Keeping up with the Joneses: Future-proofing your career

Ellen posted a link to her iPhone commercial, which was funny in a way that only Ellen can make funny.

So she admits that she is not the most tech-savvy person out there, but she does make the effort in keeping up with trends and changes.

Sad to say, many people in their professional lives do not. They are content to just keep on doing whatever it is they do and not work on areas which may need an upgrade. Now you may not be the best writer in the world, but you can work on improving it by writing more each day or each week. You may not be the most techonlogically inclined person, but you can understand a little bit what new trends are impacting your organisation and how it will impact the way YOU work. You may not understand social media for example, but try exploring how others are using it and don't just surrender to ignorance.

Most people get bored with their job at one time or another. Even the media-glamourised communications field gets pretty darn stale sometimes. Some days, I just don't get it - why am I here? I was glad it was not just me. But I have found that exploring the career you have chosen for yourself and finding new and innovative practices, networking with peers and sharing experiences with them, and keeping up with the Joneses basically helps to stem mental/emotional inertia, as well as adds value to your YOU brand.

And it does not mean going back to school necessarily and getting an expensive degree. You can work on yourself from your couch, with weekend reading, be it via your professional blogroll, industry publications or papers, or through membership in associations and participation in think tanks, or using some initiative and trying new ideas in your professional activities. My weekend projects add some variety to my day job, and provides opportunities for trying new things as well and learning something new from the fab women I interact with.

I have interacted with a lot of people who are just willing to settle with what they do and get paid for what they do, without trying to build on their personal product. Just...could not be bothered. Noone is good at everything. You may suck at some things, may literally loathe some areas of your job, but do you have to be a complete and total failure? No. You can work on that area of weakness so it does not become a liability, but instead an opportunity. And if you try to love what you do, then trying to keep up with what you do becomes less a chore and more a desire. My God...don't aim to become a relic in your profession. Some old cars have antique value. But you're not an old car, so don't bet on resting on your laurels and being sought after.

So while Ellen's ad is funny and whimsical, in real life, being that clueless is not that endearing. So how are you keeping up with your professional Joneses.

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Death by PowerPoint

I've churned out a few things already this morning and now I am on a presentation I am preparing as part of internal training on social media. Whoopity whoop.

I usually try to prepare presentations, keeping in mind, how I react to presentations delivered by others. Man, some people can really put the lead on your eyelids with their delivery. Your topic may not be the most exciting to some people, but you can make it exciting and downright interesting if you really work on it. Some presentation delivery no-nos I have come across in the more recent past include:

• Slides with an encylopaedia of information - My eyes! My eyes! Why is there so much hard to read text on the screen? Do you think I really can read that? Do you think I really want to read it?

But what's worse...

• Reading everything on the slides, verbatim - This is a peeve. You sit me down, put on your projector and then it's like a reading for kids session. If I wanted to sit and listen to someone read, I would have gone to a book reading. In addition, if I wanted to sit and listen to you read, then why the slideshow? Is it read along? Please don't do this. It's annoying.

Words really should be kept to a minimum because in effect your presentation is about you presenting. Remember, your PowerPoint is just the vehicle, but you're the driver. Catchy blurbs and sentences which encompass the meaning of a section resonate more than 3 paragraphs of technical terms, stats and jargon. Complement your words with compelling images, which leads me to my next point -

• Clip art - Wow. Unless you're in high school...no primary school, clip art really "dumbs" down your presentation. There are just too many stock photos available, and in a world of digital cameras and camera phones, too many opportunities to support your presentation with photos of your own, tailored just for what you want to say. And if you're doing a presentation for staff, then it is even easier because you can then incorporate relevant staff photos in your presentation, which is always a hit, because people are inherently narcissistic and love themselves, and ultimately love seeing themselves.
   
• Animation - I don't mind if your effects are all fade ins, or fade outs, but when the entire presentation is a lesson in "How well I know PowerPoint animation", with words flying in from the left, dropping in from the top, slowly checkering in...oh save us! This is even worse when you add the sounds to it - swishing words and clicking photos. It just takes away from the sensibility of your content. Stick to one animation in your theme, and I am a personal fan of the fade in, if I do have to use an animation at all. Revolving sentences just don't seem to add credibility to what I am saying for some reason.

If you want to add some versatility to your presentation, minus the cheesey animations, why not embed a video or some relevant audio? A short video breaks up the tedium of your presentation and can bring another voice to the delivery. And it can also help if the next point refers to you -

• Poor delivery - Not all of us are comfortable in front of crowds, be it a crowd of 5 or 5,000, but when you lack a certain aggression, your delivery can fall flat and cause heads to "bep". I am not the world's greatest presenter but though I do not imagine my audience naked (that is challenging enough), I do try to enunciate, project and present. Knowing what you're talking about and speaking from a position of knowledge and expertise is half the battle won. Don't surrender just yet if you're not an orator. Your presentation is your road map to what you're going to say, so be familiar with it and have an idea what you want to relay to your audience. I used to sit with one of my former bosses, because he admitted that he was not a good speaker. I would go over his speeches with him, make him rehearse them, let him stumble over words in the privacy of his office so that when the lights were on him, he would be less nervous, and less susceptible to a horrendous delivery. There is absolutely no shame in practising.  None.

The use of a video can lend another dimension to your delivery and save you from doing the entire presentation yourself. Of course your video must be relevant, interesting and short. Nothing can kill the buzz of a video presentation than dull content being crushed into the subconscious for what seems like forever.

• And be yourself. So if you're not naturally a very funny person, avoid trying to be a comedian. Be aware of your body language and don't be a tree - work the floor. Interact with your audience. Ask questions. Take questions. Be a human and not a robot with a clicker in your hand. I have seen technical problems with a presentation totally derail speakers who use the slideshow as a crutch and are like headless chickens without them.

Your presentation should be straight to the point, should use clear language and not too many technical terms or jargon especially if your audience is not a technical one. It should be visual, clean, without too many bells and whistles and should be natural to you at the end of the day. When it is natural to you, it is more interesting to your audience.

So as I continue my presentation here, what other presentation missteps have you been subjected to and what other tips can you offer? Don't let me make victims of my audience.

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The ME brand

We seem to be quite content to be branded in one way or another. My brother is a brand whore, and God knows I cannot shop for him because he only wears the expensive urban brands. I'm a MAC girl and love their makeup. You may just be a Mac person, in love with all things Apple. I have seen more than one car here branded with the "Keep Walking" brand logo from Johnnie Walker, so we do brand ourselves. But do we really sell the most important brand there is? The ME brand. To me, that's an invaluable commodity but do others see it the same way?

I'm not sure if people are truly paying attention to their personal brand here in T&T, or rather not enough people. We sell the concept of the brand, yes but at the corporate level and as part of a corporate product or service marketng machinery. But what about the investment in our skills, our capabilities, our professionalism, our talents? How many of us are selling and truly pimping ourselves out? Are you?

It may seem easier to just be part of the bigger picture type branding, to just fall into a prepared strategy. But in fact, if one is confident in one's expertise, then the selling is much easier. But are you selling yourself?

There are great instances of personal brands here in various sectors. Machel is a brand for example. People have come to expect a certain type of performance from him, one that is high energy, high quality and original. You never expect to go to a Machel performance and hear him singing other people's songs. So he is doing it, he is working it and his brand is a strong one. We now need to take the concept of personal branding from that sphere to our personal situations because people hear branding and somehow they never equate it to their own professional circumstances, which is where we probably lose sight of its relevance.

And in much the same way you make a distinction between a Carib and a Heineken, one must ask oneself, "what sets me apart from Jill or John?" What is your feature benefit? In what ways do you bring or add value to a team or to a project? Is your brand consistent and reliable? Are you dependable and bring your A-game more times than not?

Personal branding is not about logos and slogans but more about the intangible benefits which you can deliver. But first you have to have something to sell and not just any product but a damn good product. So take the time to

• develop a brand statement that speak to you and what you have to offer
• develop your expertise in your chosen area 
• gather feedback from your peers about how you are perceived
• examine your track record and identify your strengths and weaknesses; harness your strengths, work on the weaknesses
• build credibility and a solid "customer" base which can defend your brand
• be visible - set yourself apart from the crowd 
• have a vision of what you are and where you want to be; clear cut goals
• have a plan of how you intend to get there
• execute the plan

Remember:

When you're promoting brand You, everything you do -- and everything you choose not to do -- communicates the value and character of the brand. Everything from the way you handle phone conversations to the email messages you send to the way you conduct business in a meeting is part of the larger message you're sending about your brand. - FastCompany.

(And I did touch on how our other social media activities for example, can impact the personal brand here and here. )

So it's not that we don't understand the concept of branding but we don't think it applies to us for some reason and it's time we start focusing on how we can develop strong brands and not just promoting the brands of others. By consciously working on deevloping your brand, you are consciously working on developing your product, your service, actively examining how to improve your skills and ultimately, yourself.

So the next time you choose Coke over Pepsi, or vice versa, ask yourself why did I do that because in today's world, you're either a Coke or a Pepsi, and someone will have a preference based on what's on offer and how well it is sold to them.

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What should you, Nicki Minaj and Justin Bieber have in common?

I know just a couple things about Nicki Minaj

1. She is an up and coming female rapper (another one) who I am hearing about more and more each day
2. She is of Trini origin - a Trini dougla
2. She got her break when she was discovered on MySpace by some big jefe record executive

I know even less about Justin Bieber except for

1. His name has been a Twitter trending topic for weeks now
2. He got his break when he was discovered on YouTube

How do you intend to catch your big break??

Before, it was the employer who pulled out the bells and whistles to make themselves attractive and accessible. Now, with social media, it's the prospective employees and the big-dreamers who are really putting themselves out there to get the attention of employers and dream peddlers. How are you using social media to self-promote?

Are you using a business-oriented social network like LinkedIn?
If your Facebook page currently has photos of last weekend's drunken club session, it may not be the best channel for promoting yourself professionally. Nix that idea IMMEDIATELY! Consider using a site like LinkedIn to sell who you are and what you can offer, while having the opportunity to network with people in your field. And don't just create a profile and leave it sitting there. Get recommendations from past employers/colleagues. Get out there and make yourself visible. Follow groups which are related to your field, get involved in discussions, post answers to questions - interact and exchange.

Are you following the RIGHT people?
We all have our interests. I follow travel tweeters, but I also follow a lot of PR/comms/social media marketing tweeters. Twitter may be like a huge chatroom for most, but make it a chatroom with a purpose and with an end goal in mind if you're looking to catch that lucky break.

Are you blogging?
Blogs are a great way to have your say and share your expertise, while putting yourself out there. But...

Are you mindful of the content you post online?
Don't use your blog to only be critical, divisive or just plain cantankerous. Offer useful solutions, show your creativity in resolving issues, show that you can be a positive part of a community. So while we may not always agree with what others may say, we don't have to be nasty about it. Offer contributions, not deconstruction! And F bombs may not be the best way to paint yourself fabulous, so don't use the F bomb on Twitter or elsewhere if you're not too pleased about something.

Is your CV current and innovative?
Ensure that your CV is current. Don't put outdated info on your LinkedIn site, which midway through a conversation you realise is not the whole story. Super fail. And depending on what you're looking for, and the audience you're trying to reach, why not integrate short video, or a podcast telling people about yourself. Though I think here, we are lagging in this area, it's an idea especially if you want to show yourself as on the cutting edge of your field. HR is using video conferencing, and social networks in some areas to recruit new hires. Why should you be limited to a standard CV?

Are you checking out who's checking YOU out?
So you have set up these social media channels to sell yourself but are you even checking to see if anyone is browsing the merchandise. Just as traditional marketers measure to see whether their message is getting across, you need to ascertain whether you are being noticed. So monitor your hits to your blog, who subscribes to your RSS feed, who's retweeting you, following you, who's connecting with you, who's responding to your discussion topics etc. Don't leave it to chance.

Are you getting the word out?
I don't think we have many mind readers out there so be vocal about your objectives and start exploring those avenues relevant to your professional needs. Let people know that you are looking for new opportunities. The more people who know you're looking, the greater the chance of you getting that job. If we can use social networks to find a date (more on this later this week), why can't we be honest about our professional desires? Get it out there!

Justin Bieber's mum used YouTube to post his performances for friends and family and inadvertently got him his dream job. Now he is all over Twitter. Why? I am not quite sure but there is really something to be said about using social media to follow your dream. Start building your networks now before you really need it. It takes time to build that network and that following, so don't waste time. Get it going.

p.s. Findind a G-rated/fit-for-purpose photo of Ms Minaj for this blog was a challenge. Be mindful of your content, right?

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