All posts by Kurt Kirton

About Kurt Kirton

Song and book writer from MS now living in Nashville, TN. Marketing and graphic design background. Regular blogger on topics surrounding the subject of job searching.

MUCHO MONDAYS – Gold In The Desert: An 18-Point Sample Action Plan

Getting Started, , , , , , , , , , ,
action plan, planning, plan, action, forethought, priorities, job search, preparation, mucho Mondays, action items, goals
Photo by Mark85306 at flickr.com

The most important thing for any job seeker at this point is to craft an Action Plan. I’ve carefully crafted and sequenced the sample below, but you can modify it as you see fit. Replace the example info in the Plan section with your own; then begin to accomplish the Action Items as a part of your daily activities.

ACTION PLAN

Planning:

  • Goals: Secure a full time marketing management, creative services, or project management job in the greater Denver area with a stable industry, working with internal customers—not the public at a for-profit company not in healthcare or music business with <15% travel., $45k+/yr. + benefits, within to 5 miles from my home by [date.]
  • Relocate: no
  • Job Titles: Project Manager, Marketing Manager, Creative Services Manager
  • Direction: Seeking the ideal job (for the first 5 months) until [date]; then after [date], seek B or C jobs at ($35k+/yr. offers.) Get up daily at 8:00am. Job search/network: 9:30am-3:00pm. Read 3:00-3:30pm, & gym 3:30-4:30pm M-Thur.)
  • Focus: Doing the action items below to achieve your Goals. Take a few minutes out of your day to find positivity, and you will find yourself having less stress and an open mind towards your job hunt. Think of this job transition as an adventure & about all those that are supporting me. Be thankful as opportunities arise and things go well.
  • 4-5 Strengths/Unique Selling Points on Me:
  • B & C Level Job Options:

Action Items:

1) Watch or read The Secret. Consider doing a career assessment.
2) Set up regular reminders in your calendar such as:
Daily – Reading
Weekly – Certify for unemployment pay.
Weekly – Apply for 3 jobs (or whatever the minimum is for your state). See WEEKLY REMINDER* example below.
Weekly – Post something helpful to your LinkedIn wall—for example, events, articles, or job openings.
Monthly – Decide which networking mixers to attend during the next month.
Every other month on a Friday – Post reminder about job search on your Facebook and LinkedIn walls. If you’re a Twitter user, tweet this as well. Samples:
a. “Hope everyone is having a good week. Just an update on my job transition. I’m still seeking a full time marketing or graphic design job in the greater Denver area in case you hear of any openings. Thank you.”
b. (Alternate): “Happy Friday! The job hunt is going well–I’m finding and have applied for some good positions and am networking like crazy. Just a reminder, I’m still seeking introductions to recruiters and opportunities in marketing or graphic design in the greater Denver area. Any referrals would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!”
One Off Dates – Log the dates you need to reevaluate and possibly move to your next alternate choice for positions from your Action Plan above into your Calendar.

*WEEKLY REMINDER:
Every MONDAY:
– Login & manually run a fresh search at www.creativegroup.com to see what jobs they have.
– Check Craiglist (http://nashville.craigslist.org/search/mar?query=+ AND http://nashville.craigslist.org/search/jjj?is_parttime=part-time) AND Monster.com for job postings.
– 2nd & 4th MONDAYS, see AAF (American Advertising Federation) board – www.aafnashville.com/jobs AND these 3: http://part-time.jobs.net | nashvillechamber.com | https://beta.governmentjobs.com
– 1st & 3rd MONDAYS, manually check Career Transition Group’s LinkedIn Group – http://www.linkedin.com/groups?jobs=&gid=881437&trk=anet_ug_jobs AND Vanderbilt’s site – https://vanderbilt.taleo.net/careersection/.vu_cs/mysearches.ftl
– Daily, as usual, see emails from those where alerts are set up to email me: LI (LinkedIn) groups, Indeed, professional associations, beyond.com.

Other job postings:
– www.simplyhired.com
– http://www.jobalot.com
– Surf my target co’s web sites.

READ:
MarketingNews magazine
underconsideration.com/brandnew
sethgodin.typepad.com
prdaily.com

3) Take an online free webinar such as http://premium.linkedin.com/jobsearch/webcasts.html to familiarize yourself with how LinkedIn currently works.
4) Establish a relationship with a Career Coach at your local Department of Labor or a recommended life coach.
5) Update: Elevator Speech, Exit Statement, Resume’, html Resume’, LinkedIn Profile & status, interviewing SARs (Situation/Action/Result), Strengths/Questions/Tell Me About Yourself sheet, References page
6) Set up folders on your computer. Create (or update), and assemble all templates, scripts, etc.
7) Print some resume’s (run 10 copies to keep on hand and use as needed) and business cards (start with 150).
8) Change your “LinkedIn Headline,” and check your LI Preferences.
9) Make your Target Company List.
11) Get recommendations; then request meetings to get set up with 2-3 headhunters (independent recruiters.)
12) Create, then start using 2 Excel documents (Job Search Log and Networking List) and your scripts/templates to start networking and tracking daily action items.
13) Set up, reactivate (or turn off filters that automatically trash) regular job posting alerts from indeed.com, and a few top sites like beyond.com or glassdoor.com/Job/jobs.htm.
If your city has a career transition group (for example: http://tinyurl.com/nashcareer) with regular job postings email blasts–be it through their LinkedIn group, yahoo groups, or just email messages–sign up for those.
14) Update your online resume’ at indeed.com, careerbuilder.com, your outplacement service’s site (for example RightEverywhere.com) if you have one, and while you’re there, update your profile. Post your resume’ at any association sites.
15) Regularly check job postings at professional organizations’ sites. Or even better, set up a job filter at those sites so you get an alert by email.
16) Invite some of your closest colleagues to lunch. Start the Targeted Networking process (which we’ll discuss in a later post). Use Facebook or email to individually (as much as possible) alert your friends of your job search. Google around, and compile a list of regular networking events.
17) Stay abreast of news in your industry.
18) Volunteer:
a. With an association in your field.
b. Occasionally with events that have to do with your field (ex.: Podcamp, Barcamp).
c. If you have time, volunteer a couple of times a month or so with a local organization of your choice. See volunteermatch.org.

Just a reminder, if you have family, friends, or colleagues that are on the job hunt, please share this blog with them. Don’t miss the next topic in this series.

MUCHO MONDAYS – Before You Cross The Border

Getting Started, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

planning, assessment, interests
Photo by JP Morgan Chase

So. Either you’ve lost your job, or you’re thinking making about a change. As important as it is to get crackin’ on making things happen, it’s a good idea to make sure you don’t need any course correction. In other words, is the work you’re doing or seeking what you’re good at or what you really like doing? Is your personality type suited for the job you want? After all this is the perfect time to take a step back and evaluate.

Being conscientious about matching up what you really are passionate about with the job you’re seeking will help you be more satisfied in your work life and make for a longer term career versus simply job sampling. So take some time to get quiet, think, and do some research. You can start with these web sites: www.bls.gov/oco and www.acinet.org. Also read trade journals, talk to people in the profession, and search the web.

Read 48 Days To The Work You Love (see linked image at bottom). Author Dan Miller encourages you to find out what you really are passionate about and make THAT your career. While this concept is challenging and somewhat idealistic, it’s a basic one to consider at this stage. Steve Jobs (Apple) said it so well in a quote I saw just today. “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.”

A career assessment is also a good idea. I took The Birkman First Look several years ago. See if a Career Coach at your local Department of Labor can help you find and take such an assessment. There are also some free and low cost tools. One is O*Net Interest Profiler (onetcenter.org/IP.html), and you can also check out the book (see linked image at bottom) (or online [strengthsfinder.com] version of) Strengths Finder 2.0 by Tom Rath. Additionally, there are many other resources along this line at www.quintcareers.com/career_assessment.html. These are good ways to learn more about yourself in relationship to your career interests, but always use the results as a loose guideline, and temper them with your best judgment.

Once you’ve got some fresh clarity about what kind of work best suits you, spin your resume’ and elevator speech in support of that. Then, you will begin to focus and brand yourself as a competent _______ (fill in the blank for you) as you being your job search.

MUCHO MONDAYS – Hot Tamale: 7 Priorities After Your Layoff

Getting Started, In Transition, , , , , , , ,
layoff, priorities, career, job loss, peace of mind, mucho Mondays, unemployment, recovery, job search
Photo by T.W. Collins

Just a reminder, if you have family, friends, or colleagues that are on the job hunt, please share this blog with them. Starting today, Memorial Day, I’m kicking off MUCHO MONDAYS, a 9-part weekly series derived from the content of my forthcoming book. Spice up your Mondays, and make the most of your job search for the week!

Chair throwing, keying someone’s car, blowing something up. If you’re laid off, these and many other emotions may run through your head in the first few days. And as satisfying as these may be, it’s always more practical to process through your feelings and get your priorities identified and covered. This can give you peace of mind and a place to start your journey into your next opportunity. Let’s look into some of the top things you can do to start cutting through the cloud of thoughts swirling through your head and begin taking your first steps.

1. Unemployment Benefits – Finances should be a hot priority. Severance pay or not, if you were separated for a qualifying reason (no misconduct, you didn’t quit, etc.) file immediately for your unemployment benefits.
2. Budget – Make a temporary budget based off your new income, factoring in income from any investments, rental properties, or side business in addition to your unemployment pay.
3. Insurance – There’s no “off-the-hook since you’re in transition” with an emergency room visit or expensive diagnosis. So I never recommend just winging it without insurance until your next job. You can try to get on your spouse’s policy, choose a policy on your own (a local broker like Dudley Carter 615-415-4328 or perusing a site like www.healthinsure.com/group_carriers/fortisassurant.aspx can help you with this at no extra cost), or if you’re not married, check healthcare.gov for many options (with the government paying part of your monthly premium in most cases based on your estimated income for the next 12 months). Another option is companies like Cowan Benefits that you can find through the COBRA coverage from your current employer. They can help you find a similar plan usually at a lower cost.
4. Mental Health – Right out of the gate, you probably feel shocked, unappreciated, angry, etc. It’s a good idea to talk to someone besides your spouse, partner, or best friend about these emotions and work through them in order to “get the chip off your shoulder.” Ask for time with your pastor or a Stephen Minister (Google “Stephen Ministers” + your city to find churches who can get you in touch with one.), and feel free to meet as regularly as you need. Further, you can Google for job search support groups in your area.
5. Physical Health – Staying fit is not only good for your body but your mind, mood, and attitude as well. Take this opportunity to start exercising regularly (even if it’s just walking for 30 minutes daily). And keep up the good work if you already have a fitness routine.
6. Career Coach – Establish a relationship with a Career Coach at your local Department of Labor or a recommended life coach. This person can give you valuable advice on your Action Plan, Resume’, and current insight into all things job search as you begin to have questions.
7. Elevator Speech – Very soon at a party, family function, mixer, etc., you’ll have to answer the question, “What do you do?” Craft this 30 second schpiel that will cover your background, key things at which you’re successful, and a few top job titles to represent what you’re seeking and help people begin to keep you in mind as they hear of job openings.

Don’t miss the next topic in this series. Sign up for this blog HERE or at the upper right of this page to be alerted via email!