#career Archives - Page 5 of 5 - First Sun Consulting, LLC | Outplacement Services and Career Transition Firm

Posts

#CareerAdvice : Risk Smart: Taking #YourCareer to the Next Level. “You Miss 100% of the Shots you Don’t Take.” – Wayne Gretzky

June 25, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

The choices we make throughout our careers take us all on quite a journey. When you first enter the workforce, it is a time of excitement and anticipation for what lies ahead. Over time, life takes us on a winding road of twists and turns in which our personal lives can intertwine with our professional lives.

While some life experiences can catapult us into unknown realms, it is important that we be open to embracing new career opportunities, and, when the moment is right, consider taking risks and pursue some new challenges.

Over the course of my career, I came to appreciate the importance of taking risks. In one of my first jobs in consulting, I worked diligently and waited to be presented with new opportunities to continue building a promising future career. As time went on, I learned the importance of being proactive in one’s career advancement. Don’t wait for your career to come to you—you need to take ownership of your own growth.

Here are three ways to feel more empowered and prepared to take smart risks:

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” – Wayne Gretzky

Risk and reward go together. Some of my greatest career achievements came about by taking educated risks, such as taking on new—and, at times, daunting—responsibilities. Once when asked to create a digital business within an organization, I approached the assignment with apprehension because I was concerned about the risk of failing in front of leaders who trusted me. To build my confidence, I reminded myself that growth comes from seeking out and taking on new challenges. By changing my mindset about the task, I was able to visualize that taking a risk into the unknown realm of “digital business” would enable me to learn a new field, expand my professional skill set, and earn the respect of my peers.

Like this Article ? Share It ! You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwide in our various Social Media formats below:

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

Before taking a risk at work, ask yourself, “What are the pros and cons?” If you miss out on the promotion or if you don’t get the open position, what does that ultimately mean to your career? Growth comes in trying and persisting. If things don’t go your way, it’s okay to feel disappointed. As Dr. Seuss says in “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” my son’s favorite book: “I’m sorry to say so, but sadly, it’s true that bang-ups and hang-ups can happen to you. Use it as a learning opportunity. Make a mental note to reference how you will approach this the next time you’re ready to take a risk.

Above all, don’t miss the opportunity to take that chance and see where it takes you.

Think short – and long – term

There are times and places for risks, and the only person who can decide when the time is right to take a risk is you. I once received an offer for a position that I believed lacked long-term security from a company that was a major player in a volatile industry. Despite this uncertainty, I knew it was the right chapter of my life to take a chance—this was an opportunity in the short-term to propel myself toward my career goals, and I was committed to making it work.

When considering a career risk, it’s important to evaluate how it would fit into the current chapter of your life as well as your overall career journey. Is there a clear course leading you from where you are now to where you want to be? Are you willing to sacrifice some stability or salary in pursuit of this objective? Do you have the time to dedicate yourself to a new challenge now or are there other demands that would compete and make success unlikely? Answering these questions will help you become a better decision-maker when faced with opportunities to take chances.

Are you willing to sacrifice some stability or salary in pursuit of this objective? —Walia

Map out alternatives

When taking risks of any nature, it is important to have a sense of the full picture. It’s never fun to consider the downsides of risk, but it’s a necessary step to ensure you land on your feet if things go awry.

One good way to hedge your risks is to leverage your network and build your own personal “board of advisors” to your career. These people in your life can help you to assess risk and can also serve as a safety net in case things don’t work out. I believe in the power of positive thinking but having a Plan B isn’t a bad idea. Undeniably, having an alternate plan in place is critical to bouncing back and continuing your career journey.

Taking that first step into something new and unknown can often be unsettling. Our minds try and come up with all the reasons why not to take that risk. Start by taking the opportunity to talk it through with your trusted advisors and work out alternatives that will help ensure you are set up for success. Invest the time to map out what this could mean for your career now and in the future. And finally, take that shot! It could lead you down the path of a most rewarding career.

Author: Vicki Walia is Chief Talent and Capability Officer at Prudential where she oversees the talent team and a team of experts that connect strategy, identify organizational opportunities, build critical capabilities, and navigate change. Connect with her on LinkedIn.

Glassdoor.com | June 24. 2019

#CareerAdvice :#CareerAdvancement -Four Things To Do This Summer To Advance #YourCareer .

June 23, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Summer is the perfect time to focus some attention on your career success. Why? Because work inevitably slows down a little then; people take vacation and leave early on Fridays. In most industries, it’s a time for relieving some of the pressure.

You too need to use your vacation time to recharge and get some perspective, so don’t miss the beach and backyard barbecues. But while you’re at it, make time for some career-focused action that will give your personal brand a boost when the workplace is back to its bustling buzz in the fall.

Here are four things that will help you and your brand blast into September.

1. Prepare For Your Annual Review

For most companies, the (often dreaded) annual review process happens some time in the last four months of the calendar year. Don’t wait for the email from your boss scheduling your review meeting. Prepare now so you can ace it. Here’s how:

Do an inventory of your wins to date. Think back over the first half of the year and document your biggest contributions. Focus on the ones that are really important to your manager and help you showcase the value you deliver to the team and company. Document them using this formula: C-A-R.
C is for challenge. Describe the challenge you sought the resolve.
A is for action. Describe what you did to solve the problem or meet/exceed the need.
R is for result. Record the specific, measurable results of your action. How can you measure the value of your contribution? If you can quantify it, all the better.
Get input and feedback from others to help you make your case. Collect your fan mail and accolades, especially from senior leaders or people respected in your field.
Think about what you would like for the coming year. More responsibility? A leadership role? An international assignment? Put together the pitch that will convince your boss to help you make it happen.
Like this Article ? Share It !You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwide In in our various Social Media formats below:
FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall
Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en
Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc
Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?
Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/
What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?
Continue of article:
2. Mentor, Lead And Support The Intern
If you want to demonstrate that you’re leadership material, take on the role (official or not) of managing the summer intern(s). You’ll feel great about helping a junior-level colleague build skills that will be helpful to their career success. In many companies, the intern is not given a lot of direction, support, feedback or mentoring. That creates an opportunity for you to become known as someone who leads the way.
3. Put Your Q4 Social Media Calendar Together
You know how you always say, “I wish I could be more regular with my social media. If only I had more time.” Well, with the summer here, you have a little more time. But instead of just upping your social media contributions in the summer, prepare a plan for the fall that will ensure that you’ll be visible, valuable and available to the people you seek to influence. Then:
- Identify the most important social media platform for increasing your visibility with stakeholders.
- Determine what you’d like to say. What’s your message and point of view and how can you best express it?
- Create evergreen content for the platform you selected. If you chose LinkedIn, for example, write articles for your LinkedIn Blog. Commit to writing four so you can publish one each month—September through December. They need not be long, just make sure they deliver value to the community you seek to influence.
4. Update Your Digital Brand
Egosurf. That’s what it’s called when you google yourself. Then check out what shows up on page 1. Ask yourself what people would think about you if they hadn’t met you and were just forming a first impression of you from your Google results. Then determine what changes you’d like to make to align that first impression with your real-world personal brand.
Pay close attention to your LinkedIn profile. It will likely show up toward the top of your page-one results. If your headshot is out-of-date, update it. If your About section is missing some of your latest wins, edit it. Make sure that your LinkedIn profile conveys your authentic credibility and likability, and make sure the answer to this questions is yes: Would someone want to get to know me after reading my LinkedIn profile?
How’s that for a list of Summer Camp activities? When you complete it, you’ll feel accomplished, and you and your personal brand will be prepared to make the final quarter fruitful.
Author: William Arruda is the cofounder of CareerBlast and creator of the complete LinkedIn quiz that helps you evaluate your LinkedIn profile and networking strategy.
I’m a personal branding pioneer, motivational speaker, founder of Reach Personal Branding and cofounder of CareerBlast.TV. I’m also the bestselling author of the definit…

Forbes.com | July 18, 2019

#CareerAdvice : #CareerAdvancement -These 7 Traits Can Help you Get Ahead, then Harm You as you Move Up…A Must REAd for ALL!

March 20, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

When it comes to your career, moving ahead can be a case of “what got you here won’t get you there.” Unfortunately, if you keep doing what you were doing, the consequences can be harmful. Traits that initially get you noticed can later cause you to be overlooked for a promotion or raise.

“People have behaviors that work early in careers and they can hang onto them because they’re invested in them,” says leadership consultant Sally Helgesen, coauthor of How Women Rise: Break the 12 Habits Holding You Back From Your Next Raise, Promotion or Job. “Even when it looks as if the habit may not be serving you well now, it can be difficult to let it go.”

It’s important to gain awareness of the behaviors that are potentially problematic, so you can ask yourself if it’s time to move on and take a different approach. Here are seven habits you need to break to move ahead.

1. BEING PRECISE AND CORRECT

This is especially problematic for women, who tend to get promoted and rewarded based on being precise and correct, says Helgesen.

“What they take away is that being precise and correct is very important to success,” she says. “The problem is that at the highest level, precision and correctness is not what an organization looks for. That can be considered a micromanagement approach.”

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

2. FOCUSING ON STRONG TECHNICAL SKILLS

Being technically proficient can get you noticed, and it’s always good to be up to date on the latest tool, says Allison McWilliams, assistant vice president of mentoring and alumni personal and career development at Wake Forest University. Later, it can hold you back if you stay in the trenches.

“There is a clear difference between an ability to use and implement the latest technologies to do the work, and being able to create a vision and a direction for and manage the people who will do this work,” says McWilliams. “To move up, it is far more important to be able to see the bigger picture and to get the right people into the room.”

It can be easy to overvalue expertise, adds Helgesen. “Especially for men engineers or accountants who strongly identify with that trait as part of their identity,” she says.

3. SEEKING OWNERSHIP AND RECOGNITION

The first few rungs of the professional ladder are about taking ownership for your work and gaining individual recognition for your contributions and accomplishments, but as you move up, you need to learn to put your ego in check, says McWilliams.

“It’s no longer about you; it’s about the team and the organization,” she says. “It’s not about getting credit or individual wins. It’s about giving credit and team wins.”

4. SELF RELIANCE

Taking initiative, being self-motivated and figuring out how to get the job done and then doing it will make you an invaluable resource early in your career, says Michelle Tillis Lederman, CEO of Executive Essentials and author of The Connector’s Advantage: 7 Mindsets to Grow Your Influence and Impact.

“As you become a people manager, it is your job to not go it alone,” she says. “You need to develop skills in others, delegate, and you are evaluated on the results you get with and through other people. Remember, it is the relationships that you build that will elevate your career. Self-reliance can be self-destructive.”

After you move into a leadership position, the hustle you used to get you there will start to work against you, ads Byron Matthews, CEO and president of Miller Heiman Group, a sales performance company.

“Your responsibilities have grown in complexity, which requires you to be more thoughtful,” he says. “It’s no longer just the activity; it’s asking, ‘What is the best activity?’ The top senior executives come to the table with perspective that doesn’t just answer a perceived need, but instead helps shape those needs.”

5. NETWORKING

Early on your career, meeting with as many people as you can is a great way to solidify your network and explore the resources, connections, and contacts that a wide network can provide, says Beck Bamberger, founder and CEO of BAM Communications, a PR and media relations firm.

“However, as you move up the chain, you have to become ruthless with your time,” she says. “In short, saying ‘yes’ to every person who wants to do a lunch, coffee, or a session to ‘pick your brain’ will leave you with zero time to actually get work done. In short, be more discerning as your career advances. The art of saying ‘no,’ is a hard one but a must to master.”

But be sure to make time to give back, says Jane Tutoki, director of the board at Sedgwick, a global claims administrator. “As you grow in your career, you have to be cognizant that you are now a role model for others, and that you have to behave like a role model, and help people accordingly,” she says. “You have to be more generous with your time and knowledge because you should become a resource for others, in order to build and lead a high-functioning and successful team.”

6. A LARGE APPETITE FOR RISK

When people don’t have much to lose, they’re usually willing to take on risks, says Kate Zabriskie, founder and CEO of Business Training Works, an onsite training provider. “When those risks pay off, they often pay big,” she says. “When they don’t, the consequences often aren’t usually too dire because there wasn’t much to lose in the first place.”

Later, however, heavy risk taking may seem disproportionate when considering gains versus potential losses. “Nobody wants to work for a loose cannon or someone who makes them feel unsafe,” says Zabriskie.

7. PATIENCE

Patience may be a virtue, but careerwise, it’s more likely to help early in your career than later, says Rebecca Horan, founder of Rebecca Horan Consulting, a brand strategy firm. “Let’s face it: when we’re just starting out, we need to prove ourselves,” she says. “We should be willing to do the grunt work, and roll up our sleeves to prove we’re a team player.”

Later in your career, patience can begin to lose its shine if you’re not receiving the project assignments, promotions, and pay raises you’d like. “The further you progress in your career, the more you’ll want to advocate for yourself,” says Horan. “Speak up about your goals and desires. Positioning your personal brand for the next leap becomes more about strategy and less about patience.

FastCompany.com | March 20, 2019 | BY STEPHANIE VOZZA 5 MINUTE READ

#CareerAdvice : #CareerChange -10 Obstacles That Keep You From #ChangingCareers — and How to Overcome Them.

March 7, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Raise your hand if you are thinking of changing careers! Or maybe you are in the midst of it, but something is holding you back. Whatever the case, you are not alone. Many people who want to change careers get stuck along the way.

Let’s look at some of the most common obstacles career changers face, whether before or during their career transition, and how you can overcome each one of them.

1. Focusing on What You Lack

This has to be mentioned right at the top — almost everyone I talk to who is thinking of changing careers but feels stuck is focusing on all the things they do not know how to do, or on all the resources they don’t have. This is completely backward — no one hires you based on what you do not know or have. The only things that matter are what you do know, what you have already accomplished and what you are interested in learning. Focus on what you can alreadycontribute to any profession and you’ll find yourself much more empowered in your career journey.

2. Not Knowing What You Want

Do you feel confident you can get whatever you want… except you don’t know what that is? If this sounds familiar when it comes to your career transition, dig deep: is it really true that you don’t know what you want? In my experience most people know what they want, but might not know what it looks like in a job. For example, you might know you would be happy working from home and writing, but you are not sure what kind of job would pay you to do just that. If this is you, stop saying you don’t know what you want and instead address the real question, which is that you are not sure what career could give you what you want. Or it might be that you know what you want, but are so afraid you wouldn’t succeed that you don’t let yourself admit that’s what you want. In that case your issue is fear, not lack of clarity.

If you really don’t know what you want, take this moment in time as an opportunity to try anything that feels interesting. Have fun exploring, and you’ll discover in the process what feels best. (Hint: you will not find the answer in your head — you need to get out and in action!)

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

3. Lack of Information

In my work helping people change careers I often hear about different jobs… and sometimes encounter professions I didn’t even know existed! The truth is that you were probably exposed to only a few possible career options while growing up, and don’t know much about a wide variety of professions. Add the fact that technological innovation is creating many more opportunities that didn’t even exist just a few years ago, and chances are there are at least a few options that could be a good match for you, but you’ve never heard of. Most career changers don’t have enough information to make an informed decision — this is why you need to research and test possible professions and business ideas to gain real knowledge of what they are really like before committing to a new career.

4. Money Worries

We all know the drill: you should have at least 6 months of savings, no debt, a full-time job or at least a steady part-time income… in other words, you should be in a strong financial position before embarking on a career change. If you are, and you still feel stressed over money, keep reading for more tips on how to overcome fear. Focus on doing the work, and as long as you keep your financial acumen you’ll be fine.

If you are one of the 65 percent of Americans without significant savings, or one of the 48 percent of Americans who carry credit card debt or belong to the estimated 33 percent of college graduates who are underemployed, this is for you: I get it. I know it’s scary, and I know changing careers for you comes with added obstacles. Here’s the deal, though — you can’t afford more of the same exactly because it’s not working financially. Feeling worried or anxious about your finances will not help you — in fact, it will probably make it harder for you to make good decisions. Only your actions matter: learn to negotiate, say No to extra work that is underpaid or, if you are unemployed, volunteer and take on any type of work you are interested in rather than staying at home (it will also help you with your resume). Meet people, network, apply to jobs, start a side business. If you are already working like crazy and still struggling, commit to just a few hours each week to dedicate to your career transition. Do not let the lack of money stop you — instead, use it as powerful fire to light up your search for a new career. You can’t afford not to.

5. Unhealed Trauma

I personally think this is the big elephant in the room — the one thing we don’t talk about when discussing career-related issues. And we should. Our past, if not properly dealt with, can have an immense impact on how we relate to others. So how does unhealed trauma affect your career change? When you embark on any transition, including a career change, you are very likely to face rejection and failure — and these can be tough for everyone, but if you carry a lot of weight from the past, a negative experience can feel much worse once unhealed trauma is triggered. This is why it is so important to deal with your past. Treat your career change as part of a wider process of healing and start working with a therapist or healing professional of your choice right away. Your deep healing will help you better weather the ups and downs of your career change, and will expand your life beyond what you think is possible. Your desire to change careers could be part of a deeper calling to finally let go of what has been holding you back — so you can finally soar.

6. Lack of Role Models

Some of us are lucky enough to have knowledgeable and supportive family members, or maybe we had a cool teacher in the past or a boss who believed in us. Sometimes, though, that doesn’t happen, or the people who cheer us have no knowledge of the field we want to enter. If that’s the case, you need to go out and expand your network. This can mean finding someone who “officially” becomes your mentor (check out SCORE) or meeting people who are further ahead in your chosen career and learning from them through your interactions, deep conversations and rapport. I also recommend joining a group that is all about empowering its members. For example, there are many groups that support women in technology: by joining one, attending events and networking, you can find a lot of helpful information and resources to help you enter a new field. And through those interactions, you might also end up meeting a wonderful mentor or role model in a more traditional sense of the word.

7. Analysis Paralysis

This has got to be my favorite one, as I used to be a chronic sufferer from the condition! Some of us tend to get stuck trying to figure out every single step from now until we retire in our head. And of course, as each step comes with imaginary catastrophes, a lack of real information and often fear, we never feel we can make a decision, let alone know enough to take action. Argh! Here’s the good news: this approach doesn’t work. Once you realize that it’s impossible to plan your entire career change in your head, you will finally give yourself permission to take one step at a time. What is the next thing you know you need to do in order to move forward? Focus on that. And trust that as you take that one step, you will be able to see the next, and then the next and so forth until you can reach your destination.

8. You Think the Past Is a Preview of What’s to Come

Just because every boss you had so far was unsupportive, it doesn’t mean that your next boss will be; just because you have always made little money, it doesn’t mean you will always be underpaid. We don’t know what the future has in store for us, but the good news is you can always work towards a different outcome. Bad bosses? I bet you can now spot the early signs! Underpaid? Use that as motivation to say ‘No’ to positions that pay too little and to move into a career or industry that pays what you need, learn to negotiate, update your skills, etc. Acknowledge what happened in the past, learn from it and then focus on what you want moving forward. Give the future a chance!

9. Trying to fit in

“I should be more open, I should go to more networking events, I am too much of an introvert, people like me don’t usually…” Stop right there! I am all for self-improvement, but there is a difference between wanting to grow as a person and imagining everyone else is better than you. Chances are, you already have all if not most of what you need to succeed: embrace who you are. Love yourself, focus on what you enjoy doing and are naturally good at, have fun learning new skills and getting out of your comfort zone, but do not think you need to be like someone else in order to be fulfilled in your career. You will be able to live a fulfilled life, including in your career, when you accept yourself as you are. From that place, you will become more open to new opportunities, flexible on the things you can be flexible about and someone people will want to be around. Trust me: Once you stop trying to fit in, you will find a career that is a good fit for you.

10. Don’t Make It All About Yourself

Last, but not least, it’s not just about you. In fact, the more you make it about you, the more insecure and stressed you will feel. Who do you want to serve? What lights you up? What difference do you want to make? These questions don’t have to have world-changing answers to motivate you: You can choose a career to provide your family with a stable environment, or you can commit to creating a business that offers employees great health insurance from day one because you believe in providing such benefits. There is no “small” purpose: Focus on the why, and you will find you have in you more courage and resilience than you ever thought possible.

Author: Aurora Meneghello is a Los Angeles-based career coach and the founder ofRepurpose Your Purpose. She works with groups and individuals who want to change careers.

GlassDoor.com | March 7, 2019

#CareerAdvice : #WomenCareer – 5 Successful Women Give Advice they Wish they Would Have Taken in Their 20s. Got Daughters? Great Read!

February 19, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Our 20s are a time of tremendous career growth and learning. But this doesn’t come without some hurdles and hiccups, even if you ultimately end up as a successful professional or entrepreneur. We spoke to successful women about their own regrets in their 20s.

Everything may happen for a reason, but if they could rewind time and change their approach, they could have fine-tuned their journey to the top. From taking advantage of having no strings attached and seeing the world to raising your hand and asking questions, here is the advice these women business owners wish they would have taken.

“GO TRAVEL AND EXPERIENCE THE WORLD”

In her 20s, Amanda Bradford, founder and CEO of The League, was busy. By the time she reached 29 in 2014, she was building her now uber-successful dating app. To date, The League has a 1.5 million person waitlist across 60 cities domestically and internationally, and has grown 100% year-over-year since its launch. Now 34, Bradford is happy with the success she’s found and the connections she’s been able to foster, but she wishes she would have taken the advice of her former boss at Google who urged her to go see the world. “Anyone who takes that leap of faith and moves abroad to continue education or work rarely regrets it. For me, global work experience and travel are key contributors to business and personal fulfillment. I wish I had invested more in global exposure during my 20s,” she says.

Launching a company didn’t allow her the time or flexibility to pack a bag and go:

I wish I had traveled and forged my own global experience in my 20s because now it’s just too hard. I’m devoted to The League and its rapid growth. As the app expands into international cities–already in London and Paris–it would be helpful to have firsthand knowledge of each market and a network of people on the ground.

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

“DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS”

In a world that’s ripe with farm-to-table options, Suzanne Simon had a different idea: farm-to-taco. In 2013, she created Chaia Tacos in Washington, D.C., at the White House Farmer’s Market. At the time, First Lady Michelle Obama had launched the “Let’s Move” campaign, and it inspired Simon (and her business partner) to source local vegetables and develop seasonal recipes, honing in on sustainability and healthy eating. Though her 13-year-old daughter was skeptical of squash tacos, they’ve sold more than 1 million to date.

Growing her business, Simon wishes she wouldn’t have been afraid to ask questions. As the oldest child of two younger sisters in a divorced family, her mom worked long hours, leaving her siblings to care for themselves. When she reached adulthood and took her first gig at an environmental consulting firm in Washington, D.C., she felt like she still needed to have all the answers without posing any questions:

I remember worrying about a project, and my sister said, ‘You know, you don’t have to solve every problem and know everything.’ If I had taken her advice at the time, I think I would have been more focused on solutions and would have gone into making mistakes with more confidence. It has taken me many years to learn to let go, accept mistakes, and realize that I can’t control everything. Take advice—and outsource.

Much like not being able to ask questions, the best advice from Ali Grant, founder of Be Social PR, to twentysomethings is to, well, take advice. “I thought I could do it all and knew it all. Turns out, I didn’t. I made a lot of mistakes in leadership and large business decisions that ultimately caused a lot of unnecessary stress,” she continued. Even with early hurdles, now that she’s more than six years into business, her company has grown from barely hitting five figures to a multimillion-dollar business. And in the past year alone, she’s seen 51% growth.

It’s because she’s been able to listen to others’ wisdom and outsource areas she’s not an expert in that she has met and exceeded objectives. She didn’t listen right away, though, to people like her uncle, who encouraged her to hire a payroll company or hire a bookkeeper:

Hiring someone that specializes in bookkeeping is essential. Now, our accounting team is one of the most valuable parts of the business. You can’t know it all, especially at 24 years old. I wish I would have absorbed more advice from a strong mentor and other seasoned business leaders, so I could have avoided the mistakes I made. Change your attitude and you’ll change your income.

After high school, Ronda Jackson was working for a door-to-door sales company selling multipurpose cleaner. Every day, the “car handler,” as she called him, would repeat this mantra: “Change your attitude and you’ll change your income,” as they went from neighborhood to neighborhood. She wasn’t making sales–or having a good day–and didn’t listen. Now, as the founder and chief workplace stylist for Decor Interior Design, Inc., she wishes she would have listened:

I later learned that limiting beliefs inhibits your capacity, ambition, prosperity, relationships, health, quality of life, and ability to make a meaningful impact on the things you care about most. Looking back, it was a brief life lesson not about selling soap, but instead not letting your current circumstances get in the way of who you want to be.

Her outlook definitely changed for the positive, since what once started as a one-woman show has grown into a multimillion-dollar firm that is in the Inc. 5000.

“GIVE YOURSELF SOME GRACE”

When you’re such an overachiever that you decide to audition for American Gladiators on your wedding day, you know you’re the type of person who doesn’t slow down. After six weeks of filming, Ally Davidson became the Grand Champion but had to wait three months to spill the beans. She took that prize money and turned a lifelong dream into a reality, launching the first Camp Gladiator in Dallas. As the cofounder and co-CEO, Davidson’s brainchild is on track to exceed $60 million this year, and has an impressive 950 partner trainers that provide more than 4,000 locations across North Carolina, Louisiana, Tennessee, Texas, Colorado, and Florida. This equates to around 90,000 campers attending Camp Gladiator in any given month.

If it sounds like a fast-paced, bootstrapped business, that’s because it is. Now in her early 30s, Davidson wishes she would taken the advice of her business coach and given herself more of a break instead of pushing full throttle:

When you’re constantly going at 100 mph, you will make mistakes and lose focus along the way. Every year, your priorities will continue to shift, and all of a sudden you don’t have the same time, energy, or focus you once had. But that’s okay. You have to learn to let the little things go, pick a few things to really focus on, and always make sure you have good harmony in your life to give yourself the breaks you deserve.

FastCompany.com | February 19, 2019 | BY LINDSAY TIGAR 5 MINUTE READ

#CareerAdvice : #CareerDirection – How to use #EmotionalIntelligence to Find a Job that’s Right for You.

February 6, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

“Good job fit” is one of those overused phrases that has lost some of its meaning. What is it? What happens when the job you thought was your dream job, or the job that would catapult you to great success makes you feel anxious, out of step, scrambling to keep your balance?

When we talk about good job fit, we overlook the thing that is most important, And to get to that stage, we can’t take shortcuts–we have to deploy a kind of emotional intelligence that I call EQ Fitness.

THE THREE STEPS TO EQ FITNESS

There are three steps to EQ Fitness: (1) the willingness to become self-aware (2) the openness to build trust, and the steadiness to lead, and live, guided by inner principles. Step one is the most crucial, because it’s the foundation on which you build the next two steps.

I see examples of those who get it right, and those who don’t in a lot of the keynotes and consulting I do. In many cities today, start-up accelerators and incubators offer stipends and grants to enterprising young adults, who, in turn, grow their business there. One evening, after I gave remarks at an event in Detroit, a young woman, no more than twenty-two years old, raised her hand and asked me, “I’m really good at new ideas and working to get them off the ground,” she said. “But I’m not great at process. How do I get to be a complete CEO?”

My knee-jerk reaction was to say, who’d want to be in charge of process? Get someone else to do that! After all, I was just like her–I’ve hated process my whole career. But I took a mindful moment and instead offered encouragement and praise for her self-awareness. I then explained that we generally fall into categories of builder-entrepreneur or process-systems person. Our job in developing ourselves is first to identify which one we are, then to work on improving the other skill-sets–especially if we want a leadership position, because great leaders need both.

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY?

Before you identify which label best fits you, start with a simple question: What makes you smile after you’ve done it? Use that as a gauge of possibilities. It could be taking your eye for detail and becoming an architect or city planner. It could be using your curiosity about people’s lives and becoming a journalist or joining a human resources department.

Consider, too, the kind of role that you want to play in an organization. I have a talented friend Angela, who has chosen not to manage people. That decision was born from self-awareness. Another friend, Babs, works at an enormous aerospace company, and she describes how her boss will walk toward her cube with a certain look every year or so. She knows what’s coming. The boss is looking for someone to fill a newly vacant management position. Babs said she and her colleagues all put their heads down, pretending to be engrossed in some project. None of them want to manage anyone.

HOW TO TELL IF YOU’RE ON THE RIGHT PATH

My HGTV boss, Ken Lowe, and I were working side by side as CEO and COO. He got a corporate nod to take over the parent company, E.W. Scripps, and wanted to know if I wanted his job as CEO. I slept on it and surprised him by telling him no. But the answer didn’t surprise me. I knew myself well enough to know that his job wouldn’t be a good fit. Being CEO is all-consuming, with a responsibility to shareholders and employees alike. I needed some work-life balance for myself and my family, and I knew I had to stop at number two–even if it meant diminished opportunities at HGTV or another company in the future.

*Fully Human: 3 Steps to Grow Your Emotional Fitness in Work, Leadership, and Life* by Susan Packard

Some people might see this choice as limiting, but for me, it opened up other opportunities and interests that were more important to explore. By staying on as the COO, I was able to grow a variety of business areas at Scripps Networks Interactive (the home of HGTV) and had the time and bandwidth to train and prep for the New York City Marathon.

To determine whether or not you’re on the right path, you need to figure out the following: where your natural strengths lie, what interests and stimulates you, and what kind of company culture allows you to thrive. It’s also essential for you to realize that you need to make decisions that will enable you to live your ideal life, not someone else’s version of it.

Throughout our working lives, we’ll come to many crossroads, as our professional identities unfold and unpredictable opportunities arise. It takes courage and integrity to absorb the big picture when it comes to job fit. Emotionally fit people see job fit in its broadest sense because it means taking ownership and accountability over choosing wisely, and taking into account where your heart is guiding you. This means going beyond considering what you can do, to what you love to do, so that “can do” doesn’t become a life sentence.

This article is adapted from F ully Human: 3 Steps To Grow Your Emotional Fitness In Work, Leadership, and Life. It is reprinted with permission from TarcherPerigee, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. Copyright © 2019 by Susan Packard.

FastCompany.com | February 6, 2019 | BY SUSAN PACKARD

4 MINUTE READ

#CareerAdvice : #YourCareer – Do These Things to Stay Competitive in the Job Market.

January 24, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

Between artificial intelligence, big data, machine learning, the Internet of Things, and more, many of today’s most cutting-edge technological advances are iterating at a dizzying pace. Add to that fears of automation and an upcoming recession, and employees are facing serious pressure to stay relevant in an ever-changing work environment. But what exactly is on the horizon, and how can you prepare for it now?

To find out, we turned to the winners of Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work in 2019, some of the most innovative organizations out there today. Here’s what they said employees need to know–master these skills now, and you’re guaranteed to stand out above the rest.

SHARPEN YOUR DATA SKILLS

At this point, “data” has become a ubiquitous buzzword in the business world–but for good reason. Technological advances over the past couple of decades have provided companies with an unprecedented level of information, and even the most traditional companies are embracing it in order to make more strategic decisions.

“I’m seeing a few key trends continue and emerge as we look ahead to the new year, including the importance of being data-led. As a team, we’re leveraging our data to field new ideas and innovation and inform decisions,” said Rick Jensen, senior vice president, People & Places at Intuit.

“Developing digital skills is more important than ever,” agreed Kevin Peesker, Microsoft Canada president. “I am not speaking about coders or programmers–the shift is every role being impacted by digital, and possessing an awareness of technical and data-infused possibility will be fundamental to making an impact.”

Data proficiency means more than just glancing at numbers and drawing a conclusion, though. Matin Movassate, CEO of data analytics firm Heap, points out that today’s employees need to be able to determine whether or not their data is reliable.

“This grand, AI-driven future can’t happen without a complete, trustworthy dataset,” Movassate said. “So if prospective data engineers, data analysts, data scientists, and business intelligence leaders can maintain a maniacal focus on the completeness and quality of their data, they’ll be well-prepared for anything the future has in store.”

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

COMMIT TO CONTINUOUS LEARNING

Data interpretation/analysis is certainly one skill that will be essential to the future, but with how rapidly technology is evolving, today’s workers need to stay abreast of as many cutting-edge areas as possible. After all, any one of them could completely rewrite the rules of work.

“If you think about certain roles today–cognitive data scientist, machine learning engineer–many of those roles didn’t exist 10 years ago, and not only did they not exist, we hadn’t even imagined what they could be. We believe it will be the same 10 years from now,” Peesker said.

A few trends to stay on top of in particular include “SaaS, cloud computing, mobile, user experience, AI, and machine learning,” shared Aron Ain, CEO of HR technology company Kronos Incorporated.

“New ways of working will include more design thinking and working in an agile environment. The rapid development and creative application of new technologies will be applied across the business spectrum, from blockchain to supply chain,” added Manny Maceda, worldwide managing partner at Bain & Company. “Job seekers can prepare by committing to ongoing, self-directed learning.”

Not sure where to start? Subscribing to publications that delve into these topics is always a good idea–a quick Google search should yield plenty of results–as is exploring relevant courses on online platforms like Coursera, edX and Udacity.

DEMONSTRATE ADAPTABILITY

With all of the rapid innovation occurring today, it’s critical that workers are able to keep up the pace when the inevitable changes occur.

“Technology is changing at a breathtaking pace, both with the products we develop and offer, as well as the products we use to run our business. We remain deeply focused on embracing new technology, innovating in all areas, breaking what is not broken to make it better, [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][learning] from our competitors as a means to improve, and on and on,” Ain said. “We’re not only going to be part of the future of work–we’re focused on helping to shape it.”

This breakneck speed isn’t just limited to technology companies, though. Other industries, like aviation, have adopted a nimble mind-set as well.

“To be successful in [the aviation] industry, one must be agile and able to manage large volumes of change,” explained Greg Muccio, director of people at Southwest Airlines. “There are many variables that are outside of our control that impact our operations, so there is more pressure to adapt. Change is constant in the airline industry.”

PUT CUSTOMERS FIRST

It might seem counterintuitive, but as technology continues to revolutionize the way we work, a human-centered approach becomes increasingly important. That’s why Intuit puts such an emphasis on what they call “customer obsession.”

“Intuit was customer-obsessed before it was popular, but we’re continuing to hire for, and teach, capabilities that fall in love with the customer problem–not the solution. We want and need all of our employees to really fall in love with the problem in order to best solve it,” Jensen shared. “Diversity of thought, background, and craft will help us move the needle on solving problems for our customers quickly.”

Human connection is especially crucial in industries like healthcare, where positive patient-provider relationships are key to favorable outcomes.

“At the end of the day, healthcare candidates must be able to stay connected to the human side of research and patient care. Approaching patients with care and compassion are traits that technology can never replace,” said Dana Bottenfield, VP of human resources at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

BUILD STRONG RELATIONSHIPS WITH COLLEAGUES

A people-centric approach isn’t just for those outside of your organization, however.

“Successful job seekers need to have a balance of strong subject matter expertise with a focus on getting results through teamwork,” Bottenfield explained.

“Job seekers need to be comfortable working collaboratively with a broader range of people–data scientists, software developers, and design thinkers–to deliver results,” Maceda elaborated. “The new norm is being able to work in new ways and with a more diverse set of talent.”

And as companies grow larger and more complex, maintaining this connection–no matter your location–is imperative.

“As companies continue to move to platforms with more interdependencies across the entire organization, top talent needs the ability to work seamlessly across the organization,” Jensen added.

The key to doing that? Trust, Ain said.

“Technologies like our own are empowering employees to work their way, from anytime, anywhere. Trust is a two-way street, one that’s earned through transparency, reliability, communication, and performance. This world of flexibility can be wonderful–and trust is key to making it work.”

FastCompany.com | January 24, 2019 | BY EMILY MOORE—5 MINUTE READ

[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

#CareerAdvice : #CareerPodCasts – Top 10 Career Podcasts To Listen to This Year.

January 15, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

There’s an easy way you can improve your career and reach your job goals each day—in the time it takes you to commute to work. It’s listening to podcasts! Whether you want to snag a promotion, switch careers, or take a side hustle full time, there’s a podcast out there to help.

Here is a list of our 10 favorites—download them now and chase your dream job!

1. The School of Greatness

SchoolOfGreatnessPodcastArt After an injury prevented Lewis Howes from continuing to play professional football, he became a New York Timesbestselling author and lifestyle entrepreneur—with a podcast aimed at sharing “inspiring stories from the most brilliant business minds, world-class athletes and influential celebrities on the planet to help you find out what makes great people great,” according to his website. With topics such as “How to Be Your Best Self” and “Defy Regret and Break Your Limits,” you’re sure to leave this podcast feeling motivated.

2. Pivot

Ready for a change in your career—a new job, or even a new career path? If so, the Pivot podcast is for you. On the podcast, host Jenny Blake, the author of Pivot: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next One and former Google career coach, inspires you to find “opportunity in unexpected places through practical tips and tools,” according to the podcast’s site.

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

3. Accidental Creative

The Accidental Creative tackles topics and asks questions we can all relate to: Is it always wrong to copy? What are the common factors of change-makers? Why do we put pressure on ourselves to always be successful? No matter where you are in your career, you will find something on Accidental Creative, hosted by Todd Henry, that will speak directly to you.

4. Safe for Work

Safe for Work compressor We all run into sticky situations at the office. How do we navigate them? Safe for Work has the answer. Hosts Liz Dolan and Rico Gagliano “give advice on everything from how to avoid burnout on the job to how to fake an illness when you’re calling in sick,” according to the podcast description. (Note: We aren’t endorsing faking an illness to get out of work!)

5. Side Hustle School

126662 Side Hustle School is “a daily show for everyone who works a regular job and wants to start an income-earning project on the side,” according to the podcast description. For each episode, host Chris Guillebeau, the New York Times bestselling author of The $100 Startup, interviews a new entrepreneur whose side hustle has taken off to get their tips for success.

6. Lead to Win

podcast cover Whether you’re a boss or would simply like to lead your team to success, Lead to Win can help you do that. The podcast provides “actionable insights to help you win at work, succeed at life, and lead with confidence,” according to the podcast description. Recent episodes include “Generosity Pays,” “How to Deliver on Deadline,” “Self-Care as a Leadership Discipline,” and “How to Create New Products.”

7. Being Boss

Calling all freelancers and entrepreneurs! When you work for yourself, a whole unique host of questions and problems can present themselves. But Being Boss can help. With episodes such as “Self-Limiting Beliefs and Goal Setting” and “Build a Community for Your Business,” the podcast and its hosts Emily Thompson and Kathleen Shannon “dig into the mindset, habits, routines, and boundaries that help you make money doing what you love,” the podcast site says.

8. The Angie Lee Show

angielee “Angie Lee is your hilarious and wicked smart business bestie you’ve always wanted,” this podcast promises. Lee went from being in debt to running a seven-figure business—so if you want tips for making your business successful financially, you’ll really want to tune in.

9. Manager Tools

ManagerTools Logo 1400x1400 Manager Tools podcast will help you become a better boss by tackling topics such as how to make a good hire, how to prepare for performance reviews, and even office politics. As the podcast siteputs it, “There’s a Manager Tools podcast for dealing with every situation you find yourself in. Whether it’s a big deal (like succession planning) or an easy fix (agendas in meetings), we’ll tell you exactly how to proceed, in detail. From hiring to managing your admin and from performance reviews to body odor, there’s a cast for that.”

10. CareerCloud

career cloud Downloaded more than 2,500 times per day, it’s safe to say CareerCloud is a popular career podcast. With guests that range from resume writers, to career coaches and recruiters, and covering topics from resumes to interviewing, job resources, and leveraging social media in your job hunt, there truly is something for every employee and entrepreneur in this podcast.

#CareerAdvice : #CareerDirection – Take these 5 Things into Consideration When you’re Trying to Find your Calling.

January 10, 2019/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

If, like many, you are searching for your calling in life–perhaps you are still unsure which profession aligns with what you most care about–here are five recent research findings worth taking into consideration.

First, there’s a difference between having a harmonious passion and an obsessive passion. If you can find a career path or occupational goal that fires you up, you are more likely to succeed and find happiness through your work–that much we know from the deep research literature. But beware–since a seminal paper published in 2003 by the Canadian psychologist Robert Vallerand and colleagues, researchers have made an important distinction between having a harmonious passion and an obsessive one.

If you feel that your passion or calling is out of control, and that your mood and self-esteem depend on it, then this is the obsessive variety, and such passions, while they are energizing, are also associated with negative outcomes such as burnout and anxiety. In contrast, if your passion feels in control, reflects qualities that you like about yourself, and complements other important activities in your life, then this is the harmonious version, which is associated with positive outcomes, such as vitality, better work performance, experiencing flow, and positive mood.

Like this Article ? Share It !You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwidein our various Social Media formats below:

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

Secondly, having an unanswered calling in life is worse than having no calling at all. If you already have a burning ambition or purpose, do not leave it to languish. A few years ago, researchers at the University of South Florida surveyed hundreds of people and grouped them according to whether they felt like they had no calling in life, that they had a calling they’d answered, or they had a calling but had never done anything about it.

In terms of their work engagement, career commitment, life satisfaction, health and stress, the stand-out finding was that the participants who had a calling they hadn’t answered scored the worst across all these measures. The researchers said that this puts a different spin on the presumed benefits of having a calling in life. They concluded: “Having a calling is only a benefit if it is met, but can be a detriment when it is not as compared to having no calling at all.”

The third finding to bear in mind is that, without passion, grit is “merely a grind.” The idea that “grit” is vital for career success was advanced by the psychologist Angela Duckworth of the University of Pennsylvania, who argued that highly successful, “gritty.” people have impressive persistence. “To be gritty,” Duckworth writes in her 2016 book on the subject, “is to fall down seven times, and rise eight.”

Many studies certainly show that being more conscientious–more self-disciplined and industrious–is associated with more career success. But is that all that being gritty means? Duckworth has always emphasised that it has another vital component that brings us back to passion again–alongside persistence, she says that gritty people also have an “ultimate concern” (another way of describing having a passion or calling).

However, according to a paper published last year, the standard measure of grit has failed to assess passion (or more specifically, ‘passion attainment’)–and Jon Jachimowicz at Columbia Business School in New York and colleagues believe this could explain why the research on grit has been so inconsistent (leading to claims that it is an overhyped concept and simply conscientiousness repackaged).

Jachimowicz’s team found that when they explicitly measured passion attainment (how much people feel they have adequate passion for their work) and combined this with a measure of perseverance (a consistency of interests and the ability to overcome setbacks), then the two together did predict superior performance among tech-company employees and university students. “Our findings suggest that perseverance without passion attainment is mere drudgery, but perseverance with passion attainment propels individuals forward,” they said.

Another finding is that, when you invest enough effort, you might find that your work becomes your passion. It’s all very well reading about the benefits of having a passion or calling in life but, if you haven’t got one, where to find it? Duckworth says it’s a mistake to think that in a moment of revelation one will land in your lap, or simply occur to you through quiet contemplation–rather, you need to explore different activities and pursuits, and expose yourself to the different challenges and needs confronting society.

If you still draw a blank, then perhaps it’s worth heeding the advice of others who say that it is not always the case that energy and determination flow from finding your passion–sometimes it can be the other way around and, if you put enough energy into your work, then passion will follow. Consider, for instance, an eight-week repeated survey of German entrepreneurs published in 2014 that found a clear pattern–their passion for their ventures increased after they’d invested more effort into them the week before.

A follow-up study qualified this, suggesting that the energising effect of investing effort arises only when the project is freely chosen and there is a sense of progress. “Entrepreneurs increase their passion when they make significant progress in their venture and when they invest effort out of their own free choice,” the researchers said.

Finally, if you think that passion comes from doing a job you enjoy, you’re likely to be disappointed. Consider where you think passion comes from. In a preprint paper released at PsyArXiv, Jachimowicz and his team draw a distinction between people who believe that passion comes from doing what you enjoy (which they say is encapsulated by Oprah Winfrey’s commencement address in 2008 in which she said passions “bloom when we’re doing what we love”), and those who see it as arising from doing what you believe in or value in life (as reflected in the words of former Mexican president Felipe Calderón who in his own commencement address in 2011 said “you have to embrace with passion the things that you believe in, and that you are fighting for”).

The researchers found that people who believe that passion comes from pleasurable work were less likely to feel that they had found their passion (and were more likely to want to leave their job) as compared with people who believe that passion comes from doing what you feel matters.

Perhaps this is because there is a superficiality and ephemerality to working for sheer pleasure–what fits the bill one month or year might not do so for long–whereas working towards what you care about is a timeless endeavour that is likely to stretch and sustain you indefinitely. The researchers conclude that their results show “the extent to which individuals attain their desired level of work passion may have less to do with their actual jobs and more to do with their beliefs about how work passion is pursued.”

This is an adaptation of an article originally published by The British Psychological Society’s Research Digest. This article was originally published at Aeon and has been republished under Creative Commons.

FastCompany.com | January 10, 2019 | BY CHRISTIAN JARRETT—AEON5 MINUTE READ

#CareerAdvice : #YourCareer – Follow these 5 Steps to Future-Proof your Career.

December 21, 2018/in First Sun Blog/by First Sun Team

The marketplace for talent is changing rapidly, and experts say it’s about time the way we approached our own careers caught up.

After a couple of decades defined by disruption, automation, and job displacement, many still aren’t convinced that their job could be at risk. Studies conducted by Gallup, Quartz, and the Pew Research Centre have all found that a majority of Americans believe automation and AI will displace a significant number of jobs; just not their own.

The lack of response to this new dynamic has become a key concern for career transition coach and best-selling author Ines Temple. In her book, You, Incorporated: Your Career Is Your Business, Temple explains how every employee should approach their career like a small business, with themselves as a provider of a service to a single client. She adds that any business that depended entirely on one client would be aggressively looking to diversify, and in today’s career landscape, employees should be equally as proactive when it comes to exploring their own career opportunities.

“A lot of people have allowed companies to manage their careers; they don’t take a proactive approach to them,” she says. “When companies change their plans and need to let them go, they are not ready to find a new job, they’re not employable, because their skill sets aren’t up to date. They don’t have metrics ready to demonstrate those skills, and they don’t have a strong network of contacts that will help them in a job search.”

Temple and other career experts recommend taking the following five steps to ensure your career is prepared to overcome the challenges of a rapidly evolving talent marketplace.

1. ASSESS YOUR CURRENT LEVEL OF BEING FUTURE-PROOFED

The first step in improving your career’s resiliency, according to Temple, is determining where you currently stand. She believes that those who are most prepared to evolve are those that love what they do, as they are often most willing to go the extra mile in order to continue doing it.

“Ask yourself, ‘Am I really happy here?’ ‘Is this what I want?’ ‘Is this really my passion?’” she says. “I know that’s a hard thing to worry about when you have bills to pay, but without that, it’s very hard to plan for your future career.”

Being too satisfied with your current employment, however, may also be a sign that you should be doing more to prepare for your future. “A very simple litmus test is: If you’re comfortable, you should start learning something new,” says Darren Raycroft, a partner with the Bedford Consulting Group, an executive search and talent management company.

Raycroft explains that with the rapid pace of technological advancement, the value placed on many skills today lacks the longevity that comparable skills had in previous generations. “Those periods of comfort and normalcy are getting shorter and shorter,” he says.

Raycroft recommends keeping an eye on relevant job postings—even during periods of comfortable employment—to better understand where your industry is heading, and what skills are in highest demand.

Like this Article ? Share It !You now can easily enjoy/follow/share Today our Award Winning Articles/Blogs with Now Over 2.5 Million Growing Participates Worldwidein our various Social Media formats below:

FSC LinkedIn Network: www.linkedin.com/in/fscnetwork

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/First-Sun-Consulting-LLC-Outplacement-Services/213542315355343?sk=wall

Google+: https://plus.google.com/115673713231115398101/posts?hl=en

Twitter: Follow us @ firstsunllc

Question: Want the ‘the best/current articles/blogs on the web’ on Job Search, Resume, Advancing/Changing your Career, or simply Managing People?

Answer: Simply go to our FSC Career Blog below & type(#career, #leadership, #life) in Blog Search: https://www.firstsun.com/fsc-career-blog/

What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Continue of article:

2. COMMIT TO LIFELONG LEARNING

In today’s rapidly changing employment landscape, it’s easier than ever to fall behind, especially if you haven’t recently updated your skills.

“There’s this delineated ‘learning time’ in our lives, and then we move into a position, and if you choose to take some courses to get ahead, you may do so,” explains Raycroft. “I think that’s changing: Learning is and will continue to be an ongoing process with a degree of propensity that we haven’t yet experienced in our lifetimes.”

Raycroft believes that in order to stay ahead of the changing needs of the talent marketplace, employees need to be proactive in updating their skills. “That ability to learn and use judgment has been and will continue to be necessary for success,” he says.

3. NEVER STOP NETWORKING

The worst time to start building a network is when you desperately need one. Professional relationships are typically stronger when they’re built on mutual interest, rather than urgent need. “A lot of people only do a lot of networking when they need a new job, but on a daily basis, we don’t invest enough time in people, building a relationship based on trust,” says Temple. “It’s all about relationships with people, because people will recommend us, promote us, or let us go.”

Not only do those who take a break from networking risk weakening some of their existing relationships, but they can also begin to lose their networking skills. Temple emphasizes the importance of keeping those skills sharp and those relationships strong by building them in the low-pressure periods of career stability.

4. WORK ON YOUR SOFT SKILLS

Building that network often requires strong interpersonal skills, something that Temple believes is sorely lacking in most of today’s workers. “We really need to work on our warmth, our charisma, how much energy we give to people, because those things will make a difference between those who have a chance for a better career and those who don’t,” she says.

Furthermore, if our most robotic and repetitive tasks are bound to be automated, those quintessentially human traits may soon become our greatest assets.

“Young professionals understand that soft skills will be critical to thrive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” says Michele Parmelee, Deloitte’s global chief talent officer. “According to Deloitte’s seventh annual Millennial Survey, young professionals identified softer skills like confidence, interpersonal skills and—particularly for gen-Z—ethics and integrity aptitude as skills they feel are important to develop in order to succeed in the future.”

5. FIND A MENTOR

Not only can mentors use their experience to help their mentees navigate a quickly changing employment landscape, but they can also help them develop some of those vital soft skills in a low-pressure environment.

“It’s a safe place, so you won’t feel embarrassed asking your mentor questions that you might be embarrassed to ask in a group setting,” says millennial and gen-Z engagement expert Ashira Prossack. “You’ll also get that practice, and they’ll give you immediate feedback and one-on-one attention, because you can’t just read about how to communicate, you need to actually do it.”

FastCompany.com | December 21, 2018