Skip to main content

Thing of the Month

As a workforce development professional with extensive experience directly with job seekers, I get asked for tips and tricks in all areas.  A common thing that happens is that many workforce development professionals feel that they run out of “new material,” meaning that the basics of job search have been covered with a job seeker. This is especially true with job seekers that may be taking what seems like a long time to become employed.
 
My recommendation is to develop a thing for the month. The “thing of the month” does not have to be a theme. It is something that you as a workforce development professional are covering with each job seeker. Your thing does not have to be complicated or elaborate. It just needs to change monthly.
Below are some ideas for your “Thing of the Month.”
 
·       Information on upcoming events, such as a job fair, family event, or community health clinic
·       Article about a job seeking topic
·       Demonstration of a new job seeking website or app
·       Success story: either found online, in the newspaper, or from another job seeker that has given the appropriate release
·       Inspirational quote
·       Highlight a different soft skill each month
 
The possibilities are endless.
 
Not only does having a different thing each month allow you to keep your material fresh when working with job seekers, but for workforce development professionals that have to do certain mandatory items with job seekers each month, it allows an added benefit and opportunity for career counseling.
 
It also keeps the line of communication open between you and your job seeker as you never know which item will spark conversation.
 
As a final tip for your “Thing of the Month,” I suggest planning ahead of time.  Keep track of your monthly things on the first day of the month on your calendar, so that you do not repeat and you can easily go back to check to see what each one was.
 
Have any great ideas for a “Thing of the Month?” Leave them below and share with other readers. If you would like to contact me, you can reach me by email at kcirincione@gmail.com, on Linked In at https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenjcirincione or on Twitter at @kcirincione. See you in the blog-o-sphere!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How do you Birthday?

Another year in my life has passed. It’s time for another birthday. Each year as the day approaches, I take the time to reflect on my past year, my accomplishments, and my goals for the year. My birthday is like my personal New Years’ celebration with another opportunity to have the best year ever.   I am not afraid of a birthday. Age is just a number, but each year is what you make of it. Each year I have seen the sun rise, the rain fall, and the snow melt, I have been given a gift from the universe. Many people do not get to see another birthday. I owe myself the opportunity to set goals and feel proud as I work towards achieving them. Sometimes these goals have been born from unhappy feelings and bad situations, but growth brings wisdom.   In my working life, and especially as a workforce professional, I know some of my growth must be professionally. Having experience working with job seekers looking for jobs, I understand how crucial professional growth is...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Authentic You

Authenticity is not something we think or talk about every day. It is something we all need for ourselves and to truly connect and have meaningful interactions with others. Anyone on the #improve2019 journey is looking to either improve themselves or to be the guiding light for another person on the journey. Without authenticity, the fruits of labor are bitter. They are not satisfying, but meaningless. The fruits grow are wants in the world, but are not what we truly need.   Authenticity starts with the self. It means we are first to be honest with ourselves, good or bad. It means taking a hard look in the mirror and owning our faults. Are we trying too hard or not enough? Are we speaking and not acting? Do our actions match our intentions?   These are the questions we need to ask ourselves and to really ponder. After we have truly done the recognition and have taken the steps we need to improve, we can really look to helping others doing the same.   Auth...
Post a Comment
Read more

Great Questions=Great Answers! The Pieces to the Puzzle are revealed!

Newbies in workforce development sometimes ask me how to work with a customer or how do you know why someone cannot get a job.   The answer is really simple. Ask the right questions, and then listen for the answer.    It’s not a secret. You can’t just look at person or their job seeking documents and just know. You need the person to open his mouth and speak.   You need the narrative.   Why narrative? First, you will get the information to help you help the customer.   That is if you ask the right question.   Secondly, it helps you establish rapport and trust with your customer. Someone is not going to open up if he does not trust you. This is very important.   Remember digging a hole to China as a child.   Quickly you found out that you could not find China with one shovel full of dirt.   The digger must unearth many layers to get to China! A child will quickly find out that he can’t shovel his way to China, but may find neat ...
1 comment
Read more