Self Development
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…in a few years.
And I really hate to make blanket statements like that because all of the MBA guys and gals I know are swell and they work great together. That doesn’t mean though that I haven’t talked to a lot of dweebs coming fresh out of MBA’s not knowing anything about working at the executive level. At some point, I almost want to question if they actually knew the whole point of getting an MBA was to move up or move out?
A MBA is a great concept and if these changes are adopted widely, it could do a lot to bolster confidence. The best part about a MBA is that it compresses time in a high pressure, deadline sensitive world. If you come out of that program having worked with 10-15 different teams, those are a lot of different personalities you’ve been forced to cope with. And from the hiring side, that’s pretty exciting. I feel confident hiring from a program that teaches these skills than the alternative.
Ultimately, this problem points back to poor undergraduate work which could point back to poor high school work and so on. What some educators have called “slippage” in the curriculum: not being able to teach kids the same things they used to because it isn’t getting covered earlier. Is the MBA or Masters going to become the bachelor degree of today? It already is in some Engineering and Scientific fields.
And well, that is a different post altogether.
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Originally
from YourHRGuy.com
by Your HR Guy
on Apr 24, 2007, 11:31AM
Written by Jeff Bosco with no comments.
Read more articles on Strategies and Self Development.
“You’re not entitled to anything. You still have to work hard and brand yourself professionally.” So said MonsterTRAK VP and general manager Julie Goldthwait in response to the latest findings from MonsterTRAK’s 2007 Entry-Level Job Survey.
Her comments got me thinking about my brand. Prior to working at Monster, I didn’t think much about brand at all. It wasn’t until a friend looked at my resume that I realized it completely lacked packaging. A summary statement, a few tweaks in wording, and my brand began to take shape. A few weeks later, Monster hired me.
Each morning, I drive one of my three children to school before work. We listen to audio tapes, and at the moment we’re listening to my son’s favorite trilogy for the second time. The trilogy is His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman, and in the first book, The Golden Compass, Pullman introduces the trilogy’s heroine, Lyra. She and all the characters in the book, with the exception of the bears, have what Pullman calls demons. These are animals that coexist with their humans, and until the human reaches puberty, they constantly change form, one moment a polecat and the next a mouse. Once the child hits puberty, the demon settles into a form that reflects a person’s nature. Pullman compares these demons to the human soul. Sever them, and the person dies.
Driving into work today, I thought a lot about my demon and what it would be. I have some guesses as to how my children’s demons might settle, but I can’t be sure. My own, I find harder to pinpoint. In his first novel, one of Pullman’s characters says that a person unhappy with his demon is unhappy with himself. Accept your demon’s form, and you begin to accept yourself. I think mine may be some sort of long-beaked, large bird. The awkward, prehistoric Archaeopteryx comes to mind, maybe for their conical head and large beak, I’m not sure.
Which leads me back to brand. In Europe, students decide what they will study long before they do in the United States. By the time European students reach 18, they’ve more or less decided their path of study. In the United States, we give our students more time. This is changing, though. With college admission becoming ever more competitive (just yesterday, the Wall Street Journal noted that colleges rejected a record number of applicants this year), students are having to define their brand earlier and earlier in an effort to distinguish themselves from the competition.
While I’m a fan of the American system myself, I’m beginning to wonder if we are pushing our children to define their brand too young. Even as a 39-year-old, I’m still tweaking my brand. Yes, my demon might have settled into the ungainly Archaeopteryx form, but isn’t the most magical of children’s qualities the transformative power of their imagination, their desire to explore, something we adults often lack?
When I build my company — there’s still time, no matter what my brand dictates — I’m going to hire a student who believes in that transformative power of imagination. If that means having experimented with different brands, they’ll be all the more attractive to me. Drive is admirable, but so is a willingness to take risks. One without the other amounts to me to a demon that’s settled too young. But then what do I know. My demon, if it is an Archaeopteryx, is sadly extinct. Haven’t you heard?
Originally from The Monster Blog by Elizabeth
on Apr 5, 2007, 9:22PM
Written by Jeff Bosco with no comments.
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Want a snapshot look at some ideas that could turn your life on its head (in a very positive way)? Then watch The Eight Irresistible Principles of Fun. It’s short, and absolutely nails some important points. In a nutshell, they are…
- Stop hiding who you really are
- Start being intensely selfish
- Stop following the rules
- Start scaring yourself
- Stop taking it all so seriously
- Start getting rid of the crap
- Stop being busy
- Start something
After you watch it, do an inventory of your own life. How does it stack up in each of areas? What can you build on? What could you do differently?
[via 360 Degree Success]
Originally from The Occupational Adventure (sm)
by Curt Rosengren
on Apr 6, 2007, 8:49PM
Written by Jeff Bosco with no comments.
Read more articles on Humour and Self Development.
A few months ago I posted about finally clueing in to the fact that, especially since I’m self-employed, I am the factory that produces my career. That means that things like my diet and the exercise I get have a direct effect on what I am able to create, because they are the source of energy (or lack of it) that powers that factory.
I started looking more seriously at my diet, and how it was (or more typically, wasn’t) fueling the work that I do. Historically, my dietary habits have never been especially good. I could go weeks without tasting a vegetable and tended to reach for the easiest option (inevitably a bowl of cereal).
I started looking at that more carefully when I started thinking of my body as my career’s factory. Obviously neglecting to give it the kind of fuel it needed to function optimally had to have a negative impact on what I could do with my days.
I’ve gotten better since then (though there’s still plenty of room for improvement), and I notice a big difference when my diet is on track vs. when it falls back into the junk rut. The healthier my food habits, the more energy I have to put into creating the results I want.
It’s in light of all that that this article caught my attention: 10 secrets to eating enough fruits and veggies.
How about you? How is your diet? Are you giving your career factory the energy it needs?
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The Occupational Adventure Guide: A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams
Originally from The Occupational Adventure (sm)
by Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst (sm)
Written by Jeff Bosco with no comments.
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Are you being held back in your career by limiting beliefs? If the answer is yes, you’re in good company. Most of us are, to some degree. This article on beliefs that hold us back lists some of the most common. Do any of these feel familiar?
When it comes to our careers, here are the most common limiting beliefs.
1. I am not skilled enough.
2. Hard work is noble.
3. Fulfilling work is for others, not me.
4. Fulfillment comes from my personal life, not my work life.
5. I’m too old to make a major life change.
6. My family and friends will think I’m crazy.
7. I’m a fraud – my success is a result of the corporate structure, or my tenure.
8. The unknown isn’t safe.
9. I’m not sure that I can trust my decisions or choices.
10. I’m afraid of failing in a new role.
(more…)
Written by Jeff Bosco with no comments.
Read more articles on Self Development.