Looking for Jobs in all the Wrong Places?

Job Hunting Seminar created by Leni Miller
with Todd Colbeck, Colbeck Coaching Group

Accessing the Hidden Job Market on LinkedIn

Leni Miller and Todd Colbeck hosted an informative job hunting presentation focusing on Accessing the Hidden Job Market Strategy Tips.  The presentation included brilliants tips on setting effective networking goals, using social media - especially LinkedIn, and maintaining a winning mindset to successfully fulfill your job hunting intentions.

Todd:
Okay! Well, thank you very much everyone for the opportunity to share. Let me introduce myself – my name is Todd Colbeck. I’m the president of Colbeck Coaching Group way up here on the East Coast based in South Beach, Florida.

Today we are going to be talking about three things. Number One, we are going to be talking about your professional networking goals. As a professional, there are four specific goals that you need to have as a professional, what are they? Number Two, we are going to talk about accomplishing these goals and specifically I am going to give you some phenomenal, very simple, incredibly easy tips using social networking, and specifically, LinkedIn. There are other types of social networks that are available to you, I will touch base on them; but, quite frankly, LinkedIn is for the purpose of professional networking; that is where I will be focusing the majority of my time here. The third thing we are going to talk about is your mindset. You know, you can do all the best things in the world; but, sometimes your energy can make a tremendous difference. You can have two athletes, same type of training, same genetics, and they are both going to start the race. And the difference between the winner and the loser could be just a few hundredths of a second, and that could come from simply a mindset. The job market obviously is competitive. It is always competitive! And your mindset can make a tremendous difference if you just take a few simple changes and you know how. So, that is going to be my agenda.

Now, at the end of the presentation today, everyone will have time to ask questions. If we are going along because we are doing this through the phone I can’t see hands on the rope so, let us just do this: If it is absolutely urgent, raise your hand and Leni will interrupt; but if not, make a note of your question as I am going along and then at the end we will have time for questions for everybody. Is that okay for an agenda?

Audience:
Yup! Okay. Great!

Todd:
Okay. Great!

As I mentioned, I have got a coaching and consulting business here on the East Coast. I have helped a lot of people with social networking. I have done presentations on it throughout the country. And we are going to start with just your goals as a professional networker.

So, there are four goals that you need to consider. Write them down, please. This is not for social networking; this is your professional networking goals to get a job. Number one is you want to get the word out. When you talk about getting the word out, think about it like planting seeds. If you are a farmer, the more seeds you plant the greater the harvest. So, the more people that you speak to the better your results are going to be. And if you are going to be getting the word out, I would say, the more the merrier. Be aggressive; don’t be shy. That is Number One.
Your second goal is to gather information. You know, when you are gathering information the secret is asking a couple of quick questions – not necessarily you are sitting someone down and giving them an interrogation; just asking them the few, quick questions in order to get the key information that you need to help you with the job search. So, that is your second goal – gathering information.

Now, your third goal is to talk to insiders. You want to meet people that are working at the companies that you would like to work at. Talk to them! I will tell you something, every company has a professional culture. They don’t put that in their advertisers in their classified ads when they are looking for people. If you could talk to people to help you understand that culture, it can greatly help you, A) in the interview process; and B) it could keep you maybe out of the departments that are just bad to work in and you may not even know going into a company that isn’t actually the job that you thought it was. But by talking to insiders you might know, “Hey, this might look like a great opportunity; but, the boss over there is not someone that you really want to deal with.”
And then finally your last goal, of course, is to get in touch with the decision-maker – the person that has got the authority to give you a job.

Those are your four networking goals. So far, so good?

Audience:
Yes!

Todd:
Okay. Let us talk about the first goal – getting the word out. Getting the word out is comprised of two steps. Number One, you have to have people to get the word out too; that’s your network! Number Two, you have to have a message. Your message is very important. You know, as I walk up to Leni today and I said, “Hi, Leni! My name is Todd Colbeck.” And let us say I just told her I am a financial advisor. Now, immediately that is going to give some kind of picture in Leni’s mind which may or may not accurately reflect what it is that I do. So, you just raise your hand to people and say I am this; I am an accountant; I am a nurse; I am a doctor; I am a marketing executive. They may have an image of what that is that may or may not accurately reflect what it is that you do. So, it is really, really important how we tweak that message. And sometimes you will only have a minute or two minutes or three minutes. So, it is really, really important that we refine that. So, let us start by talking about getting the word out to your network.

Your network is comprised of three circles. Write this down. Number One – your inner circle. Your inner circle is comprised of the people that you already know. Number Two is your middle circle. Your middle circle is not the people that you know but it is the people that they know – the friend of a friend. The third part of your network is your outer circle. And it is not the people that you know; not the people that they know; but the people that those middle circle people know. That is your outer circle.

Now, let us talk about how this applies specifically to LinkedIn. First of all, just let me put a question out to the room, raise your hands even though I can’t see, Leni will translate for me. Is there anybody here right now who has never been on LinkedIn, never heard of it, raise your hands.

Leni:
No, nobody here. This is Northern California, Todd.

Todd:
Okay. I just want to make sure.

Everybody, here is what I would like you to know. When you log in to LinkedIn, at the top of the page there is a little thing there that says “Your Connections.” When you click on that, you will see a dropdown menu. One of the choices is “Networking Statistics.” When you click on that “Networking Statistics,” you are going to see these three circles; only LinkedIn has a different name for them. They call it your “First Degree,” that is your inner circle – your “First Degree.” They call it your “Second Degree,” which is what I call your middle circle. And then your “Third Degree” would be your outer circle.

Most people, when I give this talk, they think that either their next job or their next customer is going to come from their first degree connections. And again I am translating this into LinkedIn speak now. First Degree, the people you already know. And I have got something to tell you! If that happens, it is locked! It is like putting an old pair of pants and finding a twenty-dollar bill on the pocket; it’s nice but you don’t count on it. Most of the people who already know you know you are looking for a job, and if they have advice or tip they would have already given it to you. But, it can happen; so you know, I am not saying overlook it. Obviously, you want to go through the people that you already know and get the word out absolutely. But, I wouldn’t expect one of those people to be already an insider in your next job.

Now, second degree connections! If it is not the people that you know who are going to have the next opportunity for you, who is that going to be? Nine times out of ten, it would be the people that they know which in LinkedIn speak, it’s your second-degree connection. This is very important. So many people get on LinkedIn. They spend all their time with their first degree thinking that is where they are going to find their next job or their next customer. They don’t do it. They get frustrated; they would say, “Ah! This really isn’t worth my time.” It is like if you go fishing, and you’re fishing where there is no fish, you are not going to have any luck, right? So that next opportunity, more than likely, is going to be in your second degree connections.
Now, I am going to talk a little bit about the technical side of how you access your second degrees. Now, I know your that experience on LinkedIn; so just make these notes, and if you have never done it before, when you go into LinkedIn it will be right under your nose. It will be very, very straight-forward.

The first thing you want to do is you want to then go through who your first degree connections are. Just go ahead and pick somebody, and click on their name. When their profile opens you are going to see a little link there for their connections. Now, on LinkedIn there is a privacy setting. Some people decide not to share their connections and some people do. This tip is not going to work for the people who decided not to share their connections. These people you are going to have to call, to be able to do the step, I am going to show it to you next. However, there are other people that just share their connections; and when you click on that you are going to see that second degree that I am talking about. You want to look to the second degree and ask yourself this question: of these people that I am looking at, who is working where I would like to work? The next question is: who is in the industry that I would like to work in? For example, if I am looking for a job at Pfizer and I say, “Hey, here is somebody in this person’s network who works at Pfizer,” guess what, that is the person on the top of my list that I want to meet. Now, let us say I am looking at this person and he is someone that works at Glaxo. Okay, another big pharmaceutical company may not be Pfizer; but that will probably a good person for me to talk to. And let us say you have got somebody who is in the pharmaceutical industry but they are a pharmaceutical sales rep. You know, they have a whole bunch of drugs and they don’t rep any one company. They are kind of a freelancer. Okay, fine! Maybe this is another person that I could speak to as well. But, these are the people you want to look for in that second degree.

Now, once you have identified the person or people that you would like to meet, you want to get introduced. In the upper right hand corner, there is a little note there which says, “Get introduced to a connection.” It is right there; right in the person’s profile. And if you have never in there before, next time you are in there, you just click on that person’s profile and when it opens up, it will be right there. With LinkedIn, if you just click once you will just get the profile in the reading pane on the right. You want to double-click the person’s name so the whole profile opens up on the screen. And you will see it right there in the upper right hand corner “Get introduced to a connection.” Now, when you open this, there will be two messages. The first message is going to be the message you write to the person that you want to meet. The second message is going to be to this person that you are connected through. What will happen is when you click the “Send” button, this message is going to go to your first degree connection. This first degree connection of yours will review it and if they say okay they will click “Send” and send it on to that second degree connection that you would like to meet. It is up to them. Most people, they will just be happy to introduce you; just what LinkedIn is about. Now, what if they don’t? Well, you know, like I said in the beginning, the more seeds you plant the better.

Now, the question is: I have got two messages to write, what am I going to say? How am I going to communicate this in a way that this person is going to want to jump in to my network? This is what I would recommend: Number One – there are two messages – let us talk about the message that you are going to write to the second degree connection who you would like to meet. There is a little dropdown menu and it will give you some choices and it will say different things. I would say select “New Venture.” Of those different choices, select “New Venture.” In the subject line, type in the name of the person that you are connected through; in the subject line, just the name of the person who is your connection. Now, the message is going to read, “Dear ‘so and so’, we are connected through ‘blank’ – your first degree connection. “I noticed that you specialize in ‘blank’; that you work in ‘blank’” – whatever you noticed on their profile; and then introduce yourself. “My name is ‘so and so.’ I specialize in ‘blank.’” And obviously, there is going to be some type of affinity here because you are getting to that company; and it is just, “Would it be okay if we connect?” That is all. So, you just note that affinity and just ask, “Would it be okay if we connect? Thanks!” And then put your name.

Now, for the person who is going to introduce you, the message to them is simply “Hi ‘so and so,’ I noticed this person in your network. Would you mind introducing us? Thanks very much!” And then your name, and then hit “Send.” Before you continue any further, are there any questions on those messages? Are there any questions on the first degree and second degree that I am talking about?

Leni:
Todd, I have a question. Basically, what you are saying is in this first connection you are very broad-based telling your interests; you are not saying you are looking for job.

Todd:
No way!

Leni:
Yeah, so, that is important.

Todd:
Let me tell you, all you are trying to do right now – here is your goal. Your goal is to get these people that you have targeted as potential opportunities into your first degree network. That is what your goal is at this point.

Leni:
Okay, got it.

Todd:
Think about this, Leni. Before you go on a date with somebody, what is the first thing? You meet them; then you get their phone number; then you ask them out. So, you don’t want to get to somebody who you haven’t even met yet and telling them right away you are looking for a job. You got to nurture it. All we are doing right now is we are just getting the seed before we plant it.

Leni:
Got it! Okay.

Todd:
Now, what if they say yes? And you and your network, you have already shaken hands over the internet. They have kind of opened their arms a little bit; they are not saying their arms are closed. Their arms are already open; they are saying yes. That is a good start. And you have already differentiated yourself from other people that they have no connection at all.

Leni:
Good!

Todd:
All right! So, everybody, we are talking about getting the word out. The very first thing is getting the word out to the people in your inner circle and just very poignantly identifying kind of your key contacts from your second degree connections and inviting them to connect. That is Step Number One.

Now, Step Number Two: what is going to happen? Now they are in your first degree network, what do you do next? Well, the second part is getting your message out. And so, what is that message going to be? The very first thing that I would do is schedule a five-minute call, a ten-minute call with your first degree connections – the person who is going to introduce you to this person, first thing. And you send them a quick note right through LinkedIn, “Hey, ‘so and so!’ I always like to spend a few minutes each week talking to the people at my network, finding out what is going on, seeing if other people on my network can help, can we schedule a ten-minute call?” And if you don’t have their number, just say, “If so, what is your best number?” And the reason I am talking to this first degree connection first, I mean, he might already know this person really well and he might even be able to do more than just forward my profile to them or introduce me. Maybe he will even pick up the phone and arrange a meeting, I don’t know; but, I want to talk to them first.

o, your ten-minute phone call is here. You are about to talk to someone in your first degree network who apparently knows people in their second degree network that could be a good resource for you, what are you going to say on this call? I am going to give you a script. I am going to talk fully. I will try to talk fully so you can get this. And when I finish, I make sure that I back up in case you have questions.

Now, let me tell you something. If I were to call someone who is in my network that maybe I talk to every few months; maybe I haven’t spoken to in a few years; maybe I only met one time, and just got your business card, the most important thing of this entire conversation is to make them feel comfortable. If they get the impression that you are only about take, take, take, that is going to shut down that relationship pretty quickly, right? So, the very first thing you got to do is just make them feel really, really comfortable. I am going to show you how to do that.

Let us say I am talking to Leni today. And I tell Leni, “Hey, Leni! How is it going?” Nine times out of ten she is going to be saying, “Just fine” or “Great;” “How are you doing?” And I’ll say, “Fine” or “Great” or maybe, “Not so good.” And boom! I am right back where I started. But if I change that question and I say, “Leni, tell me what is the best thing going on with you lately?” Where is that going to take her? Mentally, she makes the shift. And she is focused on something that she feels good about. And my whole, entire conversation now get started on a high note. And I am going to listen! The more happy she is at this conversation, the better it is going to be. “What is the best thing going on with you lately?” She is telling me; we are reveling in it; maybe, having a few laughs. Of course, because you are telling me that, I am going to come right back with the best thing going on with me. So, right away you have got your conversation started on a positive note.

Now, every call – that is, a networking call – should have an agenda. You never want to call to touch base. People don’t have time for that. You have got to have an agenda. So, you tell them right up front. Here we go! The reason for the call is I was wondering if it would be okay if I ask your opinion on a professional matter. Now, they say no, talk about something else. If they say yes, you are going to be ready for the next question. But please, right it down. “The reason for the call is I was wondering if it will be okay if I ask your opinion on a professional matter.” Now, as soon as they say yes, here is your reply: “I am considering doing ‘blank.’” And that “blank” is whatever you want to do in the next phase of your career. So, “I am considering…” let us see – if I were doing this today, I might say, you know, “I am considering becoming a salesperson for a large pharmaceutical company” – that is the next step at my career – “possibly for a company like Pfizer because I have got experience in sales. I have a bachelor’s degree in the health profession. I know a lot of people that work in that industry.” So, let me just sort out the script now. “I am considering doing ‘blank’ as the next stage of my career for ‘blank’ type of company because I” – and here you have got to think the three most important things you can contribute to this type of company. So, everyone, I want you to take just a moment. I want you to fill in this script. “I am considering doing ‘blank’” – write it down – “next at my career for ‘blank’’’ – a large pharmaceutical company, Ford Motor Company, a manufacturing or whatever it is “for ‘blank’ type of company because I…” Now, guys, when I ask you the three most important things you can contribute to a company, you may not be able to come up with that in just one minute. So, what you are going to write down now – great! But, this is something you really want to get some serious thought too before you actually use the script. And then finally, “What is your opinion of that idea?” Now, who has got you uncomfortable with that? You are asking their opinion! It is a very innocuous type of question; no pressure is on here; no one is asking them for a job. Simply what is your opinion of that idea, and if their opinion – “Well, that is not very good.” Why is that? Maybe there is something they know about in the industry that is important for you to know that maybe it is not such a good idea. But, if their opinion is, “Hey, that is a good idea,” you know, they have a good opinion, here is your next question: “If you were me, how would you get started?”

Now, at this point I am going to tell you they can get you advice that you would never dream of asking. I mean, all kinds of things. “You know, I go to a BNI meeting, a business networking meeting every Thursday, maybe you could come to that one and I can introduce you to ‘so and so.’” “You know, my friend at the tennis club works at this company and maybe I could arrange a quick meeting.” But, you just listen, okay? “If you were me, how would you get started?”

And we talked about gathering information, well, that is your second goal. And when you asked that question – that is what you are doing – your second goal is gathering information, “If you were me how would you get started?” and just listen.

Now, what if you had come up blank? What if the person gives you that blank here in the headlight stare, and says, “I don’t know.” Well, you already prepared for this call. You got something right here on your back pocket because you have looked at their LinkedIn network. And then you will just put that back and say, “Well, I noticed ‘so and so’ in your LinkedIn network. Do you think it would be a good idea if I touch base with them?” And if they say no, ask why not. But, if they say yes, say, “Great!”

And then your next question, “Would you mind taking a look at your LinkedIn network and maybe deciding who else would be a good idea for me to speak with?”
Now, everybody, that conversation is very low key. It is not like I am backing them to a corner. If you have somebody who know who is hiring, it is probably not at the top of their head, right? But, the conversation that I just gave you really got that ball started, very low key, and helps you gather some valuable information in a really nice networking type setting.
Now, finally, to end this conversation – remember I said at the beginning, this is not about take, take, take – the last thing you want to say is, “Great! I really appreciate this; so, tell me, what are your networking goals?” And, “what are you working on that I can help you with?” And that is how you want to close that out. And whatever it is they will need help with, then bend over backwards to help them with it.

Before I go on to the next step, I am open for questions; anything about that script, anything you need?

Leni:
Todd, this is Leni. Could you tell everybody really quickly about the critical importance of filling out a complete LinkedIn page?

Todd:
Okay, very good!

Everybody, your LinkedIn profile is your online ID. I will put it succinctly, when an employer is checking you out, I would say, probably, ninety-nine times out of a hundred they are going to Google you, right? And when they Google you, all kinds of things may or may not come up; but, one thing that generally will come up is your LinkedIn profile. That LinkedIn profile is your online ID. So, the most important part of your profile, out of everything, is your picture. That may seem shallow, it may seem strange; but, at the end of the day people want to see who they are working with. So, my advice to you is get the best photo that you can. No photo is a very bad idea; a bad photo might even be a worse idea. So, get a professional photo and just upload it and have it online.

Very, very important!

Now, general rule about photographs: the more they see in you, the better. So, if you put a full body shot in that little thumbnail, they are not going to see anything. If it is just a headshot, that is okay. But, I would say from the shoulders up or from the waist up is best.
The second thing is, your LinkedIn profile on the right would tell you what percent you have completed it; so, closer to a hundred percent, the better. Ninety percent, I think is okay. A hundred percent is great; but, the closer to a hundred percent, the better.

The third thing is your summary. When you talk about your summary, you don’t want to put your resume there. You want to talk about your value. Your summary is all about the value that you give. “I help this, this, and this type of company get A, B, and C, by providing X, Y, Z.” Write it down. “I help blah-blah-blah type of company get benefit, benefit, benefit” – three benefits – “by providing what I do – A, what I do – B, what I do -- C.” That is your summary.

Next thing is, we are going to talk about your experience. Do not list all your jobs back to high school. No! The last five years, right, last five years. And if there are more than three jobs in your last five years, don’t put them all down. I mean, again, this is not a resume; it is a LinkedIn profile. People are busy; they won’t be reading it. My advice, no more than three things for last five years.

In your professional summary, you can toot your own horn a little bit. That is fine. If you got any type of initials after your name, your MBA, CFA, CPA, whatever it is, make sure you put them in there.

The next thing is your education. The thing about your education, yeah, it is good to put where you went to school. But those little funny things there about hobbies, clubs, that kind of stuff, fill it out because if you happened to play rugby in school and someone else played rugby, there is a natural affinity there. So, anything you did that was like a sport or a hobby or extra-curricular activity, just make a note of that there.

The next part of your profile is recommendations. The most important part of LinkedIn, in my opinion – recommendations. If you want to get professional recommendations, what do you need to do? Call a lot of people and ask for one? Wrong answer! You need to give recommendations. You know, just don’t call someone, “Hey, could you recommend me?” “Give me a break, I’m busy!” But, if you recommend someone first, they are like, “Wow, that’s great! I didn’t even ask for one, and you recommended me. Fantastic!” When you do that LinkedIn prompts you right away. Once you get a recommendation, LinkedIn says, “Would you like to give them a recommendation too?” And nine times out of ten, they will. And if they don’t, I would say it’s not at all too much to ask.
A week later, if you just say, “By the way, would you mind giving me a recommendation too?” Okay? That’s the way to get recommendations. I think that is very important.

And then finally, here is the last thing: There are groups. If you happen to join a lot of groups, fine; but, don’t show them on your profile. Nobody wants to see a list of fifty groups that means nothing to them. So, when you have your groups there you can decide if you want to show them or not show them. My advice is, don’t show them.

Finally, at the end, make sure you have your contact information, have your phone number, have your email. Make sure you got your contact information at the bottom.

Okay, Leni, will that do it?

Leni:
That’s it. Thank you!

Todd:
Okay. Now, let me continue on now.

So, we talked about your network. We talked about more than likely the next job you are going to find from your LinkedIn network will be in your second degree connections. I talked practically about how to zero in on those people and meet them. I talked about how to kind of coach your first degree connections to kind of help you along. We talked about gathering the information; asking those questions, “What is your opinion of this idea?” “If you were me, how would you get started?” “That I noticed ‘so and so’ in your network.” “Do you think it would be a good idea for me to touch base with them?” And if this is someone that you have already sent them, you say, “By the way, “Thanks for introducing me to ‘so and so’ in your network, tell me a little bit about them.” “What shall I know about your company?” So, that is the second step, gathering information.

Now, your third goal, talk to insiders. So, they have made that introduction to you. That person is now on your first degree network. You are going to talk to them. So, you send them a note. “Dear ‘so and so,’ thanks for joining my network. We were connected through this person.” And here is where you want to say, “I always like to speak to people at my network to find out what is important to them, to see if other people on my network can help, is it okay if we schedule a ten minute call? If so, what is your best number?” And this is a note you are going to send to that person that you wanted to meet. The person you put your finger on as someone that can help.

When you get them on the phone, it is almost the same script with a few tweaks. First question, “Hey, thanks for taking time out for the call today. Tell me what is the best thing going on with you lately.” And they are going to tell you; then, you are going to show the best thing going on with you. And then the reason for the call as, “I wonder if it would be okay if I ask your opinion on a professional manner?” And they are going to say hopefully, “Fine.” “Great! I’m considering working for this same type of company that you work at as the next phase of my career.” So, that is a little bit different, right? “I am considering working at a company just like yours as the next phase of my career because ‘blank,’ ‘blank,’ ‘blank’” – those three things that you can do. “What is your opinion of that idea?” And he will say it is good or bad, and then at the same question, “If you were me how would you get started?” You know, what you just laid out? You laid out a huge bear trap. And hopefully they are going to step right there, “Oh, come right out here. I can introduce you to ‘so and so.’” That is the goal. And then never even ask them, “Do you think you can introduce me to somebody?” I just laid it out like a big, fat bear trap, and I bet you are going to step right there too!
Okay?

Audience:
Okay.

Todd:
Now, let me ask you a question. I have no idea, did you burn any bridges?

Audience:
Nope.

Todd:
Absolutely not! And I have got to tell you, building relationship is more important than anything. So, if you didn’t; then, you really come right with that next question which is, “Tell me – I noticed you are networking as well – how can I help you with your professional network?” And then what I would do is whatever they ask me, whatever they tried to help me with, I am going to jump over, you know, the moon to get it for them. And then you know what I am going to do? I am going to send them a handwritten “thank you” card. “Thanks for taking the time out on the phone with me. I really appreciate it. It was great then to know you.” And then, “Thank you very much!” That was my first call. And you take that, I didn’t even ask him for a job. Let me tell you something, you laid out that big bear trap. That is all you do on kind of a first call. You have never really met them before. You don’t want to be seen like you are just taking. And if there is something going on, they are going to tell you. Now, I then put it on my calendar to follow up with them in about thirty days. And then in thirty days, I get my second call with them and it is going to be this time, do you remember the same conversation, “What is the best thing going on with you?” and, “Here is what going on with me.” “Remember the last time I was talking to you about doing this and this with my career?” “Yes.” “Well, I was curious. I am thinking about going in and putting in a resume at your company, if you were me knowing what you know now when you were first getting started, what would you have done or what would you have done differently?” But, don’t do that on the first call. I think at the second call. You have got a little bit of a relationship now.
And remember I said, the key to this whole thing is planting a lot of seeds; so, you want to do this to a lot of people.

Now, are you ready? Fourth goal! The fourth goal is getting in touch with decision-makers. When this person – when you throw out that big bear trap, “If you were me, how would you get started?” Well, hopefully, they are going to serve that ball right back to you, “Well, I would call ‘so and so’ at this department.” That is your jackpot right there. “I would call ‘so and so.’” And then I would say, “Would it be okay if I said that you are that person that introduced me? Would that be okay?” And if they say yes, fantastic! Now, here is what you do with that type of a decision-maker. First thing you want to find out is, guess what, is that person in their LinkedIn network? “Is that person in your LinkedIn network?” And if it is, connect! If that person isn’t in their network, “Great! What else can you tell me about him?” “Great! And when I meet him, can I tell you that you are the person that introduced me?” “Wonderful!” So, the first thing I would do is send them a handwritten note, “Dear ‘so and so,’ I was just talking with ‘blank’ about the next step at my career and he thought it might be a good idea if I give you a call. I just wanted to give you a heads-up and I will call in the next few days.” Now, here is a funny thing that I would recommend that you do, when you send that letter – they get thousands of letters – no one ever remembers when you called or what envelope it was, here are some tips. Number One, send it in a different color envelope – purple, orange, blue, but not white. Number Two, handwrite the person’s name on it. Handwrite it. Number Three, put an actual stamp on it; don’t meter it. In terms of the letter itself, I think, like a card – a card you would get in a greetings store. It is a little personal. You don’t know really know them that well yet; but, if you feel it is appropriate like it is a holiday right now, that may not be a bad idea. But then, just a handwritten note, “I was just speaking with ‘so and so’ about ‘blank’” – in your career – “they said I should give you a call. I just want to give you a heads-up.” Now, when you call, you don’t have to go through this whole story. They already know. So, the second thing you do is you just call, and the secretary answers, “What is it that you want?” “Oh, I was just speaking with ‘so and so’ and they said that I should speak with your boss,” – this person – “however, would it be better for me to make an appointment on the phone or it is just a good time?” And whatever choice they make, it doesn’t matter to you. “Should I schedule a time for a phone call or it is just a good time?” And, if it is a good time now, great! If we should schedule a phone call, great! Once you give your time with that person,

Leni is going to talk to you about how to interview well, right, Leni?

Leni:
Today? No! It wasn’t on the agenda.

Todd:
Anybody, if you wanted to know how to interview well, you just got to send Leni an email or send me one and Leni will talk off right about that, okay?

Leni:
Okay.

Todd:
Okay. Here is what I want to say – the last thing. I want to talk about the energy you put behind this. Now, I can have a five-minute phone call with somebody and I can get off that phone and they can just feel charged and, “Yeah, that was great!” Or they can just feel drained and it was all, “that was like going to get my teeth pulled.” The energy you bring to these calls is really, really critical especially when you are doing this every day, every day, every day. So, I want to talk a little bit about keeping a good mindset. It used to be that everyone thought, “Oh, we need to get motivated.” So, they invented motivational speakers. And I got to tell you there is nothing wrong with motivational speakers. I think it works. But, you know, all the evidence around motivational speaking, it all ends to dawdle. For some people it is going to be -- you are doing this exercise, a meditation, or let us say, maybe, they get on reading something inspiring or listening to inspiring music. I think all those things may work. This one is for one person; this works for that person. But all the evidence around it all ends to dawdle. It is never going through the scientific lines. However, I have the great, big fortune of having a wonderful relationship with Dr. Fred Luthans, who is a senior scientist with The Gallup Organization, and a professor of organizational behavior at the University of Nebraska. Dr. Luthans is a founder of a science called “Psychological Capital,” and he calls it “PsyCap.” There is a lot of work being done today in this field called “positive psychology.” Now, traditional psychology takes people that have some type of issue and shows how you make them better. Ninety percent of the books on psychology have to deal with pathology – you know, how do you make people better. Only ten percent of the books that are out there are on how do you take somebody who is just fine and make them exuberant; make them over the top; make them feel just full of joy and happiness in everyday. This is a field called “positive psychology.” Dr. Luthans got into this field and just was really impressed by it! But then, he is a very practical person. He said, “All this stuff is fabulous; but, how can I apply this in the workplace? Could this really give a company some type of competitive advantage?” Dr. Luthans is a meticulous researcher. So, he started to dig down on the literature. And next came the studies. And next came the papers. And, lo and behold, he founded the science of Psychological Capital.

Dr. Luthans noticed that there are four emotions which can be measured which have a direct impact on work performance. He did not say these are the only form of emotions. Maybe there are five; maybe there are six. And there are still studies going on around that. But, these are the four that he knows right now that impact work performance. And all this is founded by mountains of scientific studies. Number one is optimism. People who are more optimistic perform better in the workplace. The second is self-confidence or self-efficacy. People who are more confident perform better in the workplace. The third one is hope. And hope goes hand in hand with your goals. So, people who are more hopeful, more goal-oriented will have a better performance in the workplace. And the last one is resiliency – being able to bounce back from a short-term setback. That emotion of resiliency will have a direct impact on work performance.
I would like to take just a few minutes today to talk about optimism and specifically I would like to give you an exercise which I think could help you become more optimistic. What you do is you focus on something that you know that you do well. And you might want to think about the last time you were looking for a job. And I would even think about, maybe, the time right before you got the best job you ever had. Put yourself back in that state of mind. How are you feeling when you stepped into that new job. What were the things that you were doing just before it? How did those things come about? Obviously, you had a success with that. Get yourself right back in that state of mind, that same state of mind you had right when you found that last job. Think about the things you were doing, the things you were talking about, the steps that you took.

Next thing I would recommend is you write a list of all the things that you do well. The Gallup Organization has an assessment they do called the “strength finder.” If you want to take the Strength Finder and find scientifically what your strengths are, a great book to get is Now, Discover Your Strengths by the Gallup Organization.

Leni:
Yeah, I have that.

Todd:
And if anybody is interested in doing that assessment you pick up that book and there is a PIN Code inside. When you get that PIN, you go online, take thirty minutes, then boom! You get your top five strengths. And if you like to talk about how you can apply those strengths in the workplace, some of it, they will come through you pretty clear. It is like looking in the mirror, you know, you’ll recognize your strengths in a sort of way as being at you. But, if you need help with that, I would be happy to talk with you by phone, and I will let Leni put that information out later.
So, I would say make a list of all the things that you do well. And now I want you to think how could you apply those things to your next employer to help their company succeed. That is what you bring in to that job. How can you use your strengths to help you finding job in the workplace? How can you use it to differentiate yourself from the other people that you are competing with? And that is the kind of thing that I focus on everyday. It keeps at pepping your step. It keeps optimistic.

So, to conclude, let us talk about what we reviewed. We talked about the four goals you had for networking – your professional network. Number one is get the word out; number two is gathering information; number three is talking to insiders; and, number four is getting in touch with decision-makers. Then, we talked about the most opportune field that you have got to go look at within LinkedIn – it is your second degree network. More than likely, that is where your next job will come from. I gave you very specific steps on how to contact those people in the second degree. I gave you a script how to talk to the people in your first degree to get introduced. I gave you a script to use with that person in the second degree when you get them on the phone. We did not cover what to talk about in the actual interview. That is kind of outside the scope with this presentation today. And then finally, I talked about the most important thing of keeping a good mindset and some specific steps you can do to become more optimistic and stay that way.

Now, what I would recommend that you do as the next step is, Number One, schedule a time in your calendar for LinkedIn, and I would recommend no less than an hour a week – no less; but, at least an hour a week – to do this exact step I talked about. Number Two, that conversation that I gave you today, you don’t have to use it on LinkedIn. You can use it with everybody you know – that quick script – “I am considering doing ‘blank’ next at my career for this type of company because I ‘blank,’ ‘blank,’ ‘blank.” What is your opinion of that idea?” You can use that with everybody; someone that you met at a party; someone you met here or there. You can use that with pretty much everyone. And then that next question, “If you were me how would you get started?” It is amazing what can fall on your lap with that. So, those that you will do with LinkedIn, you can do that with everybody. And then finally, I would just have to say you got to stay optimistic and do those exercises because that will really come out on the calls and in the interviews.

So, at this time I am open for any questions.

Leni:
Thank you, Todd. That was great, by the way.

Todd:
Thank you.

Leni:
So, any questions at all? About LinkedIn?
I think you have covered it.

Participant:
That is very informative.

Leni:
Yeah.

Todd:
Okay, great! Well, I am very happy that I can help, and again, if you have any questions just let Leni know and, you know, she has got all my contact information.

Leni:
We do have one question, Todd, from Larry.
Todd:
Okay, Larry, fire your way.

Larry:
Okay. My question is could you review what should go in the summary on LinkedIn again?

Todd:
Sure! Your summary should say specifically here are the type of things that could help this type of company. So, the types of companies you can help – “I can help ‘blank’ type of company get...” What it is you are going to help them get? “I can help them grow their sales;” “I can help them reduce their expenses;” “I can help them market and find new customers;” “I can help them improve their products.” Whatever it is, “I can help them ‘blank,’ ‘blank,’ and ‘blank’” – three things you can help them get. And then the next thing is “by providing ‘blank,’ ‘blank,’ and ‘blank’” – three things you can do as a professional that would help them get those things.

Larry and Leni:
Thank you!

Todd:
Sure! Okay, anyone else?

Leni:
Well, you have been great. I must say you were right, I was so freaked out that we didn’t have the projector; but, I think it worked.
He is pretty good, wouldn’t you say.

Todd:
You know, folks, I would tell you this. Because we didn’t have a projector I was able to cover more grounds. Maybe I worked out for a reason.

Leni:
Well, it is always for the best. And you are fabulous, Todd! Thank you so much!

Todd:
Very good, Leni. Listen, everyone, good luck with everything. And hopefully, I hear back from you soon. Remember this, everyone, please connect with me on LinkedIn. It is “Todd Colbeck.” And sometimes when you connect on LinkedIn, they ask you for an email, if they do mine is todd.colbeck@ccgcoaching.com. So, everyone, please connect to me on LinkedIn and if I have got someone at my network that could help, I would be happy to introduce you.

Leni:
Thank you, Todd. And don’t let that one-year old baby get the best of you tonight. Okay?

Todd:
Okay, very good! Thanks, everyone!

Leni:
Okay. Bye! Happy Holidays!

Todd:
Okay. Bye!

Leni:
Bye!