Over the years, we have seen equally talented people producewidely varying results. One will struggle while the other moveswith speed. Those who move rapidly usually have had the benefi tof a game plan—a step-by-step track to follow.In today’s competitive arena most people will never get enoughinterviews with a hit-or-miss approach.

This leaves too much tofate. Think of it this way. Chances are you’re marketing a “product”with millions of dollars of earnings capacity remaining in yourcareer. That much value deserves your best effort. Besides, jobhunting is a numbers game.

So, why take a chance at doing alot of things haphazardly, without a well-designed plan?Since job hunting is a matter of having the numbers on yourside, your action plan should be targeted to produce 25 to 35responses that result in a phone discussion.

The goal is to haveseveral offers maturing at the same time, and you have to berealistic about rejections in the interview process.Similar to any company who is about to market a newproduct, a good plan can cut job hunting time in half and savemoney. It also helps people produce better results, and whenpeople generate a lot of activity in a concentrated time period,they feel better and do better. Much better.

To begin with… (1) Surface the right information about yourselfand set clear goals

(2) pinpoint what you should be marketing,especially your transferable skills

(3) identify industry alternativesto target

(4) if you have liabilities, you need strategies toneutralize them

(5) you need a step-by-step game plan…an action agenda… to get your story told to all the right people.Here’s a recap of what our plans cover: Job hunting goals: Surface all critical information about yourself and then decide on the goals that will advance your career.

This includes specific job titles and income goals.Liabilities & solutions: You need to identify liability issues thatmight restrict your success… and arrive at ways for minimizingtheir impact in all written materials and conversations.

Assets, transferable skills & how to market them: All of yourassets and skills need to be identified. Then, they need to beincorporated into your resume and letters, and your personalmarketing website.

You’ll need to do more than just present your background. Don’ttrap yourself by thinking, “This is simply who I am, where I’vebeen and what I’ve done.” People fail because they never surfaceand communicate all that is marketable about themselves… and they never build their appeal beyond factual credentials.

Your starting point is to organize your lifetime of experiencesand achievements. Whether you are a young attorney ora company president, there is probably much more to your storythan meets the eye.Experience has proven that many people never identify 50% of their own assets, simply because they’re so close to their ownsituation.

We’ve learned that most people need to identify 10to 20 skills that, if properly communicated, can make a majordifference in their career opportunities. Each year, about 20% of the clients who come to us havesettled for less, simply because they are not able to communicatetheir real skills. For example, one client was earning a $65,000base after almost 20 years.

Three years later, she is earning$180,000. Another executive came to us at $125,000. Three yearslater, he is a CEO at many times that amount. The key in bothsituations was to market their true assets.It has been said time and again by psychologists, spiritualleaders and coaches that the most restrictive limits you face are those you put on yourself. So, don’t put any limits on your thinking,and look at some factors that you may have overlooked…which will expand your marketability.

Do you have knowledge of a job, a product, a process or a market…from work, hobbies, alumni relationships, research or suppliers? If so, it may be marketable.

Personality, of course, is just a word for that combinationof traits that either attracts us to someone or leaves us unimpressed. More employment decisions are based on personalityand chemistry than any other factor. For example: “He’s certainlyprofessional and quick-thinking. I like him, and better yet, Itrust him. He’ll fi t in with our team. I need to get him into the firm.” The perception of your personality has to do with yourinterest and enthusiasm. How many people get hired becausethey showed real interest? A lot.

Why does direct mail work? Every day we all receive directmail. However bad junk mail looks, the ones you see again andagain are working; otherwise, the senders wouldn’t be wastingtheir money.

One thing that makes it work in many cases is that longcopy is used. That’s what it takes to motivate all of us to actionfrom unasked-for correspondence. Here’s an example. Let’s saya lawn mower shop has a new product. And you and your nextdoor neighbor are both out cutting your lawns on a hot day.

However, your lawn mower breaks down.Then, the mail carrier arrives at both residences with mailthat tells you all about a new lawn mower. It gives a long explanationof why it’s superior. Now, your neighbor will look at themailing piece for two seconds and toss it.

He isn’t in the marketfor a lawn mower. On the other hand, they have reached you atthe right time, you are likely to read it. Now when you job hunt,your situation is similar. You need to reach the right person. Noone else counts.Some people don’t believe in direct employer contact. Theythink that anything you send to an employer is thrown away.Certainly, this has some truth, since the great majority willthrow away your materials in seconds.

But if you’ve ever needed someone with certain skills… thenyou know you want the easiest way to fi nd a good candidate.And if a good resume or letter reached you at the right time, youwould take action on it. Sending the right materials… to the right person… will get the attention of some decision makers.

But,timing is very critical. You need to reach a decision makerthat might be looking for someone like you. Even if your timingis bad, companies scan the resumes of the better candidates intotheir database. Then, as they develop a need… this is usually thefi rst place they turn. Contacting employers directly allows youto reach potential buyers quickly. If you want… you can reachthe entire universe of all your best prospects.

Some also worry that direct contact might makeyou look too desperate and hurt your image. But,this isn’t true. If they don’t need you, they will throwaway your correspondence in seconds… or somemay enter it into their database. In other words, it can do some good… but it won’t do any harm.

One thing is for certain… you will never generatemore offers by having fewer people know aboutyou. When more of the right people know aboutyou, more interest will be generated.

Since most people seldom face a personal negotiating experience,it should come as no surprise that few of us are real experts atnegotiating for ourselves. While they may be excellent companynegotiators, we have seen many strong people leave serious moneyon the table when it came to negotiating their own package.

Now, the fi rst thing you need to decide… is when to starta negotiation process. Some people mistakenly think negotiationis a continuous selling situation that occursthroughout their interviews. However, before youever attempt to negotiate, you have to make surethat the employer is “sold on you.”

Once an offer has been presented, you can’tnegotiate unless there is some hope you can getthe employer to offer new terms. You need to sensethis on an individual basis. That’s where negotiationsbegin.What to negotiateComing to grips with what should be negotiated is, of course,different for everyone.

Not too long ago we handled a marketingexecutive from Kellogg in Michigan. His primary goal wasto have his family move to a new area that met outdoor lifestylerequirements, and he started by suggesting to us that a 20%reduction in income would be acceptable.

However, after a three-month search, he accepted a top positionin Boca Raton. When we fi nished helping with his negotiations,his compensation ended up 15% higher, and he receiveda signing bonus, as well.Another executive was with J & J. He wanted out of the majorcorporate environment. He left his large company career behindwhen he landed with a venture capital group. His assignmentwas to oversee ventures that the fi rm funded by serving as actingCEO. He was to complete the initial setup, fi nd a permanent

CEO, and then move on to another assignment, but remain onthe board. Based in Castle Pines, Colorado, he will handle twoventures simultaneously for six-month periods—eight over twoyears. His base of $200,000 was a decrease, but if just one firm goes public, his equity benefit will be in the many millions.

Needless to say, the fi nal staging of his executive level negotiationsdidn’t just happen. In the discussion that follows, thebasics of our system are outlined in the most simple terms. Ifyou don’t have success, shift from the “present” and focus on the future: a review after six months, a better title, an automaticincrease after time. These are easier things to get.

It may surprise you, but many people actually pursue the wrong job titles. However, if they understood their real transferable skills, they could be repositioned for different goals, and sometimes for much more advancement than they thought possible.

Regardless of your most recent position, you need to think of yourself as “one of a kind” with diverse potentials.We all have seen career fields change dramatically over a decade. Fields that once offered great opportunity have become fi nancially confi ning with limited growth possibilities.

Does print advertising offer the same career possibilities as it did a decade ago? Does selling in the steel industry? Does being a doctor and a general practitioner? Career fields change at a much faster pace than most people realize.Experience has proven that if you take a narrow view of yourself, you could be making a mistake.

For example, if you see yourself as a specialist (e.g., a banker), you may believe you are locked into a given career. On the other hand, you may feel you have few options because you are too much of a generalist. More and more professionals are finding that they can have several direct careers over the course of a lifetime. Sometimes you can’t see them and you stumble into them.

Someone could be a radio sports broadcaster, then become an actor, then a politician… and subsequently governor of a major state and president of the United States (Ronald Reagan). And, of course, we all know many other examples, many famous and millions not so famous, but successful at many levels.

It may be that you should consider positioning yourself for more than one possible goal at this time, and running what we refer to as a “dual campaign.” For example, a logical step may be seeking a new job as a VP of Marketing. But you might also have accumulated knowledge and experience that would allow you to seek a position as a General Manager, or perhaps Chief Operating Officer, or even Chief Executive Officer in the right type of organization… in the right industry.

Find out what’s most  important to the interviewer. Ask questions that will get interviewers to articulate what’s most important. Of course, you’ll need to fi nd out what happened to the last person in the job. Ask about his experiences and those of his superiors.

Find out to whom the position reports and how long that person was in the job. Ask… “What would be the biggest challenge I would face?” Find out how the interviewer sees the problem, what the expectations are and what progress has been made. Of course, once you fi nd out what’s most important to the firm… you need to tell them that you have what they want.

Too many people let their resume be the basis for the whole discussion.

Tell stories that  make people remember you. In these stories indicate positive things you did to help organizations. The idea is to show how you demonstrated a particular skill or a personal quality. Develop SOAR stories that cover situations where you can demonstrate the value of fresh thinking as a means to improve productivity or solve problems.

Employers need to feel that you are the answer to one of their problems. If you can show them how you met or exceeded the needs in other places, they may conclude that you can do the same for them.The idea is to create stories that demonstrate the benefi ts you bring.

Remember, your “tickets” alone (degrees, titles, etc.) will not necessarily motivate another employer to hire you. You must use action words and phrases that add interest beyond your credentials. In the final analysis, employers hire people for what those phrases imply.

How good is your health? Besides saying your health is fi ne, you should go on to state that you are accustomed to working long hours and are quite capable of keeping up a fast pace. If you have a health problem that the interviewer could fi nd out about, give a truthful answer. However, point out that your condition has had no adverse effect on performance, attendance or ability to give 100 percent.

If you started over, what would you do differently? “On the whole I would have to say that I am extremely proud of my career achievements and quite happy with my career progression to date.”

What do you think of your boss? If you think your boss is great, it is pretty easy to answer this question. On the other hand, if you really didn’t get along with your boss, then this question becomes challenging.

Never discuss the shortcomings of your boss. Doing so will make you sound like a whiner or troublemaker. Instead, comment briefl y on some positive aspects of your boss, be they in his personality or her management style… and leave it at that.

It may surprise you, but many people actually pursue the wrong job titles. However, if they understood their real transferable skills, they could be repositioned for different goals, and sometimes for much more advancement than they thought possible.

Regardless of your most recent position, you need to think of yourself as “one of a kind” with diverse potentials.We all have seen career fi elds change dramatically over a decade. Fields that once offered great opportunity have become fi nancially confi ning with limited growth possibilities.

Does print advertising offer the same career possibilities as it did a decade ago? Does selling in the steel industry? Does being a doctor and a general practitioner? Career fi elds change at a much faster pace than most people realize.

Experience has proven that if you take a narrow view of yourself, you could be making a mistake. For example, if you see yourself as a specialist (e.g., a banker), you may believe you are locked into a given career. On the other hand, you may feel you have few options because you are too much of a generalist.

More and more professionals are fi nding that they can have several direct careers over the course of a lifetime. Sometimes you can’t see them and you stumble into them. Someone could be a radio sports broadcaster, then become an actor, then a politician… and subsequently governor of a major state and president of the United States (Ronald Reagan).

And, of course, we all know many other examples, many famous and millions not so famous, but successful at many levels.It may be that you should consider positioning yourself for more than one possible goal at this time, and running what we refer to as a “dual campaign.”

For example, a logical step may be seeking a new job as a VP of Marketing. But you might also have accumulated knowledge and experience that would allow you to seek a position as a General Manager, or perhaps Chief Operating Offi cer, or even Chief Executive Offi cer in the right type of organization… in the right industry.

Since most people seldom face a personal negotiating experience, it should come as no surprise that few of us are real experts at negotiating for ourselves. While they may be excellent company negotiators, we have seen many strong people leave serious money on the table when it came to negotiating their own package.

Now, the first thing you need to decide… is when to start a negotiation process. Some people mistakenly think negotiation is a continuous selling situation that occurs throughout their interviews. However, before you ever attempt to negotiate, you have to make sure that the employer is “sold on you.”

Once an offer has been presented, you can’t negotiate unless there is some hope you can get the employer to offer new terms. You need to sense this on an individual basis. That’s where negotiations begin.What to negotiateComing to grips with what should be negotiated is, of course, different for everyone.

Not too long ago we handled a marketing executive from Kellogg in Michigan. His primary goal was to have his family move to a new area that met outdoor lifestyle requirements, and he started by suggesting to us that a 20 percent reduction in income would be acceptable.

However, after a three-month search, he accepted a top position in Boca Raton. When we fi nished helping with his negotiations, his compensation ended up 15 percent higher, and he received a signing bonus, as well.Another executive was with J & J. He wanted out of the major corporate environment. He left his large company career behind when he landed with a venture capital group.

His assignment was to oversee ventures that the firm funded by serving as acting CEO. He was to complete the initial setup, fi nd a permanent CEO, and then move on to another assignment, but remain on the board. Based in Castle Pines, Colorado, he will handle two ventures simultaneously for six-month periods—eight over two years.

His base of $200,000 was a decrease, but if just one fi rm goes public, his equity benefi t will be in the many millions. Needless to say, the fi nal staging of his executive level negotiations didn’t just happen. In the discussion that follows, the basics of our system are outlined in the most simple terms. If you don’t have success, shift from the “present” and focus on the future: a review after six months, a better title, an automatic increase after time. These are easier things to get.

This chapter could by itself signifi cantly alter the results of your job search. Here’s why I say this. Over the last 10 years we’ve learned what really works and what doesn’t. In this discussion I will share this with you.

To appreciate the importance of superior resumes, let’s fi rst talk a little bit about the competition, and why it has devastated so many talented people. And keep in mind that when you look for a new job, you are reduced to how you look on paper.

Today, the number of resumes in circulation exceeds the imagination. GE receives 800,000 resumes a year… but they only hire about 4,000 people. That’s 1 out of every 200. Other wellknown fi rms say they get over 1,000 resumes for every opening.

And, when it comes to submitting your resume to an attractive ad… you should know that employers are now getting hundreds of candidates. Leading recruiters, like Korn Ferry and Heidrick and Struggles, now claim to receive more than 1,500 resumes a work day… 30,000 each month.

Unfortunately, despite the enormous competition, many people create a resume, show it to some friends or family members and then assume it’s fi ne. Ann Landers is famous for many quotes, but one applies here. “Don’t accept your dog’s admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful.” Just how good is your resume?

While many professionals still use traditional resumes, with this amount of competition, the fact is they don’t work very well anymore. The reason is that most of these resumes have one or more of the six major resume weaknesses… that can restrict job hunting success.

So, let’s start by having you assess your current resume… to see if it has these weaknesses:

1—Does your resume look like others?  Your resume must start by projecting an outstanding image… one that sets you apart. It must be eye-catching… not ordinary, plain vanilla and flat.

2—Does your resume reveal liabilities?  Even top executives can fi nd themselves continually derailed… because of the negative information they made available… without realizing it.

3—Third, does your resume sell transferable skills? Or, does it just sell your history and experience? Selling skills is an absolute necessity if you want to expand your market… change industries… join a growth firm… appeal to venture capitalists… or impress CEOs and other key decision makers.

It is true that in job seeking, “being too old” is often a negative. It is also true, however, that many people stay in dead-end jobs because they believe they are too old to change jobs. It doesn’t have to be that way.

At whatever age you begin to feel you have a liability, winning a new job is seldom a simple task. You could have just hit 40 in the advertising business… or lost your executive job at 63.

However, despite any diffi culties in adjustment that may be required, a good job change can bring you a totally new feeling about life. It is always amazing to see what the excitement of new work, a new location, and new associates does for people… in mental stimulation and good feelings. It can make you look and act ten years younger.

Here’s your reality. Age becomes a major problem only at that point when you mentally accept it as an obstacle. But, there are many things you can do to offset the imagined and real problems associated with age, starting with an examination of your own beliefs and attitudes.

Having the right mindsetIf you are feeling uncomfortable about your work situation, but not doing anything about it, fi rst ask yourself… are you using age as a convenient excuse? Many people who either do not have the confi dence… don’t know how to search for a job… or aren’t willing to go through the work, will use age as an excuse.

If this is you, you need to address it honestly, so you can begin to take action.There are several things you need to write down and remind yourself of daily. Consider the following: At this moment you possess all the skills, know-how and personal strengths that enabled you to make signifi cant contributions to employers over the years. They can still be applied today to help literally tens of thousands of employers.

So the question is not whether you should seek a new job, or seek a job if you are unemployed. It is what you should say and how you should say it, so that you get your “selling proposition” across to as many suitable employers as possible. The goal is simple. Have at least one person in one company make the decision to hire you for a position you would enjoy