Career Success Tip: How to Answer the “Weakness” Question During a Job Interview

February 25, 2010 by 1 Comment


Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for AndyRobinsonCRG.png
“Tell Me About Some of Your Areas of Weakness” ….

Oh….that dreaded question; the one we know they ALWAYS ask.  Why do we find this question so tough to answer?  Many people really trip on on answering this question.

Weaknesses 

A couple of ideas:

  • Focus on a weakness that might actually be viewed as a strength, e.g., I tend to work long hours, I tend to be a perfectionist, I tend to push my team really hard to accomplish their goals, etc.
  • We all have weaknesses.  Some could be fatal weaknesses with respect to the job at hand, but many are likely not fatal weaknesses.  Choose a non-fatal weakness – one that’s been part of your personal history BUT one that you’ve also focused SIGNIFICANT TIME and effort on improving.  Discuss all the things you’ve done to improve upon that weakness – be specific.  Talk about how you HAVE improved – give examples. 

I tend to lean toward the second of the two ideas above.  The second approach demonstrates that you (1) understand your weaknesses (self knowledge is a desired trait in an employee-to-be) AND (2) have the motivation and self-direction to work hard to either overcome them or significantly mitigate them (another highly desired trait for a potential employee).

Learn to answer this question with CONFIDENCE.  It WILL be asked sometime during the interview process.  PRACTICE your answer – ask others for feedback.  Be prepared for this question and you’ll do a MUCH better job of addressing it.

Original post on Career Success! Partners

Author:

Andy Robinson (@AndyInNaples) is a leading authority on career success and 15-year career coaching veteran whose passion in business life is “helping people love what they do for a living and achieve incredible career success.” Andy is CEO of CRG Leadership Institute and co-host of Career Success Radio Show.


Filed Under: Career Success, Guest Posts Tagged With: , , ,

Career Success Memo: Do You Have a MEMORABLE Brand? – 8 Things a Powerful Personal Brand Can Do for You

February 18, 2010 by Leave a Comment


Thumbnail image for AndyRobinsonCRG.png

We’re in a whole new world of employment – one that has continued (and will continue) to evolve and one that is MUCH different from the employment world of our parents and grand-parents.  The days of joining a company that you stay at and retire from are LONG GONE and will likely never return again.  Job changes occur more and more frequently and career changes are more common than ever before.

We are no longer “Who we work for.” Tagging your identity strictly to a company and “co-branding” your work-life with a company name are strategies that have less meaning and are impossible to sustain as a PRIMARY means of your identification.  Companies come and go through mergers and dissolution — even BIG names lose their “wow” factor and brand identity …. think of names like Enron, Arthur Andersen, NationsBank, Eastern Airlines, and countless small and mid-sized businesses.

The better strategy and one that we all must embrace if we’re going to enjoy lasting career success is to firmly establish our Personal Brand.  We have much more control over our own Personal Brand, and it’s the “thing” that stays with us regardless of where we’re “physically” employed or who we work for. 

Personal Brand 

Our Personal Brand reminds people “who WE are,” it becomes “what WE are known for,” and it represents the “market” perception of our value proposition and personal competitive advantage.  A highly effective Personal Branding Program is key to continuously communicating our Personal Brand “to the world” and constantly “pinging” our contact network with highly useful content that reminds them of who we are.

So, what are some of the key benefits of a compelling Personal Brand – i.e., exactly what does it do for us?  A compelling Personal Brand is a HUGE BENEFIT – without question.  Consider the following indicators of a Powerful Personal Brand:

  • Always on the Radar Screen and “The Short List.” When an opportunity comes up in your field — a job opportunity, a new business opportunity, etc., you’re on the list that gets called or contacted.  Having established yourself as a “thought leader” or expert, and having constantly broadcast that expertise to your network, you remain on their mind when something important comes up.
  • Frequent Calls for Speaking Opportunities.  In situations where an expert is needed to speak on an important topic or in an important role (e.g., keynote speaker), you are often contacted and at least presented with the opportunity.
  • Frequent Calls from Leading Executive Recruiters in Your Area of Specialty. Leading recruiters in your field KNOW YOU and are very comfortable with presenting you as a candidate for a new job opportunity, or call you frequently to ask you if you know someone how might be a good candidate.  This is a great place to be in from a career management standpoint.
  • Frequent Requests for Interviews and Articles in Trade Publications.  The press and and PR professionals reach out on an ongoing basis requesting interviews for articles in your field of expertise.  You’re frequently asked to submit articles or you proactively submit articles for publishing.
  • Opportunities Appear “Out of the Blue.”  A new client “appears out of nowhere,” a business deal drops in your lap, you get a call from someone you don’t know well with an incredible business opportunity, you’re the first one called for an amazing job opportunity, you’re asked to speak at a major convention …. the list goes on.  Think it can’t happen to you …. Why not?
  • Visibility to Leading Influencers. You’re known by leading influencers in your profession and area of specialty.  They may not KNOW you, but they KNOW OF YOU because of your proactive and memorable personal branding efforts.  People with influence can help you accomplish big things, and are usually willing to do so because YOU have consistently given to THEM in some way — information you shared, referrals you’ve made, etc.
  • Frequent Engagement with Other Thought Leaders.  You have frequent conversations with other thought leaders — some who share your specialty and some who are thought leaders in other related areas.  You help CREATE the next direction and are a member of the “R&D Team” for your field of knowledge.
  • Network Gravity.  You have incredible network “gravity.”  People are drawn to you, opportunities attract themselves to you, you become a magnet for all kinds of good things.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  You do NOT have to be a “CELEBRITY” to achieve the above, but you DO have to put conscious thought and EFFORT into the process of developing and communicating a compelling Personal Brand.  It’s up to you to CREATE THE PERCEPTION in the marketplace of what you WANT to be known for and what you represent. 

Personal Branding is a PROCESS, an ongoing process …. and IT WORKS MAGIC for you if you do it with passion and sincerity.  MAKE IT HAPPEN …. Start TODAY.

Original post on Career Success! Partners

Author:

Andy Robinson (@AndyInNaples) is a leading authority on career success and 15-year career coaching veteran whose passion in business life is “helping people love what they do for a living and achieve incredible career success.” Andy is CEO of CRG Leadership Institute and co-host of Career Success Radio Show.


Filed Under: Career Success, Guest Posts, Job Security, Marketing Yourself, Success Principles Tagged With: , ,

7 Steps to Attracting Money Making Affiliates

February 17, 2010 by 1 Comment


By Kathleen Gage

KathleenGage.png

[Note: Keynote speaker, business advisor and Internet marketing expert Kathleen Gage is today's Guest Blogger on Smart Networking. She'll be here all day, Wednesday, February 17th to respond to your comments and questions on her post. Join in the fun!]

If you’ve been around the Internet for any length of time,
you have likely heard you can make money through Joint Venture partnerships and
affiliate programs. You may already be doing so, but not at the level you know
is possible.

Without a doubt, partnering with the right people increases
your market reach, credibility and revenue stream. It’s a great way to do
business. Unfortunately, many people attempt to do so without really
understanding how to gain the greatest benefit for all concerned.

There are numerous types of affiliate and joint venture
partner arrangements and relationships. There are those where as an affiliate
you simply search out products and services that you think your market wants or
with very little interaction between the you and the affiliate. Conversely, you
have those who seek out your products and services for their market, but have
very little interaction with you.

There are affiliate programs where no one really knows who
is behind the product, you just know you might be able to make money by selling
it; whatever it may be. Usually a widget of some sort.

Then there is the type of relationship where you do know who
you are dealing with and your reputation resides in the quality of products and
services you bring to your market. This type of relationship is quite appealing
to many entrepreneurs. You do business with the affiliate because you know
them, like them and trust them.

For the purpose of this conversation, we will focus on the
relationships where either you bring an expert’s information to your market or
they bring your expertise through products and services to their market.

One of the most important things you must do is determine
how you can make the relationship a win/win/win. Win for you, win for your
affiliate or JV and win for the end user – the customer.

In the context of this discussion, developing affiliate
relationships takes more than simply posting something on your website or blog
where people can click and immediately become and affiliate. Sure, you can
occasionally find great affiliates this way, but to really optimize the
potential there is much more that needs to be done.

Conversely, don’t assume that simply because you think what
you have to offer is the greatest thing since sliced bread affiliate marketers
will too. Your job is to search out those affiliates who have a great market
match for your product and/or service. This can take time, effort and money to position
correctly.

StreetSmartsMarketing.pngHere are some simple guidelines you can follow that are sure
to open many doors for you.

  1. Know
    what your market wants when you offer affiliate products.
  2. Understand
    the needs of the experts you approach when offering your product/services for
    them to take to their market.
  3. Do
    your homework when it comes to commission rates. A very simple way to do this
    is join forums where other affiliates hang out. Which forums you select depends
    on your industry. You can also do research at locations such as ClickBank. As
    one of the largest locations to find affiliate products to sell and to post
    your own products you want others to sell, you can easily determine what you
    need to offer and what to look for when you are selling for someone by spending
    time on ClickBank.
  4. Nurture
    the relationships with those who are your top performers. Truth be told, only a
    small percentage of those who become affiliates actually do much of anything to
    sell your products and services. Then there are those who will sell and sell
    and sell. Rather than trying to get the low performers to raise their own bar,
    do what you can to support your high performers. This could be in the way of
    higher than average commission rates (sometimes even 100% commission for some
    products), surprise bonuses, a phone call or thank you card that is delivered
    by other than email, and special acknowledgements.
  5. Find
    out your high performers preferred method of communication. If you know they
    are on Twitter a great deal, sending direct messages to them through Twitter is
    better than a standard email. If you know they like to talk on the phone, take
    the time to occasionally pick up the phone to call them. If they like Facebook,
    private message them this way. If they like public recognition, blog, tweet and
    post on their Facebook wall to give them praise. You will be amazed at how far
    this can take things.
  6. Make
    being your affiliate an easy process. Provide the tools they need to promote
    your products and services. In other words, give them blog postings, articles,
    tweets, samples to give to their market, etc. Develop a private affiliate page
    where they can access this information. This can make all the difference in the
    world.
  7. Be
    a good pay. Don’t ever, ever, ever shortchange your affiliates. Pay them when
    and how you say you will pay. And pay with gratitude. It’s amazing how someone
    will be thrilled to get affiliates but when it comes time to pay them, there is
    resistance to writing the check or sending their commission to their PayPal
    account. Energetically, you are shutting down the flow of future sales if you
    do this. Pay with extreme gratitude. 

The bottom line is treat your affiliates and joint venture
partners how you want to be treated. With the right partnerships you can build
an extremely viable revenue stream and business a lot faster than if you try to
do it all on your own. In today’s world of business collaboration is the way to
go.

About the author
Kathleen Gage is an Internet marketing advisor who works with spiritually
aware speakers, authors, coaches and consultants who are ready to turn their
knowledge into money making products and services. Find out how you can learn
from Kathleen on how to build a successful business using the Internet through
her Street Smarts Marketing VIP Club.

Filed Under: Building Your Business, Guest Posts, Networking In Action Tagged With: , , ,

Career Success Memo: 5 Tips – The Art and Skill of Saying “No” Effectively

February 11, 2010 by Leave a Comment


Thumbnail image for AndyRobinsonCRG.png
We all get bombarded with requests and demands for our attention and our time.  Learning to say NO in a way that is respectful but firm is a KEY SKILL that you can develop to handle those requests that you simply do not have time for or the knowledge to do effectively.

I recently re-read the book, “The Power of a Positive No,” written by William Ury.  His book offers great advice and tips for how to say “No” with grace and effect.

Picture 9.png

In his book, William offers the following specific phrases you can use to say NO to the demands of others in a manner that is respectful and that flows naturally and sincerely:

  • A simple “No” or “No Thanks.” Directness has its place, but it can also be expressed gracefully.  Adding the work “thanks” to your “No” shows respect and care for the relationship.
  • A statement that “I Have a Policy.” Examples include, “I have a policy to never lend money to friends or family members.” ….or “I have a policy to never make significant purchases without first speaking to my wife (or husband, or partner).”
  • “I Have Plans.” (or “I Have Another Commitment”). A great concrete everyday phrase that can affirm your interests as well as you power without spoiling your relationship is “I already have plans,” or “I have another event I’ve committed to that evening.” 
  • “Not Now.”  Maybe another time.  Softens the blow of a “No” and leaves the door open to a future request.  “Not Now” should only be used in those cases where there does exist a real possibility for addressing the others’ needs in the future.
  • “I Prefer to Decline Rather Than Do a Poor Job.”  When you decline rather than do a poor job, you are not only affirming your own interests but also paying attention to the relationship.  You would BOTH be worse off — and so would your relationship — if you say “Yes” and then a job that turns out to be much less than satisfactory.

Know your limits and acknowledge them freely – spend your time doing what you do well and what is truly best for you. Both you and the other will be better off in the long run.

Original post on Career Success! Partners
Filed Under: Career Advancement, Career Success, Guest Posts Tagged With: , , ,

Career Success Memo: Want to Accelerate Your Career Success? Then Sharpen Your Listening Skills

February 4, 2010 by Leave a Comment





Thumbnail image for AndyRobinsonCRG.png

Hey, listen up …. Want to really accelerate AND sustain your career success? 

Then, you’ve GOT to be a highly effective listener.  As a leader, LISTENING skills are MORE IMPORTANT than your speaking skills …. No question.

Listening.Dog 

Here are 10 ways which can help you become a better listener…

  1. Listen for ideas and central themes.  Search for the speaker’s central theme or main points instead of getting lost in, or reacting to, the supportive details.
  2. Judge content, not delivery.  Focus, to your best ability, on what the speaker is saying and try not to be unduly influenced by their way of saying or delivering the message.
  3. Search for areas of interest.  It is extremely easy to tune out from a speaker, so work on sharing his or her enthusiasm.  Search for new ideas or insights which might be beneficial to you.
  4. Don’t jump to conclusions.  It’s easy to assume that you know the rest of a sentence  or message after hearing the beginning.  Avoid prejudging a message, so you can receive and evaluate the whole message.
  5. Take notes.  By taking notes you sharpen your reception, understanding, and, of course, retention of the information.
  6. Concentrate and resist distraction.  External distractions include non-related things you can see or hear, or which may be impacting your other senses.  Internal distractions occur when your mind wanders into unrelated memories or shifts its focus to worries, plans, or anticipations. Stay focused.
  7. Use the fast pace of thought to your advantage.  Most people can think three or four times faster than they speak.  Don’t let your quick mind indulge in all sorts of thoughts unrelated to the conversation.  Capitalize on your thinking speed by actively sensing, interpreting, evaluating, and summarizing the messages being received.
  8. Check your emotions.  It has been said that the intellect is the slave to emotions.  Be sensitive to things that trigger your emotions and increase your efforts to focus on a clear reception and understanding of what is being said.
  9. Exercise your mind.  You can turn away and tune out from complicated or difficult subjects, or you can intellectually wrestle with complex information so that you will have a chance to grow and strengthen your own intellect.
  10. Work at listening.  Be an active listener.  Follow the above suggestions.  Ask questions and seek clarification.  Actively share in the speaker’s efforts to improve your level of understanding, whether or not you think you agree.
Original post on Career Success! Partners

Filed Under: Career Advancement, Career Success, Guest Posts Tagged With: , ,

Career Success Tip: LinkedIn – How to Effectively Use LinkedIn’s Group Feature to Grow Your Network

January 28, 2010 by 2 Comments



AndyRobinsonCRG.png

The “Groups” feature of LinkedIn has continued to grow in popularity and utility.  Groups are a powerful tool for expanding the depth and breadth of your LinkedIn network.  Many Groups treat members similar to FIRST DEGREE connections — allowing you to make direct contact with a Group member without a referral or “Inmail”.

Networking Group 

I am currently an active member in over 30 Groups (LinkedIn allows you to join up to a maximum of 50 Groups).  I highly recommend finding AT LEAST 10 Groups to join — AND becoming ACTIVE in.  Activity is key; simply joining gives you some benefits but being active in Group news and discussions is where the real value and leverage is.

Some of the things you can do as a Group member, all of which help you to GIVE VALUE TO YOUR NETWORK and expand your network reach and network quality include:

  • Share great content and information as “News Items” in Group forums – blog articles that you find online that would be of interest to Group members and other useful content online – news, events, book referrals, etc.
  • Cross-post YOUR own blog articles – ones that YOU write — to as many relevant Groups as possible. I will very often cross-post my blog articles to five to ten relevant Groups — significantly increasing exposure of the article and maximizing the number of people who could benefit in some way from the advice and information contained in the article.
  • Participate -- in a meaningful way — in Group forum discussions.  Make insightful positive-minded comments; add value to conversations; give advice when asked; answer questions.
  • Utilize the “Jobs” feature of Groups.  Search for jobs or post job openings.  Groups are an excellent source of “niche” jobs and should be used by anyone actively engaged in a job search.
  • Connect directly with other Group members.  Search for people to connect with — someone who shares a common interest, a common employer experience, a common educational experience.  Groups are an excellent source for expanding your network of direct connections in LinkedIn.
  • Start your own Group! Create your own “community” and serve as the moderator of Group activity.  Moderating and Group “ownership” gives you great exposure and strengthens your “brand” or area(s) of expertise.

Give consideration to the following ideas when searching for Groups to join:

  • Industry-specific Groups - Examples include Retail Industry Group, Health Care-oriented Groups, Travel Industry Groups, etc.
  • Trade and Professional Organization Groups – There are Groups for scores of trade and professional organizations.  Join those relevant to you.
  • Employer Alumni Groups.  Many of the Fortune 100+ companies have alumni Groups for their former employers.  This is a great way to reconnect with former colleagues.
  • College/University Groups.  Most major colleges and universities of Alumni Organization Groups on LinkedIn.  Another excellent means for reconnecting with “long lost” contacts and friends.
  • Job/Career-Related Groups.  There are hundreds of Groups in the job, career development, career management areas.  If you’re in a job search, you’ll definitely want to check these out.
  • Social Media Groups.  There are Groups for Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn where you’ll find forums for discussion of tips, techniques and very useful advice relevant to most major social media tools.
  • Peer-level Executive Groups.  Check the various CEO, COO, CIO, CFO, etc. specific groups.  A great way to connect with peer-level professionals and sharing useful information.
  • Functional/Technical Specialty Groups.  There are scores and scores of these.  Find a Group or Groups relevant to your ares of functional or technical specialty (sales, marketing, accounting, IT, supply chain, etc., etc.)
  • Personal Interest Groups.  An avid cyclist? …there are Groups.  A devoted football team fan? …there are Groups.  A great way to share with people of like-minded interests.
  • New Business.  Find Groups to join where there are members who are highly likely to be a source of business for you — potential customers, clients, buyers and “influencers.”  Look for ways to add value to these Groups through discussion and sharing of information.
Begin expanding your Group involvement and participation today.  Another GREAT way to tap the power of LinkedIn!

Original post on Career Success! Partners

Author:

Andy Robinson (@AndyInNaples) is a leading authority on career success and 15-year career coaching veteran whose passion in business life is “helping people love what they do for a living and achieve incredible career success.” Andy is CEO of CRG Leadership Institute and co-host of Career Success Radio Show.


Filed Under: Career Advancement, Career Success, Guest Posts, Job Search Networking Tagged With: , , ,

Career Success Tip: How Well Are You “Branded” Amongst Your Contact Network? Try This to Find Out

January 21, 2010 by Leave a Comment


AndyRobinsonCRG.png
How well are you “branded” amongst your network of connections - friends, family members, individuals with whom you share outside interests, vendors, clients, colleagues, former colleagues?

  • What comes to mind when people think of YOU? 
  • Do your contacts fully understand what you do for a living and exactly HOW you add value to other people’s lives?
  • Who’s “radar screen” are YOU on when someone asks a contact if they know someone who specializes in your areas of expertise?

Are YOU Getting Noticed?  
Do YOU Stand Out from the Crowd?


On the Radar Screen 

Try the following idea every once in a while to ”research” and confirm your brand awareness:

  1. Choose a network connection and give them a call, asking for a quick few minutes of their time
  2. Tell them that you’ve been working on improving your personal branding campaign and that you’re doing some research with some of your friends and clients to see how effectively you’ve been in communicating your brand to your network
  3. Then, ask this question: “What is your understanding of exactly what I do for a living – the product, service or skillset that I deliver?”
  4. Listen carefully to their response and probe their response using the “blinking word” technique – (a) Identify a couple of words that “blink” or really stand in in their response, (b) ask about one of those words, (c) notice the blinking words in his or her answer, (d) ask about one of those words, (e) repeat this process until you’ve reached a point where you can summarize a quick brand statement.  See the example below:
    1. You: “What is your understanding of exactly what I do for a living?”
    2. Your contact: “You’re an executive coach.” (blinking word bolded)
    3. You: “What is your understanding of what a coach does?”
    4. Your contact: “Helps someone be more effective in their job.” (blinking word bolded)
    5. You: “What are some things you think I do to help my clients be more effective?”
    6. Your contact: “Maybe you help them manage their time better.” (clinking word bolded)
    7. You. “I definitely do a good bit of work with helping people get control over their time and focus on the important. One of the other areas of effectiveness I focus on is helping my clients help managers communicate more effectively with their teams.”
    8. You. “Thanks I appreciate your time. If you run across anyone who might need my help, please let me know.  Is there anything I could do to help you right now?”

OK, so what exactly have you accomplished with the above.  Consider this:

  • You’ve reached out and communicated in person with someone in your network 
  • You’ve strengthened your relationship by a notch or two
  • You’ve asked for and received their help, and you’ve THANKED them for their help
  • You’ve gotten “market” feedback on the brand that you wish to be known for
  • You’ve educated a contact about what you do for a living
  • You’ve enhanced your brand awareness
  • You’ve empowered a network contact with the information necessary to possibly refer a client to you in the future
  • You’ve made a referral request

Use your personal branding program to stay on the radar screen of your contact network base – by keeping them current on what you do for a living and how you add value to your clients. Your branding program should include newsletters, frequent communication through social media, blogging and “in person” networking at clubs and professional organizations .  “Test” your branding program on an ONGOING basis using the above research program and make adjustments as necessary.

All the best to your career success!

Original post on Career Success! Partners

Author:

Andy Robinson (@AndyInNaples) is a leading authority on career success and 15-year career coaching veteran whose passion in business life is “helping people love what they do for a living and achieve incredible career success.” Andy is CEO of CRG Leadership Institute and co-host of Career Success Radio Show.


Filed Under: Career Advancement, Career Success, Guest Posts, Job Search Networking, Marketing Yourself Tagged With: , ,

Career Success Memo: 10 Tips for Adding Value by Showing Initiative — Make It Happen!

January 12, 2010 by 5 Comments


Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for AndyRobinsonCRG.png

In these tough times, it is absolutely critical that you continue to demonstrate your value to your employer, to your clients and to your colleagues on a daily basis.  Adding Value is THE buzz-word for “safe-guarding” your career and propelling yourself to the top of your profession. 

Today’s Daily Dose of Value – Show Initiative!

Thumbnail image for Picture 19.png

Showing initiative is a MUST DO in demonstrating your value at work. Initiative correlates strongly with personal achievement and professional development; it is the act of taking personal responsibility for your growth, and it is a clear sign of your capacity to develop as a leader.  So….what are you waiting for? Take action today; don’t wait to be asked — be proactive.  Consider the following ideas for lighting the fire of initiative in your daily work life:

  • Always be alert for ways to make something work better.  Make the suggestion.  Volunteer to take ownership for getting it done.
  • Take it upon yourself be the first to adopt and implement the newest company policy.

  • Stay alert for ideas to simplify processes and find new and better ways of doing things. Proactively suggest those improvement ideas.  Be the example for implementing those processes.
  • Stay alert for ways to save money and reduce costs.  “Raise your hand” to communicate those suggestions as quickly as possible.
  • Reach out to colleagues and team members who need help. 
  • Be the first to volunteer for those tough projects and assignments.
  • Always think ahead …. preempt likely obstacles with well-thought-out plans that take those obstacles into consideration.
  • Provide, in advance, the answers to the questions that you know are going to be asked. ”Think like your boss/manager” and consider all deliverables from their perspective BEFORE you submit them.  Always review your work from the elevation of “30,000 feet.”
  • Always do your homework; always be prepared.  Read the material in advance, research the subject matter in advance, dig in and immerse yourself in the topic at hand
  • Deal with problems immediately; take action and be decisive.  Get it done, and get it behind you as quickly as possible.

Make it happen! Be a role model for showing initiative; demonstrate your capacity as a leader.  Make the ch
oice to lead with action and initiative; your value will soar.

Original post at Career Success! Partners blog


Author:

Andy Robinson (@AndyInNaples) is a leading authority on career success and 15-year career coaching veteran whose passion in business life is “helping people love what they do for a living and achieve incredible career success.” Andy is CEO of CRG Leadership Institute and co-host of Career Success Radio Show.


Filed Under: Career Success, Guest Posts, Success Principles Tagged With: , ,

It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You (Guest Post by Chris Perry of Career Rocketeer)

August 23, 2009 by 1 Comment


Picture 3.png

There is no doubt about the
importance and effectiveness of networking in your career search. Networking, both online and in person,
provides you the opportunity to present yourself and your career objective in a
much more personal way.

Networking is essentially active personal
branding, which can be defined as the process of:


  •  Identifying the unique and differentiating value that you can bring to
    an organization, team and/or project.
  • Communicating it in a professionally memorable and consistent manner in
    all of your actions and outputs, both online and offline, to all current and
    prospective stakeholders in your career.

Many experts have said that when it comes to
job search networking, “It’s not what you
know, it’s who you know.” However, I couldn’t disagree more. 

First of all, what you know is part of the
value that you bring to the table (a.k.a. your personal brand) and therefore, it
is of the utmost importance in your networking efforts.

Second and more importantly, it’s not who you
know, it’s who knows you, or better yet, who knows your personal brand enough
to reach out to you with an opportunity where they know you and your brand
would contribute the most value. 

You may know a lot of influential people, but
do they think of you when an opportunity arises?  No matter how outstanding a candidate you may be, networking
really comes down to getting your personal brand out there in front of your
career stakeholders and communicating what you have to offer in a memorable and
consistent manner.

So, what are some easy ways to network your
personal brand out in front of others?

  • Make sure your personal brand aligns with the personal strengths that
    your family and closest friends associate with you and when appropriate, tell
    them about your personal brand and your career objectives. They may be your greatest champions, so
    help them help you.
  • Leverage Facebook, LinkedIn and your email rolodex to keep in contact
    with classmates, colleagues and other contacts from your past. They have obviously seen you “in
    action” at various points in your life and career and may identify you for
    opportunities if you stay on their radar. 
  • Search for professionals in your target companies, industries or
    functional areas using LinkedIn and other networks and reach out to schedule
    informational interviews. These
    are great ways to make more personal connections with potential career
    stakeholders and provide you relevant contacts with whom to keep in touch. 
  • Participate in relevant online forums, as well as in LinkedIn Groups and
    LinkedIn Answers.  This will not
    only help you establish your expertise and personal brand in front of other
    target professionals, but also allows you to network and develop rewarding
    relationships.
  • Attend various events hosted by your professional organizations, your school,
    your alumni association, your church, etc. in order to physically interact with
    potential career contacts.  Make
    sure to get your contacts’ business cards or information so you can follow up
    with them in the future.

There are many more ways you can get your
personal brand out there in front of others, from introducing yourself to your
neighbors to talking to someone sitting next to you on the subway or on a
plane.

In the end, networking really falls on how
well you have branded yourself to those whom you have identified as potential
stakeholders in your career. Therefore, remember that in your career search efforts, and happy
networking!

About Chris Perry:

Picture 2.png

Chris Perry is a
Gen Y Brand and Marketing Generator, a Career Search and Personal Branding
Expert and the Founder of Career Rocketeer, the Career Search and Personal Branding Blog.

Filed Under: Guest Posts, Job Search Networking Tagged With: , ,