It’s easy to get fired up with career ideas and be disappointed when work or clients don’t come quickly or easily and you feel like you’re stagnating.  Accept where you are and do your best to let go of worry about where you’re not yet.  Steadily move ahead by putting one step in front of the other, even if you’re taking small steps towards your intended outcome.  Since you never know where openings will come from or who will give you leads, it’s being diligent in your in-between actions that count.

Here’s 5 such actions that have helped me:

1. Talk to others about your plans, not your disappointments, to keep your own internal fire stoked.
2. Keep current on your industries trends and determine what other resources you may need.
3. Expand your contacts and schedule meetings with business peers to talk over possible liaisons or ask for referrals.
4. Build on former successes through re-contacting and nurturing former business clients.
5. Continue your marketing efforts and hone in and become expert on what works best, minimizing other marketing avenues if finances and time require this.

Stay optimistic that your in-between steps will bring you your desired results – they will!  And if you have difficulty staying steady on your path, consider hiring a professional coach who can help you see your path and escort you down it.

Clients seeking permanent jobs at this time are concerned that employers won’t take them seriously and are only interested in placing them for more immediate needs.  In retail, that may be true.  This is the year’s busiest season and more temporary help is needed.  The National Retail Federation says up to 500,000 folks may be added.  But even those companies accepting temporary helpers may consider keeping you on permanently.

Don’t forget these tried and true basics to get you visible and ositioned well for any prospective long-term job:

1.  Don’t forget your basic 3 P’s: punctual, pleasant and productive.  But be wary of coming off too eager.  It could make you look uncomfortable and a little desperate.  You’ll stick out, but not in the way you’d like to appear.

2.  You want to act professional, yet not overstep your role.  Previous expertise may give you great ideas to offer, but work up to suggesting any and always ask if they want to try your ideas before making any changes.  (While not looking for permanent work, my husband and I volunteer annually at our church this time of year to see that foster children get Christmas gifts.  I found myself overly eager to suggest new and improved processes and quickly learned I was more needed in a selfless service mode, rather than a leadership role). (more…)

Since this is the busiest season of the year, if you’re out of work and just want to get some income coming in or have time to take on an extra job or make some additional money, check out these referral articles and job sites.  Read here about the best places hiring and also how to ask for what you need within your circle of influence.  These seasonal jobs may not pay much or lead to a fulltime job, but never say never.

There are many useful sites online, but these give you plenty of info and resources to get you going!

Enter your zip code at the snag a job site and look up holiday jobs

Go to this all retail job site and put in hourly or seasonal or holiday plus how far from your home you want it

Visit the Monster job site and search “holiday jobs”

Visit the payscroll site

Read this Fortune magazine article on the CNN site and learn more about holiday jobs

See the New York Times sponsored links holiday job listings

Visit the job mouse for their advice on searching for holiday jobs

Having just had another birthday, I am wanting to moan and groan and say, “not another one,” or “who likes to get older?” but instead I’m greatful for all the lessons and, I hope, wisdom that has come along with it.

Workwise for women, does age still presents problems?  It depends on the industry, some are more women-friendly than others, but women are making more headroads everyday, including making more salary than men in some jobs.  As an entrepreneur, there are at least as many, if not more, opportunities.

Betty Skelton shares this birthday month with me. She’s considered the “First Lady of Firsts,” a three-time women’s international aerobatics champion, she set two world light plane altitude records as a stunt flyer, she became the first female test driver in the auto industry and the first woman to drive an Indy car – hitting 145 mph in a beefed-up Corvette.  So if Betty, who was born in 1926, can do these things, then the only thing stopping YOU is YOU.

And if you think you’re too old to learn something new, begin a new life balancing practice, change your direction or integrate a discipline of self-coaching, it’s my belief each new age is an apprenticeship we must learn to live fully and find the many kernals of gratification within them, feeling neither sorry nor boastful for those who worry and try to rekindle their lost youth.  Instead, we can be positive examples, living the most of the gift of time that’s left.

When was the last time you tried to convince someone of your good idea and you got resistance?  Maybe your idea or problem-solving approach didn’t appear new to them, hadn’t been adequately tested before, or simply lacked the enthusiasm backing it to make it sound worthy of pursuing?

Your idea is not the orthodox, mainstream solution they’re used to and you will need to be convinced of its viability yourself and hold your ground as you present your idea with aplomb.  Here are 6 ways I’ve found that can help cheer lead your unique ideas to a welcome reception:

1.  Ask your customer/client through an introduction meeting and possibly a followup short email survey,  questions to discover root problems with the way things are.  Use these responses to create a jumping off pad for your idea or solution, or just to be sure you address the problems with your new strategy. (more…)