Kit Prendergast, pcc
Kit brings you a wealth of experience and expertise as well as a wonderful spirit, tremendous energy, and a gift for inspiring others to create the life they truly want to have.First Monday Newsletter
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The Value of a Career Brand
Build your own career brand before someone else does it for you. And they will! Take control over how others see you, how they remember you and then if they want to do business with you. This is your reputation and a positive reputation is essential for a successful career. But it does take some real thought, time and commitment – and only you can do it.
Susan Whitcomb, founder of Career Coach Academy, identifies three “building blocks” we can use to start clarifying our own unique brand.
- First, think of the Adjectives that others would use to describe you. These are typically the soft interpersonal skills such as ethical, committed, motivated or level-headed.
- Second, think what Nouns or titles would be associated with you? These are the hard industry specific skills such as a strategist, a troubleshooter, a problem solver.
- Third, what Verbs would describe the value you bring? This is the result, impact or advantages you bring to your work.
The last step is to identify the key needs of your target marketplace and then how your brand aligns with these needs. Stay flexible and creative. Your brand will evolve and represent you at your best!
Holidays Are a Great Time to Connect With Others
The best part of the holiday season is time connecting with others. I’ve always found this true even when living in Norway, working full-time and raising two little ones. It’s often “wickedly busy” during the early part of December but the closer it gets to Christmas Day, the quieter work becomes here at the office.
That’s my time to connect with others – for coffee, lunch or a simple chat on the phone. And I find that’s generally true for others as well – fewer meetings are scheduled, workloads ease off a bit and people can catch their breath.
So here’s my holiday career tip for you:
Pick up the phone each day and call a favorite client to just say hi and wish them happy holidays. Keep it simple and genuine. You’re not asking for anything. You are just reconnecting.
People like to know that others are thinking about them. I like it as well – you can give me a call too!
Overcome “Recession Fatigue”
Here’s the best strategy I’ve found to push through that “Recession Fatigue”. It is simply shifting your energy to those areas that you do have some control over and concentrating on being successful in those areas over the next few months.
Here’s a way to do that . . .
First. Take a piece of paper and draw out the five Olympic Circles. You will remember that there are five intersecting circles – three on the top and two on the bottom. Next, take a moment to think of the five areas of your current life that you value spending your time and energy on. Often these are areas that in the past you regretted not having the time to spend doing.
Areas such as: your own health (exercise, eating well etc.); learning by taking a class; picking up a new hobby or volunteer commitment; having more time with your children; mini-vacations with old friends or maybe more quality involvement with your elderly parents.
Pick what’s important to you in this chapter of your life. Now, label each circle with one of those areas.
Second. Identify priority short-term benchmarks in each of these areas. Be concrete – is there a weight goal? A sports fitness goal? A passion you want to nurture? Do you want to be more available to your parents, your own kids or your friends? Keep the short-term benchmarks easy to remember and to track.
Third. Now identify when you will know that you have hit those benchmarks – when you’ve made your first short-term goal on exercising; learning; volunteering or extra time with your own kids and parents. What will success look like? And don’t forget to celebrate when you’ve reached those successes each and every time!
It’s great (and critical) to feel productive, appreciated and successful in these additional areas of your life. So even if this recession is beating you up on the job more than you expected, you can take control of other areas, and enjoy a wonderful boost of self-confidence from these other equally important areas of your life.
Appreciating the Introvert’s Gifts
I’m an extrovert. Always have been and always will be. But I couldn’t do all that I do in my business, my family and my community work without the partnership of many introverts.
This is what I love about introverts . . . they listen, they speak and then they listen some more. They contribute well thought-out ideas and they see what I don’t see. They concentrate on one thing at a time so they don’t seem as fragmented or constantly distracted as many of us do. They are often solid team members bringing another dimension and value to our busy work lives.
But it’s not easy – either being an introvert in today’s workplace or managing an introverted staff member. This month’s book, The Introvert Advantage is filled with wonderful tips on how to navigate today’s workplace as an introvert, but here are 3 of my favorite tips for the introvert’s manager to remember as well.
- Introverts do best with a quiet place to work without interruptions.
- Introverts may not speak up in meetings but be sure to ask them for their opinions.
- Introverts will need time to think before responding to your request/questions.
Be Welcoming, A Valuable Tip from Starbucks
Recently, I had the opportunity to visit the Starbucks Coffee distribution center located here in Northern Nevada. With beautiful views of the Carson Valley mountains, this distribution center is a huge operation shipping coffee throughout the western region. As I waited in the lobby, I was intrigued to read the Starbucks’ mission statement posted on the wall. Was it just words or does the organization really do what they say they believe in?
Within minutes I had my answer – yes, they really have a warm and welcoming culture that radiates out from all the interactions between HR, supervisors and the employees or “partners”. It’s not only words on the wall here at the distribution center but in every Starbucks store I’ve visited across the country. This core philosophy of “Be Welcoming” is included in The Starbucks’ Five Ways of Being which is captured in a pocket-sized book called The Green Apron Book given to each partner.
I love this idea . . . and how often we forget that being welcoming is not only critical to attracting new clients but to keeping our current and past clients engaged with us. Starbucks defines “be welcoming” as “offering everyone a sense of belonging”. It’s creating that sense of genuine connection (not just a transaction) that we all naturally want with others. Here are a few simple ways we can provide this in our own businesses and professional work.
- Learn people’s names – remember & use them always
- Listen to at’s important to people in both their personal & work lives
- Be flexible in responding to people’s needs – everyone is different
- Do a little extra for others – you will be appreciated and remembered
- Stay in touch – don’t ignore people once they start to do business with you.