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Welcome to 2025!  For many, the start of a new year sparks the desire to do new things, tackle new challenges, and for many, this means a new job!  But if you've been paying attention to the UK and US job market these past several months, you know things don't look overly rosy at the moment.

Both the BBC and Business Insider shared some sobering stats in their December wrap-up.  That doesn't mean you don't make a move, it just means you need to do it wisely - and preparation is everything!  In today's episode, I cover 5 key strategies to employ before you jump ship!  These include:

1) Your finances
2) Your resume
3) Your Linkedin profile
4) Why you should consider a side hustle
5) Why self-care is vital

Ready?  Let's jump in!  🚀🎧🎧

Citations: ✅

“Falling Job Vacancies May Signal Recession, Recruiter Warns”.  Lucy Hooker.  BBC Online.  15 December 2024.  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czx5w5yl2y7o 

“Middle Managers Feeling the Squeeze”.  Andrew Barker.  Linkedin News.  3 December 2024.  https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/middle-managers-feeling-the-squeeze-6457649/ 

“The Great Flattening is Here to Stay”.  Aki Ito.  Business Insider Online.  2 December 2024  https://www.businessinsider.com/middle-manager-hiring-white-collar-recession-layoffs-jobs-efficiency-2024-12  

Resources: 🌟🌟

 “How To Set Up Job Alerts” Linkedin Learning. Oliver Schinkten, instructor.  Online.  2022.  https://www.linkedin.com/learning/linkedin-quick-tips-2022/set-up-job-alerts 

“4 Creative Side Hustles That No One is Talking About for 2025”.  Yahoo Finance.  Online. 19 December 2024  https://finance.yahoo.com/news/4-creative-side-hustles-no-170025961.html 

“10 side hustles you can start with no money in 2025”. Melissa Houston.  Forbes Women. Online. 28 December 2024  https://www.forbes.com/sites/melissahouston/2024/12/28/10-side-hustles-you-can-start-with-no-money-in-2025/ 

“Getting Hired Blueprint” – the Logical Steps:  https://the-deal-academy.kit.com/b1130cf14f 

“Getting Hired:  4 Steps to Getting Hired, Faster”.  Mini Masterclass and downloadable templates, guides, scripts and negotiation scenarios.  The Deal Academy  https://www.thedealacademy.org/courses/getting-hired-masterclass 

“Manifesto to Self-Doubt”.  Kelli Confidential Season 2, Episode 41.  July 2024.  https://www.buzzsprout.com/admin/2063653/episodes/15508911-episode-41-manifesto-to-self-doubt-5-techniques-to-shed-confidence-jitters 

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Today's episode is a recast of my most popular podcast made with some fresh tips and examples just in time for holiday sales. That's right,  this week we’re celebrating Thanksgiving and the fast approaching Black Friday sales! 🎁🌟

And because I’m here to help you save time and money, I’ve revamped and am re-running the 12-Days of Christmas guidance shared from one of my most listened-to podcasts ever.

If you’ve been listening to me for a while, you will know that my show is dedicated to helping people – women especially – to finding your voice, shedding all of those old-fashioned societal biases to help you get into your fierce zone to become a great communicator, influencer and negotiator – so that’s what I talk about a lot, along with other subjects that pivot around that.  There are some great tips in here too, that you can apply any time of year.  

Ready?  Let's jump in!  🚀🎧🎧


👉 Show Notes: the promised resources I mentioned:🌟

-  Episode 5:  It’s Quitting Time – How to Negotiate That New Salary: 

• iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/kelli-confidential-negotiation-essentials-empowering/id1668666762?i=1000603041413
• Spotify:  https://open.spotify.com/episode/6C2tqrzW4Kc5tAUxF880UB?si=M4bvYabCREeNlTSFJLaNbg 
  
  

-  Link to my FREE Tradeables Plan and my FREE Digital Downloads vault

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On today's episode, I'm sharing my personal experience - the benefits AND the pitfalls of using AI to help you run your small business.  And I’ll share why I still land solidly in the camp that AI is a must-have resource for any micro-to-small business, it’s crucial in fact.  Because outside of a computer, Chat AI is without question, the most unrivalled, impactful leveller allowing micro and small business to compete on the same stage and pace as their major brand competitors with their deep pockets and rich resources at their disposal. 

AND I’m going to give you the link to my swipe file so you can get these list of prompts, search modes and use cases.

Ready?  Let's jump in!

Citations & Resources🌟 🌟

Chatbot Reviews:  

• David, Lee and Laura Howard. “10 AI Tools for your Business in 2024”.  Forbes Business. Online. 12 March 2024. https://www.forbes.com/uk/advisor/business/ai-tools/ 
•  Ortiz, Sabrina.  “The 10 Best Chatbots in 2024”. ZDNet.com. Online. 18 August 2024.  https://www.zdnet.com/article/best-ai-chatbot/ 
•  Vaughan-Nichols, Steven. “5 Reason Why I Prefer Perpelxity…”.  ZDnet.com.  Online.  30 May 2024.  https://www.zdnet.com/article/5-reasons-why-i-prefer-perplexity-over-every-other-ai-chatbot/ 

Fair Use & Copyright Law Resources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_use 
• https://copyrightalliance.org/faqs/what-is-fair-use/ 
• https://www.gov.uk/guidance/exceptions-to-copyright  (UK)
• https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/ (USA)

Is ChatGPT Confidential: 

• https://botpress.com/blog/does-chatgpt-save-data 
• https://tech.co/news/does-chatgpt-save-my-data 
• Ray, Siladitya.  “Samsung Bans ChatGPT and Other Chatbots for Employees…”.  Forbes.com.  Online. 2 May 2023. https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2023/05/02/samsung-bans-chatgpt-and-other-chatbots-for-employees-after-sensitive-code-leak/ 
• Petkauskas,Vilius.  “Lessons Learned from ChatGPT’s Samsung Leak”  Cybernews.com.  Online.  9 May 2023.  https://cybernews.com/security/chatgpt-samsung-leak-explained-lessons/ 

Grab My Swipe Files: 💡💡

👉  What's Your Negotiation Style

👉 3 Prompts for Small Business Use - my ChatGPT Swipe File

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What if your belief system was so deeply wired to a frequency of “incapable or incompetent, or not good enough” that you gave-up early in the fight - or worse - you didn’t even try?

Women who have internalised subconscious beliefs that they are "no good" at math, or that they lack numerical or technical skills are largely taught this belief system, one that blossoms with age into something so fundamentally flawed in their identity that most can't see past the  conditioned "deficiency", ultimately perpetuating women's avoidance of careers in business, science, or math. 

Current research by the OECD and the UN shows us year-on-year the double-digit academic delta between boys and girls that forks in grade school and, for most countries, never recovers.  And this avoidant behaviour means also that women often lose out on opportunities for advancement and higher compensation in their chosen careers at the same pace as their male counterparts simply because they have subscribed to dated/gendered belief systems where being 'nice' - or being in service to others -  is better and carries more worth than the qualities instilled in boys (of being competitive, ambitious, technically able). 

Does this sound familiar?  You're not alone.  This is a known psychological phenomena called 'Learned Helplessness', and we're covering that in today's episode together with six strategies to tackle it.  Let's jump in!

Citations and Resources:  ✨ ✨

✅ Classroom video example:  Nixon, Charisse Ph.D Developmental Psychologist at Penn State Erie.Nov 2007. https://youtu.be/gFmFOmprTt0?si=KAFhTy3yRxGd6d3L.

✅ Abramson, L. Y., Seligman, M. E. P., & Teasdale, J. D. (1978). Learned helplessness in humans: Critique and reformulation. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 87(1), 49-74. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.87.1.49

✅ Facing History and Ourselves. "Why Must We Remember the Holocaust? Because Democracy Is Precious." Facing Today, 27 Jan. 2023.  Online.  facingtoday.facinghistory.org/why-must-we-remember-the-holocaust-because-democracy-is-precious.

✅ Dweck, C. S., & Reppucci, N. D. (1973). Learned helplessness and reinforcement responsibility in children. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 25(1), 109-116. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0034248

✅ Hennessey, Bridget. "The Effect of Vicarious Learned Helplessness on Critical Thinking." Mako: NSU Undergraduate Student Journal, vol. 1, no. 1, 2007, Online. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=mako.

✅ Maier, Steven F., and Martin E. P. Seligman. "Learned Helplessness: Theory and Evidence." Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, vol. 105, no. 1, 1976, pp. 3–46, ppc.sas.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/lhtheoryevidence.pdf.

✅ Maier, Steven F., and Martin E. P. Seligman. "Learned Helplessness at Fifty: Insights from Neuroscience." Psychological Review, vol. 123, no. 4, 2016, pp. 349–367, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4920136/.

✅ McLeod, Saul. "Learned Helplessness." Simply Psychology, 17 Feb. 2023, www.simplypsychology.org/learned-helplessness.html.

✅ National Lottery Statistics: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lottery_jackpot_records 

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McKinsey and CNN both reported between 2022 and 2023 that the number of women in C-suite and executive roles in the United States dropped (that’s right, contracted) for the first time in over two decades.

So what's going on?  Numerous data points have come out showing that women may not be getting what they need in modern, corporate roles.  Certainly, for many organisations,  the female representation isn’t there.    It may be also that women don’t want to wait for the rare opportunity for a man to move out of a leadership post in the hopes that she may get it (despite her chances being 75% in favour of her male colleague).  

Or it may be that following COVID many women – and men – questioned why they were enduring a bully, demeaning or difficult boss at work.  

Many people, million and millions, like their job and don't want to start over. So how do you deal with a difficult boss?

On the show today, we're answering that question and showing these steps taken  together may help you to reset the relationship with your boss:

1. Understanding your Employee Rights (grab my Chat GPT swipe file below)
2. Understanding Who You’re Dealing With – What’s their Negotiation Style.
3. Check What Your Job is Really Doing For You (self-survey); and   
4. Making The Decision to Engage.

Citations & Resources🌟 🌟

 - Fisher, Roger and William Ury.  “Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In.”  Penguin Books.  3 May 2011.  Available on Amazon.

 - Sinek, Simon.  “Start With Why”.  Penguin Random House publishers.  2009.  Available on Amazon.

Grab My Swipe Files: 💡💡

👉  What's Your Negotiation Style

👉 Chat GPT Prompt for Harvesting Your Employee Rights  

Online Articles: 

-       "Gender pay gap remained stable over past 20 years in US." Pew Research Center. 1 March 2023.  Online.  

-       “Share of women in C-suite roles falls for first time in two decades, study finds”.  Sahadi, Jeanne.  5 April 2024. CNN online.  

-       “Women in The Workplace” McKinsey online.  Oct. 2023.  Online. 

-       "Managing the Next Decade of Women’s Wealth." BCG, www.bcg.com. Accessed June 16, 2024.

-       "Women entrepreneurs fuel business growth - new survey." World Economic Forum, www.weforum.org. Accessed June 16, 2024.

-       "Women entrepreneurship is soaring in the US, a new survey finds." World Economic Forum, www.weforum.org. Accessed June 16, 2024.

Want to hear more about these topics? Please leave us a like and a review or join our mail list for information upcoming courses like our Negotiation Foundations course! www.kelliconfidential.com

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We all have off days.  Some are bigger for others.  Take Olympic athletes for example, their off days could cost them a chance at Olympic dreams and also future careers in sport.  Pretty big stakes.  So it's not a surprise to know that so many elite athletes and now CEO's and business leaders have turned to visualisation and other remedies to manage self doubt.  Why?  Because these techniques work.

And the same is true of preparing for any important conversation or negotiation.  So join me today as I take you through my five road-tested techniques for managing self-doubt and maintaining forward motion.  Ready?  Let's jump in!

Citations and Resources:  ✨✨

Fisher, Roger and William Ury.  “Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In.”  Penguin Books.  3 May 2011.  Available on Amazon.

Thomas, Louisa.  “What Makes Katie Ledecky Great”  28 July 2024.  The New Yorker Magazine.  https://www.newyorker.com/sports/sporting-scene/what-makes-katie-ledecky-great 

Poirier-Leroy, Olivier.  “7 Olympic Swimmers Who Use Visualization”.  Online 16 January 2021.  https://swimswam.com/7-olympic-swimmers-who-use-visualization/

Want to hear more about these topics? Please leave us a like and a review or join our mail list for information upcoming courses like our Negotiation Foundations course! www.kelliconfidential.com

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There’s no denying that ambition is a vital ingredient in a person’s professional toolkit.  But what is ambition without execution?  Well, it just remains an idea really.

In this week’s episode, we’re talking about ambition and that it’s not enough to have it without follow-through.  And it’s even worse to be ambitious if your execution is well,  rubbish, because then you’re just wasting your own time along with your audience

In a society where we’re bombarded with data and ideas and chasing the next great innovation, ambitions come and go like the seasons of the year, and an idea without follow-through is an easy lure when people are really passionate about it.  But your credibility as a leader hinges on the follow-through far more than your ambition for that dream.

The same is true of deal-making.  Success is all about the plan and the follow-through.   And in this show I’m taking you from idea to agreement.  Here are a few of the highlights we cover: 

-       Getting clear on your purpose

-       Planning for different negotiation styles (yours and theirs)

-       Building rapport and trust  

-       Navigating objections and intransigence

 
Citations and Resources:  

 🌟🚀 Link to my free Tradeables Guide:  
https://the-deal-academy.ck.page/8e6af85780 

✅ Fisher, Roger & William Ury.  “Getting to Yes:  Negotiating an Agreement Without Giving In”. Random House publishers.  London. 2012  Available on Amazon

✅ Kohlrieser, George.  “Hostage at the Table:  How Leaders can Overcome Conflict, Influence Others and Raise Performance”.  Jossey Bass Publishers.  San Francisco. 2006.  Available on Amazon.

✅ World Economic Forum:  “Global Gender Gap 2024 Report”.  Online 11 June 2024. https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-gender-gap-report-2024/digest/

Want to hear more about these topics? Please leave us a like and a review or join our mail list for information upcoming courses like our Negotiation Foundations course! www.kelliconfidential.com

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According to a 2023 study, more than half of consumers (53% according to this report) will cut spending with that provider after a SINGLE bad experience  - that's right - no second chances, they simply won’t go back.  The study was conducted across 23 countries and 23,000 consumers and it estimated that poor customer service amounted to $4.7trillion in lost revenues globally (where the customer simply decided not to buy that product or service again.  That’s sobering if ever there was a statistic you want to remember.

Why am I talking about this and what, Kel, does this have to do with negotiation?

Stewardship and service to others.  Plain and simple. 

I talk about both of those topics regularly - as these should be your goals every time - whether in deal-making or when running a business.  Showing that the other person matters, that you value them in that exchange, will pay dividends every time.  Need more convincing?  Let's jump in to hear some other statistics.



Citations and Resources:  ✨ ✨

✅ “America’s Best Customer Service: 2024”.  Newsweek.  Online.  April 2024.  https://www.newsweek.com/rankings/americas-best-customer-service-2024 

✅ Khoros Research Team. "Must-Know Customer Service Statistics of 2023." Khoros, 2023.   https://khoros.com/resources/customer-service-statistics

✅ Morgan, Blake.  “15 Stats about Post-Covid Customer Service”.  Forbes.  Online. 15 March 2022. https://www.forbes.com/sites/blakemorgan/2022/03/15/15-stats-about-post-covid-customer-service/ 

✅ Nextiva Research Team. "100+ Essential Customer Service Statistics & Trends for 2024." Nextiva, 2024.  https://www.nextiva.com/blog/customer-service-statistics.html

✅ Petersen, Tyler. "Poor Customer Service Threatens $4.7 Trillion in Annual Revenue Globally." Business Wire, 2023. 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211115005083/en/Poor-Customer-Service-Threatens-4.7-Trillion-in-Annual-Revenue-Globally-as-Companies-Struggle-to-Retain-Staff

✅ Zippia Research Team. "28 Critical Customer Retention Statistics [2023]." Zippia, 2023. https://www.zippia.com/research/customer-retention-statistics/

Recommended Books:   📕

Blanchard, Ken and Sheldon Bowles.  “Raving Fans”.  Jossey Bass Publishers.  1 Jan 1996.  https://www.amazon.co.u

Want to hear more about these topics? Please leave us a like and a review or join our mail list for information upcoming courses like our Negotiation Foundations course! www.kelliconfidential.com

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You only get one chance at a good first impression, right? I went hunting for a funny quote about first impressions (because I generally believe outside of the person's clothing we have next-to-zero information to go on in that very first meeting), and I was bombarded with a catalogue of very unoriginal quotes by quite famous people all extolling the benefits of making a great first impression.  But experience shows this is not true - and that assumptions can lead to  - well, we know where those lead.

Here's a quote that I felt more aligned with the point of my show today, by someone whose works remain wise and quite relevant in today's overly connected and "disconnected" world:   "First impressions are always unreliable" - Franz Kafka. 

In today's episode we're exploring the gesture patterns and pitfalls of getting it wrong when reading body language.  That's it.  No extra fanfare.  What you see is what you get in this show. Enjoy!

Citations and Resources: ✨✨

✅ Jennings, Karla.  “Essential Body Language for Negotiation”.  Lifehack.  Online.  28 Feb 2022.  https://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/essential-body-language-for-negotiation.html

✅ Harvard Business School. “Using Bod Language in Negotiation”.  Online. 330 Mar 2024.  https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/negotiation-skills-daily/negotiation-techniques-and-body-language-body-language-negotiation-examples-in-real-life/

✅ Nasher, Jack.  “How to Negotiate via Email”.  Forbes.  Online. 4 June 2020.   https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacknasher/2020/06/04/how-to-negotiate-via-email/?sh=282faa0e5145

✅ Driver, Janine. “You Are Saying More Than You Think”.  United States.  Three Rivers Press.  2010

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What’s one of your most joyful childhood memories?  For me, it was the weekends camping in the Colorado Rockies, foraging for wild raspberries, climbing boulders, playing in the creek beyond our campsite – tadpole catching, cool water on our bare toes, my sister and I gathering sparkly rocks that we were sure contained gold and diamonds.   
 
And according to Anna Neubert-Wood, founder of WanderWomen Scotland – we’re not alone - as many published studies have shown that people’s childhood memories of being outdoors are among the fondest and most revered.  Why is that?  The research says it’s the extra sensory input – the combination of sights, sounds, touch, temperatures creating that immersive experience leaving an indelible mark of joy for many.

But in this post COVID world where work life, shopping, banking, learning and so many previously social activities turned to technology, people have become less and less connected and more technology dependent. For busy leaders and entrepreneurs, this is especially the case and it can be a major factor in burnout and feelings of overwhelm.

Enter the award-winning wonders of WanderWomen Scotland where they do things that are so simple yet so genius specifically helping women to find space, peace and joy -  crucial ingredients for maintaining relevance and resiliency as a leader.  You're gonna want to hear this one! 🎉

Connect With Anna: 🌟🌟

Wander Women Scotland:  https://wander-women.co.uk/

Facebook - www.facebook.com/wanderwomenscotland

LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/company/wanderwomen-scotland

Instagram - www.instagram.com/wanderwomenscot (not a typo)

Citations & Resources:  

👉Castillo, Michelle.  “Researchers warn kids don’t get enough outdoor playtime”. CBS News. Online. 3 April 2012 https://www.cbsnews.com/news/researchers-warn-kids-dont-get-enough-outdoor-playtime/ 

👉Chunya Zhang, Xiao Ma, and Liping Liu.  “The Effect of Passion for Outdoor Activities on Employee Well-being…”. National Library of Medicine.  Online. 4 December 2023.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10709103/  

👉Fisher, Jane.   “Beyond mental health, how being outside can boost your business”. Institute of Directors. Online. 10 June 2023.  https://www.iod.com/resources/mental-health/nature-and-mental-health-benefits-of-being-outside/

Want to hear more about these topics? Please leave us a like and a review or join our mail list for information upcoming courses like our Negotiation Foundations course! www.kelliconfidential.com