Important

The Journey

CYC Chapter 13

CYC Strategy #3

13-1

CREATE a Target Company List – Your “Wish List”

CYC Strategy #4

EXPAND Industry Preferences and EXPLORE Transferable Skills

13-2

Make a list of your industry “wish list.” Even if you’ve been in the same industry for many years, list at least two other industries you’re interested in exploring.

13-3

List your transferable skills that traverse your industry selections. Include both hard and soft transferable skills.

13-4

What are some hard or soft transferable skills that you would like to develop in order to change industries? These could include an additional degree, certification, learning a foreign language, leadership development, or public speaking training.

CYC Strategy #5

ENGAGE – Professional Associations and their Resources

13-5

List the professional organizations to which you belong. Put a checkmark if you perform any leadership roles, have certifications, are involved in mentoring, and if you have future interests.

13-6

List the professional organizations that you are interested in joining and what next steps are required to be a member. Put a check in the margin beside the name if you aspire for a leadership, mentorship, or other role.

CYC Strategy #6

EXPLORE – Internships, and Graduate, Research, and Program Assistantships

13-7

Make a list of companies or organizations where you would like to do an internship. Put a checkmark beside each name after you’ve investigated next steps. If you are well into your career, make a list of continuing education courses or internships that sound interesting. Put a checkmark beside each one after you’ve investigated what the next steps would be.

CYC Strategy #8

PUBLISH – in Professional Journals, Periodicals, or Online

13-8

What types of online or hard copy reading do you do? Do you read daily, weekly, monthly, or hardly ever? List your professional and personal choices, journals, and social media. Also include names of those you’d like to add to your reading list. Put a checkmark beside any you would like to eliminate. Circle the ones you have found to be of greatest value. What did this exercise tell you about your priorities and your work/life balance?

13-9

List your published articles, blogs, books, and your speaking engagements. Put a checkmark by the ones that are represented online when you do a search.

Written Articles, Blogs, Books, Other

Speaking Engagements

13-10

List some topics on which you would like to write an article, blog, or book. Begin a computer or paper file as a repository for your ideas. Add the date you aim to complete your first written piece and submit it for publication.

Target Date Aim to Target Date Aim to

Topic Complete Draft Submit for Publication

13-11

Send your favorite author(s) a note. With minimal research you can find their contact information, even if you end up sending the note to their publisher. List below the names of your favorite authors. Put a checkmark beside them when you’ve mailed your note, and another checkmark if you receive a response.

13-12

Search yourself online and note your findings. Do this at least once a month to be aware of what others are seeing. This could be the first impression you make with a future employer. List what you can do to increase your visibility through writing, speaking, or other activities and add the date.

Online Search Notes as of ___________

13-13

Aim to Increase Visibility:

CYC Strategy #9

BUILD – Relationships with Search Firms

13-14

Research search firms by size and specialties and select ten that interest you. Include the contact’s name who introduced or referred you.

Search Firm Intro/Referral/Contact

CYC Strategy #10

VOLUNTEER – Community/National Associations

13-15

List the community organizations that you have been involved with over the past 5 years. Also begin a “wish list” of organizations you are interested in joining.

Active Community Organizations

“Wish List” Community Organizations

CYC Strategy #11

VOLUNTEER – for the Joy of it

13-16

List the volunteer organizations that you support with your time, money, or both. Which ones are you most passionate about and do you have a “wish list” of those you would like to assist?

13-17

Do you enjoy one of your volunteer organizations so much that you dream of working there in a full-time paying role? If so, what would that role look like and what would you do?

CYC Strategy #12

OPTIMIZE – Social Networking; e.g. LinkedIn

13-18

How do you currently use what is offered by LinkedIn? What has been most valuable? How many hours weekly are you willing to invest in order to bring your page up to speed?

I commit to spending _______ hours each week in order to optimize my presence on LinkedIn.

CYC Strategy #14

UTILIZE – Career Placement Office Resources

13-19

When did you last visit your career placement office? If you have graduated, when did you last contact your alumni association? What tools and resources have you found most beneficial from these organizations? If you have multiple degrees from different universities, do you have current contact information for some of your professors, mentors, administrators, or others?

Fill in the answers to the following questions:

CYC Strategy #15

MATCH – Target Companies where Employed Family Members, Friends, and Colleagues Work

13-20

Make a list of your VIPs that are already working with your target companies in order to inquire about employee referrals. Feel free to include companies that sound interesting that may not have been on your original target list.

CYC Strategy #17

NETWORK – with Those Searching for a Job

13-21

Make a list of fellow job seekers. Also make a list of those who may be considering upward mobility inside or outside their companies.

Active Job Seekers Inactive Potential Job Seekers

13-22

Research online and in-person job seeker groups to see what they’re offering. List the top five resources for both online and local groups.

Virtual Job Seeker’s Groups Local In-Person Job Seeker’s Groups

CYC Strategy #18

CONTACT – Your Employed Peers

13-23

Write down one or more employed peers you admire and respect, but haven’t met as yet. In this example, your peer is someone who has a similar role as your most recent or current role. If you’re at the beginning of your career and haven’t met your peers in other companies, write down the name of someone who is in a position you aspire to achieve. Now, reach out in an email with attached resume or handwritten note and request a 15-minute phone call. This brief introduction enables them to pass on referrals. Put a checkmark beside their name when completed.

CYC Strategy #19

ASK – How They Found their Positions

13-24

Speak to at least three people over the next week and ask them how they found their job. Write down their stories and recommendations. Continue this practice informally as often as you would like.

1)

2)

3)

CYC Strategy #20

WORK – with or Hire an Outplacement Coach or Firm

13-25

Search online for outplacement firms by location, size, and specialty. Review their websites for new resources and tools. Make note of your insights and new ideas.

Part II C: FOR EVERYONE

CYC Strategy #21

BE CREATIVE – Step Outside the Box

13-26

As you experiment and tailor the above strategies to your career, listen to your creative ideas and expand this list. The strategies in this chapter are meant to stimulate ideas for your own “designer” strategies. Share your ideas with your CYC group, mentor, coach, or trusted advisors. Allow your individual talents and creativity to guide you in adding your own unique touch to your career building experiences. As an example, some create clever computer-designed thank-you cards, while others use beautiful personalized hand calligraphy for addressing envelopes. Being creative and stepping outside the box will assist you as you personalize and expand your career-building strategies.

Creative Ideas:

CYC Strategy #22

EVALUATE – Winning Strategies

Questions and Exercises for Inquiry as You Travel on Your Journey

13-27

List your career or life experiences where you experienced a surprising gift after much effort and dedication. Perhaps you received an amazing job, a promotion, were on a state champion team, or placed in an art show.

13-28

What tools help you to persevere in times of challenge as you proceed on your journey?

13-29

List the hard or soft skills that have assisted you during challenging times. These could include stamina, resilience, work ethic, organizational abilities, technical savvy, and more. Put an “H” beside the hard skills and an “S” beside the soft skills. If you’d like to further develop any of these skills, put a checkmark beside them.

13-30

Describe a “high-class opportunity” you have had in your career or in life. As a reminder, this is when you have had two or more great opportunities given to you simultaneously and the challenge was which one to select.

13-31

What are your personally unique strategies that you feel inspired to begin today?

13-32

What ideas for new strategies do you have that require you to begin additional research and efforts today?

13-33

Of these strategies, list what new hard and/or soft skills you are required to attain in order to implement them.

13-34

List the strategy numbers (e.g., #12 or #19) that are unappealing or uncomfortable and include what’s causing your assessment. For example, perhaps you’d be embarrassed, or they’re too time-consuming, or you may not feel experienced enough to be successful.

13-35

What new skills could you learn that would diminish the discomfort just mentioned?

13-36

List the most appealing top three strategies in this chapter that you want to initiate first.

13-37

What strategies can you commit to integrating into your daily work life and career development? Networking is strongly recommended as one of your top three. Revisit this answer periodically for additional insight and potential course correction.