Month: May 2014

5 Keys to Business and Career Success

Create a flexible plan and continue to develop new skills for success.

The first key to business and career success is a flexible plan built around continued innovation and skills development.

The needs and interest of consumers will always change. Successful businesses and people change with the needs and interest of consumers.  At one time, nearly every strip mall in my neighborhood had a movie rental store. Changing technology made these businesses obsolete. Redbox, Netflix, Amazon, on-demand television movies channels, and other companies offer better ways to get the same movie products.  Creating these businesses required the flexibility to develop skills that the people in video rental stores did not have.

Build on your strengths.

The second key to business and career success is to build on your strengths.  Know you natural talent.  Recognize that there are things that you can do more easily than other people can. Those are your strengths. They are also probably the things that you enjoy doing.

For example, learning languages is something I enjoy.  For me, building language skills is fun and easy.  Computer languages are similar to the languages people speak.  You can write spoken languages, and you can write computer languages.  The part of the brain that processes spoken and written languages also processes computer languages.

If you have excellent language skills, you might find that learning computer languages comes naturally for you.  Much of computer language has to do with punctuation, vocabulary, syntax, and proofreading.  The functions are part of all languages, including science languages.

On the other hand, I am curious about math and science.  There are elements of computer programming for managing data.  These skills are harder for me to develop.  If you have strong math skills as well as strong electrical engineering, you might want to develop these skills for computer application development or other emerging businesses.

For example, environmental companies have needs for people with science, cartography, and engineering skills. To move into the environmental industry, you may simply need to develop or expand your skills for environmentally specific tasks.

Think of ways to help others.

Another key to business and career success is to think of others.  Whenever I get to thinking too much of myself, I feel stress.  Self-absorption takes my mind off solving problems to seeing nothing but problems.  Taking time to check my ego and help other people relieves me of self-absorption.  Doing volunteer work helps me become more effective at work.
Giving a bit of myself away helps me regain focus in my job.  I see it as a key to business and career success.  I use this key to overcome feeling discouraged.  It is hard for me to feel discouraged when I am thinking of ways to help other people.

It is a key to business and career success that reminds me that success is not all about me.  It is about helping other people get what they want.

Practice persistence for business and career success.

Persistence is a key to business and career success.  If every sales representative quit after the first person said “No” to a proposal, no one would ever sell anything.

Turn frustration into solutions and inventions.

Everyone has frustrations.  We can learn from them.  We can use them to create solutions and inventions.  These are keys to business and career success.

“I’ve missed over 9,000 shots in my career.  I’ve lost almost 300 games.  Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over in my life.  And that is why I succeed.”  Michael Jordan

I heard Ed Land say that as an inventor, he “imagined things before they happened.”

Instead of sitting around angry and frustrated, look at the situation and ask yourself, “How can I solve this problem?”  Starting with this question is how successful people build business and career success.

Best Times to Make Social Media Post

Social media strategy for careers and business

Do you post on social media for your job or your business?  Jobs seekers find social media a great place to promote their career move.   Businesses market their products through social media pages and membership groups.

The time to build your audience on social media is before you actually need it.  If you find yourself in need of a job and you have no one in your social media network, you are less competitive than a person who has thousands of people in their network.

If you are managing a business that is planning a brand launch next year and have no business pages on social media, you are in a less competitive position than a company that has business pages with thousands of likes and followers.

As you build your audience on social media, you will be more effective by posting when your audience is online to see your post.

Best Times to Make Social Media Post

The best times to make social media post can vary with the audience and the product.  You can track your own results.  Pay attention to when you get the most likes, profile views, and comments.

I find that these are best times for me to post on social media is at the start of the day.

Correcting Mistakes in the Workplace

Correcting mistakes is one of the things that successful people do.  Everyone makes mistakes.  Successful people learn from them.  They do not repeat them.

When I make a mistake and owe an apology, I tell the person that I regret the way I handled a certain situation.  If I had it to do over again, I hope that I would have handled it differently.  I then say that I will not repeat the mistake, and I don’t.

Correcting mistakes is not always possible.

Some mistakes I can’t correct.  When I was a Navy officer, I had responsibility for over a dozen projects.  One of those projects was the cruise book.  This book was similar to a class yearbook.  I had a cruise book editor assigned to the project.  This man got an early out from the Navy.  I appointed a new person to take over the project.  He had not been aboard for the entire cruise.  The finished cruise book was terrific.  However, there were photographs of one ceremony that did not make it into the finished cruise book.  The ceremony was important to our captain.  It was the day the ship crossed the equator.  The captain was the only person who noticed that the ceremony were missing.  We had published book. There was no way to add the ceremony pictures to the book.

I told the captain that I regretted the mistake. I did not make any excuses or say anything about the change in the cruise book editor.  Fortunately, there was a lot that was good about the book.  I let him say how this oversight bothered him.  Then he talked about the things he liked about the book.  We both moved on.

Living with regret is pointless.

Sometimes things continue to bother me that I can’t change.  Rather than ruminate over these things, I write them down.  I talk with a friend about these things.  Writing and discussing things that bother me with a close friend allows me to move on.

Correcting mistakes

Mistakes happen.  Some of the mistakes I can correct.  Some of the mistakes I can avoid repeating.  Some mistakes I just have to process and move on.  I can’t cry over spilled milk.  I can’t cut sawdust.  Successful people live in the present moment.  They know that everyone makes mistakes.  They don’t let mistakes ruin their day or their career. They learn and do things better in the future.

5 Interview Tips for Getting a Job Offer

5 Interview Tips for Getting a Job Offer

Use these 5 interview tips to cross the maze to getting a job offer.  Hiring managers want to hire you when they invite you to an interview.  Make their job easy.

Say that you want the job.

This tip for getting a job offer sounds obvious.  However, I have had countless applicants fail to get a job offer, because they left the interview with the hiring manager uncertain about whether the applicants had an interest in the job.

You are not the only applicant in the interview process. If three equally qualified applicants compete for a job and only one is expressing an interest in getting the job, the hiring managers have an easy decision. They will offer the job to the person who wants the job.

Simply say that they you want the job and why you want it.

Be humble.

Don’t make the interview about you.  Have the good manners to ask hiring managers about themselves and their career.

Certainly ask questions about the company.

Say some good things about the hiring manager’s comments and about the company.  Humility is a valuable trait for getting a job offer.  Hiring managers want to hire people who fit in with other people as well as people they like.  Show the humility to show an interest in the hiring manager and the company.

Use facts about your qualifications.

Don’t use a list of adjective about yourself.  Avoid describing yourself as outstanding, motivated, organized, etc.  These words have no value.

Use the facts of your success.  You doubled the business.  You reduced costs.  You hired people who got promoted.  These facts show the hiring managers you can do a great job at their company.

Show how your skills match the job description.

Before you go to the interview, study the job description.  List your skills with each qualification the hiring company requires.

Prepare a presentation either on paper or on your laptop to show hiring managers how your skills match what their company is looking for in the person they are hiring.

Use words that are common to any company.

Every company has its jargon.  The people in the company fall into using these words as part of the workday.

If you are transitioning from the military or interviewing for a job that is in a different industry, be especially careful about using words or expression unique to the place where you are working.

5 Interview Tips for Getting a Job Offer

Good luck with your interview.  You will do a great job.  You will find that using these 5 interview tips will help you get a job offer.

Walking to Work

I have been lucky to live in a dry climate. My neighborhood paved bike and running paths.

Walking to work for me takes twenty minutes and is a more comfortable commute than the one most drivers make on the freeways.

However, not every one has the comfortable climate and walkway I have.  People who have to make daily decisions on whether they should walk to work because of the weather have a more difficult time of building a walking habit.

Census Bureau on Walking

“The Census Bureau’s most recent report,  “Modes Less Traveled — Bicycling and Walking to Work in the United States: 2008-2012,” shows that walking to work has remained unchanged since 2000 after steadily decreasing since 1980. In 1980, 5.6 percent of workers walked to work, and that rate declined to 2.9 percent by 2000. However, in the 2008-2012 period, the rate of walkers remained statistically unchanged from 2000. Among larger cities, Boston had the highest rate of walking to work at 15.1 percent.”
via Walking to Work Remains Unchanged from 2000 – American Community Survey (ACS) – Newsroom – U.S. Census Bureau.

Local governments are creating more bike paths and walkways for safe commutes.  Officials do see the alternative methods of transportation as important to the local transpiration options.

As walking places become safer, more convenient, and more beautifully landscaped to make them interesting and attractive, walking and biking becomes a fun way to commute.

Humility and Team Success

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.” C. S. Lewis”

Research on Humility and Teams

In an article “The Best Leaders Are Humble Leaders,” HBR.org, Jeanine Prime and Elizabeth Salib reviewed research they had conducted on leadership.

The research involved six countries and twenty-two companies.  It showed that employees who believed that their managers cared for and respected them were more innovative.

The research further showed that humility is one of the four elements that helps employees feel “included,” that is, feeling “unique” yet “belonging.” These employees developed a sense of “citizenship” in the company.

My Personal Experience with (out) Humility

When I am hungry or tired, I can become self-centered and irritable. I want control. I lose patience.

When I focus too much on what I want and what I feel, I am a target for frustration. I can see people as being in the way instead of being there to help me. I lose humility.

I focus on what I don’t like in other people. I focus on what someone else is doing differently from the way I want it done. I am not enjoying my day. I become less available to other people. I lose the benefit of their help.

When I act self-centered, I annoy people. I frustrate people. I make them feel that they are not on the team with me.

I make things harder for myself and for the people on my team.

Humility and Team Productivity

When I can respect and have patience with other people, I feel better. The people around me benefit from my respect and thoughtfulness.

When I stop thinking about myself, working with others becomes easier. I can do my part. I can let other people do their part.

Thinking of others as well as myself, I can get out of my mind and into the present moment. I become more effective. I become more pleasant. I can listen to people. I can help them with solutions. I can benefit from their solutions.

When I am with a team that has members who respect each other’s ideas, everyone enjoys the job more. Even when I am working with a team in dealing with a difficult situation, if we all respect each other and let everyone contribute to the solution, everything moves faster and more effectively.

Do Leaders Need Humility?

I am more effective when I have the humility to listen to other people and to respect their ideas. I enjoy my work more. The people working with me enjoy their work more.

Research shows that companies with humble leaders benefit from employees who feel included and empowered. They are more reliable, innovative, productive, and committed to being members or “citizens” of the company.

Top 100 CPG Companies

TOP 100 CPG COMPANIES (Source Google)

For directions and company details, click Google Maps


Nestle USA Inc
800 N Brand Blvd Glendale, CA 91203 (818) 549-6000

Procter & Gamble Co
2 Procter and Gamble Plz Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 983-2184

Philip Morris USA
4001 Commerce Rd Richmond, VA 23234 (804) 274-2000

Unilever North America
700 Sylvan Ave Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 (201) 894-7760

Kraft Foods Inc
3 Lakes Dr Northfield, IL 60093 (847) 646-2000

Pepsico International
700 Anderson Hill Rd Purchase, NY 10577 (914) 253-2000

Tyson Foods Inc
2210 W Oaklawn Dr Springdale, AR 72762 (479) 290-4000

Coca-Cola Co
1 Coca Cola plz NW Atlanta, GA 30313 (404) 676-2121

3M Co
3M Center St Paul, MN 55144 (651) 733-1110

Georgia Pacific
133 Peachtree St Ne Atlanta, GA 30303 (404) 749-9754

Mars Inc
6885 Elm St McLean, VA 22101 (703) 821-4900

Louis Vuitton USA Inc
49 E 57th St New York, NY 10022 (212) 371-6111

L’Oreal USA
575 5th Ave New York, NY 10017 (212) 984-4000

Diageo North America Inc
801 Main Ave Norwalk, CT 06851 (203) 229-2100

Sara Lee: Food & Beverage
3500 Lacey Rd Downers Grove, IL 60515 (630) 598-6000

Kimberly Clark Corp
351 Phelps Dr Irving, TX 75038 (972) 281-1200

Danone Foods Inc
100 Hillside Ave # 3 White Plains, NY 10603 (914) 366-9700

Dial Corp
15101 N Scottsdale Rd Scottsdale, AZ 85254 (480) 991-3000

Miller Brewing Co
4000 W State St Milwaukee, WI 53208 (414) 931-2000

Anheuser-Busch Inc
1 Busch Pl St Louis, MO 63118 (314) 577-2000

Nike Inc
1 Bowerman Dr Beaverton, OR 97005 (503) 629-3354

Whirlpool Corp
2000 N M 63 Benton Harbor, MI 49022 (269) 923-5000

GE Consumer & Industrial
Appliance Park Louisville, KY 40225 (502) 452-4311

Heineken USA Inc
360 Hamilton Ave # 1103 White Plains, NY 10601 (914) 681-4100

Kirin Brewery of America LLC
970 W 190th St # 890 Torrance, CA 90502 (310) 354-2400

Masco Corp
21001 Van Born Rd Taylor, MI 48180 (313) 274-7400

Asahi Beer USA Inc
1050 Bishop St. Honolulu, HI

General Mills: World Headquarters
1 General Mills Blvd Minneapolis, MN 55426 (763) 764-7600

ConAgra Foods Inc: ConAgra Foods Consumer Foods
1 Conagra Dr Omaha, NE 68102 (402) 595-4000

Smithfield Foods
200 Commerce St Smithfield, VA 23430 (757) 365-3000

Colgate-Palmolive Co
300 Park Ave New York, NY 10022 (212) 310-2000

Dean Foods Co
2515 Mckinney Ave # 1200 Dallas, TX 75201 (214) 303-3400

American Standard Co Inc
1 Centennial Ave Piscataway, NJ 08854 (732) 980-6000

Kellogg Co
1 Kellogg Sq Battle Creek, MI 49017 (269) 961-2000

Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products Inc-Headquarters
199 Grandview Rd Skillman, NJ 08558 (908) 874-1000

H J Heinz Co
600 Grant St Pittsburgh, PA 15219 (412) 456-5700

Adidas America Inc
5055 N Greeley Ave Portland, OR 97217 (971) 234-2300

Reynolds American Inc
401 N Main St Winston Salem, NC 27101 (336) 741-2000

Avon Products
1345 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10105 (212) 282-5000

Land O’Lakes Inc
4001 Lexington Ave N St Paul, MN 55126 (651) 481-2222

Campbell Soup Company: Main Office
1 Campbell Pl Camden, NJ 08103 (856) 342-4800

Novartis Consumer Health, Inc
560 Morris Ave Summit, NJ 07901 (973) 503-8000

Black & Decker
701 E Joppa Rd Towson, MD 21286 (410) 823-2029

VF Corporation: Corporate Headquarters
105 Corporate Center Blvd Greensboro, NC 27408 (336) 424-6000

S C Johnson & Son Inc
1525 Howe St Racine, WI 53403 (262) 260-2000

Newell Rubbermaid
10B Glenlake Pkwy NE # 600 Atlanta, GA 30328 (770) 407-3800

Estee Lauder Inc
767 5th Ave New York, NY 10153 (212) 572-4200

Beiersdorf Inc
187 Danbury Rd Wilton, CT 06897 (203) 563-5800

Shiseido Cosmetics America Ltd
178 Bauer Dr Oakland, NJ 07436 (201) 337-0577

Dole Food Co Inc
1 Dole Dr Westlake Village, CA 91362 (818) 879-6600

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp
4845 US Highway 271 N Pittsburg, TX 75686 (903) 856-6866

Molson Coors Brewing Co
1225 17th St Denver, CO 80202 (303) 279-6565

GlaxoSmithKline
200 N 16th St Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 751-1300

Hormel Foods Corp
1 Hormel Pl Austin, MN 55912 (507) 437-5611

Altadis USA
5900 N Andrews Ave # 1100 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309 (954) 233-0387

Mattel Inc
333 Continental Blvd El Segundo, CA 90245 (310) 252-2000

Jones Apparel Group Inc
250 Rittenhouse Cir Bristol, PA 19007 (215) 785-4000

Liz Claiborne
1441 Broadway New York, NY 10018 (212) 354-0998

Hershey Company The
100 Crystal a Dr Hershey, PA 17033 (717) 534-4000

Constellation Brands Inc
370 Woodcliff Dr # 300 Fairport, NY 14450 (585) 218-3600

Clorox Co
1221 Broadway Oakland, CA 94612 (510) 271-7000

Nintendo of America Inc
4820 150th Ave NE Redmond, WA 98052 (425) 882-2040

Hallmark Cards Inc
2501 Mcgee St Kansas City, MO 64108 (816) 274-5111

WM Wrigley Jr Company
410 N Michigan Ave Chicago, IL 60611 (312) 644-2121

Levi Strauss & Co
1155 Battery St San Francisco, CA 94111 (415) 501-6000

Chiquita Brands International Inc
250 E 5th St # 2400 Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 784-8000

Pfizer Health Solutions Inc
235 E 42nd St New York, NY 10017 (212) 573-2323

Polo Ralph Lauren
625 Madison Ave # 8 New York, NY 10022 (212) 317-9742

Alberto-Culver Co
2525 Armitage Ave Melrose Park, IL 60160 (708) 450-3000

Stanley Works The
1000 Stanley Dr New Britain, CT 06053 (860) 225-5111

Jarden Corp
555 Theodore Fremd Ave Rye, NY 10580 (914) 967-9400

Hasbro Inc
1027 Newport Ave Pawtucket, RI 02861 (401) 431-8697

Bayer Consumer Care
36 Columbia Rd Morristown, NJ 07960 (201) 254-5000

Energizer Battery Co
533 Maryville University Dr St Louis, MO 63141 (314) 985-2000

Electronic Arts Inc
209 Redwood Shores Pkwy Redwood City, CA 94065 (650) 628-1500

Brown-Forman Corp
850 Dixie Hwy Louisville, KY 40210 (502) 585-1100

Kroger
1014 Vine St Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 762-4062

Safeway Inc
5918 Stoneridge Mall Rd Pleasanton, CA 94588 (925) 467-3000

Supervalu Inc
11840 Valley View Rd Eden Prairie, MN 55344 (952) 828-4000

Ahold USA Inc
13135 Lee Jackson Memorial Hwy Fairfax, VA 22033 (703) 961-6200

Publix Super Markets Inc
3300 Publix Corporate Pkwy Lakeland, FL 33811

Top 75 Grocery Retailers & Wholesalers

 

Supermarket News Annual List of Top 75 Grocery Retailers and Wholesalers.

Full details on the scale and growth of grocery retailers:  Read the 2012 Top 75 story here.


Read more in Supermarket News

Career Websites: Leadership, Full-Time Jobs, Networking, Job Hopping

Career Advice:  Leadership, Full-Time Jobs, Networking, and Job Hopping is a list of career articles from terrific writers and websites.

This photo takes me back to the years I served on an aircraft carrier.  I watched flight operations from the safer location of the bridge.  For the men and women on the flight deck, I salute you and thank you for your courage and your service!  For those of you returning to civilian life, all the best to you in your careers!

Career Advice on Leadership

“The Trouble with Leadership Theories – Doug Sundheim – Harvard Business Review”

“But the trouble with leadership theories is they’re easy to hide behind (often inaccurately). They become proxies for actual leadership. When something important is on the line, people don’t follow five-tiered triangles, four-box matrices, or three concentric circles. They follow real people.”

via Doug Sundheim, The Trouble with Leadership Theories – Doug Sundheim – Harvard Business Review.

Career Advice on Full-Time Jobs

“What does it really mean to work full-time? | Penelope Trunk Careers”

“I am at O’Hare flying to Pittsburgh to give a speech. I try to never give speeches. Actually I try to never leave my house. Because I think I will regret any time I spend away from my kids.”

Career Advice on Networking

“May the (Work) Force Be With You: How to Be a LinkedIn Jedi (Infographic) | Entrepreneur.com”

“Do you have a partly filled-out LinkedIn profile? Get thee to computer and finish it! By simply adding a photo (no keg shots, please), your profile is 11 times more likely to be viewed. Go deeper with Jedi mind tricks like using LinkedIn Pulse or Trending Content tool to engage with others.”

via Wendy Frink, “May the (Work) Force Be With You: How to Be a LinkedIn Jedi (Infographic) | Entrepreneur.com”.

Career Advice on Job Hopping

“How To Weigh The Benefits Of Job Hopping | Fast Company | Business + Innovation”

“It used to be considered a mark of loyalty to stay with one employer until you retire. In today’s business environment nobody expects you to work in one position for 10 years, but that doesn’t mean you should change jobs after every six months.”

Event Networking for Introverts

Event networking for introverts is never easy.  For that matter, even some extroverts feel awkward when networking face to face.  There is always that little feeling of what you don’t know.

If networking events are difficult for you, there are things that you can do to make them easier.

I prepare for networking events.  When I have not prepared, I have found myself walking around without accomplishing anything and uncertain about how to get started.  Here are some things I do before event networking.

Prepare Materials When Event Networking

I take my smartphone.  I keep my appointments on my smartphone.

However, I like to work with a pen and paper.  I take a leather-bound portfolio with a legal pad.  I take notes in pen and ink.

I carry a one inch-thick stack of business cards.  I keep my cards in one pocket.  I place the cards of the people I meet in a second pocket. When I leave an event with many new contacts, I want to put them into my expanding database of contacts.  The cards make building this database possible.  For people who do not have cards, I make notes on their contact information on my legal pad.

If there is a brochure for the event, I keep a copy of the brochure in the jacket of my portfolio.  This brochure helps me find my way around and contact people as the event moves along.

List Contacts in Advance of Event Networking

I make a list of people I specifically want to meet.  By making a list of people I want to meet, I can reduce the stress on me through preparation for seeing the people.

I can also do a better job of seeing the people I need to see.

If there is a list of companies or people in attendance, I get a copy of the list before the event.
If I am at a convention, companies have booths.  I email or call people to let them know I will come by their booth.

I do not schedule many appointments during the course of a networking event.   Too many things can come up to carry people away and cause people to miss appointments.  For the appointments I do schedule, I give people my phone number to call me when their schedule has changed during an event.

Things to Say When Event Networking

Remember some basics.

  1. If speaking with new people makes you uncomfortable, prepare things to say and questions to ask.
  2. Show an interest in the other person’s discussion
  3. Ask the person questions about points that interest you.
  4. Congratulate the person upon successes.
  5. Listen with empathy.  Connect with what the person is saying from their point of view.  Ask questions about how they reached conclusions or solved problems.

The Positive Side of Being an Introvert When Event Networking

Anxiety is a signal that tells us to expect things.  If we use that signal as a message to prepare for our meetings, we can do a better job of getting ready and our meetings will go better.

Remember that everyone gets nervous sometimes.  It is part of being human.  Having a little anxiety is okay.  It is even a good thing when I use the feelings to plan and prepare for successful event marketing.

Are You in the Wrong Job?

If you feel unappreciated, are you in the wrong job?  By unappreciated, I mean that you experience these things.

  1. Your turn has come up for promotion, but the promotion goes to your peers or perhaps people who have come into your company and moved past you.
  2. Your company brings in management from the outside for jobs that should have.
  3. Your peers repeatedly get credit for the work you are doing.
  4. Your boss takes credit for your work.
  5. Your pay raise is smaller than the pay raises everyone else gets.
  6. Everything people say about you is negative.
  7. No one asks you to join in at breaks or after work.
  8. You believe that nothing you do makes a difference.
  9. You feel like an outsider.

What to Do When You Feel Unappreciated

Determine the cause of your problem.

Are you doing the things to deserve praise and promotions?  If you are not doing what you should be doing, get busy.  Correct your mistakes.  Eliminate under performance.

Is Your Boss the Reason You Feel Unappreciated?

In an article titled “Are you appreciated at work?” in SFGate, Kim Thompson wrote,

“If you asked the majority of employees the reasons for leaving a good job you might hear comments that involve a lack of appreciation rather than compensation.  Resigning from a job may sound like an impulsive choice.  However, according to a Gallup poll, at least 75 percent of the reasons for voluntary turnover can be influenced by managers.”

Is your boss the reason you feel unappreciated?  Can you work with your boss to makes changes?  If not, you can consider your options outside your current company.

Steps to a Job Change

  1. Prepare your resume.  Make it factual.  Use a bullet format.  Highlight your accomplishments.
  2. Build a contact list for your job change.
  3. Expand your network.
  4. Set up a specific job-change email address that includes your name.
  5. Turn to your friends outside the company for referrals and references.
  6. If you have a friend working where you would like to work, ask that person for help in getting an interview.
  7. Find companies that are hiring for the job that you want.
  8. Build relationships with people in the company and ask them to help you get an interview.

Find a place where you can do meaningful work with people who will reward you and appreciate your efforts.

Don’t get stuck in a job where you feel unappreciated.  Get another job!

Going from Self-Conscious to Self-Confident

“You wouldn’t worry so much about what others think of you if you realized how seldom they do.” Eleanor Roosevelt

Going from self-conscious to self-confident is a simple process of developing skills.  Being self-conscious is painful and pointless.  Being self-confident is healthy and rewarding.

Self-conscious people have to think about themselves.  They are less aware of the world in front of them and around them.  They have a heightened level of self-awareness.

Being around other people makes self-conscious people feel embarrassed, insecure, and anxious.  For some people, just the thought of being around other people can produce these feelings.

Everyone experiences self-consciousness sometimes.  Being hungry, tired, in a new situation, or doing something embarrassing can make a person self-conscious.  Losing a shirt button or blouse button right before a meeting can happen to anyone and make the person feel self-conscious.

People who are self-confident don’t have to think about themselves.  They are not cocky or narcissistic.  They can enjoy life with a clear mind.  They can become more successful through their attention their activities.

When being self-conscious affects the quality of a person’s life or career, it is time to do something about the problem.

There are simple steps for turning self-consciousness into self-confidence. Start with writing down the situations that make you feel self-conscious.    Name the feeling you have.  For example, if a compliment makes you feel embarrassed, write something like, “Every time someone gives me a compliment, I feel embarrassed.”  Then develop this simple skill to deal with the feeling.

When someone gives you a compliment, just say, “Thank you.”  Then smile.

Being around strangers makes many people feel self-conscious.  When going into places where there are strangers, go with friends.

If you are self-conscious about meeting people, develop a simple skill for handling introductions.  Say, “It is nice to meet you, [person’s name].”

If you feel self-conscious in a conversation, become a good listener.  Ask questions.  Speak slowly.

If you are self-conscious about your appearance, you can reduce your concerns by getting clothes that fit.  Grooming or getting a haircut can help people feel more comfortable.  Exercise and eat healthy.  Develop some acceptance skills.  Accept your body as it is even while you are working to change it.  You don’t have to like it.  You just have to stop thinking about it.  There is no perfect body any way.

Public speaking is terrifying for some people.  To develop public-speaking skills there are classes you can take or organizations you can join.  I have learned to be comfortable speaking to any size audience.  I don’t think about the crowd.  I prepare a presentation that has information the audience needs to know.  I rehearse to the point that I can say what I need to say without thinking.  I take notes with me for reference.  Then I focus on what I am saying.  By focusing on what I am saying, I give the crowd what they came to hear:  my message.

The point is that you can become less self-consciousness and live a better life.  You can take simple steps to develop skills.  You can take classes to develop skills for self-confidence.  You can even get help from professional coaches or psychology specialists.  You can turn self-consciousness into self-confidence.

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