Thanks for visiting! In this new feature, My Coach’s Toolbox, I will share information about products I like and use. In most cases (like this one) I will likely link to the product through an affiliate link. Feel no pressure to buy the product through the affiliate link. I just want to let you know in the interest of full disclosure and transparency that just about any products I review or write about will be shared in this fashion. It helps support this site. At this point, most of the income I bring in actually goes back out to pay some of my regular contributors. (i.e., it keeps good content coming your way.) So definitely shop around, read other reviews if you need more information, and of you buy a product, buy it from a place you know and trust, at the best price. If you decide to buy through Amazon.Com, then consider buying through my link. It doesn’t cost you anything more, and I don’t get any information about you. Amazon just thanks me by giving me a small commission for referring you, and I use it to improve my sites, and to introduce new programs.
Please feel free to comment on the video and give me any tips or tricks for doing better! Let me know what you like and what you don’t. I want to keep you coming back for more.
And if you need a second opinion about the VXI BlueParrot B250-XT headset, here’s a review from a drunk guy, which also features a review of Sylvester Stallone’s classic movie Over the Top.
If reviews from a drunk guy don’t impress you, you can see review (and prices) on Amazon.com by clicking the affiliate ad below.
I believe that everyone needs a break every now and again, and I know that for me, Tuesday is almost always one of those days. Mondays are slow moving at the start but usually pick up, and then Tuesdays, if I am lucky, I feel like I’m starting to accomplish something.
Wednesdays are the worst, and everybody knows that, but Tuesday doesn’t get enough cred. It often sucks, too. So I am going to start giving you an early break in the action each week with a new feature, the “Tuesday Time Out.” Some of you will feel it’s too early to take a break, and if so, that is the beauty of this thing. You can catch it Wednesday sometime. It will still be here.
The art for this feature is another great spot illustration by DJ Coffman, my friend from Third Tribe. He’s a super-swell guy and very funny. And from what I can tell, a pretty reputable comic artist. So I was psyched to connect with him on 3T and even more psyched to have his art on my site. Check him out at DJCoffman.Com.
So the first lesson I learned is that I need to get an earlier start and stick with a concept once I have it. But today, I got a little sidetracked. One of the hazards of working at home. I was supposedly catching up on some client notes and projects, and cleaning my office (a perpetual task, it seems, but I will pretend that is the only reason you see all the clutter. Roll with me here, please.)
Anyway, the first edition is therefore late, so many of you will not see if until Wednesday. But you will understand a little about how I got off track, and what my priorities are. Sorry in advance for the bad camera work.
The new identity mark, a mortarboard "C" will be used across all Cook Coaching & Consulting websites.
Today you will notice a fresh new design for Higher Ed Career Coach. The streamlined design incorporates my new brand logo, a stylized “C,” wearing a mortarboard, with a stylized ball court on the inside part of the letter. This is just one step in a larger redesign of all my sites, including Higher Ed Life Coach, SeanCook.Net and two others that I will be debuting later this year (Higher Ed Coach, which will be a directory and resource site for coaches and consultants who work with higher ed institutions, students, faculty, and professional staff.; and PuttingYourPurposeToWork.com, which will feature articles on how to live a more purposeful life and resources to help you do so, including some coaching programs and services for those ready to pursue more purpose-driven paths in their careers.)
The mortarboard “C” came about as the result of a 99designs contest I ran. This is a great site for anyone wanting logos, graphic design services, and corporate image packages, at a low price. To set up a contest, you write out a design brief describing what you want, decide on a prize, and then you run the contest, and designers submit ideas for your consideration. I received over 40 different designs (I think it was 56, but some designers withdrew their designs when it was clear they weren’t going to win.) The winning design was by Nelly Tonchev, a branding consultant from the Boston area. YOu can see more of her designs here.
The re-design and streamlining of my theme was done by my friend Michelle Panulla who works sometimes with her former roommate Beth Hayden of Blogging with Beth. They sang a duet at my wedding. (“Power of Two” by the Indigo Girls). They are working on similar integrations of my new brand elements on the other sites, as well as doing some back-end SEO (Search Engine Optimization) for me. I will likely be working with them soon to move over my mailing list from Constant Contact to another service.
I’ve also integrated a neat little toolbar from Wibiya that floats over the bottom of the page. This toolbar is customizable, but for now, I have it set up so you can search this site or the web via Google, see how many people are online here, join chats using tinychat, see my Twitter feed or go to yours, like items on Facebook, share them on Twitter, Facebook or other networks, and read site specific announcements and news.
This custom cartoon by DJ Coffman will be used for our new feature "Monday Morning Quarterback."
I’m also integrating some custom elements into the site, as well as regular features. Pittsburgh comic artist DJ Coffman recently drew a couple of great items for me. The first one is a sketch of a vaguely familiar-looking guy at a chalkboard, explaining plays the team could run. I’ll be running this art with a new regular feature each Monday, which I am calling “Monday Morning Quarterback.” Each Monday, we’ll start the week with some opinion and analysis about recent events, news or trends in higher education. Sometimes, I’ll be the one offering my thoughts, but I hope to give guest writers an opportunity to share their perspectives as well. If you are interested in writing a guest post and being a “Monday Morning Quarterback,” send me an e-mail at sean@higheredcareercoach.com.
I am really excited about the next few weeks on the HigherEdCareerCoach podcast on BlogTalkRadio. I’m lining up some great guests from all over, and we’ll be talking about some really cool things.
This Friday (July 2) we’ll be discussing the difficulties some helping professionals have in accepting help, advice and coaching from others, and some ways that we can approach these situations and help.
Our guest will beSusan Giurleo, a psychologist, business consultant and marketer for health care professionals who want to diversify their income streams and utilize online tools to provide services and market their practices. Susan runs a therapy practice, Child Development Partners, but is also engaged in small business development, online health care, and social media marketing through her blog BizSavvyTherapist, where she teaches psychotherapists and other health care professionals how to ethically market and diversify income streams while utilizing online tools and social media. She is definitely an authority on helping those who may need help, but have issues admitting it. This should be an interesting conversation!
Please listen and call in your comments, thoughts, and questions to (347) 989-0055. You can also get to the show page by clicking the button below, where you can call in via Skype Click-toTalk, using the Blue S (Skype) logo button on the episode page.
We’ll also be joined by guest co-hosts Mickey Fitch and Dennis Charles, and talk about news, events, upcoming shows and the rash of new jobs people seem to be starting this month and next.
Job interviews can be a lot like stacking blocks. Once you have "just enough," it's time to stop.
Lately, I’ve been having some good discussions online, over e-mail, and on the phone with the participants of my 8 Weeks t0 August Career Coaching Program. It’s a small group but we are getting into the swing of things and hopefully having a program like this one, with 1-on-1 coaching, online activities and some dedicated times to have practice interviews, will help the participants find some clarity, focus their searches, and find great jobs by this September.
One of the topics we’re spending time with early on is obstacles.It’s hard to move ahead when you feel stuck, unless you can recognize the obstacles in your path, and clear them.
Since I’m not looking for work right now, I related something that I struggle with as a businessman, because it really isn’t that different from the things I struggled with in my job searches, and it’s this…
Saying just enough to answer the question.
Think about that for a minute.
Just enough.
In a job interview, your answers have to address the question, but beyond that, the issue that most of us struggle with is not coming up with a good answer. It is the “enough.” And more particularly, the “just enough.”
So when do you know when you’ve said enough?
Is it when you describe your job and your tasks?
Is it when you say something memorable?
Or is when you do both of the above, in ways that the interviewer will connect with?
Are your answers “connecting?” If not, where can you find clues on how to connect?
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this, and how you might apply the idea of “just enough” in your interview strategy. Please comment below and share your thoughts on how to say “just enough,” or share some of the obstacles you find yourself up against, and maybe we can help you figure out ways to get over them around them, or to go right through and smash them to pieces.
Sean Cook, M.Ed.
Sean Cook is a Life and Career Coach from Athens, GA. He attended Clemson University, where he earned his B.A. in Political Science (with a minor in Administration) and his M.Ed. in Counseling and Guidance Services (Student Affairs in Higher Education concentration.) Before founding Cook Coaching & Consulting Ltd., Sean spent 15 1/2 years working in higher education, mostly in residence life. His interest in coaching was a natural outgrowth of his personal experiences as a job seeker and his professional experiences as an advisor to college students and student organizations, and as a supervisor to students and young professionals from a variety of backgrounds.
Work with Sean. I help higher ed professionals take control of their careers with tailored services including resume and CV development, LinkedIn profile optimization and networking strategy, interview coaching, and one-on-one career guidance.
