Tips for People in Transition
Every year (for the past few years), I have been asked by the people at Lee Hecht Harrison (in Minneapolis) to give a presentation that we title "What a Difference a Year Makes." The first year was purely about economic trends. (As I have said before on this Blog, I am a bit of a data-junkie and track all types of economic data.) As the years have passed, we have kept the focus on economics the same (an annual update with some trend predictions) but have added answers to questions that are submitted by the group in advance. One of the questions I received for the presentation I gave last week was tips I would have for people in transition.
Are these career management tips any different if you are NOT in transition?
As a retained search professional and a person well connected in business and HR circles (locally at least), people in transition often reach out to me to 'network.' There are a few common themes to their level of activity prior to their transition. There are also a few common comments made about the activities that they have OR have not been doing prior to meeting with me. With that said, here are six items I mentioned during the presentation - and the reasons they made the list: 1) "One-A-Day™" - transition has nothing to do with this . . . . . if you are interested in your career (growth, success, etc.), you should do something everyday to push your career forward. This could be reading an article from a professional journal. It could be reaching out to a valued colleague for networking. It could be registering for a professional association lunch meeting. Regardless, each day should have at least one activity in it (regardless of how small) that pushes you forward. Please don't tell your networking connections that you decided to take the summer off to get re-energized (or work on your golf game - an item I have heard more than once when I have asked about level of transition activity). No one else gets that luxury and you will not get a great reaction. 2) Be Passionate/Get Involved - most professionals I meet are members of at least one professional or industry association. When asked about their level of activity, they say they read the e-mails they receive. This is simply NOT adequate. Go to a meeting! Write an article for the association's website. Get on a committee. Attend their networking events. Involvement in your career is a gift you can and should give yourself. 3) Be Comfortable With Change - this is about learning something new. Embrace the new program on your computer (don't complain about it). Your reputation should be that of a person who pushes new methods forward, not the person that complains about everything. Change is inevitable - why fight it. 4) Push to be Measured - when in transition, you really do not know how far you are from a new role. There are ways of measuring and evaluating yourself. Keep track of:- number of network calls you make (actual conversations, NOT voicemails traded) daily/weekly
- number of networking names received per person
- job leads received
- number of resumes e-mailed
- number of first interviews versus number of second interviews