Can you smell it?

Life!!!! Of course you can smell it. Just think of that cool fresh air in the morning when you step out to pick up the paper, or take out the garbage. Can you hear those leaves crunch under your feet? What about the sounds of young children at a playground or in back yards playing.
The roar of the crowd at a sporting event, OK that is a sound.
So whether it is smell or hearing we have so much to to be thankful for. As you continue your search keep that in mind. Attend a Toastmasters meeting and listen to the stories, you'd be surprised what you will learn and at the same time see more to be thankful for.

That in turn can help you to show off your positive attitude more genuinely and all of a sudden you will see more results from all your work.

How's your driveway ?

As I was blowing the leaves from my driveway last night it occurred to me that I have done this before. Has that ever happened to you before? It is actually pretty mundane work yet I find it rewarding because the results of my work are seeable as I complete it.
Wouldn't it be great if you could see the results of all your work immediately upon completion?

Not always the case though, is it? You put in research, phone calls, e-mails, networking, meetings and at the end of the week you wonder if it was worth all the effort to maybe get a rejection letter.
The simple anecdote here is think of how many times Babe Ruth went to bat only to strike out more times than he hit home runs. Yet most people remember the homers.

So as you are out blowing your driveway or doing all that other work to find that next opportunity don't lose sight of the fact that it is the long term goal you are working towards.

Upcoming Opportunities

OK...OK...so the news is doom and gloom. If you don't believe it just read the papers or listen to the news on the radio or TV. Remember that on October 19, 1997 we had a 22% drop in the DOW in one day. Devastating, tears, heart papitations. The end was near.

Yes, that was different and the times are different now. That is true yet the same facts were true back then. One of my worries now is will I live long enough for my value to return to the past value.

I notice folks are still going to the coffee shop. Now gas is dropping in price, will we all refrain from going back to the way it was. For me it needs to get back to $0.35 a gallon to spur me to just take off.

Now you have all kinds of new opportunities to look at. Companies need people that know how to budget, be frugal and be productive. You have those qualities, keep working on your own marketing plan and see who out there needs your help.

Bird feeder

Have you ever watched the activity at a bird feeder? You may want to try it sometime. Those cute little birdies fly back and forth, picking through the food to find the best. Many times they discard what appears to be fine food. Oddly enough later the squirrels come by and pick up the discarded food and have found a treasure.

Have you thought that sometimes you do that too, only yours if with possible opportunities. You sift through the list and discard what you think is not "you" and move on. Later someone else runs across it and cultivates it for themselves. Sometimes we come back to an old possibility and refresh it and turn it into a winner.

Why is that? Part of it is you are human. You are smart, creative, knowledgeable and feel you can figure this out. Time has taught me that no matter how smart I am sometimes I still make a mistake, then I gain new knowledge and move forward. Through my mistakes I learn more and become more successful over time.

Think about it!

LinkedIn

Have you updated your profile lately? Have you checked out the groups? Have you joined any appropriate groups? Do you have your photo up. Have you included all e-mails in your account setup? You may be able to liken social networking to the PC back in 1980. Not many people saw the value of it. They even tried to stay away or deny it would grow. Some even thought it was merely a fad.



We know different now. Personal relationships are very useful and quite frankly better than non-personal. A bigger part to the social networking is what you can do for others. While I was in Washington DC last week I was able to connect a new contact with someone back in Oregon.



If you're not in LinkedIn, you should be. If you are in LinkedIn be sure you are keeping it updated and current. You might even become involved in some of the other social networking programs.

Winter Preparation

As I was preparing the house and yard for winter a thought crossed my mind. Are you preparing for winter. No, not the weather or season. What are you doing to prepare for this long winter this year? Have you made that "List of Achievements" for yourself?

Do you have your contact cards? Are you getting out and networking? How many people are you meeting each day, that's new people, folks?

Are you having fun, meeting people and learning something?

Meeting people

How many new people have you met today? How many do you intend on meeting tomorrow? This is a most important question as much of your success in any endeavor you do depends on how many folks you meet.



You may want to re-think your productivity from how many appointments and resumes you have gotten out to how many new people you have met each day. Remember folks this is a numbers game. The more people you meet the closer you are to closing that gap between today and your next successful opportunity.



Have fun, Meet people, learn something.

Bad News?

Is the news getting you down? Are you worried there may be nothing out there for you? Does it look gloomy?

Actually it is what you make it. If you feel all the above it just may be affecting your attitude and the way you come across in meetings with others. It is hard to stress the importance of a positive attitude.

I know..I know, you're saying "but Cleon you don't understand". Maybe I don't but chances are that I do, as I've been there and done that plus I have seen thousands of folks in your same boat. Guess what, they have all survived. Was it easy? Not always.

What to do now? Count your blessings, list your achievements then go out and talk with more people. Research what you really want to do then find fun ways to talk to people about it.

Keep your chin up because there are some people that won't get that chance again.

“S” Curves

Have you ever noticed that searching for those opportunities sometimes seems like traversing “S” curves? Seeing those rivers below, as I crossed the country recently, reminded me of this. One can travel in one direction, then make a complete “U” turn on the river and head in the opposite direction. You can make a series of these and really wonder if you are going anywhere. You are actually going somewhere, it just doesn’t seem that way. As the river traverses back and forth it still makes headway. The same with your job search aka Opportunity search.

Maps

Traveling across the US lately, at 30,000 feet a thought crossed my mind. Viewing the great expanse of this beautiful country, seeing the different terrain, roads and rivers got me to thinking. There are many rivers and roads down there going to so many places. We can just jump on one and go see new towns, mountains, rivers, you name it.
Kind of like looking for our next opportunity. So many out there that we can grab any one of them. Yes that isn’t how it works, does it? In order to select the right road, river or street we need to have an idea where we are going. Then we can look it up on the map to see the best way to get there. As you look for your next opportunity it is most important that you know what it is otherwise you may well take the wrong road.

Apathy

Have you made your list yet? It is very important to do that.

With the current goings on, in the financial markets, many folks are really feeling scared. If you have recently lost your job you probably are really scared. I'm including a piece written by a very good friend of mine to shed a little light:

The Miracle Minute The Old Apathy Trap October 8, 2008 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It is easy for a driven minority to get their way when the silent majority doesn't step forward. If there were several planets to ride on it wouldn't matter. But spaceship Earth is all we've got, and no person, place, party, elected official or nation is an exception to the laws governing life. Shortcuts weaken people and eventually surface.
Governments cannot give us health, happiness, or peace of mind. These must be earned by the people who want them. The keys to achieving these rewards include self-honesty, self-discipline, service to others, respect for life, belief in a higher power, and the willingness to do what's right, even when the right way is painful and scary.
Anyone running for office who claims they can create jobs, give us health care, and fix our economy is lying. The only people who can make our world a better place is us. We the people must make it happen. Expecting something for nothing is childish insanity.
Haile Selassie, a positive-change agent who understood the cosmic laws and timeless truths, said, "Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; and the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most that has made it possible for evil to triumph."
Isn't it time that "we the people" said "enough is enough"?
Dick Warn

Achievements

Do you have your list of achievements made up? On October 4,The Leadership Forum hosted Larry Dennis of Turbo Systems as a speaker. Of the many points he made was the value of making your list of achievements in your life. We tend to reflect on our failures when we should regard our achievements as positive parts of our lives.

We all have the ability to do more than we realize. We are responsible for our being. Go out and make your list of all accomplishments you have achieved then push yourself to do what you have always wanted to do.