Humanetrics LLC

Stand Out and Get Hired in 2010 – Week 2 of the plan

Week 2: Know your talents and passions – learn what you are great at and love doing.

Most people continue to apply for the wrong jobs because they don’t know what they are good at. And today, to have the best performance, you must work in job that needs what you are great at and are passionate about. Without these, you don’t feel capable, competent or excited in your work – and it shows.

So here is how to proceed:
1. Write down what you think you are naturally good at – your talents – this will be things like connecting with others, focusing on details, committed to big performance, great at listening and relating to others, creating order out of chaos…etc. Don’t be humble. List everything you are good at; things that come naturally to you. This is difficult for many people so try these other two options:

2. Next, write down what you are passionate about. What do you love to do – what gets you out of bed in the morning and what you could do all day? It may be teaching, helping others, running a business, writing, painting, cooking, selling…whatever you love to do. List as many as come to mind. You will find that you generally do not need help with this – each of us is far more aware of our passions than our talents.

Now: look for the intersection of your two lists – what are you good at AND passionate about doing. This is the starting point for finding a job that fits you. This is key to finding a job AND loving your job.

You may be great at connecting with people and passionate about sharing stories. A job in sales, customer service or retail in any industry may be a good fit. You may be great at focusing on details and precision and are passionate making a difference. You may find that careers in the medical field, IT, law or similar fields will play to your talents and passions.

Know yourself – because your next step is to learn what the hot jobs are – so you can determine which jobs are a good fit for you and which needs what you are great at. This will give you a competitive advantage in getting hired.

Click here for the full “Get Hired” Plan. See all the “Get Hired” resources at www.LiveFIredUp.com, click on “Job Seeker.”

Own It

Accountability and responsibility seem to be in short supply in both companies and the country.

I was struck by this as I read Paul Krugman’s December 14, 2009’s Op-Ed in the NY Times, Disaster and Denial. Though his comments are about the reluctance of legislators to rein in Wall Street excesses (even after the mess we have all been in) the real issue is ownership. At what point do you own the solutions and become accountable for solving, improving, inventing or making a difference?

That brings me to employee behavior. Great employees, the ones who survive layoffs and the ones who get hired quickly, are those who take full responsibility for their actions. They feel personally responsible to make a difference in everything they do.

Employees who act and think like owners:
• Find ways to constantly improve service levels.
• Find efficiencies in daily processes and ways to manage spending.
• Invent ways to add greater value each day.
• Find ways to do what they do best in areas that drive company success.
• Share information, ideas and suggestions about what they see and hear.
• Support others, whether it is part of their job or not.
• Are always thinking, inventing and finding ways to be personally and professionally better.

Take Action: What can you do today to be more accountable and responsible for making a difference? It is your choice to be accountable or to wait for someone else to step up. Be sure to ask your kids the same question when you get home tonight.

For more resources for employees and job seekers, see www.LiveFIredUp.com.

One More Thing…

“If you want to be creative in your company, your career, your life, all it takes is one easy step… the extra one. When you encounter a familiar plan, you just ask one question: What ELSE could we do?� Dale Dauten

Your organization needs you to be great; good doesn’t cut it. Good organizations quickly fade to poor ones. Great organizations continually improve, hunt for opportunities, survive recessions and build customer loyalty. They do this because they commit to a culture of “one more thing� – of doing the extras. And which type of organization do you want to be part of?

Let’s talk about customers. One more thing is the one extra, additional, or “and then some� response you provide in your service.

Customers expect you to get their order right – even good companies do this. But great companies get it right AND do “one more thing� to get the customer’s attention and win the customer’s loyalty. Down in Louisiana they call it lagniappe, that little extra to make a customer feel special.

Take action: What is one EXTRA that you can start to do to make a difference in your organization? What extras can your organization do to make it stand out and get noticed? How will you help them do this?

For more information see the Employee/Job Seeker section on www.LiveFiredUp.com.

Change it up

For many employees, WORK is truly a four-letter word. So many people hate their jobs. And here is an important fact – if you hate your job, you don’t work that hard at it – and your customers, peers and your management know it. Not a good thing in a downsizing economy.

So, is it possible to love your job? You bet.

In our recessionary workplace, now may not be the time to look for jobs that play more to your talents and strengths (though it is important for your performance that you work in jobs that need what you are good at). But you can change it up to get more engaged and excited about what you do.

It is called job sculpting.

To sculpt a perfect job for you, identify other things that your company needs that also appeal to you. It may be writing a newsletter, changing the look of a retail store, creating a survey for customers – the list is endless. Its only criteria are:

1. It must be something that appeals to you – because if you love it, you’ll put more energy and effort into it.
2. It must add value for your company.

What a hit – you love it and it adds value.

Take Action: Today, take more control of how you feel and perform at work. Get fired up! by adding things to your day that also play to your passions. Just be sure they also add value – and your manager will see a high-impact employee. Not a bad thing in a wobbly economy. Own your impact and your happiness at work.

For more information on making a difference in the workplace and loving your job, check out “Stand Out and Get Hire” – a new downloadable resource that not only helps you stand out to get hired, but helps to identify your passions and talents so that you can stand out and GET NOTICED in the workplace. See this and more resources for employees, manager and for a passionate life at www.LifeFiredUp.com.

I Choose…

oice. We are very fortunate in our country to have the ability of saying “I choose…� Not only can we say I choose, but we can complete the phrase and identify specifically what we choose. But here is the requirement: you must work to make your phrase true.

Here is what I mean. Let’s say my phrase is: I choose to be happy.

I must commit to making this statement come true. Since happiness is a choice – I can choose to approach each day with a positive, optimistic and upbeat attitude – or I can choose to let life push me around. So, I wake up each day and make the statement, “Today, I choose to be happy.� I may still encounter difficult situations during the day but I now remind myself that my attitude and outlook is to be optimistic, upbeat and happy. I choose how I respond. I choose my outlook. I choose how I react. And, my results have been astounding. Situations that would normally take me down, now rarely upset me. And when I am upbeat and happy, I see the world in a new and more positive way. I see the good side of people and they respond more favorably. I now see many more opportunities; I am open to new connections and ideas. My business has significantly improved – all from a personal choice to choose happiness. Seems like a no-brainer…

So, now it is your turn. What do you choose? What do you need to be in place?

Say it often each day, “I choose _________.� See not only that you have a choice, but more importantly, you can determine what that choice is.

Choose health, happiness, prosperity, honesty, integrity, creativity, responsibility, relationships, ownership, or whatever else is needed in your life. Choose the things that will improve your life and help you live a more significant life. Choose the right things for you. Stay focused. Stay committed. Step up and choose what you want for your life.

See more great tools to work strong and live stronger on www.LiveFiredUp.com.