So tell me – just what's the matter with number five? By Eli Amdur Last week I was the guest speaker at a terrific networking dinner, and today I'm going to tell you about something that happened there. The event was held last Tuesday night. Almost 90 people – all of whom are accomplished professionals – were in attendance. Most of them were in transition (translation: unemployed), but not because of lack of experience, credential, or skills. When I tell you these people are accomplished, I'm not kidding: they'd been C-level officers, vice presidents and directors; they were in finance, accounting, sales, marketing, operations, human resources, information technology, you name it; they'd had national and global positions; and they have had very solid careers. Yet here they were, in transition. They and 15 million other Americans, but that's not today's story. At this event, everyone was invited up to the microphone during the dinner hour to give their 30-second elevator speeches, including a statement of what and where their contacts are so they can be of help to the others, and what their targets and desired contacts would be. This exercise was exceptionally cool for two reasons. First, if we really are supposed to be networking, then that's what should be happening – actively and passionately – trading information, contacts, and ideas. Second, the organizer and facilitator, John, who is obviously very experienced at this, made it abundantly clear that 30 seconds means 30 seconds. And so, under his watchful eye, one professional after another got up, made the pitch – succinctly and purposefully – while everyone else made notes on a distributed attendee list. After dinner there was a flurry of activity among the attendees following up on their elevator speeches and their notes made on others' comments. That was big time, proactive networking, as networking is not just about who can help you, but whom you can help as well. It was really nice to see. Very nicely done, John, very nicely done indeed. But that's not the message here. What I was referring to that happened was this. Almost every one of the 90 attendees listed as their target employers almost every company on the Fortune 200 list – and then some. On everyone's lists were the giants in pharmaceuticals, financial services, banking, transportation, consumer products, healthcare, professional services, electronics, and so forth. The list goes on. Interestingly – and as a brief aside – it's the same list I hear when I ask my students, both graduate and undergraduate, where they'd like to work after graduation. It's always the same response: a "big four" accounting firm, a major bank, a big pharma company, and so on. Predictable…boring…and flawed. Now hold that thought. Back to Tuesday night – in a room full of professionals, many of whose careers started before some of my students were born – the list rolled out just as predictably: every major employer you can think of. Wait a minute! Aren't these the companies that have been cutting millions of jobs and laying off millions of people?!? Don't think too hard on this one; the answer is yes. Besides that, though, where's the creative, entrepreneurial thinking, the more unconventional approach? The truth is, most people don't realize that an estimated 80 percent of all new jobs (not replacement jobs) created in For instance, in the world of healthcare, mid-size pharmaceutical and small to mid-size biotech firms far outnumber the better known large firms. The large firms have been in non-stop layoff mode of late, but the small and mid-size companies, along with medical technology and device companies, are inventing exciting new drugs, therapies, and other products while new treatment modalities are replacing conventional ones. And in the "green" economy, where we'll see 20 million new jobs created in the near future, most companies are emerging companies, and you can bet that we're looking at future Googles here. None of this is "same old, same old," is it? Yet only one of the 90 people at the event last Tuesday said she was targeting entrepreneurial companies. Only one! And that's not far off from the answers I get from many students, either. It seems, does it not, that there's not enough creative thinking or willingness to do things differently. When I ask a student of mine, for example an accounting major, where he or she would like to work after graduation, and the answer is a "big four firm," my immediate next challenge is, "So tell me – just what's the matter with number five?" Or number 20, for that matter? Or the accounting department of a firm in another business? The reaction is usually one of curious surprise, as it was Tuesday night when I asked the gathering about targeting emerging entrepreneurial companies in new and exciting fields. So that's today's story: expanding your thinking. It's one of the ways you're going to shorten your job search. Big pharma? How about a "tiny" little $2 billion pharmaceutical or biotech firm? Major bank? What about firms engaged in global creative capitalism? So as you are thinking through your possibilities, your targets, and your goals – and as you create your job search strategy – remember to ask yourself, "Just what's the matter with number five?"
Career Coach Eli Amdur conducts workshops and one-on-one coaching in Career Planning, Career Skills Development, Resumes, Interviewing, and Communication. At
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