On President Barack Obama's Inauguration

I wrote several weeks ago about the 30 Career Lessons one Should Learn from the Obama campaign.

I am hoping that in his inaugural address, President Obama will challenge us as Americans to take greater responsibility for our individual and collective lives and our future. That translates for me to personal ownership of our careers and our lives, especially in a time of such economic crisis.

I think these 30 career lessons from, now President Obama's career, are worth repeating on this outstanding day!

1. Set personal goals
2. Stay away from those who say “You Can’t”
3. Be true to who you are, regardless of the job
4. To land a meaningful job or grow professionally, expect some hurdles
5. Keep learning even through your job search and beyond
6. Develop a personal board of advisors for support
7. Surround yourself with diverse people with diverse thoughts
8. Develop a backbone. Even successful careers will have disappointments
9. Think around, outside and under the box; the way forward may not necessarily be clear or straight ahead
10. Don't expect your career path to be logical to everyone else; It must make sense to you
11. Don’t burn your bridges behind you; your affiliations are important
12. Be mindful of what your associations could say about you
13. You don’t need to have all the experience in the job description to apply
14. Push the envelope; job descriptions get rewritten all the time
15. Know you might be underestimated; Rise above it!
16. Some people will like you for the job and some will not
17. Know and understand your competition; do not underestimate them
18. Think transferable skills
19. You may have to say things during an interview to impress your future boss
20. Know how to build consensus and move ideas forward
21. Keep track of your accomplishments; no one else is obligated to do that for you
22. Beware people who hang around you, because you are successful – not because they care
23. Education and training mean something
24. Hard work and discipline will pay off
25. It is not a shame to strategically plan your career
26. Many people are not working in their college majors
27. The more people who support you and your ideas, the more successful you will be
28. You are always preparing for your next career opportunity, regardless of what you are doing
29. Savor your accomplishments; be confident and gracious when the accolades come
30. Know that the real work begins after you land the job!

Happy Inauguration Day!

Laid Off Workers Take Over the Factory

To use a famous quote from an Oscar winning movie in 1976, Network, the employees at a Chicago manufacturing company seemed to be saying, "We are mad as hell and not going to take it any more!"

About 200 employees, very upset about lost vacation pay, disappearing medical insurance and lack of severance pay, have staged a "sit-in", at the factory where they worked. The company failed to give the 60 days notice that is required by law before shutting down and instead only told workers 3 days before closing the doors.

Workers were also angered by the fact that the management team did not show up for a meeting scheduled for this past Friday.

It appears that monthly sales for the company, Republic Windows and Doors had fallen from $4Million to $2.9Million during the last month.

Although not a popular practice here in the United States since the 1930’s, a little bit of internet research showed that it is not uncommon in other countries for workers to “take over” companies.

Case in point, a few weeks ago, Vivex, makers of windscreens for cars, was taken over by 360 workers in Venezuela because of the non-payment of the "utilidades" or profit bonus. Workers are demanding that the government nationalize the company and look at the books to verify company losses.

Thank heavens there are no such chants, yet, for the government to take over companies like Republic Windows and Doors. However, one has to wonder what is to come. Have we set a bad precedence for choosing to bail out some companies and not help others? If Congress chooses to support Ford, GM and Chrysler with a $17B bridge loan, who will be next in line?

Who is going to bail out the millions of small businesses that may have to close their doors?

Employees need to really stay focused on their work evironment and scan the horizon for possible changes that may impact them.

30 Career Lessons from Barack Obama's Campaign

As a registered independent voter, I read news from multiple sources. I read an article a few months ago at the Weekly Standard and thought I would save my comments until after the election.

The article was titled - Would You Hire Barack Obama? The Resume of a Chronic Underachiever, by Dean Barnett.

Barnett, a former headhunter for law firms, was reviewing Barack Obama's career and resume. His ultimate conclusion was: "The net effect is this: His accomplishments haven't been commensurate with his talents."

I wondered what Barnett would say now? Having worked in the career management field for a while, I know that there are recruiters with stories of hires who performed well beyond expectations or those hires that were overlooked and underestimated.

Since hindsight is better than 20/20, I thought I would list some of the career lessons I think one could learn from Barack Obama's campaign for the job of United States President.

1. Set personal goals
2. Stay away from those who say “You Can’t”
3. Plan and prepare for the long haul
4. To land a meaningful job, prepare for a really tough interview
5. Keep improving through the job search and beyond
6. Develop a personal board of advisors for support
7. Surround yourself with a diverse group of people with diverse thoughts
8. Develop a backbone. Even successful careers can have disappointments
9. Think around, outside and under the box. The way forward may not necessarily be clear or straight ahead
10. Don't expect your career paths to be logical to everyone looking on
11. Don’t burn your bridges behind you. You may need a reference or two eventually
12. Be mindful of what your associations can say about who you are
13. You don’t need to have all the experience in the job description to apply
14. Job descriptions get rewritten all the time
15. Be open to the fact that you might be underestimated
16. Some people will like you for the job and some will not
17. Some will laugh behind your back when they find out you are applying for a certain job
18. The real work begins after you land the job
19. Know your competition and do not underestimate them
20. Think transferable skills. eg. What skills did I develop as a community organizer or PTA President that could be valuable when changing careers.
21. You may have to say things during an interview to impress your future boss
22. You have to build consensus to move ideas forward
23. Keep track of your accomplishments; no one else is obligated to do that for you
24. You may find people want to hang around you, just because you are successful – not because they care
25. Education and training mean something
26. Hard work and discipline pays off eventually
27. It is not a shame to strategically plan your career
28. Many people are not working in their college majors
29. The more people who support you and your ideas, the more successful you will be
30. You are always preparing for your next career opportunity, regardless of what you are doing.

Did I miss anything? I am sure I did!

Why I Will Be in the Voting Booth on November 4th?

It is hard to know what specific issues people ponder when they enter the voting booth. Which specific issues put them over the top for one candidate or another? It differs for everyone I am sure and even at this last minute, some people are thinking about the future and earnestly trying to make the right decision.
If the predictions are right, the long lines today, will give us a lot of time to think about our vote.

Although I write a career blog, I couldn’t resist the urge to put my thoughts on paper to express why and for whom I am voting today! There are truly career lessons everywhere.

1. My vote today will be for all the women who have struggled for centuries to balance their need to work and to care for families. For women who have been overlooked in the workplace, whose voices are never heard, who do get equal pay for equal work and who were too tired or scared to fight for that. Say what you will about Sarah Palin or Hillary Clinton, these are women with a point of view who have put themselves out there for our scrutiny and sometimes even our ridicule. Whether or not you consider them intellectually equal or competent, they both have shown us it is possible what can happen if you are brave enough to say, “Yes”, when asked.

2. I vote for those who show up every day to perform, even in the face of stereotypes that would seek to diminish them personally. Be they men or women. Barack Obama’s candidacy reaffirms what many of us who are immigrants have always known - that to succeed you don’t just have to be good; you have to be two or three times as good. We know the bar against which we are measured is higher, as it should be. After all, we have to prove we are worthy of being called – “American”. Unfortunately, that same high bar has been used to measure those born here, but still considered different. I vote for those whose ideas were brilliant, but never acknowledged; those who worked hard, but were never applauded and for those who were passed over and overlooked because they were different. I vote today to reinforce, that stereotypes are just barriers to be broken.

3. My vote today is for those of us who are brave enough to reach “across the aisle”, so to speak, to develop and nurture strong relationships with those who might not look like us, but share our values. I vote for all who are willing to take a chance on the goodness of people, knowing that even after all the hard work and the crowds go home, we might still not be good enough, for reasons over which we have no control – be it race, ethnicity, gender, religion, age or sexual orientation.

4. My vote today is for all the 72 year olds, like John McCain, who know that there is still more to give and more to do to keep this country strong. For all those seniors who are still willing to answer the call for greatness, regardless of age. For all those seniors who never get weary or tire, because they feel their mission is a noble one. It is truly inspiring to me that John McCain traversed this great country, visiting up to seven states within 24 hours of the most significant election in US history.

5. My vote today is for all generations past – the uncles, the aunts, the grandparents, the parents who never even dared to dream the possibility, much less experience the reality of an African American or American Woman in the White House. For those who marched, who died and on whose shoulders we stand as we continue to explore this great experiment that is America.

6. My vote today is for my children, a young man of 17 and a young woman of 16, who are too young to vote, but so aware as are many at their age. Both are first generation Americans, Ja-mericans as we call them, meaning those of Jamaican parents born in the US, for whom the options have never been greater. I vote for them so they can continue to live in an America, where being American means something, both inside and outside this country. I vote so that they can see the greatness of America where power is transferred, without bloodshed and without violence as it should in all free societies. I vote to show them, that as Americans, they too will have a responsibility to support this great nation, participate in this democracy and protect the rights of it’s citizens to free expression. All our futures depend on it.

Go vote. The real work begins tomorrow!

Should You Be Allowed to Vote? Take This Test

In a perfect world we could have this quick quiz outside the polling station on election day so all who will vote will actually know a thing or two about the issues.

Take the quiz and see if you know the issues well enough to vote!

You Should Be Allowed to Vote

You got 15/15 questions correct. Generally speaking, you're very well informed. If you vote this election, you'll know exactly who (and what) you'll be voting for. You're likely to have strong opinions, and you have the facts to back them up.

Should You Be Allowed to Vote?

Second Jobs, Postponing Job Changes and Going Back to School

Expect more of the same for 2008 quarter four, says the latest Career Builder survey of 3000 HR professionals and 6000+ workers nationwide.

Job losses on Wall Street and the ultimate trickle down effects will continue to affect employment rates for the rest of the year. With the September unemployment numbers expected to be higher than the August 6.1%, employees are anxious about the future.

"Employers are maintaining a conservative approach to recruitment as they maneuver through a weaker economy that has produced its share of casualties," said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder.com. Ferguson also shares that IT and Healthcare still show solid job growth even though employers are planning to add fewer workers in quarter four.

Survey highlights:

- 21% of workers who found a new job in 2008, said the job search took four months or longer.
- 5% of employers said their companies required employees to take an unpaid leave of absence in the past six months as a cost-saving measure.
- 9% of workers have taken on second jobs in response to higher prices, food and healthcare. 24% are considering getting a second job.
- 38% of workers are postponing active job search and say will stay with existing company for another year at least.
- 41% plan to stay with their present employers until retirement.
- 34% percent of employers reported they are having a hard time finding qualified candidates in highly-skilled areas.
- 26% of workers plan to go back to school to obtain a degree, certification or other training.

Of those who plan to go back to school, 32 percent want to pursue a bachelor’s degree while 10 percent are going back for their MBA and 12 percent are going back for a master’s degree in another field.

Source - Career Builder Industry Trends Survey, September 2008

Politicians Don't Understand; We are in a Recession!

Sometimes I think I am not paying enough attention to the media or I am not listening to enough talk radio since I don't hear a lot of talk about the recession in which I think we are mired. Since I am in the career development profession, I am meeting a lot of people who have lost their jobs or are afraid of losing their jobs. The 6.1% unemployment rate announced last week by the Department of Labor, confirms that people have a lot to worry about.

I actually didn't need to hear the numbers to know that many people are having a really hard time making ends meet and are experiencing difficult times.

Here are some of the barometers that I see just in my everyday routines:

1. The length of time it takes for me to get on to the freeway via the on ramp. I was thinking traffic was light because it was a slow summer. However, the kids are back to school and the traffic from nearby new housing developments has lessened significantly.

2. The unbelievable costs of everyday food items. My jaw totally dropped on a recent trip to the supermarket to find that a bottle of domestic Canola Oil cost almost the same as a bottle of imported Olive Oil.

3. The number of conference participants willing to share a room with a colleague at a recent career conference.

What are your everyday barometers?

As folks become more concerned about job security and career stability I thought some readers might want to revisit a few of our posts about surviving a layoff or recession proofing a career.

- What's Your Career Half Life?
- The Ailing, Failing US Economy hits City and State Employees
- Top 25 Careers to Pursue in a Recession
- 3 Surefire Ways to Recession Proof Your Job or Career – Part 1
- 3 Surefire Ways to Recession Proof Your Job or Career - Part 2
- Life After Layoff

Ford Motors Does Another Payout!

From payouts to buyouts, this Ford Motors timeline shows that the writing has been on the wall for this troubled company for a while. Hopefully the employees affected by these latest round of buyouts, will manage the imposed career changes and find success in new careers.

Ford Offers Buyouts, Early retirement offers to 54,000 - January 2008
Ford Motors offers early retirement buy outs to 54,000 hourly workers and replace them with lower-paid workers. Thursday's announcement came after Ford reported narrowing its losses in 2007 but warned that the outlook for U.S. sales in 2008 remains grim.

FORD'S Hourly buyout acceptances reach 38,000 this year - November 2006
As part of its North American turnaround plan, Ford Motors confirmed today that so far this year about 38,000 of its UAW-represented hourly workers accepted package offerings for voluntary separation from the company.

New Ford CEO to Get $18.5 Million Payout - September 2006 Ford Motor Company new chief executive gets an annual base salary of $2 million and a $18.5 million sign up bonus.

Judge Likely to Approve $10.5 Million Ford Payouts - March 2002
Easy approval is expected for Ford Motors proposed $10.5-million settlement of two class actions suits stemming from controversial and now-abandoned manager evaluation system. About 500 current and former mid-level managers would receive $5,000 to $100,000 each, minus attorney fees. The payments are meant to reimburse workers for unpaid raises, bonuses or promotions. About 80% of the class action members who were not active in the two lawsuits would get $5,000 or $14,000, depending on factors such as whether they took a buyout offer.

Payouts for low performance Is insult being added to injury - July 1998
By fall, Ford Motors is offering 5,000+ white-collar workers cash and other incentives to leave the company and move on to new careers. Only workers deemed "low performers" or "average/solid performers with limited potential" will be eligible to participate, according to a Ford memo obtained and printed in the Detroit Free Press.