The first project is this site. Watch for some dramatic changes over the next  couple of months as our format changes, as we make our comments section more dynamic and add guest writers with differing opinions on a wide variety of career advancement issues.

We are also “going national” in our Career, Executive and Life Coaching ventures. Utilizing SKYPE and phone consultations, we are able to help people with their careers and life challenges anywhere in the U.S. and, eventually, in the world.

We are finishing a couple of books. We already, as you know, have several job-change books in print (found here). I am currently finishing a book called Playing Politics, on how to successfully navigate your way through a company and wind up at the top. Expected publication date is April. Our other books are books about relationships and spirituality.

We now have thousands of subscribers to this site. Expect to see many more articles and much more information now that I no longer have the pressure of a weekly column elsewhere. Thank you for your support of me both here and at ColoradoBiz Magazine over the years. I hope I can count on your continued support.

Please pass this site on to anyone you know who would like to advance their career. If you are not linked with me on LinkedIn, please invite me. I accept all invitations from individuals.

Networks are made up of people and, therefore, are fragile. They must be carefully managed. Too many people, however, “burn” their networks through one of these major networking mistakes.

1). Failure to return a favor. One young man who was in my network was trying to get into professional sports. I pulled a few strings and got him in contact with some of the top people in professional sports in Denver. It took me several hours and the calling in of several favors to do so.

Then, a couple of months later, I asked him a very small favor — to make a comment on a LinkedIn post I’d made. I simply asked him to state that he’d found me and my articles helpful. He refused for a truly absurd reason.

Needless to say, he can completely forget asking me for a favor in the future. While I would not “burn” him or say nasty things about him, I certainly won’t go out of my way to help him, either.

Rule: If someone in your network asks you to do a favor for them, do so if it is in your power to do so. If this person has helped you in the past, you are not only incredibly rude, but very foolish not to return the favor. You can become known as someone who knows the rules of networking, or as a complete jerk.

2). Stiffing someone in your network. Economic times are tough and things like defaults and even bankruptcies are common. But not paying the bill of someone in your network is incredibly foolish. You will rapidly gain the reputation of a deadbeat and others will not do business with you. Once you “stiff” someone your expectation of any confidentiality is out the window. If you must bankrupt, people will understand. But, after you are back on your feet, at the very least take care of those in your network to whom you owed money. Doing so will preserve and even extend your reputation for integrity.

3). Badmouthing an influential person in your network. People have large networks because they are generally either well-liked or well-respected. There are two, equally dangerous possibilities here.

a). You are also well connected and bad-mouth the well-connected person. This is like the old Soviet Union and America firing nuclear missiles at one another. It is Mutually Assured Destruction.

b). You are not all that well-connected. If you are not well connected and bad-mouth someone who is well connected, it is your funeral. Who is going to be believed? You, who have, maybe a few hundred connections in your network, or the person who is known and respected all over town? It just makes you look like a jerk and can destroy your chances of advancement in a community.

Either way, if you’re going to say something that isn’t nice about someone in your network, you’d better have photographs and negatives or a great deal of evidence. Otherwise, keep your big mouth shut and say nice platitudes.

4). Spreading rumors. People only like a gossip while they are listening to the gossip the gossip brings. But a gossip is never trusted. Any sensible person knows that they could be next on the chopping block. If you have had a bad experience with a business or individual personally, you may certainly state that clearly and unemotionally. But if you have not had personal experience, don’t spread it around. It just makes you look bad.

5). Posting negative information about a person or business on the internet. The difference between love and the internet is that the internet is forever. It is likely that you don’t have the technical skill to remain anonymous, even if you post anonymously. People, also, are not as good at hiding tell-tale styles as what they may think.

Besides this, it is completely cowardly to post a negative review of a business or person on the web anonymously. If you have something to say about a business or person, be a person of integrity and put your name to it.

Conversely, if you see anonymous negative reviews of people or businesses, ignore them. It could be competitors, a customer who was unreasonably demanding, or someone just trying to make trouble. Anonymous complaint postings are the scourge of the internet and should be prohibited.

6). Not following through. If you say you’ll do something, then do it or negotiate your way around it. Don’t just blow people off.

7). Burning bridges. If you have to exit a relationship, a job or a situation, do so with class. While a select few people may need to know all of the details, these people should be few and far between. A simple statement that you both needed to move on is usually sufficient. Even when negative information needs to be conveyed, convey it gently and with the best possible spin. Don’t ever burn a bridge.

8). Being a troll. Today’s political atmosphere is very charged. If your blood boils when reading a post or opinion, the temptation is to call names and rant and rave. Don’t. Logical, civil and well-thought-out responses are usually welcomed by most publications. But a rant is never in order.

Remember, just because someone disagrees with you doesn’t make that person evil…or even wrong. Regardless of how firm you are in your opinion, you have not had divine revelation or the gift of absolute knowledge. Hold opinions. But hold them lightly and with a sense of humor about them.

9). Assuming everyone holds your political or religious prejudices. I had a woman come into my office the other day who, within about 5 minutes, began demonizing a political view I happen to believe in. Many people have the mistaken belief that, just because they hold an opinion, everyone should and does hold the same opinion. This is often not the case. By spouting your religious, political or moral views, you can anger your network. I’m not saying that you can’t be yourself and make clear your positions. But don’t demonize a position that you don’t hold. Again, no one likes a Troll except other Trolls. Besides, Trolls live under bridges which is no fun at all.

10). Making it all about you. Your network should be a mutual aid society, not a group of people that you just tap at will to do your bidding.

11). Making unreasonable requests of your network. Asking your network to help you move your house is probably not reasonable. Ask a couple of friends or hire movers. Asking everyone in your network to endorse you on LinkedIn when some haven’t seen your work is unreasonable. And so on. Utilize your network, but utilize it for reasonable things and a reasonable amount of time.

12). SPAMming your network. While it is fine to let your network know what you’re doing business-wise every once in a while, a weekly or even monthly SPAM trying to sell something is a real no-no. Generally speaking, I don’t try to sell anything to my network unless they ask for my help. I let them know about events and keep them up to date quarterly on my business, but I don’t overtly sell things to them. This is a good way to have people drop out of your network.

13). Using your network for MLM or other shady ventures. I immediately disconnect from anyone who tries to get me involved in Multi-Level-Marketing like Amway or the like. I believe that MLM turns everyone into nothing more than a prospect to make money off of. I’ve seen families wrecked by these folks, as well as many friendships. The almost religious zeal of MLMers completely turns me off.

14). Sharing too much information with your network. I really don’t get the need that Millennial Generation people (and some Gen Xers) have to update their Facebook page with absurd information. “Going to the bathroom now. Should be a great relief.” One guy on Facebook who is connected to my wife went into great detail about his infant daughter’s bathroom exploits. Really. No one needs to know everything. For some, especially younger, people, the event or life experience is worthless unless they can immediately post it. Don’t bug your network this way. It is a network, not an intimate group of friends. Keep things that should be private in private.

Your network is one of your greatest assets in life. Don’t burn it and use it well. It will stand you in good stead for the rest of your business career.

The good news is that we’re all in this together.  There are fewer people than ever before who have what anyone would call a conventional career path.   The average worker changes jobs every two to three years and the typical person will also have several careers in different industries during their working life.  Meanwhile, Labor Department figures suggest that Millennial are accelerating this trend and will hold an average of 10 jobs before they turn 38.

If you’ve had a meandering career path, then the tips below will help you to tackle résumé-writing challenges.

1)    Remove jargon from your résumé

All industry specific jargon should be replaced with universally understood terminology.  A friend of mine is a Mary Kay money magnet.  She has been very successful with her sales and recently acquired “Sapphire Star Status”.  Although it’s a fantastic accomplishment, she would be better served to quantify the exact amount or percentage to goal that she sold on her résumé.

2)    Quantify your accomplishments

You can create a bridge from one industry to the next by quantifying your accomplishments. It’s not impactful enough to say that you increase sales in 2011.  Be more specific. Say instead that you “exceed sales targets by 32% in the second quarter of 2011.”  To be sure, I’m not advocating that you lie or exaggerate results. You should be keeping track of your performance.  Start right now if you haven’t.  Figures really make a résumé pop.

3)    Choose the right format

Standard chronological résumés are great tools for people with traditional career paths, but as I’ve mentioned, a non-traditional path is becoming more commonplace.   Chronological résumés list employment prominently with bullet points describing key duties under each role.  I’m going to suggest that there is a better résumé layout for an unconventional career path.

Our résumés are very effective at highlighting a candidate’s accomplishment first and foremost, rather than directing the focus to a job title or organization.  The beauty of this type of résumé is that it allows people to highlight achievements that are germane to the role that they’re applying for or industry that they’re interested in. This is a particularly useful approach when you’ve had a “tapestry” career that comprises of several disparate roles as you can customize the language of the bullet points to fit the position you’re applying for.

4)    Specify

I can’t say this enough.  When you’re writing your résumé it’s not the time to be bashful or modest.  Have you heard the saying that the squeaky wheel gets the grease?  This adage suggests that you need to make some noise about your skills and why someone should employ you. So, toot your own horn – if it’s true.  Make your résumé so complementary that you’d want to hire yourself.   Also, try your hand at story telling.  The best story always wins.  If you’re relaying how you lead a successful project then paint a clear and compelling story about why your efforts were exemplary.  Tug on a few heart or head strings so that the hiring manager will want to have you on their team.

5)    Keep it Relevant.  

For the employment section of your résumé, the heading should read “Relevant Work Experience.”  As such, you don’t have to list every job you’ve had if they are not relevant. This is especially the case if the roles are running consecutively.   Generally, my advice for people who fit the experienced non-manager category and beyond is to NOT list college employment or internships. Presumably, you’ve had much more responsible positions since then, so I’d start with your professional work experience after college.

6)    Only include degrees & certifications in the education section of your résumé

Many people with portfolio careers have a wealth of education.  I don’t really know why this is, but perhaps it has something to do with our varied interest and courage to pursue our passions.  While higher education is great, in an economic down turn excessive education experiences outside of the requirements for the position may make us look expensive.  My advice is to take off the semesters abroad and masters levels classes that didn’t result in a certification or degree. You don’t want employers to think that the job can’t afford your student loans.

In our practice, we advise our clients that your résumé isn’t chiefly important in your job search.  Instead, we advocate a networking approach to landing your next career opportunity.  That being said, you need to have a really good résumé in this competitive environment to get past HR gate keepers and to endear yourself to Hiring Authorities. That is doubly true if you have a non-linear job history. Get help if you need it.  Your résumé is the first thing that many HR Professionals and Hiring Authorities will see.  It’s like you’re front lawn.  It will be hard to sell the house if it doesn’t have curb appeal.

1). Go for substance over appearance. Sky Ridge is an absolutely beautiful facility. It looks more like a tony mall than a hospital. But appearances can be deceiving. A hospital with less flash and more competence would have been more to my liking. When you’re sitting in the E.R., you’re not concerned about the hospital’s interior decorator. You’re concerned about the competence of the doctors and nurses.

Businesses spend a great deal of money on their “branding” and “image.” While some of this is necessary, businesses should spend much more time on finding and hiring the best people for their teams. A great branding campaign will be useless if there is not also great delivery of services.

2). Don’t forget the little things. It took me hours to get a requested pillow. Blankets were also difficult to come by. And some water? Fugetaboutit! And, no, the E.R. was not busy the day I was there.

Customers judge a business on the little conveniences and courtesies that let them know they’re appreciated. Don’t make a customer beg for a “pillow” at your business.

3). Remember your mission. The mission of Sky Ridge should have been the health and safety of their patients. It wasn’t. A fairly large puddle of my blood remained on the floor for over 4 hours. Hospital personnel walked through it, and it was quite obvious. Fortunately, I don’t have any infectious diseases. But if I had, their incompetence would have tracked that disease to every patient in the Emergency Room, and, possibly spread it to the larger hospital population. Not cleaning up blood on the floor endangers the lives of everyone in an E.R.

What is your business doing that is neglecting a part of your mission? How are you endangering the loyalty, livelihoods or even lives of your customers? Don’t just walk through your “puddle of blood.” Clean it up!

4). Take care of the most important customer needs first. I’m a Type I childhood diabetic. During the 6 hours I was in the E.R., they only checked my blood sugar once, thus seriously endangering my life. Although they were reminded to do so several times, I’d hear, “OK. I’ll be right back to do that,” then never see the person again. Fortunately, I had my own insulin, blood sugar monitor and glucose tablets with me. If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be writing this article.

If you’re neglecting a vital part of your customers’ needs, they won’t be customers for very long. While they might not die, as I might have, they will certainly be dead to your business as they seek other, more attentive businesses.

5). Don’t let a temp do a mission-critical task. I found out that the nurse who was supposedly taking care of me was a rent-a-nurse. In fact, most of the E.R. was staffed by temporary personnel (more on that below.) She didn’t know the equipment or the hospital. This greatly delayed my medical care as she would frequently have to go get the one regular employee nurse and ask for help.

Temps might be quite competent at their professions. This nurse knew nursing. But they don’t know your “shop,” and can make mistakes that can cause customers to be dissatisfied. Make sure that anything mission-critical is handled by someone who is loyal to you and your business, not a temporary employee.

6). Adequate staffing is essential. For this large, suburban E.R., there were two nurses and one doctor (with another doctor there for part of the time). This was gross under-staffing.

Like many for-profit hospitals, Sky Ridge puts profits above their patients and the care of their patients. Profits are important, but keep your eye on the ball. The most important factor for business success is the satisfaction of your customers. Having dissatisfied customers will result in the closure of your business, regardless of short-term profits.

7). Communication is vital. In addition to under-staffing, the staff at Sky Ridge E.R. did not communicate well with one another. There were several professionals there, but there was no team whatsoever. Everyone was doing his or her own thing. Your staff must truly be a team and work together as one. This means continuous and effective communication.

One of the employees of the Sky Ridge E.R. told me that no one had conveyed to him vital medical information on me…and this was five hours into my stay. This is pure incompetence. Make sure that your business does not pull a “Sky Ridge.”

8). Be careful what you delegate. As I indicated, I’m a Type I Insulin Dependent Diabetic. I also had a serious medical issue that brought me to the E.R. However, I saw a doctor for about 1.3 minutes. Then my case was delegated to a Physician’s Assistant. I didn’t even see the P.A. very often…perhaps a total of 5 minutes. This was entirely inappropriate and was probably malpractice on the part of the doc.

Delegation is often appropriate. But the buck stops with you. You, as the business owner, are ultimately responsible for everything that happens in your shop. Make sure that your values, policies and wishes are being carried out by those to whom you delegate. And remember that not everything is able to be delegated. Sometimes “the doctor” needs to be in charge and on the floor.

9). Train your people in courtesy. There was one nurses’ assistant who was condescending and incredibly rude. Keep in mind that even the lowest-level people you employ, even a custodian, are ambassadors for your business. Rudeness or condescension to a customer should be a terminating offense. Also keep in mind that your customers are not always going to be sweetness and light. Train your employees to be pleasant and helpful even if your customers are having a very bad day.

10). Respond correctly to complaints. The response I got to my complaints about Sky Ridge was far from adequate. The patient advocate did everything possible to absolve the hospital of its incompetence. If someone complains about your business to you, immediately ask how they’d like to see the problem corrected, then, if possible, do what they ask. Some customers can never be pleased no matter what you do. But most people are reasonable and will respond well to a good-faith attempt to correct the problem.

11). The most essential part of a business is the personal touch. It seems to be the goal of the medical industry to dehumanize and humiliate patients. Granted. But, as a diabetic, I have seen my share of Emergency Rooms over the years. Sky Ridge was the worst. It was clear that I was only a number (or a wallet) to Sky Ridge, not an individual with needs and wants. Don’t be like this incompetent hospital. Make sure your customers feel that you are personally invested in their success and satisfaction, and not just interested in their money. As the chains monopolize more and more American business, the company that wants to both survive and thrive will make personal service to their customers a priority.

12). Most importantly — listen to your customers. The worst part of my Sky Ridge experience was the numerous (failed) attempts to start an I.V. line. Although I was quite clear about the most effective way to start a line in me (I am a difficult “stick”), my clear instructions were ignored. Finally, on the ninth stick an experienced vampire listened to me. Of course, the I.V. line went in immediately.

Medical personnel are arrogant. They rarely listen to their patients, although their patients often know their bodies best. The egregious arrogance of some doctors “trickles down” to medical personnel in general. But I’ve also seen arrogance in lots of other businesses. Granted, you know your business better than your customer. But your customer knows his or her needs much better than you do. Listen to your customer and believe what they tell you their needs are.

Needless to say, the next time I need to visit an Emergency Room, it won’t be at Sky Ridge. Keep in mind that customers talk, and disgruntled customers say more than happy ones. While no business can be perfect, keep the number of mess-ups to the absolute minimum possible and correct those that do happen. You will retain your customers, get new ones, and have a great reputation if you do.

(Calls to Dr. Steven Heinz, who is in charge of the E.R. at Sky Ridge, seeking his side of the story, have not been returned.)

By Nicole Raphael, MA

Once upon a time it was believed that you could candidly share yourself, quirks and all, with your close friends and family on Facebook, Myspace, FourSquare, Flickr, YouTube etc. and still keep your professional reputation intact at work.  This was a fine strategy if your weekend activities included a few outdoor activities, charity work and going to church.  However, it may surprise some readers that many professionals lead a double life.  Visiting social media sites certainly proves this point.  It appears that many unassuming professionals are uber-achieving superstars in the office and party-hard rock stars during the weekend.   If you fall into the rock star category, or if you haven’t taken a close look at your online reputation, then the five tips below will help you clean up your act so that your online personal brand is the picture of perfection.

1.       There is NO privacy online

The days of online anonymity are over.  We all learned from Anthony Weiner that tweeting your peter can kill your career; but now, it’s not enough to be cautious with what you post on your personal social media platforms yourself, it’s also necessary to remain vigilant amongst “social” friends as well.   Take for example the High School teacher was suspended after someone posted a Facebook picture of her with a male stripper at a bridal shower. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtBpJNpk5dQ&feature=relmfu  She was made guilty by association.  Make sure your friends and family are aware of your desire to remain discreet with what you post online. Remember: There is nowhere to hide on the internet.

2.       Ramp-up your security

Immediately set up “secure” passwords and permissions for your social sites.  Don’t make it easy for someone to cyber-stock you or invade your privacy.   The policies on social media sites are usually quite transparent and if you’re not comfortable with the level of your exposure or the uses of your data, then consider your options accordingly.   It’s important to note that the standard security settings for social sites are usually the least protective, so always try to customize the settings so that they give you the highest level of protection.  Platforms such as Facebook and have gotten progressively better at allowing you to protect your privacy from prying eyes – others will follow suit.  Read more about Facebook and privacy here.

3.       Get to know your online reputation

Have you ever Googled yourself? If not, do that now.  The most important information to note is what comes up on the first few pages in a search.  Not many people look for information beyond that.  Your online reputation is kicking butt if you appear on the first page of a Google Search at least three times.  Ignore the “All PR is good PR” adage.  You want favourable mentions to appear first and foremost.   We’ll discuss reputation damage management below.

In addition to running a Google search, pop your name into a few web-based tools that are popular with HR & hiring managers such as www.spokeo.com and www.zoominfo.com.  These paid-for services pull public records and demographic information.  For a more integrated approach, www.pipl.com is gaining popularity due to the fact that the tool considers public records, social media mentions and multimedia.

To check your personal impact on the social media world, I like to visit www.socialmention.com which judges search queries based on a variety of criteria including strength, sentiment, passion, and reach.

4.       Build your online brand

Crafting your online persona is a multi-faceted process and it differs in important ways from your in-person brand.  The three important factors in web-based personal branding are:  The way you act, the way and how often you talk, the way you present yourself.  You are actively building your brand whether you are blogging, Tweeting, updating your Facebook profile picture, or offering a comment in one of your LinkedIn groups.  The more authentic and engaging you are – the more you will attract people to your personal brand.   You also want to ensure that you’re found online because you don’t have a brand if you’re not Googleable.  One fast way to build your online reputation in your job search is to customize your LinkedIn domain so that you name appears in your URL.  For example my LinkedIn URL is: linkedin.com/in/nicoleraphael.   Go to Edit Profile.  Select Edit Public Profile.   Choose customize your public profile URL.  Input your first and last name so that your activity will come up on a Google search.

5.       Manage the Damage

Horror of horrors. In doing your Google search a picture of you at the last “Little Black Dress” party in something VERY little pops up on page one.  Or worse, a YouTube video of you bashing your employer in a *funny* but career devastating acoustic jingle went viral.    The last example actually happened.

Former Starbucks employee Chris Cristwell posted a spoof video online.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUTrJW-0xtc  As a result Starbucks fired him, so he wrote a farewell song as well. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2aquc9gYUE&feature=relmfu  I laughed out loud watching this.  But when the music stopped I thought about Chris’s online reputation.   He’s 25 now.   How long is this bit of fun going to haunt him and affect his prospects with future employers?

Social media mistakes happen every day.  The key to managing your online brand is to painstakingly monitor what is being communicated about yourself in cyberspace.  Set up a reverse search service such as Google Alerts and take quick and decisive action to eliminate untactful pictures, comment on any responses to blog postings, and remove multi-media that’s in bad taste.  You can also hire an online brand & reputation manager to build and monitor your brand.

1). Get a decent customer service department. I am a paid subscriber. But it can still take days and often at least a couple of reports of the same problem to even get a response. Even then, LinkedIn rarely fixes the problem. This is unacceptable for even the free service, much less the paid service.

2). Let people invite others they don’t know. If I’m at a regular networking event, I can go up to anyone and introduce myself. They have the freedom to respond or not respond with information. But LinkedIn operates on an absurd principle that you either have to know someone or be introduced to them to invite them. Why?

LinkedIn should immediately end the policy of having to either know someone or be introduced by a connection to someone to invite them. It doesn’t work anyway. Most of us who are skilled at LinkedIn will write a nice note to those we want to connect with, whether they know them or not. 90% of the time, my invitations are accepted. If they aren’t accepted, they are simply archived. This should become LinkedIn’s policy — that you tell someone interesting why you’d like to meet them and then invite them. Strong policies could be enacted to prevent SPAMming, but most of us know how to prevent that, anyway.

3). Install a simple text editor. Right now the only emphasis one can give in a comment or discussion is TO CAP IT. This is very old fashioned and not very much fun. Almost everyone now has a simple text editor. LinkedIn should, too.

4). Stop letting group members move discussions to jobs or promotions. This should be the duty of group owners and managers only. At this time, competitors can move any discussions to never-never land, namely, jobs or promotions. There is a notification, but getting a post moved back to discussions is a real pain, especially since most group owners don’t do a very good job of responding to requests. In this cut-throat business environment, why give my competitors the right to silence me (or me the right to silence them)?

5). Require a photo to be on LinkedIn. This would cut down on SPAMmers and frauds on LinkedIn. LinkedIn should also enforce their terms of service regarding photos, namely, no logos or icons. I like to have a picture of the person with whom I’m connecting.

As for women who are scared of LinkedIn stalkers and the like — get over it! Do you wear a paper bag over your head to a networking event? LinkedIn is a great big virtual networking event. I’m not going to go up and talk to you if you’re wearing a paper bag on your head at a live networking event. Why should I talk to you on LinkedIn if you only have that shadowy silhouette?

6). Increase the number of allowed words on invitations. If I invite someone I don’t know,. (see #2 above) I want to tell them why I want to invite them. As it is, this is very limited, and doesn’t necessarily let me explain that I read their profile and found them interesting enough to contact. Along this same line, allow people to put contact info into their invitations.

7). Make it easier to respond to members who write you through LinkedIn. Right now it is a real pain. Let someone who receives a LinkedIn message respond by simply hitting “respond” on their email program, rather than having to sign into LinkedIn and use LinkedIn’s inadequate response mechanism. Hint: when you send a message via LinkedIn, always include your real email address. If you are going to ping me, I should be trustworthy enough to be able to write you back directly.

8). Make it easier to contact LinkedIn. Not only is LinkedIn’s customer service worse than that of the airlines (that’s pretty bad), but it is incredibly difficult to place a trouble ticket. This should be a “one click.” Instead, customers have to jump through hoops to send an email. For those of us who are paying customers a phone number where we can actually talk to a real person would be a nice touch — so long as that real person has the information, the authority and the willingness to actually solve the problem — something LinkedIn is really abysmal at.

9). Give us something for our money. I haven’t decided whether my money that is going to LinkedIn each month is being well spent or not. I still get the same lousy customer service. I can do a bit of enhanced searching. But not much else. If we’re going to pay, let us get our money’s worth!

10). Stop making me sign in so much! I should be able to sign in and stay signed in. As it is, every so often I have to re-enter my password. I understand that this is for my “security,” but I should be able to sign in and stay signed in on the same computer.

LinkedIn is a great tool for business. But they aren’t very responsive to the needs and desires of their customers. This is the primary attitude at LinkedIn I’d love to see changed immediately.

By Nicole Raphael, MA, Guest Columnist

Professionals need to bring their A-game every day, or risk being replaced. The current competitive business environment dictates that in addition to having sharp business acumen, it’s essential that you behave appropriately in all occasions – from the boardroom to the ballroom and from conferences to conventions.

Your professional performance is constantly under scrutiny by colleagues, clients, future customers and higher-ups and impacts on whether you will be offered choice assignments and promotions.  Therefore, if you’re always flubbing an introduction or missing an opportunity to captivate the crowd with your good manners, then you’re letting yourself down.  The good news is that you can learn to be a polished professional by following a business etiquette formula based on three fundamental principles: Attitude, Behaviour, and Courtesy. 

Attitude

Always look on the bright side. Yes, everyone has a bad day, but you needn’t wear your annoyance or anger on your sleeve.  Take control of your attitude by silence the self-deprecating mental chatter that reminds you of your failures and flaws.   It really isn’t helpful to constantly replay the time you forgot an important person’s name or were embarrassed by using the desert spoon during the soup course.  Replace these negative thoughts with empowering affirmations.   The bottom line is that you will repel people if you are thinking or behaving in a negative manner.  This includes gossiping, sulking, wining and generally being a glass-half-empty type of person.  If you need an attitude adjustment, get help from a life or etiquette coach now.

Behaviour

Genuinely enjoy others.   To be well-mannered is to truly love people.   Relationships have always been paramount in business; indeed, we all know that lots of major deals are struck on the golf course.   The key here is to develop an earnest, beyond the boardroom, concern for people.   In caring for others, you show them reverence, which along with courtesy are two of the core foundations of etiquette.

Additionally, watch your body language.  Whether you’re in control of the messages or not, you’re constantly communicating without saying a word.  Projecting personal power with your posture is important, but you don’t want to give off overly domineering or intimating vibes.   Along the same vein, you should know when it’s appropriate to lighten up.  For instance, at your company’s holiday party.  It’s difficult for people around you to be at ease when you are high-strung.  Command presence is a learned skill.  Contact an etiquette coach if you want to take control of the way you come across to others.

Courtesy

Treat others as you want to be treated. The golden rule certainly applies in business etiquette. Networking events are a great place to observe fatal etiquette faux pass.  One of the worst offences that I see is when people at business events cling to each other, forming impenetrable cliques.   Instead of appearing welcoming and courteous, these people come across as self-absorbed and generally disinterested.   Discourteousness in appearance or act is ill-advised, so don’t form networking fortresses at social events.  Instead, circulate and be open to meeting people.  Another failsafe tip in business is to always put yourself in the shoes of the other person and ask yourself “how would I like to be treated?”

Remembering the ABC’s of business etiquette will help you project the utmost professionalism in the world of business.

Nicole Raphael, MA, is a Senior Career Strategist with Heckers Development Group, LTD. She brings many years of personal branding and marketing experience. Reach Nicole Raphael at 303.480.5484 or email her at nraphael@heckersdev.com

About six months after graduating from college I had a conversation with my college friend, let’s call her Jamie, about employment.  She had graduated with a degree in Sociology and took a position at a job that paid well but was unrelated to her major.  After a few months on the job she concluded that didn’t particularly like it,  but she definitely liked her salary.  As we spoke, I urged her to keep her eye out for a position that would be rewarding to her, and I secretly hoped she wouldn’t allow herself to get stuck at this position permanently.  Fast forward fifteen years later.  Jamie was still at the same company (although she had been promoted several times) and not much had changed.

One factor that kept Jamie bound to this job was the lifestyle she chose once she started to make an impressive living.  She didn’t want to find another position that she was passionate about (one that would certainly pay less), because she wanted to be able to make her $450 per month car payment.  She also wanted to continue to travel over the weekends to visit with friends in different parts of the country.  She had built up quite a list of things she would lose should her paycheck dwindle.  Having a great car and jetting across the country sounded exciting.  But I couldn’t help but wonder if the compromises she made regarding career satisfaction were ultimately worth it.

All of us make decisions about our careers that are in part driven by financial considerations.  This is necessary.  But sometimes we let the allure of financial security and maintaining a certain lifestyle do most of the driving.   Most of us are influenced by this underlying fear of making changes, fear of losing our stuff and our expensive lifestyles, and fear of failing at something new.   We collude with our fear.  In this agreement, we don’t have to take risks and are allowed to keep our fancy titles and salaries.  But in return, we have to live with knowing we’re not reaching our potential and that there is little meaning in what we actually do day-to-day.

Figuring out what you love to do and pursuing it is a scary and risky proposition.  But following your right path can eventually lead you to true career and life satisfaction (and even financial reward).  When Steve Jobs gave the commencement address at Stanford in 2005, he shared his personal story of how he started, grew, got fired from, then was hired back at one of the most innovative and visionary companies.  He conceived of and nurtured a company that was truly a “game changer”.  The key to his success was found in his determination to do great work and to love the work he did.  This love made all the difference and reverberated throughout his professional and personal life.

I am not advocating that people immediately quit jobs they hate, stop traveling or stop enjoying things they can afford.  But I urge each one of us to take a look at our career satisfaction.  If you don’t love what you do then change it.  Start to downsize your lifestyle.  Save more instead of spend more.  Stop worrying about maintaining your coveted image, title and salary.  Make new connections who can advise you and help you uncover new opportunities.  Don’t discount the different possibilities even if they seem outrageous or unrealistic.  Decide now, and keep making the decision over and over again that you will eventually find your true love so to speak.

We spend at least a third of our life at work.  Why should we waste this precious time on something that we know is not right for us?  If we’re courageous enough, we’ll stop making excuses and stop procrastinating.  So even if you’re starting out in your career or are well established, you still have time to examine and pursue your life’s purpose.   We want the highest pay possible for the work that we perform, but the price we pay when we compromise our spiritual, emotional, physical and mental selves for a paycheck is incalculable.

Nicole Heckers, MA, BCPC, is a Senior Career Strategist, owner and Vice President at Heckers Development Group, LTD. She has over 11 years of career, transition and life coaching experience with senior-level personnel, and is co-author on 4 books on career and transition. Nicole may be reached at nheckers@heckersdev.com, and welcomes your contact.

1). Not everyone is qualified for every job. Yes, there are highly paid jobs out there…for people with the exact right qualifications. Not everyone possesses that exact Santa Claus list. This is why some jobs stay open and others are filled with new immigrants.

2). Many of these jobs don’t pay a living wage.

3). Given #2 above, it doesn’t make sense to take some of them. Let’s say an executive was making $220K a year. The Republicans want this person to take an $8 an hour job. But it is almost impossible to find a job if you have a job. It makes more sense for this executive to keep looking than to take a minimum wage-type job.

4). Lots of $8 an hour employers won’t hire someone with experience, skill or education. These $8 an hour jobs are mostly entry level. Starbucks, for example, has a policy of not hiring someone who, as soon as the economy improves, would likely move on. This is the policy of many places.

5). Some people would lose COBRA benefits…and can’t afford to do so. If you take a job that offers health insurance, COBRA stops. Those of us with medical conditions may not be able to afford to let our COBRA stop until we find a job with decent health insurance. But most employers are contracting for really lousy health insurance — if they offer it at all.

6). Not everyone has the physical stamina for all jobs. Those with disabilities, some older workers, or those in poor health may well be able to work some jobs, but not others. Of course, this is something the Republicans, having no heart or compassion, don’t think of or care about. In their view, everyone should work until they die, no matter how soon that would be.

7). Some people can’t relocate. It might cost more (through loss of a spouse job) to relo than to keep looking in a particular city. There are also compelling personal reasons not to relocate. Now, one mindless Tea Partier who sometimes responds to my column elsewhere points out that people moved around lots in the Great Depression. Yep. That was 1929. While, for this person, nothing is different from 1929, most of understand that we’re a). in a different century and b). in different circumstances. But, unfortunately, this guy is very typical of the narrow-minded, brainless and compassionless Tea Partiers that are out there.

8). Some people are too depressed to work. This could be remedied…IF Republicans hadn’t cut virtually all community mental health services.

9). Many of the jobless don’t have reliable transportation for them to work. And, of course, public transit is one thing that Progressives love, but is consistently blocked by right wingers…because it means new taxes of, maybe, a penny a dollar…which is too much, of course, for a multi-millionaire to pay.

10). Yes, a very few people don’t want to work. I must say, though, that these people are definitely in the extreme minority. Most of the people I know want desperately to work. But they don’t want 4 years of college and 5 years of grad school to be wasted working as a barrista! And who can blame them? This would make them even more depressed…and would further depress the economy.

I know that it is extremely difficult for the right wing to logic something out. It is even more difficult for a right-winger to have any compassion for others. But this targeting of the unemployed MUST stop!

Also… I strongly support Occupy. Now it is time to Occupy Congress. It is, after all, supposed to be the House of the People…not the house of the corporate interests who currently own America.

1). Free print subscription. ColoradoBiz offers a free print subscription for the asking. The print version has a variety of articles about business in Colorado, and contains some stories that aren’t found on-line. Subscribe free here.

2). Free lists. While some competing publications charge absurd amounts for their books of lists and so on, these are free for you at ColoradoBiz. And the lists and directories are much better than those of various competing publications. The lists are available on the bounce-bar menu at the top of the front page, and at the resources section at the very bottom of the front/home page. Simply go here, and look at the top and the bottom of the page for ColoradoBiz Magazine’s great lists.

Use these lists to find out what companies are growing and dynamic. You can also use some of the lists to find out hiring authorities and contact info. Here is the great part about ColoradoBiz Magazine’s lists. They have “hot links” to the company site, saving you hours and hours of Googling and trying to track down the company website.

3). Great articles about businesses in Colorado. In addition to the lists, there are great articles letting you know what is going on with various businesses in Colorado, written by some of the top business reporters around. ColoradoBiz digs deeply for information that you can use in targeting various companies.

4). A great archive. A search on ColoradoBiz will take you back to their archives. This is a very well-indexed archive and will give you a great number of results with each search. A hint on this, though. Use few words as opposed to many in the search criteria.

5). Experts in many areas. ColoradoBiz treats its columnists very well, unlike some other Denver business publications. As a result, they have the top experts in Colorado writing for them (including yours truly). I am published weekly in ColoradoBiz Magazine. Reading my articles alone there will give you a leg up on your job search.

But don’t stop reading once you get a job. There is lots of great advice and information in the “Web Exclusives” section. This ranges from great advice on selling, to legal articles, to what the best entertainment is in Colorado.

6). Various events. ColoradoBiz sponsors a variety of events. Some of these are paid and others are free. Often, the experts you read in the “Web Exclusives” section are present and able to answer questions you may have.

7). A great events calendar. In addition to ColoradoBiz sponsored events, they have a great general events calendar. This can help you with your job search and career growth. Again, this is found at both the top and bottom of the front/home page.

Other Resources

In addition to the resources at ColoradoBiz Magazine, Heckers Development Group offers a variety of free resources, including free on-line interview training, a free résumé guide, and a list of networking places. Go here to access many of our resources. Take some time to browse through the “Resources” tab to find networking groups, article links, and many other items which are free to the job-seeker.

If you want more information on ColoradoBiz Magazine for your job search, please feel free, as always, to give me a call at 720.581.4301. Thanks!