Building Successful Careers

The long weekend is coming, another perfect time to network and find new opportunities. One of my friends complained to me:” I having been seeing the same friends in the same professions for 20 years, they are my competitors in the job market, I am not motivated to network with them!” I sort of agree with her. I suggested her try something different, something I called “Orthogonal Network”, instead of networking with the group of people who have the same professions, network with people who are in the same field, but in different roles. For example: If you are an engineer, try to network with an accountant, a sales person or marketing person, and vice versa. If you are a controller, you might want to network with a VC, CEO or another executive. These friends in orthogonal roles know what’s going on in their companies and will recommend you to the openings in their company without feeling been threatened.

Rocking climbing was my son’s top choice to celebrate his 11th birthday; he was going to challenge himself as well as his friends. His younger brother was not sure whether he should join the group. One hour before the party my friend called and asked if her 7 year old could join the rock climbing party. My younger son heard our conversation; he decided to join the troop. Climbing the 20 foot wall was an easy task for my older son. He conquered every single wall the instructor suggested. But it was a hard task for other 11 year old boys. One of them quit after he reached 5 feet, two of them quit after 10 feet. “It was too hard, it is too high, I am afraid of heights” the boys told others when they finally touched the floor. My younger son followed in his older brother’s footsteps, his legs were trembling, he struggled, rested and struggled again. With his family cheering him on, he finally reached the top. Then he struggled even harder to get down. He would not let go and slid...

"If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem." Jerks hardly bring any solution but problems and complains one after another. If you run into notorious jerks in your life, both personal and professional, you are not alone. Dealing with jerks needs maturity and stronger mental strength. Practicing the following tips is helpful: 1) Never lower yourself to the jerk’s level. Try to elevate the conversation to your level, be professional, productive and solution driven. 2) Hear their complaints and acknowledge that you heard them. 3) Ask them for the solution (what needs to be done logically, not emotionally) and go over the consequences of their proposed solution or let them know you are going to evaluate their solution if you are not ready to go over their solutions. 4) Stop the conversation if the jerk starts to bring you down to his/her level. 5) Remind the jerk that you both are on the same team, you are not fighting a battle with him and you are here t...

Two Great books to help you understand people and help you build your network. Easy books to read. 1. Vital Friends: The People You Can't Afford to Live Without by Tom Rath 2. How Full Is Your Bucket? Educator's Edition: Positive Strategies for Work and Life by Tom Rath and Donald O. Clifton Enjoy

Many leaders are proud of their ability to attend to details and put their team members in action. It certainly is a great leadership trait. I also witness many leaders who put high pressure on their team every minute asking for meaningless details. Their goal is not about moving toward a strategic direction, but control. By directing their teams to do unnecessary tasks, they satisfy a personal craving to control every single detail. They remind me of a microwave oven. A microwave oven generates heat by spinning water molecules back and forth but it doesn't move them anywhere. Be an inspiring leader, not a microwave oven kills individual creativity and passion. Be a goal, result oriented leader, not a heat generating microwave oven.

In the 1300s, Timbuktu was a mud hut built on top of salt and gold mines. The city was full of gold. The wise King Mansa Musa had a grand vision of a golden kingdom. King Mansa Musa decided to carry tons of gold while traveling to the holy city of Mecca. He gave away his gold along the way. When he reached Mecca, his gold was gone but his name was golden. People no long thought Timbuktu was a mud hut; they imagined a city shining like gold. The wise king brought back knowledge, books about laws, math and more. Scholars and architects returned with the king and built the golden city envisioned by King Mansa Musa, turning the mud huts into a center of learning, culture, religion and trade. A true civilized golden kingdom was born. In the modern age,Bill Gates gave away much of his fortune, significantly improving the image of Microsoft while avoiding many lawsuits and gaining the respect of the world. When you give away your gold, your name is golden. We all have many ...

Tip Number 5: Use closed captioning on your television set. Activate the closed caption feature on your television set so you can see and hear the words at the same time. You retain 20% of what you see, and 40% of what you see and hear. Closed captions are not always completely accurate, but they are tools that can be very useful to you. Try it.