MARYLAND CAREERS
GET CAREER ADVICE FROM EXPERTS
Copyright 1998 by Thomas E. Coates.
Do you have a complete list of all the jobs and occupations you’re qualified for? Clearly, the longer the list, the more opportunities you have. Would you like to enlarge your personal list of opportunities? The most authoritative suggestions come from supervisors in the field you’re interested in. This article describes, in step-by-step fashion, how to get these experts to advise you.
Don’t confuse this procedure with ones you’ll see in popular articles about "networking" and "information interviewing." This procedure does not require you to impose on acquaintances or strangers with time-wasting, self-serving schmoozing. Here, you’ll be asking important questions with no hidden agenda. But, you will need to be prepared.
1. You’re seeking advice, not a job. In order to get an expert assessment of your potential in a field that interests you, it's necessary to not be a jobseeker. The best assessments come from supervisors in the field you're exploring, and if they think you're looking for a job, they'll have to direct you to Human Resources. That's required in well-managed organizations, and you will thus miss out on an opportunity for an assessment from someone who makes hiring and assignment decisions.
Further, job seekers are under a lot of stress. If you’re trying to hunt for a job at the same time you’re conducting this procedure, your stress multiplies. Neither your job search nor your assessment inquiry will benefit.
But, if you are asking advice of someone in a town where you don't want to live or if you expect to be happily employed for months into the future, you clearly cannot be a job seeker. Whatever reason you give, you must be firm in your declarations that you aren't looking for a job. You just want a few minutes of expert advice.
2. You have a referral from a mutual acquaintance. Customers and family members of your target are best. Former professors are almost as good. Practically anyone is better than a cold call, for most of us. There are a few talented possessors of magnetic personalities who can wangle advice from total strangers unannounced. I can’t do that. But I have done well when I could mention the name of a mutual acquaintance.
3. You’re prepared to retain control in case they try to turn it into a job interview. It’s possible that the executive you’re interrogating will suddenly see you as a solution to an immediate need. You don’t want to discourage such a happy outcome, but you do want to retain control over your investigation. Besides, your credibility is at stake. You got in to see them because you said you weren’t looking for a job. Whip out your pocket planner and say, "I’m very impressed with what you’re telling me, but I’m not ready to conduct job interviews yet. How about [a specific date in the future]." Sign them up for a specific date and time. Stay in control.
4. You’re prepared to introduce yourself succinctly in terms of your education, experience and interests. We all need to be able to do this anyway. Three self-descriptions are needed: Five seconds, 20 seconds, and about one minute. Don’t memorize this material, but be clear on what you want to cover.
What questions should you ask, and in what order? Five questions are enough. I have tested these questions on scores of supervisors and they have agreed that the questions are important ones and they know how to answer them. Don’t tamper with the sequence. Once you are in front of your informant (or on the phone with them), do the following:
In fifteen or twenty seconds, summarize your experience, education and interests, with emphasis on results. Then ask, "How can I put these skills to work right away?
This will probably produce some questions about the fine points of your work history and achievements. In fact, these inquiries will be similar to interview questions, since the purpose is similar. Respond with additional descriptions of your relevant achievements.
It may take a few minutes of discussion, but you can expect that your counterpart will come up with a suggested occupation. After all, your question is an important one, and mobilizing talent is how they make their living. But if they can't think of anything, skip directly to the final question, below. Try to get some referrals and move on.
Ask a follow-up question related to the topic they've introduced. You could say, "That's interesting--what's the typical starting salary?" Every supervisor is an expert on what's required of each of the positions reporting to them and they've been told what the salary ranges are for new employees. Don't ask "How much could I make?" which is much harder to answer. You're just trying to find out at this point if you can even afford to consider such a position.
Money is a sterile topic. Change the subject, which you can easily do, since you are interviewing them. Ask, "How can I improve my qualifications?" This is another important question supervisors like to answer. Managers know how and where they want their people trained. So your follow-up question is: "Where's the best place to get that kind of schooling?" This is important because the best school may not be the one with the biggest ads.
At this point, you will have received authoritative answers to four important questions. Get ready to leave. Decision-makers value their time. But before you're out of the chair, ask one more question: "Can you suggest other people who can advise me?"
Make a record of your conversation. Note which of your achievement stories "worked" and which ones didn’t. This will be helpful in the future when you are hunting for a job and planning resumes and interviews.
Keep your conversation record by the telephone. The person you interviewed may call you with additional information. Such followups are of great value because they may turn into job interviews or additional referrals. If someone has continued to think about how they could help you, you will want to be able to resume the conversation without a break. You might even send them a holiday card.
Repeat the above procedure several times a month. Although most of us are reluctant to ask strangers for advice, you'll enjoy hearing respected experts give you new career ideas.
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