Top Ten Most Productive Job Search Activities While Your Career Coach is On Vacation

Is your career coach taking a breather at the holidays?  I know I am.  Still, that doesn't mean that your job search needs to be put on hold.  Below are ten tips I left clients with last year while I was on my honeymoon.  

1.     CLE: Keep current on/expand training & maintain your CLE hrs.  In person CLEs are also a great way to network.

2.     Technical Knowledge: Brush up or research any technical areas of the law that are important to your search (Ex: if you’re applying to jobs for which you are mostly qualified but missing one or two key areas—use this time to teach yourself about them through relevant reading materials or reaching out to those in your network who are subject matter experts in those areas.)

3.     Committees/Associations: Have you been meaning to join a committee or association that would be relevant to your search?  What research could you do to make this happen?  Or, are you already a member of one but want to get more involved?  How can you best go about doing that?

4.     Alumni Career Services:  Have you reached out to your law school’s career resources center recently?  They may have some resources or alumni to put you in touch with that could be helpful to your search.

5.     Linked In: Spend some quality time on LinkedIn

a.     Add contacts:

                                               i.     Reviewing the suggested contacts that LI suggests for you

                                             ii.     Look at your current contacts and see if you want to be introduced to any of their contacts

                                            iii.     Using the search engines for parts of your background you might not have searched under (ex:  previous employers; schools; alumni associations)

b.     Join groups:

                                               i.     For those looking in-house-ACC has a group you may want to check out

                                             ii.     Most practice areas & specialties have dedicated groups

                                            iii.     Government sectors also have groups

c.     Update/enhance your profile: make sure your profile is as complete as possible so you are searchable by recruiters & potential employers

d.     Get/give recommendations

e.     Re(search)—Linked In is a great way to build a list of potential employers (firms & companies) that you might be interested in targeting

                                               i.     Scroll through your contacts who have the types of positions you want—see who their connections are and where they work—start to build your list

                                             ii.     Once you have a working list of 10-20 company/firm names see if they have LI profiles or go on their websites to do further research to find out:

1.     If they are hiring

2.     If they have what you’re looking for in a future employer

                                            iii.     Once you’ve narrowed your list down further—go back to your network to see if anyone can make an introduction for you

                                            iv.     If you can’t pinpoint a human connection, use your research to craft a very targeted cover letter that shows two things: a.)  all of the relevant things you know about the company/firm/department and b.) how you specifically can add value based on what you know

6.     Networking:

a.     Do a sweep of your most important contacts if you haven’t reached out to them in awhile

                                               i.     Give them an update on your search

                                             ii.     Let them know if anything has changed

b.     Reach out to contacts you haven’t yet hit in your search

c.     Start adding new contacts

                                               i.     Go to events

                                             ii.     Ask your current contacts to introduce you to their contacts

d.     Reach out to those contacts you know would be helpful but you’ve been avoiding

7.     Search Sites: Pop onto the sites if you haven’t had a chance in awhile.  Particularly for in house, there have been a lot more postings of late.  Even if you have a search saved and get updates, you can sometimes surface new things by going on to the sites and throwing in different criteria.

8.     Follow Up:  If you’ve got some opportunities pending but haven’t heard back in awhile (whether via recruiters or directly with employers), do some targeted follow up to see where things stand.  Don’t feel like you’re bothering people—you’re showing initiative and interest—both of which are important to employers.

9.     Professional Reading: Pull out that piles of articles you’ve been saving up.  Check out the American Lawyer or other relevant sites.  Read the WSJ or NYT business section.  See if you can pick up any tidbits that could be a clue to your search.  (ex:  are you an IP litigator and a huge IP litigation practice just moved from one firm to another?)

10.  Take a Break: Particularly if you’ve been diligent throughout your search, it’s ok and even advisable to take breaks from time to time.  Taking a break and regrouping can re-energize a job search.  Just make sure it’s a defined break. 

Don't Go To Your Holiday Party Stressed!

Holiday parties can have a big upside for your career--particularly with respect to internal networking and profile building.  They offer a chance to catch up with people you may not have worked with in a while but want to stay in touch with. They can be a venue to meet or get in front of someone you would like to work with but haven't gotten the chance.  Or, they can let you enjoy the company of those you do work with in a nicer, more relaxed environment. As an added benefit, people are generally in good moods around the holidays.
On the downside, free booze and food makes holiday parties fecund ground for overeating, drinking too much and even potential career or reputation missteps.


From my days in HR at a large law firm, I've broken up fights; saved marriages and spared otherwise awkward next morning moments; thwarted attempts at public urination; sent a fair number of merry-makers home in cabs; and kept grumpy humbuggers from negatively contaminating everyone's good cheer.  
 
Holiday party patrol was never fun but it was certainly eye-opening. But really, who hasn't overindulged at a holiday party? I'm certainly not throwing stones.



So, what's the culprit or common thread? It definitely comes down to stress.  And let's face it, stress at law firms at year end is just a big old given!  Year-end deals are trying are to close. Projects have hard & fast deadlines so the fortunate can get out on vacation. Throw in holiday shopping and stress is a constant year-end companion.

You need not put your career or your health goals in danger though if you heed these simple pre-holiday party tips:

1.) Stop and gage your level of stress.  If it's high, go for a walk around the block, pop on your head phones and listen to a soothing song or just take a few deep breaths.

2.) Eat a light, healthy snack before you go so that you're not starving when you get there. Hunger at a venue where there is unlimited access to food can easily derail your nutritional goals.

3.) Establish guidelines for eating and drinking before you go and be disciplined about them.  For example, maybe you will have only one of each appetizer and skip the carving station or cheese spread.  Or maybe you will avoid the dessert table.  And perhaps you will limit yourself to just wine or beer skipping the top shelf hard liquor & set a numerical limit.

4.) If you are concerned you may overindulge, buddy up with someone who can help keep you accountable and vice versa.

Other tips for once you're there:

1.) Alternate drinks with water.

2.) Situate yourself away from the bar and/or the food stations.  Having to get on line for things will help to create natural breaks and slow you down.

3.) Mingle and immerse yourself in conversation.  Engaging dialog can be a helpful distraction.

Now armed with these simple preventative measures, go enjoy yourself. This season only comes once a year.

Meditation Monday: Bechamel Sauce

I love, love, love to cook.  For me, it's one of the best forms of meditation because it requires a fairly intense focus.  Problem is, with a 5 month old around I don't get much of a chance to cook the way I love to--all day long, with my husband on big projects like intricate pastas, soups or stews.  That is until grandparents show up for Thanksgiving weekend.

So, with the precious resource of babysitters around, we embarked on some epic cooking projects this past weekend.  One in particular, lasagna made with Bechamel sauce (a la Giada DeLaurentiis), provided an unexpected meditation opportunity. Bechamel sauce,  because it needs constant stirring, requires you to focus on just one thing for at least ten minutes.  Wa-lah!!  It fits my micro meditation definition.

There I was, stirring my Bechamel sauce.  I would breathe in for 7 counts stirring right to left and then I would exhale for 7 counts stirring left to right.  I did that for approximately 15 minutes while I waited patiently for the sauce to hit the right thickness.

There you have it.  Grab a pot, some milk, flour, butter, etc. and get to stirring, breathing and a very fulfilling micro-meditation.

Meditation Monday: A Chair & A Midtown Waterfall

For today's Meditation Monday, I'm borrowing a page from someone else's book.  The best part is, I don't even know this guy. 

With a few spare minutes in between a lunch and an afternoon meeting, I happened upon a lovely outdoor space on 53rd between 5th & Madison.  The draw for this space is that there is a full length waterfall/fountain.  Talk about a Zen spot in the middle of mid-town craziness.

I thought, what a great place to just sit and meditate.  And then I realized, someone else beat me to it.  There he was--conservative blue suit; white shirt; blue tie.  He was sitting in a chair, by himself in front of the water.  That's all he was doing.  Just sitting.  Sometimes he'd look at the water--and sometimes he'd simply look down or off into space.  He wasn't on his blackberry, chatting or scarfing down food as others around him were (myself included). He was just sitting.

What struck me was how calm and yet how purposeful he looked.  Very peaceful and serene.  I have no idea how long he was there prior to my arrival but he sat like that for at least 10 minutes. 

What a great role model.  A business type who was taking some time out of his day to just sit in silence and stare at a waterfall.  Maybe he was reviewing a presentation he was about to give or go over a difficult conversation he needed to have.  Who knows?

What I do know is that I took note of him and was impressed by him.  I thought, if he can do it, so can I--and so can you!

Ugh!! I Botched the "Tell Me About Yourself" Question

I really hate it when I catch myself not following the advice I give to others—especially clients. It’s an unsavory feeling.


Recently, I was in a meeting with a client of my firm’s who wanted to meet me--put a name to a face type of thing. Not exactly an interview but still important to make a positive impression.

I had prepared for what I thought would be the content she’d be most interested in and was determined to get it across. And then, there it was---“tell me about yourself”. A question I’ve prepped clients for a thousand times over.

And what did I do?? I proceeded to break every rule I give them. Ok, so I really don’t set rules—they’re more like guidelines. And I didn’t break every one of them but sadly, more than I’d like to admit. Although I am going to admit it here so I don’t fall prey again.

Here’s what I did wrong:

- I launched right into a chronological story. In 1994, I did this. Then a few years later I did that. I spent some further time doing this. And then I did that. Oh and I forgot something so let me go back. And finally I ended up right here where I am.

- I put in a lot of unnecessary and probably confusing details. I took her to one place and then I switched directions and took her somewhere else.

- I talked too long for any human being to possibly retain all of the information.

- I showed no signs that I was able to parse out for her what the most important and relevant information was.

- I forgot that if she was really interested in the specific details, she could also ask questions.

Ugh! B-O-R-I-N-G!!! Bless her heart for even listening to me that long. I finally caught on when she asked me a question and said something like “I’d love to hear you ramble on about that.” Now, that might have been a total Freudian slip on her part --but it certainly got my attention.

And like the sea parting I saw exactly what my mistake had been. I wasn’t listening to her. I was trying to pack in all the information that I had prepped and I totally botched what she really wanted to know—not my resume but who I was as a person.

Here’s what I should have done:

- Define: “Here's what I do/who I am.” (in one sentence or less)

- Energize: “Here’s why I love what I do.”

- Show: “Here’s the level and scope of responsibility I have.”

- Highlight: “Some (but not all) of my credentials include….”

- Focus: “Here's the exposure I've had with the main skills someone with my background needs” or “My main areas of expertise where I like to focus are…”

- Brag (Humbly): “My proudest accomplishment is…”

Thankfully, I was able to regroup, start listening, shorten my answers and ask her some questions that got her talking about herself and her firm. This shift made a huge difference—at least I hope it did.

We ended on a positive note and not surprisingly, talking about personal things like my daughter and motherhood—something we had in common. If I had just listened in the first place, I would have saved both of us a lot of time and I would have made a better impression much sooner on in the conversation.

Meditation Monday: Micro Meditation

To me, meditation is one of the most important tools in the whole LiveWorkEatPlay equation. It's challenging for me though on two fronts. First, it's incredibly daunting to still or quiet my mind. Who am I kidding--I often happily settle for just slowing my mind or even just putting it in "time out". Second, where do you find the time? Yet--it is precisely because my mind is so frantic and I'm constantly in search of more time that I make meditation a priority.

So, I'll let you in on my little secret of how I work it into a "regular" practice. Well, two secrets really. One, I sneak it. Yup--I'll steal even as little as five minutes if that's all I can get because to me, five minutes of something good for you is better than no minutes of something good for you. And two, to coin a Sinatra-ism, I do it "my way."

My grade-school pastor once gave a sermon about being "cafeteria Catholics"--those who pick and chose what they liked from the religion and left the rest. Clearly his message was intended to rebuke this practice and fully commit. To me though, I thought the concept was brilliant and I've applied it to several areas of my life since.

So, I consider myself a "cafeteria meditator". If there were meditation police (which thankfully there are not because it is such a kind and supportive practice), they may be appalled by what I consider to count as "meditation" sometimes. But here's the great thing--I'm pushing 40, I work hard, I'm a good person and my intention for meditating is always positive. So guess what?? I get to define what counts as meditation for me. And so do you!

And for me, the answer is what I call "micro" meditation--mini meditation or mindfulness sessions that work with my life. And just so it's got some structure to it and not totally willy-nilly, I've come up with some guidelines for my micro meditations for them to "count":

- they have to last at least 5 minutes
- they have to incorporate some form of breath work (to reap the benefits of voluntarily calming my nervous system and pumping oxygen throughout my body)
- my intention (even if not successful) has to be to focus on "one thing"
- when my mind strays from my "one thing", I have to keep bringing it back

Pretty basic but these guidelines help me to be creative about when, where and how I sneak meditation into an otherwise time-filled life. So, one Monday a month (Meditation Monday) this blog will share some of the unorthodox ways I come up with to have a somewhat "regular" meditation or mindfulness practice. Don't get me wrong though, when I get an opportunity to sit on my seiza bench, in proper posture for a more formal and extended meditation session, I jump at it.

Today's Micro Meditation Idea:
Central Park is one of my favorite meditation playgrounds.  Yesterday I took my daughter for a walk (yay--got me some exercise) and then to the little pond where people operate miniature remote controlled boats.  With her on my lap we just sat and watched the boats.  To bring focus, I picked one that I mostly followed (number 77--my birthday).  There was also a tiny red speed boat that I shifted gaze to a few times--providing a nice slow/fast contrast. I also breathed in for seven counts and out for seven counts while sitting there.  That's it!!  I got about 15 minutes in before my small thing started to get fidgety.  So, all that was required for this micro meditation was: breathing, staring and some fun objects to focus on.  Even better, in addition to all of the usual benefits of meditation, I got time outside, cuddles with my daughter and pretty fall scenery!

What is Your Main Motivator: Pleasure or Pain?

I've dubbed March "Motivation Month". With the first quarter of the year almost complete, it's a great time to check in on those new year's resolutions, career goals or other personal challenges you kicked 2011 off with. Soooooooo? What's the progress on your goals?

If you're not as pleased as you'd like, it may help to check your motivation. In my observation, motivation can fall into one of two categories: pleasure seeking or pain avoidance. Many of us can be motivated by both depending on the situation while others have a strong leaning toward one over the other. One approach isn't necessarily better than the others (I'm always a fan of balance) but it can bring clarity to your goals when you know where your preference lies.

The first step to conquering or, more positively stated, leveraging motivation is to step back and reflect on which part of the pleasure/pain motivational divide you fall on. Goal attainment can be a difficult and challenging process that will require you to use all tools at your disposal--motivation being one of the most powerful.

When embarking on a particular goal, the first question to ask is "why" do you want it. I call this "understanding the why". For example, if the goal is "I want a new job", challenge yourself to articulate why this is important to you. I've heard a range of answers to this from "I want to pursue something I'm more passionate about" (pleasure seeking) to "I cannot stand getting up and going to work each day" (pain avoidance). Drilling down to this level of specificity with motivation is critical for staying focused on the end game.

Here's how it works. If you're tempted to not complete the tasks necessary to pursuing your goal--in this case let's use networking--you can circle back to your motivation.  For example, is not networking more valuable to you than the pleasure of pursuing a passion or, alternatively, the pain at work each day?  If the answer is "yes", not doing the task is more valuable, then you need to go back and ask yourself if you really want your goal.  Or, you'll need to decide if there are other tasks that would be equally as effective.  Or, if they are not equally effective, you will at least understand that you are making a trade off. Either way, it provides clarity which is another important tool in your goal seeking quest.

Of course, this all requires being aware that you are in what I call a Moment of Choice or MOC.  Stay tuned as I've now been inspired to make April "Awareness" Month.

February Career Follow Up

Last month we did a quick career check in/check up.  Hopefully you've had a chance to answer the questions posed.  I've cut and pasted them below and re-ordered them around next steps to take/further questions to ask yourself. 

Further Reflection:  Does this feel like a coaching session yet?

- What is your relationship with your career?
Based on the answer to this question, ask yourself the following two questions:
1.)  Is my relationship with my career serving me and my life goals?
2.)  What changes would I like to make to my relationship with my career?

- What expectations do you have of your career?
Based on the answer to this question, ask yourself the following three questions:

1.) Are my expectations of my career realistic based on my current life circumstances?
2.) Are they aligned with my life goals?
3.) If not (to both), what adjustments do I need to make?

- On a scale of 1-5, how happy are you with your career?
For those of you who scored a happy high score of 4 or better--congrats!  Enjoy this career bliss and take care to maintain it.
For those of you who scored a 3 or below, ask yourself the following question:
1.) What steps would I need to take to improve this score?

The Big Dig:  Take your answers from above as well as your answers to the following questions, and see if you can drill them down farther to come up with some specifics.  To do so, think of going back to what you learned in kindergarten and answer: who, what, when, where, why & how?  For example, who would I need to involve; what specific steps do I need to take; when would I need to start/be done by; where would I start; why is this even important; and how am I going to accomplish all of it?

- What direction would you ultimately like to see your career take?

-What dreams have you given up/are not actively pursuing regarding your career?

If you can start to answer the questions above, you, my friends, will have the makings of a solid career plan to follow for the rest of the year.  Now, plans are important to reach your goals.  They are, however, limited without proper motivation.  You'll want to check in on how motivated you are to implement your new sparkly career plan.  Here's a quick exercise:

Want vs. Willing:  One a scale of 1-10, rate yourself on the following two questions:

1.)  How much do you want this goal?
2.)  How willing are you to do the things you'd need to do to be successful at this goal?

If you're like most people, your "want" score is probably pretty high--maybe even as high as 9 or 10.  Unfortunately, your willing score is probably somewhat lower--maybe a 4 or 5.  Not to worry though, I've dubbed March "Motivation Month" so stay tuned for ways you can boost your willing score.  For now, simply continue to reflect on your answers to these questions, your new career plan and the difference between your want and willing score. 

It's January--Do You Know Where Your Career Is?

As I'm fond of telling my clients, we often get so busy doing our jobs day to day that we forget to take time to think about our actual careers. No good can come of this. Potential dangers include: career malaise or flat out dissatisfaction; missing out on key opportunities; watching others enjoy opportunities that could have been ours; or even worse, having someone else (read employer) making a career decision for us.

It's easy to fall victim this career planning disengagement but it's equally easy to mitigate it. We're at the start of a new year--an organic time to stop and take stock. You may have recently had a review or gotten a salary/bonus message. What better time to take 30-60 minutes to do something so beneficial and relevant. Skip the gym one night if you have to (yes, even I'm saying that), forgo your favorite TV show or give up Facebook/Twitter for a night. This is important!! Don't forget, your career is a big piece of your overall healthy and wellness.

Here, I'll even make it easy for you. Ask yourself the following questions:

- What direction would you ultimately like to see your career take?
- What is your relationship with your career?
- On a scale of 1-5, how happy are you with your career?
- What expectations do you have of your career?

Extra Punch Question: What dreams have you given up/are not actively pursuing regarding your career?

Well, that should provide an effective script for some interesting self-dialog. Step One is simply to answer these questions as honestly as possible. Sit with the answers for a bit. Read them over every few days or so.

Next Step = what to do with these answers. Stay tuned.

You Can't Always Have It All, All At The Same Time

In so many ways, 2010 was one of the best years of my life culminating literally at year end by getting married (12/29/2010 to be exact). Also on the huge, life altering yet amazing front for 2010--I'm (we're) expecting a bundle of joy. All things I can check off my larger life "To Do" list.

2010 also brought one of the most taxing work schedules I've had in a number of years, replete a delicate dance of almost weekly travel since September, sandwiched with trying to keep up with a full slate of clients. Add to this first trimester fatigue and nausea and planning a destination wedding in less than two months and you have what I like to call a Time Management Hot Mess (TMHM).

In short, I quickly had to confront the reality that all I had time for out of my blog title was the "work" and "eat" (and "eat" is meant in more of a functional than enjoyable way) part.

Here's what I learned: you can't always have it all, all at the same time.

Turns out Balance is not a perfectionist like I pretend to be. Not even close! Even though it says right at the top of this blog that I try to do all four things at the same time--sometimes it just doesn't work out that way. Time is limited and sometimes it feels like we don't have a choice about how we get to spend the time we do have--a rather unpleasant piece of grown up reality.

But here's what else I learned: it's ok if we can't Live, Work, Eat & Play all at the same time, all the time as long as it doesn't go on for too long.

I got through this TMHM knowing two things: 1.) some really wonderful things were going to come out of it and 2.) the patch was limited in time. My first trimester would be over; my project had an end date; and the wedding would come and go. Knowing that there was light at the end of the tunnel and that I would, in fact, get to see that light was a motivator. It allowed me to let go of my need/want to have things balanced and just hunker down and get through the end of each day. I always forget how powerful and liberating letting go can be--even when faced with letting go of something you value so highly.

Happily, I'm now spending time recalibrating the balance scales once again--reacquainting myself with my want/need to have things balanced. I'm trying to appreciate and savor that feeling of having the concept of balance seem like a concrete possibility--even if I now know better than ever that it's likely for a limited duration. Being a kid in the "I can chose what I do with my time" candy store is truly invigorating.

Today I've already done two things I've been saying I want to do for a long time now: going for a swim and blogging. Tomorrow, back to meditation class. Moving on to yoga after that. Riding the glorious wave while I have it.

Happy New Year! Wishing you as many pockets of "having it all, all at the same time" as possible in 2011.