Happy Holidays from the team at ProNet Career Resources.  We are creating a far better program for 2014 than ever before.

We will re-institute the $30 gas gift card and have more motivational and topiic related speakers than ever before.  We are asking for $5 (or more) dues/donations from all our members to support our projects

Finally, we are going toward that elusive 501c3 non-profit status again with the help of a ProNet  and SCORE member (National Entrepreneur Center in Orlando). .

Lots going on.  Will you be part of this growth pattern?  I certainly hope so.  Please send your donations to me at 246 Hanging Moss Circle, Lake Mary, FL 32746 or send donations through PayPal at hra246@gmail.com.  Those donating $20 or more will receive receipts for tax purposes.

Out to Pasture after 55…..not me!!!

By

Howie Appel

Executive Director, ProNet Career Resources

Some say that after 55 (I’m 66!!) you are “set out to pasture” to graze for the rest of your life.  I take issue with that.  The question really is what’s in that pasture?

I see a pasture with 3 distinct sections.  Section one has an abundance of grass.  The “Senior Citizens” (SC) there are grazing to their hearts content, loving it.  They are making money, they are relaxing doing what they really want to do and don’t care what their age is.

The second section of the pasture is sparse.  There is some grass and the SC who have “settled” there are complaining that there is some grass there, but they want more.  They are working on a “Plan B” because during their prime (before they were set out to pasture) they were making a salary and loving it.  Now they have to work, and work harder so that they can eventually meander over to “Section one” where there’s an abundance of grass.

The third section is sandy.  It has no grass.  There are a few SC over there, but they are constantly complaining that there is absolutely nothing out there (do I hear apathy?).  They have worked hard and now they are standing there trying to find SOME grass to graze on, but they are just not finding it.  They are not prepared for this eventuality.  They have been given advice by dozens of people and have opted to take the wrong advice as those people didn’t have a clue as to what they were talking about but felt comfortable just  “giving advice”.  These are people who are “doubting Toms”.

Now, let’s revisit that second area.  What led them to the path where there is some grass?  Preparation?  Great advice from those “in the know”?  Networking with the right people?  A high quality resume and LinkedIn profile?  The answer of course is yes to all the above.  Will they (or can they) meander quickly to the dense grassy area and make something of their life?  The answer is a definite YES. 

Preparation is the key word.  There is no genetic or DNA issue here.  There is no magic formula.  There is no large bank account.  There is no large “silver spoon”.  It takes hard work to get to that middle patch.  Yes, we all want to be in the far left grassy patch (Section one).  We can do it….won’t happen overnight….it may never happen, but we can’t say we didn’t try.  We all went to bed those nights saying, “we did the best we could all day and into the night.  We are being paid what we are worth. We are not being paid what others feel we are worth.    If we took a tablet and put two columns, we’d see something like the following:

Plan A (a paid position) Versus Plan B – The alternative

Plan A – The job we love to hate or hate to love	Plan B – I’ll do my own thing and make the best of it
·       A paycheck each week	·       A commission check saying this is what you accomplished
·       The boss tells me what hours I must work	·       I work the hours I must work to make some money
·       You are assigned to work on a team full of like skills and you must work as a team or be told you are changing teams	·       You are working independently or your team mates (aka downline) are doing their best under your guidance
·       You must be available evenings or weekends when assigned by your boss	·       You work whatever hours it takes to get the job done

This chart depicts the difference between working for someone and working for yourself.  As the “new crop of senior citizens, we all want to have a weekly pay check.  We all want to have our bills paid on time.   We want all stores to have “senior discounts”.  This is a new age for us.  We are used to working in our comfort zones, that “box “ called 1980 when we saw life a lot easier. 

Newsflash, this is the 21^st century and we are (by our own admission) BabyBoomers or “Boomers” for short.  We were born post WWII.  We didn’t have a choice!!!  Now we have children and grandchildren.  We are in the same or similar boat that our grandparents and parents may have been  in during the 60’s and 70’s.  Only the economy IS NOT the same.  It is terribly different.  

Are your skills where they should be?  Should you go to school to update those skills?  There is a mountain of questions to be asked and, yes, answered.  Should you seek help?  A resounding YES is in order here.  What kind of help should you seek?  Help comes from those who either “have been there” or from those who ARE there and are struggling just like you.  The word NETWORKING comes to mind.  These could be your peers and (yes) even your competition. 

The biggest selling point YOU have is YOU.  That’s right.  Walk up to someone and smile.  Stand on a street corner and look up.  How many will stop and look up right beside you?  Your “soft” skills are just as important as your “hard “skills.  Soft skills are that grin or smile you always display.  That sense of humor.  Having “people skills” is over used. 

The next selling point is your resume.  Does it tell the whole story?  Although I am an expert resume writer, I will not sit here and tell you to meet with me.  This is not my time to self-promote.  I will say this though, and that is that your resume is not an android.  YOU are not an android!    There are rules and rules governing how a resume should be written.  I am not going to expound on ANY of them at this point.  I will say, however, that if you talk to 12 different people, you are going to get 12 DIFFERENT ANSWERS.  Some may be the same, some will be different.  Who makes the decision ultimately?  You do!!! 

The last selling point is your LinkedIn Profile.  It MUST match your resume.  Again, I am not going to promote my seminars, aside to say that they deal with creating a polished LinkedIn Profile.  If you don’t promote yourself….no one else will.  Remember, if it is to be, it’s up to me.  If you don’t self-promote, someone else will and that person (could be a good friend in the same field) will get the position before you do!!  So you ask, “What’s in it for me”.  Plenty….a job or new position for starters.

Being “put out to pasture” is no fun.  No matter what section of the pasture you end up being in.  Growing up and getting gray, is (hopefully) a time that we are all looking forward to.  Better we are vertical than horizontal.  We read obituaries every day about those in their 60’s who opted to take their own life because they admitted to being (in their own view) losers. 

I heard the statement, “God didn’t make junk”.  We need to regroup, realize that we have peers and we have support groups who exist simply to help.  Are you taking advantage of them?  Leaders of these groups can “lead you to the trough” but we can’t make you drink.

You have to do your part.  What is your part?  Simple, don’t stay in “Section three”.  Meander over to the sparse grass and get used to it for a while.  Build and keep building.  Then, after you’ve built, meander over to the dense grass and START EATING.  After all, we are “boomers” and we are what we make of ourselves.  Plan B DOES exist.  Will you use it?  Or will you simply stay by the fence and watch others go for success?

Howie Appel

Executive Director

ProNet Career Resources

Resume Builder and LinkedIn Subject Matter Expert

407-373-4293

Hra246@gmail.com

www.linkedin.com/in/howieappel

Next Events:

LinkedIn Seminar for Job Seekers 11-13-13 Courtyard Marriott, Lake Mary

Resume Review 9am-10am

Seminar 10am – noon

LinkedIn Seminar for Job Seekers 11-21-13 College Park Baptist Church

Resume Review 9am-10am

Seminar 10am - noon

ProNet Monthly Meeting – 11-25-13 Succeed, Inc., 231 Live Oaks Blvd

Resume Review 5pm-5:30pm

Meeting 5:30-7:30

Did you know that there is a Monthly Meeting of ProNet Career Resources coming up on Monday September 23rd?  The new location is 231 Live Oaks Blvd (near 17/92 and 436) at Succeed, Inc.  It will go from 5:30 to 7:30.  Topic:  Teresa Walsh from Seminole State will discuss "Re-Inventing the Wheel, taking advantage of Plan B and other options to Re-invent your Career".
This meeting is FREE.

Also, now there are TWO LinkedIn Seminars for Job Seekers coming up?  Due to popular demand from job seekers wanting to learn how to use LinkedIn more effectively, I've found 2 venues.  September 26th at the College Park Baptist Church, 1914 Edgewater Drive (free resume reviews from 9-10am and Seminar is from 10-noon).  On September 30th there will be a Seminar at the library in Lake Mary from 3-5pm.  All these events are FREE.  Please RSVP to hra246@gmail.com as there is limited seating.

What are the 4 most important parts of an effective job search?

1.  A top notch resume that will "float" to the top of the pile on the recruiters' desk.
Replace "objective" with "summary".  Make sure your LinkedIn Profile is on the resume below your email address.  Are you a Veteran?  Say so.  Using US Army (for example) doesn't work in a key word search.  Any typos?  Have you had someone else proof read it?

2.  A top notch LinkedIn Profile.  The recruiter wants to see you as you "really" are, including a quality headshot.  What?  You're not on LinkedIn?  We will need to fix that!!

3.  A cover letter that drives the point home that you qualify for this position (yes, even if the resume doesn't clearly show that you do.....especially for career changers.  Need a sample of a high quality cover letter?  Email me (hra246@gmail.com) and I'll provide one for you.

4.  Your interviewing style, both on the phone and in person.  What do we mean by style?  Are you confident?  Do you smile alot?  Do you answer questions that are posed in a Behavioral Based Interview style, using the S.T.A.R. technique?  When was the last time you were interviewed?  Have you ever had a "mock" interview?

Which of these areas are you deficient in?  Which do you need to sharpen up on?  Write me at hra246@gmail.com and include your resume.  We will address these in a ProNet meeting as well.  Need your input though.  Ladies and Gentlemen...."step to the plate".....we'll get you "to the trough", now "drink" from it!!  In this economy you need to become the aggressor.  ProNet can help you....but you need to want it!!  Need coaching?  Email me and we can discuss your needs.  Remember, we are here to help!!

Resume Facts or Fiction:

1.  Resumes must be one page in length.  Fiction......Your resume is YOU.  If you are a recent college graduate you probably don't have a lot of experience and a one page resume should do fine.  If you have 20+ years experience, you can't begin to "tell your story" on one page.  Rule of thumb:  One Page:  recent college graduate or less than 10 years experience.  Two Page:  20+ years experience and/or a 4 year degree and 10 years experience.  Three Page:  You have a Masters Degree and a thesis to write about.  You have a lot of experience and the positions you're applying for require a lot of experience.

2.  One must have an "Objective.  Fiction.....The concept of an objective is to tell the employer what you want to do...either in precise or vague terms ("want to work for a growing company").  Honestly, companies don't care what you want to do.  They care what "can you do for them".....or what do you "bring to the table".  This information is brought to light in the first 7 seconds in what is now known as the "Summary".

Do you agree?  Disagree?  Let me know.  I will continue this blog as I see reactions!!

We are a couple of weeks away from our next ProNet meeting and we have received only a few RSVPs....hmmmm.  Wonder why.  Going to try to install a comments section on this blog.  Maybe you can give me some suggestions?  Have you been on our web site at www.pronetcareerresources.org or on our LinkedIn page or (yes finally) our facebook page?  Let me know your thoughts.

Our next ProNet Career Resources meeting is August 26th.  Due to an embarrassing turnout in July, we are asking for RSVP's to Howie at hra246@gmail.com  It has been a rough summer and many members are reevaluating their job search tactics and techniques.

I am looking for a venue that is more convenient, but no one has stepped to the plate to help me.  Both June and July meetings had overcast skys and some rane...could that have kept people away?  The price of gas is not coming down any time soon.  Is that stopping people from coming to meetigns?  If one goes for an interview only to find that it was an exercise in futility, is that a waste of gas?

Our goal is to help people in their job search.  Email campaigns are a means to that end.  Ken Countess of The Countess Group is in expert in this area and he will be our guest speaker.  Your joining us will show him that our group is vital to the support of those in transition.  He has volunteered his time.  Let's show him a large group.  Please RSVP as soon as possible.  Thanks.

LinkedIn FACTS...a Must Read

Many, many have asked me about LinkedIn issues.  Let me clarify two things.  First, a picture is necessary.  Your next employer is going to want to see what you look like.  Are you "professional enough looking for my staff", "are you showing the confidence I need to lead a team?"......etc.  If you leave out the picture they may wish to meet with you, but if you get turned down, one of the reasons may be that they didn't know what you looked like and wanted to see.

Second, groveling.  The phrase "seeking my next opportunity" is another way of saying "PLEASE hire me".  Simply using "(Available)" works just as well.  It's a key word and one that recruiters use to find people.

Suggest you check out my next LinkedIn Seminar which will be the 23rd of May at College Park Baptist Church on Edgewater Drive in Orlando.  It starts at 10am with a 5 minute resume review session starting at 9am.  RSVPs are required to hra246@gmail.com

Behavioural Based Questions - the STAR concept.  We will be going over this in our upcoming  ProNet Meeting.  More on this shortly.