If you celebrate Christmas, I hope you are not locked in a frenzy of last-minute shopping and stressed out crowds...all my shopping was done online. So I can relax, focus on family and the real reason for the season.
Anyway, I won't hold you for long...just wanted to stop by and give you a burst of inspiration and motivation for your career. On the ninth day of the holidays, my career coach said to me:
Build relationships and expand your network
It is easy to convince ourselves that we are strong and competent enough to handle life's (work/career/family) issues on our own, but the reality is that we all benefit from blessing others and being blessed by others.
When you consider how much impact a personal referral, a solid Linkedin testimonial and an internal advocate in your target company can make the difference in your career...you have to agree that getting connected and staying connected to others makes good sense, not only for your career, but also for life on the whole.
Personally, I love Facebook because in the past three years, it has connected me to new friends and re-connected me with people from all phases of my life - from Pre-K through college and beyond. Pretty incredible, huh?
Beyond the occasional "join my network" emails through LinkedIn and status updates from Facebook and Twitter - assuming that you actually use those two social networks), do you know where your network is?
If you have been happily employed for many years, that is great, but it is no excuse for neglecting your network or taking your personal/professional contacts for granted. So how do you stay in touch with people throughout the year without being intrusive?
-- Make a list of birthdays and anniversaries so that you can at least send a card in the mail or an e-card. If you are close to the person, acknowledging their children's birthdays as well is not a bad idea.
-- Make an effort to send out an email at least once a year just to check in - how are you, what's new, still at the same job, etc
-- Make sure to inform your contacts everytime you get a promotion, new job, interesting or high-profile project just to keep them abreast of your career progression. Remember to be receptive and congratulatory when the same information is sent to you
-- Make plans to meet in person with your top tier contacts every quarter if you live in the same city, state or regional area
-- Make yourself available for recommendations or referrals when anyone of your contacts is seeking to make career moves
-- Make good use of Linked, Facebook, and Twitter to give everyone brief, but informational updates on your weekly activities
It takes more than building a network for effective executive career management, you have to go the extra mile to keep your network fresh and current.
Related posts:
Day 1: Conduct an honest self-assessment
Day 2: Say goodbye to career mistakes and disappointments
Day 3: Jump start your long lost career dreams
Day 4: Take credit for your life and career achievements
Day 5: Identify and promote your personal brand
Day 6: Create a standout resume
Day 7: Beef up your online presence and get your "voice" heard
Day 8: Invest in your professional development
About Abby, Executive Career Architect, Job Search Expert, Master Resume Writer
Ask yourself these questions:
-- Does your executive resume accurately describe your management style and leadership capabilities?
-- Is your executive resume rich with compelling Challenge-Action-Results success stories that indicate your value contribution?
-- Does your executive resume convey enthusiasm or energy motivating employers to contact you?
-- Has your executive resume been generating a stream of employer responses for the right jobs?
If you have answered no to any of these questions, you should be talking to Abby Locke. She is an executive resume writer helps senior-level executives to achieve career success through cutting-edge, brand-focused career documents and proactive career management strategies.
Her distinctive executive resume samples have been published in 13 national career publications...click here to schedule a resume consultation.
