Blog — Clear Career

Last week, after 33 years of success, one of the greats of late night television retired from behind his CBS desk - David Letterman. Known for his self-deprecating humor, “Top Ten” list, “Will It Float?”, and numerous other gags, Dave’s irreverent approach to late night television magnetized most and repelled the rest. Your sides either hurt because you were reeling with laughter or you muttered something under your breath about that “Letterman” loser. Regardless of what you thought about Letterman’s style, content, or perspective, his television success was incomparable. Though you probably wouldn’t do any of Letterman’s “Stupid Human Tricks”, here are 5 career tips from Letterman to put your career in high gear:

1. FOCUS ON FIT

Early on in Dave’s career he worked as a radio announcer for WBST - a local radio station based in his home state of Indiana. In 1966, he was hired on as part of a 9-man news team that announced the results of the election. What a glamorous start to his career, right? To muddy the waters further, Dave was later fired for his irreverent treatment of classical music!

By now you might be wondering, so “what can I learn from this?” Focus on fit. Building a successful career is all about focusing on your fit - how do your skills, work-style, and personality fit with your employer’s culture, market, and organizational structure? For example, Dave’s uniquely irreverent sense of humor got him fired from one job, but eventually became what catapulted him to success at NBC and CBS. Why? Because he found a place where his irreverent sense of humor fit. The same goes for you. Commit to your fit and do it:

2. GET A GUIDE (or 2)

In 1978, David Letterman’s sarcastic sense of humor got the attention of talent scouts for The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. Carson enjoyed Letterman’s dry, snarky approach immensely and Letterman quickly became a regular on the show. Their friendship turned into a mentorship with Letterman eventually crediting Carson with much of his career success. The insight is clear, Letterman’s career was bolstered by Carson’s guidance and mentoring. The same is true for you.

If you’re ready to rocket your career into the success stratosphere, you need at least one mentor and perhaps even a handful of them. Mentors guide you as you navigate uncharted territory. They give you insights into career moves that come from their decades of experience. As entrepreneur and motivational speaker Jim Rohn says, “You become the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” These people include your mentors! Choose mentors you want to become like, listen to their advice, and do it. It worked for Letterman.

What about you? What type of work environment or culture fits you best? Who are some heroes who can launch your career into the stratosphere?

For more career tips you can glean from David Letterman, click here.

How to Network Like a Genius

Have you ever felt like networking is cheesy and not a real career-building strategy? Do you ever feel tentative about the idea of going out there and meeting professionals who you don’t know? Are you unsure of what to say or do when you finally get up the nerve to meet these people? Yeah, me too.

Imagine if you got stoked about making new networking contacts. Imagine if you knew exactly how to interact with the very people you want to connect with. Imagine if you could network in a way that felt human and enabled the career trajectory you deserve.

No longer does this have to stay within your imagination! Using the few simple steps below you can take all of the work out of networking and become a networking genius.

Who Are You?

The first step to networking like a genius is to know exactly who you are and where you’d like your career to go There’s the inside stuff and the outside stuff. The inside stuff might sound like things such as your personality preferences, your areas of strengths, your core values, and your overarching trajectory in life. The outside stuff might sound like things such as your desired job title, your areas of interest or expertise, the industry you’re interested in, your priorities, your salary goals, your skills, and your work-life balance. Getting clear on who you are and where you’re headed makes networking a cinch.

Who Are They?

Okay, now that you’ve gained some clarity about you, let’s talk about them - those seemingly intimidating, aloof, or unreachable people. Again, you’ll want to ask yourself some key questions. Who are the people that I want to be like? What is it about them that attracts me to them? Who are the people that I want to partner with to grow my career? Based on the person’s LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and their website, what are the things that are seemingly most important to them? How do these items align with the things that I value most? Answering these questions will help you to know who the people or businesses are that you want to connect with.

Where Do They Meet?

You’re clear on you, and clear on them. Now get clear on where. Specifically, where do the people you want to meet congregate? You’re looking for opportunities that leverage your time and connect you with the greatest amount of people. Quantity isn’t everything though, so be sure to take into consideration the quality of the connection that you make into your formula for success. For example, a lot of the people you want to be like are on LinkedIn, so you join some groups that they are apart of. Compare that opportunity to a live networking event where you can connect in person with someone you want to be like and spend a fair amount of time asking them questions. Which would you choose? Probably the latter one.

What Can You Give?

While part of the answer to this question is wrapped up in who you are, who they are, and where the people you’re wanting to network with meet, the big idea here is that you want to be a giver versus a taker. In other words, you get to brainstorm ways things that you can give that are value to the people you want to network with. Think about - what if someone gave you something that enabled you to get a pay raise at your job. Wouldn’t your estimation of that person go up? Wouldn’t you see that person as more valuable? Wouldn’t you be more inclined to hire that person in the event that they were looking for work? Some things that you can give are: your time and attention, an insightful article you read, a book you read, or a thank you note. It doesn’t have to be big, just give.

Keep It Up!

Now that you’ve learned some ways to network like a genius, keep it up. In business, the adage is “cash is king”; in networking, consistency is king. Make a plan. Do the plan. Review and adjust the plan. Do the plan. Generally, if you want someone to do business with you, you have to get your message to them anywhere from 7 - 12 times. In today’s fast-paced work environment, it may take several different channels of networking - Job Fairs, Conventions, F2F, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Blog, etc. As Bruce Springsteen says, “Getting an audience is hard. Sustaining an audience is hard. It demands a consistency of thought, of purpose, and of action over a long period of time.” Network consistently.

What’s Your Play?

No longer will you ever again walk into a networking event bored or scared spitless, because now you know how to network like a genius. Your confidence will draw others to you! Who are the people on your networking “short-list”? Where do they meet? What are some things of valuable that you can give them? What’s your next move?