Relationships are the Key to Success when it comes to Finding that Perfect Career!
Posted: 12.03.2015
An Article by Donna Messer
I’ve always loved words, and often create acronyms that help my audience remember how to achieve the goals they set for themselves – Relationships is one of those acronyms.
Recognize the importance of trust.
Elevate your awareness to the needs of others.
Listen carefully, and act on what you hear.
Activate your memory and dig deep for possible alliances.
Take time to build a rapport between you and your colleagues.
Investigate potential common denominators, we like those who are like us.
Offer to share resources, both personal and professional.
Never back away from misunderstanding, negotiate and create new awareness.
Support new ventures take time to create a bond.
Handle new introductions with care; give both sides opportunity to speak.
Identify common goals, similar attitudes and feelings.
Perception is not necessarily reality, be open to other opinions.
Standardize your methodology for building relationships. Develop a template.
Once you’ve got your relationships in place you need a set of skills to help you find that perfect job.
Planning: Develop a SMART approach (Specific, Measurable, Action-oriented, Realistic, Time-bound). This should be your action plan to find that career opportunity.
Research: Research organizations and associations that could be relevant to your job search; find out which ones might work for you and then volunteer! Ask questions, find out who belongs and at what level they are in their career. Do your homework. Know with whom you are dealing. Research every possible opportunity within the organization or association. Keep your eyes and ears on the news, current events, and local developments. Be aware, career opportunities are not always advertised.
Self Promotion: Learn to promote yourself effectively. Understand your features and benefits (your strengths and how to use them) and learn how to express them.
Communications: Learn to communicate effectively. Good communication skills are invaluable in any situation. Be articulate, concise, enthusiastic, honest and open. Use language with which you are comfortable, but make sure it is powerful. Don’t forget the other side of communicating: listening. This is as important as speaking. Don’t make the mistake so many people do. Rather than listening, they spend their time thinking of the next thing they are going to say, thus taking virtually nothing in at all.
Think Creatively: Learn to solve problems and maximize your opportunities with innovative ideas. Rarely does an answer present itself in back and white. You have to assemble it, create it, and think it through.
Follow Through: Follow through on your commitments, both to yourself and others. A good referral or piece of advice only becomes activated into help when you follow it up.
Record Keeping: Take full and accurate notes. Otherwise, you will never remember what you’ve committed to do. Keep lists, schedules, cross reference files. Write reminder notes about people you’ve met on the back of their business cards. Remember to keep your business cards in your right pocket and the collected cards in your left pocket, this way you don’t give out someone else’s card.
Organization: Organize yourself: your thoughts, your notes, your files and your time. This takes time in the short run, but will save you tenfold in the long run. Use a good data base management system, organize by category and use codes for easy identification.
Teamwork: Work hard for others and the rewards will come back to you ten times over. Donna Messer is an author, speaker and coach. Her book “Effective Networking Strategies is a Canadian Best Seller. Donna travels throughout North America sharing her contacts and building ethical, effective relationships. To connect with Donna – www.connectuscanada.com
I’ve always loved words, and often create acronyms that help my audience remember how to achieve the goals they set for themselves – Relationships is one of those acronyms.
Recognize the importance of trust.
Elevate your awareness to the needs of others.
Listen carefully, and act on what you hear.
Activate your memory and dig deep for possible alliances.
Take time to build a rapport between you and your colleagues.
Investigate potential common denominators, we like those who are like us.
Offer to share resources, both personal and professional.
Never back away from misunderstanding, negotiate and create new awareness.
Support new ventures take time to create a bond.
Handle new introductions with care; give both sides opportunity to speak.
Identify common goals, similar attitudes and feelings.
Perception is not necessarily reality, be open to other opinions.
Standardize your methodology for building relationships. Develop a template.
Once you’ve got your relationships in place you need a set of skills to help you find that perfect job.
Planning: Develop a SMART approach (Specific, Measurable, Action-oriented, Realistic, Time-bound). This should be your action plan to find that career opportunity.
Research: Research organizations and associations that could be relevant to your job search; find out which ones might work for you and then volunteer! Ask questions, find out who belongs and at what level they are in their career. Do your homework. Know with whom you are dealing. Research every possible opportunity within the organization or association. Keep your eyes and ears on the news, current events, and local developments. Be aware, career opportunities are not always advertised.
Self Promotion: Learn to promote yourself effectively. Understand your features and benefits (your strengths and how to use them) and learn how to express them.
Communications: Learn to communicate effectively. Good communication skills are invaluable in any situation. Be articulate, concise, enthusiastic, honest and open. Use language with which you are comfortable, but make sure it is powerful. Don’t forget the other side of communicating: listening. This is as important as speaking. Don’t make the mistake so many people do. Rather than listening, they spend their time thinking of the next thing they are going to say, thus taking virtually nothing in at all.
Think Creatively: Learn to solve problems and maximize your opportunities with innovative ideas. Rarely does an answer present itself in back and white. You have to assemble it, create it, and think it through.
Follow Through: Follow through on your commitments, both to yourself and others. A good referral or piece of advice only becomes activated into help when you follow it up.
Record Keeping: Take full and accurate notes. Otherwise, you will never remember what you’ve committed to do. Keep lists, schedules, cross reference files. Write reminder notes about people you’ve met on the back of their business cards. Remember to keep your business cards in your right pocket and the collected cards in your left pocket, this way you don’t give out someone else’s card.
Organization: Organize yourself: your thoughts, your notes, your files and your time. This takes time in the short run, but will save you tenfold in the long run. Use a good data base management system, organize by category and use codes for easy identification.
Teamwork: Work hard for others and the rewards will come back to you ten times over. Donna Messer is an author, speaker and coach. Her book “Effective Networking Strategies is a Canadian Best Seller. Donna travels throughout North America sharing her contacts and building ethical, effective relationships. To connect with Donna – www.connectuscanada.com
