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Landing your dream job – Expert insights from a Career/Life Coach |
| By:deepika bajaj on Fri 10 Oct 2008 7:29 PM under Business, Career and Money, Careers and Job Search, Personal Success |
Steve Piazzale, Ph.D. is Career/Life Coach who helps his clients get unstuck and find meaningful work more quickly and effectively than they would on their own. He’s a Stanford University Sociology Ph.D. with extensive training in Psychology. Listed in Richard Bolles’ What Color is Your Parachute? he was trained by and is a Right Management Consultant. He’s a corporate speaker and workshop leader who also hosts and produces “You’re Hired!” a television show about careers and the world of work. See Steve’s website at www.BayAreaCareerCoach.com and contact him at Steve@BayAreaCareerCoach.com or 650-964-4366.
I met Steve when he invited me to his show ‘You’re Hired!”. I was truly impressed with his passion to help people succeed in their careers. And I loved the name of the show – YOU’RE HIRED! In the real world, these are the words that mean a lot to people pursuing a career – a dream job.
I invited him to share with you how he can help you get your dream job.
DB: Tell me how you help people to find a career they love?
SP: Before we even meet I send you a creative and fun questionnaire that gets you thinking outside the box about what you’re interested in, good at, and value. Ideal work is after all a combination of these things.
The questionnaire also digs deep into finding out what motivates you and what blocks you and we use this tool in the first session as well as my expertise to begin to identify your ideal work. We then work on how to write your resume and cover letter and communicate your elevator speech so that when you’re networking and interviewing you’re communicating what you are looking for and the value you bring to any job.
I use a multiple step model, starting with identifying the characteristics of your ideal work, teaching you how to network to your dream job, how to interview your interviewers, and how to phrase your accomplishments in ways that the right kind of potential employers are drawn to you…it’s sort of the law of attraction. For more information, contact me (Steve@BayAreaCareerCoach.com) for my handout on this subject.
DB: What are the challenges of starting a career for young graduates in this economy?
SP: In a very competitive market, the most obvious challenge is the lack of experience. Your best bet is to have every advantage you can get–a great resume and cover letter, a practiced elevator speech, all the basics of networking and interviewing have to be well-honed. In some ways, I see my job as giving my clients an unfair advantage in getting great work.
If you’re still in school, another key is to get an internship or two. It will give you “real world” experience and also help you define what you want to do. You might even get hired by the company or at least secure a couple of great referrals. The key is to do a great job for them and make yourself indispensable.
DB: What’s the biggest surprise you find while coaching people to find a job they love?
SP: Well, I don’t know if it’s a big surprise, but often people have rejected their previous work for the wrong reasons. Some times all it takes is a bad manager or a failing company to sour you on a job. But don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater; find out if you liked the job function itself. This is part of what we go over in the initial intake session. The key is to open as many options as possible.
It also still surprises me that we are all so different from each other. I continually adjust to the priorities of different clients, but that is what makes my work so interesting.
DB: At Invincibelle, we address concerns of professional women, what guidance you have for women looking for a career change?
SP: Look before you leap, the more you can find out about a new career the better. Do lots of informational interviewing to find out the real pluses and minuses of different possibilities—that way you’ll see if the grass is really greener on the other side and leave less to chance.
Career continuity is definitely an issue for women. Even if you take time out to start a family, try to keep some ties to the world of work, it will make all future transitions easier.
DB: Tell us more about how you help professionals after landing a dream job?
SP: We work on enabling you to make a strong first impression, manage both your manager and those reporting to you, and to be entrepreneurial within your company. This last point involves identifying key projects that need support. Acting and thinking like an entrepreneur involves identifying key problems within your company and contributing to solving them. There are also ways to get what you do noticed and that will lead to promotions, raises, and protection from layoffs.
DB: What are some obstacles that professionals face in getting promoted in their current job?
SP: It’s very hard to change a first impression. For that matter, once a boss and co-workers see you in a certain light, it’s hard to shake any negative images they might have of you. That’s why it’s so important to hit the ground running and make a great impression when you start a job. I work with my clients to ensure this happens.
Another obstacle can be a bad boss who’s not trying to grow his or her employees and rather tries to keep you in check.
The answer is to try first to make a great impression and work as effectively as you can with your manager. If that doesn’t work, look for fresh start within the company and finally look outside the company and make a great first impression at your next job.
DB: What are some key things to remember when looking for a job?
SP: Oh my, for this please take a look at my website (www.BayAreaCareerCoach.com). The most underutilized aspect of most job hunts is effective relationship building. Some call it networking but relationships are the key to finding good work.
It’s also important in your connections with others (including interviewing) that you stress what you can do for them. What do you bring to the table for them? Stress value. Job hunting is a marketing campaign with you as the product. Try to communicate a consistent message in all your career development communications (e-mail, cover letters, job applications, resume, networking, interviewing, and negotiating.
DB: What are your thoughts on spending time in a job you don’t like?
SP: Create options and, if you need to, get out!
Ezra Pound said that you only have freedom when you have options. Even if you don’t like your work, do a good job. You want to leave gracefully and keep your references in tact. Look within the company and outside the company for a change of scenery. I’ve noticed that when the first third of a movie is bad, it rarely gets better. The same is true for work. Do a good job, but plan your escape.
DB: How should professionals who are either anticipating a layoff or are laid off in this economy deal with the stress?
SP: Again generating options is the key. Stay active. Be the first rather than the last one to leave a sinking ship. Form support/success teams–these are small groups of folks who band together to support each other in their job search and career development.
Also, take care of your health: exercise, do yoga, meditate, play, pray—do anything that works as a stress-buster for you.
DB: What motivates and inspires you to continue driving value for your clients?
SP: I love making a difference in people’s lives, especially when I help someone speed up their job hunt process and find work that’s a great match for them. I went through that transformation myself and I just can’t say enough about the importance of doing work that makes you come alive. We spend so much of our lives working, that we deserve it to be something that speaks to us.
If you have any questions about any of this, feel free to contact me at Steve@BayAreaCareerCoach.com or 650-964-4366. I’d love to help you reach your goals!
Rachel Says:
Sound advice. I still see thousands of jobs posted on employment sites too.
http://www.linkedin.com (networking)
http://www.indeed.com (aggregated listings)
http://www.realmatch.com (matches you to jobs)
good luck to those searching for jobs.