By Mary Ann Faremouth,
Because I come from an Italian family, food has always been a part of what binds us (and keeps us) together. I especially remember my grandmother cooking during the holidays, often with her grandchildren by her side helping her make her famous homemade ravioli. She put a lot of love into her recipes, but rarely wrote any of them down. She always told us she could just “feel” when the ravioli dough had the right amount of flour or egg. The kitchen was her domain; I believe her passion for cooking was passed down to my mother and also to her grandchildren. As the matriarch of the family, she taught us that cooking isn’t always about following precise measurements, but about how you “feel” the various ingredients and how you adapt it to the person for whom you are cooking. To this day, I can hear my grandmother talking about how important the right ingredients were to the success of her recipes.
Just like the perfect meal–the kind that keeps you going back for seconds and lives on in your memory as my grandmother’s cooking has for me–success in the New Work World starts with the right ingredients. Let’s take a look at a recipe of sorts that might give you insight into being more successful in these uncertain times. With so many changes in the world of employment, there really are not any precise measurements from the past that we should follow. Now, how we feel about a new job or having the right mindset or being able to work with others in a collaborative effort might just be the important “right” ingredients needed for success. Some of these ingredients may, in fact, also transfer over into other areas in your life for a successful outcome. Here’s a New Recipe for Success:
INGREDIENTS
1. A Targeted Approach to what you want to achieve
2. 5 cups positive Mindset
3. 1-3 professionally written Resumes
4. 5-7 Transferrable Skillsets, outlined
5. Education/On-line Courses sliced and diced as appropriate
6. 1-5 Mentors/Coaches/Networking Contacts simmered so as to not burn
7. Five heaping tablespoons of Research on prospective companies
9. Countering Objectives to taste on interview
10. A pinch of Sugar to take away the acid or bitter taste of previous experiences
11. 2 lbs quantifiable Results brought up to hiring authority
12. A heaping tablespoon of Gratitude/ Thank You notes after the interview
In a pot, combine the first three (3) ingredients to begin the process. Company representatives can often sense a well-prepared candidate who has taken the time to handle this process of interviewing. The resume is a crucial ingredient to this process that needs to be of the highest quality.
Next, mix together the next four (4) ingredients to be prepared to interview for a position that might require experiential learning or related experience. Contact mentors/company representatives, previous bosses who could be instrumental in verifying your good work ethic or others who might be instrumental in putting in a good word for you to the hiring authority. Consider the symbiotic relationships in the past and future that could foster positive interactions for all parties.
Add in and refine the digital touches that are important to the flavor of the recipe, making sure that pinch of sugar is noticeable when asking about previous jobs, reasons for leaving, gaps on your resume, etc.,
Reduce and refine your previous “secret sauce” to express quantifiable achievements in the past that have contributed to the success of previous employment.
Don’t take the pot off the stove until the recipe is fully cooked and a heaping teaspoon of gratitude by way of an email thank you message to the hiring authority is executed within the first 24 hours after interviewing. If a rejection letter is sent after the interview, respond in a positive manner by demonstrating your appreciation for the time taken for the opportunity to interview.
And finally…Taste What Might Be Missing
If you receive numerous rejection letters, contact another “Chef” or in this case a career coach of sorts who might advise you about how to refine your own personal ingredients for success to get a tastier version of your recipe in the New Work World. I remember hearing my sweet grandmother say: “Mary Ann, those meatballs need more Romano cheese. They need lots of cheese to bring out the flavor.” You might need a bit more of an ingredient to make this recipe one that will produce amazing results for you personally and professionally. The times preparing those wonderful dishes with my grandmother taught me many lessons not only in cooking but in life.
Just like successful cooking, the ingredients make all the difference. In any employment opportunity, you can find a recipe for success. The recipe for employment success in the New Work World is all about having those right ingredients and putting them together in a way that works for you. Put in heaping cups of a Positive Mindset and you, too, will be able to cook up the perfect recipe to achieve your career goals and get your career “cooking” in a way that produces rave reviews and personal contentment!
Mary Ann Faremouth
Mary Ann holds a CPC (Certified Personnel Consultant) credential, was certified by the Board of Regents of the National Association of Personnel Consultants in Washington, D.C., and was awarded an Advanced Communicator Bronze, Advanced Leader Bronze Awards by Toastmasters. She cofounded Jobs: Houston magazine in 1997. Mary Ann maintains affiliations with professional organizations, including oil and gas, financial, construction, IT, and structural, mechanical, and civil engineering. (www.faremouth.com)
Mary Ann’s award-winning first book Revolutionary Recruiting has been listed by Book Authority as Number #1 Best 100 Recruiting Books; #1 Best Seller, Non-Fiction, Amazon (2019); Top 20 Recruiting books, Recruitics; Readers’ Choice finalist (2019), Houston Literary Awards; Best Non-Fiction (2018), Best Cover (2019), and Best Self-Help (2018), Authors Marketing Guild. Her books support individuals and corporations, tap into each candidate’s unrealized potential to find the right person for each job, maximizing both employee satisfaction and the employer’s bottom line. Mary Ann showcases her expertise of the recruiting world on a monthly podcast for The Price of Business and weekly articles for USA Business. Her new workbook, Revolutionary Reinvention, was recently released on Amazon. Mary Ann lives in Houston, Texas.
