In Dan Brown’s latest book (author of The Da Vinci Code) The Lost Symbol, the reference to bringing order out of chaos comes up again and again. While I was reading the book, a senior executive in transition made the comment, ”Now I see what I have to do; you have made it clear what I have to do. It was very confusing before.”

With so many people searching for the best way to find their “next best work” there is so much chaos out there that it can be overwhelming.

• TV stations are offering fast, 15-second tips on how to find a job.
• Local churches are holding career sessions on how to improve your resume.
• Monster, Career Builder, and a host of other marketing sites are using jobs to sell their space.
• Government has their “help” programs.
• Some companies promise to market you to major companies for ONLY $10,000!

Where should a person go to get the best advice? Well, if you are sick you go to the doctor. If you have a plumbing problem you go to a plumber, a legal problem you go to a lawyer. With career issues, the connection should be to the expert in the field, a career counselor.

When was the last time you did a search on Google to find useful information? Or, are you now using Bing as your decision engine? Whatever search tool you use, it has become common practice to search the Internet to find everything from a plumber to a movie time to the closest Italian restaurant. With the I-phone and the latest handheld technology, it gets easier every day as long as you know what to look for. We also have to become savvy searchers as not all the information we need is on the first page of our search results. I decided to look for “retirement planning tools” and came up with a very extensive list. Let me give you the first six sites.

• Fidelity Retirement Income Planner
• Financial Engines
• Morningstar Retirement Planner
• Vanguard Retirement Calculator
• T. Rowe Price Retirement Income Calculator
• ES Planner Plus

Great, but not what I was looking for. These are all financial planning sites to help you calculate how much you should be saving, for how long, and at what rate. All good information – but not what I was looking for.

I was more interested in obtaining advice on the many other things that have to be considered in retirement. What am I going to do to continue to stretch my mind? Where am I going to stay? What hobbies can I work on? What about the family? What experiences do I seek out when I travel? These and many other questions are not answered in the sites I mentioned above. To find this information you need to dig deeper into the web. You still will have a hard time finding what you want unless you look at the Career Partners New Horizons coaching program. Not only does this program help you to categorize various retirement planning areas, but it also helps you highlight where you most need to focus your attention to have a happy and productive retirement. Don’t get me wrong – money is important, but money does not always make people happy. New Horizons retirement planning is a great investment of your time and energy.

As always I am interested to hear if you find something better.

Jim Davidson

I recently came accross an article by Steve Beseke which I felt was well worth sharing. We have all been knocked down in the past and with the state of the economy more people have had this happen to them recently. It is not time to give up however, and Steve raises some interesting strategies to combat knockeddownism.

Check out Steve's life resiliency article at http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-13474-Minneapolis-Career-Resiliency-Examiner~y2009m8d24-Being-Knocked-Down-Means-Getting-Up-Again-Stronger .

Have the bad economy and the associated belt-tightening, layoffs, and furloughs totally distracted you from the impending crisis you were thinking about a couple of years ago? How will your company fare if and when the economy recovers and an avalanche of baby boomer retirements occurs?  Do you have any idea whether you can really count on them staying longer because of the damage done to retirement portfolios?

Recap of the Christmas Holiday JOB Rush

December 24^th – Candidate 1 received an offer at 7pm. To quote their words it was “The best Christmas gift ever received”

December 26^th – Initial phone interview for a position. Candidate 2

December 29^th – Face to face interview Candidate 2

December 29^th – Later in the day – Email offer to Candidate 2

December 31^st – Candidate 3 receives a call for a phone interview late afternoon.

January 5^th – Candidate 4 has a face to face interview

January 6^th – Candidate 4 receives the written offer

Change, change, everywhere we turn. As a top executive, you can’t delude yourself into thinking that your entire management team and employees really like it. While there are those who thrive on change, most people experience it as a stressor. To succeed, executives must become masters at transforming the fear associated with change into workplace creativity and enthusiasm. Therein lies a major challenge. If there’s fear anywhere in the executive boardroom, it often has little or no avenue for escape. Realistic or not, executive fears can be crippling when it comes to driving a business through this abysmal state of the economy.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (Nov 10, 2008) – In today’s tight economy, most of us know at least one person if not several who are out of work and looking for jobs. To brighten the holidays for these friends or family members, there are seven special gifts you can give, and they don’t cost you a dime.

Handling layoffs is a delicate situation and I have been involved over the years in many ways, as an impacted employee, as a manager doing notifications, as a VP of HR planning the event, as a Career coach assisting those being impacted and, as an account manager working with corporations to best plan the event. The bottom line is that the employees being impacted have to be the main priority, with those left behind being taken care of as well. So, whatever you do, and whoever you select, select a career continuation/outplacement firm to assist the employees and protect the firm.

We are proud to announce and introduce Sherri Elliott as the new President of Optimance Workforce Strategies.  Sherri immediately strengthens the Optimance team.  We will now enjoy expanded capabilities to provide an integrated range of time and cost saving business solutions.  Sherri and the OWS team will deliver Human Resource audits, compliance, outsourcing, recruiting and training programs.

How does your Human Resources function spend its time?  Putting out fires?  Responding to requests from Senior Management?  Listening to employee complaints?  Intervening on benefit related issues?   All of these very important functions of HR very often detract the HR Department from another key function which does not make loud demands until it is too late – compliance with regulatory statutes and creating an environment in which employees are not inclined to seek third party intervention.   If a disgruntled employee were to file a complaint resulting in your obligation to open your records and processes to those wishing to discredit and gain monetarily from you – how would your organization fare? In 2007 at least 82,700 companies were faced with just such a problem and they ended up paying over $290 million for failing to hear the call of the important, while focusing on the daily urgent. 

On a recent Southwest flight their “Numbers” article caught my attention. Now in our third year of running our Age Impact Seminar programs centenarians had never been mentioned. Here was new information. The story read that the number of centenarians living in the United States will rise to 160,000 by 2017, making the 100-plus the fastest growing segment of the population. That means that as many as 1 to 3 million of the nation’s 76 million baby boomers will have a shot at hearing Willard Scott announce their names on the today show. The odds are even better for whippersnappers. Experts predict that 1 in 10 girls and 1 in 20 boys born today will live to see 100. 

Our speaker at the first Age Impact Seminar in 2008 was further able to explain the impact of these numbers. Dr Ira Wolfe, President of Poised for the Future Company and author of The Perfect Labor Storm 2.0, provided some startling facts for all of us to consider. As an individual, employer, Boomer, X”er or Civic I think you will be challenged by his information. 

Do you agree with it? What can you do about it? What are your thoughts about his concluding questions? We look forward to your feedback. 

Click on the following link to access his presentation page and then download the Optimance pdf. 

www.perfectlaborstorm.com/Downloads/PLS2_optimance.pdf

The headlines offer lots of free advice.  There are many articles focused on how each of us can be smarter, happier, and healthier in 2008.  Some articles are focused on our money and what we ought to do with it.  Some articles are focused on our bad habits and how we can fix ourselves.  Then we have articles focused on how we use and waste our time. 

It’s the time issue that struck me as relevant today.  At our most recent Age Impact series, the question of how one leader used her time started a conversation.  What are some time management behaviors that seem to separate top leaders from others?  How do the best managers utilize their own limited time? 

The best take the time to manage down.  Top leaders take the time to connect with subordinates.  The best managers take the time to listen to those working for them.  Top leaders know what subordinates are thinking.

We have witnessed falling leaders and managers when they’ve lost touch with their subordinates.  We’ve seen leaders lose out when they’re focused entirely on their own superiors.  We’ve seen managers lose support from lack of communication with subordinates.

Sherri Elliott, SPHR of the Elliott Consulting Group, reports that exceptional leaders are rare.  “Leaders need to see the organization from the employee’s perspective.  They need to make it easy and rewarding for employees to express themselves and their ideas, and they need to figure out how and when to delegate responsibility.  Keeping your employees in the dark is not a good measure of control, it creates distrust, and managerial silence needs to be eliminated.” 

“It has been my experience that many leaders fail to recognize the positive impact of sharing their great moments–often called challenges or perceived failings,” says Sharon Roberts of Roberts & Roberts, Executive Team Development.  Sharon indicates “I urge leaders to immediately begin encouraging their subordinates.  It is so important for leaders to be totally present when interacting with an employee whatever the amount of time is allocated.”

What do you think?  Is it appropriate for managers and leaders to spend 20% of their time, 40% of their time, or 60% of their time connecting with subordinates?   Should managers set aside a portion of their schedule for subordinates?  What portion of each day should leaders dedicate to subordinates?  Would you agree that managing down is critical?

Here’s to better leaders in 2008.

The holidays are not the time to search for a job?  WRONG!

The conventional wisdom is idiotic. Who says, "companies don't make decisions at year end"? Who says, "no one's around"?This may be the best time to make your drive into the company of your choice. Put your resume aside, start thinking about intelligent topics to discuss, and get on the phone now.

Asleep at the wheel
While other job hunters are out of the picture, make your calls to companies and people who aren't being deluged with the regular requests for interviews and information. This is a time of less competition. Capitalize on it!

The switchboard is dead
And the receptionist is bored. With fewer calls coming in, it's easier to strike up a conversation with the person who answers the phones. Ask for information, names, advice and contacts. And get the receptionist's name -- when you call back in a couple of weeks, you won't be a stranger.

I know you're alone
Lots of managers work through the holidays -- and so do lots of their team members. The place is quiet. Nerves are calm. Information is more easily had. A tactful, no-pressure call from you can yield a useful discussion -- and valuable advice and insight.Do some research, we use One Source, and be prepared to have an interactive discussion with the manager you'd like to work for. Try to stick to one subject: the work that you and the person you're calling both do. Do not ask for a job outright -- but do explain that you're considering a job change in the New Year. "I've heard a lot about you. Your company is one I'd want to work in, and I wanted to learn about the organization. By the way, congratulations on winning the XYZ deal. I read about it in ABC magazine."If the manager responds well, ask if you could stop by in a couple of days for "the cook's tour" and maybe a bite of lunch in the cafeteria. (This approach works best if a company insider refers you to the manager, but it can work regardless.)