Getting back on the right foot

I could feel my blood pressure rising.

I was off to a bad start on this interview...I know, I should have driven to the location the day before, but I didn't. I looked up the office address on the web, put it in my GPS and thought I'd be there five minutes early, easy. 

But the web wasn't up-to-date. I found the what I thought was the correct office suite--and a sheet of paper telling me the office had moved about three miles away. A nice gentleman greeted me. He knew who I was looking for offered to call ahead to let him know I was on my way.

The directions didn't get me to the right place, though, and I had to call again. Finally, the right office building. I was mad at myself for such rookie mistakes, but I had to get myself together.

Then the receptionist handed me a sheet of paper to fill out--about four segments for my 35 year job history. Breathe...breathe. I knew that if I took my frustration into the interview, it would not be a good thing. So I paused, collected myself and put the past half hour behind me.

My recruiter came out and greeted me and we got into an office to visit. About ten minutes into the interview, there was a knock--it was the window washers--it would only take a couple minutes. My recruiter and I continued to talk, the window washers left, we finished our discussion with some talk about what might come next. He apologized and congratulated me for keeping my composure amidst the rattling of blinds as the window washers did their work.

What I'd been having is a very human experience--anyone who has worked a day in their life or had a family or had any kind of life can relate--the unexpected happens. We falter, we get scared, we worry, maybe even panic. We get into a mode of what I call Cumulative Mental Errors (CMEs). (Sounds like an accreditation, eh?)  If we let the CMEs pile up, they color our judgment, get our heads spinning and we start reacting rather than choosing our actions.

At a time of year when everyone is setting new intentions, resolutions and goals for the year ahead, it's worth pausing to remember that we are irreversibly human. We forget that making a mistake doesn't mean that we are mistakes. (Check out Brene' Brown's The Gifts of Imperfection to read more about how this can undermine our efforts).

So if losing your job or living on a fine financial edge or worry about having a bad interview has thrown you off your game, take a minute, breathe and allow yourself to get back in step. While 2012 is a new beginning, so is this morning, or this hour, or this minute. Get back in the moment, and bid the CMEs goodbye. Do it for you. You deserve it.

Beyond networking in the job search

I wrote a couple weeks ago about the “perfect search” and the unflagging hard work and innovation it takes to land a job.

Through contact with Net2Work and Unemployed in Des Moines networkers, I’ve seen first hand the kind of dedication it takes to keep marching when doors seem to be closing all around.

I’ll go out on a limb, however, and suggest that there are a couple intangibles that are critical to a job search—community and faith.

I imagine I’m not the only one who thought at one point: “Why do I want to hang out with a bunch of other frustrated depressed unemployed people?”

My experience at job seeking networking groups has been anything but depressing. Each time attend, I meet new people, gain ideas for new strategies, and give and receive encouragement. I leave the session energized, refilled with energy and hope.

As for faith—don’t get too nervous here. I am talking about putting ourselves in the position where serendipity, the goodness of kind people and the power of positive thinking are at work. Whether you practice a religion, believe in a universal power or are a skeptic, you know that sometimes things too good (and as we know, too bad) to be true often happen.

In early November, one of our networkers, Colette Noble, took risk taking a step further. She offered to be interviewed by ABC/Yahoo news about her search that has been in process for nearly a year. Colette is the “every man/woman” of today’s job search dilemma. Family stress, mortgages, support for kids and their activities, health insurance pile on top of the rigors of job searching to sometimes make the situation feel untenable.

So the other night, as I did my swing through Google world, I came across a link to a rabbi’s message to his membership that offered a Hanukah message “[Colette] Noble was laid off in January as an account manager at CDS Global, an Iowa-based subsidiary of the Hearst Corporation, where she worked for over two decades. She was the sole breadwinner for her family of four. Who amongst us cannot identify with her dilemma, tears and struggle? “

Think of it…people in a Jewish synagogue in New York State are thinking about the many Colettes, (Brians, Kathys, Joes and Dianes) of our country and holding them in thought. Whether you follow a religious practice, believe in Karma the power of this and many other thoughts of support can’t go ignored.

I’ll choose to say “thank you” to the people who offer positive thoughts, deeds of good will, and reach a hand out to me and other unemployeds during this season of economic downturn. Our job is to keep on putting one foot in front of the other, and I trust that positive energy from those in better positions will make a difference, one way or another.

(If you’d like to check out the Rabbi’s comments, go to http://www.kingsparkjewishcenter.org/rabbi.htm.

My cup runneth over with job support

I'd been thinking I needed to bump up my job hunt activities when I attended an Iowa Workforce Development workshop on job hunting resources.

When I learned that 1 percent (yes ONE) of jobs are found through want ads, and that 70 percent are found through networking, I knew exactly where to step up my game.

A mere two weeks ago, I attended a Net2work meeting at the Des Moines Partnership office at 700 Locust St. in downtown Des Moines. I met at least a half dozen people I hadn't known before, added them to my connections on LinkedIn.com. The program was on using Twitter as a job search tool, and the discussion was lively and interesting. (Next session is Monday, Dec. 5 at 10 a.m. (same location).

Then last Thursday, from 10 to noon, I attended my first Unemployed in Des Moines session at Smokey Row coffee shop. It was a packed house as Des Moines consultant Cassandra Halls of "2 the Top" offered concrete suggestions on how to stand out at job fairs (e.g. research your top potential employers, apply for jobs before the show, learn who will be staffing the booth, ask for a few minutes on the side to learn about specific jobs you've researched).  Met more people, heard some great ideas, stories of hope and challenge.

In the past week, my days have been filled with notes from fellow networkers, learning new resources, offers of information and connections, and encouragement. Why would anyone want to sit in front of a computer looking for positions that have an ice cube's chance in a very warm room when they could be talking to bright, innovative, tenacious and connected folks that know more than me and widen my reach exponentially?

Hmmm, don't really have to think long on that one. But I know I'm on the right road and encourage others in my spot to consider getting on the networking bus to success!

Timing...when you do everything right and have no results

Joe Burkland has become a bit of a folk hero around these parts. I met Joe about two and a half years ago at a networking event called PinkSlip. He'd been laid off from his business to business sales job and was looking to get going in a new job ASAP.

Fast forward to November, 2011 when Joe was quoted in the Des Moines Register  “And to think I got this full-time (job) in such a short time — just two years, two months, 29 days, three hours and 48 minutes,” Burklund jokes.

Joe did about anything and everything they recommend. Networking, volunteering, being of service, starting a blog, LinkedIn, and of course applying for jobs and improving his abilities through training at DMACC. His is what I term "the perfect search," and yet he kept plugging away, doing what he had to do to keep body and soul together, and keep on looking.

He credits the DMACC training that provides laid off workers with training in financial services call center services as the pad that launched him into his current position with Marsh USA in Des Moines. 


I take a lot from Joe's example. That securing a job is hard, but not impossible. That being open to new people, new possibilities, new strategies and new fields of interest is crucial. And probably most of all is that the search is a one day at a time process and as long as we're moving forward, we're going somewhere. No, on second thought, that the most important thing is that attitude is everything. Congratulations to Joe and all the other helpers and seekers that are doing the deal day by day. I welcome your example and your leadership!.

So what is the title about...

How does a writer, editor and public relations pro find her way to digging in the dirt and then back into an office again?  Writing is what I've done since I was a kid--first journals and bad poetry, then news stories for the high school paper, a college degree in English and my first assignment as a cub reporter for the Maquoketa Sentinel. 

I loved working for a series of nonprofits and governmental agencies that gave me the chance to make a difference in the arts, education and sustainable agriculture. I love working for causes I believe in.

When I landed up at Iowa State University, working for the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, I took the leap to begin horticulture classes, one at a time and later going to half time to finish my degree. Learning the names of plants, how they are used, and putting my design sensibilities to work on the land was a whole new "page" of sorts and like my experience in public relations, I discovered that if you're not learning something new every day, you are dead...

So my years of creativity put on the written page or computer screen have put to work fine tuning garden during maintenance, learning from experienced gardeners who followed their instincts and learned from trial and error. As the Iowa Garden Coach, I've worked from the philosophy that anyone can learn to garden and that most folks would rather learn how to fish than be given a fish.


While the work with people who love the land is incredibly fulfilling, I've been searching for employment that will put my skill at teaching and mentoring together with my writing and administrative abilities. I'm content to develop my gardening business on evenings and weekends and put myself to work that will offer a year-round opportunity to be of service and put my skills to work in the office environment.

The perfect job search

So here I am in job search mode again. Where I am going and what can I do for the employer who hasn't yet discovered me? For one, I can write--newsletters, news releases, op-eds, memos, business letters, research articles, scripts, how-to articles and more. I can organize--files, data, concepts, projects. And of course there this issue of having pursued my dream of garden design, maintenance and consulting for the past 11 years. Running a small business is an invaluable education, even in a tough economy. Helps one learn how to made lemonades from lemons.

So I am posting my resume here for a starter and hoping that perhaps it will lead to my next opportunity--creative, challenging and a chance to help my employer shine.

Thanks to Suzanne Hull from Contemporary Business Solutions for getting me going toward getting a blog. 

So here's the resume: 

WHO IS ANNE LARSON?

I am a detail-oriented and skilled communicator with a passion for excellence, sustainability and creativity.

CORE COMPETENCIES

• Strategic thinker and planner
• Skilled writer, editor, public relations and marketing professional.
• Broad experience in direct mail, web and social media strategies such as Facebook and Twitter.
• Able publication designer with experience in broad range of software for PC and Mac.
• Collaborative team contributor also able to take initiative and work independently.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Communicator and collaborator

·       Spearheaded collaborative statewide celebration of Iowa Groundwater Protection Act involving more than 70 nonprofits.

·       Executed programs for marketing, design, sales and customer relations increasing client base from 0 to more than 80.

·       Association and nonprofit experience conducting and promoting conferences and workshops attracting local and statewide audiences.

·       Supported program specialists in marketing their programs to wide variety of audiences.

Committed to excellence

·       Won national recognition for Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture newsletter that was written, edited and designed in-house.

• Led statewide professional organization for communicators in education.
• Earned national accreditation in public relations and state professional status in landscape and nursery industry.

Passionate for customer service

• Grew new company with unique niche for excellence in customer satisfaction.

·       Worked with diverse staff and clients, creatively solving potential challenges through listening and knowledge.

• Trained team members to ensure high quality service.

WORK HISTORY

Administrative Assistant, Iowa Office of Energy Independence            November 2010-October 2011

Owner, Iowa Garden Coach, LLC            current

Co-owner, Hearth and Home Gardens             June, 2005-November, 2008

Garden Maintenance Manager, Perennial Gardens, Inc.            March, 2000-July 2004

Communications Specialist, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture             March, 1992-Aug. 1999

EDUCATION:

• B.A. English, minors journalism and Spanish, University of Northern Iowa
• B.S. Horticulture, Iowa State University
• Ongoing seminars in Adobe In-Design, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, Web 2.0