Skip to main content

Practice Your Pitch

Last night at a party someone asked me what I do.  And it was so easy.  I never say unemployed.  So self-esteem killing.  I've heard some people say, "I'm between jobs."  I've heard others say, "I'm engaged in a job hunt."  Follow that up with WHAT you're looking for.  Especially at a party or a networking event, you have no idea who the other person knows (including your ex-boss.)  So be sure to have a simple two sentence pitch for your new job: industry/function and maybe even a couple organization names in there.  Have of course, your card handy.  I did mine on moo.com.

And in my case, the way I'm going to refill the cash I've taken out of my retirement funds (a have 2 months cash left and then I'm out on my ass), is to do some career coaching for others.  And I love it!  I love coaching others.  I would LOVE for it to be part of my next full-time gig, however that's ok.  I think as long as on the weekends or after work I can help others find direction and focus in their lives, I'm good.  This is the thing that I could do in life for free and never miss a beat.

At the party I was chatting away about coaching and my whole body was alive, and the impact of relief I watched in the two folks I spoke to was tangible.  They were energized and relieved about dilemmas as they chatted with me.  Enjoyable feedback loop.  Good stuff.  I want that for everyone:  I want people to talk about their work at parties and be energized and energize others as they talk about their service.

And I'm so excited to get back to a full-time job.  I just want to be in an office again and bring my positive energy, my joy in working to a space with people.  I love making a workspace fun.  It's my destiny, and frankly, I'm happy today.  It all feels inevitable:  me working again soon (in a couple weeks in fact.)  AND, me coaching people on the side: and loving every minute of all this work.  Doing it in balance so I can spend quality time with friends and family.

I've let go of the past work pain completely, and am ready for a new chapter, and I affirm I bring in enough to pay off my loans, refill my retirement accounts and live modestly well.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

100 Lives in 2023

Legacy -- what I leave behind. Executive Function -- I just looked that up and have a lot more to learn about it. The concept struck me as core to this next chapter of my life that brings together all I've learned so far. Building ability to learn, resilience in the face of terror and disaster, being bendable and shaping while maintaining a spine, having a North Star -- a clear direction, a system of support, and an operating system. Getting regular feedback to dim the echo chamber effect. Regular cadence of reflection time. This is what's required in 2023 and beyond. Cal Newport is correct -- companies have put the full responsibility on each worker to determine how to orchestrate their lives. At the same time, we can work 24 hours--technology allows us to use the same device to wake up and learn what's happening halfway around the globe. Athletes have coaches who share best practices on what to do holistically step by step to optimize their performance on the court or f
Post a Comment
Read more

I make mistakes (and I bounce back)

I hate making mistakes.  I love my luxurious fantasy of perfection.  And today my humanity, my imperfection shone through fiery.  I hung in there and cleaned it up. I've learned, you just tell people you screwed up.  Say how you're going to fix it immediately, and how you're protecting it from happening going forward.  It matters little whether anybody else had anything to do with it.  Throw no one under the bus, however, you may want to bring them in on the effect the error had and get their buy in for the proactive solution for future transactions. Truth is, things move so fast that especially with transactional work, there are bound to be errors now and then.  The time it takes to be perfect would result in paralysis.  It's that magical balance between getting it done (and maybe having to beg forgiveness) and taking so long to deliver that by the time you do deliver, it's too late to be of any use (especially since you've now teed off your colleague by be
3 comments
Read more

Pamela Slim Rocks

Some of us thrive in corporations.  In fact, I'm actively looking forward to joining a company again soon, and contributing to the thriving HR group in their Talent Management (or Learning & Development) function. And, I think companies do incredible good with their profits.  Many theaters, school programs, foundations and other amazing institutions have been majority funded by the surplus revenue of the Fortune 500. I've been reading some interesting books by Gary Vaynerchuk, Tamara Erickson, Dan Schawbel and Pamela Slim. They all seem to get to this crucial point: work in the last couple years is a new deal. As individuals, we need to discover our personal brand, our unique value proposition, the problem we solve for others, and manage our careers. This applies whether we're in large companies, start-ups, or venturing on our own.  In this new world of work, those who fail to do this, are in danger of self-destructing their careers. We are all essentially driving
1 comment
Read more