"Show Them, Don't Tell Them" with Joanne Dennison

No wonder Joanne Dennison is known as "The Guidance Counselor for Grown-ups!" She drew in the participants at the meeting on December 9th, elicited their stories, and gave them valuable feedback.

She shared nuggets such as:

• Have three or more go-to words - adjectives that describe you and build your stories around them.
• Don't let the interviewer take control of the interview. You have to steer the conversation so that you highlight your strengths.
• Give examples from your work experience to demonstrate what you've done to create an impact in your company.
• Ask your friends or colleagues to use three words to describe you. Remember that "compliments are gifts given to you."
• You could also tell your stories to your friends and ask them to say what qualities are revealed through those stories.

Practical information that will help job seekers and anyone who wants to communicate effectively. Thank you Joanne! 

The Interview as Seen From the Other Side of the Table by Bruce MacDonald

On 10/14 Bruce MacDonald gave some great interview tips:

• Think of the questions you would ask if someone was interviewing for the job you're applying to
• Understand the needs of any job before you're interviewed
• The hiring process is designed to weed you out, so prove that you're the best person for the job
• Learn about interview styles, possible questions, responses and traps
• Before the interview, there can be phone screening, video screening or in-person screening
• Find out about the company from their website, social media pages or the employee handbook, if you can get it
• Be ready for a behavioral interview or a situational or case interview.
• Avoid canned answers and cliches
• Be ready with examples or how you improved a situation and have quantifiable results

Some trap questions to be wary of:

• What is the worst job or supervisor you ever had?
• Describe a negative review you received
• What would you change about your last job?
• What do you do in your spare time?

Be prepared with a few questions to ask the interviewer. Some examples are:

• How will I be reviewed? When? By whom?
• Describe the culture of your company
• What is the typical career trajectory for this job?
• Do you have any reservations about me that I can address for you now?

All the attendees enjoyed Bruce's presentation.

Network! Network! Network!

Found an interesting article about networking that I wanted to share:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecenizalevine/2015/08/09/a-3-step-process-to-ensure-you-keep-networking-even-after-you-land-the-job/

I would also like to let you know that the meeting room at the Library (214 Lake Street) is reserved for the WIN group on the second and fourth Wednesday of the month from 6:30-8 PM. You are welcome to come and network during that time and practice your elevator speeches or do mock interviews. I'm sure all of you have experiences that will help someone else in their career paths and everyone could benefit from networking. 

The meeting room is available on August 26th, September 9th, September 23rd, October 14th and October 28th. So, please avail yourselves of the space. Also, please let me know if one of you would like to do a presentation on any job-search related topic and I'll communicate it to the group. If I invite special speakers, I'll let you know; but, the Library is for the community members to gather and be engaged and that is what I would like to facilitate. 

Building an Effective and Selective Network

Ellen Goodman, Financial Adviser with Prudential Finances, shared her knowledge and advice on enhancing your sphere of influence and strategies to achieve your personal and professional goals. 

Having spent the last 20 plus years in the financial services industry, primarily dealing with large corporations, Ellen felt that she needed to find a professional environment, where she could deal with people on an individual level.  As her passion in life has always been to help people through education and counseling, it was a natural fit for her to join Prudential as a Financial Adviser. Over the course of Ellen’s career, she’s helped clients by providing expertise, insight, and access to the financial products that can help them achieve their goals.

Linda Townsend's presentation on The Importance of Feedback

On May 13th, Linda Townsend, Principal, Townsend Coaching Partners, gave a valuable presentation on The Importance of Feedback. She explained how feedback can be solicited and the ways in which feedback can help us. 

Feedback helps:

• Uncover blindspots
• Build self-awareness
• Provide course correction
• Improve performance
• Enrich relationships
• Boost self-esteem

She elaborated on what are the right questions to be asked and from whom one can solicit feedback. 

She mentioned a couple online feedback tools:
360Reach - http://www.reachcc.com/360reach

https://popforms.com

Thank you, Linda, for a great presentation!

Resources at Workforce Career Center

On April 22nd, Roy Lucas from the Workforce Central Career Center shared information about the resources available at the Center in Worcester. Here is a link to the website: http://www.workforcecentralma.org/job-seeker-services

Thank you, Roy, for your presentation!

Developing Resilience for an Evolving World by Joe Ryan

This is the outline of Joe Ryan's presentation on April 8th. It was appreciated by all the attendees.

1. Let us reframe unemployment from something negative to an opportunity to reconsider your future and ALL of its possibilities.
a. Reinvention or adjustment?
b. The path to self-discovery
c. Happiness first!
2. The Futility of Cemented Beliefs and Actions
a. A radically changed job market requires radically changing perspectives
b. Have you radically changed or are you still engaging in the same principles, beliefs, dogmas, and actions?
c. The power of “Why?”
d. The natural resistance to change and its consequences
3. Recognize Your Belief System and Its Impact on Your Ability to Change & Progress
a. How your prism both guides and derails your success
b. Challenge your assumptions, inferences, and propensity to practice circular thinking.
c. Understand your inner gremlin and commit to its defeat.
4. Dip Your Big Tow in the Pool of Constructive Change
a. Life begins at the edge of your comfort zone!
b. Be your own architect of change instead of its victim.
c. How to take baby steps.
d. Keep a journal and measure your amazing progress!
e. Cleanse your environment of negative influences!
5. Tools
a. Discover assessment tools that can help you discover new and exciting possibilities!
b. Action Planning