers, on what days, advertise the type of vacancies that interest you? Are there any professional journals that do so, too? If so, what are they and when are their publishing dates? What job websites are best suited to your needs? More and more employers are using these now, so make sure you have them on your resource list.

A tip: if you’re interested in a position being advertised, and you think you can do 70% of it – apply. Don’t just wait until you find adverts for jobs where you think you could do 100%.

Afterall, you want a job that’s stimulating and where there’s room for growth, don’t you? From an employer’s point of view the 70% you offer may be precisely the 70% they need to recruit…and what about all your other qualities, that go on top of that 70%?

If you see a job that you’d like to do but you definitely think you couldn’t do it now, at least send for details. The more you know about a job, the more you can properly assess your suitability to do it.

If ever you find yourself uttering those self-defeating words, ‘oh that looks really interesting, but they wouldn’t be interested in me’ – STOP. Right there. Don’t ever dismiss a job that you’re interested in – send for details. Maybe they wouldn’t be interested in you now, but what about 6 months, a year from now…when you’ve worked on the things you need to develop?

Making your application

When making your application, keep things simple. Do what the advert asks you to do. If it says send a CV, send your CV. If it says complete their application form, do that – using any ‘additional information’ sections to detail your particular strengths.

Take a copy of what you send so that when you get to interview you’re clear about what you’ve already said. Make sure you send in your application promptly too, in a well presented format – an A4 envelope is ideal, so you don’t have to fold anything. A few days after posting, telephone to confirm your application has safely arrived. The same with emailed applications. Applications do go astray, and if you find out after they’ve interviewed that yours was one of them, it’s too late by then.

Create your own system for monitoring your applications and fill it in faithfully every time you send a new one off.

Now you don’t…

What about that vast expanse out there of potential jobs that you don’t know about, though; the invisible job market?

Employers don’t advertise all their vacancies. If a job can be filled without being advertised, it can save huge amounts of time and money, so it’s a very attractive option. Resourceful employers look for short cuts. The question is, how do you get to know about these unadvertised vacancies, and how do you make sure that these employers know about you?

You need to do three things:

• register with recruitment agencies,
• send off speculative applications
• network

Here’s how….

Part Three

1. Using recruitment agencies

More and more employers use agencies now to avoid the tedious task of separating the wheat from the chaff. Agencies search their books for suitable candidates and usually carry out initial interviews before presenting you to the employer. By the time you get to be interviewed by the employer therefore, you know you’ve successfully jumped the first hurdle and that you are amongst a select few being put forward.

So, a key task is to get yourself registered with a number of reputable recruitment agencies.

How do you know if they’re reputable? Do some research – see who is active in the press in placing adverts for candidates, check the financial pages to see who is doing well; ask around amongst people you know who have used agencies or who may know others who have.

If possible, select agencies that specialise in the types of jobs in which you’re interested. There are an abundance of agencies out there; find the ones that fit you. If you sign up and then have second thoughts, you can always choose an alternative agency.

Take care not to sign up with too many – it doesn’t necessarily create the right impression to have your CV appearing on an employer’s desk multiple times for the same vacancy.  And to avoid any potential embarrassment, ensure that each agency you choose has the technology to handle the fact you don’t want your details to be circulated to your current employer – or a past one, perhaps.

Part Four

2. Speculative applications

The beauty of this is that you get to choose the employers you want to work for. So:

• what employers would you like to work for?
• Where geographically would you like to work?
• What sort of business sector do you prefer?
• What other factors are important to you?

Read professional magazines to get the low-down on which companies are going places or visit your local library to find listings of employers if you need inspiration. Once you’ve identified your targets, again, do your research. Most employers have web sites where you can find out useful background information. Get surfing and capture the relevant details that will help you tailor your CV and compose your covering letter.

Always find out the name of the person to send it to – preferably, the exact manager of the area you’d like to work for. When you send your CV, mark the envelope ‘Private and Confidential’ to increase the chances even more of it being read by the person you want it to be read by.

Part Five

3. Network

Networking is about talking with people, helping people, or showing them what you could do to help them if they need it. It’s also about finding people who may be able to help you in return.

When you meet people, chat, ask questions, offer your own experiences and views. Be interested in them and when they ask you questions about you, rather than giving one-sentence answers, be ready to give real information about yourself. Think about your valuable and shareable qualities – who knows what help these talents could be to somebody else?

When the opportunity presents itself, let people know what you do and what you’re looking to do. You don’t need to be overt or pushy about it: in most conversations some exchange about work usually comes up, so prepare a few well-chosen and upbeat phrases about your career aspirations that you can toss in.

If the time’s right, be ready to pick their brains too: have the things you want to know prepared so you can ask questions smoothly and naturally. Who knows who they may know or what helpful information they may have for you?

Set out to add new people to the informal network of friends and acquaintances you have already and then systematically maintain and develop it. Keep in regular but unobtrusive contact, in whatever way suits you best. And keep a record of each contact you make – who they are, who they work for, what’s happening in their world at the moment.

This way when you next contact them you’ll to be able to pick up conversations as if you spoke only yesterday. And you’ll be in the right place to hear about jobs before they hit the ‘visible’ market.

Action!

Actions of the Week

1. Study the visible job market

Identify the key resources – newspapers, journals, websites – you’re going to use, and then make a new habit: set yourself a timetable each week when you will check what new jobs have been advertised and make your applications.

Remember the 70% rule. If a job interests you, you have nothing to lose in applying for it – and potentially heaps to gain.

2. Research recruitment agencies

Register with the ones that will best meet your needs. Get to know one of the consultants in each of the agencies you select and keep in touch with them regularly, so that whenever a good job appears on their books you can feel confident that you’ll be one of the first people they think about and contact.

3. Speculate to accumulate

Identify which employers you’d like to work for and send them a tailored CV. Then follow it up: telephone and ask to speak to the person you sent it to and once you’re through to them ask to come to see them to discuss your CV further.

Yes, ask.

If they like the look of your CV and they have a potential vacancy, you can bet they’ll say yes. If they like your CV and don’t have any vacancies, they may still say yes – or at least, they’ll say they will keep you in mind for anything that comes up in future. If they’re not interested, they’ll say no, it’s as simple as that. What have you got to lose?

4. Make networking a natural part of your life

Write down all the contacts you have already. All of them – there are bound to be more than you think. Meet new people, look up old acquaintances, deepen current ones.

If you haven’t already got a business card, have a simple one printed – when someone asks you how they can get hold of you, you don’t want to be scrabbling about for pen and paper.

Attend meetings for professional organisations connected to the work you want to do. Take every opportunity to extend your list of contacts. Talk, share, connect. Sow seeds. Make friends. Let people know what sort of job you’re looking for, what type of company you’re interested in. Do they know anyone who might be worth contacting? And if they do – follow it up. You could be taking the first step to exactly the place you want to go.

5. Appreciate that everything about you is now an advert

Pay close attention to your personal presentation, how you speak, what you say. Take responsibility for who you are and how you are perceived. Make sure that the impression you leave behind is the one you want to leave behind.

Tremendous.  That’s another stage of our journey completed. Well done!

Next week, we’re going to get even more personal in the self-marketing stakes: interviewing with confidence.

In the meantime, have fun making friends and enjoy your week!

Part Two

Tip 2: Maintain a positive tilt

It’s so easy to be caught out on this one. Don’t be.

Prepare and rehearse your language and your attitude so that every answer you give has a positive tilt. Make sure you cover the classics like: why you want to leave your current job/employer, what are your weaknesses, what mistakes have you made?

Present your answers in a way that says something positive about you. For instance, we all make mistakes. We need to, otherwise we don’t go anywhere. So don’t be afraid to acknowledge yours, if asked. But do select them carefully and do make it clear that you don’t repeat your mistakes and that you learn from them.

One of my clients recently went for an interview as an Exhibitions Manager and was asked what she considered the biggest disaster of her career to be.

At the time, she had just been made redundant and being out of a job and nearly 50 with a mortgage to pay was the first thing that sprang into her head – but she paused, thought about the questions we’d rehearsed in her coaching sessions, and found an alternative answer.

She then briefly related the story of how in one of her first management roles she’d failed to allow for a very expensive international newsletter mailing which would have blown her marketing budget totally out of the window. She recounted how she had regular budget meetings with her team to look at potential revenue and expenditure and how she was able to pick up her mistake in time to take the necessary action to avert the disaster.

She also made it known that the incident had taught her a big lesson with the consequence that she hasn’t made and wouldn’t make a similar mistake again. As a result, she cleverly gave positive insights into her leadership style and the fact that she is now very, very budget conscious – a vital quality in today’s economic climate. She took a negative example and gave it an upward tilt that resulted in demonstrating her strength, not her weakness.

Put the emphasis on what you’ve found good about your past jobs, the experience you’ve gained, the people you’ve met. Stress what you’ve learnt. Remember what you got right even when disaster struck. Nothing that happens to you is wasted.

Part Three

Tip 3: Get the fuzzy stuff right

First impressions do count and people remember style as much as substance. Numerous studies have been carried out on communication which all point to the fact that what you say will only be heard if all the more ‘fuzzy stuff’ around it is right too. So let’s talk fuzzy stuff!

What are you wearing?

Apart from the obvious – clean, well-pressed and tidy, do your clothes look the part for the job? Every item you wear equates to a word and when you get dressed you’re making a statement. Make sure that the statement you’re making is one that the interviewer will want to hear and that will help you land the job.

How are you wearing it?

Check your posture – right now. Do you walk tall, with a natural spring in your step – or do you slump and slouch without even realising it?

How do you say what you say?

What tone of voice and what gestures do you use – are they relaxed and open, or are they a little defensive and confrontational? How many times is ‘but’ sprinkled into your conversation? Experiment with replacing it with ‘and’ and see the positive difference it makes. Do you smile? A smile lights up the face and hints at the real person underneath – so make sure you smile whenever appropriate, and definitely when greeting and leaving your interviewer.

How’s your handshake?

Make sure it achieves a happy firmness and is neither a damp squid nor a bone-crushing vice. If you’re not used to shaking hands, practice so it feels smooth and natural.

Finally, check for any distracting behaviour that you’ve inadvertently picked up along life’s way. Hair tossing, fiddling, foot tapping, lip biting, throat clearing, using ‘erm’ or ‘you know’ a bit too liberally…..ask a friend or your coach to give you honest feedback as most times these habits have become such an embedded part of us that we don’t even know they’re there.

Part Four

Tip 4: Place a high value on yourself

The interview is two-way. You’re interviewing them too.

• Is this a job you want to do?
• Is it a company you want to work for?
• What questions do you want to ask so that you have the information you need to make a decision?
• What do you truly want to find in your job and in the company you work for?
• What does your authentic self want? Really think about this one. You don’t want any job – you want the one that you will be happy in one, three, five years from now.

Once you’ve identified what’s important to you, you will come from a position of strength and confidence.

Employers aren’t doing you a favour by interviewing you. They are asking you to come to talk to them. They want to find out more about you.

You.

They think you may be the person they are looking for to join them. So don’t underestimate your value and don’t sell someone you’re not.  Be honest rather than saying and doing what you think an interviewer wants to hear. With one caveat. Always give what you say that positive tilt.

Part Five

One more thing - Think about salary.

Get the rules of negotiation clear in your head – know what your bottom line is, know your ideal, and know what bits you’re prepared to negotiate.

What do you want to be paid?

Check it’s realistic – find out the market rate for the job and compare your aspirations: maybe they’re too high – or maybe they’re too low.

What’s the minimum you’d work for?

How negotiable are you? As well as your basic pay, think about pension and other benefits. Be clear about where you stand. When the question comes up – and at some time you know it will – about what your salary expectations are, be ready.

Be wary of pricing yourself out of the job, but be more careful of setting your expectations too low. Employers are always prepared to negotiate to get the candidate they want.

Action!

Actions of the Week

1. Create Scenarios

Create a repertoire of scenarios that you can use to illustrate your interview answers. Review lesson one of this course, when you jumped out of your shoes and thought about the sort of questions an employer might ask.

Match this with lessons 2 and 3 when you created your CV. Now think examples, illustrations, instances that will paint pictures of you in action. Choose pictures that show you in your best light and that can be adapted to fit multiple questions.

2. Rehearse your interview answers out loud

Make sure that by the time you’re called for interview you can talk about yourself fluently and naturally. Start by writing down the sort of things you can say and move on to practicing giving answers – in the mirror is best, so you can see what the interviewer sees.

You’re not looking to produce scripted answers here but you are looking to get comfortable with talking about yourself and learning to rapidly recall lively examples of what you can do.

3. Freshen up your vocabulary

Did you know that the vocabulary of the average adult stops growing in their mid 20′s? Don’t be average. Reflect on the tired and overworked words you use every day and get out your dictionary and find alternatives. Resolve to be amongst the verbally elite.

4. Turn your negatives into positives

Think about the negative things that spring to mind about your past jobs and then think again. What did you learn from them? What new skills, personal qualities and values did you develop? How did they influence where you are today?

5. Reassess your image

Find a well-recommended image consultant and bring yourself up to scratch. This is an investment to make whether you’re a man or a woman. Your appearance matters.
Great! That’s the penultimate step of this course now complete.

In the last lesson, we’re going to look at what to do after interviews and in between times: how you can keep yourself sharp and ready to grasp every opportunity. I’ll be giving you a mini blueprint for how to manage your career too.

Until then, enjoy!

Part Two

Grasp every opportunity

What are you going to do between this moment now and when you start your new job? There really is no time like the present. Stand back from your current situation and think about how you could make the present better – before you start that new job. Commit now to going the extra mile, putting in that extra bit of effort: in everything you do. It will pay dividends.

‘You have to work for something. If it’s handed to you, it’s not gonna last,’ Madonna said in 1987. Look where this attitude has got her – and where it’s still getting her today.

One of my clients, a 30-something graduate with a baby, started a programme of career coaching with me while she was still on maternity leave. She wanted to make sure that she used her leave time in the best possible way to get clear about what her next career steps were going to be. To work out what it was she really wanted to do. To make sure she gained the skills and positioned herself to get the job that would fulfil those wants.

Hats off to her!

Here is a lady who is going places, because she recognises a key fact – that we make our own opportunities. Opportunities are all around us, so long as our eyes and minds are open to see them.

• If you’re working, how could you do your current job better?
• What could you do now that will help your job, your company and help your own development? Look for the win – win, every time.
• Once you’ve identified what you could do, how will you make sure it gets noticed? Afterall, you don’t want your hard work and extra effort to go unseen.
• Make a point of ensuring that key people are aware of your capabilities and achievements.
• Learn to manage your profile. Results speak, but you need to make sure the right people are listening!

Whatever your situation, keep on building your assets. Never stop. Most employers are giving their employees more and more responsibility so each employee has to do more, with fewer resources. Prepare yourself for that in the best way you can.

Part Three

Stay with the game

Let’s take a look at some of today’s trends; at key assets you can focus on developing.

• Information and communication technology skills
  Love it or hate it, technology is here to stay, so keep yourself current.
• Knowledge
  Companies speak of their intellectual capital because it’s so important; knowledge really is power.
• An ability to embrace change..
  ..to support it, and initiate it. Caring enough to spot where improvements can be made and the attitude to follow through.
• Commercial focus
  Know what really adds value.
• The ability to build relationships across all levels
  This means with your peers, subordinates and superiors.
• And let’s not forget customer focus
  Not by chance do leading motivation companies target customer service as one of their primary markets: it’s a bestseller.

  Posters with slogans like ‘Treat every customer as if your world revolves around them…it does’ sell so well because they send out crucial messages. Quality service is becoming an increasing differentiator amongst discerning customers, so do what you have to do now – and keep doing it – to make sure your skills and attitude match the demand.

Once you start that new job, remember: the scenery’s different, but you’re still you. So make sure that you’re the best ‘you’ that you can be.

Starting right now.

Action!

Actions of the Week

1. Make every interview count

Get feedback and then use it to do even better next time. (And remember, every person who interviews you is a potential contact to add to your network too.) Get the mindset, and apply it to every area of your life: failure is feedback.

2. Take responsibility for your own ongoing learning and development

Don’t wait for your employer to send you on training courses. Take the initiative. What do you need to know, what skills do you need to develop, what experience do you need? How will you make sure it happens? Own it. It’s your career and your life – you don’t want anyone else in control of it do you? Be prepared to invest in yourself

3. Wherever you are now, keep building your assets to meet market needs

Never stop doing this. Think about the future: what do you think the key developments and challenges will be in the next 3, 5, 10 years? How will you make yourself ready for them? Challenge yourself out of that comfort zone! Plan your strategy now and put that plan into action. Start today.

4. Learn from Everything

Mahatma Gandhi said, ‘Everything that happens to you is your teacher. The secret is to learn to sit at the feet of your own life and be taught by it.’ You can learn from everything. Make that a habit from now on.

5. Last but not least, keep a balance

A great job and a great career are vital building blocks for a happy, expressive life where you reach your full potential. But they’re not the only ones. Don’t forget all the others! Remember that a happy life is a full and rounded life, where you have love, friendship, fun…..what else makes your life happy? Think about that. And make sure you do what you need to do.

That’s it! The end of the course.

It’s been fantastic being with you. I hope you’ve enjoyed doing this course as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. If there’s one thing I’d like you to go away with, it’s this. You’re special. You’ve got talents, experience and knowledge that no-one else has. That’s your biggest asset: you.

So go strut your stuff! Good luck.