One of my all-time favorite leadership books – certainly the one with the most sticky tabs in it – is Reldan Nadler’s “Leading with Emotional Intelligence.” I’ve used this resource for other episodes of the podcast, and today I want to talk about tools for building your self-confidence – specifically, Being on Your Side rather than Being on Your Case. Or, as I like to call it, having your own back. When you are on your case, you are hard on yourself. This often comes from a belief that the only ...
Mar 29, 2023•16 min•Ep. 266
I have been re-reading the book “Quiet Leadership: Six Steps to Transforming Performance at Work,” by David Rock. One of his concepts jumped out at me, and I wanted to share it with you. Brain science tells us that, when we focus on a behavior we wish to change, we are actually cementing the neural pathway that was created when we began repeating that behavior in the first place. Once a neural pathway is created in our brain, it will always be there. The challenge is not to remove that pathway –...
Mar 22, 2023•14 min•Ep. 265
In episode #175, I talked about articulating your brand on your resume. Here’s the link to that episode: https://www.exclusivecareercoaching.com/posts/2021-04-28-175-how-to-articulate-your-brand-on-your-resume Today, I want to delve into the three biggest mistakes I see people making in their attempts to brand themselves – as well as the solution. First, let’s talk about why personal branding is important – not just when you are looking for a new job, but throughout your career as you look to ge...
Mar 08, 2023•18 min•Ep. 264
Let me start by saying there are good reasons to accept a counteroffer from your current employer. However, if the ONLY reason you are even considering the counteroffer is because it pays more than the outside offer you’ve received, it’s probably the wrong move for you. What is a counteroffer? There are two possibilities: When you receive an offer from a potential new employer, you may choose to submit a counteroffer. This is essentially an acceptance of parts of the initial offer, while proposi...
Mar 02, 2023•18 min•Ep. 263
Consistently, the episodes I do on interviewing are among the most-downloaded. Today, I want to give you a five-step process for answering behavioral interview questions. Behavioral interviewing operates on the principle that the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Behavioral interview questions require you to respond with a specific story, rather than talking in hypotheticals. Behavioral interviewing is difficult to “wing,” because it is highly unlikely that you’ll come up with ...
Feb 22, 2023•16 min•Ep. 262
Today, we’re talking about what might be holding back your career development. I leaned heavily on a December 21, 2022 article in the Harvard Business Review by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis for this episode. Here’s a fact: for most of us, and the companies in which we work, career development is rarely a priority. There are too many urgent matters to attend to every day…and career planning takes a back seat. One challenge is when…when we have time for career development. This essentially separat...
Feb 15, 2023•15 min•Ep. 261
I get a lot of questions about following up after a job interview. Today, I want to give the ABC’s of interview follow-up, as well as some creative options for staying in touch throughout the decision-making process. First, the basics for thanking the interviewer(s) and others who had a hand in your interview: 1. Follow up within 24 hours (preferably sooner). 2. Consider the audience. Generally, email thank-you messages are best because they can get to the recipient more quickly. If however, you...
Feb 08, 2023•23 min•Ep. 260
Let me start by saying there are good reasons to accept a counteroffer from your current employer. However, if the ONLY reason you are even considering the counteroffer is because it pays more than the outside offer you’ve received, it’s probably the wrong move for you. What is a counteroffer? There are two possibilities: When you receive an offer from a potential new employer, you may choose to submit a counteroffer. This is essentially an acceptance of parts of the initial offer, while proposi...
Feb 01, 2023•18 min•Ep. 263
Today, a return guest – and one of my favorites! Previously, Katrina McGhee was on the podcast to talk about taking a career break; here’s the link to that episode: http://exclusivecareercoaching.com/posts/2022-10-19-247-are-you-ready-for-a-career-break-with-katrina-mcghee Today, we talk about leveraging a sabbatical before taking on a bigger role. Whether with your current employer or accepting a position with another company, you may need a break before taking on even more responsibility and c...
Feb 01, 2023•32 min•Ep. 259
Today, we’re talking about organizing your job search. For some of you, this may be a foreign concept – why would I need organization to look at job boards? I just look at them and apply to as many jobs as I possibly can – right? Wrong. I’m not going to go into detail with specific job search strategies – I covered that in multiple other episodes. In particular, I recommend episode #30 – Active vs. Passive Job Search Strategies: https://www.exclusivecareercoaching.com/posts/2019-01-16-030-active...
Jan 25, 2023•14 min•Ep. 258
Last week, I did an episode on setting a goal in your professional life – and how to make sure you achieve that goal. For some of you, you may want help with that goal. For others of you, you may want to make a job or even a career change this year. For still others, you may want to position yourself for success in your current role. These are all great reasons to hire a coach, so I wanted to dedicate an episode to helping you find the right coach for you. Coaching vs. Therapy Let’s start with t...
Jan 18, 2023•23 min•Ep. 257
Greetings and Happy New Year! My wish for all of you in 2023 is that you experience lots of love and laughter, that a long-held dream becomes a reality, that you experience the discomfort of growth, and that you are able to look yourself in the mirror at the end of each day and honestly say “I did my very best today.” And when that “very best” isn’t up to your usual standards – you give yourself a break and love yourself anyway. Let me start by saying I’m a planning geek. Goals and strategies ex...
Jan 11, 2023•28 min•Ep. 256
Happy Holidays! Whatever you celebrate – and whoever you have the blessing of celebrating with – I wish you Peace, Joy, Love, Laughter…and lots of good eats! I wanted to revisit a topic I covered way back in episode #82 on how to answer the “Tell me about yourself” interview question. That episode aired on June 5th, 2019, so I thought it was time to go over how I coach my clients to answer this question. There’s a phenomenon call the primacy effect, which states that people remember whatever cam...
Dec 14, 2022•27 min•Ep. 255
My guest today is Dr. Amy Mednick, a New York City psychiatrist who specializes in the overlap between the humanities in neuroscience. Today, Amy and I talk about Zoom fatigue – what is it, why is it so prevalent, and the warning signs you want to pay attention to. We also talk about how to make Zoom meetings more humanizing if you are in charge. You can check out Amy’s book, Humanizing the Remote Experience, at www.htre-book.com You can find Amy on Instagram or Facebook at amymednickmd, on Twit...
Dec 07, 2022•38 min•Ep. 254
This week, I have a return guest – Robert Jordan. Robert is CEO of Interim Execs, which matches interim, project, and fractional executives with opportunities. When I had Robert on the podcast back in episode #235, we talked about matching your leadership style to the right organization. Today, we’re talking about the role of an interim executive – and who is the right fit for these types of opportunities. Robert shares the characteristics he looks for in interim executives and how you can best ...
Nov 30, 2022•43 min•Ep. 253
Each year since the inception of this podcast in 2017, I have done a Five Unusual Things to Be Thankful For episode during Thanksgiving week. This episode is never one of my most-downloaded episodes, but it is one of my favorites. It is also one of my most personal and vulnerable episodes each year. The purpose is two-fold: To get you thinking about the things in your life that you could look at differently – and to show gratitude for those things that maybe didn’t feel so good at the time they ...
Nov 23, 2022•24 min•Ep. 252
Let me start by saying that not all job searches should look alike – and the important thing is that you launch the type of job search that makes the most sense for you. When clients get coached by me on their job search, it is an Active job search. If they are employed, I require they spend a minimum of 5 hours per week in their job search; if they are unemployed, I suggest 30 hours per week – if they want to get employed as quickly as possible. If they have fewer than 5 hours per week they can...
Nov 16, 2022•17 min•Ep. 251
Okay…I’m determined not to get mushy here, but I do want to take a moment to congratulate myself. I don’t know the stats on how many podcasts make it to 250 episodes…or even how many make it to 20 episodes. I do, however, know it is a great accomplishment – and one I am exceedingly proud of myself for. I’ve told this story before, I’m sure, but before I started my podcast – way back in 2016 and early 2017 – I had it in my head that it would cost $5K to start a podcast. I had no facts to back tha...
Nov 09, 2022•17 min•Ep. 250
I have recently finished Jen Sincero’s book, You Are a Badass. One of the chapters in the book is on The Almighty Decision, and I wanted to dive into this topic for this episode. One of the things I talk with my clients about is the three-step process of decision-making. Those steps are: 1) Give yourself a limited amount of time to explore options. 2) Make a decision based on the information you’ve gathered AND what your gut is telling you. If the two disagree, ALWAYS go with your gut. 3) Decide...
Nov 02, 2022•22 min•Ep. 249
This week my guest is Marcelle Yeager of Career Valet, and we’re talking about navigating remote work. Our focus is on managing and being managed in “the new world order” with in-office, remote, and hybrid employees all working together. We also cover how to ensure you are setting yourself up for success as a remote worker – and how, if you are a manager, you can set your employees up for success in a remote environment. Prior to starting Career Valet, Marcelle worked in strategic communications...
Oct 26, 2022•38 min•Ep. 248
Our guest today is Katrina McGhee, and we are diving into the idea of taking a career break. NOT a run-away-as-fast-as-you-can because you hate your job, but a planned, strategic break with goals. Katrina tells us her career break story and how she has coached more than 50 clients to have successful career breaks. We also delve into how to successfully “re-enter” your career after your break. You can find Katrina at www.kmcgheecoaching.com She is offering a 3-part video series on her website to ...
Oct 19, 2022•42 min•Ep. 247
Hey – I have extended the Rate, Review, and Subscribe contest through 10/14 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern – so you still have a few days to enter if you are listening to then when it comes out. To participate: Rate (1 entry); Subscribe (2 entries); Review (4 entries) Winner will receive $250 Visa gift card Participants should notify me of their participation and what they did via lesa@exclusivecareercoaching.com I recently answered a question in a group I am a VIP in about 30/60/90-day plans, so I though...
Oct 12, 2022•14 min•Ep. 246
Hey – I have extended the Rate, Review, and Subscribe contest through 10/14 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern – so what are you waiting for? To participate: Rate (1 entry); Subscribe (2 entries); Review (4 entries) Winner will receive a $250 Visa gift card Participants should notify me of their participation and what they did via lesa@exclusivecareercoaching.com Today, we’re talking about the basics of networking. This is especially for those of you who a) avoid networking like a root canal, b) describe your...
Oct 05, 2022•32 min•Ep. 245
RATE, REVIEW, SUBSCRIBE CONTEST IN SEPTEMBER To participate: Rate (1 entry); Subscribe (2 entries); Review (4 entries) Winner will receive $250 Visa gift card Participants should notify me of their participation and what they did via lesa@exclusivecareercoaching.com Winner will be selected on Friday, September 30th, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Recently, I was showing a client how to leverage her connections’ connections on LinkedIn, and she was blown away. She felt like she had found the holy grail, so...
Sep 28, 2022•13 min•Ep. 244
RATE, REVIEW, SUBSCRIBE CONTEST IN SEPTEMBER To participate: Rate (1 entry); Subscribe (2 entries); Review (4 entries) Winner will receive $250 Visa gift card Participants should notify me of their participation and what they did via lesa@exclusivecareercoaching.com Winner will be selected on Friday, September 30th, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern I came across this concept of Ikigai recently – the Japanese answer to a life of purpose. In practice, this concept of Ikigai is a lifestyle, which the Japanese ...
Sep 21, 2022•18 min•Ep. 243
Happy September! Happy college football season! Happy almost fall! RATE, REVIEW, SUBSCRIBE CONTEST IN SEPTEMBER To participate: Rate (1 entry); Subscribe (2 entries); Review (4 entries) Winner will receive $250 Visa gift card Participants should notify me of their participation and what they did via lesa@exclusivecareercoaching.com Winner will be selected on Friday, September 30th, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Today’s episode is on how to ask for interview feedback, and I sourced this information from t...
Sep 14, 2022•22 min•Ep. 242
Let’s face it: we’re navigating uncharted waters when it comes to the job search these days. So much has changed, and I am seeing clients struggle to be successful in their job search. I thought I would present this information in a Problem/Solution format – what’s tripping job seekers up and my recommendations for how to address. The Interview Process Problem: Candidates are faced with video interviews, virtual interviews, phone interviews, and in-person interviews. I have clients who’ve gone t...
Aug 31, 2022•17 min•Ep. 241
The information for this week’s podcast comes from an online article by businessnewsdaily.com. Step 1: Identify your leadership style. Each leadership style has its strengths, although some are seen as more desirable. It’s important to understand and harness the strengths of your leadership style so you can communicate effectively and motivate your team. The 9 most common types of leadership: Autocratic leadership: This is one of the strictest types. Autocratic leaders tend to have complete cont...
Aug 24, 2022•23 min•Ep. 240
The usual cadence of hiring is this: The biggest push of the year occurs mid-January through March; the second-biggest push occurs after Labor Day until early- to mid-November. Of course, COVID and the current job market has affected the hiring practices of many employers, but let’s go with there being one more chance to get hired in 2022. If You’ve Already Been Searching. If you’ve been looking for a few months with no results, it’s time to up your game – especially if all you have been doing i...
Aug 18, 2022•13 min•Ep. 239
This week, I’m talking about the stages of group development – what is necessary (and inevitable) for a team to grow, face up to challenges, tackle problems, find solutions, plan work, and deliver results. This work is based on the research of Bruce Tuckman from 1965, who hypothesized that, along with these factors, interpersonal relationships would create an effective group function. The four stages Tuckman identified in his research are forming, storming, norming, and performing. Forming In th...
Aug 10, 2022•26 min•Ep. 238
