Why Should I Hire You?

The Secret to Finding a Job Faster is to know what you are good at, and Success Stories to demonstrate that ability. The more you can Identify Your Specific Gifts, and express them clearly, the faster you get work.

Every employer wants someone who can work dependably, with little supervision needed, and take care of their tasks in a timely manner. Helps if you fit their culture and are pleasant to work with. Remember, you are Dealing with People.

The current resume screening system is broken. We pour resumes into a black hole and never hear feedback (so they don’t get sued). Everyone sits at their computers frustrated, and not improving.

Find work faster by taking different approaches on different days. Go meet people in person, call friends, update your LinkedIn profile, go to job fairs, find companies you are interested in working for, send out pain letters, talk with recruiters, and Tell People the Type of Work you are Specifically Looking for.  Don’t make them guess.

Yes keep applying for jobs online, but Don’t Apply for Everything. Pick the 1-4 jobs today that use your skills, and focus on quality responses. Then do one of the choices above. Everyday do something different.

Getting hired is a numbers game. There are plenty of employers looking for good people who do not have time to find them. Approximately 75-80% of all Openings are Not Advertised. Personally have been hired through recruiters, applying online, and friends asking me to work with them. There is No Wrong Way to find a job.

Confused, Frustrated and Angry

Someone at work asked how I was doing? “Confused, Frustrated and Angry. You know, normal.” Situation Normal or SNAFU are military expression of the same feeling.

Work is often stressful, deadlines are tight, management is under pressure to cut workers and costs, and customers are demanding and shopping for value. In times of layoffs, hurricanes, wildfires, flooding, war or other emergencies, stress is going to cloud our thinking.

The Secret To Never Being Frustrated Again
You cannot control everything. Some days feel like you control nothing. Heck can’t even make a green light, today they are almost all red. Giving up control frees you to live in the moment.

It is all feedback. If you try new things, it shows what you enjoy and can live without. Businesses develop new products by building prototypes and testing. They ask customers for feedback. Then they introduce it to the market, and learn from customers to improve.

Sculptures and large art works start by artist drawing sketches of what they want to make. Iterations are needed to prepare for success in art and life.

What you want to do will change. What I want to do at 60 is not the same I wanted to do at 20. Afraid of public speaking at 20, at 50 enjoyed the experience. All you can do is try something today and learn from it.

More learning comes from failure than success. Compassion for other people comes from failure. Your failures are how you help others.

It is okay to fail. Guarantee you will fail. Not every time, but often enough. Life moves as it will, and is controlled by God. 

“If you never venture beyond what you know... You’ve spawned your own limitations.” - Sumner Redstone

Primer for Working with People

This is in honor of Labor Day and workers everywhere. Been fortunate to work with many great people.

For an introvert like me, learning to work with people was challenging. Was shy and meeting all new people. Not knowing their job titles nor responsibilities. Not sure what my responsibilities. Not knowing how the systems worked. Very stressful. This is when mentors and leads are so valuable.

Developed principles and practices that help me from boardrooms to the shop floor. You could do worse that starting work with these.

Assume People are Competent. Solve problems by getting good information from the operators, mechanics and customers. Managers often blame the operator. Find it more productive to ask what are they seeing? Is this new or an old issue? People are your eyes and ears. If they have made a mistake, it is usually because of their training, not deliberate. If it was deliberate it will come out. Start positive.

Talk about Intent. Department of Motor Vehicles is a great example. Got confused one time and said “You do this every day. What am trying to do is register my car and get a license. What do I have to do?” After all they are the experts. When they realize am cooperating instead of arguing, get great service.

Ask Questions. How else will you learn? Second people have less resistance to changing if it is they contribute concerns and ideas to a solution.

Listen and Repeat Key Points They Said. If people know you listen and care, barriers come down. Progress gets made.

“You’re Right”. The problem with politics is competition to be right. Neither side has all the right ideas. Good ideas come from everyone. Try to find the whys behind their ideas. They are often right. Cooperate, not competition solves problems.

“Yes, and …”. This is an improve idea that works well daily. The best solution is often a combination of ideas from different people. Help build solutions.  

People Want What They Want. No matter your job title, you are in Customer Service to customers and co-workers. Help people get what they need.

None of these ideas are original. Learned them from past and current co-worker sharing their knowledge. Have you got any to add?

Presidential Bluster, North Korea

People expect President Trump to sound ... well presidential. Not going to happen.  Donald Trump was a Reality Star and street fighter Real Estate Developer. Not a politician. He starts disagreements to get gain advantage, even when an observer thinks he should have stayed quiet.

President Trump wants attention and to win. His public speeches are all about look how great we have done, and responding to criticism. Marketing wise this was his successful campaign to be elected. But it sounds narcissistic.

This leads to the bluster with the King of ridiculous threats, Kim Jung Un. He intents to defend North Korea against all uninterested countries. Saddam Hussein announced the “Mother of All Battles” in an attempt to stop invasion. Both just wanted to stay in power and hide the weak position they were in.

All presidents bluff. President Obama issued several blusters of his own. He would “talk down” issues. Remember his “Red Line” threat in Syria? He was negotiating with Congress about a response. Before the US responded Russia negotiated Syria giving up chemical weapons, or at least most of them. Lots of talk, little action was the impression.

To date North Korea and the US are not putting enough assets into position to wage war. A build up will take month for an invasion, and frankly no one wants to conquer North Korea. South Korean citizens know about the reunification of Germany, and they don’t fear Kim Jung Un will start a war.

Problem with President Trump’s bluster with North Korea is talking the US into having to do something. A limited response like President Regan bombing Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi military bases may be appropriate. But first an action more meaningful than bluster and missiles into the sea would be necessary to initiate a response.

For North Korea, following Charles Barkley’s advice on the news, “I’m not going to waste my time worrying about these Confederate statues. I’m 54 years old.  I’ve never thought about those statues a day in my life.  I think if you ask most black people to be honest, they ain’t thought a day in their life about those stupid statues.  What we as black people need to do: we need to worry about getting our education, we need to stop killing each other, we need to try to find a way to have more economic opportunity and things like that.”

Great advice Charles. We need to work on improving society and opportunities, not unnecessary wars.

Respect for People

To move forward in life you have to find mentors to teach you. They often don’t even know they have taught you about life. It is not a formal job title. You find mentors everywhere.

Two men who mentored me were both named Robbie Robinson, many years apart. Both men helped a much younger man grow despite my being white.

Mawthorne “Robbie” Robinson trained me as a material handler, a summer replacement worker of 19. Be on time, be organized, work hard, and help your coworkers be productive. Eastman Kodak paid well, his son was also a summer replacement and decided to stay. He celebrated my going back to college, and wished his son did. His words and example helped me persist when I struggled to graduate college, and when work was hard.

Robbie Robertson was the husband of our engineering secretary. He carried himself well in any situation at work and in public, and always took care of people. Robbie was use to fame, a retired negro league baseball player. Being married to a white woman had to expose them both to some awkward situations, but you never knew it around them. Learned from Robbie both working with people and gracefully handling the inevitable aches and pains of aging. Useful now in my 60s.

In trying times, respect people with different views than our own. Mentors are family members, people you know, commentators, humorists, religious leaders, and writers who challenge our thinking. Find more mentors today for your tomorrows.

“If you never venture beyond what you know... You’ve spawned your own limitations.” - Sumner Redstone

It’s Okay to be Wrong

Didn’t get the Memo? You are not alone. Most of us grew up trying to give the right answer in school. Was embarrassing to be wrong. Had to sit down when you couldn’t spell the word in the spelling bee. (Still be one of the first out today)

Did not have the right result in math? Teacher would figure out where you got off track, and help you. It is called Learning.

No one gets the words or notes right the first time they sing a song. Singers spend hours practicing and honing a song. Artists create drafts before they paint or sculpture. Writers edit more than they write.

What about investing. Most people may have an idea, but no one knows when. Remember the experts said if Donald Trump were to beat Hilary, the stock market would drop due to uncertainty? Results: Dow Jones is up $3,600 to over $22,000 (+19%) in half year. No one really knows. The pundits gave no chance to President Trump. Most pundits are still working.

Most mistakes are not life or death. If you are responsible for other people’s lives, you do have a higher standard for getting it right. Train to be successful.

Stop criticizing other people’s mistakes. Remember you own. We are human. So are you. It is okay to try and fail. No need to be embarrassed about it. Failure is a necessary step to success.

Remember weathered, sore muscled, traveled, opinionated, businessman-engineer and former C student. I Could Be Wrong. 

“At Harvard, the A students tend to become professors and the C students become wealthy donors." - Larry Summers

Fixing Healthcare

We all know healthcare is a mess. Medicare and Obamacare are going broke. Veterans health system is in disarray. 50 million people do not have insurance. Warren Buffet (Democrat) and Charlie Munger (Republican) agree we need a new system covering everyone.

How about a proven solution? One where incentives are for our benefit. Laurence Kotlikoff, economist professor and syndicated columnist, proposes adopting a German style system. Not socialized medicine with bureaucracies. Not a wild west system either.

Companies are paid based on the health status of each company’s clientele. Plans are offered for the whole country only, and cover pre-existing conditions. No picking and choosing clients. Companies are reimbursed for those condition.

You must email or call your congressman and senators. Read Laurence Kotlikoff’s article below. Share this post. This is too important to be left to politicians and lobbyist.

http://www.seattletimes.com/business/on-health-care-lets-ask-germany/