life@work

Dream Big Coaching Services in the Press

Seattle Metropolitan magazine publishes a "Best of the City" issue each year, and I'm excited to announce that I'm featured in this year's list as Seattle's "top career coach"!

Seattleites will be interested to read about all of the stores, restaurants, activities and services featured in this July 2007 issue. You'll need to purchase the magazine to get all the details, however. I'm featured in the "Renew and Improve" section, along with an organizer, party planner, a budget-conscious stylist and many other services.

I started Dream Big Coaching Services four years ago this month with a mission to help people transform vision into action.

I had my mission, my coach certification, passion for what I was about to begin, skills and experience gained from a career in human resources, a variety of other talents and skills, time, support from my family, ideas and hope.

What I didn't have: entrepreneurial experience, marketing experience, or supreme confidence and certainty about how exactly my business would develop.

Over time I learned that I could gain the first two elements but would have to be comfortable with a certain degree of not knowing.

When I accepted that I wouldn't be able to predict how exactly my business would evolve, I relaxed into doing the work. I learned through trial and error, I hired my own coach, I talked with peers, I read, and I followed my natural talents and interests. Out went attending huge networking groups. In came blogging.

In the last four years I've had ups and downs, joys and disappointments, successes and failures. What I keep coming back to is the mission of my business.

My mission happens to be something I care about deeply: to help people dream big and then help them get out there and actually make it happen.

It's a thrill for me to love my job, and it's exciting to help others figure out how they can find career happiness, too. Today is a perfect day to reflect on the first four years of my coaching business.

What's your mission for your career?

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

 

Be Yourself at the Interview

Almost fourteen years ago I interviewed for a job with someone who would subsequently become my manager and mentor. The last question she asked me in the interview was this:

"What's the most important lesson you've learned?"

Now when you think about it, that's a whopper of a question. You can go broad with this one or stay narrow. You can get personal or keep it generic. You can be flip or be serious.

But I didn't think about it. The interview had gone really well, I was relaxed, I was feeling confident, and I simply answered what popped into my head, which was something like, "To always be myself. Pretending to be someone else doesn't work."

I was 26 years old, and I was onto something. And I was hired.

The brilliance of my answer wasn't what got me the job. It was a sincere answer, and one in which I still strongly agree with, but that's not why I got the job. I got the job because there was a good fit between who I was, who my manager-to-be was, the job I'd be doing, and the company culture.

As this recent article from Career Journal points out, "fit" means a lot once you get to the job interview stage. You presumably already have been judged to possess the skills and background to perform the job. Now it's about whether you like them and they like you.

So at the interview, be the real you. Yes, it's smart to strategically plan for the interview. Winging it and spending no time on preparation are not strategically smart plans. Of course you want to plan, practice, and put your best foot forward in the interview.

But if you present yourself as a passionate evangelist of the product who loves to work on a team with a very loose structure, when really you have little knowledge of the product and prefer to work independently with objectives clearly laid out, you do no one any favors.

If you do get the job, it won't be a good fit for you. It will feel like walking out of the shoe store wearing an attractive pair that pinch your little toe no matter what socks you wear. You knew they weren't a good fit when you tried them on, but you really tried your hardest to like them. They're so nice looking and they were on sale, and you really needed new shoes.

Two miles later you've got one hell of a blister.

Don't lose yourself in the process of interviewing. You're looking for a job, manager and organization that fit you and in which you fit, and that might take a lot of trying on.

When you do find a job that makes excellent use of your talents and gives you the opportunities that you're genuinely looking for, you'll be glad that you didn't walk out of the shoe store too early!

(cross-posted at Career Hub)

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

Technorati Tags: interviewing, job interviews, interview skills, career hub

Five Things About Me

Eek, I've been tagged with a meme!

I hadn't heard about these until recently. It's the ol' chain letter of the blogosphere if you ask me. But I'll bite.

Carrick was the culprit who tagged me, and since he, a private guy, was game enough to come up with five things that you may not know about him, I figured I can do it too. I'm much more of a blabbermouth than he is. Plus his post was hilarious and therefore inspiring. Plus I didn't know a lot of that stuff about him, which was intriguing. (I'm Carrick's sister, so I thought I was in the know!)

Since this usually isn't a personal blog, I'll try to keep this concise. Please skip this post if you couldn't care less!

Five Things About Me

1. I just absolutely despise beets. You can roast 'em, you can pickle 'em, you can drizzle a lovely vinaigrette on them in a salad, you can whir them into a soup, and I just can't stand them. It's just about the only vegetable that I can't choke down.

2. I never took a single math class in college. Wow, how'd I manage that? Lemme tell you, it wasn't because I tested out of the subject! My college did not require a "core" set of classes in order to graduate. So math was just out of the picture for me. Hey, I can figure out percentages and use a calculator, so I'm pretty set for life. And yes, I managed to skip organic chemistry as well.

3. Other people's travel photos bore me to tears. "Ouch!" a few of you whom I know for a fact have shown me your vacation photos are now saying to yourselves. But let me clarify. I love to look at the photos you've got up on flickr or the album you give me free reign to peruse at my pace. Just please don't make me sit through your slides or hold me captive as you explain each photo. First my eyes will glaze over and then I will fall asleep, it's practically guaranteed!

4. One of my most embarrassing moments as a teenager was seeing (a very nasty) part of A Clockwork Orange at my date's house with my date and his father before his father drove us to a dance. It took poise to survive those moments, I'm telling you. Why someone decided having that movie on at that time was a good idea still utterly baffles me. Being driven to a dance by your date's dad should be enough to endure without full frontal male nudity being thrown into the mix.

5. I knew an HR career was not a great fit for me years before I left it. Why did I stay? I was in my 20's and needed to support myself, I was good at it even if it wasn't my heart's desire, I didn't have any better ideas, I was pretty risk averse, I didn't entirely trust my instincts, and I didn't have confidence that I could make a switch successfully. I don't have any regrets about staying, and I don't have any regrets now that it has been years since I left it and found work that is much more satisfying to me. Hey, it's all a learning process.

Now according to blog meme rules, I'm supposed to tag other bloggers. But since I've never been one for chain letters, you can decide whether you want to participate! I'd love to read about you.

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

A Break from Blogging

Seems like I've taken an unofficial break from blogging for the last couple of weeks.

This is a sign for me that I need to make it official! It's time for a vacation from blogging. I'm looking forward to returning recharged and refreshed.

It won't be a long break.

And by the way, are you taking your vacation time at your own job? Many of us don't, because it's so much work before we leave and after we return, or because it's always too busy at work, or because we're convinced we're indispensable.

But you know what they say about all work and no play.

See you soon!

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

A Great Job Search Blog, Plus What I Help People Do

Of all the job search blogs I follow, my current fave is C.M. Russell's Secrets of the Job Hunt.

I was going to choose one recent post of his to highlight, but they're all great - just go check out the blog. The advice is up-to-the-minute and covers everything from networking to resumes to why you should be nice to the receptionist.

I especially enjoy a blog with audio posts and interviews. (Hmm...note to self!)

I'm going to let go giving so much job search advice in my coaching business and in my blog. Bloggers like C.M. who are focused intently on job search do a great job covering that area.

After a stint of coaching clients through job search processes and helping them with interviews I'm realizing that what I'm truly passionate about is helping people find the courage and the gumption to decide what they really want in their careers.

I love working with people way before they get into job search mode. My favorite clients are the ones who feel a nagging tug that they want something different or something more from their careers, but they can't nail it down or don't know where to start answering questions such as:

• What do I want?
• What's next for me in my career?
• How will I find career happiness?
• How do I start figuring this all out?

Getting clear myself about the people I best serve is part of the process of finding my own career happiness.

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

Technorati Tags: cm russell, secrets of the job hunt, job search, career happiness

Scott Adams on Affirmations and How They've Worked for Him

I love the sense of humor in Scott Adams' Dilbert strip. When I was in HR, I especially adored Catbert, the evil HR director. Such a cynical and smart take on just how evil HR can be.

So it's fascinating to me to read Scott Adams' post about how he's used affirmations to achieve important goals. He's of course funny in this post, but is also self-deprecating and honest about how he can't explain exactly why they've worked.

Writing down or repeating affirmations out loud can be quite a woo-woo process. I found it surprising and charming to learn that someone like Scott (whom of course I've never met but who I imagine to be solidly connected to earth as he looks for and hilariously describes the absurd aspects of our everyday lives at the office) not only uses affirmations but is willing to admit it and write about it.

I've dabbled in the practice myself but so far it hasn't caught hold. I just feel really silly writing phrases over and over again that aren't true (yet!)

However, I'm comfortable with guided visualizations and all kinds of different journaling techniques, and can be relatively woo-woo when called upon.

What about you? Have you ever written down what you want repeatedly over time? If so, what results did you get?

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

Technorati Tags: scott adams, affirmations, goal setting

Tuesday is Take Back Your Time Day

I almost didn't have time to write about Take Back Your Time Day. How ironic.

October 24, 2006 is the 4th annual such day, a day to call attention to the problem of time stress and have a public conversation about it.

This year's theme is "Let's Get Back to the Table!" , reminding people about the joys of gathering around the table.

Are you working more and enjoying your life less? Does your schedule feel like a road race? You might want to check this movement out.

There's a list of 50 quick things you can do for Take Back Your Time Day. Take a look and choose just one to do (it's a great list, including "cancel something" and "sleep late" - something for everyone!)

When this one day of the year is over, what will you do to remain mindful of your time and how you spend it?

I'm overhauling my entire approach to how I schedule my business and all the other containers in my life into which I put my energy. As I told someone just last week, I've been pouring two gallons of water into a one gallon jug and finding myself continually surprised and dismayed at the mess on the floor.

Time for a mop and a different container.

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

Technorati Tags: take back your time day, time stress, time management, stress reduction

Why I Love What I Do

8 and 5 year old girls (at least mine) just love to draw pastel bunnies and kitties.

I'm happy to have chosen work that allows me time to draw along with them. Because they're 8 and 5, and they want me to draw with them. In a few years, they'll just want rides to the mall, right? Preferably with me saying as little as possible. (I'm thinking of this book I've seen on the shelves at the bookstore periodically, "Get Out of My Life, But First Could You Drive Me and Cheryl to the Mall?")

So career happiness for me isn't just about what I do in my career, but how I can live my life outside of my career and how my career choice affects my family.

If I were still a full-time HR director, would I have as much time for drawing forest animals?

I'm guessing not as much time as I would want.

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

Career Mom Radio: A Weekly Podcast for All Kinds of Moms

There's a new podcast show for moms that might interest you - it's called Career Mom Radio, and it's dedicated to moms:

Moms who've had a child and stayed home for a few years and are now thinking of coming back. It's about moms who faced that decision and decided to stay home. And it's for moms who have been back to work for a while, and who are looking for work that might better balance their work-life balance.

Erica Douglas, who writes the Littlemummy blog and has an incredibly charming Scottish accent, is the Executive Producer. There's a team of regular contributors (including me!) who talk about all kinds of different issues about careers and motherhood.

The show is informative, personal, honest, funny at times, and easy to listen to during your commute or while you do the dishes.

"Launching a Business" is the theme of this week's show. Give a listen and let me know your thoughts!

You can find Career Mom Radio on iTunes too. Every Friday you'll get a new show.

And if you know of a career-related podcast I should be listening to, let me know!

Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com

Blue Sky Resumes - It's Where to Go!

A few weeks ago I wrote about how I hired a professional resume writer to help me update my outmoded resume. I wanted a first-rate document to use as I pursue more coaching partnerships and new associations.

Getting the information to the writer that she needed to create a killer resume was not easy for me. You may recall me whining quite a bit about this in my post.

But now that I have my new top-quality resume in hand, I feel somewhat like a proud mother with my newborn baby. Sure, it took some work on my part to get this kid out, but who cares about that now!

There's no way on earth that I could have crafted a resume as effective as my new one. This is crystal clear to me now. I could no more have written this resume than have built my own house or have landed a plane at the airport. This is because good resume writing is a specialized skill that takes training, experience, a particular knowledge of recruiting and marketing, and plain ol' talent to do well.

I can write, and I've seen about one bazillion resumes in my career, neither of which means I can create a top-notch resume. Especially my own top-notch resume.

So before I get to the glowing report on who I hired for the job, here are my top 3 reasons why you should hand over the resume writing to a professional:

1. Your resume is a crucial marketing document that is your ticket into future opportunities. It is not a list of all your past jobs and job duties. It needs to attract the audience you want and highlight what that audience wants to see. It needs to create excitement and differentiate itself from the others in the big pile within seconds. Do you know exactly what this means for you? Is this really your expertise?

2. Writing your own resume can be like cutting your own hair, giving yourself advice, or, yes I know this is a bit extreme, setting your own leg after you've broken it. In other words, having an outside professional's perspective on the job can make all the difference in how well that job is performed.

Many of us suffer from "accomplishment amnesia". We completely forget all the great things we've done very soon after we do them. The negatives compel our focus much more. Also we tend to discount as "no big deal" accomplishments that are in fact noteworthy. A professional resume writer understands what you should be bragging about better than you do and has no hesitation about horn tooting.

3. Remember the last time you wrote your resume and how excruciating (or at the very least tedious) that was? Imagine the feeling you'd have reading your new resume that just "magically" arrived in your in-box. The resume someone else worded perfectly and made look all pretty. I'm telling you it's like coming home after someone else cleaned your house only better, because for one thing you know your resume is not going to be messy again in 15 minutes. It's soooo worth it!

"Sign me up!" you say. "Where can I get all this resume goodness?"

Head on over to Blue Sky Resumes, where co-founder Louise Fletcher and her associates will take very good care of you.

They're professional, they're thorough, they're fairly priced and they're very, very skilled. Louise writes a great blog that you should check out, too.

So ends my (unpaid, really!) ringing endorsement of a professional resume writing service that I was most pleased with!

Technorati Tags: resume, resume writer, blue sky resumes, louise fletcher
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Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com