Stop Obsessing About Having the Perfect Career Plan  

September 26, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 3 minutes

That was the headline that captured my attention in a Wall Street Journal article from 9/17/23. Basically, the premise is that while people for decades have pursued the mysterious “perfect career”, the reality is false advertising. Multiple global factors, coupled with the speed of technology and change, reinforce this point. The author ended with a great point, “Even though this (a …

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Seasons of Change 

September 19, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 4 minutes

Over the past several weeks I’ve had the opportunity to connect with some former colleagues who were recently let go from their employer, along with a couple of friends who are anticipating leaving their employer in the near future.  The top-of-mind question for all of them was, “What should I do first?” Of course, they’re all experienced adults who can figure …

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How Old Are You?

September 12, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 3 minutes

Just about every time I’ve been in a Q&A situation with job seekers, the question arises about whether age discrimination still exists in the marketplace. And every time, my answer is the same – absolutely!    In fact, here is some data supporting the theory that ageism does still take place:  But isn’t age discrimination against the law? Yes, it is. …

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7 Job Interview Rules…and More! 

September 05, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 2 minutes

I’ve found no matter how much I think I know about a topic, there’s ALWAYS more to learn! And, no surprise, the topics surrounding job transition are no different. Even though I’ve been around this topic for years and have experienced transitions several times, I continue to pick up some new insights from others.  Proverbs 1:5 reinforces this view with “Let …

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Be Aware and Flexible, but Stay The Course! 

August 29, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 3 minutes

For any of you who are in a job transition or have been in a job transition, you know the job market is a very fluid phenomenon. Whether it’s specific to you individually (the job you’ve applied for that you think you’re the PERFECT fit for doesn’t come through), or there’s a broad application (unemployment is low, so why do …

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Loooooong Job Interviews! 

August 08, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 3 minutes

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 …

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Starting a New Job?

July 19, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 3 minutes

I recently saw an article entitled, “The 80-95% Rule: Why not giving your all in a new job could actually make you more successful.” A viral TikTok video argues: “You teach people how to treat you.” At the time I’m writing this article, the video has captured over 340,000 viewers.  The author states, “If you are pulling extra hours, saying yes …

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Freedom in Your Job Search

July 04, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 3 minutes

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 …

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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 …

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Joy in the Job Search?!?! 

June 13, 2023
Written by: Dave Sparkman | Reading Time: 4 minutes

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 …

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