Photo by Rodrigo Senna

Like many of you, my mother influenced the person I am today. We share many of the same loves.

My mom still loves words, reading, crossword puzzles, and gardening, so do I. She also loved writing and walking when she was younger and I do too. And she always had a way of making me see things differently with the phrases she used.

One of Mom’s phrases: More problems than Carter has liver pills.

Here’s where it comes from:
more something than Carter has (liver) pills

a great deal of something. (Older; refers to a product called Carter’s Little Liver Pills.) Why he’s got more problems than Carter has pills! Bobby has more marbles than Carter has liver pills! See also: has, more, pill – McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

For this to have any meaning, you have to hear my mom’s timing for the phrase. Mom still will say this now and then, especially if I seem to be complaining or whining. Then I get to hear, “You have more problems than Carter’s liver pills.”

We all let life overwhelm us sometimes. This was Mom’s way of agreeing that to me it seemed like I had a lot of problems. And at the same time she was giving me a gentle reminder that perhaps those horrible problems were not as bad as I made them out to be. I think if you quizzed my sons, you would probably hear them tell you that I too have used that phrase and probably with even more of a tone than my mom did.

Since much of the time I am working with job seekers or career changers, and for them, life can be overwhelming. I think it helps to remember that we focus too hard on our problems at times.

When Mom said this to me, it often made me laugh. I usually realized that if I calmed down, I could resolve my problems perhaps by breaking things down into small steps and moving forward one step at a time.

Photo by Evil Erin

Hiring and training is a drain on a budget in the best economic conditions so companies want to do it right the first time.

Candidates are in abundance right now so HR and management have an open field. It makes sense that there would be a vetting process to make sure a candidate is a good fit for the organization and brings the right talents to the position.

How many interviews or how much vetting is too much?

Typically most jobs today depending on the field and position start with multiple interviews and / or team interviews.

As my clients move through the resume review process to move on to the interview process, they often touch base to let me know where they are in the process.

Frequently, it starts with a phone interview, perhaps with HR or a recruiter, to determine if the candidate’s qualifications really match the job description. The initial phone interview can be followed with a second phone interview with either the same person or perhaps someone at a higher level in either HR or management.

Eventually, the chosen candidate will move on to an in-person interview with a team composed of HR, management, department staff leadership, or a future co-worker. Or perhaps, the candidate may interview with one or two members and then progress to a second or third interview in the same facility with different personnel.

Increasingly common in the vetting process is the use of assessments. Assessments such as Myers-Briggs, Strong Interest Inventory, Wonderlic Personnel Test, Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument, and others are prevalent as tools to learn more information about the potential employee.

Assessments using the DISC tool are also in my resume packages. My clients love the additional insight about their communication and management styles that assessments provide and the enlightenment of learning more about their ideal work environment.

But if you are the chosen candidate who has been through six or more interviews and then sent a consulting group’s testing information which includes four or more of the assessments you need to complete prior to the interview with the consultant, does it start to be counter-productive?

How about when the questions candidates need to answer are ones like: “Have you ever lied?” Now think about that one… if you are interviewing for a position in financial services or a legal department who works with confidential trust accounts, the whole honesty issue is an important attribute.

Think hard on the question, “Have you EVER lied?” Did you EVER answer your mom when she asked if you ate a cookie before dinner with “No, Mom, I didn’t?” Yes, you lied. If you answer the question, have you ever lied, with a no, well… Catch-22?

How many interviews and how many assessments does it take before your best candidates either get disillusioned or befuddled? Or go find a company that uses a simpler interview strategy?

What do you think? How much is too much?

Photo by Benson Kua

Those of you following the What’s Holding YOU Back series need not worry. I will continue that topic in the future. But this has been on my mind for a long time so I thought that I would just start the beginnings of a new series.

I’ve been a career marketing professional and resume writer for a long time. Over the years, I have met literally thousands of wonderful people who have come for my help to transition them to a new career or help them find new position when they were unemployed. For me, everything is about relationships so I thought I would begin this series to just let you know about the interesting people I have met along the way. Due to confidentiality issues, I will not use names or other identifying features.

For me, clients are a constant source of new ideas and information. For example, Saturday, I worked with a young man who worked in repair and maintenance of refrigeration units on tractors and trailers. We are talking the big semis you see on the highways. What I want from a client is the story. In his case, as I started to get a picture of what he did so I could write the resume, I asked, “So what happens if the Wal-Mart trailer loaded with ice cream breaks down?” He responded with, “Loaded trailers are prioritized first in the repair queue to expedite repairs and minimize potential damage.”

I asked, “What kinds of value are we talking about?” He answered, “A semi loaded with cherries is valued at $70,000 and a semi loaded with crab meat could be valued at $1 million” The importance of his work and the consequences became apparent. In our conversation I also learned that the team rotates on-call and covers a large half-state or more territory.

My Design Resumes clients are also a resource for me. As I mentioned in What’s Holding YOU Back #5 — Unwilling to Learn, I will be flying soon to Baltimore for the Career Thought Leaders Conference. I haven’t flown since 1995 and so much has changed. Though there are many online resources to learn the new rules, I always like learning from experts in the field. Fortunately, I am blessed with clients who are experts in many fields.

For this need, I called one of my clients who is a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Screening Officer. She returned my call and we discussed all the things I need to remember. She explained the 3:1:1 rule for transporting liquids like make-up, soaps, etc. and what was and wasn’t a liquid — toothpaste is – lipstick isn’t. We discussed what is a personal item, packing suggestions, and overall travel information. And she invited me to call her anytime I want with more questions.

This is why I love my clients and my work as a career professional. I learn, I have resources, and I make new friends! But this is also exactly what I mean when I talk about networking. You build connections and you and your connections nurture the relationship being available to help when help is needed.

When I go out to eat, the waiter or waitress in many of my favorite restaurants often comes by with this “ginormous” pepper grinder and asks if I want pepper on my salad or soup, or entrée! There is something (don’t laugh) almost romantic about the pepper grinder and the pepper. It makes me feel special.

Romanticized the restaurant pepper grinder

At home, I love to cook and often look for ways to duplicate the restaurant experience. I bought several different pepper grinders over the years — admittedly never the ultra-large (ginormous) ones I see the waiters use in the restaurants, but good quality pepper grinders. My pepper grinders grind pepper. I even buy the pretty mixed color peppercorns in search of the special feeling. But it is never quite the same.

Perhaps I have romanticized the restaurant pepper grinder to being so much better than ones at home. The atmosphere at the restaurant is decidedly different than home. The lighting, the tablecloths, candlelight…

Whatever the reason, my pepper-grinders never give me the same experience.

Do job seekers romanticize change too?

Change can be good. It can be just what you need. But as much as I like to help people with career moves, I want to make sure that they have thought it through.

There have been quite a few calls recently from prospective clients in the medical field. Some individuals are looking to move from one facility to another, some want to move to another role in the medical field, and some are looking to move out of the field completely.

The Top Questions to ask before you plan a career change

Whenever you look at a career change, especially one that is voluntary, there are things to consider.

1. What is the stability of the company or organization you want to move to?
2. Have they been around for a long time?
3. Are they expanding?
4. Do you know what the employee feedback is for the organization? Is it positive?
5. What does the press say?

If you want to move from one role to another, again, you need to check out what people are saying. Never rely on just one source for any important decision. Research and ask.

If you think you want to leave your career or occupation, review why. Make a list of the reasons (pros and cons) as well as the pros and cons of the new position. Looking objectively at your choices can help you make informed decisions. Sometimes our reason for change or our choice of a move can be clouded by other factors.

Frequent career moves, especially in this economy, can damage your resume.

It doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t move. It just means you should think about the reasons you want to move and determine if the place, the role, or the change will be positive and if you will be able to stay, and perhaps grow, with the new position or company. Keeping your resume up-to-date with your accomplishments is a good thing but using it strategically is a better thing.

In search of the perfect pepper-grinder, I realize that perhaps there is more to why the ones in the restaurant are special. I have an emotional attachment to the experience. There are other factors than just the quality of the pepper-grinder. I may never find the perfect pepper-grinder because it may only exist in my imagination.

Even if you are currently out of a job, you need to think through these same steps.

Every career move in your life should be deliberate and thought-out. You will end up being an attractive commodity to employers if you look like someone who has put thought into their career. Never make a career move out of pure emotion.

The grass isn’t always greener — and the pepper grinder isn’t always better…

What do you think? When it is time for a career move, do you really evaluate your reasons?