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Browse every published article connected to Alvah Parker, with exact attribution and full-archive search.
Articles
Browse every published article connected to Alvah Parker, or search within this exact expert archive.
Are you to change jobs or careers? For some the move is to find work that is more fulfilling so that you will be happier. For others it may a step toward taking more of a leadership role. Whatever your reasons for the career change, you’ll want to do some self discovery work. These ten ...
How do you manage a boss who seems unapproachable? I had one once. His office door was open but no one ever disturbed him. I was new to the staff but I noticed that he never came out of his office and no one went into it unless he called to invite them. I had a job that no one had had before. I ...
Everyday we hear about more layoffs. You will want to be proactive by starting a job search before it happens. That is a smart move but you must be careful. If your current boss gets wind of it you might be the first to be laid off. Of course if you have already successfully lined up a job, ...
Your confidence can erode during a job transition. As you move from the known to the unknown you feel unsettled and off balance. It is easy to begin to doubt your own abilities. This can happen during any type of job transition. Whether you doing a job search, have accepted some new ...
Who do you get to be every day at work? Can you be your authentic self or do you need to change your behavior to fit the expectations of your environment? Oh sure, we all do change somewhat when we work. You dress in a particular way that perhaps is different from what you prefer, your ...
Did you take a vacation this year or skip it because of high gas prices? Americans have always been good at putting off vacations so this year they have a built in excuse. If you passed on a 2008 vacation so far and want to be happier and healthier, now is the time to take a ...
When I was laid off in 1997 I was told by many to let everyone know I was starting a job search. I had been successful at my last job and was a star sales performer for many years. People who knew my history were eager to help me. But I knew something wasn't right about their advice. Don't ...
Partnerships come in many forms. There are legal ones such as in business or marriage and there are loose ones when two people come together to work or share ideas but then go on to work or share ideas with others too. I partnered with Dovid Grossman to come up with this list of reasons to ...
Perhaps like me you chose a major in college or had graduate work in a field that you sort of fell into. It is hard to know exactly what you want when you are 16 or 17 years old. In my day the choices for women were nurse, secretary, or teacher. I chose teacher because I couldn't type and ...
Amy, my client (not her real name), set a goal when we began our coaching sessions to find a position where she could achieve professional success and be happy at work in 3 months. She had been working in her position for about 6 months and was miserable. The environment was toxic, there was little or no direction, and everyone was tense and unhappy. After 2 months of coaching she found a new job.
Many people are in denial about layoffs. There are many clues that one is coming but often people just choose to ignore the signs. Forewa ed is forearmed. If you notice several of these signs in the place that you work, it is time to get your resume ready and identify your network. Here ...
In all the years that I have been working as a career and job coach I am always amazed at how many managers tell me they have no time to update their resume and keep their network active. “I know I should,” they often say, “but I just don’t have the time.” For continual career success these two ...
Making a list of your accomplishments at work is a way to acknowledge yourself and your work. In 1997 when I had just started my coaching practice another coach sent out a newsletter suggesting that her readers make a list of 100 accomplishments for the year in their personal and work life that they would like to acknowledge themselves for. Her theme was “celebrate your successes”.
At a time management presentation for a group of paralegals one of the participants asked what to do with something on her “To Do” list that she keeps putting off doing. Procrastination! What a stress producer! Nearly everyone present said this was an issue for them too. I have to admit that ...
Waking up every day excited and happy to go to work has always been a goal for me. Some jobs were like that for me and others were not. I remember once literally dragging myself to my job because it was so stressful. It was easier for me to write this list when I thought about what I hated about that job.
My client told me her department was being reorganized for the hundredth time. The call center she managed was being converted to an email and chat response center instead of a telephone call center. She was sure customers would be angry when they found that they could not get their technical questions answered by phone any more. In fact she was so upset she admitted to me she was dragging her heels with respect to the change. How do you adapt to change? If an interviewer asks that question, do you say something that indicates you embrace change, welcome it and easily adapt?
Time Management – Time for Quiet Reflectio "It's been weeks since I've had a few minutes of time for quiet reflection." my client said to me. Have you ever been so busy that you too had that feeling? I know I have. As I begin to write on the topic of "quiet reflection" I can't help but notice ...
All the professionals I work with are eager to find a simple way to add new clients. Most are already busy and tell me they have to struggle to find blocks of free time to “do marketing”. Of course some marketing does take large blocks of time but I am here to tell you that not all ...
Have you written some goals for this year? How are you doing with them? What are the accomplishments you most want? To insure that you get exactly what you want here is a list of tips for writing good goals. 1. Connect your goals to your vision. Check each goal to be sure that if you accomplish it successfully it will move you toward your vision. 2. Write down each goal and read it every day. Some people think that having the goal in their head is good enough. Writing it down makes it a commitment. Reading it every day will be a constant reminder of what is most important to you.
Dovid Grossman, a coach and father of nine, recently told me that his father and he had fought constantly through his growing up years. Through it all, his mother was the referee. Finally when Dovid was 17 years old he sat down with his father and said, “I want to have a close relationship ...
Having a clear vision of where you are headed is really important. If you have no vision then any direction will be acceptable even going round in circles! :) To begin finding your vision you must allocate some quiet time. Since I coach busy people I know that sitting quietly without doing ...
You've started a job search. You are excited about the prospects of finding the perfect job. Of course you have a conce about how long the job search will take but you want to make sure your job search is effective. Here are some mistakes you'll want to avoid.
Are you happy at work? Do you have passion for the work that you do? The notion of passion was something that mystified me early on in my career. I was usually happy at work but the feeling of passion eluded me. In fact up until I retired from AT&T, I only got brief glimpses of what got my juices flowing. What exactly was my calling?
Are you having a hard time finding your passion? Many of my career coaching clients wrestle with this. It was hard for me too. This month though I discovered a new way for my career coaching clients to find their passion. Although the circumstances are not what I would wish for anyone, everyone has tough times at some time in their lives so this might work for you too. My mother who is 96 came down with bronchitis at the end of September. Two days after the doctor had diagnosed her she got worse so I called an ambulance to take her to the hospital.
Working more than 40 hours a week seems normal today - at least in the US. My clients tell me they consistently work into the night and over weekends. Blackberries and other smart phones enable employees to be on call at any hour day or night. It has become an accepted way of life here. Is it healthy?
Your resume must be error free – free of any typos, grammar errors and misspellings. Even a winning resume is in danger of being put in the reject pile if hasn’t been proofread. Certainly a resume with errors makes the job candidate look less qualified and it gives an unfavorable first ...
Good relationships are essential to any career. It doesn’t matter ifn you have your own business or work for someone else that network isn critical. Lawyers, solo professionals, freelancers, and salesn professionals must constantly network and generate new business. You prove you worth ...
Several years ago I had a series of SCORE clients who wanted to start businesses making and selling greeting cards. The cards that they showed me were usually very beautiful and every one was unique. n Pricing the cards was always a problem to them. The market would not pay a price to cover ...
It seems to me if we are working 8+ hours each day, that work should add meaning to our lives and thus make us feel fulfilled, satisfied and happy. Leaders lead first by example (find meaning in their own work) and then by inspiring others to find meaning in their own work. What are the characteristics of meaningful work? Here are 10 characteristics: 1. It doesn't feel like work. First of all work that is meaningful doesn't feel like work at all. To outsiders it may look like work but to you it is something you enjoy and want to do. 2. It is aligned with your values.
How many times were you asked as a kid, "What are you thankful for?" You probably got that question frequently around Thanksgiving. Being a good child when I was asked I always answered it in the expected way without much thought or passion. My list always had my parents and teachers first and then the usual suspects. I even competed with friends to see who could come up with a longer list. The long list impressed my teachers and my parents but the actual purpose of the exercise was lost on me. Maybe it was just to keep me busy while others prepared the Thanksgiving dinner.
It is no secret that it is hard to find work these days. That makes it doubly difficult if you are still working and are miserable at your job. Other people will tell you that you should be happy to be working and bringing in a pay check. Being unhappy at work makes your whole life feel bleak. At what point do you decide that now is the time to find something better? A recent study of US workers found that 55% were unhappy with their jobs. Here is a list of signals that you are ready to look for a new job.
Recently one of the women atto eys in a mentoring circle that I facilitate expressed her dissatisfaction with her current job. She worked in a small firm where the partners brought in the work and distributed it to the various atto eys in the firm. The partners then checked the completed work and delivered it to the client. This atto ey didn't feel very connected to the clients, her colleagues or the partners even though she loved the legal work she was doing.
Whether you are a business owner or a job seeker you have probably been told to network. Networking is often an important part of a marketing plan. Frequently people resist networking because it seems overwhelming and they are not sure how to do it. Others try it once with little success and decide that it is not worth the effort. Networking is one way to start to build relationships with people who can help you. Building relationships takes time. Going to a networking meeting is just the first step. Here are some tips to make going to a networking event easier and more productive.
Recently I read an article about an atto ey who took pate ity leave so his wife (also an atto ey) could go back to work. He was a stay-at-home Dad from the time his son was 3 months until his son was 9 months. The article detailed how the atto ey initially was sure he would have time ...
The key to meaningful work and a fulfilling life is first to become more self aware. Really understanding yourself and what is important to you in your life and in your work is the key to getting satisfaction out of work and life. Over the years many people have talked about different aspects of self awareness. Here are 10 quotes that express what others have thought about it. 1. Lao Tzu - He who knows others is wise. He who knows himself is enlightened. 2. Anonymous - Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves, for they shall never cease to be amused. 3.
Having a community is important to your health, happiness and well being. “There are few better antidotes to unhappiness than close friendships with people who care about you”, says David G. Myers, author of “The Pursuit of Happiness”. "Sadly, our increasingly individualistic society suffers ...
Many years ago my family and I used to go to my then husband’s parent’s home for holiday meals. His mother was an excellent cook and enjoyed preparing meals for us. She spent days preparing all the season’s delights and we came to the table eager to begin the festivities. Invariably when 20 ...
So many people I worked with said they got more work done at home than in the office. That was because there were so many interruptions in the office. In fact lots of people come in early or stay late just to have quiet time to work. One way to have that same quiet time during the day is to ...
Years ago I had a good friend who loved to play tennis. Al wasn't a tennis star. He just loved to play and he especially loved to win! I'm not much of a tennis player myself but my son is pretty good and he enjoyed Al's company. One day the two of them went off to play a few sets on the ...
Several years ago when I was preparing to start my own business I decided to take an accounting class. I took the course at a local college. Each week I set out for the school which was in a nearby city after working a full day. I drove during rush hour and left more than enough time to ...
Cindy was a new manager in a mid-sized company. She had worked for years for a manager who had discussed strategies with her and encouraged her to try new things. He had given her constant feedback and approval. When her manager got promoted Cindy was promoted to her manager’s job. After about six months in her new job Cindy was ready to look for another job. What was missing? Cindy missed the feedback and acknowledgement she received from her previous manager. Her new manager was only interested in her results and left Cindy to find her own strategies.
There are many parts to a successful job search and the job seeker has to orchestrate them in a way that gets them to all come together so that he/she receives in multiple offers simultaneously. Here are some tips for those of you in the midst of a Job Search. They will be useful if you are part ...
What Makes Me Happy? My 10 Habits. What makes you happy? We are responsible for our own happiness so I want to insure that I do whatever is necessary to keep me happy and healthy. People are often focused on their goals. Instead these are habits I love to do and want to make sure I make time ...
There are many who are predicting that after this downtu in the economy the workplace will look different from the one we've known. Peter Weddle, a job board expert and writer on career topics sees a workplace with fewer permanent workers. Weddle says that employers are hit with a depressed bottom line as well as rapid changes in customer tastes and needs. To respond to both in a cost effective way these employers see that they will need only a core of full time employees. He says that only the most talented workers will have those full time jobs.
"She found her voice?" the panel moderator stated questioningly. What does that mean? Shouldn't she have found it by this time? These were the questions posed by a TV program moderator after the New Hampshire primary election in the US. Of course he was referring to what the media was ...
A recent issue of a magazine includes a list of 10 activities to boost your brain health. The list includes many activities I would call important for overall wellness. In this competitive environment there is a tendency to forget health and focus intensely on a job search. It is important to take a step back and make sure that we are taking care of ourselves too. You may want to try a few of these 10 activities:
Many years ago I was turned down for a job at a company that I really wanted to work for. I was surprised when the interviewer told me that he did not think I wanted the job. He could not have been more wrong about that. I was puzzled by his conclusion even after he explained that I had not shown enthusiasm for the job during the interview and that is how he came to his decision. Taking a behavioral assessment helped me to understand his comment.
There is lots of talk of recession these days. Whether the talk is true or not here are 10 things you can be doing for your career to bolster your chances of working through rough times. The best time to start is right now! 1. Skills Proficiency - Be sure to be up to date in your skills. ...
Storytelling for Fun and Profit Storytelling - It’s a hot topic these days. What do I mean by storytelling? One website says that it is “a narrative account of a real or imagined event or events” That same website (http://www.eldrbarry.net/roos/st_defn.htm) says “Stories connect us with our ...
When looking for a job, most people focus on the responsibilities of the job to find a good fit. While getting hired to do a job that is interesting and well suited to your background is important, there are three other pieces of the equation that should not be overlooked - your fellow workers, your manager, and the company. Here are 10 questions to ask yourself when you are seriously considering a particular job.