Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about getting more productive, being an interesting brand, “wild-card” interview questions, getting passed over and being yourself.

From Career Adventure: 15 minutes a day to more productive work
“In my house, no crime is more likely to end up in instant dismemberment than scuffing my Precious Portfolio.”

Wally’s Comment: Nothing fancy. Nothing brand new. Just good advice on a way to increase your own productivity. We all need this from time to time because we let our discipline slip.

From Personal Branding Blog: The Five Laws of Being an Interesting Brand
“The strategies and channels we’ve been using are becoming weapons of mass destruction and tools of great opportunity. We’ve seen brands, such as United Airlines, tarnished when a single person produces a YouTube video after a bad customer service experience.  We’ve seen other brands succeed, such as Susan Boyle’s viral bonanza on the internet and the reactivation of Michael Jackson’s brand after death on Facebook and other channels.”

Wally’s Comment: Not just a brand, but an interesting one. In his usual helpful way, Dan Schawbel boils it down to do-able steps.

From Yahoo Hot Jobs: Answering Wild-Card Interview Questions
“While a rare interviewer may ask these questions simply to watch you squirm, many wild-card questions serve a purpose. Generally speaking, interviewers ask these questions to see how well you perform under pressure and think on your feet. They also might ask wild cards to break out of the routine of a typical interview in order to get a glimpse of your genuine personality.”

Wally’s Comment: These are the ones you can’t prepare for because they come out of the blue. Well, maybe you can prepare. This post tells you how.

From Business Week: Getting Over Being Passed Over
“You didn’t get the promotion you wanted, deserved, and expected? Don’t get mad. Get going on further refining your professional profile”

Wally’s Comment: Unless you are a freak of nature, there will come a time in your career when an assignment or promotion you really expect to get goes to another and in your eyes, less qualified person. When that happens, this advice will help.

From Marshall Goldsmith: Do You Have an Excessive Need to Be Yourself?
“If we buy into our behavior definition of ‘me,’ which most humans do, we can learn to excuse almost any annoying action by saying, ‘That’s just the way I am!’”

Wally’s Comment: Marshall Goldsmith is the master of turning the puzzling into the obvious. If you’ve ever said or thought: “That’s not me!” or “That’s just the way I am!” then this post is for you. I put it last in the list because you may need some time for self-reflection when you’re done reading.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 16th, 2009 at 4:43 am and is filed under Tools and Strategies for Success. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.