What is the is key to your success?

To be happy at work most people are looking for the perfect job, candidate, customer/client, or project.  Everyone lately seem to be looking for the “silver bullet”, the key that gives you the result you want.  Whether they are a job seeker, career changer, hiring manager, business owner, consultant, people want that one quick sure way to find a job, find their purpose, get customers or clients, hire the perfect candidate, help a company with a project.  Sometimes clients come to me because they think a career coach has the answer.

Some Examples

When I worked for AT&T another manager and I were asked to interview a candidate for a sales job.  The applicant was a qualified person. We were asked for our opinion as to whether he would be an asset to our team.  The other manager told me afterwards that he thought this person was not right for the job. He told me he was looking for someone like one of our current top producers.  The key for him was appearance and energy.    Sometimes the key can lead to bias.

A counselor I work with at SCORE is sure there is one question we could ask to all our clients. This question would tell us what motivated this client to start a business.  He is set on finding that question.  Knowing what motivates the client is important. However sometimes it takes a few questions to find that out and that takes time.  You may be asking about something the client has never thought about.

When I graduated college and was looking for my first teaching job, I was interviewed by several school departments.  One town in particular had a superintendent who people told me determined who to hire by looking at their hands.  I studied to be a chemistry teacher and that was the job I was applying for.  My hands were often stained from chemicals in the lab.  I wasn’t offered a job there.  Not sure what the perfect hands of a schoolteacher looks like but I didn’t have them. His key made him pass up a good, qualified candidate.

Salespeople are always looking for the “silver bullet” – that one feature or benefit of their product/service that everyone wants.  The problem is that different features and benefits may appeal to different clients so there is no substitute for really knowing your client well and again that takes time.

Take Your Time

When a clients comes to me for coaching there is never just one criteria for a job to be perfect.  There is so much more that needs to be covered.  What did they hate about the job they were coming from?  That is usually where we start.  It is never just one thing that makes you miserable at your job.  It might be the company culture, it might be the challenge of the job, it might be the boss, but usually it is a combination of many issues.  There isn’t one thing that stands out as the litmus test for everything else.Take Your Time

As much as we all would like to sort things out quickly so we can “get on with it”, job searches, hiring and sales take time.  It is all about getting to know the candidate, client, customer or yourself.  It means listening carefully to what he/she is saying and also getting a sense of who this person is and what he/she is really looking for.  Leave yourself the time and space with an open mind to do the work necessary to find the right person or job.

Coaching

Are you looking for a new job after the pandemic but not quite sure what that job is?  Coaching gives you a safe space to think through what the right job looks like.  With me as your coach we can assess your strengths, behavioral style and values so that you can identify possible careers that would be right for you.  We can work together to find that job.  If you are interested in working with me, please call me at 781-598-0388, text me at 617-240-5353 or email me at asparker@asparker.com