Planning Ahead

Planning Ahead

Becoming a success is as easy as copying how someone else made it.

Too many people begin their job search at the point where they are annoyed or angry enough to take action. In fact, job searches should begin years before that with a plan.

Let’s say you are starting your career and you want to become CIO of a large corporation. What steps do you need to take in order to achieve the top rung?

Well, you may have missed one criteria by not having an undergraduate degree from a top school . . . but you can rectify that with your Masters.

What else?

Not sure?

Well, reach out to CIO’s of top companies via email or US mail. Research them on Hoovers or Google them. Ask them about their backgrounds and what the critical steps they took were in order to achieve their position. Ask a million questions. Not everyone will, but some will.

Duplicate what they tell you.

Now, Jeff, if it were that easy, everyone would be doing it.

That’s not true. Often, because of life circumstances (the responsibility of parenting, dating, job responsibilities, poor health are just a few), we become distracted from our objectives and then give up.

We forget that we can get back in and adjust our time line and achieve some remarkable things.

For example, I trained for and ran the New York Marathon in 1990. I started off with 8 others and only two of us ran it. Most dropped off because, while training , they got colds that threw of their original schedule. They thought, “Oh, I’m behind everyone else. I’ll never do it.”

Nonsense.

All that was necessary was for them to start running again and they would have be fine.

Raise your hand if you have also given up when all that was necessary was to adjust your time line.

So ask questions of those who have already achieved what you hope to. Learn from successes and not cynics. When life circumstances interrupt your straight line to success, adjust your goals and timeline. Never surrender your dreams.

Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
Concepts in Staffing
jeffaltman@cisny.com

© 2006 all rights reserved.

Jeff Altman, Managing Director with Concepts in Staffing, a New York search firm, has successfully assisted many corporations identify leaders and staff in technology, accounting, finance, sales, marketing and other disciplines as employees or consultants since 1971. He is a certified leader of the ManKind Project, a not for profit organization that assists men with life issues, and a practicing psychotherapist.

For additional job hunting or hiring tips, go to http://www.sayhi.to/JeffAltman While you’re there, sign up to receive a daily digest of jobs emailed to you as we learn of them and my free job searchzine, Head Hunt Your Own Job.

If you would like Jeff and his firm to assist you with hiring staff, or if you would like help with a strategic job change, send an email to him at jeffaltman@cisny.com (If you’re looking for a new position, include your resume).