In over 30 years of working with human resources and people in transition, I’ve not met many people who have told me that they’ve found their “dream job!” However, I’ve encountered many people who, upon reflection, have identified attributes of former positions they’ve held which they loved, and I’ve found even more who are in search of that “dream job!” …
The famous poem, “The Road Not Taken,” by Robert Frost ends with this stanza: I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. I think most people who have been through a job transition can easily relate to these …
I recently read an article titled, “Be Prepared for the Worst: Here are 4 Tips for Surviving Long Job Interviews – and How to Ace Them.” It led off with, “While three to five rounds of interviews were once expected for non-managerial positions, the new norm is much more demanding.” Over my career I’ve orchestrated, been an interviewer in, and …
What Did You Say? Why Does it Matter?
August 01, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman |
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Have you ever said something, and then either wondered if you said the right thing, or were pretty sure you didn’t say the right thing? Or, maybe you actually nailed it! You knew it as soon as the words started flowing out of your mouth!?! I am in the process of supporting my son-in-law, Aaron, as he starts a …
What’s Worse Than Being Unemployed?
July 11, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman |
Reading Time: 3 minutes
If I asked you to describe the emotions you experience or associate with unemployment, what would your response be? If you’re like most people (myself included), words like frustrating, overwhelming, anxious, fearful, angry, exasperated, confused, stressful, tiring, and debilitating may come to mind. Some optimistic folks may include hopeful, optimistic, and even ‘exciting’ (yep, there are those crazy ones among …
When you saw the subject line for this brief, what was the first thing that popped into your mind? Perhaps it was, “YES! I’ll find out some tips to be freed from the dread of networking!” Or maybe you thought, “Hmmm, I wonder if there really is a way to avoid all those insane versions of my resume! I’m sick …
Have you ever done work, on a sustained basis, that you didn’t like or perhaps at which you weren’t that skilled? Or maybe even you didn’t mind it, but you knew it wasn’t what you were built to do? Perhaps you had to do the work to provide for your family? Or you had to do it as the job was …
Finding Peace of Mind in Your Job Search
June 20, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman |
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Here are some recent headlines/data affecting our employment. What impact, if any, should these have on your job search or career planning? In addition to the bullets above, I could have easily come up with double the number of bullets from additional headlines/data. If you’re like many people scanning these, or similar, headlines and data points, it’s easy to become …
Let’s play the simple word association game of naming the first word that comes to your mind when another word is given: for example, I say sun, you say moon. I say light, you say dark. I say up, you say down. Got it? As you can see in the examples, many times the first word we say is the …
Calling versus Career: What’s the difference and does it matter?
June 06, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman |
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Along with many of the people I’ve encountered going through job transition, after Arthur Andersen imploded years ago, I was praying earnestly to find a job where I could: You see, I had been in a job at Arthur Andersen that hit all the bullets listed. I thought Arthur Andersen would be the last employer I’d ever work for. My career …