Focusing the Mind – The Career Search Paradox

"Nothing focuses the mind like a gun to the head" - Winston Churchill

This quote captured my attention like a laser. The economy is the proverbial gun to our heads. The challenge of the current economy, the struggle of companies hiring and those who are letting people go and the swirl of fear for so many. For the individual wage earner, the prospect of being let go in an economy as rough as ours is right now is chilling. The headlines in our newspapers tell stories of people pushed to the brink - a recently unemployed couple where the husband massacred the whole family. How tragic. How sad. Such a crazy outcome borne out of helplessness.

I would like to challenge all among us to creatively push back against the fear of “losing a job” and instead to hold fast to the knowledge that "we can and do make a difference." While there is always the chance we can become paralyzed by our fears temporarily; personal success and corporate success is going to come from continuing to be bold and to not shrink in these scary times but to push through.

Happy and Healthy Hiring.

Success by design, one step at a time.

Lynden
www.nextiteration.net and www.nihealthjobs.com

Interview Skills – Hiring Tips (Listening)

Most people who are involved in hiring don’t take much time to review their own skills. I’d like to offer this brief, but important tip. “Listening is important too and that doesn’t mean just not talking.” We’ve all met the person who has so much going on that they are on autopilot. In the interview process, this person might be a “motor mouth” and good at explaining about why it is good to work for your company, and in the position a candidate can achieve this and that. But, this should not be the only person that meets a candidate. Active listening is an investment in the hiring process. If you are a wonderful presenter, but a rotten listener be sure that your hiring process includes people who are better listeners than you are!

Candidates need to have balance. They need a chance to talk about their accomplishments (and to be heard) and they need to have a chance to learn about the position and what is expected of the person who is hired. So strive for balance interview process participants who are good at presenting information about the company and the opening and those who are good at getting gritty information out of the people they meet. In that best of both worlds, your company learns what they need to about the candidate and the candidate learns what he and she need to know about your company.

"Good talkers tend not to be good listeners. Indeed, people who think of themselves as good talkers tend to rate themselves as extroverted, while good listeners rate themselves as introverted. Good listeners are 60 percent more likely to try to put themselves in the other person's place - trying to see things through their perspective." Pauk 1997 as quoted by David Niven PhD.

Happy and healthy hiring. Happy holidays too.

Success by design, one talented candidate hired at a time.

Lynden

Negotiating the Salary – Budget Busters are a NO NO

Every time we approach the negotiation stage of our process with a candidate, we walk boldly and carefully. There are usually three things that we abide by:

1) Candidate’s expectations will be high
2) Client’s expectations will be low
3) It is our job to facilitate getting both of them to an acceptable middle.

We never discuss “ranges” with candidates, but always we know them. What we strive to do right with all of our clients is assure the candidate agrees (preclosing over and over) to accept compensation within the range that we know the client has designated. Rarely will we present a candidate whose current comp package is at or beyond the range the client has stated. We all know, the compensation offer must be a win for the candidate in order for her/him to accept

Everyone fails when the recruiter presents candidates who are too high in current salary/compensation. The candidate experiences disappointment because s/he believes that the client should come up in salary to at least the level they are currently being paid; the client knows s/he can’t go beyond the stated range; and the recruiter fails because the equation is no win – or win-lose. Both the candidate and the client have to wonder about a recruiting professional who represents a candidate or a position that isn’t a good fit.

All in all, advice to candidates and to clients is to be clear early in the process about the comp to be offered and the expectations of the candidate – clarity is what makes the negotiations a win with the right candidate.

Happy and healthy hiring.

Success by design – negotiating well for our clients one candidate at a time!

Lynden

www.NextIteration.net and www.NIHealthJobs.com

And the Candidate ALWAYS Says, "The Interview Was Great!"

We talk with candidates and clients all the time after the interview. In ten years of debriefing as a recruiter and another ten years as a hiring authority, I’ve only twice had a candidate say “I knew in an instant it wasn’t for me or the interview went badly.” Usually feedback from the candidate is always, “I really enjoyed it and thought it went well.” There might be some mild variation on that tune, but by and large we’ve determined that the candidate debrief is important; however the client debrief is most relevant. In fact in our firm in the interest of efficiency, we’ve flopped how we usually do post interview debrief. Now we talk with the client before the candidate. Then if the client has determined no go about the candidate – then we can efficiently dispatch the clients intention professionally without prolonging the “agony” for the candidate.


Success by Design – one client and candidate at a time.

What career is captivating you?

Lynden

Holiday 2007 - Job Searching

Holiday 2007 – One New JOB at a Time.


I’ve been remiss lately getting here to talk about best strategies for seeking a new position and for hiring best talent. It seems the holiday season has crept up on me and I’m behind. I am looking forward to a sweet end to 2007 and a terrific launch to 2008 and it is my fevering wish for you to have and be the best too.


To all of you who are hiring – I wish you an endless supply of talented new professionals swelling the ranks of your enterprise and adding value to the bottom line.


To all of you who are job searching, or if you are in the market for a new job – DON’T LET UP NOW. This is an excellent time of year to be in touch with recruiters, hiring authorities and other people who are searching for jobs.


There is an impression that things let up with the crush of the holidays. That is false and year after year I’ve seen excellent candidates connect with jobs during this time when people are a bit more congenial in their day to day.  It makes me wish that we would treat everyday as a special time.


With credit to the musical RENT, I wanted to share these lyrics from a song called Seasons of Love:



525,600 minutes, 525,000 moments so dear.
525,600 minutes – how do you measure, measure a year?
In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee.
In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife.
525,600 minutes – how do you measure a year in the life?



As this year comes to a close, be thoughtful about how your passion for your work-life is measured and how you make a difference in the world. If you aren’t happy, imagine if you were and get help to change that. If you are happy (at work) and making a profound contribution – thank you.


If you have questions about how you can effectively and efficiently do a job search or transition your career – call me. We can talk about how to make your professional lifetime contribution add up to something more.


Think about it; it is up to you to choose.


Success by Design. In this situation; one job at a time.

What career is captivating you? Happy Holidays.


Lynden


Next Iteration; NIHealthJobs.com; MDCareerCompass.com