Best-selling author and leadership influencer John C. Maxwell once wrote, "Life is a matter of choices, and every choice you make makes you." If Maxwell is right, then our career decisions have massive implications for our future.

But how do we know when it's time to pursue a new job opportunity? How do we position ourselves for advancement? Negotiate a salary? Leverage our worth? How do we land our dream job or does one even exist?

In this episode, Career Consultant Maria Grasso joins us and shares her expertise, answering all these questions and more. The career mentor you've always wished you could have, Maria is yours for this empowering hour chocked full of advice that can help shape your future.

Special Guest: Maria Grasso

Maria is a Senior Career Transition Consultant with more than 25 years of leadership and organizational development experience to her role at Keystone Partners. She advises executives, managers, and individual contributors in career transition, helping clients successfully transition into new career opportunities.
 
 Maria’s background includes senior management positions with Fidelity Investments, Engility (formerly Dynamics Research Corporation), Capgemini (formerly Capgemini Ernst & Young/Gemini Consulting) and consulting engagements in the financial services, technology, healthcare, professional services, hospitality, and biopharmaceutical sectors.
 
 She is a certified Career Partners International Senior Career Transition Consultant and holds an MEd in Leadership and  Organizational Development from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

SHOW NOTES:

4:00 Maria is a life-long New England Patriots fan but her take on the recent Super Bowl might surprise you.

11:15 Ninety percent of job offers start with this one activity. Are you doing it?

14:00 Many of us find ourselves feeling like we're in dead end jobs that will be the death of our careers. If this is you, here's how you can control the situation.

19:00 Feeling like we are "not enough" wears many disguises in the workplace and some of these will surprise you.

20:45 This is THE NUMBER ONE predictor of success in the workforce. Are you poised for success?

23:00 "Make a choice and own it." Listen here to understand what Maria means by this and how this can help you.

27:00 Are women the only ones who feel like they aren't enough in their careers?

31:20 Do you have someone in your life who is struggling with career transitions? Want to help him/her? This is where to start. It sounds easy but it is anything but.

37:30 What is giving you cause to pause? Are you more committed to allowing space for that voice or what you thought your life and career should look like?

47:00 "Our net value is directly tied to our net worth."  Listen here as Maria unpacks how our self-esteem is connected to our paychecks.

51:30 What is your personal brand and what are you worth on the open market?

59:30 What is the hidden job market and do you know how to tap into it for your benefit?

63:00 Most of us are missing the boat on this key thing when we network.

69:30 "HELP. My employer keeps asking me to do more and more. What do I do now?"


Resources:
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In by Roger Fisher and William L. Ury

Power vs. Force, The Hidden Determinants of Human Behavior by David R. Hawkins, MD

Knowing Your Value: Women, Money, and Getting What You're Worth by Mika Brzezinski