1. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?

2. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
Why IS a ‘JOB” your FOCUS?
My Challenge to YOU today is to FIGURE out:
What PROBLEM you SOLVE?
WHO has that PROBLEM?
WHERE they need that PROBLEM solved?
WHEN they need it solved?

3. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
F ~ First Decide
O ~ Organize
C ~ Communicate
U ~ Unique Value
S ~ Sustainment

4. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
F ~ First Decide
Square One
Helps you Sort out Problems You can Solve
Pick ONE or TWO –
Where – Geography, Industry
When – Timing of Need, Life Stage, etc
Higher # = Less FOCUS
We need a PLAN to get back to EARTH with time to spare
(Apollo 13)

5. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
O ~ Organize
Who
Your Network Targets
Target Companies
25-50 to start with
What
Job Boards as a Beacon
Where opportunities might be
Where
Geography
Industry

6. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
C ~ Communicate
Clear Outbound Message
2 Min Drill (elevator pitch)
Persistent versus Pest
Press toward the Pest line ===
Pain Letters
What problem do you solve?
Practice by Doing
Frequency Framework
See Next Slide
Use to Set up Face to Face later
Social Media (LinkedIN, etc)
Use to Be Found
Can be great for network touch points

7. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
C ~ Communicate (continued)
Frequency Framework
Business Hours - Daily
9a – 11a & 1p – 4p
Used for In-Person & Phone Focus
Other times as needed
Goals:
3+ Unique Touches / Day
Equals 15 / Week
Equals 60 / Month
Can this number be HIGHER?
Evenings / Weekend Time
Research / Job Boards
Phone/Meet – hard to reach folks
Downtime To Rest
Full-Time Job Search IS a J-O-B
Exercise, Family, Hobbies

8. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
U ~ Unique Value
Accomplishments
What YOU did to improve situation?
Used as bullets in Resume
Quantified in %, #’s, $
Write as many as you can
Can customize resume to job spec
USE WHAT YOU HAVE
Not what you WISH you had
Apollo 13

9. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
S ~ Sustainment
Practice
Fail Often and Inexpensively
You have more than ONE Bullet ====>
Frequency
Find a Daily Cadence
Find Encouragement As Needed
OJT
Cheerleaders
P-D-C-A cycle
Always improve

10. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
Let’s Practice (Group Exercise)
Quantify
Commit to be Accountable
Measure Yourself
Be Transparent

11. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
Informational Interviews – Why Yours Are NOT Working
Weak Questions
Low Enthusiasm
You are Late
No Clear Agenda
You Don’t Have Data to Back You Up
You Don’t Show Gratitude
You Ask For A Job
No Call To Action
You Don’t Give Back
You Don’t Send Thank You Notes
Source: Informational Interviews – Bob McIntosh

12. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
Pain Letters
You'll send your Pain Letter and your Human-Voiced Resume to your hiring manager, whose name and title you'll snag on LinkedIn, and in your Pain Letter you'll talk not about yourself but about the person you're writing to.
Here are the five things we hear over and over again from people who have gotten into the Pain Letter and Human-Voiced Resume groove and started writing to hiring managers directly:
I feel like it's me on the page, and not a sterile version of myself. I'd rather have a hiring manager know right up front who I am before I waste time (mine and his or hers) going any further in the process.
When I get a response to my Pain Letters, the conversation is at a dramatically higher level immediately than the standard 'Here's the next step in our hiring process' conversation. The manager already knows I know the territory.
It's very good for me to do the research these Pain Letters require. It's growing business-intelligence muscles I need anyway.
I am getting better at Pain-Spotting, and it's an empowering feeling.
As soon as I sent my first Pain Letter, I realized that I was a consultant -- not just that, but that I've been a consultant for years!

13. Is Your Career Strategy in F-O-C-U-S?
THANK YOU
Glen Hall,
Other Sources:
Russ Knight & OJTTulsa.org Leadership Team – Frequency Framework
Pain Letter – Liz Ryan