Getting Unstuck: Creating Change in Your Own Post-Secondary Career

Presented by: Deirdre Pickerell, MEd, CHRP, GCDF

Life Strategies Ltd. 604.464.2382

Deirdre@lifestrategies.ca www.lifestrategies.ca

Agenda   Change and Transition – Getting Unstuck   Finding Flow   Making Change and Chance Your Allies   Take it One Step at a Time   Ready…Set…Go   Staying Optimistic

That Place in Between… It’s not so much

that we’re afraid of change or so in love with the old ways, but it’s that place in between

that we fear… It’s like being between trapezes.

It’s Linus when his blanket is in the dryer.

There’s nothing to hold onto. ~Marilyn Ferguson, Futurist

snoopy.com

The Stages of Transition Adapted from William Bridges

Looking Back “The Bear, as he sits in

the bow of the boat, broad back deflecting any unfamiliar, novel or interesting sensation, eyes firmly and forever fixed on the past, tries to believe that things are still as they were.”

- Bill Reid April 11, 1994 Unveiling of the Spirit of

Haida Gwaii (Jade Canoe).

The Dilemma: Few people are enjoying their jobs today

Many workers are disengaged, under

-employed, biding their time until retirement,

and bored

  Other workers are overworked,

exhausted, and

burned-out

FLOW -- High Skills and High Challenges Adapted from Csikszentmihalyi’s (1997) Finding Flow

Low SKILLS / RESOURCES High

High CHAL L ENGES

Anxiety Arousal FLOW

Worry

Apathy Boredom

Relaxation

Control

Planned Happenstance: Making Change and Chance Your Allies

  Acknowledge that uncertainty is natural   Examine how individual actions contribute to “chance”

  Pursue opportunities for learning   Be curious about the world around you

  Actively create chance   Envision an event   Create an action plan to get there

  Identify/overcome barriers or blocks to action   Challenge beliefs about work, organizations, employers

Adapted from Krumboltz, 1999

Marketing Brand You   Be visible   Enhance your profile

  ‘moonlight’, take on a freelance project   do anything that will increase your professional standing

  Be aware that whatever you do (or choose not to do) communicates the value and character of your brand

  Know the value of word-of-mouth marketing   Realize the value of influence power and learn how to

intelligently, and responsibly, get, and use it

Adapted from Tom Peters, Fast Company

1 Step at a Time

Finding Constancy

in the Midst of Change

Machu Picchu A new model for career development

  Make strategic career moves to better position yourself

  Take time to consolidate your skills

  Build on previous successes

  Leave behind (temporarily or permanently) skills that you don’t want to use

Informational Interviews… What’s the Point?

  Investigate specific career fields   Narrow options   Obtain advice on where you fit   Learn jargon / important issues in the field   Broaden contact network for future reference   Create a strategy for entering your field

Source: www2.jobtrak.com

Benchmarking requires a constant search for examples in others to help you raise your own standards of performance

Hands-On Experience

  Job shadowing   Observing someone on-the-job

  Volunteering   Explore career interests   Learn new marketable skills   Demonstrate your expertise

  Working to open doors   Temporary placement agencies   Work experience / coop / internships   Wage subsidy programs

An employer’s first choice is to hire from within. (Bolles, 1999)

Networking Strategies Create a networking priority list based on proximity, perspective, and power --Jacqueline Peters, CPR

  Build a base of contacts   Ask friends, relatives, and associates if they

know someone who can help   With the next level, be focused and strive for

concrete results / referrals   Follow-up! Nurture your network

64% of 7500 people surveyed by DBM in 1999 found their jobs through networking

Connections

  Who are you connected to?   Why?

  How many new connections have you made today?   What will you do to stay connected?   By when?

  How can you leverage your connections?

Portfolios   Portfolios are a way that candidates

  Express academic and employment experience   Demonstrate accomplishments   Present achievement awards   Showcase real examples of previous work

Portfolios…Offering Proof   Certificates, diplomas, transcripts   Thank you’s, accolades, awards   References (supervisors / clients)   Performance reviews / evaluations   Resume, bio, or brochure   Articles about you and your work   Work samples / photographs If paper is too restrictive, try a disk or webpage

How to Use Your Portfolio   Career Planning

  Self-discovery / evaluation

  Employee Evaluation / Appraisal   Bring personal and professional growth to

employer’s attention   Marketing

  Job interviews, prospective clients

  Lifelong Learning   Record learning experiences   Identify transferable skills

Source: Victoria Morris - Ott

Types of Resumes   Chronological (most recent first)

 good for strong, consistent work history  gaps/job-hopping/irrelevant experience/transitions

  Functional or Skills  highlights strengths/hides weaknesses  incorporates experience other than work   employers may distrust these/can backfire

  Combination  the best of both worlds  allows you to sort/highlight skills but offers

chronological detail

More Than One Resume?   Why more than one?

  To target applications for several unrelated jobs   To highlight relevant skills for each position of interest   To use industry or occupation-specific language/jargon

  The challenge with multiple resumes   Can result in a “scatter gun” approach to job search   Lack of focus or “personal branding”   Potential confusion

  Especially if different versions end up on an employer’s desk

  Difficulty in tracking   Which resume was sent to which employer or recruiter?

Dusting Off An Older Resume

  Clarify your current job target   Use keywords found in job description   Remove items that are outdated

  Old software/hardware   Old descriptions of skills (e.g., typing)

  Update appearance   Today’s resumes need to be attractive   Use simple and appropriate formatting

  Bold, italics, attractive fonts   Bullets, graphic lines, a touch of colour   Industry icons or watermarks

Resume Writing Tips “The best predictor of future success is past behaviour”

  Showcase important info on top of page 1   Highlight relevant education and work history

  Add recent list of conferences and seminars   Summarize previous training and jobs

  Eliminate outdated skills   Watch your jargon

  Target language to intended reader(s)   Research and use insider language   Have an insider proofread for clarity

  Avoid use of precise dates   Years are sufficient

Targetted Behavioural Interviews   Present a concrete, specific example

  Use the SAR approach -- situation, action, results   Describe the situation (S)   Describe the action that you took (A)   Emphasize results (R)

  Quantify if possible -- increased sales by x%; saved ‘x’’ days of turnaround time

  Offer specific outcomes -- improved..., solved...   Link past experience with current job

  Show employer how you’ll be able to achieve similar results in the new job

Targetted Interview Prep Employers have 3 underlying questions… Can you do it? Will you do it? Will you fit in?

  What outcome does the employer want?   Build strong customer relationships

  What general competencies are required?   Communication and interpersonal skills, empathy

  What specific competencies can you offer?   Bilingual, customer-focussed, great listener

  What proof / examples do you have?   Increased account portfolio by 27% within first

year on job; in 5 years, never lost a customer to the competition

STAR Stories Use stories of your accomplishments to identify

your passions and strengths

 Situation – the context

 Task – what needed to be done

 Action – details of what you did

 Result – quantified when possible

Effective Career Management   Continuous Learning   Flexibility   Persistence   Optimism   Risk-Taking   Planfulness   Networking   Financial Management   Work-Life Balance