Job Hacking

Do you want to look bad?

Um, that would be NO, right?

Let's talk about the photos we see on social networking sites. Here are the rough categories:

• Picture of you, cropped so as to not include your SO, BF, GF, Wife, Husband, whatever is to your left in the pic
• The 'solo camera phone shot' where in addition to seeing your head, we see your upper arms in a very unnatural position. Looks like it was a last minute, "Hey wouldn't it be great to take a photo in this location" shot.
• Then there's the "I'm so drunk at the bar/party/dance/concert/" shot.
• And the "Here's me at work in my gray cubicle w/paper, monitor and dead printer" in the background" shot
• The camouflage shot: "This is me 5 years ago at a Halloween party but never mind the mask"
• The 'professional headshot' usually for execs to post on the bio pages at their firm they are leading - usually a little stiff.
• A special one for the ladies: "I just changed my hair color to platinum blonde, blood red, muted purple and I'm SO EXCITED!"
• For the guys: Nobody wants to see you in a do-rag, O.K.?

Now, I know this isn't you, but maybe you have a friend...

A couple of quick tips for a photo that's fun and authentic, but not 'professional':

• Start w/a reasonably good camera. Some people can take great shots w/camera phones, and most of them are professional photographers. With a lot of patience. Most digital point and shoots made in the last 2 years are capable of great shots, so start there.
• CLEAN THE LENS. It's like chalking the cue in pool - just make it a habit.
• Only take shots when you have GREAT lighting conditions: 1st or last hour of daylight (assuming no clouds, or intermittent clouds; back-lighting is sorta important, especially for women (back-lighting means the light is coming towards you as the photographer, and your subject is between you and the light); and remember that the odds of a pic coming out well where the camera's flash was used are a bit slim. Another great time is during the day when we have cloud cover as they diffuse the light so it's not harsh. Opens up your shooting hours markedly.
• Set your camera to use the best possible image capture, which usually means the largest file size.
• Fill the viewfinder with the person in question. People way out away from the photographer don't do much for your audience.
• For subjects who have gained a few lbs & they are self-conscious about it: The camera should be a bit higher than the head, and straight-on, and/or you might want to just tilt your head down a bit. This will help hide any chubbiness below the chin (Check Victoria Beckham, Paris Hilton or any of the glamor girl shots when they know they are being photographed).
• If it's an option, reduce the F-stop setting the lowest possible on the camera. This will help in two ways: 1) Keeps the focus on the person in the shot (assuming you're focusing on them), and 2) Allows you to up the speed of the shot to reduce shake & movement.

Around Seattle, there are some great outdoor places to take photos, usually on the Western side of the water. For example, the parks up on Queen Anne, or Kirkland beach area along Lake Washington, or along the waterfront of Downtown Seattle (Hello Olympic Sculpture Park!). These locations give you wonderful opportunity to take a shot w/great light because there's nothing occluding your light source as the sun goes down.

Finally, have fun! In this day and age, a photo is almost free except for the time you put into it. So, shoot away. When you get a great shot, post it up!

Do you ever wonder about mentors?

I've been fortunate in having a couple of good mentors during the course of my career, and they were relationships that just sorta happened. Not very directed, and without strategic foresight, but nonetheless valuable beyond gold.

Kris Dunn over at Fistful of Talent has an interesting post expanding this to a Personal Board of Directors or PBOD. Great thought, increase the numbers, improve the help you receive.

And remember, a mentor isn't doing this strictly because they want to give back. They are getting something out of the relationship, too. Good chance you won't know what that is until you mentor someone yourself.

You won't believe this - Palin begins her answer by saying...

The VP Debate tonight is setting up to be an historic event by many measures. For me, it comes during our 'get the kids transitioned from dinner to bed' time, so thanks to Comcast DVR, I'll still get to watch it, albeit time-shifted a bit.

And while it will be historic, it's not a debate. It's an interview.

This will be the first time that the broad swath of U.S. voters get to see Joe Biden and Sarah Palin respond to questions about how they'd handle things.

And, for both job hunters and hiring managers, there is plenty to learn from this event. What questions should be asked in an interview? How will I handle the 'tough question'? How do I differentiate myself from the competition?

One subtle item appeared today in an article in the Christian Science Monitor, "Unusually High Stakes in vice presidential debate".

The issue is this: Joe Biden & Sara Palin will likely not be held to the same standards in the interview. According to the article, Senator Biden just needs to not be condescending, and Governor Palin needs to be able to string sentences together.

If you were the hiring manager, would you hold two different candidates for the same role to different standards?

In assessing candidates for your team, this is a big deal. Your interview process needs to put everyone through the same tests, and the results need to be impartial, at least as much as is possible. Yet, interviewers are often shown to make a hiring decision within the first 2 minutes of meeting a candidate!

Maybe this election hinges on the first 2 minutes of this debate...

Serial or Parallel Processing?

Hey, hiring manager, ever thought about a panel interview?

Many of the firms I work with use a serial interview process. That is, they have a sequence of 1:1 interviews between members of the team and the candidate. The process takes hours for the candidate, and usually the members of the team don't have a clear focus for their individual interview. Although flexible in timing, it is rife with problems on the decision end.

How about something that's different, which improves your decision process?

Yup, the panel interview.

Panel interviews give the team a chance to see the candidate answer all the questions from everyone. It helps to minimize the hijacking problem in serial interviews (that is, one interviewer hijacking the decision process because the candidate 'failed' their special test). It makes the team members obviously accountable to the other team members during the interview. And it gives you the chance as the leader to illustrate that you do, in fact, lead the team.

If you don't do this now, check into it. Run a test. Worst case, you end up making the same decisions as before.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

There are many lessons in the House's failure to pass the bailout bill on Monday.

One key lesson is that of the fable, The Boy Who Cried Wolf.

As a leader of a team, or teams, or company, you only have so many 'crisis' arrows in your quiver. And, when you use them, it's of critical importance that 1) There really is a crisis; 2) That in past crises you performed well for the team and their constituents, and that you set aside petty differences in crafting the solution with them; 3) Everyone clearly understands the threat the wolf represents.

Trust.

Need a good reason to vote?

True tests of leadership come but every so often.

For example:

• Your HR VP comes to you and tells you that your VP of Sales, who is married, has been having an affair with an admin and a Manager on his staff. Turns out the Manager was just a Jr. Account Manager 12 months ago, and has received 2 promotions in that time. What's your decision?
• Sales are down and you need to cut back. Where?
• You have a GREAT Software Architect, amazing Software Design skills, a founder of the company, but he bullies some members of the Software team who he thinks aren't top-of-the-heap developers, which amounts to a third of the team. What do you do?

Today, we witnessed several failures of Leadership with the U.S. Government. First, we watched President G.W. Bush as he was unable to rally the Republican Members of the House to his plan to save our financial system. Second, we also watched Speaker Nancy Pelosi as she was unable to rally the Democratic Members of the House to vote for the same plan. And finally, we watched as the members of the House failed to approve the plan to save our financial system.

It's all too easy to get distracted from thinking about what a leader will ultimately face as true tests of leadership. But, when we vote, we need to set those distractions aside and think clearly about who can best lead us in times of crisis.

Tough call to make, but that's our job.

re: The Art of Resisting Irrational Behavior

Just got done reading a nice interview Guy Kawasaki did with Ori Brafman, the author of "Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior".

There are two sections that are directly applicable to you, and they are both great. The first is for hiring managers and what they should focus on in interviews, and it starts with the question, "Knowing what you know about first impressions, how should companies conduct job interviews?" The second is a little more of a stretch, and it starts with the question, "How do you tell a Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, or Bill Gates that you think they’re making a mistake?"

This second question is great for job-hunters about to go into an interview with their prospective boss.

Why?

Because this is EXACTLY the behavior you should adopt ahead of an interview. That is, put yourself in the boss's shoes and ask what the problem is they need to solve by hiring someone like you. Then, go research the problem. Find out why they need you. Find out what their assumptions might be. Make a guess or two about how to solve it. Then, when the interview happens, you're ready to answer the big question in their head: What can this bozo do for me?

You can find the interview here. Go ahead, it's Friday, read something that challenges you!

re: Looking for a reason to hide

There are always reasons to NOT do something.

Seth has a great post about this today. Any post that mentions chicken entrails is a must-read in my book!

Aren't there about 3 things you've been sitting on that would really, truly make things better for your neighborhood, town, city, county, state, country, world, if you simply made them happen? If now is not a good time for you, when would be better?

What attracts great candidates?

When you're writing a job ad, this is a big, big question. You can sit and stare at a blank page for a while and not get the answer.

It's simple: It's the work.

Great candidates want to do something. They want to make an impact. They want to change the world.

Tell them that. Tell them how their being on your team is going to be a game-changing experience for them, and their career.

Pretty simple, actually.

Can't really think of why someone would think that this job would be a game-changing experience? Could be you've lost your passion for the work, the team, the company. Time for you to go find a new job somewhere else!

It never hurts to ask

One of the key bits about recruiting is that you have to ask.

You have to know that the job and the company is great and attractive to a given audience of people. You have to know that the offer is a good one and in alignment with the goals and objectives of the candidate. You have to know that you know. Then, and this is most important, you have to ask.

Thing is, this is true in other aspects of life.

You have to ask her out. You have to ask for your Mocha. You have to ask for admission. You have to ask for permission. You have to ask for others to vote for you.

Today, you have to ask those you voted for to lead and to save our economy. You have to ask the members of Congress who are representing you to get off their partisan duffs and come together and make history.

Otherwise, history will make them. And us.

Here are links to the Congressional Delegation in Washington State, use them, add to them, send them far and wide:

Senator Patty Murray: http://murray.senate.gov/email/
Senator Maria Cantwell: http://cantwell.senate.gov/contact/

Congressman Brian Baird: http://www.house.gov/baird/IMA/email.shtml
Congressman Doc Hastings: http://hastings.house.gov/ContactForm.aspx
Congressman Rick Larsen: http://www.house.gov/larsen/contact/
Congressman Cathy McMorris: http://mcmorris.house.gov/IMA/issue_subscribe.htm
Congressman Adam Smith: http://www.house.gov/adamsmith/
Congressman Norm Dicks: http://www.house.gov/dicks/email.shtml
Congressman Jay Inslee: http://www.house.gov/inslee/contact/email.html
Congressman Jim McDermot: http://www.house.gov/mcdermott/contact.shtml
Congressman Dave Reichart: http://reichert.house.gov/Contact/ (although something seems messed up w/his site's submission process - guess he doesn't do email???)

Additionally, here are the Senate and House Directories to our Representatives:

House Members: http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW_by_State.shtml#wa
Senate: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm