Jill Haney is an Image Consultant and writes a column called Image Rules. You can read her columns and learn more at www.jhimage.net
Before I was Jill Haney, Image Consultant and Columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer, I was best known as Jill Haney…
Ha! Best known as Alex and Henry’s mom and if it were a good day, the gal who really likes shoes.
A lot of people read and love your column in the Sunday Cincinnati Enquirer and online. Why do you think that is?
I think the column resonates with readers because the common sense and social niceties that I write about have almost disappeared from our society, but individually, we crave a return to a more civil way of life.
What is the weirdest question or comment you have ever received from a reader?
Oh my gosh, where do I start? I have been ridiculed, vilified, screamed at, stalked (cyber stalking), sexually harassed and asked out. My columns stir up a deep range of emotions from readers.
You are invited to a holiday party where you are required to wear two things your loyal readers know you hate- a holiday sweater and pantyhose. Attendance at this party is not optional. What do you do?
Call in sick? Ha ha. Put a smile on my face, follow the dress code and keep my sense of humor.
I cringe when I remember…
…the Candies I wore for 8th grade graduation that my mom promised me I would regret some day. I don’t regret wearing them, I just cringe. And the time I was presenting to a large group while being videotaped and I ran into the podium and then apologized to the podium. Oh, and those shoe boots from the late ’80″s. Not really shoes and nowhere near cool enough to be cowboy boots. Ugh!
Do you ever just wear worn out sweats, a big lumpy Grandma sweater and just generally, sport a look that you are afraid to answer the door in for fear of scaring the FedEx man?(which coincidentally, is what I am wearing right now)
I always wear cute, comfy jammies just in case someone comes to the door. Right now I am wearing cozy flannel jammies with brightly colored floral ’60′s hipster VW vans. I was a Girl Scout growing up. Always prepared.
(Julie’s note: Can I just tell you that I love these two women? Their networking advice is always on-target, accessible, down-to-earth, and yes, doable! What’s not to love about that?)
Grab a piece of paper and a calculator and, right now, tally up the amount of money you personally spent (or your company spent for you) on networking activities this year. Include memberships, dues, conferences, luncheons, receptions, referral groups, and that round of golf with a prospect.
In our workshops, we’ve heard people report totals that range from $15 to $75,000! How about you?
Are you surprised to see how little you actually spend, given how important meeting new people and re-connecting with long–time contacts is to your bottom-line? Or are you shocked to realize how much you spend and want more return on your investment? If you want to make the most of your memberships here are 10 tips. They’ll help you enhance your reputation, establish your credibility, and raise your visibility.
2. Assume your presidential responsibilities.
When you attend an organization’s event, remember you’re not just another member, you’re president of your own network! You are responsible for what you take away from the meeting. The success of the meeting is up to you. Many organizations will send you a guest list so you can see who will attend. Take charge of meeting the people you want to meet and making the connections that will be valuable to you.
2. Showcase your capabilities.
Teach your fellow members what you can do – - your skills, abilities, and talents. As you become active, take on only those roles you can and will do well. If you do a great job as treasurer, people will assume that you are an excellent computer programmer or an outstanding real estate salesperson. Conversely, if you’ve promised to do something, but don’t come through, people will assume that you are not a competent attorney or public relations practitioner. We call this The All or Nothing Principle. If you do one thing well, people will assume you do everything well. If you do one thing poorly, people will assume you do nothing well.
3. Show off your wares or your services.
Provide a demonstration or a sample. Contribute door prizes. Do a display. Take every opportunity to give other members a chance to experience – - with all of their senses — your products or expertise. Karen sells a line of designer clothing. She wears a new outfit to every meeting, leaving the price tags on!
4. Show up.
Get there early and stay late. The involved people — speakers, board members, movers and shakers – - are likely to be there for “pre- and post-meeting meetings.” They are the ones you want to cultivate for your network. Don’t fume about what happened this morning or what’s on your agenda for the afternoon. Be there and be present in the moment. If you can, turn off your pager or cell phone. Pay attention to the here and now.
5. Listen carefully with a bias toward action.
What do people need that you can offer? Always be ready to give information, resources, or help to others. If Susan says, “Boy, I’m ready for a vacation!,” say “I have a terrific travel agent. Would you like her name?”
6. Help others connect.
Who would your conversation partner like to meet? To find out, listen. When Carla introduced herself as an interior designer who focuses on the senior citizen market, Mitzi immediately said, “I’ve got to get you together with someone I know who shows businesses how to market to the 50 plus generation.” Listen for links, what people have in common. “You went to theUniversityofChicago? So did Danielle. Let me take you over and introduce you.” Or, “Oh Sarah, I just met Ona who has also just started her own business. Let me introduce you to her.”
When you become known as somebody who knows everybody, people will call you and ask you if you know someone who . . . . As you link people together, you build your reputation as an expert networker.
7. Tell success stories.
What picture do you want to pop up in people’s minds when they hear your name? They will remember what you last told them. Have something important to tell when they ask you, “What’s new?” As you think about what you want to tell people, begin with your goal. What do you want people to know about you or your business? Plan ahead to talk about clients served, problems solved, or products that saved the day.
Anne Baber and Lynne Waymon head up Contacts Count, a nationwide consulting and training firm that specializes in business and professional networking, and career development. They are co-authors of 5 books. The most recent is Make Your Contacts Count: Networking Know-How for Business and Career Success (AMACOM, 2nd edition). To attend Lynne’s webinars go to http://www.contactscount.com/webinars.html Fortune 500 companies license their training programs. Visit them at www.ContactsCount.com and www.FireProofYourCareer.com
College decisions are here. Senioritis has set in. Parents are paying college deposits and students are swaggering with college sweatshirts. Once the excitement settles, classes begin, a slow rumble begins. For parents, it reaches a crescendo by the end of first semester especially if their student is still undecided or worse still wants to transfer out of college. For students, it is still a blur, trying to do laundry, have fun, show up for class and know exactly what they want to do for the rest of their lives. Does it have to be all or none? Of course not. That is when I get phone calls from friends asking whether I can talk to their kids about career decision-making. It is nice that friends trust me with this job – makes me feel I just might know all the answers! NOT. I do have ideas that are practical, having coached numerous exploratory students in my teaching and coaching career and smoothing very ruffled parent feathers. So, here is my take on this time in a young adult’s life.
Plan for NOW – not your entire future. It is possible to do just that because you will learn, grow and change. Interests can and do change over time. The work world changes all the time. So, how do you get college/career happy for now?
Take each class with purpose and joy. Show up and do the work. Introduce yourself to your instructor and engage in a personal conversation about what you like about their class, where you might be struggling and find a connection between what interests you about that class and the teacher’s passion for teaching it to you. What does this behavior say about you? It builds your reputation as a learner and contributor.
Ask and connect with a sophomore or a junior who might have taken several classes in a particular area. Get insight on how success is defined in these classes, what people like about the topics and does it propel you to take the conversation outside the classroom –passion waiting to bloom!
Be a detective. Observe your daily habits and preferences. What activities are you drawn towards? Which assignments do you approach with energy and enthusiasm? What kinds of exams do you dread? Which instructor style appeals to you so much that you sign up for an 8 am class? Very soon, your interests pop up everywhere you turn because you will go looking for them.
Doer vs. Wallflower. What will make the difference is your willingness to try, maybe fail and try again. Success is waiting around the corner for you and you have to get up, take a few steps and go greet it. Find activities that allow you to express your passion and interests. Offer to help, talk to someone different each day, and ask many questions. Believe me, people like to help and get very excited when you walk up to them with a question they can answer for you. Campus resources are waiting with doors open—walk in!
I personally want you to become a citizen of the Career Happy Nation! Connect with me and The Bauke Group if you would like to start your career happiness meter today!
Cliff Brahm is the owner of the Cincinnati/ Dayton 1-800-Got-Junk franchise. He left an executive level marketing position for the glamour of the Junk world and the ability to wear jeans, a tee shirt and a ball cap every day. He agreed to let me get nosy.
Before I was Cliff Brahm, 1-800-GOT-JUNK? dude, I was best known as Cliff Brahm big time sales and marketing exec and sportscaster wannabe!
The moment I realized that my business was going to make it was when I no longer woke up in the middle of the night wondering if we would ever make it. The first winter we were in business, it was SLOW and I woke up EVERY night wondering if we were going to make it and if we had enough money to get to that point. The good news is that when I got up in the morning, I went from wondering if we were going to make it to working on making it, and that got us through.
What I miss most about being a corporate weenie is….the infighting, the bureaucracy, and dressing in a suit every day….JUST KIDDING! I miss the professional atmosphere that was always present, and some of the friends I made. But, love being my own boss, building equity in my business and the challenge of getting to the next step!
The weirdest item that we (1-800-GOT-JUNK?) have ever had to pick up was a real dinosaur bone that dates back A LOT of years; I now have it proudly displayed in my office.
What most people don’t know about being an entrepreneur is how much fun it is, how hard it is, how stressful it is, how rewarding it is! Being an entrepreneur is not for everyone; you have to be a calculated risk taker, have good solid business skills and funding available to get you to a successful point. But, if it’s for you, there is nothing better than building something out of nothing and being your own boss! I wake up every day deciding to work on the things I think will improve our business. If I am right, then that is awesome. If I am wrong, I learn from it and move on.
My business would not exist without my wife, Mary. Without a doubt she is the hardest working person I have ever come across, who cares so much about our customers, our business, our people and me. Our business could easily go on without me, but not easily go on without her.
My favorite “other Cliff” is a) Cliff Clavin (from Cheers) or b) Clifford the Big Red Dog. And why? With no slight to Clifford The Big Red Dog (because people love him!), my answer is Cliff Clavin. Why? Because he knows a lot about everything and loves to talk to everybody about anything at any time…and he has a heart of gold and will help his friends through anything; he is a hard worker who values his friends and also loves to enjoy life—his way.
The right answer is both, but it’s even a little more complex than that! The problem with that old adage is that it implies that who you know is all that matters. Sure, there may be times when that is true, but as a career strategy, that is not enough. If you get in the door, or get that promotion solely because of who you know and without the requisite knowledge and skills (the “what”), you will surely fail.
Let me propose this new version. It’s what you know, it’s who you know, it’s who you know, and it’s what they say about you. Really, that’s always been the way it has been, and in my opinion, the common adage is just an excuse people use when they don’t get what they want.
Let’s break it down.
It’s what you know. Of course it is. You have to know stuff, pertinent stuff, the right stuff to do your job well, to find success in your career and in your life. Imagine being hired as an accountant but having no clue what the difference between a debit and a credit is. I don’t care who you know, it isn’t going to last.
It’s who you know Yep, that does matter too. Undoubtedly, you have accomplished much good in your life, but I don’t think you did it alone. You must constantly build and maintain productive professional and personal relationships with others. Whether you are seeking a promotion, a new job, or information to do your job more effectively, your relationships will have a huge impact on your success.
It’s who knows you I think of this as the depth and quality of our relationships. You may know of someone, or claim that you know someone, but do they really know you? That may sound silly, but how people know us and what they know about us really matters. Are you certain that those key people in your life and in your career know what they need to know about you? Do they know your goals, your strengths, your interests? If not, get in the habit of sharing that type of info. Just keeping it between your ears deprives others of the opportunity to help you.
It’s what they say about you In other words, what reputation have you created for yourself? Of course, no one is everyone’s cup of tea, nor should you try to be. People talk. When you name comes up, what do you want them to say about you? How can you live your career and your life in a way that you increase the odds that what is said about you is what you want said?
Certainly, this version is a lot more complex than the one we all throw around. But is also more accurate and believing it gives you more control over your destiny. That’s a good thing, right?
We all want to be relevant in every part of our lives, but when it comes to our careers, it seems to be a mighty struggle to get there and stay there. We have knowledge that we acquired and a set of skills that we have developed. Today, the market wants and needs them, tomorrow the silence is deafening. Sometimes, we let our skills get old, and sometimes the market tells us our skills are old. Ask a typewriter repairman.
We work so hard to keep the job we have, and to do a good job at it, that we fail to look ahead and look around, and yes, even inward. Yet staying relevant, or well-positioned for success, you must do just that. Here are 4 ways to get started.
Be an Invaluable Resource Understand what your current organization’s strategies and objectives are and how you fit into that picture. Where does the work you produce intersect and how does it align with those objectives? Ask yourself if you are as up to date as possible on best practices, and with what is new and hot in your field.
Collaborate and Share Like Crazy (in other words, play nice!) Are you easy to work with, or do you pride yourself on your “I don’t need anyone!”rebel-like ways. Do you share info, ideas and credit or do you hoard it all, because after all, information is power! Knock it off. If you believe that you are indispensable so can get away with it, you will be proven wrong, probably sooner than you think.
Keep Your Head Up If you have been paying attention the last several years, you know that your career is yours to manage. Therefore, it is your responsibility to know what is going on in your industry, your profession, and your community as it relates to your career and your job. Knowing this will tell you where you need to focus, what you need to do to stay in the game, (and relevant)!
Know Your What’s Next there is nothing like some good old fashioned career planning to force you to stay relevant, and to best position yourself for success. What would you do if you lost your job tomorrow? Go there mentally. Are you ready to take action to find your next best thing? Would you know it if it smacked you in the face? When we have a vision for our next step, we can then figure out what our gap is between here and there, and develop a plan to fill it with resources, training, education or information.
When you commit keeping yourself and your career relevant, imagine the doors it will open for you. You will hop right over your peers who just couldn’t be bothered.
Get your fill of fun, direct advice on how to get serious about driving your career.
Have access the "Members Only" section, where you will find Jule's newest list of "52 Tips to Drive Your Career", for everyone out there who desires and strives to become "Career Happy".
