If you are in a job that is not your ideal job. Don’t fake it. Your best work will not come through. Your best efforts will never be applied to this role. Don’t do it. Just don’t.

Don’t put up a facade to attempt doing a role that you are not passionate about. Don’t tell yourself a lie that you will eventually have to refute. Eventually you will need to come to terms with that facade.

If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.
~Mark Twain

This is especially true for the stories we tell ourselves. Be faithful to yourself. Be truthful to yourself.

Be real – you cannot keep up a façade for three years

I use 3 years to point out how long it might take for your facade to crack. By this time your facade will have consumed your energy and especially your time. You may be able to put up with a false front for a while, but over the course of time you will tire of putting on airs. You will tire of spending so much energy into supporting a fallacy.

What can you do about it?

Take charge. Own your career. Own your interviewing process. Own your facade.

Everyone puts on a facade at different times of their lives. Facades aren’t necessarily a bad thing. Facades are useful for different parts of you life. Just make sure the facade you commit to is the one that defines you, nourishes you, ands inspires you to be and do your best.

What’s the risk?

Career stultification. Settling for something you aren’t passionate about. Forcing yourself to accept a lie.

“I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you.”
~Friedrich Nietzsche

This is especially harsh when these are the lies we are telling ourselves. The risk is … We can never believe our own stories again.

Tell the Truth. Especially to yourself. Your career and livelihood depend on it.

Author:

Jeff  is a veteran in the Enterprise Content Management industry. Over the past 20 years he has worked with customers and partners to design, develop and deploy solutions around the world. Jeff is currently the Director of Strategic Alliances at Winshuttle. He has worked for Microsoft, FileNet (IBM), K2, Captaris, Open Text, Kofax and Kodak. He speaks and blogs about ECM and the Intersection between Social, Mobile and Cloud Computing.

Unfortunately, over 99% of online job applications do not produce any results. The stupendous ineffectiveness of all these activities has given the internet a new nickname … “the black hole.” A black hole, for those who are not astrophysicists, is a place where large amounts of matter go in and nothing comes out.

In Suzanne Lucas’ October 12, 2012, article titled How Online Job Searches Worsen the Job Crisis she wrote the following for CBS MoneyWatch:
“Peter Cappelli, a management professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, recently noted such a case after a company’s resume-screening system concluded that none of the 29,000 applicants for an engineering job had the right qualifications.”

Here are a few fact and fiction excerpts from my book Fast Track Your Job Search (and Career!) which I hope you will find helpful in using the internet as a job search tool:

Fact: You can learn a lot from reviewing online job postings. Reviewing highly relevant job postings can help you identify industry and professional trends. This can also give you ideas regarding the work content of certain positions. You can use this information to add key words into your resume…

Fiction: Applying online for posted jobs is efficient. Here are a few reasons why applying for such jobs is not efficient: (1) The typical posting on popular sites can attract 300-500 resume submissions in a few days. These are your competitors.” (There are 5 other reasons!)

Fact: Internet job postings have revolutionized the way some companies hire. For less desirable employers, this is true. Why should they pay an independent recruiter when they can post the job online and have hundreds of candidates from which to choose?

I am sharing this information because most job seekers spend the majority of their effort applying for jobs online. This can result in a huge waste of time. Factor in the cost of lost income and perhaps you can see why it is my contention that this is the most expensive way to find a job.

So, what can you do to improve your online odds if you refuse to join A.A. (Applicants Anonymous)? My best advice is that you leverage the power of networking in pursuing posted jobs. Here is a high-level outline of a process I have seen work well: (1) Identify a posted job that is a great match for you and for which the employer is identified, (2) search LinkedIn for first and second level contacts you have in the employer, (3) request direct help from your first level contacts if they are sufficiently strong and/or (4) identify desirable second level contacts and request your first level “connectors” to introduce you to them…and then attempt to make positive contact. If the employer contacts are not the decision maker, seek to get them to recommend you to them.

I hope that this article will cause you think twice before investing the majority of your job searches applying online. If I am successful, my efforts will be rewarded by saving you untold hours that you can better utilize by calling employers directly, contacting relevant recruiters, and networking with employed people.

Good luck and best wishes for landing the career you deserve!

Author:

Richard Kirby is an executive career consultant, speaker on career strategies, and author of Fast Track Your Job Search (and Career!). Richard Kirby’s earlier experience includes managing engineering, human resources, marketing and sales teams for employers that ranged from a Fortune 100 to a VC-funded entrepreneurial startup. For the past 11 years at Executive Impact, Richard has helped hundreds of executives and professionals successfully navigate today’s transformed 21st century job market and achieve better employment for themselves. Richard’s expertise includes career assessments and goal setting, personal marketing/branding, resume enhancement, strategic networking and job interviewing, and “contrarian” job search methodologies. He is a Board Certified Coach (in career coaching) and a Certified Management Consultant (recognized by the ISO).

In order to create a great impression on any given customer, a small business must have a cohesive team. With so many other companies competing for customers’ attention, small businesses rarely get a second chance and this fact further reiterates the importance of team work. Team work is perhaps the most underrated aspect of a business structure. A well-coordinated team is instrumental to the smooth running of every organization – be it a multinational conglomerate or a local retail business. In light of that, below are a few simple tips to help you inculcate a strong sense of team spirit among your employees.

Improve team work

1) Encourage your employees to take responsibility: Establish a standard protocol for carrying out procedures. Your employees can use this protocol as a guideline to make the right decisions whenever necessary. If employees keep approaching you over petty issues, you will never be able to focus on your own job. Empowering your employees or ‘team members’ to make independent decisions makes them feel part of the business. It creates a strong sense of purpose and improves productivity.

2) Character is more important than skills: This is especially true when hiring new employees. Skills can be taught and acquired but it is quite difficult to change a person’s character. For example, if you want someone to work in a high pressure situation, you need to employ a cool, calm, and collected individual. If you hire someone who gets flustered easily, they will not be able to handle the pressure. Similarly, you cannot afford to have hot tempered customer service executives as this job requires patience and a polite disposition.

Fit is more important than skill set. [tweet this]

3) Test the employees: Present your employees with new challenges and motivate them to push the boundaries of their comfort zones. Your business will only develop when employees demonstrate a progressive trend in their professional abilities.

4) Reward results: If employees respond well to challenges, reward them with incentives and bonuses. Rewards breed healthy competition among co-workers and consequently increases their output.

5) Reach out to your employees’ families: Organize parties, shows, and events which promote a sense of camaraderie among employees’ family members. Friendships, bonding, and a feeling of belonging are crucial for job satisfaction and employee retention.

6) Be open to suggestions: This is a highly coveted and rare leadership quality. In order to manage your business well, you need to communicate with your team. Without communication there will be no trust and this is detrimental to team work. Be a benevolent leader – assume the role of a compassionate teacher and not that of an irate boss. Hold team meetings where everyone gets an opportunity to express themselves. Pay attention to the suggestions, problems, and aspirations of your employees. It shows that you care, plus you can learn a thing or two from them. You hired them for their expertise; listen to what they have to say.

7) Avoid internal office politics and ego problems: There is no place for ego in a professional environment as it imparts a negative influence on the team spirit. Create a work ethic wherein everybody respects each other.

A business is not structured upon money. Rather, it is built upon people, and team spirit is the bond that keeps all those people working together. Even multi-billion dollar companies like Microsoft, McDonald’s, Apple, and Ford rely heavily upon team work. Therefore, if you hope to generate positive brand word of mouth publicity for your business, pay extra attention to team work. Remember that the word TEAM stands for: Together wE can Achieve More!

Author:

Maria Elena Duron, is managing editor of the Personal Branding Blog, CEO (chief engagement officer) of buzz2bucks– a word of mouth marketing firm, and a professional speaker and trainer on developing social networks that work. She provides workshops, webinars, seminars and direct services that help create conversation, connection, credibility, community and commerce around your brand.  Maria Duron is founder and moderator of #brandchat - a weekly Twitter chat focused on every aspect of branding that is recognized by Mashable as one the 15 Essential Twitter Chats for Social Media Marketers.

Are you busy? Here’s some quick and easy tips on Social Marketing for busy people.

There are likely thousands of interpretations possible for this response, but here is what I think: people respond positively to other people like them. While glamorous, the average person cannot truly relate to celebrities and elite athletes. A nervous man down on one knee, putting his heart on the line, is relatable though.

Entrepreneurs, and really anyone on an aggressive career path, should take a cue from these findings. While big-name testimonials and referrals certainly boost your personal brand, people want to know who you are too. Keep these truths in mind as you grow your reputation:

People work with people they like. While it is true that business interactions are not always sunny, it certainly helps when all parties get along. Let clients, co-workers and supervisors know who you are whether through your online presence, or in-person interactions. You do not have to have an all-business attitude all the time;  leave some room for camaraderie building too.

Personal connection is a novelty. The digital age has made us all more efficient in our communication but in many ways has removed the human side of doing business. Deals are proposed and made through a series of emails. Co-workers email quick questions to colleagues instead of walking into the next cubicle. If you really want to make an impression, find an in-person way to connect. Make a daily point of stopping by your boss’ office to say “hi.” Take an occasional trip to a client’s location to hand deliver products or a signed contract. Invite colleagues, clients and other industry contacts out for coffee. Look for easy ways to get out from behind your computer screen and in front of vital people in your career.

Actions speak louder than words. At the risk of sounding like your parents, follow through on your commitments. People will not care about your flashy website, or impressive Ivy League credentials, if you do not deliver on promises. Build a reputation of excellence and people will come to depend on you. There may be times that you simply cannot get everything done on time and in those moments, it is best to act humbly and make a fresh promise to not let it happen again. Unfortunately, most people are accustomed to less-than-stellar service so stand out by associating your name with quality and dependable actions.

As you grow in your career endeavors, remember that you have a unique voice. All the credentials and experience in the world won’t land you a particular client or job if the decision maker doesn’t like you. You don’t have to modify your personality to appease a mass audience; just be yourself and the right people will respect and reward that.

What ways do you infuse your personality in your business dealings?

(Photo Source)

Author:

Megan Totka is the Chief Editor for ChamberofCommerce.com. She specializes on the topic of small business tips and resources. ChamberofCommerce.com helps small businesses grow their business on the web and facilitates connectivity between local businesses and more than 7,000 Chambers of Commerce worldwide.

Successful salespeople are very goal driven determined to achieve their distant star and beyond. Further defining the personality and deep within, the successful salesperson does soul searching to understand their motivating forces and then prioritizes which to accomplish first. This becomes a forever commitment to education to do one’s best. And the competitive salesperson strives to be the best.

When unusual ideas are presented, this type is not quick to dismiss but instead possesses an open mindset to consider possibilities. The attitude is, anything is possible, with the right plan in place. Intuition is never ignored as the sixth sense is rarely wrong.

Positive thought is a common thread among the successful. Belief in forthcoming success is very strong. But note, the determined sales professional will not attempt just any project. A distinguishing factor is the intended goal will be in alignment with priorities and desires. The goal itself becomes a motivating force to implement all that is required to achieve and implement correctly. Doubt never enters the picture. Instead, the goal is held in mind almost 24 hours per day until accomplished.

Should positive thought be a struggle, as negativity is quite common, here is an exercise you might try: When speaking or thinking a negative thought, take note of it and do your best to turn it into a positive. Record your results over an entire quarter as you practice turning the negative into positive thought. Most likely, you will see greatly improved results in your accomplishments. Once on this path, it becomes stimulating to do even more.

Obstacles are regarded as learning points and game challengers to see if one will make it to the finish line as a champion. While most salespeople prefer getting the sale rapidly, the more successful will pace themselves while balancing their commitment to education, as well as trial and error. Both of these components will leapfrog the student over those who are too anxious to put in the required time.

Perseverance is the keyword for turning goals into achievable actions.

Rather than talking much, the better salespeople question, listen and clarify for keen understanding. An open dialogue with clientele encourages long lasting relationships for improved business. The more successful walk away from grumpy potential clients to seek the compatible in order to find joy in the work about to be started.

When new opportunities in the forms of joint venture partnership or unusual requests for services are presented, the successful circle back to priorities and commitments already in place. The reasoning is two-fold:

First, the successful are determined to ensure excellence in service is always delivered. This almost guarantees the possibility of repeat business, referrals and testimonials. Second, the consistency seen builds a formidable personal brand.

This personality type is typically of high energy and uses the words Thank You prolifically and offers to be available when questions arise. In the end, both sides of the table are appreciative.

Incorporating these traits will put you on the wave of the Smooth Sale!

Author:

Elinor Stutz, CEO of Smooth Sale, (800) 704-1499; just released “INSPIRED Business A New View for Building Business and Communities”. Other titles: “Nice Girls DO Get the Sale: Relationship Building That Gets Results”, and “HIRED! How to Use Sales Techniques to Sell Yourself On Interviews“. Elinor was designated as a “Top 25 Sales Influencer for 2012.”

Jay Gatsby is the master of the intriguing personal brand. Everyone in New York City knew his name. Everyone wanted to know more about him.

Take some cues from Gatsby in building your own personal brand.

Make your name memorable

When James Gatz was a teenager, he lived in North Dakota with his parents who were extremely poor. One day, he decided he wanted more in his life than the path he seemed to be headed. On that day, he introduced himself as Jay Gatsby. After that, “Jay Gatsby” stood for wealth and attraction. Everyone in New York talked about him.

You don’t have to change your name to make it memorable. What you should do is make your name associated with your industry. Figure out what you want to be known for and become an authority in that area. When other people hear your name, they will remember who you are and what you do. If you make your name memorable, you will become more credible in turn.

Find a mentor

Gatsby learned everything about his lifestyle from a mentor. Dan Cody was a wealthy man who showed Gatsby the ropes while spending five years on his yacht. Gatsby took advantage of the time with Cody by adopting everything from his style to the way he spoke. After all of that time, Cody even wanted to leave his fortune to Gatsby.

In your own life, it is a good idea to find a mentor. Find someone who has experience doing what you want to do, someone who’s work you may admire. While you probably won’t get to spend five years on a yacht with your mentor, you can learn a lot in time. Ask your mentor for advice and use it to shape your personal brand.

Dream big

Not satisfied with a life in poverty, Gatsby aimed high. He saw an opportunity to do bigger things and took advantage of it. After the war, he studied at Oxford for a short time before committing his life to wealth and high status. When he returns to the U.S., Gatsby uses Prohibition to gain both of those things as a bootlegger.

While it’s definitely not a good idea to seek out your dreams through illegal activities, it is a good for your brand to dream big. Don’t limit yourself to jobs you think will be easy to get. Aim high and learn from your experiences along the way. Someone who wants more than what they have will exude hope and motivation. These qualities are attractive in a job candidate and will amplify your brand.

Build a network

Gatsby is the king of networking. He becomes most recognized for the lavish parties hosted at his mansion. Gatsby hosts the parties and invites everyone in New York in hopes that the love of his life, Daisy Buchanan, will attend or if not, someone who knows her.

Put yourself in the position to meet people. You don’t have to host a party to be good at networking, but you should take advantage of the opportunities that present themselves. Make a list of ideal people to whom you’d like to introduce yourself. For Gatsby, it was Daisy. For you, it might be a hiring manager at your ideal company or even the CEO. Find ways to meet these people directly or find someone to introduce you. If the first plan works out, you’ll seem confident. If it comes down to the second, another person’s recommendation can do wonders for your brand.

While Gatsby’s corrupt business methods may not be admirable, you cannot deny his mastery of the personal brand.

What other ways does Jay Gatsby build a strong brand?

Author:

Heather R. Huhman is a career expert, experienced hiring manager, and founder & president of Come Recommended, a content marketing and digital PR consultancy for job search and human resources technologies. She is also the instructor of Find Me A Job: How To Score A Job Before Your Friends, author of Lies, Damned Lies & Internships (2011) and #ENTRYLEVELtweet: Taking Your Career from Classroom to Cubicle (2010), and writes career and recruiting advice for numerous outlets.

Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

A mentor is the person who creates a way for you to go where you have not been before. Especially when you aren’t feeling so brave. That doesn’t feel good most of the time.

So many clients and students are worried about asking someone to do the job of mentoring. I wonder why. To that end I ask: what are you willing to do for a mentor? Not as a payback. But, what are you willing to change about yourself and the way you are going about your career or business? It is that change that pays off a mentor’s investment.

The currency of change is courage. It’s immensely brave for you to do things differently than you have or would be nature. To get off the track you have been traveling, to get to higher ground. To stop trying and start succeeding.

A real mentor is an honest critic, not a reassuring hand-holder. A mentor is a person devoted to uncovering what is holding you back, without wasting time.

Oftentimes, a mentor reveals that the person holding you back is the person you see in the mirror. You.

That means you are going to feel criticized.

If you need bad news sugar-coated, easy to digest and in microscopic increments: you probably don’t need a mentor. You need a nanny. The type who flies in with an umbrella and has a big sweeping skirt.

A mentor is not a nanny.

Your mentor might be a gray haired elder of the tribe you would like to lead one day. He might also be your partner, an associate, a parent, a friend or a neighbor who has some wisdom to impart.

Your mentor might be a series of people you meet and have moments with, in various times of your life.  A woman who sits next to you on an airplane and questions your allegiance to Robert Kiyosaki, Napoleon Hill or whomever you are currently reading and believing. A college friend at a reunion who expresses shock upon learning you abandoned astrophysics or botany or whatever it is you once were deeply engaged in. You may not be inviting this feedback into your life or career, but you should take mentors when and where you find them.

A mentor should ask you:

• Why are you doing this?
• How did you go wrong?
• Who are you blaming and why?
• What do you need to make things right?
• What makes you defensive, and what does that say about what you need to do now?

Search the earth if you have to, to find at least one person who helps you see and feel the brutal truth, while trusting you can maintain your unwavering faith. That is the Stockdale paradox that all successful people master: truth and faith.

I wish you the brutal truth and unwavering faith.

Author:

Nance Rosen is the author of Speak Up! & Succeed. She speaks to business audiences around the world and is a resource for press, including print, broadcast and online journalists and bloggers covering social media and careers. Read more at NanceRosenBlog. Twitter name: nancerosen

Writing a report while listening to my coworker and planning my weekend in the back of my mind cannot really happen at the same time. In slow motion it most likely looks like running between different rooms really fast, pretending I can be in all of them at the same time.

However, there are situations when multitasking absolutely works for me:

Multitasking as an energy booster

I learn Spanish while commuting. If I didn’t listen to anything, I would get super bored on my slow commute to and from work. Also, I’ve tried listening to those Spanish lessons while sitting in my living room and it drove me crazy! I couldn’t focus at all. By doing both, I feel energized. My brain needs to control mostly my vision and movement for driving, so listening and learning new information complements the picture.

Using different parts of my brain keeps me alert.

Try and combine what works for you. Maybe doing jigsaw puzzles or practice your drawing techniques can help you stay focused while listening to a webinar (for this reason I’ve been taking notes for years and even became known as a note-taking extraordinaire). Maybe you can go for a run to think about a solution to the problem you are trying to solve. You would be surprised how different it’ll feel from sitting behind your desk and staring at the excel spreadsheet.

Multitasking as a tension diffuser

Do you dread tough talks? You know, talking to your boss or talking to your teenage daughter about something critical and uncomfortable? I found that if we do something together, like baking or crafts, those talks are way easier. (And the awkward moments can be broken by, “Maybe we should add a little bit more cinnamon”). That’s also why people at work tend to have crucial conversations by the cooler, or during a team event where people are volunteering outside of their regular office environment.

Combining activities help create a comfortable environment.

Trainers do it all the time – they create activities where they push you to an uncomfortable place (role play) by making it a game. A great idea when discussing something sensitive or risky in a workplace is also using a board. Sitting across from each other can make the issue personal. Drawing a picture of what you are talking about makes it more about the information you are discussing and less about your personalities.

Disclaimer: As I was writing this article, I was also petting my dog here and there, especially when I got stuck, my fingers stopped typing, and I went for a frantic search through my head for the right word. It helped me overcome those dreadful moments and I’m sure he didn’t mind. That’s what I call a win-win multitasking solution!

Author:

Henrieta Riesco is a founder of Intentional Career. She is all about meaningful conversation to empower professionals on their career journey. After experiences of being a teacher and a corporate trainer in Slovakia, a customer advocate and a training consultant for 10+ years at Microsoft, she is comfortable with calling herself a Career Coach. You can follow Henrieta via Twitter, or via her blog.

Personal branding can be like that. You read about it and focus on discovering your personal brand then move quickly to promoting it. Quickly then realizing that, that wasn’t right – you really hadn’t honed in on the core of your unique promise of value. You learn and you begin again. Are you currently in that cycle? It starts with discovery and that first step will take the most investment of your time and efforts.

Here’s some helpful posts from this week that will help:

• The One Thing That Can Make You Successful by Aaron McDaniel
• Being in a Team is Like Being in a Band by Henrieta Riesco
• The End of Giving ‘Til It Hurts by Nance Rosen
• 6 Elements to Make Your Portfolio Standout by Heather Huhman
• Move from Losing to Acquiring Clients by Elinor Stutz
• 76 Trombones Led the Big Parade… by Kevin Monahan
• Things to Consider If You Want to Become an Entrepreneur by Maria Elena Duron
• Five Tips for Improving Your Resume by Richard Kirby
• Ship, Shipmates, Self by Jeff Shuey
• Grow Your Personal Brand by Coworking by Peter Sterlacci
• Reach Out of Your Comfort Zone for Breakthroughs! by Beth Kuhel
• Does Your College Factor into Career Success? by Ken Sundheim

This next week:

Explore the profile of a successful sales person with Elinor; Henrieta shares why clutter is better; and I’ll even cover how you can harness the power of personal brands in your business.

When you’ve figured it out, things will begin to streamline. Then you can move into expressing and communicating your brand and engaging others who are potentially good connections. When you’re ready with your core values, vision, purpose and passion, you can make some powerful connections.

LISTEN IN:  People do business with people is a podcast I recorded for those moving from discovery to the express phase in their personal branding.

Enjoy!

Author:

Maria Elena Duron, is managing editor of the Personal Branding Blog, CEO (chief engagement officer) of buzz2bucks– a word of mouth marketing firm, and a professional speaker and trainer on developing social networks that work. She provides workshops, webinars, seminars and direct services that help create conversation, connection, credibility, community and commerce around your brand.  Maria Duron is founder and moderator of #brandchat - a weekly Twitter chat focused on every aspect of branding that is recognized by Mashable as one the 15 Essential Twitter Chats for Social Media Marketers.

Are you busy? Here’s some quick and easy tips on Social Marketing for busy people.

The only time a college degree dictates your career potential is when you let it. After college, companies are not concerned with your degree. They are preoccupied with your professional growth, your reliability, your autonomy and career progress.

Where many get confused

A degree will never stop anyone with drive from reaching their goals. If humans invented the airplane and the internet, you can get the job you want.

However, the university you went to can prolong the journey there. For instance, if you want to be a hedge fund manager and you didn’t go to a top-tier school, you are going to have to spend a few years proving yourself.

It’s reality, but should not be a deterrent.

Unfortunately, many recent college graduates don’t pursue certain careers because they feel that the school they graduated from won’t allow them to get a job in that field straight out of university.

In some cases, they are correct; employers won’t hire students from certain schools for particular jobs.  But, it doesn’t mean you give up.  Rather, you start a year or two behind and there’s nothing wrong with that…especially when the race will last 40+ years.

The best way to prevent your degree from having a negative impact

If you feel that you didn’t go to the best school that you could have, the number one remedy is to set very firm goals as to what you want to do with your life and meticulously map out the steps you’re going to need to get there.

While your route may contain more hurdles than someone who graduate from Brown, they all end up in the same place.

Just make sure that once you set the goals, never give up and do everything in your power to make sure you achieve them.  The constant action and forward progress will have you thinking about your degree less and less.

If this makes you feel better

1. Bill Gates would give up his $147,000,000 house for a college degree.

2. Going to a Tier 1 college is not a prerequisite for buying a Range Rover.

3. A college degree can only influence you as much or as little as you let it.

Author:

Ken Sundheim is the CEO of KAS Placement a recruiting firm based out of New York City.