The Unemployed Professional: Fellowship of Suffering

There is something powerful about having walked in the shoes of someone that is currently suffering. The pastor of our church in Atlanta, Andy Stanley, did a sermon on this very topic a couple years ago called, "In the Mean Time" (click here if you wish to watch the message) in which he describes a situation of parents losing a young child. Having three beautiful children myself, I can’t imagine that there can be anything worse than that.

But that is the point of the lesson. I can’t even imagine. I can't relate. If I am ever in a position of being a friend to someone walking through this tragedy, I can support them as a close friend. I can be a shoulder to cry on. I can listen. I can just be there. I can provide bible quotes and words of inspiration. I can pray with, and for, the family. But I cannot relate. I cannot fully understand. I cannot see the world through their eyes. In that area, I fall very, very short. 

It isn’t until someone who has been where they are shows up. Someone that has felt that level of pain and suffering. It is the moment they can look them in the eye, give them a hug, and tell them, 'I understand. I know what you are going through. And look at me… You will get through this." Those that have been down the path already can assure them, "You will never forget. You will never be fully healed, but you will survive. You will heal. And I am living proof." That is the moment that they can begin to feel comforted. Those words of wisdom can come from a complete stranger, and in a very real and concrete way, they can provide more comfort than family, friends and pastors in their time of need. This is call the fellowship of suffering.

I've been writing a lot recently to support those that I have met who find themselves in job transition and I recently gave a devotion to a networking group about this topic. I believe that in finding a room full of people going through a similar struggle, you will find support and understanding that you might not have anywhere else. This is a principle that applies, across the board, for anything you are going through. And with the right perspective, you can move past just about any struggle and begin to see the reason you are going through a trial; the purpose for the pain. 

The fellowship of suffering is a three part process towards healing. Step number one is receiving healing words from someone that has walked the walk. We have already discussed the first point; if you are currently going through a trial, you will receive more comfort from someone that has walked the path already than just about anyone else you will encounter.

Second, if you are the comforter, the one that has been there before, you too will receive an emotional lift through the very act of providing support. Isn't it the case that you feel better by serving others? We know this of course, but, at least for me, sometimes I narrow down service projects to the typical.... go to a nursing home. Clean up a neighbor's yard that cannot do so themselves. Serve meals at a food pantry... All these are amazing opportunities to serve those in need, but sometimes those that are in need do not outwardly look as though they need help. However, with the right previous set of experiences, those are the ones that you can have the biggest effect on. That alone is a powerful knowledge; to know that you can comfort and serve simply by having walked the walk, and by being there for the "next generation of sufferers".

The third part is one step deeper. It is the realization that you may have walked through a specific set of events specifically because you are needed to help others through your experiences. In knowing that your experience is now providing you the power and the unique ability to walk someone else through a struggle, you now can begin to provide a purpose for your pain. 

The question is asked all the time. Why do good things happen to good people?

What if the answer is because it is those good people that will, in turn, do something with that pain? 

You hear stories of this all the time. A celebrity such as Michael J Fox, who has Parkinson's Disease and becomes an outspoken ambassador for the cause. A support group for those suffering from drug abuse that is led by a recovering addict. Or maybe a regular suburban dad and husband, that found himself in career transition who found a passion for serving those who were walking the same walk. 

I have enjoyed this phase of my personal and professional life. As I change my mental status from unemployed to employed I am thankful for the opportunity to have fellowship with those that I have met over the last few months. I have never met a more capable, passionate, giving, talented and articulate set of people than I have at C3G, One Thing for Men and the other networking functions I have found during this season of my life. It has been an honor to relate, receive, and give back to these folks. I have been on all ends of the fellowship of pain with my new friends. I have received comfort, I have given comfort, and through my website class and this blog I have been able to put a purpose to my struggle of job search. 

If you have suffered loss. If you have seen tragedy in your life. If you have gone through a struggle, I encourage you to seek out those that are now going through a similar season. Serve them. Comfort them. Be the one to look at them and tell them, 

"Look at me. I have been where you are. I understand. You will get through this as well."

I continue to encourage each one of you to keep climbing. 

John

"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like Him in death.” – Philippians 3:10

Timely Transitions: By Rebekah Clough

Transitions are hard. You expect one thing and get another. The difference between what you expect and what you get is typically called “DISAPPOINTMENT.” I’m learning to call it “JOY.”

My story…

As a college graduate, I planned a life-long career as a sign language interpreter. Most things were going as anticipated, until I burned out my arms by excessive use (think Carpal Tunnel pain throughout both arms). I experienced significant loss that I could no longer use my God-given ability. This loss impacted me physically, emotionally and mentally.

Since then, I’ve worked in a few different jobs, trying to find my next career. In the process, I’ve met some wonderful people, both colleagues and bosses. I’ve also discovered some skills that I would have never unearthed, had I remained as a sign language interpreter.

So, all of this has helped me reframe my thought process about job transitions. While they are challenging (and even frightening), they can be insightful and generate great personal satisfaction.

Steps:

1)   I have learned that life is a journey, not a destination. 

I love the quote, “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain.” That has inspired me even in the darkest times of my career.

A few years ago, my husband and I were both laid off at the same time. We chose to see the time together as a gift, instead of just a set-back.

Nature is one of the best reminders for me of transitions. The changing seasons, realizing ALL seasons are needed for growth—not just Spring and Summer. I love this poem that emphasizes the value of each season. Every Season of My Soul. Also, a great resource for bringing healthy perspective to change is Necessary Endings by Henry Cloud.

2)   I have reached out to friends and family.

I have realized — and perhaps you will realize the same thing — that being vulnerable is hard, but necessary.  You may realize the folks that you thought would help you most, don’t even respond. But you may also find people – who you least expect – become your biggest cheerleaders. My recent coworkers have become my biggest advocates, and that has meant the world to me.

3)    I have learned the value to do one hard thing every day.

I often dread doing something hard, but find that not only am I energized by it, I feel better about myself, and humanity in general. Laying aside our insecurities is frightening. For some, picking up the phone to make a cold call, going to the dentist, confronting someone, wondering what others think, if you strike up a conversation in the elevator. What is your hard thing that you must “gather up your courage” to accomplish?

Recently I was an attendee in an auditorium during a Christmas program and realized there was a deaf person on the front row, obviously confused because there was no interpreter. I saw the need and was compelled to meet it. However, was I willing to gather my courage and stand up in the middle of the program, in front of everyone, and move to the front row to give this guy a gift?  I struggled with it, but did accept the challenge. What I found: great satisfaction seeing my interpreting come alive again, and even more satisfaction hearing this guy had attended this Christmas program for 10 years and had never understood the story. He was incredibly grateful. I knew I had connected with a person and done the right thing. That is very empowering.

Find some great people – anywhere – and also expand your network in the process. Pick just one hard thing each day, and you will find that your cumulative courage inspires you to be stronger each day.  

4. I have learned to take inventory of my skills.

I realized that I have multiple talents and skills. And I’m sure you do too. Look at the things you do that may not be “tangible” for your resume, as well as the things that are.

For example, I’m good at managing projects and making sure they are completed. That’s a tangible project management skill. But I’m also good at encouraging others to meet their goals. I’m sure some people would call that “coaching”, but I like to consider it being a good colleague.

I also found that I have some skills that I can develop for future jobs. For example, I’m good at budgets and cutting costs. So recently, I’ve taken accounting courses to get formal training.

Thus, look at your wide range of skills. Some can be listed on Linkedin or developed for your next career. Others can be skills that bring you great personal satisfaction. Either way, they help define you and what you can bring to your next company. Here is an assessment that I've found helpful because it evaluates four different areas: skills, interest, personality, and values. https://www.crossroadscareer.org/careerdirect/

As much as transitions are frightening, I’ve learned to manage them a lot better and understand that disappointment can really become joy. To do so, you and I must learn to reframe our thinking.….We don’t always get what we want. But the happiest folks are those who are happy with what they have. 

About The Author:

Rebekah Clough is new to blogging, but excited about trying new things. She likes productivity, people and spending time in a coffee shop, with a good cup of tea.  She has tremendous faith in people and God, and believes life is to be lived well.To learn more about Rebekah, click here

The Life of the Unemployed Professional: The Pitch

After over a decade in sales and marketing, I have learned that a story is everything. A compelling, interesting, meaningful story will engage your audience, draw them in, and can make them fall in love with you. 

On the flip side, an unorganized list of bullet points, a rambling narrative without direction, or an unrelatable tale can do more harm than good. 

An elevator pitch is a statement that tells a high level summary of who you are and what you offer within 20 seconds (or the time it takes to ride in an elevator). As any good sales person will tell you, this is key to getting past the first introduction and can either make you or break you.

Articulate. Concise. Descriptive. Smooth. Flexible. These are all the ways you can describe a good elevator pitch. But that doesn't really help you. You probably know this already. What might be helpful is a couple best practices in developing your own elevator pitch that will draw people in, make you relatable and get you past the initial hello.

Lets start with Articulate. 

Think about your audience for a moment. There will be moments when you are with "your people". Industry functions, trade shows, company parties. These are all times that you can use your big MBA words and industry jargon. But then there will also be those times that you will be around the rest of us. Us simpletons that have no idea what it is that you do and will not understand the acronyms that you use all day, every day. This is such an important distinction. In fact, this is best practice number one. Think the engineer talking to the attorney. Two smart people; just smart in different areas. Being articulate is more than flowery words. It is about being relatable and understandable by the audience you are in front of. 

Concise: 

As you work towards taking all the years and all the experiences you have gone through it can seem overwhelming to narrow that down to just a couple sentences. In developing mine, I listed out all the different areas that I have experience in. I allowed this list to continue to growth over a few days. What are you good at, what do you enjoy? List out as many as possible. Reference your resume, ask those that are close to you; get yourself a list of 20. 

Next you will find that some of those skills start to lump together into a general category. For example on my list, inbound lead generation, digital marketing and email marketing can all be summarized into Lead Generation or Marketing Automation. I have to remember, though, unless I am speaking to fellow marketers, that might not mean anything to my audience. So alternatively, I call it "finding the right potential customers and and making sure they are a good fit." Categorize all your skills into the top three high level skills you have and adjust those skills to the audience. Remember, no more than 20 seconds!

Descriptive: 

There are two best practices when it comes to being descriptive. Allow for understanding and make it about the customer. What is wrong with this statement?

"I analyze BI and look for trends that become content I push using marketing automation software to pre-identified targets and key KOLs to generate leads for a field team."

Crickets.... right?  This is an extreme example, but we all do it. We all have acronyms or terms that make perfect sense to us, but have no meaning to those outside of our world. Additionally, This is about what I do, not about what my clients get out of it. Compare that statement with the one below: 

"I am a sales and marketing leader that uses new and innovative tools to better identify the potential customers that are more likely to buy. and Those leads are then passed over the to sales team so that they have more direction on who to target and who will purchase." 

See the difference? I have taken industry jargon, transitioned it to a generalized conversation and included the benefit the audience gets from the work. 

As a side point here. Sometimes we try to be smart instead of relatable. We all do it. Somehow, we feel that if we are able to use the biggest words possible so that no one understands us, we will come across better than if we are relatable and understandable. Overcome the urge to show off your big brain and just be a nice, articulate person. 

Smooth:

Practice, Practice, and more practice. In front of a mirror. To your spouse or best friend. To your favorite barista at Starbuck. The more you say it, but more comfortable you will be with it. Do you know how you get smooth? you guessed it. Practice. Enough said on this one. 

Flexible: 

Adjust your pitch as needed and be flexible to learn what will work the best. In marketing, we call this A/B testing. A practical example of how we use A/B testing is in email marketing. Did you know that almost every email that fills your inbox from some company has had two versions, slightly tweaked, of the same email? Companies send both versions to a segment of their intended audience and they watch the response. How many opens, how many clicks to a website, so on. If you get a better response with version A over version B, then you move forward with version A. Then you make a slight tweak again, send two versions out and watch what happens and, once again, go with the most successful version. 

You can do the same thing with your elevator pitch. Use two different versions. Try them both out at a party. If one seems to connect better with your audience, run with it! Ditch the other version and now you have a slightly better version to move forward with. 

An elevator pitch is your first impression. It is your chance to connect and show that you are someone that should be recommended. That you are confident and will be an asset to any company. Remember, Articulate. Concise. Descriptive. Smooth. Flexible. I feel like that should have been an acronym. 

Keep Climbing

John

About me: 

My name is John Constantine and I am a executive leader of sales and marketing. As a sales leader I have driven organic growth from $4M-$65M through building a highly successful sales team. As a marketing executive, I have directed rebranding initiatives, developed websites and print collateral and designed/implemented various marketing campaigns using digital tools to score and track leads. In everything I do in my corporate life, I drive growth through supporting and improving the efficiencies of the sales team. Personally, I am passionate about giving back to the world; whether it is a church plant in Colombia, South America or helping to develop the go to market strategy for a hospital in Rwanda, Africa, I feel that we are called to service. Additionally, I extend my desire to go above and beyond in a very real way through my mountaineering and backpacking treks. In 2016 I summited Mt Rainier in Washington State and now I train for an Alaska expedition in Denali and a possible fundraising climb of Kilimanjaro.  

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

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The Life of the Unemployed Professional

I am going through a life journey that is full of twists and turns, but it sure is exciting. Don't get me wrong. Occasionally I wake up with the "I'm freaked out about the future" sweats in the middle of the night and wonder about what is right around the corner, but every day, I am out there, meeting new people and networking to either identify a new consulting opportunity or possibly land my next corporate position.

Come close... I want to tell you a secret.... I am LOVING this process helping those that are in the same boat I find myself. I have found that I get very passionate about helping those in transition learn to love the process of identifying the next stage of their career. Like a kickstand to a bike, I enjoy propping those up that need support and allowing them to stand tall and proud, regardless of their situation. 

This morning I want to share two simple truths that smarter people than myself have shared but that I believe passionately. Hopefully this will help you if you find yourself in a transition or you are living through the semicolon of your career. Lets consider this the start of a conversation. 

Truth #1: I met a guy recently that said it perfectly. "Anxiety comes from the chaos, not the fear of the future." This couldn't be more true! As I network and talk with others, it seems that, generally, we all believe deep down inside that at any stage of life, we will eventually be ok. Or as my mother used to tell me... "this too shall pass...". I also believe that, as a Christian, if we are faithful, we will be protected. So it is not the fear of the future that "enriches" your life with those nights of unrest. It is the chaos. It is a lack of organization. Not having a plan for the next day or a list to check off; that is what generates the sleepless nights! Get organized! We can talk about how in a later installment. 

Truth #2: As I hear people's stories I continue to find that, just like me, all these people are more than just bullet points on a resume. They are color and life. They are back stories and dreams of amazing futures. They are tragic as much as they are heroic. In each interaction, I discovered something important. I have valuable skills that can assist those that find themselves in a life stage of transition. I can help them tell their amazing story and if I don't use my skills for this purpose, I am doing all of them a disservice. Whether it is teaching a free web development class, or writing about how to make companies and recruiters chase you, I can assist those that find themselves in transition to move on.

I'll tell you what! You have skills that can help those around you too. As you sit and meet with people, think through how you can add value to them; not just how they can add value to you. If you give, you will receive. You want to know where my consulting clients are coming from? Friends of people that I have offered to help.  

So here is the thing: I have found a formula that gives me a new perspective. I have established goals that give me milestones to chase. And I have learned skills from over a decade of sales and marketing leadership that I can share with you and you can implement during your search. You see, finding a job is a sales and marketing process. And sales/marketing today is not all about personality and likability. It is about track-ability and accountability. We will talk about that later too. 

As part of my journey to give back, I am going to start writing about what I am learning in this process. Each week I will provide you something simple like a truth or a tool that can be used or a perspective that might change yours. Maybe one of these will be what you need to get to your next stage. I'm also hosting another free website build class on February 9th. If you are in the North Atlanta area and would like to join, you can register here. 

We are on a journey for sure. But stay tuned and we will land softly together.

Keep Climbing!

John

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