Meet Sweetpea.
Sweetpea is 5 years old and was born to a life of luxury.
Day in, day out, Sweetpea grazes in the pasture, drinks fresh water from a constantly filled water supply, and eats as much sweet feed, rolled oats and cracked corn as her heart desires.
Sweetpea has a luxurious coat of fleece and fiber, the softest fur you can run your fingers through. She is groomed yearly and has regular checkups. She has produced 2 healthy offspring and is great with (human) children. Sweetpea needs a job.
She is bored. She paces the fence line, trying to catch the eyes of passing cars by doing her best poses and tricks. She says the past 3 years have been devoted to the care, feeding, and weaning of her babies. She is now ready to work full-time, she wants to contribute… to talk with other “grown ups”.
Together we created her résumé and she was quick to point out her strong points: 1-Leadership. She is the oldest female in the herd and all the others follow her lead. 2- Sales and Marketing. With her quick poses, tricks, head tosses, and trots, people stop to admire her and immediately decide they have to have a llama, hence boosting sales of all llamas ready for purchase. 3- Team Development & Management. She quickly trains her newborns to adapt to the ways of the herd. The other members grudgingly follow her lead and are sometimes not happy about it, but she encourages group synergy by praising accomplishments (proper hay chewing techniques) and motivating them to work harder together (“alright, on three… toss the head to the left, then back to the right… now stretch it to the sky. Just like that. Great job!”).
Sweetpea adds that she is flexible when it comes to pay, but she would lean toward a position that offered fresh veggies daily (versus the old soggy ones in the back of the crisper drawer). Travel is a consideration, but relocation is out of the question.
She looks forward to working with you and says she can be reached by email or on her iPhone.
Thank You.
I’ve had this post tabled in my “draft” box for a while because it just wasn’t finished. Then today I read Penelope Trunk’s blog, “4 Frequent questions about Gen Y answered” and my brain kicked in.
I am wondering if Gen Y is getting a bad rap.
For a couple of years now, all I’ve heard about is how the Gen Y generation don’t want to work. They think nothing of quitting a job after a year. Coddled by their parents to the point of complete lack of understanding of the pressures facing them in “the real world”. You have to talk to them gently. They can text, type, talk and listen… all at the same time. They think it’s OK to come in to work at noon in Berkenstocks and toting an iPod. And still be the company President in a year.
Some employers say it’s frustrating. They are stuck between a rock and a hard place because boatloads of baby boomers are retiring and Gen Y is moving in. They are more technically savvy and can do the work in half the time as their older peers. Their older counterparts are going to have to learn to work with them, if they want to work collaboratively at all.
I am seeing it in a different way. I have 4 nieces and nephews (ages 18-22) in college and they are all incredibly hard working (and I’m not just saying that because I adore them). They all held jobs through high school and still in college, while juggling sports, chores, friends, etc. They have turned out to be very respectful young adults and they don’t expect to be given anything. Now perhaps they are in the minority, but judging by their roommates and friends who are doing the same thing, they seem to be in the average.
True, Gen Y professionals don’t have the mindset, “stay at your company until retirement”, and rarely will they stay long enough to leave an impact, but in this economy is that such a bad thing? When I was in my teens and early 20’s, my parents kind of gave me the “Oh well, deal with it” shrug if I complained about a job. They also gave me the “You’re not living here if you don’t have a job and are going to college” look/talk. Needless to say I moved out at 21, went to school full time, and worked full time while paying for my own education. ALL AT THE SAME TIME.
I am so glad I did. What a sense of accomplishment. The kids today are told they can come back to stay. 65% of kids move back home after college and they are OK with it, whereas I would have been mortally embarrassed to face friends AND family if I moved back to Mom and Dad’s. Times are different today. Parents parent differently today and kids expect things from their folks (imagine that!) but that is a whole other story!
So, what’s the conclusion to the story? Perhaps we judge too harshly EVERYONE in the Gen Y generation. There are still good, hard working young professionals out there, wanting to find a good job and stay there for many, many years. Not ALL people in their 20’s are “slackers” and reside in the “what’s in it for me?” mentality. Maybe they will help transform the workplace into a more flexible and friendly place to be– while still getting their work done and rescheduling their yoga times to evenings. Who’s to say? Anything is possible.
I recently commented on the ‘What Would Dad Say’ (jobdig) website where GL Hoffman wrote the interesting post, “Someone should Say it, so it might as well be me”.
The post was about Megan Joy from American Idol. GL wonders if she was booted off because of her singing, or because of her arm tattoos. Of course I had to reply to that. What was she thinking? She is a beautiful girl, but has this tattoo that runs the entire length of her arm. If not a career in music, who in the world would hire her? Don’t get me wrong. I think some body art can be really beautiful. I’ve seen some tattoos that have wow’ed me. I remember when I was about 20, my girlfriend and I wanted to get tattoos (this was before all the rage, mind you, so we thought we were crazy rebels!). We had just broken up with our boyfriends and wanted to celebrate our independence, I guess. Can’t remember the exact reason now, except that we wanted to get one. (Young, silly and free).
When I told my open-minded mom this, she said: “Well, as long as you can live with it when you are 80 and it is saggy and faded, go ahead. And don’t forget, if you ever plan on getting a job in the ‘real world’, employers will discriminate against you.”
The last part really hit home. Well, both parts did, but I knew that when I was done with college I would have to go out and get a “real job” and didn’t want to wreck my chances by getting a tattoo where a prospective employer might see it.
Whether we admit it or not, covering oneself with tattoos/piercings/body art DOES affect our chances of being hired. I know I am probably angering some folks reading this, but it’s true. I know that any of my executive clients would think twice about hiring someone with tattoos crawling up the neck or one of those gigantic ear things in their ears. I don’t normally think of myself as ‘narrow minded’, but I know when it comes to appropriate dress in the workplace, we need to be as professional as possible.
True, some companies embrace or support body art, but most don’t. Companies strive to maintain a professional front, so hiring someone with a stud through their tongue or in an eyebrow goes against everything the company is trying to do.
Keep in mind when deciding on your next tattoo that you may end up NOT working at the job you want because of your appearance.
As I was sipping my piping hot, freshly ground Starbucks House Blend, I thought, “ahhhh”. I’m not sure what it is about coffee, but I love it. Caffeinated or not, I love coffee. The smell, the taste, the culture. I need it, have to have it, would hate to live without it. I am from a family of huge coffee drinkers. My parents always had a pot of it going. I loved the smell, but hated the taste of it (they drank it black). When I was 19, my boyfriend at the time drank it and, wanting to impress him of course, I started as well. My love affair with coffee continued long after college and long after the boyfriend. What a wonderful courtship it has been. I’ve always been happy to drive out of the way to hit a new coffee shop or try out a ‘flavor of the week’. When a Starbucks moved into my sleepy little farming town, WHOA! You would have thought they put a mega mall in town the way everyone was talking about it. Besides the wonderful smell and strongly bitter taste, it DOES have some good health benefits. Did you know that some health experts say that people who drink coffee on a regular basis are 80% less likely to develop Parkinson’s Disease? WebMD also goes on to say that it “lowers your risk of diabetes, cavities and colon cancer. It can uplift you and treat headaches. There’s also some evidence that coffee may help manage asthma and even control attacks when medication is unavailable. Overall, the research shows that coffee is far more healthful than it is harmful,” says Tomas DePaulis, PhD, research scientist at VanderbiltUniversity‘s Institute for Coffee Studies. So there’s that. My career has revolved around coffee. I can always rely on my faithful cup of joe to get me though the next resume, next article, next blog post, and so on. Every job interview I’ve been on, there was a stop to pick up a coffee beforehand. Every workshop I’ve done was with coffee in hand (or somewhere in the room). Career and Coffee seem to go hand in hand in my life. So, here’s to you coffee!
I’ve come across a few articles lately about how our birth order affects our careers and found the answers most interesting. Especially for the youngest born children. I am sure I find the youngest most interesting because I am the youngest in my family.
In Science Daily, it states, “A child’s place in the family birth order may play a role in the type of occupations that will interest him or her as an adult. First born and only children may be more interested in cognitive pursuits than younger siblings. Whereas later born children are more interested in artistic or outdoor-related careers.”
Rachel Zupek, from CareerBuilder.com said there are a few characteristics similar in each role:
Firstborns are more ambitious, rule-followers and confident, while secondborns (or middle) are the easy-going, diplomatic peacemakers. Firstborns are determined to succeed and tend to follow through with higher education. Middleborns tend to lean toward ‘negotiation’ or ‘helping’ professions like nursing, law enforcement and machine operation.
Youngest are charming and creative and are often found in administrative, journalism, sales or athletics. According to birth order expert, Frederick Leong, we are fun-loving, artistic, and well, not quite as driven as our elder siblings.
As the youngest of three daughters, I always strove not to wear the “baby of the family” label. While I liked being the youngest, I definitely wanted to prove to everyone that I can do it. I worked hard to “prove my worth” by working full time through high school and college. I’ve been working hard ever since, juggling marriage, kids, family, a farm, and a career.
So, does our birth order really have anything to do with our success in life? Are we doomed, as middle children, to make a low income every year (as stated)? Or perpetually goofy and non-serious as the youngest? Will firstborn forever fear ‘losing rank’?
I think our success has everything to do with our own thoughts and how we feel about ourselves. I don’t know if my being the youngest made me strive to be successful, or if that was always just my own inner desire. One thing I know for sure is that if we put any sort of ‘label’ on ourselves, it will hold us back from what we really want to do.
It starts quietly.
You hear rumblings about it from colleagues; it’s all anyone can talk about. Company morale is low and people are getting panicky. Suddenly, they let go of 25 people in your department with more layoffs expected. 2 months later, you get your pink slip. You don’t have any prospects in sight, everyone you know is laid off, and your resume has been severely neglected. What do you do now?
For starters, you need to release some emotion and frustration, so plan on going out with your friends and/or family the weekend after you are let go and HAVE FUN. Forget about the job for a day or two and just try to relax. You can’t expect a response from anyone if you apply for a job on a weekend, so there is no sense in worrying.
Next, start contacting old friends, colleagues and relatives to let them know you are on the market. Start social networking– join LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Plaxo and/or all the other social networking sites available, set up your profile and let people know you are job searching.
Go to business lunches,job fairs, trade shows and join any associations in your field. Keep your entire job search organized by using jibberjobber (one of my favorite sites for job search management). Get your resume, cover letter and references in order so you aren’t in a panic if you see a job you really, really want.
Doing these things will make you feel productive and will keep the blues at bay. The busier you are, the better you will feel. I notice that clients of mine who are sitting around waiting for the right job have the hardest time. But it’s not only keeping busy with job search, but with other things as well. When was the last time you read a book? Painted? Played golf? Planted a garden? “Interim Time” as I call it (time in between jobs), is a great time to start a hobby you’ve always wanted to do. I read a great article by Brazen Careerist’s, Penelope Trunk who put it perfectly, “5 Things to do when you are unemployed. Hint: it’s not job hunting”. I loved this because it makes sense. Penelope talks about starting a blog, or launching a company, or doing something you’ve always wanted to do.
Before I got the job at the career center, I had 6 months of job search. Yuck. But I took it as an opportunity to do something I had always wanted to do: cross stitch. Sounds silly, but I always thought there is something about a beautiful work of cross stitch that always moved me. It looked so tedious, but at the same time, challenging. So, I went to the cross stitch store, bought a pattern, thread and canvas, and began my work of art. Talk about time consuming! It became my treat to myself , my reward, after sending out resumes, going on interviews, or making connections that day. It was tedious, hard on the eyes and tiresome, but I loved every minute of it. It also distracted me, which kept me from obsessing on the fact that I didn’t have a job.
Make small goals, keep yourself busy and then being unemployed won’t be so depressing. Besides, you’ll be working before you know it and then you’ll wish you were out doing some of the things you could be doing now!
It’s a very exciting day (evening) for me!
I’ve been wanting to switch to WordPress for a while but didn’t know how and didn’t have a clue as to how to begin.
I found a couple of sites that offered tips. One in particular was pretty lengthy, and they would do it for me for $500 (and add buttons, gadgets, SEO, etc.). That seemed a little steep for something I figured I could do myself but was a) too darn busy with work and b) lazy.
So, after a couple of tries and one deleted blog (note: make sure you like the user name you choose because it is the one everyone will see when you post, AND make sure you like your blog name–otherwise you have to DELETE IT to get another one–unless there was a way to do it and I just didn’t know about it which is a very good possibility) here we are.
And isn’t it so much prettier than my other blog? Plus, the features WordPress offers are great.
So, now it is 1:42 a.m. and I can finally rest my weary head on my pillow because this is DONE!
Good night readers.
Today’s post is from my all-time favorite motivational speaker, Jack Canfield!!
Most of you know I am a huge fan of the Law of Attraction. I have used it in my life for about 2 years (on and off) and have seen my income triple. Seriously.
I was initially drawn to him by the movie/book, “The Secret” and liked what he had to say. I started following his basic LOA (Law of Attraction) principles and was shocked at how quickly improvements were happening everywhere in my life. It’s all about our thoughts. I’m telling you people… it works. Read for yourselves and tell me what you think. –Erin
And now I give you: Jack Canfield
Daily Disciplines for Effortless Success
by Jack Canfield
Hand’s down, one of the most popular questions I’m asked by students is this…
“Jack, what are your most important daily actions that you correlate with your success.”
In fact, Oprah Winfrey asked me a similar question just days before appearing on her show. She asked me to come up with some easy-to-apply steps for her viewers to start applying The Law of Attraction in their lives.
One of the basic first steps is to determine, write down and talk about what you do want, not what you don’t want. Be as specific as possible. Once you have clarified what you want, do the following each and every day.
1. Morning Intention, Visualization and Releasing
As soon as you wake up in the morning, take about 5 minutes to focus your mind on your desires, goals and intentions. Start by sitting in a comfortable position, closing your eyes and visualizing your desires and goals as already being fulfilled. Spend 30 seconds to a minute on each of your core desires and goals. You can also take a few moments to visualize your day going exactly as you would like it to.
When you do this, you will often find negative limiting beliefs that are the result of negative programming from your childhood will come up. You may hear thoughts like “I could never afford that,”“there’s no way I’ll ever get that,” or “who am I kidding?” coming up. If you do, use one of the many releasing techniques that are available (see the list below) to release the negative thought. Don’t fight or argue with the thought; just release it.
Remember to also spend several moments feeling the feelings you would feel if you had already manifested your desire in your life. The intensity of the feeling is what fuels the intensity of the attraction.
If you’re interested in learning a powerful releasing technique, check out the new documentary movie about the emotional freedom technique (EFT) I use, Try it On Everything; I highly recommend it.
2. Use External Images to Keep you Focused on Your Desires and Goals
Keep yourself focused on what you want to manifest by surrounding yourself with visual images of the things and experiences you want to create in your life. There are many tools you can use for this, including creating a Vision Book from our Dream Big Collection
Cut out pictures of the things you wish to own (like your ideal car or home) and pictures that represent the experiences you want to have (like the perfect relationship, your ideal job, perfect health, being at your ideal weight, more joy, inner peace or balance in your life) to remind yourself of how you want it to be. Put them somewhere where you will see them every day—on the mirror, the refrigerator, or in your Vision Book.
For even greater impact, combine your pictures with words that reflect your desired outcome, such as abundance, romance, fun, vitality, etc. I think you get the picture.
When you look at any of these pictures, do what Bob Doyle, who is featured in The Secret teaches— think the thought, “THIS IS MINE NOW! THIS IS WHO I AM!”
3. Think a Better Feeling Thought
Start paying attention to the many times during the day that you have emotional responses (to other people, experiences, or your own thoughts) that are not in alignment with having or producing your desires. Pay special attention to when you feel disappointment, resentment, frustration or anger about your experiences and circumstances.
Remember, it’s your feelings (which are created by your thoughts, opinions, and beliefs) that are creating your current circumstances. You must make a shift by changing your thoughts to ones that make you feel better (i.e., raise your vibration). Remember that you must become a vibrational match for the things and experiences that you want to attract into your life.
It is especially important to focus your thoughts and behaviors on things that cause you to feel joy. Focus your thoughts on thoughts that bring you joy (your lover, your best friend, your grandchildren, your favorite vacation spot) and your actions on doing the things you love to do (pet your cat, work in your garden, listen to your favorite music).
4. Have an Attitude of Gratitude
It is critical to take time each and every day to focus on what you are grateful for! Some people do this in the morning before or after they visualize their desires; others prefer to do it in the evening. Focus on all of the things in your life (most of which you take for granted) that you are grateful for—your health, your children, your job, the nice weather, electricity, running water, a nice stereo system, your flower garden, your pets, your friends).
No matter what your situation, there are always things to be grateful for. The more you focus on what you are grateful for, the more things and experiences you will attract to be grateful for. You may wish to carry a “gratitude rock” like the one Lee Brower talks about in “The Secret”, or log your findings in a Gratitude Journal.
5. Take Action
There are two kinds of actions you can take. Obvious actions are things like, if you want a better car, going to test drive all of the models you are interested in and choosing the exact car you want to have, and saving 10% of your income in a “car account.” If you want to be a doctor, apply to medical school.
There is also what I call “inspired actions.” Once you begin to do the things described above, the universe will start responding by sending people, resources and opportunities you need to manifest your desired result. You are going to find that you have inspired ideas; you must act on them. You must follow those gentle proddings from the universe. Often these intuitive impulses will have no seeming connection to achieving your goal, but if you follow them, they will lead you down a path of wonderful fulfillment.
Here’s a quick way to know if the actions you’re taking are taking you closer to the fulfillment of your dreams and desires.
If you are feeling joy while you are doing them, then you are on the right path. Remember, joy is your internal guidance system, just like the GPS system in a car, telling you are taking the right actions. Follow your joy.
6. Acknowledge That it’s Working
If you start to see something change for the better, acknowledge that it is happening. Appreciate it. When you find the perfect parking space, acknowledge it. When you get the table you want in the restaurant, acknowledge it. When you receive unexpected income, acknowledge it. When you meet someone who can help you achieve your goal, acknowledge that Law of Attraction is working. The more you acknowledge that it’s working, the more it will work. It’s that simple.
If you are attracting things into your life that you don’t want, remember that the Law of Attraction is still working. Instead of thinking or saying, “It’s not working,” ask your self, “What am I focusing on, thinking about, talking about, feeling or doing that is bringing this into my life?”
If you want to know what you are thinking about, notice the results you are producing in your life. To change those results, you will first have to change your vibration by changing your thoughts and feelings.
When you make a commitment to take these actions each day, you’ll start to move forward, with confidence, in the direction of your dreams. Believe that they are not only possible, but that they are already in progress.
I’ll be back in two weeks with another edition of Success Strategies. Until then, see if you can discover ways to immediately implement what you discovered from today’s message into your life.
