The Voice of Job Seekers

Mark Anthony Dyson ★ Career Writer ★ Speaker ★ Thinker ★ Award-winning Blog & Podcast! ★ I hack and reimagine the modern job search!

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New Remote Job? Congrats! How to Handle Your First 90 Days

New Remote Job? Congrats! How to  Handle Your First 90 Days

New Remote Job? Congrats! How to Handle Your First 90 Days by Mark Anthony Dyson

Working a remote job from home sounds ideal, but preparing your life for remote work is difficult. Finding the perfect remote job through a remote job board seems romantic at first. You can’t believe how many jobs are “a fit” for you. But no one tells you how heavy the lifting is by the simple things you take for granted, such as Internet access, data security, and video chat glitches. But for the sake of the romance, you will work it out because you’ve asked for the last year to work from home. You face burnout and loneliness and jeopardize the opportunity to work from home if you don’t adapt quickly.

Studies say you’ll be more productive, less stressed, and more appreciative of your company after successfully transitioning. Money savings by working at home because of the cut in travel, you can eat at home, not at restaurants, and tax write-offs are significant.

What will you learn? Remote work preparation is a rigorous process.

There are several things to work from home easier:

Understand the rules of engagement.

Seamless virtual team engagement is critical to every business. Each person on the team has a virtual space; if it’s invaded, it’s a problem. Not everyone will have their virtual doors open for any time visits, especially if the team doesn’t meet regularly. Let each person, including your boss’ has boundaries, and it will make a difference.

Know the resources you can immediately access.

Not every remote position has an IT desk to refer to when there are broadband issues. Very often, the sole remote worker on a team has to be their computer person. It’s frightening for the remote worker who knows what kind of drink each IT person likes.

Schedule everything you can.

The hardest part of autonomy is managing the intangible things taken for granted, such as lunch, family, and potential broadband interruptions. It’s best to schedule everything you do know and reschedule when work stops.

Keep your new hire packets close.

Many companies already have a remote workers policy since it’s much more common. If the company doesn’t, you’ll need to get clarity on it as soon as possible. You can collaborate with your boss to come up with specifics such as expectations of work times, meetings, if scheduled in-office days, or if there are workspaces where you are expected to participate.

Don’t forget professional development.

I will happily disagree with others who say, “concentrate solely on onboarding with your new company.” In many industries, ignoring three months of industry trends is a light-year. You want to ask about the part professional development plays with your team or company.

 Little things matter.

As you’re getting into a routine and learning what works for years, you’ll feel you’re a business of one. Your success is contingent on your efforts. How quickly can you access Zoom, your laptop, phone, job information, new hire packet, or anything else that matters? Does physical comfort matter, too? Are you working in a home office where your back, shoulders, and neck hurts? Resolve these issues as soon as possible.

Pay attention to health irregularities.

You must sustain quality physical and mental health unless it’s the reason for working remotely. When faced with a health crisis before working remotely, hopefully, part of your day is dedicated to improving it. If your health has worsened since working from home, then get help. Remote working itself does not automatically improve the quality of your life. You’ll create the remote work experience you have defined for yourself.

 

To make working remotely work for you, you must have a strategy and standard drawing a life between work and life. Mental health is the new dental health, and remote work could add or diminish the quality of life you were seeking. Ignoring signs where you feel you’re losing control of your work environment in the first 90 days can taint the entire experience. However, if you are proactively tweaking your home office, work processes, and relationships, you’ll start to feel this was the best career move you’ve made.

The article originally appeared on job-hunt.org!

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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Think Like a Consultant: Win at Job Search 2023

Think Like a Consultant: Win at Job Search 2023

Think Like a Consultant: Win at Job Search 2023 by Mark Anthony Dyson

What is a “consultant mindset”? And what does it have to do with finding a new job?

Some of my colleagues will boo me for this, but past clients in presenting a resume first is not always the answer.

Instead, find work during your job search by leveraging the mindset of a consultant.

In other words: present solutions first, then your resume. A resume will be an afterthought if you have a straightforward, well-thought-out approach and current short- and long-term solutions to employers. (Look at your keyboard, and now look at me in disbelief, and repeat. I know this is hard to imagine.)

You’re the superhero in consultant garb. You have felt a passion for this industry for a long time. You’ve read hundreds of articles and at least a dozen books. You’ve attended workshops, regional events, and national conventions. You’ve stalked the industry leaders. You have piloted several projects and people you know… people who know even more than you do.

And now, with all this know-how, you have some ideas. You’ve seen what some companies have done well. You’ve seen what has failed. And with a consultant mindset, you know the right solution.

That’s right: be a consultant, not a job seeker.

Many others have said it. Stephen Covey said it. My points below were inspired by him. You can’t be everything to everyone, but you can be the perfect solution to THE one and be audacious doing it.

Here’s how:

Be Prepared to Do Something Different

Use popular social media networks to read the thoughts of your targeted company influencers. You will indeed find the aches and pains of the company there. One way is to call the target or prospective company’s call center and pretend to be a customer. When you can speak to customer issues and concerns in any setting, you will score (customer service reps are known to cough up the goods!)

Write a Contribution Statement

Your contribution statement, which looks and acts more like a plan resulting from research, is much more profound than a cover letter. It is a current state report to help you sound more impressive than any job seeker can. Done right, you’ll sound downright intentional. Many coaches and thought career leaders will say: “Look for the unposted job opportunity.”

And, yes, it’s much harder work than going to a job board, as everyone else does. I didn’t say it was easy: It’s the consultant’s solution-oriented life. It’s a suggestion from Stephen Covey I’ve liked for years now.

Be Humble and Modest

Any inquiry to a company must be humble and modest, so double-check for tone. Confidence is needed, but humility will open the ears of your target audience. That is not to say be mousy, of course. Strike the right balance, and your subject matter expertise will rise to the top. It is best to practice your delivery with an experienced person to ensure you come across as a humble officer reporting what is happening on the battlefield.

Use the Actions of Competitors as Leverage

Find out what’s happening in your prospect’s industry and competitive forces. When possible, compare and contrast what the competitor is doing at your target company. Even if it’s a call center position, you can show what you’ve noticed through a grid or spreadsheet and the solutions you offer.

Be Courageous and Creative

There are times when you must be audacious in your approach. When faced with rejection (“no” too many job seekers get daily), it might be time for tactful directness. No, this is not taught in schools; it’s more intuitive. Sometimes it’s asking a supplementary question makes the other person think. Other times, it is assertively offering an opinion. You’ll know when the time comes.

Put yourself in a position to discover and experience problems. Focus on building relationships with the perspective and become familiar with the company’s culture and challenges. Present a solution to relieve the pain. Present your solution in a way the prospective employer can quickly identify with it during your job search.

That is how you leverage the consultant mindset. And today— not your resume — will help you win your job search.

This article was first published on YouTern.

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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What Happens if Non-Compete Agreements Are Actually Banned With Tom Spiggle

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What Happens if Non-Compete Agreements Are Actually Banned by Mark Anthony Dyson

Join in this conversation with Tom Spiggle of Spiggle Law firm and me discussing the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) review of Non-Compete Agreements. While many feel this will be regulated, it is still a process. Tom unfolds some of the common questions for this podcast.

He answers the following questions:

  • What is the Non-Compete Agreement now, and have they evolved?
  • Which parts of NCA are Misread or misinterpreted?
  • The main reason for abolishing them/censoring: banning them?
  • What will this mean for employees? For job seekers?
  • Should companies be more transparent before someone considers applying for a job?

At the end of the show, Tom provides some valuable information on how to get help if you are confronted with signing an NCA for a job and unsure of what to do.

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 [email protected]

 

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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The Fortune For Your Career Is In The Follow-up

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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 search in May 20202

WOUB Digital · Episode 132 : Mark Dyson says “job search is a lifestyle” and connecting with others matters