Network

Ever wish you had a trusted team of career advisors -- a group that would help you analyze whether to push for a higher salary, how to keep up morale during a job search, whether to go back to school for more training, or even how to handle little things like how to respond to an email that raises your blood pressure?

For almost a decade, I’ve had such a team. It started with a small writing group that formed when I was transitioning from law to journalism. Before long, that group morphed into something even bigger. We edited each other’s work and helped one another find the perfect publication for a particular pitch. We made sure that each of us had goals and stuck to them (e.g. get that book proposal finished by January). We shared our contacts so that we each had a deeper network than any one of us could have had alone. And we were always available for an emergency session on how to tackle any problem one of us faced.

I often recommend this idea to anyone committed to career development and thought about writing a book about how to create groups like this, but I don’t need to because Keith Ferrazzi’s new book, “Who’s Got Your Back,” is a blueprint for how to find the collection of key people who will help you succeed and keep you accountable to your goals.  The book is worth reading, but as a teaser, here are a few takeaways: Read More »

                                                  

Rather than just assume “what’s the point, there are no jobs out there anyway”, think differently. Get out of the house! Use this time to meet people both informally and in more professional situations, whether it’s a school committee hearing, a women’s conference, a PTO meeting, a lecture at a university, a writer’s workshop, or sitting on the sidelines at your child’s sports event. Read More »