Tag: networking in dc
You Are NOT Set
One thing that has alarmed me in launching D.C. Hopefuls is hearing from young professionals who politely say “I’ll pass this info along Tommy, but I’m all set, I landed a job after undergrad.” It pains me to post this, but you are not all set. Rarely do people in D.C. stay at jobs more than 1-3 years, especially entry-level positions. The old days of going to work somewhere and staying for 30 years are pretty much over. To be fair, I know people who landed great jobs in D.C. straight out of undergrad and 8-10 years later are still working at the same organization. However, when you dive deeper, you learn they have gone out of their way to advance themselves within the organization and have likely moved jobs within the organization several times. They network and advocate within that organization the way most of do in the outside world.
You all know the story by now, but it is worth repeating when I landed my first job at the Pentagon I was convinced my whole career was set. I told my parents “all the people who have completed this program received jobs in the international division after graduation; my whole career is set at 22!” I was insanely naive. There is no way to know when cuts, hiring freezes, horrible bosses, or simple stagnation will swallow your career.
It has taken 4, 6, and 8 months for me to begin positions after I interviewed, which does not take into account the months of networking and searching to land the interview. My current position was presented to me through a contact that I met in February 2015, he made me aware of the job in December 2015, I interviewed in January of 2016 and I started May 2016. These things take time, in my most recent example 15 months!
If you become complacent because you think you are set, you are setting yourself up for a disaster. I heard sharks never stop swimming or else they will drown, which I always assumed was not true but the internet has informed me for some sharks it is in fact true. Be like a shark, not aggressive and bloodthirsty, but never complacent and always on the move.
This does not mean always move from one job to the next, but always be looking to connect with people and better yourself. Take the long-term view of your career. I have connected with several young job seekers at the stage in their search when they have a strong lead or had recently interviewed for a job. I have shared advice, given resume feedback, helped prep them for the interview, and gave pep talks, only to never hear from them again after they landed the job. It hurt my feelings how quickly I was discarded after they achieved their short-term goal. I have learned to not take it personally; it is a simple sign of immaturity. It is always unwise to discard any potential contacts no matter what you believe you have achieved. People remember how they are treated and there no worse feeling that being unhappy or unfulfilled in a job and knowing you must start building your network from scratch.
For some sharks being still equals death, don’t let complacency kill your career.
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D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship Reminds Me of My Favorite Salad
When I moved to D.C. in 2009 I quickly discovered the most amazing thing on the planet. I discovered the chicken po’boy salad at Chopt. For those who don’t know Chopt is a chain that only serves salads and wraps at an absurd price that only big city snobs, like myself, would pay to eat. For nearly eight years I’ve been obsessed with this meal and often go to great efforts to obtain it. Chopt is very popular so I’ve spent countless hours waiting in line to obtain my po’boy salad. This may sound very shallow of me but I’ve noticed that almost all the people who eat at Chopt appear to be in relatively good shape. This has lead me to ponder ‘wouldn’t a salad place be filled with overweight people since they ‘really need’ to be eating salads.’ I know I sound like a total jerk, but the point holds value.
I had the same line of thinking when I launched D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship. I thought this new opportunity would attract the people who ‘really need it.’ I envisioned the person 4 years out of undergrad with their political science degree working at the mall desperately needing me to ‘turn them around.’ I thought of the college senior just weeks from graduation with no plan, a bad resume, and in desperate need of guidance.
I then started thinking of actual people I’ve interacted with the last two years. The people who were more than willing to let me spend hours reviewing their resume, giving them advice, and connecting them with my personal network only to never thank me or follow up with me again. I thought to myself ‘oh yeah these people really need the D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship.’
Throughout January and February of 2016 I spent 100+ hours creating, recording, and editing the first 15 modules for D.C. Boot Camp, the online crash course to Washington, D.C.. The modules walk you through how to understand, use, and create your own great resume and then become a master networker who no longer needs job boards or online applications. As I poured myself into these modules almost hourly I would think to myself ‘man this is going to turn their lives around.’
So when I opened my doors for business I didn’t see couch potatoes waddling in to get their salad, I saw tri-athletes and cyclists rush inside. Just in the first four months we saw three members of our group have landed jobs on Capitol Hill, a member got into a prestigious D.C. graduate school, another member has decided to enroll at a renowned law school, a member landed a job at the Department of Defense, one landed a job at Ameri-corps, while several others are making incredible professional contacts and personal strides. We’ve seen three members make it from the middle of the country to good paying professional jobs in D.C. and two others receive full rides to law school.
This is not to imply they were accepted into D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship and magically this happened for them. In fact most had these opportunities nailed down or at least lined up before joining our group. The point is the D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship continues to attract these types of applicants.
I can say with 100% certainty that every current D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship member is in a better position at their current age than I was at that age.
The overall eagerness, attitude, and spirit of our members has lead to inter-group networking, advice, and support that has been truly inspiring to watch. Yet I’m a little disappointed in myself for being so surprised. I learned a long time ago that successful people naturally end up together.
The 31 members of this group know the immeasurable value one can gain by surrounding yourself with successful people. They have each tasted failure, disappointment, and frustration and they all hated the taste! That is why they continually strive to learn more, connect more, share more, and grow more because they know they are far too young to be content.
You can’t reach a certain level of physical fitness then just start eating Taco Bell everyday; we all know what would happen. The same is true with your career; you have to keep eating that salad.
I recommend the chicken po’boy!
Click Here to Learn More on the D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship Page and how you can apply to be become a member…spots are limited!
Click Here to Watch a 20-Minute Video Explaining D.C. Hopefuls Fellowship
Don’t Be Your Own Worst Enemy (Track non-tangible results)
Job-hunting is often like losing weight in the sense we are always our own worst enemy. It would be very odd for someone to actively try to prevent you from losing weight, so the only thing between you and weight loss is you! The same is true for job hunting. Countless times in my life I have got discouraged about not being in the right job and was often quick to blame anyone besides me. I blamed the economy, Congress, my school, my boss, and anything/anyone else. It took me a long time to realize that I was always my own worst enemy. Much like that person dedicated to getting in shape I’d get really excited at first. I’d apply to a bunch of jobs four days in a row much like joining a gym then going 4 straight days.
Then I’d get tired and give myself a few days off or worse I’d get very discouraged because I had not received any interviews. Knowing I had to have some type of measuring stick to motivate myself I would set application goals for each week and month then nearly break my arm patting myself on the back when I hit my goals. Predictably months went by with no leads or interviews. I was the person who hit their gym attendance goal, didn’t change their diet, and was dismayed when the scale did not move.
Finally I realized that proper job hunting meant leaning on contacts, meeting new contacts, perfecting my resume, and doing things the right way with the steadfast spirit. The only problem was that I once again quickly became my own worst enemy. Doing things the right way was not the fastest way, and I quickly became discouraged again. I would complain to mentors and friends that I was doing the right things, but the interviews were not coming.
A good friend of mine taught me to track non-tangible results. Sure it felt good to count all the job applications I had completed, but I needed to also count and track all the people I had met. I began to log all interactions and brainstorm future questions and interactions. I set ‘investigation’ goals to find people at desired organizations and meet them.
I stopped becoming my own worst enemy because my spirits stayed high. I was able to see on paper all that I was accomplishing and took faith that the job would come. Just like the person who would change their diet, track what they ate every day, and stopped becoming a slave to the scale because they had proof on paper they were doing the right things. That person is going to lose weight at some point and because of the habits they have developed will keep the weight off. The same was true in my job hunt because I did things the right way and tracked it to keep my spirits up the right jobs have come my way and I have developed the appropriate habits to grow my career.
* Please join the D.C. Hopefuls Newsletter!
* Like us on Facebook at D.C. Hopefuls Facebook Page
* Follow us on twitter at @dchopefuls
* CLICK HERE to schedule a 30-minute conversation with me about your career aspirations, struggles, and/or questions
Your Career Path is like Losing Weight
I wasted the first 4-6 years of my career. I was like an overweight person who constantly talked about losing weight, but never did. My whole world was consumed by not liking the job I had and feeling as though D.C. was fixed. I believed that a guy like me couldn’t make it. I went out chasing the fads. Like a person who chases every new diet fad, weight loss pill, and crazy machine, I was looking for the quick and easy fix to launch my career. Eventually I met enough people and asked them the secret. The secret is there is no secret! You have to change your lifestyle and daily habits. Every day you have to eat right and exercise.
I went to every job site, I paid a company $500 to write the magic resume, I met with placement agencies, I took online classes, I did it all! It wasn’t until after all of that I realized that to get my career on the right path there was no magic fix. I was going to have to develop daily habits and have faith that if I lived the Steadfast Spirit doors would begin to fly open!