OWNing your career!

Failure and how to use it! By Daryl M. Williams December 20, 2012 There is a quote that goes “Failure to plan is planning to fail” and it is often attributed to Benjamin Franklin. I think about this quote as I reflect on the areas where I made mistakes, whether personal or professional. More importantly, I think about how to improve upon the mistakes I’ve made and how I can turn those failures into success either for me or someone else. As I was teaching last night I relayed the story of how years ago I applied for a role in an organization and listed myself as having a skill set/experience level they listed as essential. I had only performed the skill a time or two and I definitely didn’t paint myself as an expert, however I still FAILED. Where I failed is that I didn’t bone up on that particular skill and when the telephone interview came, I answered in a manner that painted me as unqualified for the role. I FAILED because even though I was told, per the job postin...

Why I, FINALLY, said adios to McDonald’s! By: daryl m. williams December 19, 2012 You would think it would be the food or maybe the discussions surrounding McDonald’s reducing employee hours (and wages) to avoid paying health insurance but those haven't been the final straws for me. What happened to cause me to forever forgo my beloved Mocha Frappe from the golden arches? Well, it must be the War on Christmas or I mean McDonald’s Corp encouraging franchisees to open on McDonald’s but employees only receiving regular pay. Chaps my hide to borrow an old phrase. I’ve gone to movies on Christmas Day. Chinese Food restaurants are famously open on Christmas Day and of course Hospitals, Police, Fire departments among others don’t take this joyous day off. I even realize not everyone shares my love of Christmas and I’m OK with that, but for McDonald’s not to have a plan in place for overtime pay just strikes me as wrong. I’ve managed people before, even in a Fortune...

Why Wait Till Eventually? By Daryl M. Williams December 18, 2012 If I had a $1 for every time I heard a student or client indicate they were going to wait until they graduated or until the holidays were over before beginning their employment search, I would have a nice down payment on a near luxury vehicle. Here’s the thing, folks: it really is a myth that hiring stops during the end of the year. We HAVE to go forth and conquer because depending on where you look you will find data suggesting that the average time it takes to earn a new job is 6 months to 1 year. For example, an article at AOL indicates the average time is 7 months. AOL Job Length Think about that in terms of YOUR job hunt YOU just pushed back until you graduate one year from now. If you thought you would waltz from the classroom to the boardroom you may be in for a huge, unwelcome surprise. The same applies to the holidays in terms of assuming companies are waiting. Here’s the thing, I get it. Peopl...