This time of year brings about that need to take inventory of what you did and where you want to go in the next year. Notice I did not say we need to take note of what we did not do. Focus on the positive. Focus on what you did accomplish in your career.

Be grateful and content. It is in the contentment and acceptance of where we are that allows us to have a foundation to build the dreams of where we want to go in the next year.

Use this time to REFLECT and not REGRET.

Then DESIGN your plan to ADVANCE your career.

Let’s close out 2011 and get revved up for 2012. Join me in doing this exercise: (more…)

I’m the type of person who needs to be shown why it pays to be grateful, happy and optimistic. Are you like that? I hated to admit it, but it is true—and yet I am still an optimist and I think most people would say so.  Why the change? I have learned the hard way over the years that my ability to find something that could go wrong with anything that crossed my desk, was in actuality, not an asset but a liability. Yes, being able to forecast numerous possible outcomes can enable a business to be prepared for various situations. But when it came to my personal and professional life, I was dragging myself down and paralyzing myself. Are you doing the same? (more…)

Read this U.S. News & World Report article where I am interviewed by Careers Expert Miriam Salpeter in her On Careers Column on 10/23/2011.

When you’re looking for a job, it’s easy to fall into the trap of applying and waiting to hear from an employer to see if you won a chance to interview. What’s the problem with this “apply only” strategy (also known as “spray and pray”)? It puts too much power into other people’s hands. Job seekers who seize control of their searches have a much better chance of landing opportunities than those who spend all of their time looking for open opportunities and applying. Lisa Rangel is managing director of Chameleon Resumes, contributor to Michelle A. Riklan and David Riklan’s, 101 Great Ways to Enhance Your Career, and author of the ebook, The Do-It-Yourself Branded Resume Kit.

As a search firm recruitment leader for over 13 years who partnered with Fortune 500 and boutique firms to source top talent, she sat on the proverbial “other side of the desk,” hiring people to fill clients’ positions. She advises job seekers to take steps to ensure it’s easy to find them for the jobs they want. “Posting an ad to recruit for an open position is one of the last tactics a recruiter wants to use,” Rangel says. Once a position is available online, many recruiters receive a plethora of ill-qualified applicants. [See The 50 Best Careers for 2011.]

Rangel advises candidates to distinguish themselves from the rest of the applicant pool using these techniques: (more…)

I attended the Career Directors International Summit led by Laura DeCarlo (@careerhero) this past week held in the colorful Savannah, Georgia. What a week it was! The general theme validated for me was that having a self-made or professionally done resume is not the sole magic elixir to landing your next job. It is a component, not the only step needed to be taken.

So what else is needed, you ask?  Job seekers today need to approach their search with the hiring manager’s mind set in hand. It is no mistake that this year’s conference featured Martin Yates, the author of the highly successful Knock ‘Em Dead career books and former recruiter, and Shally Steckerl, the sourcing and recruiting industry rockstar. These two gentleman punctuated job seekers need to think creatively when approaching and being discovered by hiring decision makers.  Here are a few ways how:  (more…)

My friend, G.G. Collins launched her website Smart Girls Make Savvy Women and asked me to write the inaugural guest blog post. Thank you, G.G. for including me on such an important message—getting our children ready for the workforce.  Best Wishes in your success!

4 Career Skills to Teach Your Children Now for Future Professional Success

As a Job Search Coach and Career Development professional, I often get asked by well meaning parents if there is anything they can do to best prepare their teens and young children for the job market.  Or what are the best career options to pursue.   The latter question is best left to labor analysts and economists who  forecast what the domestic and international markets will require to determine which skill set will be in high demand over the next decades.

So what can parents do to best prepare their children to succeed within a chosen career? As a career professional, former recruiter, hiring manager and as a current parent myself, here are my suggestions of what parents can do outside the education system to best prepare their kids based on the clients I have worked with and prospects I have interviewed over my 16 year career:  (more…)

This is an actual question posed to me by a job seeker back in March 2011.  And below it is my answer. I felt this person’s pain. While this reader was not in the position to hire me, I was compelled to giving this person some low-cost and free resources that, with initiative and gumption, could help them get results from the search that was currently frustrating them…If this is you, I hope this helps:

I have a major problem, companies I want to work at say to apply on-line and but it seems the application disappears.  Everyone says I should network but I feel uncomfortable hounding everyone I know about finding a new job.  Recruiters are somewhere in between, you have to play along or they will black list you.  What should I do? —

I agree this is a frustrating situation.  Without knowing specifics of the situation, it may be difficult to diagnose in email, but I will offer some insights that I hope will help: (more…)

The cardinal rule of interviewing seems to be “never say anything negative on an interview.” But that does not mean the hiring manager will not ask you about the blemish, challenge or failure in your past that you would prefer not to talk about, if given the choice. Despite your best efforts, the interviewer will find a way to ask you about your unreasonable boss, the company that went bankrupt, your layoff, the sales plan you missed, the budget you exceeded, the gap in your resume or your nutty co-workers. Or maybe you were fired—<gasp>. How do you diplomatically and confidently discuss these issues with a prospective employer, when what you really want to do is hide in the nearest corner when they arise? (more…)

(1) Go into a new field without major research
(2) Send the same thank you note to all interviewers
(3) Think they have to have 100% clarity as to what they want before they start to look
(4) Only submit to job postings and never reach out to people at companies directly
(5) Assume the tactics that worked for their job search three years ago will work for them now (more…)

Your head tells you, “No one is hiring.” I am here to tell you that it is not true –I have had two clients land and start positions in December. This is actually the time we get to have fun with this process! The holidays can present many leads to pursue and an abundance of opportunities to expand your network. Whether you are an introvert or an extrovert, here are practices you can do to make job searching and holiday networking easier for you during this season: (more…)

People want to feel good and look good at work—I am sure you are no exception. Being happy in your current job has to be paramount, since looking for a new job is not the right decision for everyone. If I can give you a suggestion to use that has a positive ROI that is both measurable and invaluable, that can provide positive corporate public relations and, in some cases, that can have new business ideas evolve by bringing together employees that don’t normally work together, you would want it, yes? Well, here you go…. (more…)