Dealing With Change

I recently came across this article from Advertising Age online, and wanted to share it. Ariane de Bonvoisin discusses how to positively deal with the change that stems from a job loss/career transition. It offers great insight.... Enjoy!

http://adage.com/talentworks/article?article_id=130922

Getting Your Ducks (And People) In A Row

I read an article recently with some good advice...regardless of your job situation, you should always be prepared to look for a new job. Very true, and I think with the uncertainties of today's economy, that's especially sound advice. My intent with this post is not to scare anyone, but rather it is aimed at creating awareness that getting prepared for a job search is always a good move. So for the next few posts, I'll focus on ways you can get your ducks in a row, so to speak, and not be caught off guard if you find yourself suddenly in the job search market.

The first thing I would recommend is of course updating your resume and ensuring that you have a quality list of professional references. For now, I'll focus on the references. So many times as a recruiter, I would find candidates who did not have a strong list of references. Yes, they may have had their favorite aunt and former next door neighbor listed, but they couldn't remember the email address of their old supervisor.

Today recruiters and hiring managers expect professional references. And professional means, supervisors, peers, those who you previously managed...you get my point. Please, please, please do not list relatives and friends! While I think it is acceptable to list community-based references (such as the woman who you co-chaired a PTO event with), it's still critical that you have at least 2 - 3 workplace based references.

Having a list of quality, professional references is something that you can start building - or building on - today. Take a look at your current list of references...who can you add, and who should you delete? Be proactive, and update your list now. And be sure that you have multiple types of contact information...many employers still want workplace addresses. I recommend having for each reference both an email address and phone number - for both work and home if possible.

Taking this step in updating your references gets you closer in being prepared for an upcoming job search. I have seen too often job candidates scramble at the last minute to get their list of references updated...won't you feel relieved knowing that your 'people' are all in a row.