One Bold Move A Day

Informational interviews are one of the best ways you can learn about an industry, company, or role that interests you.

Once a month I’ll introduce you to someone who has influenced my work and life to share their one bold move with you.

This month’s One Bold Move is Lauren McGoodwin, Founder and CEO of Career Contessa and Author of Power Moves.

This episode provides tips on how informational interviews can lead you to new learning—or a new job.

Your One Bold Move: Don’t be afraid to reach out to people for informational interviews. Talk to as many people as you can and use those to learn the ins and outs of roles and companies.

To learn more about Lauren McGoodwin and Career Contessa: https://www.careercontessa.com or @careercontessa

My favorite list of informational interview questions from Career Contessa (Definitely reference this if you ever meet with me!): https://www.careercontessa.com/advice/questions-to-ask-informational-interview/

Find Shanna on IG: @ShannaAHocking

#oneboldmove

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Effective feedback has to be built on trust and a culture of learning. This isn’t the kind of thing you just use in performance evaluations. It has to be a value of your team that everyone commits to year round.

This episode provides tips on how to get more comfortable with giving feedback.

Your One Bold Move: Practice giving feedback to your team members, because you believe in their potential and care about their growth. Being direct and compassionate is possible.

For more tips on receiving feedback, check out episode 8.

At work it is important to celebrate the big and small wins. Things move so quickly that people don’t often slow down enough to acknowledge what they have done. It’s also doesn’t always feel comfortable sharing our awesomeness with other people. I introduced the concept of Win of the Day (WOTD) to my team to encourage us to share wins with each other. This is something my leadership team and I do regularly and they, in turn, do with their respective teams.

This episode provides tips on how to bring WOTD to your team or office.

Your One Bold Move: Share a WOTD with a colleague or your team. Invite them to share, too. Find more ways to celebrate together at work.

You don’t have to meet all of the qualifications to apply for a job. The experiences you have already and the strengths you would bring to a new role are often more than enough to apply. Thoughtfully consider how your skills align with the role you are interested in, but don’t look for a 100% match. After all, a new job should bring opportunities to learn new things.

If you wait until you’re fully qualified and ready for a role, you’ve waited too long.

This episode provides tips on the job search and application process, which is your opportunity to showcase your skills and experiences.

Your One Bold Move: Apply anyway. If you find a job that feels like a meaningful connect with your strengths and values, put yourself out there and follow through. This time, especially, has shown us that what matters most is who you work with and for and what the organization’s values are.

So many of our work interactions right now are via video calls. It’s still possible to meaningfully connect with the other person you’re talking to.

This episode provides tips to make a positive impression, whether it’s your first or four thousandth meeting with someone.

Your One Bold Move: Make a great first impression in your meeting. Video seems to be how we’ll be engaging with others for the foreseeable future. No matter the format, bring your boldest, truest self to the conversation. The world needs you.

We are at another pivot point in this global pandemic and to be most effective, we are going to need to bring our best selves. This means we need to rest.

We are doing A LOT right now to manage our careers, our families, and ourselves. Doing this without a break is not sustainable.

Vacation may not look the same as it used to, but it gives you an opportunity to recharge and do what you value with your time, so it’s worth it.

This episode provides tips to prepare for and take vacation, even in these unusual times, so you can be more engaged and effective at work and home.

(In this episode I’ll specifically focus on taking time off from work, but if you want tips on how to rest and why that’s so important, check out episode 9.)

When you want to achieve something, you write it down. Whether it’s a SWOT analysis, a formal action plan, or even a memo (or email) outlining goals—you’ve seen the power of listing out your intentions. A research study done at Dominican University in California shows that writing down your goals makes you 42% more likely to achieve them.

Why not apply this approach to your own career and personal development?

Today marks halfway through 2020. I suspect this is not how you thought this year would turn out, but it doesn’t change how hard you worked to get here.

Your One Bold Move: Write a letter to yourself. Use this to remind you of your strengths, your why, and who you want to become. If you post a screenshot of the podcast or this episode on social and tag me @ShannaAHocking and #oneboldmove, I’ll send you a free copy of a template you can use to draft your letter to yourself.

For more leadership and career advice like this sent directly to your inbox twice monthly, text SHANNA to 66866.

There are some days when it can feel really heavy to be a leader. When you commit to serving others, it also comes with a sense that you’re right there with them in what they face. It can be natural to feel so empathetic to your team members’ concerns or problems that you take them on as your own, which can lead to exhaustion and burnout.

Compassionate leadership is a proactive approach to leadership—with serving your team always in mind.

This episode provides tips on how to develop a compassionate leadership approach in how you lead your team and yourself.

Your One Bold Move: Move from empathy to action. Focus on serving others. Do this because you believe in your own potential and the potential of those around you.

Curiosity leads to deeper connections with others, more innovation, helps you handle rejection, and builds your confidence.

Think about things you could have appreciated for a moment and forgotten about or ignored completely. Choose to give these things your attention. Intentionally put yourself out there and follow through.

This episode provides tips on how to build your curiosity and why this is so important.

Your One Bold Move: Get curious when you meet someone. Or get curious enough to follow up with someone you’ve already met before. See what comes out of the conversation or outreach. You’ll build your confidence, you might have a lovely chat with a kind person, or you just might land your next business deal or job.

I believe anything is possible. The way I show up at work and for others is to lead with optimism and a belief that people can do things they didn’t know were possible.

We’re living through hard times right now. You might have some days where you feel lost or unsure. I still feel rejection, frustration, lack of motivation, and disappointment. Here’s the thing: I get back up after that—most often, more determined. This is what I want for you, too.

This episode provides tips on how to build your resilience.

Your One Bold Move: Commit to intentionally working on building your own resilience. This isn’t a one day thing; it happened over time for me. If you have to start somewhere, now feels like a really good time. Practicing the skills associated with bouncing back will help you navigate whatever challenges you face today or in the future—and even one step is worth celebrating right now.