Whether you know it or not, you already have an on-line presence…even if it is a lack thereof. (Just to be clear, if compromising pictures of you from your Facebook or MySpace page are not easily found, that is and will ALWAYS be in your favor.)  But, if you are one of the many who have not yet established your on-line professional persona, that is actually not a good thing. So the real question is the following:  is your current on-line presence helping or hurting your career? Google, Bing or any other search engine is now the first tool of recruiters and prospective employers.  Even if … [Read more...]

As an executive coach, I love many things about this tool.  First, it can fit anyone’s price range.  Second, it is completely automated and done through email and takes only 10 minutes of time for raters to respond – so the response rate tends to be higher than average and the data more reliable.  And third, I love that this tool provides invaluable insights, whether you are: a leader looking for feedback; a high-potential wanting to advance your career; a job seeker in this tough employment environment; an entrepreneur looking to start or grow your own business; or an HR manager … [Read more...]

The 360Reach Assessment is the world’s first and leading personal branding assessment.  It has been used by nearly one million people globally, both by individuals looking to advance their careers and by leaders and professionals within some the world’s largest corporations (including American Express, British Telecom, J&J, JPMorgan, Microsoft, Starwood Hotels and Warner Brothers Studios). The 360Reach Assessment enables you to gather external feedback on multiple variables:  your personality characteristics (“brand attributes”), leadership competencies, strengths, weaknesses … [Read more...]

Whether you are a leader/manager or a professional/individual contributor, this series of postings is for you.  Below are the three things you need to know, in order, to sell yourself and keep your career moving forward: Know who you are – your values, strengths, weaknesses, and personal “brand” Know how you are perceived by others – their interpretation and assessment of those factors Leverage that information to market your unique value/brand – your communication strategy and plan so the perception you want becomes the one you get Yesterday I promised you an on-line tool to … [Read more...]

I’m going to put this on the line today – if you cannot answer my question above in a meaningful way, you are putting your future career and even your current job at risk.  Most of us know that the old system of employment for life passed away decades ago.  But today employment, period, is morphing into an entirely different animal.  I don’t think we know fully yet what that new world will look like, but it is shaping up to be a very different cycle of job deaths and rebirths than we have seen before. What I mean is that there is a strong case that we are not simply going through a … [Read more...]

I have been reflecting on this question a lot lately.  Not from the perspective of personal insecurity or doubt (though I have my days), but rather from the viewpoint of other people: a)    What real value is this blog for high-potential and high-achieving leaders delivering to individual careers and corporate talent pools? b)    What gifts or talents am I really using to contribute to the world on a broader scale? It would be easy to dismiss my pondering as the typical questions of middle age, since I hit my 45th birthday this July.  Many friends and family are struggling with … [Read more...]