Focus: Taking a Targeted Approach

“We have more ability than will power, and it is often an excuse to ourselves that we imagine that things are impossible.” ~~François de la Rochefoucauld~~

I’ve spent a great deal of time over the last few weeks talking with job seekers about the importance of being “targeted” in their search. You need to know who your target audience is and tailor your message to them. You need to be targeted in your networking efforts, targeted in your conversations and you need to target your value proposition, your cover letter, and even your resume. Of course, that got me thinking about myself and my approach to my own business and, frankly, my life in general.

I know that staying focused is critical to my success. I know that there are so many things I want to do, and it is so easy to get distracted. I can spend hours on twitter in the name of organizing my lists believing that will help me be more productive later… and while that is absolutely the truth, it is likely not the best use of my time in the middle of my work day… What if, instead, every conversation, every email, every internet search, every Facebook post, every tweet, (read: every effort) was targeted and focused on one single desired outcome?

What if you took a few minutes each morning to decide what you would like to achieve, and then focus all of your efforts for that day on achieving it? That could be really powerful! First step: figuring out what you want to achieve…

Attitude: Your Public Face

“Well we all have a face
That we hide away forever
And we take them out and
Show ourselves
When everyone has gone
Some are satin some are steel
Some are silk and some are leather
They're the faces of the stranger
But we love to try them on.”

~~Billy Joel, “The Stranger”~~

Have you thought about who you are in public? Are you different at home with your family than you are “in business”? Have you considered your online persona? Are you the same? As I talk to more people about the importance of an online presence in today’s marketplace I encounter many who don’t understand who they “should be” online. A few tips: 1. Be yourself. 2. Listen first to what’s going on around you, and then engage in conversation. 3. Add value and insight. And 4, which is the most important advice I can offer, stay positive. No.Matter.What.

It is becoming more and more apparent as online social networking tools increase in popularity that too many people still don’t understand the impact of negativity in public. Say whatever you want to at home behind closed doors, but when you’re out there, whether in person or behind a computer screen, please, I beg you, stay positive. Airing dirty laundry, complaining about your job (or lack of one), dissing the guy you just interviewed with in front of MILLIONS of people online, or otherwise being negative and whiny is just not going to help you. Not in any way.

If you really can’t think of a way to spin it so it’s positive, if you simply cannot find that silver lining, just stay off the computer. You’ll be glad later that you made that choice.

Focus: The Organization Correlation

“Whenever your mind is totally absorbed in whatever activities you are performing, your mind will remain calm and content.” ~~Chin-Ning Chu~~

Being able to focus, actually minimizing or ignoring distractions, and seeing something through to completion, is a valuable ability. Whether you’re researching, writing, or even talking with someone, that ability to be present and be fully engrossed by the task at hand is a skill. Is there a direct correlation between that kind of intentional focus and being organized?

When presenting social media tools to be used for job search, the number one complaint I hear is that there is too much noise online. People state that they get too many emails, there’s too much activity on LinkedIn and it takes too long to read through it all to determine what is valuable. There are too many people on Twitter still telling the world that they’re eating breakfast or walking their dog. And, don’t even get them started on Facebook. They’re so surprised when I show them how to turn off the email that floods their “real” inbox from LinkedIn, how to manage the content that shows up on their homepage, how to create Twitter lists and use an application like Hootsuite** to manage what they see… It’s pretty eye-opening. They CAN actually focus on what’s important to them by simply getting organized.

If I take that a step further and I think about the “clearing the clutter” phase I just went through, I realize that I too can stay more focused when I am organized. There are fewer physical distractions, fewer “other” things to do, when my workspace is clear and things are put away. This may seem like “common sense” to you, but it’s not something I’ve ever really thought about… What is the correlation between organization and focus? Does it work that way for you too?

**To sign up for Hootsuite (FREE!!!!) click here: http://hootsuite.com/p_4061

Preparation

“If you find it in your heart to care for somebody else, you will have succeeded.”
~~Maya Angelou~~

Preparing for your attitude adjustment:

I had an interesting conversation this weekend about the “attitude adjustment” movement. We were discussing ways to become more positive ourselves in order to be a more positive influence on others. It was said that it is imperative that you take care of yourself. I agree wholeheartedly. It is critical to your own happiness that you are, and that you stay, aware of your own needs, and that you do not lose your sense of self in a world that is so chaotic and often cruel. I was asked how one could be a positive influence to others; how one could help someone else have an attitude adjustment, if they themselves are unhappy. I raised the possibility that the act of helping someone else feel better in its own right could help you feel better yourself. Giving to someone else could help lift you out of your slump. The process of helping someone adjust their perceptions could be just as helpful to you as it is to them. So, if you’re not quite yet feeling up to it, prepare for your own attitude adjustment by helping someone else adjust theirs. You just might be surprised at how good you both feel.

I would like to add a special note of gratitude and acknowledgement to someone who inspired me to write about the “attitude adjustment” movement… Paul Sutherland, known on Twitter as @BreakThruGuy. Thanks Paul, for allowing me to be part of your “positive posse”.

Friday: Motivation

“Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough. “ ~ Og Mandino

I participated yesterday in a great conversation on twitter around being “bold”. @TechTrak took issue with a re-tweet of the quote, “Hope is the power that gives a person the confidence to step out and try.” by Zig Ziglar. @TechTrak feels that it is being BOLD that has the power. I feel that without hope, dreams, goals... there is little reason to be bold; that these things provide the necessary motivation to take action and accomplish things. He partially agreed saying that, “Motivation is closer to boldness than hope”, but that you are, “skirting issues if you don't have GUTS.” So, on this “Motivation Friday”, I ask you: Are you bold? Do you have guts? Is your determination to succeed strong enough?

“Nature decrees that we do not exceed the speed of light. All other impossibilities are optional.” ~Robert Brault