Can We Talk?

Posted on April 19, 2013 by John G. Self

Let’s talk candidly about career management.

More than likely the professionals who should read this probably won’t read this.

I talk to a lot of people at conferences, airports and on the telephone. Executives, especially those in healthcare, are troubled by tough economic times with less than robust job creation, continued high rates of unemployment and, in the case of healthcare, a daunting transformation as the federal government is forced to reduce payments to hospitals, doctors and other providers in order to reduce the escalating deficit and debt. They are concerned with the instability.

Here is my candid advice for seasoned executives as well as early careerists and the people they supervise:

Be flexible
Get outside your comfort zone
Think outside of the box

Be flexible – Geographically. Candidates must be willing to go where the jobs are. If you want to be a senior leader, four to five job changes may be required. Executives who limit themselves geographically – regardless of the reason – must be willing to accept the career consequences.

Get outside your comfort zone – Every executive, every employee, every candidate has strengths and weaknesses. We all have things we like and things we don’t like to do. We try to avoid those “don’t likes” at all costs. However, in a tough, competitive market you have to deliver results, even when this means you have to do those things you would rather not do. You cannot ignore something that is integral to meeting performance deliverables. Get out of your comfort zone and do what has to be done before your boss asks you to leave and you fall into the unemployment pit.

Think outside the box – One of the challenges posed by the new economy is that fewer employees are asked to do more work. Productivity is required. Smart companies are looking for employees who are flexible, who are not afraid of change, and who welcome challenges with an eye for innovation. This is especially true in the healthcare industry. Executives and employees who can think outside the box and who relish change and innovation are becoming increasingly valuable for companies.

Here are some phrases and workplace behaviors to avoid:

It’s not my job
We have always done it this way
I don’t like change (non-union)
I am not going to change (union)
I need a job so I can be a good provider but my family refuses to relocate
My boss is totally unrealistic
My boss is an idiot
I am not going to sacrifice time with my friends and/or family for my job
I am a nurse and I have worked here a long time, they can’t fire me
Some of the people I work with work too hard. They are making the rest of us look bad
That patient doesn’t have insurance so it is OK to make them wait
I am tired. There are things I’d rather do so I am not going to see any more patients today

If you are someone who gets it, feel free to share this blog with someone who doesn’t.

A Note To Recent College Graduates

Posted on June 26, 2012 by John G. Self

The Graduates (Sakeeb Sabakka)

In case you haven’t noticed, unemployment among recent college graduates is at record levels. In an April dispatch referenced in The Atlantic, the Associated Press reported that more than half of America’s recent college graduates are either unemployed or working in a job that doesn’t require a bachelor’s degree.

Given the typical college students lack of work experience, the resume writing process can be an extremely difficult one. There are do’s and don’ts and a host of so-called resume “doctors” to guide you for a fee.

However, most issues regarding resumes can be resolved by using common sense. Although I will admit, after looking at thousands of resumes over the years, quite a few people are suffering from a profound state of poverty in that department.

One area where common sense should easily apply but rarely does: recent college graduates and their confusion about whether to list part-time and summer jobs as work experience.

The answer is YES, especially if it involves real work. Jobs as waiters, retail sales representatives, receptionist, bellman, janitor, camp counselor – anything that will show a potential boss that you know what it means to put in a good day’s work, be responsible and earn a paycheck. It doesn’t matter where you earned your degree – Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, Texas Southern, or Ferris State – not including this bit of important information is shortsighted.

Why? Employer’s want to know if you understand the real world in this new economy — what it means to work, to be responsible, and to take on tough assignments that require sacrificing leisure pursuits.

The Baltimore Sun reported in May that the unemployment report for recent college graduates under the age of 25 is 9.4 percent versus 8.2 percent for everyone else. That doesn’t count the people who have given up looking altogether.

Having real job experience is a resume asset. Do not hide it. It may mean the difference between finding a real job with an independent lifestyle or having to introduce your roommates as Mom and Dad.

Navigating Your Career Through a Toxic Economy Requires a Vision, Plan

Posted on June 1, 2012 by John G. Self

The nice thing about waking up before dawn is that you can retire to your study with a cup of coffee, think out loud and there is no one around who will tell you that you are wrong.

As I read the news regarding the monthly jobs report, my thoughts returned to several blogs I have written over the past 18 months that relied on three underlying themes:

The growth in the ‘new economy’ will continue at a snail’s pace.
Unemployment will remain high for the next several years, regardless of who occupies the White House, all the political hysteria to the contrary.
Effective career management will remain a critical skill for the rest of time.

Last week I wrote about the nine elements of effective career brand management. Writing a personal vision statement is one of those elements. Not everyone agrees, even those with seemingly successful careers. For the other half of the workforce, it is hard to think about such an esoteric concept when you are waiting for your soon-to-end unemployment check. In fact, I believe that the vast majority of Americans who are in the workforce, and those who would like to be back at work, have not even given much thought to the personal vision statement concept.

Would you try to run a business without a plan? The overwhelming majority of executives would say no. Since 2008, those who have tried that foolish approach are probably in the unemployment line.

When I began my career in the news business in 1969, there were plenty of jobs. You just had to go where they were. I went from job to job, city to city, moving up to larger papers, making more money and covering more interesting stories. Then I changed careers and had a series of wonderful, exciting, and enriching jobs that ultimately led me to running my own search firm. Given my belief today in the critical importance of the personal vision statement, I am embarrassed to report that I did it all without a plan. A word of advice for Generations X and Y, the latter also known as the “Milliennials”: You will not be so lucky.

The economic paradigm, which is to say the job market, has structurally changed. Generations X and Y will probably spend their entire careers having to compete more aggressively and effectively for fewer jobs. Why? If the severe recession that began in 2008 has taught us nothing else it is that American businesses have learned they can produce more with fewer people. Productivity is very high.

If having personal discipline is the foundation for having a successful career with a minimum of disruptions, then the personal vision statement – your own career business plan – is the cornerstone.

To invite John Self to be a speaker at your meeting or function, contact Kathleen Sullivan of The Sullivan Group in Houston. John is an entertaining and informative speaker who talks about leadership, current events, and life’s wonderful ironies in a speech that is laced with humor and satisfying stories regarding the challenges we all face. He consistently receives high ratings for his presentations.