Who do you know?

 

So, you’ve been using the power of YES to reach out to people. That’s positive networking and it is key to finding a new job. It’s all about who you know. How many applications have you sent into companies with no response? Some people have sent 100’s.  You must get in front of the hiring managers and LinkedIn is a great place to do that.  How to find more people to connect to?

1.     Research companies within a commutable radius of your home.

2.     Find the hiring managers at those companies and send them a connect.  Most people are nice and will accept a connection. 

3.     Follow up with a quick elevator pitch about you. 

This may not always work but it’s a quicker way to get in front of Manager/Director/VP than going through their application process.

The power of YES... and

 

When I’m recruiting on social media, I’ll ask for someone to connect to me and if I can send the job description. Occasionally, I get a NO. It doesn’t happen that often but when it does, I think about the power of YES. You can open your network, develop more friends, meet your new boss with YES.

Think about this - If you’re not interested and happy in your job you can always say, “Yes, please send it, although, I'm  currently very happy at my job.” Who knows the job could be an amazing fit if not you just made a new connection/friend. Use YES, and.

By using YES, and - It keeps the connection open and creates a positive interaction.  Positive YES networking can get you a job, a spouse, a new friend, a business associate. It opens your world to new people and ideas.  Say YES.

Salary Swing Dance

 

So, California passes a law stating as an employer you can’t ask salary history which is supposed to protect the future employees from losing money and unfair discriminating practices. From my understanding the company can ask salary expectations. Most people believe that it’s against the law for me to ask salary expectations.   I’m a recruiter working with multiple companies and a variety of salary ranges. I’m also not the employer.  The CA rule has been making difficult for recruiting due to this misunderstanding. 

It’s like this weird salary dance between candidates and me.  I’m the in between – the person negotiating to make both parties happy, the company and the candidate with the offer. Usually, I’ll get a range but occasionally the person won’t give me one which makes it awkward to work with them because every time I present a job it’s another guessing game and we're dancing around the salary. It's exhausting. 

Hey candidates, take advantage of a recruiter looking to negotiate a great salary for you – give them your expectations for salary! Keep it easy! They will get you more money.  It’s all in the same realm of questions we ask about, commuting, remote work, healthcare, vacation, salary etc. For a recruiter is just another item on our check list to make sure you take the offer – if you get an offer.

Moving

Moving a house and an office is nerve -wracking. I read a lot about moving before we decided to move, and we did most everything recommended but I realize now we should have done more --

Get rid of more stuff before you move. We got rid of a lot, but we also moved a lot of stuff we could have left.  After the move we donated a truck load to Salvation Army and our trash guys are saints for all the trash they haul out weekly.   

Unpacking takes a lot of time. It’s not just about unpacking the boxes it’s about where the stuff goes and figuring out a new system. I have moved stuff around several times much to our kid’s frustration. Their snack drawer got moved twice!

Setting up an office in the new home – this took a lot of thought and I still don’t have it right. I like my location and my view out the window, but my storage and desk are not big enough. Again, new location, new layout means new desk, new storage and new habits. I’m still working the kinks out.

TEAM

Years ago, with my business coach Tony, we defined our companies version of team. It’s a pretty good definition and holds up today be it your home team or work team - 

A group of people who function together in an extraordinary way – who trust one another, who complement each other’s strengths and compensate for each other’s limitations, who have common goals that are larger than individual goals, and who produce extraordinary results.

Prep List for Dinner out with a Potential Boss

Get a haircut, polish your shoes and clean up your nails.  Do whatever you need to do to look highly presentable.

Turn your phone to mute.

Remember your table manners.

Smile and relax this is supposed to be a nice social experience.   

When ordering food keep it simple with minimal to no substitutions.

Be polite to the wait staff. Nothing says arrogance like being nasty to the people serving you.

Only order an alcoholic drink if the potential boss orders one. Then keep to one drink max – it is a business meeting.

Let your potential boss lead the conversation but have a few good questions to ask.

Enjoy the experience and get to know your potential boss. Remember you want to find out if you can work with this person as much as they want to find out about you. My theory on dinners is they are making sure that if you all are stuck in an airport for 6 hours you get along well! 

Asking for advice – There is an art in asking for advice and maybe these tips will help.

Call during normal business hours.  Ask if it’s a good time to talk.

Once you’ve got my attention – LISTEN. Stop talking and start listening and write down the advice I’m giving. I can’t tell you how many people don’t take notes and then expect me to repeat myself again when they call back days later. There is nothing wrong with taking notes – take them!

Be humble, gracious and polite.

If you don’t like the advice, don’t argue with me about it. You asked -  I gave you my opinion. Take it and use it or don’t use it. Or just use what works for you – it’s your job search.

Don’t assume I’m a miracle worker – it’s you who must do the hard work finding a job.  Most people don’t get placed by a recruiter -they have to find their own job. 

Salary Negotiation Tips

Focus on your value, not what you need or greed.

If you don’t have much of a work history, you need to be very flexible with salary. Employers don’t want to pay a lot of money to teach.

Pay attention to your tone. Attitude and tone can convey a lot during negotiations.

Research what the job value is online. Keep in mind the online salary tools are national averages.

Be honest with your salary if asked directly. Also, be honest about your expectations and when people ask salary they are typically asking base salary.

Don’t take the negotiations personally. It’s a business deal.

Consider other perks beyond base salary -- benefits, extra vacation, free meals, flex-time, stock, bonus etc. This only works for small to medium sized companies. Too big of company = little wiggle room. They are harnessed by Human Resources.  

Ask for an offer in writing.

You can counter offer but be prepared to hear no.

Most companies want an answer to an offer within 24 – 48 hours. It’s easy to stretch it over the weekend if the offer comes the end of the week. If you are putting off answering them is it the right job for you?

If you only have one offer and it’s not great but you need to get to work, it is OK to take the job. Some of the best educational experiences are from bad experiences.  Work is work it’s not called play. If you can find a job you can “play” at, you are one of the lucky ones. Most people understand that work only partially fulfills your life. You must find other ways at times to be happy. Work is not always flowers and fairies. You can learn anywhere and then take that knowledge with you when you move later.

Do not take an offer and then not show up because you got a better offer somewhere else. SoCal is smaller than you think and word does get around. Don’t burn bridges. 

What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork. – Pearl Bailey

What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork. – Pearl Bailey

Paper work is what I keep hearing is the most horrible aspect about looking for a job. That and the lack of “love” you get from the hiring managers and many recruiters. Quite a few people I’ve talked to say that they submit resumes, write letters, email and call and never hear back from anyone. They get dead air.

I realize that people are busy however, I think common courtesy has been thrown out the window. Please get back to the people who are interested in your company. If you are a recruiter, please remember the long term ramifications of being rude and not calling back or following up after you’ve interviewed people. We all mess up and forget to call or put it on the back burner for too long. Let’s make the time to develop relationships and make the time to show respect and courtesy to the people that are trying to work for you and/or your clients. 

The Art of Listening

I have a friend who loves to talk and offer advice and often very unsolicited advice.  It poses a problem because often she’s not listening so the advice, as much as it is heartfelt, doesn’t always work because she wasn’t listening to begin with, so the response is off. I have another acquaintance who doesn’t listen at all she just talks and talks AND talks. I can’t get a word in.The art of listening is lost on both of these people. I think they both mean well and are kind but actually listening and having a two-way conversation seems to be missed in most of their communications. I think listening is an art and here a few tips:

Eye contact is necessary – look the person in the eyes 

Be aware and attentive – show interest. Nod your head, lean in, show some interest. 

Don’t interrupt – wait for a pause before you jump into the conversation.

It might not be your idea, opinion or even a fact but relax and take it in.  It’s OK to disagree just do it graciously. 

Don’t try to think ahead about your response because you’ll miss half of what they say.

If everyone tried to actively listen to each other I think there would be less communication problems. 

I already sent it.

I had two people in two days’ time ask me for help with their job searches after they’d sent their resume to a company. They wanted me to call the company directly to pitch them because they didn’t get a response from sending in their resume. This happens often, the black-hole of resumes - no response from emailing a resume. It goes into a virtual pile of paperless resumes. 

Sadly, I can’t help. Once you send a resume you are considered a "prior" by human resources. This means that I basically have no claim to your resume anymore as my candidate; you become the company's. Occasionally, if they are a client we’ve been working with for years and if they’ve over looked you, they are fine with us presenting you. However, if we don’t have that relationship and you are in their system – they don’t want to talk to me let alone pay a commission.

Recruiters work for our clients. As much as we try here at TAG to help every candidate possible (the person applying for the job) we can’t. Our client, the company, their needs come first. We find and fill what they need. It’s one of the rough edges of recruiting. I’d love to start a candidate coaching/teaching division one of these days so we can help out people a bit more, but Dave prefers to stay focused on recruiting – which is fine. He’s still here working daily so we try to stick to what works for him.  

So, we recruit and work to find the proper candidates for our clients. If you do need help on your own, this blog is a good place to start! 

Cringe worthy pictures on LinkedIn

Ugh – what is happening to LinkedIn? Lately when I go on it, I cringe, waiting for whatever tasteless picture pops up in my feed. Being a recruiter, I am connected to a lot of people, professional people, but, I’m starting to worry about some of these "professional" people.

Last week the first picture that popped up was an XX, a larger guy with without a shirt. Right after that, a cow jumping on a trampoline and then a silly math problem to answer. Today, it was a dead dog – I saw that horrible image twice, then a girl in a bikini and the final straw that sent me complaining to customer service was a girl in a top that was showing her nipples. Really, is that image okay at work?  If that was put up in the break room would that be acceptable? Maybe at a bra or lingerie company, but not at most professional establishments.  

There is a lack of professionalism happening on LinkedIn. Getting a point across can still be tasteful and professional. I don’t want a bloody, dead dog picture to interrupt my day at work. I see enough bikini clad gals and topless guys at the beach when we go surfing. Can we please keep it a bit more professional? I wonder what will be up there next? 

Shut Up About Free Lunch

I have had the exact same conversation at least a hundred times now. Millennials want a lot - 

-they want more vacation time

-they want matched 401ks

-they want open communication

-they want free thinking 

-they want 'horizontal atmospheres', whatever that means

-they want a homey atmosphere at work

-they want 'work-life-balance'

*All within work week that's less than 40 hours

I have always said that work in moderation is the best kind of work. Pick something you love and try to make a living at it. I tell our intern that she may be at a desk for the next forty years so she might as well be comfortable with it. But these kids are asking for too much. They want the benefits of being retired without ever having to really work for any of it. 

All of the benefits can be achieved, but not without hard work. Disclosure. The word 'millennial' seems to have become more synonymous with lazy and less associated with the year in which someone was born. Which was of course the original intention. If you are numerically a millennial, you may not be one in attitude. There's a difference. 

Now go find something you love and make some money at it! 

Simple Advice

I was recently asked to speak in my son’s classroom about what colleges want to see in students and what employers want when hiring. I did a bit of research on what colleges want and presented that. My main focus was what employers want for their employees because I hear daily what they do not want. Many of my clients are frustrated with their young hires. Oddly, I wrote about this last March. But I think I need to go over it again. So, young people heed this simple advice because it will help you get and hold on to a job. 

Ethics – Show up on time ready to work and get the work done.  Don’t mess around on your social media all day. You are there to work and you are getting paid for it. It’s unethical to accept a paycheck for no work. 

Initiative – Or, the ability to act on your own. Figure it out and get it done. Don’t use the excuse, “No one told me how to do it.”  If you do not know how to do something, ask and listen to the answer. 

Communication – Mostly importantly, good communication skills. Speak and write in complete sentences. Don’t write and speak in “text talk” or acronyms. Look at people when they are talking to you so they know you are listening.  

Good manners and social skills – Learn how to shake hands. Be polite and kind.  Do not cuss at work; it is not professional. Put your phone down when talking to a co-worker and engage in the conversation.  

I know you are reading this and thinking, really? You'd be surprised. I hear from my clients daily that these young workers are lacking these basic, simple skills. We might be in a digital age but unless you are programming all day, you need to learn how to engage with the people around you and do it well. 

Speaking Dave

Dave, the owner and founder of The Ankenbrandt Group has his own language. He speaks and writes in quotes and short clips.  Sometimes it’s a challenge to take his thoughts and get them written down in understandable English. It’s like his brain is going too fast to get it all on paper. I try to make it all work for TAGBit’s  so I thought I’d give you a peak at how I transform his quotes and clips -  

Below is copy he sent me for October’s TAGBit's and his column Ank’s Angle. This is what he sent me –“Fall is upon us and winter is coming – we need rain - and Halloween is right around the corner. There will be a tomorrow – sure wish that we had leaders in this good old US of A…Seems the problems just keep stacking up. Had a boss one time – if there was a problem you would had to come up with a solution. Back in the day when people had manners.. Maybe go back to those days….”

And this is what I turned it into – “Fall is upon us, winter is coming and Halloween is right around the corner. There will be a tomorrow, but I sure wish that we had leaders in this good old U.S. of A. It seems the problems just keep stacking up for our “leadership”. I had a boss at one time who taught me if there was a problem you would have to come up with a solution but that was back in the day when people had manners, good work ethics and respect.  Maybe we should go back to those days….”

I’d leave it in the original form but then we get too many people calling us telling us we have typos and grammatical errors in our newsletter.  There really is only so much explaining we can do so I change it but still try to capture the essence of Dave. 

Take me off!

We send out an email list almost monthly. The list is taken from our database of candidates and clients we've talked to. We don’t buy lists we don’t send out spam. If you've sent us a resume or have corresponded with us, that is how we got your email address. We keep great records and we know when you want off our newsletter.  Each time we send out TAGBits we get a report on who wants off and we make a note in your file and take your email address off the list.

Understandably we all get too much email, but it’s not very forward thinking to have us take you off the list. You’re better off just deleting our emails and letting us think you’re reading them. When working with a recruiter you want to nurture a relationship not cut it off.  Who do you think gets called first for a job? It’s not just the person that fits well, it’s the person who has kept in touch, who occasionally reads our emails and responds.  We champion the people we like.  Yes, playing favorites is part of the game so think and act like a favorite.  

Why You Didn't Get The Job.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) had an article in it about “Didn’t get the job? You’ll  never know why”.  It was an article telling you that you’ll never know what you did wrong because no one wants to be sued for telling the truth. I’m going to tell you why you didn't get the job.

1. You didn't prepare well.

2. You never sold them on why you should work there. Which means you didn't prepare well.

3. You didn't know your resume and your background well. 
(Yes, you need to remember the years you worked there. Saying, “It was long ago, I don’t remember” is a lazy response when you’re interviewing. You didn't prepare well.)

4. You did something like wear too much cologne/perfume, looked ill kept, had bad breath, wore the wrong thing or forgot your resume. Check the company's website for their corporate culture (how to dress) to learn how to fit in. Bring a resume.  Again - you didn't prepare well.

• Got the hint? Prepare well. Know the company and know yourself! Sometimes the chemistry is just off - it happens -  but if you found a great job at a great company that's a good fit and you blew the interview, it's because you didn't prepare well.

To learn how to prepare well check out this video from Dave.

LinkedIn Recruiter Connects

Last month, one of my business associates sent me a note about constantly getting contacted on LinkedIn by recruiters. I thought her comments on what they are doing right and wrong are relevant to anyone trying to expand their network on LinkedIn.  Here are Bridget’s thoughts, including a compliment to me. Always have to keep those in right? She wrote:

You know I think you're the cat's meow as a recruiter, but have you noticed how some of your kin in your industry are not as savvy as they should be when it comes to using LI (LinkedIn) to recruit?

This year, I've come in contact with three recruiters who have no previous connection to me, yet they've sent me canned candidate search e-mails via the "InMail" feature, and they're usually mis-categorized as an "expertise request."  The most recent one sent me this long, chatty request to reply to her to inquire directly about and available position at her company. I responded right away, since she specifically asked me to get back to her with a time when she could call me to tell me more about the opportunity. I hear nothing back for two days, and then she replies with a single link to the position on their website.

The sad thing is, these recruiters were legit - in my case, all of them were HR department employees of the companies with positions to fill. Just a little anecdote for you that illustrates how the poor homework isn't always the fault of the candidate, LOL.

Some common issues I've noticed with recruiters using LinkedIn:

1. Spelling/grammar errors. Really?  If I'm taking the time to spell-check and punctuation-check an inquiry before I hit send, why can't they? 

2. Improper use of InMail. Only premium or enterprise account holders have unlimited InMail access - That feature gives you the ability to e-mail LI members without having to clear the hurdle of getting a connection first. The rest of us regular folk have to purchase the right to *send* InMail, so when we *receive* one, we tend to take it seriously. If you're a recruiter using InMail to attract a candidate, don't waste our time if you don't intend to contact us or formally ask for a resume. In addition, you're not asking me for my "expertise" or a "consulting request." If you can't find the right category to enter on the drop-down menu of the InMail recipient's contact preferences, don't use InMail. Make the connection request and scrap the generic LinkedIn greeting for a proper, personal introduction and request to connect.  

3. LinkedIn "party fouls." If you’re a recruiter that keeps lurking our profile and your settings aren't set to "anonymous," we can see the last 5 days worth of profile views without paying for a premium account. Quit being a creep and either make a connection request and CONTACT us, or stop stalking us! Seriously, it just gives a hungry job seeker a false sense of hope when you re-visit the profile, but take no action. :-)

4. If you are a recruiter who has already taken the time to become a first-level connection, ask for a resume, and perhaps even invite that connection to become part of the interview process, don't turn into a jerk the moment the candidacy process hits a wall or favors someone else. Case in point: I once had a recruiter "court" me from initial connection through five (YES, FIVE) in-person and phone interviews with her company, only to become a total cyber-ghost, failing to return any e-mails or calls about my status. 

I compare this to online dating. Sure, it's considered only slightly rude if you don't respond to a "wink" from a potential mate, but if you've taken the time to talk over e-mail/phone, or maybe even meet for a first date, it's rather tactless to vanish without a trace if you're just not feeling the love after the first meeting.  A simple, "Sorry, I think you're nice (sharp candidate), but I don't think we're a match (the right fit for what my hiring manager needed)," will suffice.

[Check out this video on You Tube - http://youtu.be/Ba6Igu1MvE0http://youtu.be/Ba6Igu1MvE0. It’s a funny parody on a Gyote song about lack of recruiter love.] 

Thank you. That concludes my little LinkedIn gripe of the day. :-) I'm sure you're not guilty of these moves, right? LOL

My response to Bridget: "Love your comments! I get a lot of candidate complaining about lame recruiters and how they use LinkedIn. Me, I’m just super direct on it – asking for help and stating exactly why.   I might check a candidate out twice but that’s it.  I think Dave has instilled in everyone over here to respect the candidates even though we don‘t work for them. Eventually they may become a client and/or a great source for information. Bottom line treat people with respect and kindness and it will come back twofold!"

Multitasking Mama shops while working

I read an article about sitting too much and the blogger doing business while hiking instead of sitting.

Now, Hiking during a business meeting is serious multitasking and it got me thinking about how much I multitask. I multitask often and in fact I had a multitasking lunch today. I needed some warmer clothes since the temperature out here in sunny SoCal is below 60 degrees and I’m freezing.

Problem, I hate to shop.  

A few weeks ago a friend of the firm, Ralphie, asked me to meet him at South Coast Plaza for a business meeting/shopping trip. At first I thought he was crazy, who shops while working? But I went ahead and met him. I would never have thought that you can combine a trip to the mall and business, but it worked. Meeting at the mall is so convenient! Yeah you’re all thinking duh, but seriously I hate to shop and I avoid malls at all cost. 

So, today being cold won out and I did it again. I met one of my clients at the Nordstrom café. We ate, chatted about business, and I got my clothing! It seems so simple but I like simple and I like multitasking. I’m thinking maybe even the hiking while working thing could work for me. I should add it to my multitasking repertoire. I walk every morning and maybe one of these weeks I can incorporate a business meeting in my daily walk! Be warned: I do walk far and fast! 

Advice to the young professional

I've been working as a mentor for a local universities and I help coach our client’s kids before they head out to find their “real job”. I’m finding a few trends with the young professionals that need to be changed.

• To meet someone stand up straight, look them in the eye and shake hands.
• Sit up straight during the meeting don’t slouch and, again, look the person in the eye. 
• Don't chew gum.
• Don’t play with your pen, paper, or anything else your hands find. It's distracting.
• Turn your phone off or silence it.  Better yet, leave it in the car.
• Unless you have a photographic memory (being very sarcastic here), take notes during the meeting. It shows interest.(You know what, even if you have a photographic memory, take notes.)
• Show up to meet your interviewer dressed professionally. You don’t have to show up in a three piece suit but ditch the back pack, jeans and hoodie. You need to look like I can take you to meet a client.
• Ladies – do not wear “hooker heals” to a business meeting. If you love your high platforms, make sure they are on the conservative side, or at least the rest of your outfit is. Business dress is not the same as night club dress.
• Polish your shoes, brush your teeth, and wear minimal amounts of perfume/cologne.
• If you are going to a lunch or dinner, brush up on your table manners. Yes, the basics like putting your napkin in your lap and what fork to use when.
• Always send a thank you note after you've met with someone.

All of this seems simple, but it's surprising what some of the young professionals think is professional nowadays.  Recent grads, my final words of advice to you: keep it simple, be polite and show your interest in whoever you are meeting with!