Pivot with Jenny Blake

289: Stealing Wi-Fi as Career Strategy with Jenny Wood

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Believe it or not, you can get mentorship from anyone you’d like by employing a strategy today’s guest calls “stealing Wi-Fi.” According to today's guest, Jenny Wood, the creator of Own Your Career at Google, you can get mentorship from anyone you like by paying closer attention to what they do and how they do it. 


In this episode, The Jenny-s dig into multiple elements of career strategy, including navigating plateaus, sidelining imposter syndrome, and course-correcting when you screw up. 


More about Jenny Wood: Jenny is mom to Ari, aged six, and Noa, aged almost five, and the Director of Americas Media Operations at Google. She is currently working on her first book. Learn more at ItsJennyWood.com. 


🌟3 Key Takeaways:

  • When you’re asking for someone to sponsor you (or provide any other kind of mentorship), make it specific and time-bound, and don’t forget to include what you can provide to them as well.
  • When at a plateau: Consider making a lateral move. Sometimes a little zig-zag can help you push through stagnation. 
  • Keep a failure resume, and celebrate those failures as reminders of when you take risks and make mistakes; remember that being vulnerable and sharing those stories allows others to empathize and connect with you. 

    •  

    ✅Next Action: Ask for what you want. Your manager is busy, they don’t remember what you’re working on, what you need, or even what types of project excite you most. Remind them. (For pointers on this, check out Jenny’s LinkedIn Learning course, Figuring Out Your Next Move).


    📘Books Mentioned:

    • Free Time: Lose The Busywork, Love Your Business 
    • Pivot: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next One
    • Build for Tomorrow: An Action Plan for Embracing Change, Adapting Fast, and Future-Proofing Your Career
    • Untamed: Stop Please, Start Living
    • Stolen Focus: Why You Can't Pay Attention--and How to Think Deeply Again


      • 🔗Resources Mentioned: 

      • Jenny on the web, LinkedIn
      • Jenny’s Articles: Serendipity: 1, Spreadsheet: 0, Did Your Company Just Go Through A Reorg? Here's How to Thrive In It, The Rule of 3
      • David Moldower of Bookitect


        • 🎧Related Podcast Episodes: 

        • Bethanie Baynes’ podcast, Working Wife, Happy Life!
        • Three Points Podcast with Tony McGarahan
        • 275: Charisma and Cues with Vanessa Van Edwards
        • Dorie Clark episodes: 184: Reinventing You + Pivoting in the Crisis with Dorie Clark, 066: Create Multiple Streams of Income with Dorie Clark, 058: Monetize Your Ideas with Dorie Clark, 033: Find Your Breakthrough Idea and Build a Following with Dorie Clark
        • Free Time episodes 103: How to Land a Literary Agent and Publisher with David Moldawer (Part One) and 105: “Don’t write the wrong book!” with David Moldawer (Part Two)

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          📝 Check out full show notes from this episode with links to resources mentioned at http://pivotmethod.com/289

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