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Archive for the ‘Career Development’ Category

New Business Book Summary Available for The Politics of Promotion

Posted in Career Development, Uncategorized, tagged , , on June 9, 2017| Leave a Comment »

The Politics of PromotionMastering politics is essential for advancement in the workplace, particularly at the management or executive level. In The Politics of Promotion, executive coach Bonnie Marcus explains that talent and hard work are not enough; to get promoted the way men do, women must learn the unwritten rules of the game, gather insider information, manage their images, and build influence with key stakeholders and decision makers. By acknowledging and understanding the need for politics and using Marcus’ Political Toolkit, women can effectively navigate their organizations’ political landscapes to rapidly move ahead.

The author believes that:

  • Many women mistakenly believe that hard work and talent will eventually lead to promotion, and they ignore the importance of workplace politics. Their failure to establish and manage strategic professional relationships often leads to them being passed over for promotions or even asked to step down.
  • High-achieving women face obstacles their male counterparts do not, including subtle gender bias and self-limiting attitudes and behaviors. Factors that keep women from getting ahead include lack of confidence, fear of being seen as unlikable or aggressive, failure to delegate, having a negative view of office politics, and being excluded from informal networks.
  • Career advancement requires political savvy. By demonstrating their value proposition, understanding workplace culture and dynamics, forming strategic alliances, seeking mentorship and sponsorship, and committing to executive coaching, women can remove roadblocks and achieve their career goals.
  • To get ahead and stay ahead, women must master Marcus’ Political Toolkit. This toolkit contains five metaphorical tools–the Mirror, Magnifying Glass, Pass Go and Collect $200 Card, Get Out of Jail Free Card, and GPS–that can help women put abstract political concepts into practice.
  • Continued career advancement demands dedication, ongoing self-evaluation, and being aware of ever-changing workplace dynamics. Highly developed political skills become even more critical at the senior level. Women must continue to use the tools that got them to the top to stay on top, but with a slightly different focus.

To learn more, please visit www.bizsum.com

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New Business Book Summary Available for The Negotiation Book

Posted in Business Strategy, Career Development, tagged , , , , , on January 13, 2017| 1 Comment »

guidesuccessfulnegotiationNegotiations are the most difficult, dynamic, and even uncomfortable aspects of doing business. Reaching a deal that adds to the bottom line and builds lasting trust demands a thorough understanding of the process. In The Negotiation Book, Steve Gates draws on his 20 years of experience to help readers gain the skills and adopt the mindset of Complete Skilled Negotiators. He highlights the importance of self-awareness, emotional detachment, insight, and creativity to reaching a deal. He presents practical steps for maximizing opportunities in every negotiation while still building trust with the other party.

The author believes that:

  • Negotiation is one of the most challenging aspects of business. It sets up adversarial relationships that must be overcome to reach a successful deal. However, skillful negotiation contributes significantly to a company’s bottom line.
  • Whichever party has the most flexibility has the most power. Larger parties, particularly those with strong brands, have power over smaller ones. Skilled negotiators understand power and what factors influence its balance.
  • Skilled negotiators have 10 key traits: nerve, self-discipline, tenacity, assertiveness, instinct, caution, curiosity, numerical reasoning, creativity, and humility.
  • Skilled negotiators check their egos at the door, yet understand how ego drives the other party. They remain calm and manage their emotions.
  • Every negotiator enters each negotiation with a particular amount of authority to make a deal. More authority brings greater risk. Negotiating with someone who does not have the authority to make a deal is counterproductive.
  • Personal and organizational values necessarily influence negotiators. Those values may not be shared between the parties, which may place the party striving for a value like fairness at a disadvantage.
  • Negotiators always deploy certain tactics in making a deal. Skilled negotiators understand how their values impact the tactics they are willing to use. They also understand how the other party’s values determine the tactics available to them and recognize those tactics when they are used.

To learn more, please visit www.bizsum.com

 

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New Business Book Summary Available for Simple Is the New Smart

Posted in Career Development, Management, tagged , , on January 6, 2017| Leave a Comment »

120433648In Simple Is the New Smart, Rob Fazio emphasizes the importance of simplifying the pursuit of success. He offers working professionals and managers smart cuts for making inroads in their careers and achieving their goals, both at work and in life. His four foundations for success (psychological swagger, reading, leading, and accelerating) guide people to stay positive, be aware of their strengths and setbacks, build skills and abilities, and hold themselves accountable. Fazio develops these principles into 26 simple, straightforward strategies people can use to improve their focus and increase the probability of achieving their goals.

The author believes that:

In an increasingly complex world, it can be difficult for people to focus on what matters in life and in work. People can learn to reach their potential and achieve success through simplicity by following 26 small strategies, or smart cuts. These strategies constitute four foundations for success:

1. Psychological swagger. People’s attitudes greatly affect their ability to achieve their goals. It is important for professionals to banish doubts and insecurities, and instead focus on the positive. Learning to release control and adopting an ownership mindset can also help improve a person’s attitude.

2. Reading. People must be open to learning and able to develop self-awareness. They should acknowledge both their strengths and weaknesses, be aware of how others think of them, act with intention, and learn to be politically savvy.

3. Leading. Leaders are able to inspire innovation, motivate and persuade others, network, develop emotional intelligence, and master the art of conversation.

4. Accelerating. Effective leaders support a vision with a plan, build support for change, set priorities, refocus following setbacks, manage stress, and encourage others on the road to finding solutions.

To learn more, please visit www.bizsum.com

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New Business Book Summary Available for Becoming the Best

Posted in Book Summaries, Career Development, tagged , , on September 23, 2016| Leave a Comment »

career-courageKatie C. Kelley was a driven professional living out the dream she carefully constructed as a teenager: to have her own psychotherapy practice in Manhattan. Despite that success, she grew increasingly dissatisfied with her personal and professional life. In Career Courage, Kelley shares the knowledge she gained by transforming her life and finding true satisfaction. Kelley’s key message is that every person has the power to create a fulfilling career and personal life–it just takes time, courage, and careful planning. Each of the book’s chapters is designed to help readers find their true callings, and presents true stories of people who worked hard to make their own dreams come true.

People seeking to transform unfulfilling careers can create more satisfying lives by focusing on 10 keys to success:

  1. Motivation. People find true satisfaction when they figure out what really motivates them, and create a vision for their lives based on that knowledge.
  2. Confidence. Change is scary. Overcoming the fear of change requires self-confidence. Professionals can build up their confidence by exposing themselves to their fears in controlled doses.
  3. Risk. To find true satisfaction, professionals must think like entrepreneurs and take calculated risks. To increase their tolerance for risk, professionals should accept that bold moves are inherently risky, prepare in advance for setbacks, and not take setbacks personally.
  4. Character. Character is an essential ingredient for career success. Influential professionals should cultivate three key character traits: trustworthiness, transparency, and loyalty. These traits enable successful professionals to attract and hold people within their spheres of influence.
  5. Harmony. Harmony reinforces the balance between a successful career and happy home life. To create more harmony in their lives, professionals must learn to say no, delegate responsibility, and set boundaries.
  6. Strategic thinking. Implementing a vision requires careful step-by-step planning. Professionals can use strategic thinking to go from dreaming about changing careers to living lives that make them truly happy.
  7. Community. Most people long for more meaning in their lives, and being part of a community is one of the most effective ways to fill that need. Having a strong network of family, friends, and colleagues provides a powerful sense of belonging.
  8. Influence. The ability to influence people plays a vital role in personal and professional success. Although influencer styles vary, influencing is a skill that professionals should hone–or they will lose opportunities to more influential people.
  9. Fortune. While everyone should have a fulfilling career, short- and long-term financial security is also important. Professionals should keep money and emotions separate and determine what their values are regarding financial success.
  10. Pivots. Critical junctures, or pivot points, occur when professionals must decide whether to change directions or stay the course, such as after being laid off. Successful professionals learn to recognize pivot points and listen to their gut instincts.

To learn more, please visit http://www.bizsum.com

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New Business Book Summary Available for Becoming the Boss

Posted in Book Summaries, Career Development, Management, tagged , , , on April 25, 2016| Leave a Comment »

InBecoming the Boss Becoming the Boss, Lindsey Pollak provides insight on leadership styles, communicating, and resolving people issues for those who aspire to become business leaders, especially individuals in the millennial generation. The book covers preparation, personal branding, essential leadership qualities, prioritizing, delegating, and career growth. It also discusses the value of having mentors and mentoring others.

According to Pollak:

  • Before leading others, leaders must learn to lead themselves. They can build the right mind-sets and attitudes by reading, networking, training, and practicing leadership in their everyday lives. They must then craft their own personal leadership brands that incorporate four essential elements: visibility, differentiation, consistency, and authenticity.
  • By attending to their online personas, leaders can work to eliminate negative information and build positive virtual brands. Social media sites such as LinkedIn and Twitter can be useful places to post professional biographies and links.
    The best leaders are good listeners. Listening helps leaders learn about their employees, communicate their expectations, and show others that they value outside input.
  • Leaders must communicate using the most effective and appropriate methods available. Conveying very sensitive information in person is usually the best choice. Emailing is appropriate for nearly all communications, but phone calls work best for urgent matters. Texting and instant messaging are quick and effective communication methods, but they should be reserved for casual interactions.
  • Leaders must delegate and prioritize tasks in order of their importance. They should give their full attention to each task rather than multitasking, and assign any work that does not require their personal attention to their employees.
  • Mentors help leaders achieve their career goals. There are five types of mentors: traditional, co-mentors, sponsors, peers, and parents.
  • Professional growth never ends. Leaders who decide to be great, stay humble, make committed decisions, and make their own rules are the most likely to reach their goals.

To learn more, please visit http://www.bizsum.com

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New Business Book Summary Available for Don’t Wear Flip-Flops to Your Interview

Posted in Book Summaries, Career Development, Job Searching, Uncategorized, tagged , , on February 18, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Don’t Wear Flip-Flops to Your InterviewCompetition for jobs has become tougher, and people have become a lot more astute about conducting a job search, so just sending out a few résumés and waiting for a response is no longer a valid way to look for a position. Rather, assigning themselves the “job” of looking for a job is the way successful job seekers operate today. It takes the right combination of energy, commitment, and optimism, tempered with a sense of humor, to keep the doldrums away while searching for a job. In Don’t Wear Flip-Flops to Your Interview, Dr. Paul Powers shares his years of experience helping people obtain jobs they love.

Job hunting is hard work, but treating it like a job can make it easier and more rewarding. Job seekers should:

  • Identify the top 10 roadblocks to successful job hunting and take steps to combat them. Although it is difficult to control the amount of time it takes to find a job, there are many other things job seekers can control, and that puts them in charge of the process.
  • Work on interview skills, practice interview style, and tailor this practice to specific interviews. Interview anxiety is natural, but being completely prepared in advance alleviates many of the fears that cause it.
  • Use multiple sources to locate job opportunities, and utilize them all at the same time. It pays to become familiar with print and online job markets, recruiters and employment agencies, and hidden job resources that are often accessed by word of mouth.
  • Research each company, anticipate questions and answers, and be totally prepared. The right attitude, coupled with dialogue that shows the job seeker did the necessary homework to find out about the job and the company beforehand, will impress most interviewers.
  • Beat out the competition by projecting a friendly, positive, and respectful attitude. Job seekers who make it to the short list are those who dress and groom professionally and who communicate directly and clearly.
  • Maintain good references who can be counted on to deliver a great recommendation, and be sure to thank them every time they are contacted. The reference list should be regularly updated and references called to make sure they are still willing to provide that service.

To learn more, please visit http://www.bizsum.com

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New summary available for Compassionate Careers

Posted in Book Summaries, Career Development, Personal Development on June 5, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Compassionate CareersMembers of today’s young Millennial generation strive to become part of something bigger than themselves. Despite the social stigmas, family objections, and financial concerns that have typically deterred people from cause-driven work, many young people today are seeking compassionate careers in cause-focused organizations. By following the nine-step framework detailed by Jeffrey W. Pryor and Alexandra Mitchell in Compassionate Careers, young people can discover what they truly care about, explore their opportunities, build their connections, and get started in their pursuits of compassionate careers. The framework can be applied to navigate young people toward the paths that will bring meaning into both their work and personal lives.

According to the authors, young people should do the following when trying to decide on a career path:

  • Find a path with a heart. Young people want to make a difference in the world, and opportunities abound across the globe. Between nonprofits, foundations, corporate social responsibility firms, and social enterprise organizations, young people have many opportunities to find compassionate careers.
  • Overcome social stigma. Some young people have hesitations about working in cause-focused organizations. The most common hesitations revolve around professional status, family support, integrity and trust, compensation, and prospects for diversity.
  • Begin change with a spark. Young people are typically inspired by role models, their communities, or epiphanies. Once inspired, they must decide which causes matter most to them.
  • Turn angst to action. Many young people are inspired by life’s challenges. When this happens, they must reassess their priorities and advocate for their causes.
  • Explore the options. When considering compassionate careers, young people must think about their personal preferences, stress levels, culture fits, and brands. Once they have identified the types of organizations they want to work for, they should develop their educational backgrounds and professional networks.
  • Navigate by choice. Young people should be aware of organizations that do nothing to invest in their future. They must know what they want to achieve and develop their own paths forward.
  • Consider jobs without borders. International opportunities are plentiful, but before going global, young people must consider if they have a spirit of adventure. If they do, they must also consider their families and interdependence issues before deciding to go abroad.
  • Become the River Keepers. Young people in compassionate careers must be grateful to the River Keepers, the people who came before them and paved the way. As they become River Keepers themselves, young people must work hard to contribute to the character and quality of others’ lives.
  • Get started. To get started on the path toward compassionate careers, young people must identify their values, overcome their concerns, explore their resources and opportunities, and navigate toward making money while also making a difference.

To learn more, please visit http://www.bizsum.com

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What I Didn’t Learn in Business School

Posted in Book Summaries, Career Development, Conflict Management, Learning, tagged , , , , on November 26, 2014| Leave a Comment »

What I Didn't Learn in Business SchoolMany of the widely accepted strategy tools taught in business schools do not apply in the real world. In What I Didn’t Learn in Business School, Jay B. Barney and Trish Gorman Clifford relate the fictional story of Justin Campbell, a recent MBA graduate. Through the story, the authors show that traditional strategy tools do not work because they do not take into account the ways that human interactions and individual goals interfere in the workplace.

According to the authors:

  • Many strategy tools taught in business school do not take into account how human interactions and office politics interfere with decision-making processes.
  • Assumptions may work in the classroom for demonstration purposes, but they will not be adequate in the real world. Different assumptions lead to vastly different outcomes in real-world scenarios.
  • One of the hardest skills to learn is how to remain objective and base decisions on facts and research. Sometimes it is easy to take what others say at face value, but all information should be verified and questioned.
  • When attempting to get buy-in from leadership, it is important to identify those on the executive team who oppose the idea. Most effort should be spent convincing these individuals.

To download three free summaries, please visit our site.

 

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Coach Yourself to Win

Posted in Book Summaries, Career Development, Personal Development, tagged , , , on October 24, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Coach Yourself to WinPeople have the ability to change many of the behaviors that hinder their success at work and in their personal lives. But self-improvement takes self-scrutiny, honesty, and effort. Additionally, it requires a knowledgeable, objective guide and a circle of supporters. In Coach Yourself to Win, leadership development expert Howard M. Guttman explains the most effective self-coaching techniques and how to find the most promising helpers. Importantly, he also offers proven strategies that will help readers rebound from setbacks and adjust their goals in order to maintain a lifetime commitment to positive, observable change.

According to Guttman:

  • Successful self-coaching begins with the firm belief that a positive outcome is achievable and worth a significant effort. This belief is rooted in an awareness of one’s current, observable behavior; the ability, readiness, and willingness to change; and the commitment to making the change permanent.
  • Setting intention is the first step toward bringing about a desired behavior change. Intentions provide focus, galvanize energy, and prompt individuals to take action.
  • No one should undertake self-coaching alone. Self-coachers need guides, or mentors, to help them stay on track, as well as circles of supporters to provide additional help, advice, and feedback.
  • Feedback, a vital part of the self-coaching process, is verbal or nonverbal communication that provides information about how the recipient’s behavior affects others. Framing questions appropriately and asking them during personal interviews will help ensure that the feedback is useful and facilitates a constructive response.
  • Self-coachers must be able to analyze feedback objectively and rationally. Receiving negative feedback can be hurtful and difficult, but good self-coachers learn to respond in positive ways without defensiveness.
  • The proof of a strong intention is a workable plan. In addition to being focused on intentions, good plans are realistic and simple. They build in contingencies, set time lines, and cover all the bases involved in implementation.
  • Barriers to the successful achievement of intention can occur at any time in the self-coaching process. The best way for people to deal with unexpected obstacles is to continually reassess their progress and, if necessary, rethink their original plans and intentions.

To download three free summaries, please visit our site.

 

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Kiss Your But Goodbye

Posted in Book Summaries, Career Development, Personal Development, Productivity, tagged , , , on October 16, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Kiss Your But GoodbyeEveryone has flaws, but many people fail to realize how their flaws are impeding their career progress. For people to reach their potential, they need to recognize and manage their “BUTs,” the shortcomings that hold them back. When colleagues, managers, and senior leaders talk about others, they almost always discuss their weaknesses in the same way. They may say something like, “She works hard, but she takes on too many projects and cannot prioritize.” Or, they may say, “He is extremely intelligent, but he fails to connect with others.” The biggest problem with BUTs is that the people in possession of them cannot see them. Everyone has at least one BUT, so everyone needs a strategy for recognizing and overcoming them. Kiss Your But Goodbye by Joe Azelby and Bob Azelby provides a humorous guide to doing so.

There are ways for people to overcome their shortcomings, or at least reduce their impact. This process includes understanding the following:

  1. Recognize that everyone has at least one “BUT” that needs to be addressed. These are the weaknesses that people talk about when assessing others. For example, people may say that John has great marketing skills but cannot close a sale. He needs to overcome that BUT in order to advance in his career.
  2. People need help to find their BUTs, and that help needs to come from honest, straightforward colleagues and managers who will not sugarcoat their assessments. BUTs result from aptitude, personality, and behavior, and those elements provide both a way to identify BUTs and a way to overcome them.
  3. Many people avoid dealing with their BUTs because they prefer to avoid pain and change. However, they are suffering now as a result of their BUTs, and the effort expended on the change will be returned when the benefits of a reduced BUT are realized.
  4. People reduce the size of their BUTs through increased self-awareness and sincere effort to change their behaviors. These efforts need to be clear to colleagues so they can help in the BUT-reduction process.
  5. One very effective way to reduce the impact of a BUT is to partner with someone who has a complementing strength. For example, people who are good strategic thinkers but lack detailed planning skills can partner with people who love to plan everything.
  6. During reviews, managers may avoid telling employees about their BUTs. For small BUTs, managers are more likely to say something because they believe the flaws can be reduced. For large BUTs, however, managers often avoid saying anything, and employees fail to progress. Therefore, it is vitally important for people who want to advance in their careers to proactively identify their own BUTs with the help of trusted advisers.
  7. Managers have BUTs too, which can make their employees miserable. They may micromanage or have blind spots. Employees can increase their own value by acting to counteract their managers’ BUTs.
  8. Instituting a workplace culture that encourages frank discussion of everyone’s BUTs can make the organization a better place to work. It can also make the company more productive and profitable.

To download three free summaries, please visit our site.

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