Why Every Professional Should Have a Personal Marketing Plan
Successful business owners leverage marketing plans to gain clarity on market conditions, their brand positioning, and to create sound marketing strategy. The end results of a solid marketing plan are clear-cut goals with date-specific action items.
As we observe the shrinking U.S.workforce and greater job competition, savvy career professionals should invest time in creating personal …
Ditch the Pitch: An Interview with Steve Yastrow
Recently, I had the privilege to connect with Steve Yastrow, a former marketing executive and the founder of Yastrow & Company, a consulting organization that helps businesses improve results through breakthrough marketing, customer relationship, and sales ideas. Steve’s new book, Ditch the Pitch: The Art of Improvised Persuasion, makes the case against a standard sales …
Seven Reasons Your Resumé Is Hurting Your Career
I have reviewed over 300 random resumés in the past two weeks and, based upon that sample and my past experience, I can tell you that it is highly likely yours is working against you. Why? Because it contains common errors that detract from your initial impression and your overall professional presentation.
There are two …
Avoid Heartache by Speaking Up
Do you have the stamina for speaking up in regard to what’s on your mind? Or do you prefer to keep quiet and make the best of all situations?
A well-seasoned business professional suggested that when you continue to bite your lip, you eventually bleed. The bleeding comes from inside and it may be in …
Why People Don’t Buy: No Time
If you have been around the sales and business owner block for a while, you understand the mental strength necessary to cope with rejection. Sometimes becoming numb to the rejection can be both a blessing and a curse. How many times have you submitted a proposal, giving free consults and went through presentations where the …
Feeling Good is a Relative State of Mind
I don’t pay too much attention to local news via newspaper or television, but I constantly listen to NPR and the BBC and read The Economist and The Week. What these media sources have in common is that they report on international issues. My focus is usually on the Big Picture and not so much …
Introvert’s Dilemma: Charge or Recharge?
Some of my favorite people are introverts. Like me, introverts need a good bit of alone time, which my staff calls my “cone time.” About half the time my nature cries out what Greta Garbo famously drawled (if Germans can drawl), “I want to be alone.” I like cone time, but I can go a …
Personal Branding Weekly – Let It Go!
From Travoltified names to thousands of renditions, the anthem for this winter and early spring has been “Let it Go!” With the first quarter of 2014 closing, what goals or practices do you need to let go of for 2014? There are practices and behaviors that at one time served us well and now due …
Get Known as “Top Talent” Using These Five Traits
If you want to get hired and stay hired you need to know how hiring managers think. Since Google is setting the standard for attracting, hiring (and paying) top talent, examining and understanding their hiring standards and practices could help you even if you have no interest in working there.
Let’s start with GPA’s and …
Leaders: Get the Most From Your Team
The best teams are greater than the sum of their parts. But for that to happen, they need a leader who can inspire and motivate every member to fulfill their potential. Some leaders struggle to provide the leadership needed to get the most out of members. To achieve maximum results, team leaders need to treat …