Know-How Exchange : Career/Training

You need to re-think your "story" so it doesn't look like a collection of unrelated short-term gigs. Instead, start at where you are today and what you can do for a company/employer and marshal the relevant facts and the experiences you've amassed to support your positioning.

Further, make sure the companies you're considering really need what you bring to the party. Look at the situation from their standpoint: What do they need? What are their objectives? What's the culture?

Then make sure you can deliver what they need. If you can't, then your "story" won't play with them. Move on.

This will require a bunch of research on your part. You'll have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince. But it will be worth it, because you won't have to do this again every year or two.

This philosophy is at the heart of the book, The Potato Chip Difference. The subtitle is: How to apply leading edge marketing strategies to landing the job you want. Link for more info: https://bit.ly/9Zq3jh

Your future employer doesn't really care about who you worked for previously, nor what you did in your other jobs. What they ultimately care about is what you can do for them now and into the future. Your past stories can inform your future stories.

What skills/knowledge do you have that your employer could greatly benefit from? How do you know it's a benefit? How can it help their bottom line? For example, working in smaller companies might install a "startup mentality" and your ability to do great things with small budgets might be a revitalizing force in an older organization that's looking to grow.

1) The presentation: A good way to get past a "job-hopping" resume is to re-package the content as a variation of "Interim Manager." You have performed various assignments for company ABC, XYZ, etc. You have given your employer a choice. You can either work on an independent project basis, in which case you cost a BIG X -- because of not receiving benefits, above all health insurance. List a couple of specific tasks you have perfomed for the family company as examples of the "independent project" type remuneration. (The family connection does not need to be flaunted, but rather honestly stated when asked about in an iterview.)

OR - the firm may choose to hire you with salary and benefits.

2) The offer: More important is showing up as a solution to a pressing problem a company has. That is really the key, and requires research, networking -- and a stroke of luck. A quick and fun read in this area is Jefffery Gitomer's Little Black Book of Connections, available at www.amazon.com, and probably at a local Kinkos as well. (He is perhaps the leading sales trainer in the U.S.)

3) A success story: One to think about is how Suzi Pomerantz, a prominent executive coach in the U.S., got her start. In the postscript below are some quotes from a chapter in her excellent book on selling professional services, Seal the Deal.

Regards,

JH
P.S:Suzi Pomerantz was teaching 3rd graders and wanted to do something else, but what?

"I started with the people I knew through family and friends. I said, "Who do you know who's in business. I don't care what business. I want to go meet with them and do an informational interview and find out who they are and what they do. . . (what) a teacher could transfer into doing. . ."

"I spent six months conducting about 150 informational interviews. Now I didn't start with 150 people. I started with 3. . . I asked for names of whom else they knew whom I could talk to -- who might be an interesting next step in my journey of exploring what's possible out there. . ." (p. 255)

She also always asked for a recommendation about something to read. Eventually a woman introduced her to the President of a coaching and development company. Impressed with her interview skills (all that practice!), he persuaded her to join his company as an executive coach, providing an intensive training and mentoring program. Later, she went out on her own.

No, I am not suggesting you become an executive coach! I am suggesting you conduct serious, and many, informational interviews to decide what kind of pressing problem is out there which you would be good at solving, and enjoy doing the work.