Today's career competency

Today's career competency is:  I know what motivates me in the workplace.   Score yourself from 1-5, 1: strongly agree and 5: strongly disagree.
This has to do with a few things:  your work values and your motivated skills.  Does your current workplace fit your work values, such as opportunity to use your intellect, your creativity; does it provide you with independence or are you able to work in teams?  If not, maybe this is de-motivating you.  Everyone has different needs that they want to be met where they work! In addition, we all have lots and lots of skills - some of which we LOVE to use, and others we either are neutral about, or just hate to use.  Then there are other skills we'd love to improve upon.  What skills do you have that you really need to utilize daily?  These are motivated skills - be intentionally aware of these and they will help you understand why you look forward to go to work everyday.  For those of you who are using skills that you only moderately like or even have that "Ugh" feeling when you use them, I say it's time to take a look at the very tasks/skills you like the most and think about either trying to leverage them in your current position, or start looking for positions that allow you to utilize those skills that you really love.
Next competency we'll explore:  I can identify my strongest abilities and skills.
Stay tuned and believe in yourself,
Karen

Yikes I"ve been neglecting my blog!

The world is changing so quickly I can barely keep up with it, especially trends in career management! I"ve been busier over the past twelve months working as a private career coach, contractor and part-time Associate Director of MSU's MBA Career Services Center than at any time in my career.  This tells me (and confirmed by a recent survey) that contract employees, temps or interim workers are one of the biggest trends in 2011.  Daniel Pink's great book, Free Agent Nation, predicted this phenom.

One of the greatest gifts you can give yourself is a well-honed, current toolkit of career management skills. There are 27 career competencies everyone needs to possess!  In upcoming posts, I'll review each one, and share some ideas about how you can gain these essential skills.

Random musings

Met an old friend today, who, at age 65, is forced back into the labor market for a variety of reasons.  This wonderfully upbeat (yet worried) woman shows a strength of character,  yet a disturbing vulnerability.
It got me to thinking.......we who are healthy and courageous- and still have drive, no matter what our age, CAN survive.
Here's to all the people out there who doubt themselves:  just do it.

Better late than never.....

Hey-
I looked at the last date I posted and got kind of .....embarrassed.  OK, so it's been a busy busy fall and winter for me, but things are looking up considerably.  Just returned from Cairo Egypt and have many observations:
...I am grateful for the opportunity to learn another culture.  It enveloped me and I was a true student - of the culture, the geography, the history and the fantastic people.
...Although the USA is the greatest country on earth, to hear, see, smell, and feel the unique differences of Egypt was pretty much the highlight of my life.  I realize the parochial-ness of my existence.
...The lessons learned from my travels (to Alaska and Florida, too!) have made me a better person and career coach
...What motivates me is not money - it's the people I meet, the experiences I go through, and the effort I make to take the risk, gather up the courage to c-h-a-n-g-e - everyday
So, what motivates you?  What curiosities might you have?  What everyday occurrences trigger a thought or a creative idea that you wish to incorporate into your personal growth?

Students in Their Own Words...

Check out this fascinating video of today's college students and think about the disconnect between the  typical kind of classroom experience they're getting and who they are.   Are we preparing them to enter the workforce of today and tomorrow, ready to match up with their peers across the globe?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o

The guy in Row 8F

OK, so I am flying back to Detroit, and my seatmate in Row 8 is a likeable guy, he' s from LA and flying to MI for something. I start in with the usual questions:

Me: Going to MI for work or pleasure?

Him: Well, if I told you, I'd have to....

Me: Kill me?

Him (laughing, behind dark sunglasses): Well, not exactly

Me: Whew!

Him (leaning to face me, still behind those glasses): You know, pleasure is a little bit of work, too, eh?

Wisdom sometimes comes, like a butterfly, and softly lands on your shoulder.

A quick trip to LA results in...

I flew to Los Angeles to conduct a one-day career transition workshop for the LA Air Force Base today. It was an interesting flight as I sat next to an investment advisor who owns 5 locations of investment firms in Michigan and California. I'm sure he was a millionaire many times over. We engaged in a wonderful 4-hour discussion about my new career, and talked about business development, business plans and goals. Among other ideas, he asked me to tell him how many clients I would need to make a million dollars. Of course, I had no idea. He leaned over, held up his index finger, and said earnestly, "just one." He's absolutely correct, of course.

The bottom line is this: figure out what you most enjoy doing and find just one client who needs you. The rest is just details.....