EDITORIALS

The world of job search is filled with a lot of cruel jokes.I have often argued that when the answer is no with respect to your candidacy, the best thing you can probably do is stop listening. The reason is that just about everything that follows will either not be entirely true or will be...

It is a true fact (as opposed to a false fact) that most people over value job leads. Perhaps I have said this before, but the real deal is networking, networking and more networking.That said I thought it might be of interest to all of you for me to share my own personal theories as to wh...

The FENG is a circle of friends, not a job listing service. The question I would have for each of you is, have you recently worked to expand your inner circle of friends within The FENG?Regardless of when you joined our august body, and even if you went through our membership directory at ...

One of the common complaints I hear from people about their current or prior jobs is how political the situation is or was. To me, this is like complaining about the weather.There is always going to be weather. It is my belief that you can’t really appreciate a sunny day unless you have ex...

I hope no one will be offended by the thought that corporations are reptilian. All I mean to imply by this statement is that although corporations appear to have human elements, they actually have no feelings.We have all met and in fact we may individually have been dedicated employees, bu...

More often than not, members of our networking group prefer to change industries when they change jobs.I have to agree that changing industries isn’t such a bad idea. In fact, the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills we have learned to a totally new situation is an attractive conc...

When I was in my mid 30’s, I had the great honor of being treasurer of my congregation, a job I held for 4 full years.It is probably true that I lean towards all-consuming jobs. Or, perhaps I just try to do a good job even when I am not getting paid. Nonetheless, I discovered a lot about h...

During the upcoming Memorial Day holiday weekend, a great opportunity will be presenting itself to you in the form of gatherings of those who know you (and presumably love you).In order to enjoy the greatest benefit, you need to paint on a smile. I don’t care if you have been out of work 3...

There is an extended joke I heard a while back about a man who experienced a flight cancellation. As a matter of fact, he was not alone. The line was long and as the minutes turned to an hour, he was getting angrier and angrier.When he finally got to the head of the line he demanded to be ...

There is no greater challenge in this world than summing yourself up in 90 seconds or writing a proper summary for your resume.As many of you know, I was CFO of an advertising agency in the 1980’s. Initially, I used to wonder why the creative folks got paid so well. As I got more and more ...

I always find it interesting what people say about themselves.Those who deal in hiring decisions have so many hidden tools in their arsenal. I suppose the obvious manifestations of who you are come across in the body of your resume and, of course, in your 90-second announcement. What those...

I used to be very good at multi-tasking. Now that I have gotten older, I am not as good at it.I have a lot to do every day, so when someone writes or calls I find it very helpful if they take a moment at the beginning of their communication to give me some hint how I might be most helpful ...

In our male dominated society called The FENG, one of the biggest challenges I face on a daily basis is getting members to ask for and accept help.I am sure we all know that traditionally guys don’t ask for directions at the gas station. It is much better to drive around and around totally...

One of the pearls of wisdom I heard from a friend of mine in 1991 was that no one is out of work forever, it just seems that way.When you are employed in a W-2 job, weekends and evenings are hopefully your time to relax. Snow days, holidays are also to be anticipated and enjoyed. After all...

Some of the notes that I get from our many learned members fill me with dismay. I often wonder, do they send notes with spelling and grammatical errors just to me, or do they provide this special service to everyone in the world?I do get a chuckle over some of them, but by and large I get ...

We do live in a wonderful time. We have Google, LinkedIn, and every firm that is actually in business has a website.I am always a little disappointed when someone reaches out to me and I realize they haven’t actually looked me up. Just exactly how much time would it take? If you type Matt ...

Of course it would be an understatement to tell you that I believe in the value of a FULL outgoing signature. In much the same way that I am a Fanatic FENG’er, I am also a fanatic when it comes to the substance and format of outgoing signatures. (Persnickety is another word.)I try not to b...

Part of the lecture I deliver to new members who call me is that The FENG is a networking group, not a job listing service. I then add that they shouldn’t allow the fact that we are publishing lots of job leads each month confuse them about our true purpose.In the beginning (when God creat...

One of the many things I am always surprised about is the degree to which most members of The FENG generalize their very specific talents.I assume that this approach is their attempt to broaden their background and make it appear more appealing to a larger audience. While it is always requ...

Although we are frequently willing to accept lower salaries and/or lesser responsibilities, the greater challenge is convincing the world at large of our willingness and overcoming their resistance.What we see as age discrimination, they see as just plain common sense in screening candidat...

One of the worst things that anyone networking can do is to ask if you know of any jobs for them. I can assure you that the most likely answer will be something to the effect that two weeks ago they came across something that was right for you, but they can’t remember who it was they heard...