Think As Inc

THE POWER OF FLEXIBILITY

I always wanted four pillars in my life:  family; the arts; career development work; and personal finance.  Well, now I’m married with two kids and a large extended family.  I sing and act, performing cabaret and improv around the city.  I recruit, coach, teach and write around career issues.  I have my investment portfolio.

In a way, things turned out exactly as I planned.  Except without any of my original plan:

I always thought I’d get started on my recruiting and coaching career first, have a family when I got some management experience and could set my own schedule, start with acting and singing once I got business and family going, and then invest my by-now substantial savings in the market.  Instead, I met my husband much earlier than planned and had my first kid when my career was just starting.  A chance acting class prompted me to take a break from my career work way before reaching management ranks.  An unexpected suggestion turned me onto real estate rather than the stock portfolio I envisaged.  And my career development work includes starting my own firm, which I had never expected to do.  So my four pillars are the same but the way I have gone about them is completely different.

Follow-through is about discipline and sticking to a plan but it’s also about flexibility to adapt to conditions that are best for the ultimate goal.  If I had stuck to my timeline rather than my end-goal of the four pillars, I would have been in a completely different situation.  I would not have noticed the investment opportunity that was five years ahead of schedule.  I would not have taken the class that was supposed to wait till I had built up the right financial cushion.  As it turns out, my involvement in family and the arts transformed my recruiting and coaching work.  At the same time, my business background informs my artistic pursuits.  Staying faithful to the pillars and not just the plan enabled me to identify the right opportunities rather than wait for just the right time.

If you find yourself in a rut but feel like you’re working hard towards your goal, step back and assess exactly what you are following through with.  Are you following through with the plan or with the goal?  The plan might be outdated or just wrong to begin with.  If you are truly following through with your goals, you may need to continue with your existing plan, mix it up or take a break.  Be flexible enough to choose your best option.

END YOUR ANONYMITY

I am successful because I was willing to give up being anonymous. – Sophia Loren

So many clients I see toil in silence, expecting (or hoping) that their work speaks for itself and gets them noticed.  However, it is up to you to be proactive about getting known:

Do people in your department know who you are and the quality of your work?

Do people two or more levels above you know you?

Do you have solid contacts in other departments around your company?

Do you have contacts outside of your company? 

Do recruiters call you?

If you’re an entrepreneur, are you getting quoted in the media, referred by customers, or being sought out for joint ventures?

You need to answer a resounding YES to the above questions.  If not, figure out what you need to develop (presentation skills, a larger network) or what support you require (a public speaking course, a trade association membership) to market yourself more effectively.

CRAZY TIMES DEMAND CRAZY THINKING

When trouble arises and things look bad, there is always one
individual who perceives a solution and is willing to take command.
Very often, that individual is crazy – Dave Barry

That quote makes me laugh out loud.  The cynical me finds it funny to
think that the only person available to help in a hopeless situation is
hopeless themselves.  But I’ve started liking this quote even more
lately because of these times.  It is a bad job market, and I am a
career coach.  I work with people day in and day out to keep them
motivated on their job search or proactively managing their career
despite seemingly unmanageable circumstances.  When I remind people
that the real opportunity is in rocky times such as these, very
often, my clients look at me like I’m crazy.  I have become the
crazy person in Dave Barry’s quote.  But that’s okay with me because
crazy times demand crazy thinking.

You want to start a business in the middle of a recession?
Of course you can!
You want to change careers from accounting to media?
The best time is now!
You want to ask for a raise and promotion while your industry descends
into flames?  Let’s ask for even more!

These are all examples of what real clients are going through. And
while our conversations are much deeper than the short answer that I
share above, the context is similar.  Yes, you can make scary moves
in a scary economy if you are ready to commit and to do the work. It
would be nice to have been ready to go for it during a boom market,
but sometimes you are not.  And I would bet on the person who is 100%
committed to an audacious goal in the worst market than the person who
is unsure about a lesser goal in the best market.  Emotional
readiness trumps market conditions anytime.

I decided to finally leave corporate and pursue acting in the middle
of a personal crisis.  I bought my first house when I was unemployed.
I made a big financial commitment at the same time I launched a new
business.  These were some of the best decisions that I made, though
even now as I write them I feel like I am describing a crazy person.
Why would I choose to make these big decisions during inopportune
times?

Because emotional readiness trumps market conditions.  How you feel
internally will dictate your success more than any external condition.
When you’re so sure what you want that you’re willing to work at
whatever obstacles come after, then you are ready to go for it.  If
it seems crazy to the outside world but sound to you, then you are
onto something.  These are crazy times.  We may not have good
external conditions for awhile, and we can’t control when things will
get better.  So get to work on the internal conditions, and when
they’re right, go crazy.

Mid-Year Review

Ok, several things have gotten me thinking about the mid-year review. First of all, it’s July, the middle of the calendar year, so literally the time for a mid-year review. Secondly, I just finished John Wood’s Leaving Microsoft To Change The World which would cause even the most single-minded person to question their life direction. Finally, we’re in the lazy days of summer, where it feels right to take a breather and reflect. So in the spirit of reflection, here are some juicy questions for your own mid-year review:

For any of your 2009 goals, how are you doing? If you have a revenue target, a weight loss target, a savings target, etc. are you halfway there? 

What are your biggest wins so far this year? How can you do more of the same?

What is still missing that you hoped to have started/ accomplished by now? Does it still matter?

For the things that still matter but are yet out of reach, what is keeping you from starting/ accomplishing what you want?

In the rush of everyday life, it is so easy to stay busy and never stop to confirm that we are busy with the things that matter. Even when we start on the right track, sometimes our priorities change, and we will only recognize that if we stop and reflect. A mid-year review is a chance to stop. Stop. Take out pen and paper. Write down your thoughts. Are you who, where and what you want to be?

On Geoff Colvin's The Upside of the Downturn

http://money.cnn.com/2009/05/28/news/economy/colvin_upside.fortune/index.htm

Above is an excerpt from Fortune writer Geoff Colvin’s upcoming book.  The article is about business (Fortune readers are supposed to be the CEO demographic) but his Five Moves To Make Now (with some extrapolation) carry key insights for below the C-suite and everyday life:

1) Evaluate employees better.  Colvin talks about company performance reviews, but in our personal lives we also have our teams, so reassess yours.  If you’ve been unhappy with your housekeeper or haircutter or some other service provider, now is an excellent time to revisit that since you need to be watching your costs anyway.  On a personal relationship note, you may have outgrown a relationship or find someone has become an energy drain.  Give an honest evaluation and try to make things work, or move on.

2) End guidance.  Colvin refers to stock market guidance on how company financials are faring every quarter.  In our personal lives, sometimes we track things too closely as well.  This may be financial when we open our monthly investment statements and get depressed. If you’ve decided to only rebalance annually, check statements regularly for account accuracy but otherwise let it go.  Are there other areas where you track too closely in the short term and fail to see the long term potential?  Career, fitness, parenthood, relationship?

3) Manage for value.  Colvin talks about business value here, but this is easily relatable to personal value.  In a tough market, where we are stretched for time and dollars, we may have to make different choices.  Are you doing the things that matter?

4) Expand your mind about risks.  Is there something you’ve always wanted to do, but didn’t think it was the right time?  That trip abroad may be cheaper now.  That entrepreneurial venture may seem less risky now that security at traditional jobs has decreased.  I somehow have managed to take the biggest risks (leaving corporate for acting, investing in real estate, starting my own company) during times when the external circumstances would seem to outsiders less than ideal.  But internally, it was the best time for me, and your internal readiness always trumps external considerations.  So downturn or no, we always take risks.  Which ones do you want to take now?

5) Mine employees for ideas.  Colvin points to businesses that get great ideas from lower-level employees.  It’s always good practice to talk to different people, and collect ideas from as many sources as you can.  I have a show next week, in which I write a character monologue that I then perform.  I feel like my kids and my friends actually wrote it because I just expanded on the clever things I’ve heard along the way.  We don’t have to do everything all by ourselves.

If You Had One Shot To Seize Everything You Ever Wanted…

Warning:  the below links to an Eminem video. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hO3bY5cS1Co

A shout out to Adrian J. Cartwood and his very entertaining and thought-provoking blog (http://7million7years.com) for reminding me about 8 Mile, a gem of a movie.

I watched it at the suggestion of Judith Searcy, my improv teacher at School For Film and Television, because she said that freestyling (rappers creating lyrics on the fly and a big part of this movie) is a terrific example of improv.  Yes it is, and if you are really interested in freestyling/ improv, also watch the DVD extra where Eminem auditions the rappers for parts in the movie.

At the same time, 8 Mile is a great coaching movie:

You have to go for it.  The above music video captures the high stakes, just-one-shot message that underlies the movie;

You can never give up.  Despite the all-or-nothing subtext of the video and overall movie, Eminem’s character screws up multiple times before hitting it big in the finale (you will never hear the name Clarence quite the same again).  You will have multiple chances, as long as you keep going;

You will be scared.  When something really means something to you, you will feel as gritty as this movie looks.  Hold onto that passion. 

A lot of people have trouble with the passion part, especially when they’re caught up in the day to day and have forgotten.  So when you do get a glimpse of it (perhaps watching an inspirational movie or just doing something fun), try to remember where you feel it in your body.  For me, for example, my heart literally feels like it moves deeper into my chest.  Now, you will know the feeling you’re trying to recreate.  Experiment with activities till you get another glimpse of that feeling. 

Letting yourself get passionate about something is like exercising a muscle.   If you haven’t worked up your passion for awhile, it may be tough to get started but eventually it gets stronger.   And perhaps strong enough for you to take your shot.

Moving Beyond Work

I write an Executive Careers column for CNBC.com, and sometimes they indulge me and let me talk about broader life questions aside from work.  So last week I submitted a piece about long-range planning that was meant to drive home the point that the choices we make (and for this column of course I gave career choice examples) have broader implications beyond work to the rest of our lives.  You can see the column here:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/29991260/site/14081545

CNBC.com elected to title it “Job Seekers:  3 Things To Do Now”.

It’s a catchy title.  It’s a timely call to action given what’s happening in the market.  But when I saw it posted, I literally forgot what column I had submitted!  I hadn’t thought of it as a tactical advice piece for job seekers.  Of course it is on the most basic level.  But thinking about potential obstacles, considering the upside and downside, and reflecting on the legacy you leave are not just tips for job search or career planning.  Rather, we need to move beyond work to life planning.

How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. -- Annie Dillard

Do you like what you do day-to-day?  Really, do you like it?

Do you spend your time and energy on the things that matter? 

Are you moving in the direction of your dreams?

If you look back to last year, have you made progress on the things that matter?

If you look forward to next year, do you know where you want to be so that you can answer the above question and smile?

I am a career coach.  My clients come to me about career planning.  But it’s always about life planning.  When people want to change jobs, it’s ultimately for fulfillment, achievement, security, lifestyle, etc – all life values, not just career values.  When we want to effect real, lasting and meaningful change, we have to move the discussion beyond work to life.  Are you working or are you living?  Hopefully both, but don’t forget the latter.

MOTIVATIONAL TRICKS

In the current issue of Fast Company, Dan and Chip Heath sell the benefits of smaller goals:

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/133/made-to-stick-time-to-aim-lower.html

They talk about starting a one-minute exercise program or a five-minute decluttering project.  There is definitely a place for this, and I will sometimes tell my career coaching clients to make one networking call per week or to read one business article.  The idea is that you get the person started, and the momentum of the start will give them the energy to increase over time.

However, this isn’t always true.  Sometimes, you just don’t see enough of the benefit from a small start and therefore you get discouraged and quit, rather than add on to what you started.  The above career coaching example is good for someone who wants to start actively managing their career.  It is inappropriate for an active job search because you will never get enough traction on your search with one call per week.  You need to make a push and build a market presence.

In the case where you need to make a push, but you are hesitant to start (who really likes making networking calls?), I recommend another tactic inspired by Ron Popeil of informercial fame.  Remember set it and forget it for his rotisserie chicken maker?  Set your system and then forget it.  Bunch your networking calls into one day and time block – the same day and time block every week — and then forget about it the rest of the week.  When it pops up on your calendar, you do it.  But then it’s over.

I write 5-6 columns per week between my newsletter, blogs, and writing that I do for other publications.  I have to write week in, week out, inspiration be damned.  I know I write best in the morning.  So I have my calendar set for a 6a start on the same day each week with a list of columns I have to produce for that week.  When it pops up on my calendar, I write.  I may edit later.  I may also write at other times when an idea comes up and I have the time and I want to write.  But otherwise, I’ve built a system and let the system carry the weight.

Aiming for small goals is a motivational trick.  Setting a system is another motivational trick.  Motivational tricks are incredibly helpful because you don’t have to always push toward the goal – you can trick yourself into it.  I cover another trick in a recent CNBC.com column:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/29428298/site/14081545

Do you have any motivational tricks to share?

CAREER LESSONS FROM SEINFELD

Beware of quashing your dreams prematurely.  In one Seinfeld episode, George tells Jerry he wants to get serious about getting a job.  Jerry quashes this notion, questioning George’s ability to even identify what he wants to do.  George suggests teaching.  Jerry counters that he needs a degree.  George suggests sports reporting.  Jerry counters that he needs journalism or sports experience.  George suggests professional athlete.  At this point, Jerry just looks and the audience just laughs.

It’s a funny bit because we’ve all had those friends like George with the pie in the sky dreams.  Unfortunately we’ve also done what Jerry does to George to ourselves.  I know many people, myself included, who get a notion or idea about something, only to counter themselves with but-you-can’t.

I don’t have the degree.  I don’t have the experience.  I don’t have the skills.  I don’t have the time.  I don’t have the money.  We all have a long list of what we don’t have.  If we think about it that way we might never get started.

But if we think about what we do have, it might be enough to start.  Could George get the degree?  Could he get some experience?  Could he do something in sports, if not play professionally?

(George eventually does end up in sports, at the Yankees no less, showcasing another coaching lesson about the power of opposite thinking.  More on this in my recent CNBC piece:  http://www.cnbc.com/id/28794573/site/14081545)

So stop the naysaying, and practice some opposite thinking.  When you find yourself with an idea that intrigues you, but scares you a bit, don’t just dismiss it.  Play with it.  Have the courage, even the audacity to presume that it’s doable and doable by you.  You have what it takes.  You have the time.  You have the money.  What will you do?

A WIN-WIN SOLUTION TO LABOR MARKET CHAOS

Happy new year, but the market still isn’t happy.  And the bad news is hitting everyone, even historically “safe” careers.  I had breakfast with a former colleague in 2007, who was working a job she didn’t really like with the expectation of cashing out in a few short years.  She worked for Lehman Brothers, oops.

An indiscriminate market that hits even the safe bets highlights an important and often overlooked point about the choices we make.  There is no 100% sure thing.  Every choice carries a risk.  If you make a career choice just to mitigate your risk, you could experience a potentially bigger letdown.  Let’s say you choose that banking job, even though your dream is writing.  Because banking is stable.  Because writing doesn’t pay.  If you’re one of the tens of thousands laid off in financial services recently, you’ve lost out twice:  1) you’ve lost your job; and 2) you’ve compromised your dream for what turns out to be a false sense of security. 

A better approach would be to acknowledge that all choices carry potential risks.  Therefore take the risk for something you truly want.  This approach is a win-win solution.  If things work out, you have your dream career.  If not, you have the satisfaction of knowing that you did your best for what you love.  Either way, you’ll have a fabulous time on your journey.