Part II, Chapters 43, 44, 45 and 46

A serial of the book...

Mon, 01/21/2013 - 16:38

Tom Dowd is the author of two award-winning business books, "The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World" and "From Fear to Success: A Practical Guide to Public-Speaking."

Tom Dowd

During his inconsistent first 20 years in a business environment, Tom Dowd learned lessons, both positive and negative, which transformed into shared professional success. The experiences guide readers to differentiate themselves and enable them to work smarter—not harder—to thrive in corporate chaos that, due to the current economic conditions, has taught the employed and unemployed alike to simply try to survive.

Following is the next chapter in Dowd's book, The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a cynic to a professional in the corporate world. Earlier chapters are linked at the end.

43. Build and Maintain a Strong Résumé

If you are looking for a job, résumés can be the difference between getting your foot in the door and getting a rejection letter without being granted an interview. Résumés are, at times, our first and only impression on a prospective company or new position. The importance of an effective résumé is typically not lost on those seeking a job. However, what about people who already have a job? Unless you work in a small company where you know everyone, a résumé works the same way by allowing others to get to know you professionally.

You should always have an updated résumé ready. The practice of building and maintaining a strong résumé is not always related to active job searching. The routine of keeping an updated résumé is to eliminate surprise pressures when something of interest does come up or someone wants to get to know you professionally. A prepared résumé that can be instantly obtained shows your preparation when someone may ask for it. This has happened to me more than once. It also ensures that you stay up to date and not forget about including key accomplishments. If a question comes up relating to recent accomplishments, you are ready to share instantly and are in a position for effective networking conversations. I have seen far too many people scrambling to put together a résumé because they were caught off guard.

Tom has more than 20 years of experience in the financial industry in management and leadership roles, and runs his own business, Thomas Dowd Professional Development & Coaching, as a speaker, author, trainer and coach. Tom developed a series of management presentations into a speaking program called "Powerful Professional Transformation: Unleashing Leadership." The speaking engagements turned into "The Transformation of a Doubting Thomas: Growing from a Cynic to a Professional in the Corporate World," a book detailing Tom's own professional growth based on lessons learned in his career. "Transformation" received honorable mention in the business category at the 2012 New England Book Festival. Tom has since written his second book "From Fear to Success: A Practical Public-speaking Guide."

Tom is currently the vice president of education for Dirigo Toastmasters Club in Belfast. Toastmasters International is a supportive learning environment of more than 270,000 members worldwide looking to improve communication and leadership skills. As a founding member of the club, Tom has been involved in Toastmasters since September 2008. Tom holds advanced communication and advanced leadership certifications with Toastmasters International, including High Performance Leadership certification. In November 2011, Tom was selected as the District 45 Toastmaster of Year, which represents more than 100 clubs in the states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and the three Eastern Canadian Provinces of Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Tom has also exhibited consistent success when competing at the division (state level equivalent) and district levels in Toastmasters speech contests, which include humorous, inspirational, impromptu and evaluation events. He was the Table Topics Impromptu 2012 District Champion. Additionally, he is a member of the National Speakers Association and a member of the Camden Lions Club.

Tom graduated from the University of Delaware in 1990 with a Communication degree, concentrating on interpersonal and organizational communication.

Tom currently lives in Camden with his wife and three daughters.

Résumé writing is a skill that can be taught. When preparing a résumé, the key is due diligence and constant review. A résumé should always be considered a work in progress. There is no better tool in your arsenal than a résumé as a way to express yourself professionally in writing. With that said, I have seen résumés that were slapped together quickly with very little thought. I have also seen people pay a lot of money for someone else to put together a résumé that ultimately looked like it was put together just as quickly. If you are going to pay someone, be an active part of the process. No one knows you better than yourself. If you invest the time and get the right support, you will be proud of the work of art you put together.

A résumé is potentially a one-time shot to make that great first impression. You can't afford to submit a document with spelling errors, with glaring grammatical errors, or a poor overall layout. The amount of time invested in a résumé is obvious. Often, readers are turned off because of the lack of visual stimulation and obvious errors as they glance over the information. This can occur before they even begin to read the content in detail. How a résumé presents itself on the page tells a very big story about you. Effectively organized résumés should point the eyes of the reader to the right places to help with the flow and readability. The appropriate investment ensures that it is the best-quality story possible.

When is the last time you touched your résumé? I review mine quarterly and I am not shopping for a job. I have a recurring appointment that pops up on my online calendar. After the initial investment to put the full document together, I invest about five minutes per quarter into maintaining it. I learned early in my professional life not to have a dusty résumé. Growing up with a father with over twenty-five years of Human Resources experience with Sears Roebuck & Co., and my subsequent twenty years of interviewing job candidates taught me to always be prepared.

My analysis on retaining employees, my recruiting experience, and interviewing has allowed me to see hundreds, if not thousands, of résumés. The following are tips to help you to build and maintain a strong résumé.

Style. There is no right or wrong style. The Internet has plenty of websites dedicated to résumé styles and formats. I have yet to find two that are exactly alike, which should clearly tell you there is no magic formula. However, while there is no right or wrong, there is still a first impression.
Bullets versus sentences. I personally think it is a preference and that it doesn't matter as long you are consistent, clear, concise, and succinct with your information.
Use of effective spacing and layout. Proper spacing and open areas on the document grab attention. Don't crowd the document with words. Use the open areas to your advantage to ensure that key items catch the attention of the readers and point their eyes to the key words/places on the document.
Hesitancy in sharing. Go out there and share it with everyone. There are a couple of reasons for this. First, you need a third party's opinion and proofreading skills. Another set of eyes is a must. I had someone review my résumé recently and she found an extra space that had been there for years. Second, share your résumé for networking purposes. Having your résumé floating around is not a bad thing when it gets into the right hands. You will also surprise some readers who may not know all of your background. The only assumption you should make with a résumé is that no one knows you.
Editing. Running spell check doesn't count as editing. Enough said.
Routines. Have a recurring calendar appointment to update your résumé quarterly. No need to think about it, just do it.
Jargon. Match your résumé language and headings consistent to job descriptions, but avoid internal jargon. You can use language familiar to people in your company if you are using your résumé internally, or use similar language to a job advertisement you are applying for. For example, if you have a sales background and you are pursuing a marketing position, use terms such as "Marketed products to..." However, when possible, I try to minimize the amount of changes by staying broad enough with your terminology that both internal and external readers can understand it, so you only need to maintain one document. In large companies, you also can't assume people in different departments are familiar with all internal terminology.
Be specific. Assume the people you may be speaking to do not understand your past jobs or responsibilities. Be specific. Even if you are meeting with someone who is familiar with the job description, use specifics on your résumé that differentiate you individually.
Use statistics. Job descriptions should include powerful information that shows the size and scale of your responsibilities; numbers can be insightful (e.g., Collected on 5-million dollar portfolio, exceeded goal by over twenty-five percent for twelve consecutive months). Dollars and percentages visually stand out.
Word choice. Avoid support language (e.g., Assisted...) and use language that shows your leadership (e.g., Created, Directed, Prepared, Piloted, and Developed).
What makes you special? Use differentiating accomplishments and descriptions. What makes you unique? Go beyond the duties and tasks of the job.
Order of facts. Key points should be prioritized in the job descriptions. For example, "Managed as many as fifty people" should be placed ahead of "Maintained timesheets" in your job assessment.
Final document. There is no such thing. Your résumé is a fluid document. You need to adapt it regularly and as needed.
Outside experiences. Include assets and experiences that may not have a direct link to the job in which you are interested, but show differentiating and special features. A friend of mine had a résumé that didn't list his Military reserves experience. Not including these details instantly neglected over fifteen years of critical leadership, commitment, and service to our country.
Volunteer work. Don't forget to include your volunteer activities and other skills, regardless of what you are interested in. Volunteering shows you can balance time and responsibilities and shows you give back to the community.
Certifications. You should include appropriate certifications and system proficiency. For example, you can write "Proficient in Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel" if it's applicable to your knowledge and background. Also include key certifications, such as "Six Sigma Green Belt Certified."
How personal? Include personal items if they strengthen your cause. For example, you may add something like, "Perfect attendance five consecutive years," and "Excellent health—run twenty miles per week." Both examples differentiate you from a typical résumé and show that you will come to work energized and ready every day. Another example might read, "Married for fifteen years." Although employers can't discriminate or even ask questions based on your marital status or health, it proactively rounds out your full story and shows more personal differentiation and stability.
Sequence of events. The most common formats are chronological and skills-based (e.g., jobs, volunteer work, and training). Just like résumé styles, this can come down to personal preference, unless you have done your homework and found that your company of interest has their own preferences.

If you don't have a résumé, or have not touched your résumé in the last three months, pull it out and start today. You never know when you will need it. Make it a work of art.

44. Manage Your Time, Don't Let it Manage You—Part I

I have found in my over twenty years of professional experience that poor time management skills are one of the biggest pitfalls for leaders. I am going to intentionally repeat myself: poor time management skills are one of the biggest pitfalls for leaders. I took organization training over eighteen years ago, and I understood at that time the power of managing my day and beyond. More importantly, I realized I couldn't survive in the business world until I could manage the swirling days, weeks, and months around me. By actively staying organized, I found I could dedicate the appropriate time to urgent and important items, spend more time developing people, and yes, put out those dreadful fires that often come our way.

When you are running at capacity, the fire drill exercise will sacrifice something else that may need to be dropped. However, if you have full control and knowledge of your own capacity, you can not only do it right, but you have a chance to do it all, and more. Included in this section are highlights from an evolving organization course I have taught over the years for new and experienced managers. I have a positive reputation for being highly organized at work. Some call it being anal retentive or compulsive. However, very few people can remember me ever missing a key deadline.

First and foremost, people are the highest priority. Regardless of your job responsibilities or what is on your calendar for the day, people who work for you take the top billing. As a manager, how do you get all of the administrative work done if you are constantly bombarded with questions from your direct reports? Good managers can anticipate questions and concerns through staff meetings and team meetings. It is extremely important to lay out clear expectations and preparations, including what might be the best time to connect with you, what is on your plate for the day, and who to contact if you are not available. Being ahead of the game is also important. You can do this by anticipating common questions and put answers in your reports' hands before the questions are even asked. Everyone wins.

Managers should also understand the most effective ways to present information to a particular audience. Knowing who you are presenting to and how well they will absorb the information is critical. How does your group like to be taught? For example, a manager might find success in asking open-ended questions to ensure clarity. Tossing facts and figures at a group of people and expecting them to remember can be difficult. There should be interaction and engagement from everyone. The group of people learning should feel comfortable, and the leader should invest the appropriate amount of time when it is all over. Sometimes in the past, I rushed information to people by talking at them, and was always surprised when I got a question later about the same subject. I have found it extremely helpful for time-management purposes to invest the time up front so that everyone learns and digests the information from the start. Group settings are extremely helpful in avoiding duplicate messages. If you are not a leader, you should ensure that this gets practiced by discussing this with your manager.

Leaders need to build time into their calendars for the unexpected. How can you do this if you don't know what's coming relating to those "I need it now" requests? If you are scheduled for an eight hour day, and your calendar is booked for that entire eight hours, it is guaranteed that you will not get everything done. The unexpected will happen during that time—I promise. I like to block off time in my day with follow-up items that occupy space on my calendar to cover loose ends. The blocks of time also allow flexibility if meetings go over or someone needs me for something important. These blocks of time are great for reflecting on past meetings, preparing for upcoming meetings, or conducting in-depth work.

You should also schedule time to get away from your desk. This builds in another block of time for the unexpected, and allows extra time for the flexibility to take a break and stay fresh. Below are some additional tips for the unexpected:

Schedule time for emails, return messages, etc. This minimizes your need to multitask and builds more open time. If you build an hour a day for this and it only takes thirty minutes, take advantage of the bonus time for other tasks.
Build in time for daily operations and be sensitive to potential impacts within your business. For example, in a call center, Mondays are often high call volume days. Managers are needed on the floor. Build that time on the floor into your calendar for non-meeting activities. Do not schedule your staff meetings during peak times, since the chances for interruption are high and a less productive meeting will occur.
Use miscellaneous blocks of time on your calendar for routine events that may not require a specific time. For example, you know you need two hours tomorrow to provide feedback to people on your team, or do a daily task like quality monitoring. You may schedule it for 10:00 A.M.-12:00 noon. The actual time is not as important as reserving the block of time of two hours. You can build in the flexibility to move this block of time through the same day as you need to as long as you remain committed to making it happen. Be careful of pushing it too late into the day, when you risk not completing it and are required to move it to another day. When you start carrying appointments over to other days, you run the risk of creating a bottleneck situation. For example, pushing the two hours to another day puts you four hours in the hole the following day.
Use recurring meetings to hold future times and dates. This habit gives people a heads up to reserve times and dates and should increase attendance to key meetings. It is respectful of other people's calendars, since it will give everyone ample time to know what is ahead for them, and they can look forward to the same time and date each week or month.

One of the greatest things I did for my own sanity was to keep a pad of paper near my nightstand at home. How does this relate to time management? When random thoughts pop into my head at night, I write them down immediately. The benefits are as follows: 1) I don't forget, thus I don't waste time trying to remember, 2) I sleep better knowing I have immediately addressed my thoughts, 3) I have stronger ideas since I have reached the inner non-stressed part of my brain and can formulate a plan of action. All of this allows me to enter into my day knowing where and when things are happening, with a clear plan of attack to get it done.

Don't be a slave to your calendar, but be committed to it and avoid constant appointment pushing. Consistent appointment pushing to another day is a red flag that you need to change the calendar process—it is either too full or you need to be more committed to it.

You should invest ample time in understanding your future calendar appointments. Organize tomorrow before leaving today. You should invest five minutes before leaving for the day. I make very few promises, but I will make an exception. I promise you will sleep better knowing exactly what's on your plate tomorrow. You should actually schedule this five minute event for the end of day as a calendar appointment. Five invested minutes will save you hours later. Additionally, organize the next week every Friday. Look out a week at a time. Again, schedule this Friday event on your calendar. Finally, organize each month with a few days before the current month ends. Look out a month at a time. Once again, schedule this event on your calendar. This shouldn't be done on the thirtieth of the month—it should be done around the twenty-sixth to avoid surprises in the first week of the following month. The outlook a month ahead of time allows you to determine what normal routines you need to conduct each month and how to spread them accordingly. When we have certain obligations that are required on a monthly basis, I find as high as ninety-five percent of the people on any given month, if given the choice, will do the task at the end of the month. Be in the minority and get things done before they are scheduled and due.

We are in a culture of procrastinators. I am on the opposite end of the spectrum, almost to the extreme, viewing it as the antithesis of procrastination. I want tasks out of the way as quickly as possible so that I can concentrate on other things. I front load certain events in the first or second week of each month to get them out of the way, and allow flexibility in case other events come up that need to be accomplished prior to the month ending. There have been many times when something did come up at the end of the month, and a number of leaders did not meet their requirements as a result. Keeping ahead of your schedule allows for the unexpected. As I was going through my career growing pains, it was effective time management that often kept me afloat.

45. Manage Your Time, Don't Let it Manage You—Part II

Be realistic with your time frames. Don't be a 'go-getter' that finds many commitments unfulfilled. You don't want to sign up for five projects and not do them on time or on budget. You want to be seen as being on top of your game rather than someone who does a bunch of things averagely or not at all. There are times when you need to build in the extra time for testing, for fine tuning, and building in time for the unexpected. This is called "Under-promising and over-delivering."

You want to be realistic with expectations. You don't want a reputation of "sandbagging" everything so you always look like a hero. You can't say that your team is struggling and will only reach eighty-five percent of the quota, when you know the group will achieve one-hundred percent. This practice does become obvious after a while. The point here is to be pragmatic with your forecasting and communication. Don't tell the requester it will be done by five o'clock P.M. because you 'hope' it will be done by five o'clock P.M. Tell the requester because it will be done by that time. If you get it done early, call it a bonus. If the five o'clock deadline isn't the right expectation, be honest and tell the requester when the right time is for it to get done. Please note that there will be deadlines that are non-negotiable requests. The non-negotiable deadlines will impact your other work. If you have practiced preparation for this scenario, you will be able to effectively balance your other commitments, adjust time frames, and be realistic with your communication of expectations. If adjustments negatively influence this request or others, it is always important to keep open lines of communication with the requestor.

Have you thought of everything? In any so-called normal day, have you accounted for everything you need to do in that day? This might include travel time, office visits, walking the floor, and casual conversations with fellow associates. Although you may not 'schedule' these events, they do take your time. Have you accounted for this time and understood the impact it will have? How many times have you been a few minutes late because of a hallway discussion?

I have consistently heard in focus groups and years of management that one of the biggest employee frustration points is a lack of follow through. Respect for you—regardless of your role as a manager, peer, and colleague—can quickly be lost if you don't do what you said would be done. This impacts customers, peers, and subordinates alike. Follow-up is one of the most important things you can do as a leader. The follow-up items may pile one on top of another and become countless. I personally can't remember a lot of things at once. You should make follow-up a mindless exercise. I let my calendar do it all for me and I simply need to wait for the automatic reminder to tell me what to do. If I have done the Day Before, Week Before, Month Before time-management exercise, I won't be surprised. You can be proactive by using your calendar for follow-up appointments, such as return calls, customer callbacks, or employee requests. If you have requested someone else to complete a task by a certain date, you can also make that a follow-up appointment to check in.

Additionally, you should schedule deadlines and preparation for appointments before they are due. If you owe a deliverable for five o'clock P.M. Thursday, the appointment should not be seen for the first time at five o'clock the day it is due. Build the appointment into your calendar when it makes the most sense for you, as long as you have plenty of time for a second look, revisions (there are always revisions), and time for the unexpected. You can use pop-up reminders to your advantage to not only meet deadlines, but to beat deadlines.

Time management is often misunderstood. It takes diligence and persistency, but does not take a lot of effort once you get comfortable with your own routines. There is no right or wrong way to do it. You just need to do it.

46. Manage Your Time, Don't Let it Manage You—Part III

I would consider myself a pack rat when it comes to holding on to information. However, I am realistic enough to know that I can't save everything. For example, I don't need every daily report saved. As part of my organizational improvement, I found I can't always be the controller of information—but I can know where and from whom to grab it. You should know who the key contact is for critical information. If you don't know who the key contacts are, you should invest the time to learn—it saves time in the end. How will doing more save you time? By making you more informed and effective, you will save time. Let's find out how.

To increase your effectiveness, you should read all of your emails and avoid the systemic rules for auto-deleting. If you need to set a rule to auto-delete the email (e.g., daily reports), don't bother getting the email in the first place. Also, read the entire email; don't just pull up the attachments or read the beginning. There are often key points in the body, or the email trail, that might need to be addressed. If you are one of the few reading the entire body of the email, you are in the minority—a minority that gives you an information advantage. Although there is etiquette to delete needless pieces of an email and to summarize when you are the person who forwards it or replies, we are realistic enough to know it doesn't always happen. Use the details to fully understand what is going on around you.

If there are attachments and you simply open them without reading the email, you may be missing out. There are often high-level summaries included in the email that provide context that will be extremely important as you pull up that attachment. Read the key points and the summary. This may save you time researching information that may already be in front of you.

Checklists are both a blessing and a curse. We have all used checklists. Some people use them better than others. Some people write out checklists chronologically, some people write out by priority, and some people write first come, first served (not recommended). Some people move the checklist from one day to another. If you are the daily shifter, stop using the checklist. Checklists are not productive if you constantly shift them from day to day—they simply become time wasters. If you have moved the same task for multiple days, how important is it? If it is important, take action on it. If it is important, but not urgent, don't schedule it for tomorrow; schedule it for a week from now when you know you can get to it. If you are proactively staying ahead of your day, your week, and your month as stated earlier, you should be on top of this anyway.

Checklists, if kept, must comprise the least amount of work you expect to get done and still consider the day a success. It might sound counterintuitive since we are trying to get the most out of a day. However, I specifically think of it as the, "I can't leave until this gets done" list. This should be your very realistic list. Anything finished after this list should be considered a bonus. Use a pull system to bring the bonus tasks into your freed up parts of your day as opposed to continually pushing the tasks to another day. You will start to find you will have a lot more bonus days as you get control of your checklists and calendar.

It is important with checklists to not write something down today if you are not going to do it today. In addition, you should double the time you expect to complete the tasks, even the regular ones, and account for interruptions (e.g., calls coming in, questions being asked, etc.). Doubling the time is critical for being realistic with time expectations.

The following are additional miscellaneous tips that will influence effective organization and time management:

How a request comes in may impact your time management. How the requests are communicated to you play an important role when establishing priorities. Be cautious of email—it can be a time consumer if you are spending all day reading it and trying to interpret the exact request. You also increase the risk of multitasking. Use a specific block of time in a day to go through your emails and organize what is being asked of you. Additionally, pick up the phone and clarify the request, if needed, to avoid having to go back for rework.
Keep a copy of your calendar with you, even when not at your desk. You can use an electronic/virtual version, print a smaller pocket version, or tape one in a notebook or portfolio you carry with you.
If possible, turn off the features that confirm you have a new email or messages. Research has proven that it takes an inordinate amount of time to get back to your original thought when you are interrupted—regardless of whether it is by email, text message, or someone asking a question. Additionally, don't pay attention to previews when an email comes in. It will naturally pull you to read the entire message and it takes away what you were previously dedicating your time towards. Turn off all indicators, whether it is visual or sound.
Touch it once. Read it, take action, move it to a time when you can get to it, or save it for future reference. Stop moving it day to day because of an inability to take action; stop reading it more than once. Take actions on the emails—this might be moving it to another location or scheduling a meeting or a phone call, etc., to take it to its conclusion. Don't read an email and just leave it in your inbox. This causes you to read it multiple times.
I recommend not organizing emails by categories, senders, etc. It takes away from your ability to see it once. This causes you to have to look into multiple places when researching or looking for something. I have rarely seen this work effectively without something falling through the cracks.
Give yourself some breathing room before you start your day so you are not rushed around. It sets the tone for the day. Don't walk in the door at 7:59 A.M. if you are supposed to start at eight o'clock. That rushed feeling takes a while to go away.
Many of us have a tendency to do the easiest things first for the sense of accomplishment. We must understand the difference between ease and true accomplishment. If you get a lot of easy things out of the way, after a while the more difficult things start to pile up. Also assess what is urgent, not urgent, important, and not important. Each of these needs to be reacted to in a different way. Do not give each a blanket reaction. Also, respect that what might be urgent or important to you may not be important or urgent to others. You should ask questions if you are unsure.
Ask what happens if the deadline if missed. Know the rewards and consequences. You will be surprised how frequently what you thought of as urgent was really only important or vice versa, once clarity is added.Understand that internal pressures are sometimes greater than reality.
Always take a notebook to meetings and actually use it; then go back and refer to it. Put any actions needed on your calendar.
Immediately file and organize—this includes paper, emails, and online filing, as needed. Don't pile up.
If you have pushed the same task more than five days or made no progress on even starting on something, make a final decision on what action you need to take, including dismissing it. You do have options to take that immediate action: delete it, schedule time to address it, or take action to finish it now. A decision to do nothing is still a decision—just understand the consequences.

My company used to consistently solicit people for their opinions regarding time management for certain roles. I used to laugh because the conclusions never changed. We used to conduct these time studies and came to the conclusion that there was not enough time in the day to get everything done. Don't wait for a time study to figure out what you do all day. Self-awareness will lead to your success. If you are feeling strained, you must discuss time management challenges with your manager. Silence will only hurt you. You must over-communicate with your manager regarding what's on your plate.

Time management is a requirement for all levels in an organization. If you don't have enough time to invest in improving your own time management, take another serious look. There are only twenty-four hours in the day. They should not be all devoted to work, but if you don't manage the work piece, you can't balance the personal piece. Start immediately.

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