• Bonding With a Leader

    Leadership coaches tell leaders to improve their emotional intelligence (“EQ”). In fact, many say it is the single most important thing a leader can do to increase his or her effectiveness. Building relationships is the core of EQ, and since relationships are a two-way street, everyone contributes. Teams can change in desired ways, but again,… Continue Reading

  • Steps in Online Personal Branding

    Whenever possible, you should follow a logical progression as you construct an online personal brand. (I say ‘whenever possible’ because for many of us it is something we have to react to what is already out there.) But ideally speaking, you want to establish an identity before projecting it onto networks and social media. And as you… Continue Reading

  • Create a Slogan for Your Personal Brand

    Finding a way to represent your emotional value in a slogan is a powerful way to reach your audience. This is what companies do frequently. A good example is with car manufacturers. Here are some examples of one word phrases car manufacturers have established with their brands: Volvo – safety, Volkswagen – economy, Mercedes –… Continue Reading

  • Squeeze on Higher Education

    The de facto college degree is getting squeezed from two directions: employers requiring professionals to build new-age technical skills (where there is currently a skills gap); and typical students who are faced with the rising cost of a traditional college degree and must take on significant debt. Moreover, according to a recent Gallup poll, a… Continue Reading

  • Power in Presenting a Skill Set

    There is a benefit in presenting your skill set to not only recruiters and potential employers, but also an ‘internal network’ – co-workers and supervisors – and an ‘external network’ – partners and clients. As I talk about presenting a skill set, I want to clarify that there are many ways to present a skill.… Continue Reading

  • Advantages of Online Learning

    I took a MOOC (free online course) and was impressed with the whole experience. The lecture was intriguing and lively, and delivered by a world-renowned MIT professor.  The platform was effective. (I wrote a blog about my experience Free Online Courses.)  The move to online courses is driven by not only cutting per student instruction costs… Continue Reading

  • Base Compensation on Skills

    I wonder how a Skills-Based Approach should affect the way employers pay employees; planning, building and validating of skills have a strong correlation with an employee’s job performance. Should employers consider a skill-based pay system versus the traditional job pay system? Here is a good definition of a skills-based pay system (“SBP”): Skills-based structures link… Continue Reading

  • Finding The Key To The Skills Gap

    Why is there a “skills gap” – employers are having difficulties placing employees while so many professionals are seeking employment? Is there a problem with our traditional college degree? Are employers unwilling to invest enough in onboarding and training?  I read a Forbes article, Can We Fix The Skills Gap?, where Dennis Yang presents the… Continue Reading

  • A Personal Website For Branders

    A short-term objective in having a personal website might be to find employment, but there are two long-term objectives: find a long-term career pursuit and establish a personal brand. There has been some buzz about job seekers needing a personal website (which was the subject of my last blog), but I think you should have… Continue Reading

  • Skills Based Approach Infographic

    I have dedicated a website to promote a skills based approach: click here Developing a skill set throughout a career should be the goal of every professional and can be accomplished in four stages: planning, building, presenting, and validating. This infographic shows what should be done at each stage. A professional website has features to support… Continue Reading