By Jim Wiederhold

Last month, I discussed the importance of increasing your activity and setting reasonable stretch goals to get the results you want in your career transition journey. One of the essential activities of someone who is looking for the next step in their career is submitting resumes and cover letters to a recruiter or an employer for a specific opportunity—what I like to call “getting paper out.”

By Jim Wiederhold

The old sales adage can be applied to career transition as well—activity equals results. Yet, this is where so many people fail. They don’t buy into this equation, limit their activity, and consequently limit their results. By focusing on those activities that you can control and ramping up the frequency of those activities, you are creating more opportunities to accomplish your goals.

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that insanity is defined as “doing the same things and expecting different results.” It’s a common saying because we all know it to be true: if you keep repeating the same actions, you will get the same outcomes.

By Jim Wiederhold

In a typical year, I tell my clients to anticipate a slow-down in their career transition momentum during the summer months. But this year, this may not be the case.

By Jim Wiederhold

In the career transition journey, there are some things you can control and some things you can’t. This is especially true when reaching out to people you’d like to connect with to expand your network. You can try to create touch points, but you can’t make them call you back. However, there are some steps you can take to increase the likelihood of making a connection with that person, and forming a relationship where there’s something in it for both parties.

By Jim Wiederhold

No matter whether someone leaves his or her company under positive or negative circumstances, everyone struggles with their “exit story.”

By Jim Wiederhold

Career transition can be one of the most challenging times in a person’s life. For some, the journey is difficult and demoralizing; for others, it is a time of great learning and refining values. The difference between these two types of experiences lies in your mindset. For a positive, successful career transition that helps you grow personally and professionally, pay attention to these factors: passion, attitude, confidence, baggage, expectations, and control.

By Jim Wiederhold

Over the past year, countless organizations have created COVID-related content to let the public know how they’re responding in “these unprecedented times.” While some articles and ads have been inspiring or moving, some organizations have overpromoted to the point of being obnoxious. Rather than taking a partnership approach, they’ve chosen a selling approach, and it lands all wrong at a time when the country is struggling.

By Jim Wiederhold

This time of the year, many people on the job hunt close up shop for the year, certain that no forward progress can be made between Thanksgiving and the New Year. This is simply not true. We all may be eager to put 2020 behind us, but there is still good work to be done to build a fulfilling life and career.

By Danielle Mellema

Entrepreneurs and small business owners are seeing the benefits of the still-growing podcasting trend. Podcast hosting is a (generally) low-cost way is to kill many birds with one stone—you can share your expertise, learn from others, deepen your network, position yourself as a thought-leader in your industry, and build a community with similar goals, interests, or ideals.

By Jim Wiederhold

Here’s a scenario I get asked about often:

You’re in the acute care market. With COVID-19 challenges and hospitals only just now starting to hire again, you look outside the acute care market for job opportunities. But you know from watching colleagues take time away from acute care and attempt to return, that it isn’t always possible.

By Claire Sakaoka

As freelancers and solopreneurs, we are always looking for ways to either cut overhead or create more time in the day. Or very often – BOTH. And when you are busy, creating and managing social media accounts fall to the bottom of your list. Admit it, at least one day a week, the thought crosses your mind, “I should be posting to __________.”

By Jim Wiederhold

Great news for those in a career transition: After many uncertain months, recruiters and
executives in my network are reporting that hiring is starting to pick back up. It’s not back to
normal, but it’s heading in the right direction.

By Jim Wiederhold - Right now, the job market is experiencing significant changes. People are finding themselves unemployed in increasing number who never thought they would lose their job. And with so many people looking for only a handful of open positions, it’s a terribly competitive situation.

By Jim Wiederhold - When I meet with people who are starting their career transition journey, I often ask if they have a record of their accomplishments from their previous positions. Most often, people assure me that the information is stored “in their head.”

By Jim Wiederhold

Over the years, I’ve worked with many executives who were separated from their organizations for a variety of reasons, and the number of reasons continues to grow. Today, executives are let go not just for poor job performance but personality fit, relationships, business decisions, and company politics. Having dealt with these exit stories in all categories, it’s clear that people aren’t being given feedback—and aren’t asking for it.

By Jim Wiederhold

In a time where communities are keeping their social distance and offices are closed in favor of working from home, networking looks different than it did a few months ago. People are rightfully distracted by COVID-19 and the economic challenge of our current situation. With reasonable expectations and a genuine desire to help your connections, you can continue to grow and deepen your network—even in these uncertain times.

By Jim Wiederhold

Career transition—whether anticipated or unexpected—can be a trying time in a person’s life. But in the transition process, there are lessons you can learn, skills you can develop, and habits you can form that will make you a better person, a stronger leader, and will serve you well as you continue to progress in your career.

By Claire Sakaoka

With a background in public relations, I’m trained in not only how to communicate during a crisis, but also how to make lemonade out lemons. I was taught to look for the most consumable angle when delivering news. A way to subtly communicate our company’s positive attributes and/or mitigate potentially damaging messages. This is the lens in which I view the media.

By Jim Wiederhold

Networking is so often thought of as something that no one really wants to do, but that everyone knows they have to do in order to succeed in their careers. But I don’t think most people realize the true value of it.

70% of people looking for a job find it through networking. In my experience, that is absolutely true. In fact, I think that percentage is likely even higher.