Development or revision of a resume is an ongoing, challenging effort. Remember that we adjust and revise descriptions of our professional experience in our resume to address a specific position. We add elements as our skills or experience build and broaden. We are constantly challenged on how to accurately present our value so that we truly can be understood as a “solution” to the work world. Today, I want you to take a pause in this ongoing process and think…
One of the things teachers often say to the parents of struggling kids is, “Johnny just needs to apply himself.” The parents often walk away agreeing that, in fact, Johnny does need to apply himself and they tell him as much when they get home. While it may sound like a utilitarian comment, it is far from clear what action is required in “applying” oneself—therefore, nothing changes. We can only imagine the number of kids who walk away rolling their…
We received some very nice comments about last week’s post, thank you, and also another question that deserves some thought. “What do you do with people who don’t know enough to know whether or not they are going to hurt the business?” Last week we talked about how to establish the 3-5 rules that, if set, could help guide individuals and teams as they are tackling all the things that come at them day-to-day and week-to-week. The challenge of course,…
Thank you for your comments on last week’s post, 3 – 5 Rules. A lot of executives out there resonated with the idea of providing 3 – 5 key expectations or “rules” that can guide their team as they make choices in their leadership and their work. And, many of you asked how to identify the “right” rules for your teams. As we said in last week’s post, the key to developing powerful rules “is to keep them broad enough…
We are often in the role of providing guidance to those who provide direction to others—executive, managers, community leaders, parents and coaches—and we regularly find that they have many and varied expectations and “rules” for performance. We also find that the people they are directing often report that they are constantly guessing about whether they know the rule of the day. In over twenty years of coaching and consulting, we have found that people are most successful when they have…
I was just reading yesterday about how important “emotional intelligence” is in the career searching and decision-making processes. Studies have actually shown that this concept that was identified several decades ago is playing a significant role in the job search and work environment today. Attitude, and how you interact with other people is critical to career success and satisfaction. Employers today are looking for people with the right “attitude” and personality traits. People who can work well with others, respect…
There comes a time in each of our lives when we are the recipient of “bad news.” You know, the news that kicks you in the gut and for that moment, the world stands still. A few of the “bad news” topics that we have supported our clients through include: the loss of a valued employee, important client, respected boss, desired promotion and promising job; the loss of a marriage, the failure of a business, the death of a parent;…
We were recently reading our local paper and came across an article about a small group of women who have established an after-school homework club—First Door*—to serve lower income kids in third through sixth grade. First Door provides a place for these kids, who often go home to an empty house with no support for homework and school success, to have a place to go for those transitional hours before a parent gets home and have support in this critical…
(Although we are talking about this in an organizational setting today, you will see the necessity for similar considerations in your family life, decisions about finances, and in roles in your community.) In today’s economy, there is a lot of pressure to take risks that will increase the company’s market share and bottom line. Recently, we heard the CEO of a large, conservative financial organization state that he wants his teams to “go for it and ask forgiveness later.” And,…
We live in a world where many things are said with great certainty, as a proclamation of “truth.” Yet, in our work, we find that people in all their various roles often have more power if they can show up as curious rather than certain. One of the things we ask of our clients is to engage with a spirit of curiosity instead of certainty. We know, staying curious when you are stressed or in a hurry is easier…
We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with leaders, teams, and individuals who are passionate about growing in their leadership and in their ability to create cultures of psychological safety and engagement.
Carpenter Smith Consulting is a Women Business Enterprise, Oregon Cert ID 7047.
