Recently, I’ve had a number of male clients ask me how to bring more woman-leaders into their organizations. I don’t care that this might be a knee-jerk response to current events; I’m just thrilled to have the conversation. “Want to bring more women into your organization?“ I ask them. “Try recruiting at a PTO meeting.”
One of my earliest and all-time favorite clients is a woman named Carol.
Carol left her job as a senior corporate trainer for a national retailer to stay home and raise three sons. Her youngest was just entering kindergarten when we met.
Warm, animated and excited about going back to work, Carol impressed me instantly. But she’d been out for over ten years, her company no longer existed, and the only recent job on her résumé was part-time spritzer – the person who indiscriminately “samples” perfume on you as you enter a large department store. (I don’t think stores employ them anymore, but they were big in the ‘80s and ‘90s).
I was new to the coaching and placement world, Carol’s skills were narrow and dated, her experience didn’t align with the industries in our area, and that spritzing job she’d taken just to get out of the house was no asset. I wasn’t optimistic.
Then,
I love coaching a woman right before she heads off for an interview. There is just something about the vulnerable excitement that fills my office when prepping and pumping a woman up to go rock an interview.
I believe there is a very distinct difference between the prepping and the pumping when it comes to being interview-ready. The prepping is about rehearsing what you can DO on the interview to be memorable and unforgettable. It is so very important to be clear, articulate and well rehearsed on the content you will deliver. Susan wrote a great blog about this a few weeks ago; you must check it out! However, the pumping is equally important and places a focus on who you want to BE on the interview. It is about your mindset and getting that mindset right and ready to show those interviewers the amazing powerhouse they would be lucky to land.
There are 5 key components that are foundational in creating an empowered mindset for interviewing, and I have them here to share with you.
On a recent shoot with our local ABC affiliate (WTNH) in New Haven, CT., Kelley and I were pleasantly surprised by a question from reporter Sarah Cody’s trusty cameraman, Mike Piskorski. When the interview was over and we were returning to our posts, Mike, who’d been appropriately quiet for 45 minutes, piped up: “I have a question for you, ladies.” He cleared his throat. “Is there anything I can do to help my wife as she considers returning to work?”
“You bet, Mike!” we responded, delighted by his question and nearly choking on our green teas at the thoughtfulness of it. If you, too, are the spouse of an aspiring career-returner, consider the four tips we offered Mike:
The older I get, the smaller the world gets. What used to be six degrees of separation now feels like three. Sometimes less. A few weeks ago, Bob and I ran into two couples on the beach (parents, daughter, son-in-law, we soon learned) and upon making introductions, I instantly recognized the older woman as a freelance writer who had come to me 20 years earlier seeking career placement help.
I remembered her name, her career history, even where and what she was writing at the time. This surprised her; it surprised me, too.
And it got me thinking: I’ve interviewed literally thousands of people over my long career. Most I forget over time. Some I forgot the next day.
What was it about Bernadette that made her memorable?
What makes ANY candidate memorable?
I think it boils down to seven things. Keep them in mind the next time you interview.
Ladies, summer is here! You beautiful, courageous, power-houses that create the vision for everyone in your orbit. I know you have been busy. Summer and life are sweeping you in various directions, I am sure. Life has done the same for me. Isn’t it funny how life does that? However, I always have time for you and I have lots of juicy questions for you. So let’s get busy, shall we?
I am newly independent, but I’m not celebrating. On Monday, my husband Bob and I joined the ranks of empty-nesters when we dropped our son Luke off at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. His departure was early (6:00 a.m.) and abrupt (30 seconds to say ‘goodbye’), and the separation feels permanent. Luke is no longer ours, I’ve been told by those in the know. “He belongs to the army.” Ouch.
At my son Luke’s senior class awards night three weeks ago, his classmates Ayushi and Carolyn taught me (and other alert members of the audience) a lesson. The lesson is one we’ve been taught before, but often forget to practice; a lesson women need to heed now, especially.
Reminder: This is who you are!
I believe that women are the front door to every home. They are the temperature and the hub for what rolls in the household. They are powerful curators of life and some days they need a little reminder.
So let’s give YOU a little reminder right now!
Although I’m convinced that Fathers’ Day, like all of the other ‘Special Persons Days’, was a construct of a struggling greeting card industry, it has taken hold in the American calendar and I’m happy to embrace it. I won the lottery of birth when I was born to Thomas J. Rietano 50+ years ago and I’m always up to celebrate my luck – and my Dad.
