The Voice of Job Seekers

Mark Anthony Dyson ★ Career Writer ★ Speaker ★ Thinker ★ Award-winning Blog & Podcast! ★ "The Job Scam Report" on Substack! ★ I hack and reimagine the modern job search!

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by Mark Anthony Dyson

Don’t Hit The Curb with Sonal Bahl, Damian Birkel, and Brandon Mitchell

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Don’t Hit The Curb with Sonal Bahl, Damian Birkel, and Brandon Mitchell by Mark Anthony Dyson

In this week’s episode, my fall co-host Keirsten Greggs and I discuss whether it’s necessary to specialize or market all of your skills and abilities.

Brandon Mitchell and I discuss his company WriteSea, which career professionals use, from career counselors to resume writers.

Sonal Bahl and Damian Birkel talk about all things job interviewing. Listen to Sonal’s CPR approach to interviewing. I hope you’ll find it as helpful as I did.

You are more than welcome to join the discussion. Here are three ways you can:

– Call and leave a voicemail at 708-365-9822, or text your comments to the same number

– Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message

– Send email feedback to mark@thevoiceofjobseekers.com

Contact me on LinkedIn or Twitter for more job search tidbits, news, and advice.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: Interview, Job, Job Search Tagged With: interview advice, interview questions, Job Search

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Job Search: Be More Like Ella

You’re asked a question in an interview you might have prepared to answer. You forgot. What do you?

Channel your inner Ella. Let me explain.

Ella Fitzgerald is called the “queen of jazz vocals.” In a recorded concert in 1960, she was to sing “Mack the Knife,” a pop and jazz standard that everyone in the audience knew.

She rehearsed it several times but couldn’t wrap her memory around it. She went over it on the plane to Germany yet couldn’t remember the lyrics.

In the original recording, you can hear her voice her doubts (“I hope I can remember all of the words”).

She sang the first two lines fine, but afterward, she forgot the rest. She made the rest of the song up.

Well, the audience and the Grammy voters awarded her. It’s one of the most memorable jazz performances of all time.

But we understand, too, her performance perfections outweigh her imperfections in this performance.

A job interview is a performance, and the interview’s success results from an excellent performance. One mistake does not erase other great offerings. Keep that in mind when you are presenting before employers.

But if you’re going to improvise, offer water from the well of expertise. The hours of reading, conversations, writing, or speaking will serve you well. The buckets of stories and examples are accessible at this moment.

They may appear eagerly and voluntarily.

But whatever you do, don’t stifle. It is a powerful opportunity to show how the depth of your well.

Like Ella, you can improvise the same song where everyone knows the lyrics.

Unlike Ella, you won’t be rewarded if you’re not well rehearsed or just not ready.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: Interview, Job Tagged With: Interview, Job

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Lost Your Job? Bill Withers Said, Survive By Using Your Left Hand

Lost Your Job? Bill Withers Said, Survive By Using Your Left Hand

Most of us favor our jobs over our livelihoods. We favor it as much as we do our right-hand. And it’s human nature, we use our left-hand only when our right-hand is rendered or declared useless. Similarly, we do the same if when our jobs lay us off, or we become useless, and then we consider new skills. Now, we’re going to make this left-hand useful because the right-hand has worth, but the job market says it’s useless.

Years ago, teachers used to make children who were left hand use their right hand. There have been studies that have documented the plight of left-handed people, and especially children.  Left-handed people are not cursed, but there are fewer than right-handed people.

We’re so used to depending on the right hand

In many ways, left-handed people were practically hazed and treated indifferently. As a society, we are right-handed and refer to the right-hand as the stronger hand.

Losing a job under any circumstance is the same as losing your right-hand (or left). For many, self-worth came from the job as did the monetary, relationship, and some emotional needs. The right-hand was the primary tool for everything, just like the job.

The left-hand is the default hand. The left rides shot-gun to support the right. Until the job was gone, the left-hand had a limited role. When the time came to learn how to write left-handed, there were no other choices.

I wrote on LinkedIn and Facebook recently,

In offer some job search advice, I decided to include some Bill Withers musings: Bill’s wife Marcie had an MBA, Bill cleaned toilets while in the Navy. His first major recording was published at 33 years old (that’s 50 in today’s pop music scene). This breaks all the rules for career change today. And breaks all of the dating advice about women who shouldn’t date “down.”

Although we live in a right-handed world, to write left-handed is not natural or advised for most of us. Many of us will learn to write left-handed when this #COVID19 crises is over. You will have use or learn skills you don’t know now. You’ll be asked to write left-handed and you won’t.

You’ll realize that you should have learned years ago. Proud you’re old school? You’ll need to dismantle your resistance to write left-handed. Get ready to write left-handed. This is “Job Search 3.0!” Listen to the word of this song about a soldier who lost his right hand in battle. He has someone write a letter home to tell his family what happened to him.

Many will be forced to use the left-hand.

Remote working might be your left-hand. Communication could be your lefty.

Many have already given up or settle for whatever happens. The literal use of the left have similarities, to job loss and learning the other possibilities, skills, and purpose. Your responses may fit the ones below, trying to write left-handed:

    • I can’t write left-handed at all. People are not learning new skills until a crisis. They hope someone saves them. Prepare your career long before losing your job, and before the writing is on the wall.
    • I can’t understand my writing at all. You get a few points for trying, but you haven’t used other job skills much at all. It takes patience, but you must keep trying to enhance work skills. No one says that using another talent or learning another profession would be easy.
    • This is so strenuous. You neglected your left hand for most of your life unless you became injured. If you ignored a specific skill set because someone else you didn’t need it, you no one else to blame. Take charge of your career.
    • I barely wrote my name, but can’t write anything else. Although it is better than most, you don’t stand out. Barely “knowing” or “barely can do” is a weak core competency.
    • This hand tires so quickly. When you learn something new, it is more challenging and trying. It takes up more brain space and muscle activation because it’s unique. Don’t think that it is just about getting one degree, certificate, or reward.

Learning is a continual process that will enable longevity. Learn for life, and train to use the left and right equally. Are you training, learning, and developing so that your left is as useful as your right? If not, what is holding you back?

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: Job, Remote Work Tagged With: Job, Left-Handed, remote working, Unemployment

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I moderated a panel on Wealth Management for executives by Black Enterprise Magazine in October 2023 in Miami.

I was interviewed on Scripps News show, “The Why!” 4/13/2023

I talked with John Tarnoff and Kerry Hannon of “The Second Act” podcast about job searching after 50 in October 2022.

I was on “The Career Confidante” podcast to talk about “boomerang employees” and “job fishing” in June 2022.

Making Job Search a Lifestyle With “Dr. Dawn Graham on Careers,” SiriusXM Ch. 132, Wharton School of Business May 2021

In May 2020, I talked with LinkedIn’s Senior News Editor Andrew Seaman on “#GetHired” Live.”

Beverly Jones, host of the NPR podcast “Jazzed About Work,” invited me back to talk job scams, job search trends, and AI tools in April 2024

WOUB Digital · Episode 183 : Job search expert Mark Dyson says beware of scams, know AI & keep learning

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