This is going to be short. It’s a simple concept. The  trick is in the execution.

Your career sweet spot, the place where you get the most personal satisfaction and the most material success (position, promotion, cash money) lies at the intersection of the answers to two questions:

A) What do you like doing?

B) What are your most marketable skills?

Simple, right? Coming up with the answers to those questions and finding the common ground is often one of the challenges for my career consulting clients. BUT once they are able to get a clear picture of the common ground, it creates first a sense of relief and then a direction for forward movement.

So before you make a career move or set to work on polishing your resume, do this little exercise and see what you discover. It may surprise you.

Photo courtesy of jimmiehomeschoolmom.

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Turn off the TV.

Put the baby down.

And the fork.

And the magazine.

Hang up the phone, too.

Seriously, are we all out of control or what? We wear too many hats, we have not enough time. So what do we do? Everything. At the same time.

I used to be the dictionary definition of what astrologists consider a typical Gemini. I would have six books of various genres going at any one time. I would tackle my to-do list round-robin style, a little of this a little of that, with multiple items going simultaneously. I’d read, watch TV, and make notes in my journal all at the same time. And when I was done at the computer, it took me five minutes just to close all the programs and browser windows I’d have open.

I thought that motherhood would kick the multitasking madness in me up a notch or five, but it’s almost like becoming a mother broke the machine. Or rather, it showed me the folly in thinking the machine worked that way. Uh, “me” being the machine.

Turns out that recent studies have shown that your IQ goes down ten points when you try to do more than one thing simultaneously. If you’ve ever walked around your house talking on your cell phone while looking for your cell phone, you know that’s no lie.

But there’s something more to it. The tendency to do more with less time makes your brain skittish, always wanting to add to the moment. What else? What else? What else?  in a robotic sing-song that makes it difficult to focus on the things you are already doing. (I know it’s not just me.)

When my husband and I aren’t fully present with our two-and-a-half year-old, Ben, we can only fake it for so long and then he does one of two things: If he can, he grabs either side of our face and turns it to whatever he wants us to look at or he turns it toward his own face and repeats a single word request until we respond. (Often our response is “No.” He wants lollipops a lot. “Pop. Pop. Pop.”) If he can’t get us by the face, he just walks around pushing buttons, opening drawers, and pulling at cables until he has our attention. (Nothing like a neglected toddler grabbing for your computer router to snap you out of a fog.)

But aside from really appreciating the artisitic merits of “Abby’s Flying Fairy School” (it’s part of Sesame Street- it rocks), there is something about being fully present at one thing for a period of time that is like resting, it is an echo of a time where there were only nine channels on your TV, all the phones were wired to a wall, and… well, you get the idea. It’s peaceful. (Seriously, kids, NINE channels.)

I try to take this lesson into the rest of my life, with varying degrees of success. Here are some things I’ve learned from experimenting with unitasking, my name for the alternative to multitasking:

1) Email is a huge distractor no matter what anyone says. Having your computer ding (or a pop-up appear on screen) every time an email arrives is like someone saying “Look over here, look over here” at random, frequent intervals while you try to do other things. Just close the email box when you start a project. The mail will still be there when you are finished.

2) Doing one thing at a time will not only make you more efficient, it will give you a healthier sense of the passing of time. When you do one thing at a time, time seems more linear and therefore more expansive. You did this and then you did this and then you did this. Flitting between several things will only make you feel like time is a giant blob and you probably won’t finish as much, thus making you feel even more starved for time than you did when you started.

3) If you make a to-do list and then prioritize it before you start tackling the items, you will be more at peace with unitasking. This will guarantee you are doing the most important thing first and you will be less likely to obsess over the other things you need to do.

4) Reading while the TV is on assures that you will not absorb the content of either medium very well. It may be basic to some people, but not everyone realizes the brain-split that happens in this scenario. (I can’t even listen to music that has lyrics while I am either reading or writing.) You definitely get more out of either of these things if you choose between them.

5) Multitasking is only better when one of the tasks is really automatic, such as folding laundry while watching TV or doing dishes while listening to “This American Life.” I’d go so far as to say having a diversion during these mindless tasks can give you a healthier sense of time. You are not obsessing over how much of your life is passing you by while you attend to these mundane chores. Instead, you are enjoying “Modern Family.” Or even “Abby’s Flying Fairy School.”

As usual, I would like to hear your take on time and how you organize it to its best advantage – or not. Comments welcome, appreciated, enjoyed.

[Full disclosure: I have been having lunch while writing this. What are you gonna do? A girl's gotta eat.]

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I’m hauling out the clock photo again. I know I used it recently, but it’s appropriate. I also used a pun in the title. I would apologize- I’m not a fan of puns as a rule- but in this case, I kind of like it and I’m not really sorry. In fact, I’m fighting the urge to add a exclamation point to the end of the title. (Oops! I lost!)

Here’s the deal: Everyone I know spends a lot of time lamenting about their lack of time and trying to squeeze the most of it out of every single day. Maybe it’s because I spend a lot of time around entrepreneurs with multiple endeavors and full lives outside their work, many of those lives including small children, but man-o-man does it come up a lot.

As the regular readers know, I have a corporate job, two blogs (YourIndustryInsider.com & this one), a professional writing and career consulting business, and a family which includes a two-and-a-half year-old and an extremely charming and handsome husband who may be a regular reader of this blog (happy V-day, honey!). Oh, and I have a large circle of beloved friends and a rich inner life as well. So the time thing is big for me. 

If you read Six Steps to Sanity for the Time-Deprived, you know I have developed a lot of tricks and tips (and mental games) that help me get everything done. It’s a constant issue and not something I am always successful at, but I usually manage to keep up with the top priorities.

It seems inevitable now. I have been hired to help a busy entrepreneur get a grip on the time thing.  The new client is someone I know through a women’s business group we were both members of a while back. She had read something I wrote which mentioned the above list of elements in my life, and a few others which I was dealing with last year. She was impressed, she told me, and I was flattered.

She wanted to know how I did it. I gave her some ideas (and sent her the “Six Steps” blog post), but she wanted more help. She mentioned that she figured I didn’t have time to coach her (one-on-one career consulting is not something I do that often now- you know, usually I don’t have enough time), so she wanted to see if I could refer her to someone and I did, but I also thought about how I would do it.

And I realized all of the mental processes I use to prioritize my goals and manage my time could be easily taught to someone else. In fact, the idea of helping her accomplish the cool things she is trying to do- and also get some measure of peace in her life, seemed so gratifying that I agreed to do it.

Of course, I’ll let you know how it goes. And there will be more posts about time management. And I may just use the clock photo again. And exclamation points, too!

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(This post originally appeared on Your Industry Insider on January 17th.)

Say what you will… She’s sometimes abrasive, sometimes obscene, and sometimes downright mean, but comedienne Kathy Griffin has made a well-above-D list entertainment career out of billing herself as stuck on the D-list. But what does Kathy Griffith have to teach us about being successful in entertainment?

As luck would have it, not only do we have articles about Kathy and interviews with her, not to mention her book and many DVDs, we can actually watch her in “real life” (as much as reality TV is “real life”). As regular readers of YII know, we believe there’s always plenty to learn by tuning in to reality TV.

Here are six lessons from Kathy’s career we can take with us on our own journeys:

1. She remained true to herself. Watching Kathy on her Bravo TV show, “Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List,” interacting with her family and friends, her staff, her publishers, her fans, and the public at large, you can see her act is no act. She really is obsessed with celebrities (the more troubled the better), defensive at times, potty-mouthed, and deeply devoted to the gay men at the core of her fan base (not to mention the ones she is actually friends with). How can your career be a reflection of your true self?

2. She found her people. Speaking of gay men… Before the rest of the world discovered her, gay men were showing up at Kathy’s gigs. Loyal followers are hard to come by when you are a struggling comedienne so she recognized them, as a niche audience and as kindred spirits, and sought out opportunities to perform for them. Her audience has grown enormously both inside and outside the gay community, but she will always appreciate them filling the seats at her gigs and keeping food on her table in the early years. Where are your people?

3. She networked well. Kathy wants to meet everyone who she can learn from and who can help her advance her career. And she is not afraid to reach out. She knows that paying a sincere compliment is a good way to start and asking people for the secrets of their success, being humble and a good listener, is the key to getting good information out of a busy professional. Who have you reached out to lately?

4. She worked smart (not to mention hard). Whenever Kathy has a new challenge, whether it is performing in front of a different audience than her usual crowd (the military, the Apollo Theater crowd) or breaking into a new area (publishing), she goes on a research mission, talking to whoever she can who might give her insight she can use (her own industry insiders, if you will). Whose wisdom can you tap for your next step?

5. She failed. Oh, Kathy. She’s been kicked off more talk shows than most celebrities have appeared on. She’s bombed in front of 1000s of people. She was booed off the stage at the Apollo Theater. And yet…

6. She never gave up. In any entertainment career (in any career period), there will always be moments of failure and even some periods when it seems like nothing is going right. But then you vow to fight another day, strategize, redouble your efforts, try yet again for success.

And like Kathy, if you stay true to yourself and find your people and network and work smart and never give up, you may just find yourself graduating from the D-list to the C-list, and maybe even beyond that.

Who’s your reality TV role model (or anti-role model)? Comments welcome…

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These days sometimes just getting by is all we can do. Different people have different resources in short supply. For some people it’s money. For others, it’s space. For me, it’s time.

Even with my corporate job, my eternal multitude of side-pursuits and creative projects, and ”down time” with my husband and large circle of friends, I used to be able to get things done with some buffer between finishing and the actual deadline. Looking back, boy was I smug about it. Like the juggler throwing the pin behind his back just because he knows he can catch it.

But this was before Ben, the two-and-(almost)-a-half year-old who threw a monkey wrench into my efficient little world almost two years ago now. He’s great, but goll, is he ever unpredictable. Even without trying to throw one behind my back, pins kept dropping all over the place!

Soooo… I’ve had to make some adjustments. I know there are many out there, some with kids, some without, who could use some help with their busy lives, also. I won’t promise you “breathing room,” per se (who can make that kind of promise?), but I think I can give you, maybe just maybe, a little bit less stress about all you have to accomplish in your life.

Step One: Try Batching and Selectively Multitasking- Batching is something I first read about in “The Four Hour Work Week” by Tim Ferris, a somewhat (!) ridiculous book overall, but one with some good time management techniques contained therein.

Batching is doing a particular task less often and all at once, the idea being that because of the focus involved and other ”set up,” doing some little thing like checking email three times a day versus  fifteen times a day will save time even though presumably you are processing the same amount of email. Open your mailbox once, start at the top, bang, bang, bang. And before you know it, you’re done with email. 

Ditto doing laundry every other week instead of every week. Collecting it, sorting it, washing and drying it, then folding it and putting it away… Same amount of laundry, but it will take considerably less time.

I know right now you are thinking about how much more underwear and socks you have to buy to do laundry less often. Please wait until you are done reading this post. I have more tips for you!

Other examples of batching: Pay the bills twice a month instead of paying them as they arrive. Write multiple blog posts at a time. (This actually works, when I am able to set aside a chunk of time. The blog post-writing brain takes time to rev up, so the momentum builds as you write.) Grocery shopping less often? That’s a no-brainer.

Selective multitasking is something I came up with on my own. Mostly it involves stuff I can do with my baby around, but you don’t need a baby to make this work for you. In my case, I can fold clean laundry and put it away while Ben is playing in my bedroom, as long as he doesn’t get on the bed. So I usually wait until he is around to do this. If I didn’t have a kid, I would fold laundry while watching TV. (I mean, how much brainpower does TV take? You can spare a little for sorting socks.)

Note of caution: Do not multitask willy-nilly. It usually makes all of the things you are doing take infinitely longer. For instance, I usually shut off my email when I am writing blog posts.

Step Two: Cut Back- I realized at the end of last year that in order to start writing on this blog again (I’d neglected it for a while but I really wanted to get back into it), I had to cut back in other areas. I am limiting the number of resume and career consulting clients I am taking. I am writing one less Mogul Mindset eBlast per week for Your Industry Insider (<- click there and then look at the top of the sidebar on the YII site if you want to know what MM eBlasts are!).

Earlier this week, I met with someone who is totally overwhelmed by her job and trying to figure out how to get some balance back. (She’s often at the office 10 hours a day.) I told her (and I would tell you, if you are in a similar situation), don’t do anything except the things where, if you didn’t do them, your boss would notice. This can apply to everyone on the corporate ladder.

Applications for this advice can range from ditching the really elaborate to-do list and settling for something quick and dirty that simply prevents tasks from falling through the cracks to canceling the endless weekly staff meetings- or having a time limit, if you are in charge, and walking out at that point. The first time, they will be shocked and/or indignant, but if you stick to your guns, they will learn to use their time- and yours- better.

Step Three: Prioritize- Having your overall life prorities sorted first makes your day-to-day (and week-to-week, etc.) prioritizing a snap. If your life priorities go 1) making sure loved ones are okay, 2) earning money, 3) being creatively fulfilled, (9 other things), 13) keeping the house clean, you know that finishing that chapter of your novel is going to be higher on your to-do than vacuuming. Always.

Step Four: Allow for Trial and Error- You try to sort the laundry on the bed while your toddler plays on the floor, but every time you do, as soon as you turn your back, he manages to climb on the bed and toss all your neat piles into chaos. Okay, so maybe that’s not a solution for you…

Step Five: Make Peace- Sometimes, you will be just on the edge of missing that deadline. And sometimes, you will actually miss that deadline. And you’ll find that in most cases, especially in the big picture, it’s not that big a deal.

Step Six: Keep Trying- Don’t give up. If you keep at it, you might discover some tricks that do help. You might figure out something to cut back on that you had never thought of and have a moment where you can actually maybe just sit…

                           by yourself…

                                          in silence…

                                                                 and breathe.

Don’t hold out on me! I told you my time-saving secrets, now you tell me yours! Please share your accumulated wisdom in the comments section.

Photo by ToniVC.

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 Okay, so the “before” picture is YOU now. You weigh 344 pounds. 

Not literally, but in terms of where you are in your life (unhappy, overworked and/or underpaid, overweight, financially underwater, single, bored) and where you want to be (happy, well-worked and well-paid, fit, financially flush, coupled, stimulated).

How do you get from 344 pounds to 215 pounds (and below)?

 You ask Tyler Weeks, the guy in the picture.

This is what Tyler wrote when he determined that he wanted to lose weight, that he had to lose weight (right before he bought the scale that could accommodate his frame and before he started his website, www.344pounds.com).

My name is Tyler, I’m 23 years old, 6 feet and 2 inches tall, and I don’t know how much I weigh;  I don’t own a scale that has the structural integrity to weigh me (most scales have a 300lb limit).  I am considered by the American government’s health standards to be morbidly obese.

My weight is literally off any Body Mass Index (BMI) chart I can find.

I started my new healthy lifestyle today.  A life where I can take my shirt off at the beach.  A life where I’m free to sit in a normal chair without it squeaking for its poor little life. A life where I can walk down my driveway without being winded.  A life where I can see my daughter marry her high school sweetheart.

A life where I’m not extremely obese.

Now you might not be “morbidly obese” in terms of the distance from where you are to where you want to be, but there are always areas where forward movement could be made (otherwise, why are you reading this blog, right?).

Here are some of the keys to Tyler’s success:

1. He made a firm and specific decision. See above for the firmness. The number of pounds he wanted to lose came shortly thereafter.

2. He was broke it down. On his journal, he recounts using a calculator to figure out the math behind his weight loss project. “At 344 pounds, 73 inches, and living a sedentary lifestyle the calculator said I needed roughly 3,576 calories to maintain my weight of 344 pounds.  If on any given day I had more than 3,576 calories, I’d gain weight.  If I cut back a little and ate less than 3,576 calories, I’d lose weight.” He followed that up with figuring out what kind of calorie deficit and what kind of increased activity he needed to aim for in order to reach his goal by his deadline.

3. He created accountability. Hence, the blog.

4. He started small. He knew just a little change was all he could handle at first. For instance, instead of going to a salad with dinner, he got potato skins instead of fries. Or got a turkey burger instead of a hamburger.

5. He allowed for backsliding. In fact, he never decided to always be good about what he ate. He knew that kind of deprivation would cause him to backslide. Instead, he let himself have cheat meals, but kept an eye on how many and reigned it in when they started working against his overall goal.

6. He never declared victory (and I believe he won’t). He still has a few pounds to lose and then he’s going to focus on getting fit. It’s a mentality that successful people have, they piggyback or roll in another goal after achieving the first.

You may have a few strategies of your own, but start with applying these six, which have worked so well for Tyler, to the areas in your life where you are a little overweight – or even morbidly obese. Do not be tempted to take on some kind of rigid plan that replaces Tyler’s. Those don’t work. If they did, he would’ve lost the weight before. (He’d dieted many times before.)

If you have no emergency savings account and you have decided you must have one, figure out how much you want to accumulate by your deadline. Firm and specific, remember? Then break it down per paycheck and have that amount direct deposited into a savings account away from your normal bank account. Then figure out where you are going to take that amount out of your monthly budget… and so on. If you want a better paying job, make that a firm decision and then figure out how much better. Etc.

It worked for Tyler, it can work for you. Let us know how it’s going. And if you need help with the job transition, you know where I am.

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A few years ago, I came up with a trick I use to get those pesky things off my list or get started with anything I am stalled on. I make a deal with myself to do only the first step or even a pre-step. “Let me just write the first paragraph of Chapter Four” or even “Let me find the phone number for the potential baby sitter and put it by the phone for later” or “Let me just fill out one page of the nine-page form in the binder of seventy forms to fill out to complete an international adoption.”

It doesn’t always work, but often I find myself getting some momentum and without even thinking, I have completed Chapter Four, called the potential babysitter or have a baby ready to be picked up in Taiwan (which is how I ended up shepherding the toddler in the first place!).

Be careful. It’s a powerful tip.

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I have reviewed thousands of resumes as a hiring executive (and another couple of hundred as a professional resume writer and career consultant) and worse than the occasional type-o or overly-flowerly language or some of the other resume sins I could mention (and there are many), it really all comes down to one thing:

Please don’t bore me with your resume.

That’s the least I should be able to expect. And I have known perfectly lovely and even fascinating people in my career and I have freakin’ come thisclose to dozing off while reading their resumes.

If you are even considering sending your resume out to score a new job in the next few months, please give it a critical read. If you are bored with it, it will definitely bore the poor recruiter or hiring executive you are sending it to.

Forget about all the talk about computer scanners looking for industry buzzwords on resumes being submitted for jobs. There are people reading your resume, actual human beings deciding whether you should be contacted for an interview. If they start thinking about what they are going to have for lunch while trying to get through your resume, you are in serious trouble.

You are an interesting person. Your career has had some interesting highlights. Make sure that comes across on paper.

Photo by b_heyer.

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Here’s a good question to start your year off: How do you define career satisfaction?

My career has a few pieces to it, which I think is part of my career satisfaction. I enjoy juggling several different tasks at one time and each of the “jobs” I do feeds me in a different way. 

As a writer, it’s about telling the best compelling and authentic story for the goal of the assignment, whether it be a bio, a resume, a blog post, an article, a speech,  or some other piece of written (or, in the case of a speech, verbal) communication. When I am doing my corporate work, it’s about solving a big problem or completing a project in a smart way. And when I am doing career consulting, I am helping my clients find the balance of between what they get the most personal satisfaction doing with where they can make the most money (along with some other factors which allow us to design and implement a strategy).

So, for me, career satisfaction boils down to storytelling, problem-solving, and helping others find their own source of career satisfaction.

What about you?

Photo courtesy of stagewhisper.

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