March 9, 2010

So You Want To Be A Baker……?

Posted by Brian Kurth under Bakery, Be a baker, Become a bakery owner, Career, Career Coach, Career Coaching, Career Consulting, Career Tips, Career Transition, Career change, Dream Job, Job, Job Search, Jobs, Passion, Tips, VocationVacation, Work-life balance, baker, career mentorship, entrepreneur, life change, life reinvention, reinvention, university of wisconsin, work
Leave a Comment 

I recently had the pleasure of seeing yet another career transition client fulfill on their dream of creating or finding their dream job.

Annemarie Spitznagle was a pharmaceutical sales executive who simply lost the passion for “schlepping” legal drugs.  Instead, she wanted to pursue her true passion:  organic foods including….sweets!

Annemarie was well down the path of writing her business plan for an organic bakery prior to taking her Baker VocationVacation at The Pink Cupcake in Mt. Vernon, OH with mentors, Beth Murdock and Sommer Meade.  She felt she needed the hands-on mentorship in addition to her coursework at the University of Wisconsin Center for Entrepreneurship.  Combining class time with face-to-face mentorship is a key to success.

Fast forward:  In less than six months from taking her VocationVacation career mentorship, Annemarie opened her amazing, new organic bakery, Bloom Bake Shop, in Middleton, Wisconsin, a suburb of Madison.

I asked Annemarie to share her advice and words of wisdom to those who think they may want to become a baker or become a bakery owner.  Much of her sage advice can be applied to just about any other career transition, however.  Embarking upon the path of career change and reinvention is not for the faint of heart.  But it’s SO worth facing the struggle and obstacles to get to the point of work-life fulfillment as Annemarie has.

Congratulations, Annemarie!  So very proud of you….and all our other career transition clients who have created change and reinvented themselves.  I can’t wait to enjoy one of your delish organic cupcakes!

Here are Annemarie’s advice and words of wisdom:

  • I’d bank sleep.  You will work harder then you ever knew possible and then you’ll work some more
  • I’d order some thicker skin, there are always more positives then negatives, but as perfectionists we forever focus on the one negative, like a tiny splinter, when the rest of the body is perfectly healthy and strong
  • I’d remind myself to step back periodically that first opening weekend and pat myself on the back and tell myself, “You did it!”
  • I commend myself for having for having built amazing friendships, people that stayed up until the wee hours helping me finish the little details, friends that got up and baked with me from 4:30-8am and then went right on to their “real job”
  • I’d remarry my husband again. He has always been a fan, but gosh, he is my number one cheerleader and source of strength, everyday telling me how proud he is of me. You need that
  • I’d remind my mother how great she was for flying up at a moment’s notice TWICE to keep my home-front running because we didn’t expect to take off so quickly with demand
  • I’d tattoo my mantra between my eyes: “Remember it’s just cake!”  It is so easy to get caught up and take it all too seriously.

What I know now:

  • I am stronger then I ever thought I was..and braver
  • Don’t be afraid to ask for help
  • No matter how much you plan, how great your business plan is,  you will still miss some details. And it will be okay. You will survive
  • If you do make mistakes, fix them, if it bothered someone, apologize and then swallow your pride and keep your chin up
  • Remind yourself when you are exhausted that this is your passion; this is your dream
  • Find a theme song, bring it to work and play it when you are feeling stressed, tired, or just want to break out dance because you feel HAPPY because, darn it, you are living your dream!

Key strengths that kept me going:

  • A solid business plan that I shared with numerous critical professionals to ensure it was ripped apart appropriately
  • Good legal counsel to protect my investment
  • An amazing mentor that believed in me, my idea and never tired of all of my questions and concerns
  • A talented graphic designer who got my vision in an instant so I could effectively communicate my brand to the public
  • Working with a commercial realtor to ensure I was placing myself in my appropriate demographic and access was optimal
  • Created a delicious product
  • Tested my product with a constructive audience of strangers who owed me nothing and then tested it again!!  And again!!
  • Not being intimidated by constructive criticism
  • If you haven’t worked in the type of bakery you want to own, go do it or apprentice in one.  Experience first-hand the fun, the stress and the reality of it all.

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Kurth/202325023648?ref=ts
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/briankurth
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/BrianKurth
Test-Drive Your Dream Job:  A Step-By-Step Guide To Finding And Creating The Work You Love: www.amazon.com

 

February 21, 2010

CNN Says I’m The Dream Job Matchmaker. Aw Shucks!

Posted by Brian Kurth under CNN, Career, Career Coach, Career Coaching, Career Consulting, Career Transition, Career change, Job, Job Loss, Job Opportunities, Job Search, Jobs, Laid-off, Lay-off, career mentorship, work
[3] Comments 

I taped this interview with CNN Money on Wed and it ran on CNN.com on Friday.  It tells a great story of how a VocationVacation assisted Cory Chacon in making her career transition into the hotel hospitality field after being laid off from her marketing position at Virgin Records due to the downturn of the music industry:

http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2010/02/18/n_find_dream_jobs_vocation_vacation.cnnmoney/

Now, on a less serious note:  Beard or No Beard?  My family is split 50/50 on it.  What do you think?

Have a great Sunday, everyone!

Brian
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Kurth/202325023648?ref=ts
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/briankurth
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/BrianKurth
THE book on career transition:  Test-Drive Your Dream Job:  A Step-By-Step Guide To Finding And Creating The Work You Love (Hachette, 2008)

 

February 16, 2010

GET OUT OF THERE!

Posted by Brian Kurth under Career, Career Coach, Career Coaching, Career change, Find a job, Job, Job Loss, Job Opportunities, Job Search, Jobs, Lay-off, LinkedIn, Unemployed, Vacation, change, life change, life reinvention, travel, work
Leave a Comment 

You know, these days, some folks are forgetting to have fun in their work or job search (yes, job search can and SHOULD be fun at times).  I feel there is a pervasive “heaviness” in the air due to the economic conditions in the US, the constant partisanship in DC, overall “worry” about world affairs and terrorism….and an increasing burn-out from those employed making up the hours for their laid-off colleagues who are equally burning out in their job search.  Hence, people are simply tired.  Let’s rid ourselves of this heaviness as best we can.

What is my advice to all of you burned-out folks – regardless of whether you are employed or unemployed – to reduce your feeling of “heaviness”?

GET OUT OF THERE!

Get out of your office or home office for a day or two and work remotely from a new and different locale.

“I’m too busy with work,” you say?  Take the work with you.  Have laptop & mobile phone, will travel.  This is the Internet/iPhone/Blackberry age for crying out loud!  Work can be done just about anywhere.   Any reasonable boss can be convinced of such (if your boss isn’t reasonable or rational, then you have another matter to address). You can take the work with you.  No excuses!

“I am unemployed and can’t afford to take a work vacation and leave town.”  Fair enough.  Then hop in the car, on the bus or subway and change your environment.  Head to a coffee shop with WiFi in a completely different neighborhood, town or city within, say one hour, than you’re accustomed.  No excuses!

Why is it so important to spend time working out of your office or home office from time to time?  How do you, your employer and/or job search benefit?   Here are a few reasons:

1.  Increased productivity and creativity – It is proven that when people shake things up a bit, they can actually increase the quality and quantity of their output by “clearing the mind”.  No excuses!

2.  Law of Diminishing Returns – as you burn the candle at both ends, the return on investment for your time decreases along with your productivity.  By “getting out of there” and shaking things up, you will actually mitigate and maybe even eliminate the diminishing returns you’re creating for yourself.  No excuses!

3.  Fresh air – mind, body and soul.  Now, I’m not a psychologist but it’s not rocket science to understand that seeing grass, snow, flowers, squirrels, trees, the blue sky and the sun is beneficial to your well-being.  Get out of your cubicle for a day or two.  Get out of your home office for a day or two.  If you’re job searching, you can make phone calls from just about anyplace as long as it’s quiet…..and you can email resumes and network  online via LinkedIn, et al from anywhere.  No excuses!

Do I practice what I preach?  Absolutely.  Here is a photo of my MacBook with a view of the Pacific coast in Lincoln City, Oregon just two weeks ago.  Only two hours from Portland.  Did I break the bank by getting away?  Absolutely not.  Getting away on a Monday and Tuesday during off-season is dirt cheap.  Especially in this economy.  And, again, if you can’t afford to actually get out of town for an overnight stay, then AT LEAST get out of your neighborhood, town and city and spend the day in a different neighborhood, town or city.  Just for a day.  No excuses!

I promise you’ll see an increase in your productivity and creativity while feeling less burned out.  And you’ll PHYSICALLY feel better.

So, grab your iPhone, Blackberry, laptop, writing journal and whatever else you need to get the job or job search done and GET OUT OF THERE!  No excuses.

Cheers!
Brian

Brian Kurth

Career Reinvention & Transition Expert, Speaker, Author, TV Contributor and Founder of VocationVacations

Brian Kurth + Company:  www.briankurth.com

VocationVacations:  www.vocationvacations.com

971.544.1535 Office

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Kurth/202325023648?ref=ts

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/briankurth

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/BrianKurth

Test-Drive Your Dream Job:  A Step-By-Step Guide To Finding And Creating The Work You Love

 

January 10, 2010

Freeing Up The Roadblocks to Career Mentorship

Posted by Brian Kurth under Career Tips, Career Transition, Career change, Job Loss, Jobs, Mentor, Mentorship, Work-life balance, career mentorship
Leave a Comment 

I am still sometimes surprised when people in their 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s are reluctant to get a career mentor. They think getting a mentor is just for the 20-year old college intern or the fresh-out-of-grad school young corporate exec.

Of course that’s not the case…but it takes some convincing for some folks. The biggest obstacles for most people seem to be their apprehension to research and recruit a mentor (“Where do I begin?”) and their impression that people simply don’t want to help them in their career development.  I have found that a good 40% of qualified, well-researched, prospective mentors will become a mentor if/when they are asked. Making the ask is the key!  So it is a numbers game.  People DO want to help out their fellow man!  The impression that finding a good mentor is a needle in the haystack is a falsehood.

Finding a good mentor is dependent upon establishing your criteria and effective research using key tools such as LinkedIn, Google search, your alumni association, trade associations as well as simple networking through your family, friends and colleagues.  Then, once you make one “ask” of a qualified prospective mentor, you will find it easier to make the second and third, etc.  It may be a numbers game.  You may need to ask ten people prior to finding your mentor.  But it is worth the time and energy.  Trust me.  I’ve seen thousands of people benefit from career mentorship in my work over the past 6 years.

Have you (or a loved one who’s “stuck” in a career rut?) acted on your motivation to get a mentor? If not, what obstacles are preventing YOU or your loved one from researching and recruiting a mentor in a current industry or a new, exciting career?

Cheers,
Brian
www.briankurth.com
www.vocationvacations.com

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brian-Kurth/202325023648?ref=ts
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/briankurth
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/BrianKurth
Test-Drive Your Dream Job:  A Step-By-Step Guide To Finding And Creating The Work You Love

 

Next Page »