Month: May 2023

Is this shift affecting you?

Posted on May 24, 2023 by - Uncategorized

Is this shift affecting you?

The other day, I heard from a former client of a large tech company that I coached for six-months. Dave, a senior sales leader in his organization, reached out because he was recently job eliminated. In fact, all of the sales leaders in the organization were eliminated regardless of performance. That was especially hard to take since he is a high-performer.

Of course, being laid off today is not surprising since there have been over 144,540 layoffs in tech as of May 19,2023 in addition to more than 93,000 tech layoffs in 2022 according to Crunchbase News. And that’s just tech! When we spoke, Dave remained optimistic, while also being practical about the current realities. All of a sudden, after years where companies were frantically hiring, they have put the brakes on. An article in the WSJ over the weekend entitled 9 Rounds of Interviews and No Call Back and podcast, The Disappearing White-Collar Job, share personal stories and the reasons for the dramatic shift. Companies are being cautious, taking more time to hire and being more selective. Technology is having a big impact, with AI eliminating jobs. And companies are also being being squeezed for profits with higher interest rates, so they are looking to cut costs.

What does this mean if you are out of work and need to get a job? Be aggressive in your search, use your network and stay positive. Reach out to a career coach if you need support. You may also not want to be too picky if in fact you need to get out of the rain.

#WiseWords

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.“

Thomas A. Edison

My former partner at a communications company we launched in NYC was a theatre director. Ellie Heyman often spoke about “business speak” and how it gets in the way of communication. I agree.

On the lighter side of all the job-elimination news out there, this refreshing opinion piece

from Fast Company breaks down some of the prevalent business speak we hear today – in job descriptions and in-person communication.

Written by Whitney Posterick, it shines a light on the absurdity of it all. Her point is that jargon filled job descriptions turn off potential employees. She focuses on stakeholder, cross-functional and multi-level marketing in her piece. I would add to that, the acronyms that companies use ad nauseam such as KPI, SEM, POC, TOFU, MOFU and BOFU.

Take a minute a check out Want to hire someone creative? Don’t do any of these things, and please, take the author’s advice to heart.

And Finally...

We just got back from a very relaxing two-week vacation. I was able to send my last email while away thanks to Cheryl at Virtually All. Thank you Cheryl!

Two things I did differently this year were so obvious, it is surprising that I have not tried them in the past, especially since they made a huge difference.

  1. I totally detached. Putting my out of office on, and letting go of the day to day was so healthy. I confess, I did scan emails a couple of times, but overall I honored my time away. What a difference it made in my ability to relax.
  2. I was fully present. In the past, while relaxing with my husband on vacation, I often asked the question “Where shall we go next?”. How dumb is that? Being in a beautiful place, learning new things, and meeting new people is such a joy for me, why did I try to minimize it and focus on the future rather than the present? Vacation season is upon us. Whether you take a day or a week, have a staycation or go someplace fabulous, I hope you detach and take the opportunity to be fully present.

Have a great week.
Mary Jo

To learn more about my 1:1 executive, communication or business growth coaching, custom virtual workshops, the Career Transition program or just to connect, you can reach me at info@mjrcac.com

What is getting in the way?

Posted on May 11, 2023 by - Uncategorized

What is getting in the way?

Recently, I have been doing a lot of work around presentation and communication skills with very senior executives who want to elevate or polish their skills, to professionals who are really challenged with how they communicate and present, especially when presenting to upper management.

Effective communication is especially important for those in leadership and management roles, but it is also critical for our ability to advance within any organization. Yet, it is very rarely “taught”. One of my new clients, who is investing in someone on his team with a series of twelve executive coaching sessions, said he tried to teach his direct report how to improve, but found himself ill-equipped to make an impact.

There are dozens of tools and techniques to become a more effective communicator. One of my favorites is to be more of yourself, more authentic. Develop your own unique communication style and start to become hyper aware of your own communication ticks or bad habits. When in doubt, tape record and/or video tape yourself. What needs improvement? What is getting in the way of becoming a more effective communicator?

#WiseWords

“Your ability to communicate is an important tool in your pursuit of your goals, whether it is with your family, your co-workers or your clients and customers.“

Les Brown, Author

The other day, there was an essay in the Wall Street Journal entitled: Our Hesitations in Speech Are Much More Than Filler. Written by Dr. Fridland who is a professor of Linguistics at the University of Nevada, Reno, she studied when people use um and uh in speech, referring to them as filled pauses.

What she learned is that people use um or uh when they are deciding between competing

word options, formulating what they want to say, signaling that your brain is processing what to say and giving them time to think. She also mentioned other research from the 90s on um and uh that shows the two “words” are used in different contexts, um to signal a longer pause and uh for a shorter pause.

But here’s the thing: so what? All of Dr. Fridland’s research and conclusions are rooted in the study of linguistics, which is all quite interesting, BUT when talking about effective communication, um and uh are a big challenge for the listener. Using them is a habit, and with effort, you can eliminate the use of um, uh, like, so or any other filler word.

In fact, pausing is far better than hearing filler words that add no value. When you do not know what word to choose or want to give the listener time to process what you are saying, PAUSE. It will make you sound infinitely more polished and professional. Filler words are distracting, they dilute the message and make the audience work harder to hear what the speaker is actually trying to say.

And Finally...

I was working with one of my clients who is under a lot of pressure with a new manager. His speech was articulate and thoughtful until he started talking about his new boss, then his speech was peppered with um. His stress was showing up in his word choice and all of a sudden he no longer sounded confident and polished.

Outside the world of linguistics, I strongly believe that we should work to eliminate filler words from our speech to be a more effective communicator. What is the filler word you use all the time? If you don’t know, record yourself. Increase your awareness about what you are saying, then every time you use a filler word, take a drink or snap a rubber band on your wrist. Be intentional about breaking the habit. Your listeners will thank you.

Have a great week.
Mary Jo

To learn more about my 1:1 executive, communication or business growth coaching, custom virtual workshops, the Career Transition program or just to connect, you can reach me at info@mjrcac.com