Rock Your Career

Break Your New Goal into Steps

Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

Once you’ve set your mind on a goal and cleared away distractions, you’re ready to start. But first, you need to do some planning. When you create a plan and use that plan, you’re more likely to succeed with your goals.

You can create a list of tasks to achieve your goal. But it’s more effective to start by evaluating what you need to make your goal a reality.

Tools or Supplies

What tools or supplies will you need to meet your goal? If you’re starting a blog, you’ll need a website and a hosting service. If you’re aiming to win a promotion, start tracking your projects, achievements, and results.

You also need to consider any supplies you may have forgotten. If you’re starting a job search, you may need an updated LinkedIn profile. If you’re starting an exercise routine, you may need to invest in new equipment.

Specialized Help

Sometimes, you can’t achieve your goals by yourself. That’s where specialized help comes in. Specialized help can take many forms. It might be hiring a personal trainer to help you achieve the toned body you want. It might be hiring a career coach to help you win a raise or promotion.

Specialized help can sometimes be expensive. But if your goal is important to you, don’t be afraid to invest in it. Some coaches and trainers may be willing to work with you to develop a payment plan, so be sure to ask if this is an option.

Support from Friends and Family

You can’t succeed in a bubble. To reach your goals, you’ll need the support of your family, friends, colleagues, or coworkers. If your current network can’t provide support, look for alternative support.

Joining a support group or finding an online community can be helpful in these situations. Look for groups and communities that leave you feeling upbeat and are filled with people who want to achieve similar goals.

Return the Support

It’s easy to become so focused on your new goal that you forget to invest in others. If you’re part of a group or community, make sure you offer help to other members. Be willing to take time from your day to support someone else.

This support can take many forms, including sharing a blog post you read, a relevant book, or a tool.

Now that you know what you need to succeed, it’s time to go after your goal. It’s scary to take that first step, but you must be willing to do it. Once you’ve taken that first step, you’ll experience a rush of confidence and increased motivation.

Motion creates momentum. Go for it!

Take my free personal brand assessment to see where your brand currently stands and the exact steps you can take to elevate your career.

Goals: What Are You Truly Fired Up to Focus On?

Wendy Terwelp Leave a comment

There may be several areas of your life you’d like to improve by setting goals.

You know you’ll feel happy (maybe even relieved!) when you complete them.

What’s the one goal you most want to accomplish? What’s the one that fills you with excitement and jazzes you as you dream of the possibilities?

You want to pursue goals that excite you and have deep meaning for you because you’ll be more motivated to achieve them. When you encounter roadblocks, you’ll be more likely to find a way to overcome them. Your passion and your why are the fuel that will drive you forward and enable you to keep going when things are tough.

What one thing, if completed, would be the tipping point for everything else you want to do?

You can transform your life by pursuing a single goal. Think about the weight loss transformations you see in magazines or the inspirational stories of employees who built their dream businesses while working full-time.

It all started with a single goal that changed the direction of their lives.  

Why is this goal important?

Once you know what your goal is and you feel passionate about it, dig deep to discover why this goal matters to you. In addition to yourself, who else will be impacted when you achieve this goal?

This is important because it helps you determine what’s motivating you. When you encounter setbacks, your motivation, your why, must be powerful enough to give you the strength to keep going.

Your motivation doesn’t have to be about you. Perhaps it’s about creating a better life for your family. Or making an impact on your favorite nonprofit.

What’s the first step?

Now that you know what you want, it’s helpful to make a list. Write down all the ways your life will benefit when you’ve achieved your goal. This list can help you stay motivated and give you the courage to persevere in pursuit of your dream.

While you may not realize it right now, setting and achieving one goal that’s important to you will be the start of your brand-new life.

It will transform you into a more confident and happier person than before.

In your corner,

Coach Wendy

www.knocks.com/coaching

Rock Your Network®: Never Burn a Bridge

Wendy Terwelp 4 Comments

Nick picked up a copy of my book when I spoke to his MBA class. He wrote me an email about the action he took after reading “Rock Your Network® for Job Seekers” and his terrific result – a new dream gig!

“Wendy,

I found your book very helpful when trying to find a job that would make me happy and allow me to do something I was “into.” I went to LinkedIn and read my friend M’s profile. In her description, she said she “loved” her job. From there, I was very proactive. Instead of Facebook messaging, LinkedIn, or email, I just picked up the phone and asked M to tell me exactly what she did for a living and how she and her parents started this fundraising company.

[Editor’s note: Woo hoo! See how Nick researched online, then reached out to make that personal connection by picking up the phone and reconnecting with his friend?]

Our phone conversation lasted about a half hour, and from there, she said she’d put me in contact with a local rep. All of a sudden she called me back and had set up a ride-a-long. The ride-a-long went terrific, and from there her parents (the owners) of the company called me and flew me to Minnesota to see the operation and meet me. After two days, I went home with an offer. Within the following week, I accepted the offer…! After I accepted, they flew me in to meet the entire sales group and staff for the end-of-the-season sales meeting (4 hours) and to introduce me to the company!

It was a crazy journey getting this job, but I CAN’T wait to start. I basically just used “networking” as the sole reason I got this job. I kept in touch with an old friend that I was really close with but didn’t see often. That ended up being enough and proved you should never burn a bridge. They also liked that I sought out M, NOT asking for a job, but asking to learn about what they do. From there I acted the part, whether it be dressing for the part when they picked me up from the airport to just being very proactive throughout this process. It’s crazy like you said in your book, how many jobs come from networking, compared to online postings. I guess I just want to say thanks because your book just gave me the confidence to not be afraid to pursue something that I believed in for a career!”

Success Stories

YEAH! You rock Nick! Nick wanted me to share his networking story with everyone – and he’ll be in the next edition of my book, Rock Your Network®. The bold items are my edits.

Here are the exact steps Nick took to land his new gig:

1. Reviewed his LinkedIn connections and read the profiles to identify people with interesting jobs he’d like to learn more about. (Research)

2. Picked up the phone! And reconnected personally. (Reach out)

3. Asked about his friend’s career to learn more about it. He did NOT ask for a job.

4. Shared common interests. This led to the additional connection with a local sales rep.

5. Took action – went on the ride-along and, as he said, “dressed the part.” He acted as if he already had the gig.

6. Never burned a bridge. Maintained relationships.

7. Was a go-getter. Nick took action and initiative, which got him results: a NEW JOB.

Call to action: Which of Nick’s steps can you take right now? Go for it – and share your story! I’d love to have your story in the next edition of my book, like Nick. Let’s roll!

Want more networking tips? Grab a copy of Rock Your Network®.

© Wendy Terwelp | All rights reserved.

Wendy Terwelp, author of Rock Your Network®, writes, speaks, and coaches on career management, networking, social media, and personal branding. Need a speaker for your association, company, or private coaching to rock your career? Let’s talk!

6 Tips to Create a Networking Plan that Works

Wendy Terwelp 1 Comment

Would you like to get more results when you network? Here’s how to create a networking plan that works:

1. Schedule a regular time each week to network. Without a plan, we all get busy, and suddenly, when we need it most, our network is outdated or scattered. By scheduling regular time in your calendar to network, it not only gets done, but you’ll feel more confident and comfortable in networking situations, avoid binge-watching your fave show, and meet people who want to help you propel your career. People want to help you and see you succeed.

Think about how you feel when you help others, whether it’s recommending a favorite restaurant or referring someone to your preferred service provider, like a financial advisor, lawyer, career coach, or other service.

2. Schedule 10 minutes each day to use social media. I say 10 minutes or you’ll end up down the internet rabbit hole. Determine what actions you’ll take online. Here are a few to try: status updates, relevant links that demonstrate your thought leadership, and quick emails to those who’ve updated their statuses with wins. For example, if you read your LinkedIn notifications and a friend has landed a new position or received an award, send her a brief congratulatory note.

3. Determine which offline, in-person groups you will join and how often they meet. Take an active role in the organization, such serving as the chapter ambassador. This helps you meet more people and overcome some of the jitters of being in a new group. Click here for ideas on which groups to join.

4. Set networking goals for yourself. For example, when attending a new group, set a goal to meet three new people. Three people who need to know about you based on your career or business goals. Write this goal in your calendar where you’ve scheduled the meeting.

5. Prepare and rehearse your sound bite. Networking can take place any time, any where. Be prepared.

6. Update your network regularly with the action steps you’ve taken. If a friend referred you to a contact and you set up an informational interview, let your friend know that you made the connection and got results.

You’ve got to fuel your network to fire it up! Scheduling networking activities makes your network thrive. And regular contact with those in your network will help you achieve your career goals much faster.

Want more networking tips? Check out Rock Your Network®, the book.

Copyright 1998-2019 Wendy Terwelp | All rights reserved.

Wendy Terwelp, author of Rock Your Network®, writes, speaks, and coaches on career management, networking, social media, and personal branding. Need a speaker for your association, company or private coaching to rock your career? Let’s talk!

How to Use Social Media to Boost Your Personal Brand

Wendy Terwelp 6 Comments

Personal branding on social media can feel overwhelming for some professionals and consultants. Maybe you’ve struggled with it, too.

You want to be warm and approachable, but you don’t want to overshare. You want to be professional and polished, but you don’t want to be thought of as the boring guest at the cocktail party.

Decide How You Want to be Known

The first thing to do when using social media to uplevel your personal brand is to decide how you want to be known.

Pick a subject you’d like to focus on so you become THE Expert on that subject. This should be a topic you’re excited about because you’ll be sharing and writing about it for some time to become known as a Subject Matter Expert.

Choose Your Networks

While some gurus advise you should be on all the social media platforms, most professionals and consultants find their clients and cohorts stick to one or two social networks, depending on their industry or profession.

Don’t stress about this. Simply pick the two social networks where you get the most traction. These two social networks are ones you’ll update daily.

Keep Your Social Media Profiles Consistent

Review your profiles on all your social media channels. Would someone unfamiliar with you or your brand be able to tell you’re the same person on each social media channel?

If not, it’s time to align your social media accounts. Use the same profile picture, bio, and header image across all your social platforms. This makes it easy for visitors to recognize your brand, regardless of the social network they’re using.

Post Frequently

Maintain an active profile on your industry’s and your target audience’s most popular social networks. (A target audience consists of people who need to know about you.)

Some networks are better for posting multiple times a day (like X/Twitter), while for others, posting only 2-3 times a day (or a week) works better. This is another reason to choose only one to three platforms; activity helps you gain traction with your target audience. You also want to be able to effectively manage the social media channels you choose.

A dormant account can negatively impact your online brand.

To determine the best posting frequency, run a few short experiments. This will help you discover how frequently you should post and what times work best for your followers.

If you’re unsure what to post, follow the 4 out of 5 rule. This rule means posting 4 pieces of valuable content to your audience for every 1 piece of promotional content. Don’t be afraid to promote great content to your followers, even if you didn’t write it. When you’re the one who shares the latest news in your industry, followers will view you as the go-to source of trends and news in your industry. Curating great content counts.

Join Communities

Once you gain some traction with your personal brand on social media, look for communities of like-minded professionals or your ideal client tribe. Facebook and LinkedIn have groups. While some channels may use different terms for these communities, they all mean the same thing: an online gathering of people around one central subject, whether that subject is learning and development, social media, HR, healthcare, etc.

The great thing about groups is that they allow you to form connections with other members and give them value.

It’s also an easy way to do customer research and create your own professional learning network. You can discover what questions your audience frequently asks, what they struggle with, and what they would love to know more about.

Using social media to brand and enhance your online reputation is brilliant. Just remember to post and share valuable content that benefits your target audience.

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Wendy Terwelp is an award-winning career expert and personal branding strategist who works with high-performing leaders and organizations wanting to advance careers, rock networks, and up-level their brands online and offline. Click the link to get your free personal brand self-assessment.

© Wendy Terwelp / www.knocks.com / All rights reserved. / Updated 2024.

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