The Life of the Unemployed Professional: The Friend and Family Connection

You are more than just bullet points on a resume. You are color and life. You are the summary of your previous life experiences. All of this makes you.... you. 

This has been the first time that I have been on the "market" for a new position. I have always been fortunate to have been recruited away from a current role to the next step. As I am approaching my sixth month as an independent free agent after the downsizing of a start up, I find that the "full time job" of looking for my next consulting gig or my next leadership role, is not that different than how I spent my time as a sales and marketing executive... only a lot less time on conference calls. 

When you break the job search down, I am my product. My job is to get my product in front of as many potential "customers",  (hiring managers) as possible. As I have honed the process of marketing myself, I have collected the top 5 ways that I have found to market the product of John Constantine the most effective way possible. 

Over the next few weeks, we will take a deep dive into the following areas: 

1. Talking to Family and Friends

2. Developing Your Elevator Pitch 

3. Networking in Your City

4. The Importance of the Face to Face Meetings 

5. Look Out for Others More Than You Look for Yourself

Today, let's jump right into number one. 

I recently ran into a close friend at Starbucks while we were back in Indianapolis for the holidays. First an awkward man-hug/handshake (because that tends to happen to me... I'm a hugger...) and then the question "Hey man!! How are things?" ....

I let my pride do the talking. "Great! We are loving Atlanta! We have great neighbors, have found an amazing church, kids have adjusted well, We have a new unicorn that provides us with rainbows and butterfly toots anytime we want, its an AMAZING life...."

I didn't actually say the unicorn part but it would have fit with how well I stated things were at the moment.

I also exaggerated how well the consulting firm I'm working on was going at that point. We walked away from the conversation with a less awkward man-hug this time and he said he was happy for how well things were going for us. And there it was... A lost opportunity. In his mind, things were going so well, I didn't need anything from him. 

So.... I'm a bone head... While we have found an amazing church, our neighbors and neighborhood are fantastic, and our kids act as though they have always lived in Georgia, the part I overstated; the consulting firm was not actually a business yet. In fact, I had a couple proposals out, but I didn't, yet, have one paying client. And I needed more leads. 

Now here is the rub. This buddy of mine is very well connected and I missed an opportunity to tell him about how I could use his network. I let my ego take over. Now, I was going to need to back track, swallow my pride, and go back to him for help, which I imagined being more awkward than that hug-shake thing. When I called, he was more than happy to help! In fact, he connected me with two people right away. The moral of the story is this; I almost let a great opportunity pass me by because I didn't want to let him know I could use his help. 

Haven't you found that you do the same thing? Especially with those that we are close to? We sugar coat everything. We hide our concern. We are too prideful sometimes to ask for help. It is as if we feel as though we need to wear a mask and not allow those that are close, come behind our wall, join our team, and walk along side us to help.

These situations happen to us all the time. We have an opportunity to tell someone what we are looking for; an opportunity to allow them to serve us, and we let it pass us (and them) by. In the sales world, it is called "asking for the sale". As long as sales peeps have been selling stuff, it has been a best practice; once a prospect has reached a certain point in the sale's cycle you say something along the lines of,  "So you know what we are capable of. You know that we are a good fit. Are you ready to sign up?" It seems crazy to be this forward to those that are not in this type of role, but the secret is that it works in the sales process and it works in these situations as well. 

Ok, Now, let me be clear. I am not suggesting that you become Debbie-Downer. Don't turn into Eeyore from Pooh and talk about the sky falling. (I think I'm mixing up my childhood stories but you get the idea) There is a simple way that you can talk to friends and not make them feel sorry for you. Instead they can align with you on your goal of getting back to work. And then you have the opportunity to ask for help.

Here are a couple things you can keep in mind before you find yourself in these situations.

Number one: Know what you are going to say in advance. Don't allow yourself to get surprised in these interactions. Come up with your conversation piece you will use when you randomly run into someone at the grocery, in the gym, or at church.  Make sure that it is authentic and honest, but positive at the same time. This is called the elevator pitch and....

Don't use the same one that you will use in your professional life... they might not have any idea what you are talking about if you use key MBA buzz words and industry acronyms. 

"I have over 13 years of executive experience building companies as a sales and marketing leader.  I have led the charge from $4-65M in a national sales leadership role building a sale team as well as the systems that support that team. I'm also an experienced executive marketer building brands, creating products and then releasing them to the world. I'm looking for a few small to mid-sized companies that might need corporate experience but can't afford a full time Chief Sales or Marketing Officer.  I come into companies and make the current process of growing better as a part time consultant and an extension of the leadership team." 

That is mine. Develop yours! More to come on developing your perfect elevator pitch in future blogs.

Number two: Practice it at home.... Out Loud, not just in your head! The truth is, I say this to people all the time and rarely do people do it because it is weird. But it works. Practice it on your spouse. Practice it in front of the mirror. Practice it to the guy sitting next to you at the stop light in traffic who has his window down. Practice makes perfect, as they say.  You know this... the more your practice your interactions before they occur, the better off you will feel during the interactions. The more confident and nature you will become and the more that they will want to help you.

Number 3: While talking with friends and family, think about their network. I have made it a best practice, in almost every interaction with someone, to ask if there is someone they know that might be a great new connection for me. You know, just to grab coffee with. We will talk about this in later writings, but the more people you meet with, the broader your network. The broader your network, the more famous you are. And the more famous you are, the larger your pool of potential employers.

Finally, Number 4: Follow up. While your friends and family love you and want the best for you, connecting you is not their top priority. And between their own busy and full lives it has a tendency to slip their mind. If they offer, though, it means they want to help. Do not feel bad about following up with a reminder. And do it quickly. For example, if you are talking with your brother at a family birthday and he says he has a buddy to introduce you to, send a follow up text later that night: "Hey Bro! Great to see you today. I appreciate your willingness to hook me up with ______. talk soon!" You might be saving them from feeling bad later if they forget. 

Those that are closest are your biggest fans. They believe in you and they want to help you. In fact, they will feel amazing about themselves if they actually are able to help. The only thing stopping them might be your ego.

Don't let your ego rob those you love from feeling amazing about helping you!

Prepare in advance.

Don't hesitate to ask for the help.

Always be positive.

And follow up proactively. You never know where it might take you.

And as always, keep climbing.

John 

About me: 

My name is John Constantine and I am a sales and marketing executive living in suburban Atlanta. Throughout my career, I have been able to drive growth repeatedly in a variety of capacities. As a sales leader, I have built, expanded, and improved high performing teams to promote expansion and profitability. As a marketing executive, I have led teams in the creation and launching of new brands and products. I have managed inbound lead generation campaigns and created online and print branding standards that stand out from the pack and engage employees to take pride in their organization. As an executive of strategic initiatives and a field operations leader, I have implemented programs and processes that have differentiated my organizations and provided predictable revenue forecasting to the C-suite; all the while increasing productivity and accountability of the front-line team members in the organization. I now leverage these experiences to help other companies stand out and manage growth. 

To learn more, go to http://www.johnaconstantine.com/

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A Lesson From a Couple Kings On Selfish Ambition

“If you do say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. A drum major for peace. A drum major for righteousness.” - Dr. Martin Luther King

On April 4, 1967, two months to the day before the shooting that took his life, Dr. Martin Luther King gave his famous "Drum Major Instinct" Sermon in Ebenezer Baptist Church, right here in Atlanta GA. The sermon is based on the idea that ambition, maybe even selfish ambition, is not a problem alone. Only when used for the wrong purpose does it become a problem. 

In a marching band, the drum major is the person out in front, leading the charge. They are the center of attention and the one leading the show. Dr. King points out that all of us have the desire, in some way to be a "Drum Major" in certain areas of our lives. He points to a story from Mark 10: 35-45, when James and John approach Jesus, and request to sit at His right and left hand in heaven. Jesus doesn't turn around and bash them for their ambitious thoughts though. In fact, you could argue that Jesus feeds into that selfish ambition by mapping out how to get ahead in his new world order. 

“You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”(Mark 10:42-45)

If Jesus would have said this today, He would ended it, #servantleadership. About a month ago, our church preached a message on this sermon of King's, and I am so glad they did. It has reminded me, as I continue to build on my own personal career and that I do not need to feel bad for having an ambition to get ahead. However, if my ultimate goal is to get ahead, I am to serve those that "the world" might have me believe are supposed to serve me. I am to help them get what they ultimately desire, and in doing so, I will get where I ultimately wish to go.

Today as we celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, let us remember this great lesson he shined his spotlight on just a few months shy of 50 years ago. Servant leadership is the way to the top. There is nothing wrong with a desire to make it to the top. Good for you if you want to get there. But how you get there is the important piece. Treat those around you with respect and dignity. Serve them, and you too will get to where you ultimately wish to go. 

Keep Climbing!

John

Click Here to listen to this powerful message from Dr King. 

About the author:

My name is John Constantine and I am a sales and marketing executive living in suburban Atlanta. Throughout my career, I have been able to drive growth repeatedly in a variety of capacities. As a sales leader, I have built, expanded, and improved high performing teams to promote expansion and profitability. As a marketing executive, I have led teams in the creation and launching of new brands and products. I have managed inbound lead generation campaigns and created online and print branding standards that stand out from the pack and engage employees to take pride in their organization. As an executive of strategic initiatives and a field operations leader, I have implemented programs and processes that have differentiated my organizations and provided predictable revenue forecasting to the C-suite; all the while increasing productivity and accountability of the front-line team members in the organization. 

 To learn more, go to http://www.johnaconstantine.com/