My dear friend Amy and I were debriefing my TEDx talk recently (Why You Should Stop Searching for Work You Love). She was there to see it live and in person, and had given me the equivalent of a standing ovation when I spoke with her after the fact—she loved my talk (of course she did, she’s a good friend, remember?)
Read MoreInterns take note: energy and enthusiasm are no longer enough. You’ve got to bring something more meaningful to the table.A friend and senior executive at Yelp recently shared how busy she was balancing a demanding job, a busy travel schedule, and a newborn at home. We were catching up at a Northwestern University alumni event; so naturally I suggested she take on a student as a summer intern. She looked at me square in the eye, without a trace of irony and stated, “I have no time for an intern.”
Read MoreAs the midpoint of summer fast approaches, it’s time to take stock of your summer internship and make sure you’re moving in the right direction. Unlike the reliable guidance you may have received from coaches and professors over the course of your college career, by now you may have found that mentoring in the workplace is a different story entirely. The reality, especially for summer interns, is that: a) there is no roadmap to tell you what your goals are for the summer and how to achieve them; and b) you are required to be your most ardent advocate — no one else will do it for you.
Read MoreReflecting upon an internship with Wal-Mart last summer, Daniela*, an MBA student, raved to me about her manager and how much she learned on the job. She was encouraged to keep a running list of questions about how the mammoth retailer’s operations worked, and she discussed them with her manager during weekly calls. Then, whenever feasible, the manager put her in touch with the people directly related to her inquiries. By the end of the summer, Daniela had a strong handle on Wal-Mart, and had built up a stable of contacts and connections internally to help her think strategically about next steps in her career.
Read MoreRecently, the marketing director for a tech start-up told me that her CEO was furiously drafting job descriptions for a half-dozen summer interns. She was planning to bring a small army of youngsters on board to help push her business into overdrive this summer. As the director of marketing looked at her CEO quizzically, she asked, “you know you need to manage all those interns, right?”
Read MoreChris Rock recently spoke about his Broadway debut. Arguably one of the funniest men in America, Rock is venturing outside his comfort zone of stand-up comedy to perform eight live shows a week as an ensemble cast member. As Rock pushes himself to new heights, one wonders what drives that ambition.
Read MoreIf you took a poll of critical skills most important to business success, you’d be hard pressed to come up with a list that didn’t include vision, leadership, drive, ambition, or intellect. You’d be equally hard pressed to find one that included, much less led with, generosity. That generosity is important and valued isn’t news — but a key driver of success? That’s not often where it lands.
Read MoreBack in the day when I was growing up (think early 80’s) there wasn’t an adult whom I didn’t address as Mr. or Mrs. so and so. Grown ups were addressed with deference, distance, and formality and we kids knew what the protocol was. Today, I have a four-year-old whose friends all call me Jodi — and if someone were to address me as Mrs. Glickman, I’d do a double take and assume they were talking to my mother.
Read MoreThe litany of leaders who’ve founded and built their companies in their twenties and thirties is long and storied. It’s hard to read much of anything in the news these days without Mark Zuckerberg, Biz Stone, or Andrew Mason weighing in. But more and more today, even the average young professional, the Millenial, is taking on increased responsibility at work, and managing and leading others far older than themselves.
Read MoreIt may come as news to some (young) people, but business and pleasure are not synonymous. With the Millenials’ exodus to social media platforms from good old-fashioned email accounts, the lines between our business and personal lives are increasingly blurred. We live on our smart phones or blackberries and technology has enabled us to multi-task to such an extent that the once-clear delineations of personal life and work life have all but disappeared.
Read MoreBack in the days of Mad Men, there were clear delineations between administrative and professional roles. Secretaries, as they were then called, existed expressly to type memos, fetch coffee, serve lunch and schedule meetings.Today, the once-clear lines between administrative and professional roles have changed. While it would have been unthinkable to ask an assistant account manager to schedule a meeting at Sterling Cooper in the 1960s, today it is not only common, it arguably commands a degree of respect and aptitude.
Read MoreIf you are lucky enough to be in a position to choose between two offers or luckier still to have the ability to simply turn down a job that isn’t quite right, your good fortune also brings with it a certain level of responsibility — that of declining the offer graciously and skillfully without burning bridges or creating ill-will.
Read MoreNot that it’s news to me, but it has come to my attention twice in the past two weeks that I’m a terrible speller. A reader comment on this very blog pointed out that I used the word “conscious” when I meant to say “conscience.” He added a “sigh” and a “really?” as if to say “shouldn’t you know better?” — and of course I should. Only the week before I had received an email from another perturbed fan about a misspelling on my own website’s homepage. Again, not my finest hour.
Read MoreFor the 8 million plus people who are still unemployed (and hundreds of thousands more who are underemployed) it’s hard to fathom quitting a job you have. But even for the gainfully employed, the last two years have been anything but a party — everyone’s got more work and nobody’s moving up. Fully 84% of US workers say they plan to look for a new job in 2011.
Read MoreHillary Clinton recently wrapped up her Middle East apology tour in an effort to repair diplomatic relations with the Arab world. Months after WikiLeaks rogue founder Julian Assange leaked hundreds of thousands of classified cables, some of which disparaged Arab leaders and diplomats, the State Department is still working to contain the crisis.
Read MoreDuring the fall of 2010, I helped a young family friend named Daniel with his college essays, reviewing and editing them, and providing feedback and suggestions. I was nervous and excited for him. He applied early admission to his top choice. Admission decisions were mailed on December 15 — over a month ago. And while I do know that his essays were better than JFK’s, I still don’t know whether or not Daniel got in.
Read MoreFrom small favors (“Could you cover for me on the conference call tomorrow?”) to the more onerous (“Can you please introduce me to your contact at Nike?”), we are all in the habit of asking one another for help. Keith Ferrazzi’s bestselling Never Eat Alone highlighted our personal interconnectivity at home and at work. It’s human nature: we rely on our network of friends, family and colleagues to help us in life. No one can go it alone.
Read MoreBy now, most people have seen at least one clip of Speaker of the House to-be John Boehnershedding tears in front of the camera — on the House Floor, with Leslie Stahl on “60 minutes,” talking about our failing public education system, you name it. And perhaps you’re thinking to yourself that the rules of the game have changed: perhaps it is okay to cry at work. It’s not. Even though the highest-ranking congressman in the land does it, you still can’t.
Read MoreBob Bowman, longtime coach of swimming phenom Michael Phelps, was once asked why Phelps did not swim the languorous distance sets that were part of some other competitors’ regimens. “We don’t want him to swim slow in meets,” he said, “so why would we have him practice swimming slow?”I am often reminded of this distinction when I’m asked about the difference between communicating with a client and communicating internally, with your team
Read MoreWhat’s worse than having the perfect person to reach out to about a job opportunity, a career switch, or an impending move to Asia, and not being able to do so because you’ve lost touch? How many people have you come across in your life who suddenly might help your cause, personally or professionally, but whom you haven’t seen or spoken to in ages — and perhaps you just feel guilty about popping up now that you need them?
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