Malcolm O. Munro - The "Career Fitness" Coach

The Seductive Power of Misery

This past week I taught a class on writing performance self-assessments to a group of Department of Defense civilians and military folks to prepare them for evaluation under the National Security Personnel System (NSPS) which is now in full swing.  Now I've worked a lot with these audiences over the past few years and have yet to teach a group where they don't spend at least an hour expressing their distaste with the new system.  Their complaints most often focus on the perceived unfairness, the potential to get screwed over, and more or less the helplessness they feel as the system continues to unfold. This week's groups were no exception.  Fortunately, the course I was teaching showed them how much power they indeed had through the use of jointly set up (with their supervisor) job objectives and the added benefit of being able to write a detailed self-assessment of their performance.  As the course went on, they began to see how much control they did had and by the end of each day everyone left with a new-found confidence and even a bit of enthusiasm.  Well almost everyone.

I can't explain this, but it seems to me there are some folks who find a sense of comfort in a system where they're feeling victimized.  The lack of control they feel gives them comfort and also a license to complain and excuse away any poor performance.  Now let me say this isn't everyone, just a select few.  Frankly, I don't know how a person could live like this, but then again that's just me.

Maybe I just find comfort in focusing on the things I CAN control and not dwelling on all the things I can't.  In a strange way, that's probably the most significant power any of us have.  We can't control the attitudes who evaluate us, but we sure as heck can do the best job we can and seek out more responsibility to increase our value.  We can't control the price of gas as it goes over $4.00 per gallon, but we can opt to drive less, carpool more, and re-evaluate our driving habits.  We can whine to each other, or we can take the time to express our displeasure to someone who might have more power to effect change, like our elected officials.  No matter what you may think, you have control.  At a minimum, you control your attitude.  Optimism is a choice.  Joy is a conscious decision.  Love is a commitment.  If you think about it, we are far more powerful and in control than we think.  Those positive qualities are contagious.  Just as misery loves company, joy is seductive and attracts both the joyous and the dejected.  Fortunately, joyousness and thankfulness reap a far more positive outcome for all who choose to move toward it.

This week, why not take the opportunity to wield some real power?  Focus on what you can change and let others who are drawn to misery take your  "junk" from you!  I think it's a much healthier way to live, don't you?

Graduation: A Transition to Celebrate

I know today is Mother's Day (and happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there) but I'd like to talk a little about another milestone many adults are hitting this weekend:  Graduation.

College graduation falls a little earlier in the year than High School but in a sense, it's a little more significant because not only is a new chapter started, but also a completely new life.  For full time students, it means taking on a full time job to pay off the student loans.  It could be a big change in lifestyle.  Weekends of partying on campus now exchanged for weekends preparing business presentations or readying for travel. For parents, it could mean an empty house and the realization of their own dreams of some quiet time together.

If you are graduating this weekend, congratulations!  From here on out, your career success is in your own hands.  Take some time to map out some career goals and plans for your future.  Be sure to select some good mentors and learn the ropes in your new organization.  If you're now starting your job hunt, make certain you have a plan and work it.

For those who have family and friends graduating, celebrate with them!  Offer what assistance you have in helping them get connected and started off well in their career.  It's an exciting time and you'll want to be part of it.

Finally, if you're looking for some great gifts for a new graduate, click HERE to check out some of the book and coaching packages I'm offering to help you, help them.

Congratulations class of 2008!

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A graduation ceremony is an event where the commencement speaker tells thousands of students dressed in identical caps and gowns that "individuality" is the key to success.  ~Robert Orben


Just about a month from now I'm set adrift, with a diploma for a sail and lots of nerve for oars.  ~Richard Halliburton


There is a good reason they call these ceremonies "commencement exercises."  Graduation is not the end; it's the beginning.  ~Orrin Hatch


Your families are extremely proud of you.  You can't imagine the sense of relief they are experiencing.  This would be a most opportune time to ask for money.  ~Gary Bolding


The tassel's worth the hassle!  ~Author Unknown


The fireworks begin today.  Each diploma is a lighted match.  Each one of you is a fuse.  ~Edward Koch


All that stands between the graduate and the top of the ladder is the ladder.  ~Author Unknown


Graduation is only a concept.  In real life every day you graduate. Graduation is a process that goes on  until the last day of your life. If you can grasp that, you'll make a difference.  ~Arie Pencovici


At commencement you wear your square-shaped mortarboards.  My hope is that from time to time you will let your minds be bold, and wear sombreros.  ~Paul Freund


When you leave here, don't forget why you came.  ~Adlai Stevenson, to college graduates


Graduation day is tough for adults.  They go to the ceremony as parents.  They come home as contemporaries.  After twenty-two years of child-raising, they are unemployed.  ~Erma Bombeck


You are educated.  Your certification is in your degree.  You may think of it as the ticket to the good life.  Let me ask you to think of an alternative.  Think of it as your ticket to change the world.  ~Tom Brokaw

The Recession Hits Guys Harder!

They eat from the same dishes and sleep in the same beds, but they seem to be operating in two different economies. From last November through this April, American women aged 20 and up gained nearly 300,000 jobs, according to the household survey of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. At the same time, American men lost nearly 700,000 jobs. You might even say American men are in recession, and American women are not.

Check out this article from MSNBC on an interesting new trend.

Success Principle #9: Go Full Speed!

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Last October, my son Dustin had a revelation. 

“Dad,” he told me, “you know if you’re about to tackle someone and run at them as hard as you can, it doesn’t hurt as much when you hit them.”

Now Dustin was in the middle of his fifth football season playing Center and Defensive Tackle for the Rockville Wolverines.  I had told him that very same thing every single year.  Finally, something I said sank in.  Going full speed makes hitting a whole lot less painful.

You know, this lesson applies to nearly everything in life that's uncomfortable or painful to do.  Going at it full speed takes the sting off it.

If you’re like me, you probably save your most uncomfortable tasks until the very end of the day.  I know your justification.  You want to do the best stuff when your energy is at its peak.  Most of us prioritize our days doing the most enjoyable and fun tasks first.  Then we’ll work on the mundane.  Finally, when all those things are completed, we’ll tackle the most painful items.  If we’re lucky, we won’t have time to get to them so we push them off until another day.

Why not try something different?

This week, why not examine your most dreadful tasks and activities.  Look at what you and others are losing out on by your not accomplishing them.  Then, at the beginning of the day when your mind is clear and energy level high, run full speed at those tasks and get them done!  I promise you’ll find them a lot less painful and your sense of accomplishment will quickly diminish the discomfort you feel. 

 

Laughter is Good Medicine

I don't know about you, but I'm a little (well, ok a LOT) tired of the endless stream of bad news regarding the economy, politics, food shortage, and the high price of gas.  The stress hasn't gotten to me, but I'm sure it's affecting most people. 

What to do?

I found this posting on a colleague's blog.  Her name is Rita Watson and her blog is a pretty good one. I think you'll enjoy it.

Sure, you know that your mood is better after you’ve had a good laugh, but did you know that your health may improve, too?  Depression is a major risk factor for heart disease and so it is good to both exercise and laugh.

A low tech solution to mild to moderate depression — aerobic exercise – can be as effective as psychotherapy.  Both exercise and laughter help the heart. Futher, reports from a team at Loma Linda University in California, show that laughter prompts changes in the body that may help the immune and endocrine systems to function better.

Laughter increases the number and activity of cells that help us fight disease and decreases stress-related hormones.

The nice thing about laughter is that it’s contagious, according to Robert Provine, Ph.D., of the University of Maryland. When you hear other people laugh, you tend to laugh too. Provine suggests that laughter does something special to our brains to trigger the laugh sounds in us.

So for the sake of your health, exercise, laugh, and maintain a positive attitude.

Have a great week!

Learning to Manage Frustration

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This past week I had coffee with a client who is wrestling with a decision on whether or not to leave the job she currently has.  The job pays well and yet there are some things that simply don't work well for her there.  In the end, she will probably stay, as least until the current economic situation improves, but one thing she told me really got me thinking.  She told me that in spite of the situation, she would just learn to manager her frustration.

I had never heard that term before, but it makes total sense.  Manage my frustration.

Management is the science of putting order into chaos.  The early management theorists like Frederick Taylor even went so far as to measure hand placement on the shovels of coal miners to maximize efficiency.  Management is man's attempt to take the unwieldy and unknown and make it adaptable.  Managing frustration then is the art of leveraging what we don't enjoy into a useful tool.

Another way to look at it would be to think that frustration is the result of dealing with an outcome other than what we really want or need to happen.  If that's the case, then we need to develop an action plan to let change the current situation into the ideal.  The alternative is to bitch and moan about our predicament.  To do that, I have several suggestions:

1. Focus on the goal. If you've developed your Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG) and you're on track to get it, think about the current situation in light of that.  If it's getting up up the mountain toward the goal, change your opinion of the current situation and view it as useful.
2. Learn from it.  Every difficult person or situation that's put in our life has the potential to make us grow.  While some of the things I experienced in my Naval career frustrated me, they all were shaping forces that allow me to be successful today, both in what I do and the audience I do it for.
3. Coach others through the process. No doubt someone will come along side you to give you a hand during tough times.  You should do the same.  If you've been able to manage frustration well, those coping skills should be taught to someone else.  It's also a great way to get the focus off yourself and get you helping your friends and neighbors. 

We were never promised a life without some frustration.  There will always be something standing in the way of our success and happiness.  Take some time this week to develop strategies to get you through those tough periods and you'll find the lessons you learned from frustration will become building blocks to future success.

Success Principle #8: Create Your Own Luck!

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What do you call someone who has a great job, happy family, plenty of cash, goals and dreams that seem to come true, physical fitness, and an optimistic attitude?

Most would call that person very lucky.  In other words, they have managed to catch every possible break out there and success happens to them in spite of themselves.

If they're indeed lucky, it then follows that only lucky people can have all the great things in life they want.  Since luck seems to come from little green men from Ireland and four-leaf clovers, it would also follow that not everyone can be considered lucky.  AND, if you're not one of those "lucky ones," life indeed is a pitiful experience for you and your only solace would be to commiserate over your circumstances and be extremely envious of those who have luck.

If this sounds like you, I have a suggestion.    Get out and CREATE your own luck!

In many of my workshops, I’ll share stories of people who find excellent jobs by talking to strangers.  One participant e-mailed me recently and criticized me for making it sound like jobs just fall into the laps of people.  He then proceeded to tell me how nothing came easy to him in his search.  He fought for every lead and had to use all of his efforts to land his dream job…no luck involved.

He’s absolutely right!  You have to CREATE your own luck.  Luck is simply the payoff for positioning yourself the right way, the right amount of times, and with the right amount of preparation.  The kind of luck he’s referring to is where you sit at home and somebody knocks on your door with your dream job.  It won’t happen.  You have to physically get out and start talking to people, telling them what you’re looking for.  You have to create the opportunities, and then make the most of them.

All of us have the same amount of hours in the day and unless you're in prison or living on another planet, the same access to opportunities.  Rather than whine about what you don't have and wish you had, get up off the floor and go after it!  Luck is nothing more than the payoff you get for your hard effort.  Think about it this week and look for ways to create the opportunities you long for.

 

Reflections on my 43rd Year on the Planet

Greetings all!

As you may know, today is the Coach's 44th birthday.  As I always tell my friends, a birthday gives you 365 days to make the upcoming year your best ever.  I'm excited for that opportunity.

Birthdays also give you a chance to reflect back on the previous year and celebrate the milestones.  My 43rd year was pretty good. 

• I finished my book Marketing Yourself for Your Dream Job: How to Get the Job and Career You've Always Wanted. 
• I published 2 books with my publishing company Main Line Press: Raw Reflections and Halfway to the Moon. 
• I finished a half marathon and a full marathon.
• Visited and taught in Leesville, LA, New York City, Orlando, Fl, Miami, FL, San Francisco, Groton, CT, Harrison, NY, Cary, NC, Atlanta, GA, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, Cozumel, Mexico, Key West, FL,
• Went on 2 cruises
• Spoke at 2 career fairs and 4 career events
• Worked with over 500 transitioning military folks through the TAP program
• Started a kickboxing class
• Became a regular in the spinning and group power classes at the gym
• Began attending a new church

Wow, I guess this year was pretty good! 

Today I'm off to NYC to do a workshop, but on the 4 hour train ride, my goal today will be to set goals for this upcoming year. 

Even if today is not your birthday, why not think of it as being your chance to change the world in the next 365 days?  We can all start fresh every day.  Let's make the most of today.

Underemployment and What it Means for You

An unemployment rate at 5% used to be called full employment. Today it's considered the sign of a recession.

But when the Labor Department gives its March employment report this Friday, April 4, it's important to keep in mind that the relatively low unemployment rate isn't telling the whole story about the weakness of the U.S. labor market.

Economists surveyed by Briefing.com are forecasting a loss of 50,000 jobs from the nation's payrolls in the month. That would mark the third straight month of job declines.

The unemployment rate is expected to jump to 5.0% from 4.8% in February.  But some economists point to other readings, which show that the market is much weaker than the unemployment rate would suggest.

A new article on CNN.com highlights another area of concern:  Underemployment and dropping out of the job hunt.  You can find that article HERE.

Now I for one am about tired of the daily bad news on the job front.  Let me give you some advice:

If you want and need a new job, get off your tired, depressed ass and go out and get it!

There are still jobs out there now.  Yes, the competition is stiff and getting even stronger with more people out of work, but SOMEBODY has to get those jobs.  Why can't it be you?

If you compete with the BEST resume and deliver an OUTSTANDING interview, you'll be hired, period.  Your competition may be down and depressed and if so, it's going to show in the interview.  No employer wants damaged goods.  Your attitude matters.

Be positive, be optimistic, and most of all, be professional.  I can help you out if you need a coach, but ultimately you need to commit right now to giving 100% to this process!

Success Principle #7: Get Better!

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We took a break last week from our series on 10 Principles for Personal and Professional Success, but since I'm sure everyone is back to work this week, let's dive right back in.  As a review, here are the principles we've covered so far:

1. Define Success
2. Dream Big
3. Set Good Goals
4. Let Go of Assumed Constraints
5. Commit to Continuous Learning
6. Expand Your Network

This week, let's go one better.  Actually, this week's principle is to GET BETTER!

Do you remember the hot toy this past Christmas?  Of course you do, it was the Nintendo Wii.  There was a little buzz about the Wii early in late summer, but by the time the holidays came around, the rush was on.  Every big box electronic store had a run on the gadget and EBay sellers were listing them at over $700.00.  They were nearly impossible to find.  Nintendo struck gold on this one.

Now, if the execs at Nintendo were smart, they would carefully plan a similar marketing strategy this year using the Wii based on last Christmas's sales right?  Of course not!  We've all been around long enough to know that hot products last only one season.  After all, the Christmas before had the PS3 and that creepy Elmo doll as the rage.  The year before it was the Xbox 360.  Before that, the PSP.  If you think back, it's always been something new each year.  Any company wanting to make money and increase market share has to make a strong commitment to have a new, innovative product each year.  In other words, they have to commit to simply GET BETTER each year!

What about you?

All of us need to think in the same terms.  Each year, we must do something more incredible, remarkable, or marketable for our careers so as to not get stagnant or find ourselves on the short end of a layoff.  Our best this year will be mediocre next year, and possibly unacceptable the following year. 

As of today, the U.S. economy is "on the ropes" with steady bad news pouring in nearly every day.  Right now, employers seem to be holding steady with new hires and a few are beginning layoffs.  If the trend continues, it's possible many folks could lose their jobs.  The new buzzword in my circles is "recession-proofing" a career or job.  If you want to do that, make a commitment today to get better!  How would we do that?  Here are some suggestions:

• Take on a new task
• Ask yourself each day how what you do ties into building the bottom line or achieving the organization's mission
• Learn a new skill
• Read a book on your career field
• Learn and leverage the organization's politics
• Increase your internal and external networks
• Find a mentor
• Be a mentor
• Research articles on your career field
• Ask yourself each day what you can do to help your employer make more money
• Go above and beyond your job description
• Make yourself indispensable
• Quit gossiping
• Stop being annoying
• Talk more about what you can do to be successful and less about who should have been voted off American Idol

Tomorrow is a good day to get started on your GET BETTER plan.  Remember, we're only as good as our last success.  If we commit to creating a win each day, there's no telling what great opportunities will come from it.  I'm excited to find something new tomorrow to get better at.  I hope you are too!