personal branding

There’s Still Time! Tell Us Which GoT Character You Are and Win Swag

The Hired Guns on March 28, 2013

image via TV Guide

Last week, we announced a Game of Thrones contest. The premise is simple: tell us which Game of Thrones character you are at work and why. The winner gets epic swag from HBO’s Game of Thrones store, just in time for the season premier on Sunday, March 31. The game is still afoot — you’ve got until tomorrow afternoon (March 29) to get your submission in. In the meantime, here are a few of our favorite submissions so far:

@featpete: I’m the office Varys. I don’t say too much but I “overhear” all of the gossip that goes around. People also probably think I’m a eunuch. Read More →

We’re Having a Game of Thrones Contest! (Yes, Swag is Involved)

The Hired Guns on March 21, 2013

HBO’s Game of Thrones has been a constant source of conversation at The Hired Guns office over the last couple of years. Sunday, March 31st, marks the start of the highly anticipated third season, and we couldn’t be more excited. If you haven’t tuned in yet, you should. Pretty much everything you need to know to survive in the modern work world plays out in this medieval fantasy epic, pitting seven kingdoms against each other, all in the name of trying to regain a single throne.

If you’re navigating a complicated work environment filled with back-stabbing, envy, and mistrust, there is no better way to learn (or just be reminded) of the rules of engagement for getting ahead in a cut-throat workplace. But it’s not all about warfare. Game of Thrones also offers plenty of moral guidance for leaders who want to do right by their people. There are plenty of lessons about beating the pants off your competition, mastering the laws of shifting alliances, and the art of holding your trump card until the right moment. The story lines and the characters are rich, layered, and complex — just like work. It’s the perfect Sunday night ritual for getting your Monday game face on. Read More →

Just Say No: Declutter Your Career With These Three Product Management Rules

Lisa Schneider on March 4, 2013

“Perfection is attained, not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
-Antoine de St. Exupery

As a product manager, my job is as much about deciding what features don’t make it into a product as it about what features do. Sometimes it’s more about what not to put in, or — dare I say it aloud — what to take out. Stakeholders will bristle when their pet feature is headed for the chopping block, but product managers have to press on, because the simplest and most elegant solutions are often the most powerful. The same goes for your career.

Example: At a previous website (unnamed to protect the well-intentioned), everyone had an opinion as to what the content engagement efforts should look like: Most Popular. Most Recent. Most Commented. Most Shared. More Like This. Your Cat Would Like This. I inherited an article page that had seven of these modules crammed into a pretty tight circle around the main edit well (this was in the days when “above the fold” ruled, but that’s another post altogether). It was too much, too cluttered, and too unclear what we were asking the user to do next. Instead of driving more engagement, it drove — wait for it — a 60%+ bounce rate.

You, too, are a product manager. It may not be your actual job title, but you are the architect and manager of your career. And the last thing you want is a 60% bounce rate on your professional endeavors. Here are three rules of product management that can help you remove the noise from your career narrative and engage the user in a smart, effective way. Read More →

How to Do What You Love, Part 2: The Launch

Carole Murko on November 19, 2012

We recently introduced you to Carole Murko, a long-time Hired Gun and founder of Heirloom Meals. In the second installment of How To Do What You Love, Carole shares with us the trials and tribulations of launching her own company, as well as joys of eventual success. Her Thanksgiving special airs this week on your local PBS station!

To me, Heirloom Meals was destined to be a TV series with me as the host, sharing the stories and recipes of my guests. And, as a big thinker, I went straight to the head of the class. I networked and found a lifestyle TV producer who loved the Heirloom Meals concept and helped me produce a five-minute demo reel. We brought it to public television. They loved it. And they gave us a letter of interest to produce a 26-episode series. There was a catch, however: public television does not provide funding. Read More →

How to Do What You Love, Part 1: The Light Bulb Moment

Carole Murko on November 6, 2012

In the first of three installments, Heirloom Meals founder and former financial services marketing exec Carole Murko talks about the moment she knew going for her dream was the right thing to do. Her Heirloom Meals Thanksgiving Special airs during the holiday week. Check your local listings!

Your Ah ha! moment probably won’t be a dramatic, lightning-strike event like you see in the movies.

At least, it wasn’t for me. I’ve been on a lifelong journey toward my ah-ha! moment. I had a long career in financial services and even earned the coveted CFA. In my heart, I knew from day one that I was on the wrong path. The problem was that I didn’t quite know how to access the part of me that would allow me to be me in a professional capacity. I even remember saying, “I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up, but at least I will make some money.” Don’t get me wrong — I definitely wasn’t just waiting for lightning to strike. I was always taking classes, networking, and just thinking. I knew I’d eventually figure it out. Read More →

What You Can Learn About Public Speaking from the Presidential Debates

Joel Schwartzberg on October 4, 2012

Whatever else you thought about the performances turned in by President Obama and Governor Romney’s during Wednesday night’s presidential debate (as well as that of Jim Lehrer, who had the nerve to keep interrupting them with questions!), the occasion was generally a study in good public speaking tactics. Though President Obama and Governor Romney shared a number of similar presentational techniques, the two did take some divergent approaches. Here’s a quick review of things they did right and not-so-right, as well as a few key takeaways that can help make you a better public speaker. Read More →

What the NFL Referee Debacle Can Teach Us About Salary Negotiation

Jim Hopkinson on September 27, 2012

via Gawker.com

The first three weeks of the 2012 NFL Season brought lots of excitement, with rookie Robert Griffin III tossing bombs, the Arizona Cardinals starting 3-0, and receiver Calvin Johnson already hauling in 9 touchdowns.

But none of that compares to the largest underlying theme of the season: the dismal job performance of replacement NFL referees, some of whom were fired from the Lingerie Football League (yes, that’s a thing and no, we’re not linking to it) for incompetence. The replacements botched call after call on national TV while the league negotiated a new contract for their regular full-time officials.

As the league finally reaches an agreement to end the embarrassment, what can we learn from their negotiation? Read More →

Why It Takes Moxie To Be In Digital

Sheryl Victor Levy on September 19, 2012

I recently spoke at Moxie Camp, a women’s leadership conference and I can say — and I think many of my digital colleagues would agree — it takes moxie to be in Digital. A lot of it. When I think of having moxie, it’s about having the courage to go into uncharted territory; being comfortable with having to say, “Let me get back to you on that,” and having serious get-up-and-go. Dictionary.com’s definitions for “moxie” are: “vigor; verve; pep; courage and aggressiveness; nerve, skill; know-how.”

Yep. That’s what I’m saying.

You’re paid to be an expert in “All Things D.” From digital strategy to CRM; from social media to product development. It’s a broad term, which has its advantages and disadvantages.

I can speak from personal experience as someone who works in an agency setting, but Ferris Bueller said it best (I paraphrase, obviously): “Digital moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” Read More →

The Results of Our #6wordCV Contest Are In…

The Hired Guns on September 18, 2012

In case you missed it, The Guns launched a search for the best #6wordCV yesterday. We got a lot of really great submissions — some serious, some not so serious — from our Twitter network. It was a tough call, but Larry Smith, inventor of the Six-Word Memoir Project and the brilliant mind behind tomorrow’s What’s Your Story? class, has spoken.

Congratulations, @vdlr. Your #6wordCV took first prize:

“Digital storyteller igniting innovation, strategy, analytics.”

In Larry’s own words, “the specificity of it, as well as the art of what person can do for their clients” was the clincher. In addition to having something to lord over all her friends for eternity, she also wins free admission to Larry’s class tomorrow night. Read More →

Larry Smith: On Tomorrow’s Class, Knowing Yourself, and Keeping it Simple

The Hired Guns on September 18, 2012

We sat down with Larry Smith, our coach for tomorrow’s What’s Your Story? course, to talk about work, life, and presenting it all in just six words.

What is a Six-Word Memoir®?
Ernest Hemingway was once challenged to write a story in only six words. As the legend goes, he wrote: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” In November 2006, at the online storytelling community I founded called SMITH Magazine, we gave the six-word story a personal twist, calling it a “Six-Word Memoir.” (And partnering with a little-know company called Twitter for what was supposed to be just a one-month contest to win an iPod). The idea is as simple as it sounds: tell the story of your life in exactly six words. Those six words can be an attempt to sum up your whole life — think of it as the title of your autobiography or epitaph on your tombstone, as Mario Batali did when he wrote, “Brought it to a boil often” — or one aspect of your personal life (“According to Facebook we broke up”) or professional life (“I tell amazing stories in PowerPoint”).

How does it help professionals refine their personal brand?
The parameters of just six words help you get to the essence of who you are and what you do best. Ever notice that the higher up you get on the ladder, the shorter your emails and meetings can be? Being brief, precise and very much in tight control of your own personal story is a boon for anyone in any part of their life — from your online dating profile to your resume. Read More →

Are Low Wages and Temp Jobs the Future of Work? Not Quite.

Beth Temple on September 10, 2012

Back in the day, there was a cartoon character whose catch phrase was ‘now waaaaayyyy a minute’ when things didn’t sound quite right. That is instinctively what I thought as soon as I read a recent article in Forbes predicting a future in which stable careers are replaced by low wage temp work. While I do believe that permanency in employment is decreasing (and I wrote about it back in 2008), I think the Forbes author chose the cautionary tale route versus the “let’s get prepared for it” one. If you read me regularly, you’ll know I believe that when it comes to your career, have no fear. Read More →

Extreme Truth, and Why You Can’t Escape It

Bruce Kasanoff on September 4, 2012

If you’ve been following the fall of Jonah Lehrer, the bestselling author and New Yorker writer and serial fabulist who got caught making up Bob Dylan quotes, you might think his tale has properly sensitized you to the perils of stretching the truth.

Not even close. Read More →

It Takes More Than Buzzwords to be an Expert

Lisa Schneider on August 8, 2012

The other day I took part in a hysterical exchange on Facebook: After watching AMC’s The Pitch (think Mad Men meets reality TV), my friend Deb Gabor, who heads up Austin-based consulting shop Sol Marketing Concepts, posted that she couldn’t stand hearing the contestants talk about “about mind spaces, brand platforms, value propositions, empowering consumers and other sundry bullsh*t.” She followed that with a comment along the lines of, “I’m afraid I sound like this at work – please help me.” Of course I jumped in with a snappy and equally buzzword-laden response, as did a few other folks. We cracked ourselves up. (I know, I need to get out more.) Read More →

Get Your Blog On: Justin Lambert of “Words That Begin with You” Talks About Setting Goals and Avoiding Blogger Obscurity

Bill Brazell on April 26, 2012

One day, the consultant and copywriter Justin Lambert found himself thinking that he was “getting absolutely nowhere” in his blogging. Not a good place to be, and probably not an uncommon sentiment, either. But what was different was what he did next. Read More →

THG @SXSW: Stand Out (in a Good Way!) in the Workplace

Meryl Weinsaft Cooper on March 5, 2012

In the days leading up to SXSW Interactive, we’ve been looking at the Hired Guns and Hired Guns pals who will be there. Up today: co-author of Be Your Own Best Publicist, Meryl Cooper:

Mentor Session
Saturday, March 10, 11:00

Book Signing
Sunday, March 11, 2:30

Your Twesume
(your resume in 140 characters or less):
Author/BeYourOwn @BestPublicist & PRGal w/12+yrs of exp promoting ppl/places/prods. Spare time=producing films & eating/drinking around NYC

Why did you want to speak at SXSW?
I’ve always enjoyed attending SXSW — and now I’m excited to share the tenets of “Be Your Own Best Publicist” as part of its new mentor programming. Read More →

Tell Your Story, and Make It Fast

Larry Smith on October 24, 2011

This Thursday, October 27, The Hired Guns Academy will be hosting “What’s Your Story?,” our popular class on storytelling and elevator pitches. Below, the class’s instructor and creator, Larry Smith, talks about when he first realized that limits and parameters are your friend when it comes to creating a powerful, authentic story about your work life.

I was at a wedding this past weekend. The happy couple kissed. The dancing began. And soon enough it was toast time. One by one friends and family took the microphone to pay tribute to the bride and groom. And one by one those loving tributes turned into rambling disasters — often with no end in sight. “Somebody needs to wrestle the mic from him,” I heard a guest say at one point, in a less-than-hushed tone. Still, everyone was in a good mood and laughed off the hot messes who were doing their best to fete the happy couple.

After all, you’re allowed a certain amount of slack at a wedding. But when you fail to get your story straight when the stakes are higher — at a job interview, for example — the consequences are often much worse.

Want to Speak Well? Look to the Pros.

Joel Schwartzberg on September 8, 2011

In this new series, experienced speaker, teacher, and consultant Joel Schwartzberg breaks down for us the best ways to improve your presentation skills, whether you’re still in school, in mid-career, or in upper management.

With just over a year before the next presidential election, we’re about to be deluged with political debates, speeches, pontification, and more passionate punditry than any human not employed by Fox News or MSNBC can stand. But whether those speakers are conservative, progressive, or somewhere in the middle (or just trying to be) their goals are always the same: to make their points clearly, concisely, effectively, memorably, convincingly, and credibly.

And that should be your goal, too. Whether you’re speaking in front of a vast audience or a prospective employer, you want to make your own points clearly, concisely, effectively, memorably, convincingly and credibly.

In this blog and in my upcoming Hired Guns Academy course, we’ll be looking at ways to do just
that. But for now, while there’s so much speech-making all around you, it’s a good idea to examine how politicians do it. Remember two things: One, good speakers aren’t born; they’re trained. Two, when it comes to strong public presentations, how you say it as important (if not more important) than what you’re saying. Read More →

How to Get Your Presentation Picked for SXSW

Allison Hemming on July 13, 2011

Getting selected to speak at SXSW Interactive is a great way to establish yourself as an expert in a subject that you’re passionate about. Although the festival doesn’t happen until next March, the deadline for submitting a big idea talk on its famous PanelPicker is almost here—it’s this Friday, July 15, at 11:59pm, CDT (although see the end of this post for more info about the additional deadline for finalizing your proposal).

Naturally everyone wants to be able to set themselves apart from the crowd—last year, SXSWi got over 2500 submissions—and accepted less than 1 in 4, or 600. So with time ticking away, we went straight to the top to find out just what makes a panel popular, both with online voters and with the audiences in Austin. Since 1993, Hugh Forrest has been the event director for SXSW Interactive, managing the event and deciding the process by which panelists will be determined. We caught up with him to get some insider tips on making your panel sound the best it can be, on the importance (or unimportance!) of voting, and why it doesn’t hurt to play to the experts in the crowd.

Why torture your prospective speakers by making them get their submissions in by July 15?
It’s simple: putting together a panel or solo presentation takes a heck of a lot of organization. If a speaker can meet a deadline in July, it shows us that they’re serious and they want to put the effort in. Moreover, if someone can persuade a crowd to vote for them in the middle of August, we see that as a positive indication that they could likely pull off a strong panel.

So what’s the single best way that potential speakers can stand out on the PanelPicker?
The best advice I can give is less is more—try to be as specific as possible. Don’t try to cover all things Facebook in the space of an hour, it’s just too much. Writing up a submission is one thing, delivering it is another. Live, broad topics often come across as rushed and confused. Try to whittle your concept down to a small, tight idea and then submit that.

How else can someone get noticed?
Be the expert. Don’t be afraid of developing an advanced-level topic. We always get a lot more intermediate-level submissions–everyone chooses the middle of the road.

What types of panels are you most eager to see?
More solo panels. They deliver a lot more depth and our audience prefers them. Group panels can get sidetracked and go off course, depending on the strength of the moderator.

Can SXSW be a good conference for a first-time speaker?
Definitely. While polished talks by pros are definitely important, freshness is too. We really do try to achieve a balance between experienced presenters and new voices.

What trumps: instructional panels, educational panels, or panels that are for pure entertainment value?
Tough question. I’d have to weigh instructional panels slightly higher than the others, especially because not everyone agrees on what makes good entertainment. Read More →

Is Personal Branding Turning Journalists into “Cheez Doodles”?

The Hired Guns on June 28, 2011

It all started with an innocent question from Leslie, a college student just trying to get her thesis done. She emailed the Washington Post humor columnist Gene Weingarten to ask him how he had built his “personal brand over the years.” Not one to mess around, Weingarten used this letter as a reason to write about getting fed up “personal branding” and similar marketing terms.

The best way to build a brand is to take a three-foot length of malleable iron and get one end red-hot. Then, apply it vigorously to the buttocks of the instructor who gave you this question. You want a nice, meaty sizzle.

It gets a little more graphic after that. Several writers were on hand to leap to the defense of personal branding. Paul Carr of Techcruch, for instance, pointed out that Weingarten seemed happy enough to use his own photo (branding!) in a column prompted by someone else’s proposal (user-generated content!). Read More →

For Designers, Credibility Comes from Small Wins

Jeff Gothelf on June 1, 2011

Credibility is capital, and it’s crucial to your success as a designer. You earn it, save it, and spend it in order to make your work come to life. Credibility is also a way for your true talents to get exposure to the outside world through the products you design that actually launch.

As a designer, you get hired on the basis of your beautiful portfolio and strong resume. But that’s as far as those historical recaps can take you. From day one on the new job you need to start building credibility through small wins. It’s those small wins that immediately begin to earn you credibility. But there are subtle differences on how to best get those small wins, depending on if you’re a freelancer or a full-time employee.

Freelancers are expected to start performing immediately, from their first minute on the job. You’re there to fill a temporary gap, and there are likely projects that need your attention immediately. Small wins for a freelancer include asking the right questions. What are you there to do? What are the immediate fires to be put out? Who are the stakeholders? Whom will you be working with? Showing expertise at diagnosing the problem right away is a terrific small win. Next, ask questions about the timelines. Engaging clients with a quick discussion about the schedule shows that you’re conscious of their situation and want to help them meet their goals. Finally, earn credibility by getting to work. Waste as little time as possible before you get started. If you can start delivering work on your first day, you’ve shown your client that you’re serious, you’re there to help and can get the job done (win, win and win!). All of this adds up to a big chunk of credibility that will help you secure another gig with that company. It will also help spread good word of mouth about you to other clients. Read More →

“Remember what I told you….” Six Career Tips from Mom

Allison Hemming on May 6, 2011

Regardless of how our careers are going, most of us can rely on our moms to be in our corner, whether we’re complaining about a bad boss or trying to do some frustrating, herculean feat. Moms want to hear about all our accomplishments, and they pick us up when we feel like we’re failing.

When I was a teenager about to head out to a party, she’d say, “Remember what I told you . . . ” just before the door closed. Back then I called it “pre-guilting.” But today I can hear her advice still ringing in my ears. Here are a few tidbits I know she’d share with you if you were sitting around her kitchen table. You should also know that this coming Mother’s Day will be my first without my mother.

1. Collect people, not things. My mom was a great collector. She had great taste in design and a heck of an eye for finding a bargain at estate sales and discount stores like Marshalls. But she would be the first to give you her special “find” if you admired it. For mom, it was the people who mattered, not the things. She enjoyed the element of surprise around antiquing, but she did it mostly because of the people she got to go on those adventures with. Read More →

The Haiku Resume: Boiling Down Your Career into One Line

Daryl Lang on May 2, 2011

Think First Then Type, a column by the copywriter par excellence Daryl Lang, comes with tips and techniques to help you use language more effectively at work. After all, even the best and brightest ideas won’t catch on if you can’t get them understood.

You’ve spent hours perfecting your resume. It glows with relevant skills and accomplishments, it’s optimized for keyword-crawling job sites, and it’s been PDF’d in perfectly kerned Helvetica.

Great work. But when somebody visits your website, your resume isn’t the “front door.” Your visitors want to see a few words that describe what you do. And if the first words that greet them are a boring biography (“an award-winning whatever with X years of experience”), you’re missing an opportunity.

You are a brand in the marketplace, and the best brands say what they do in a few concise words. You can identify many companies by their taglines alone. “The ultimate driving machine.” “Good to the last drop.” “What’s in your wallet?” You need a compelling tagline too. Read More →

“Write Drunk, Edit Sober”: Kick-start Your Elevator Pitch

Larry Smith on March 16, 2011

The storytelling community I started, SMITH Magazine, is best known for the Six-Word Memoir project, but my core philosophy of telling your story comes down to even fewer words than that: Write drunk, edit sober.

Not that you should actually be drunk (the inebriated writer is a silly, antiquated idea, among other things). Rather, you should just let the words fall out of you, however messily and spastically, whether you’re writing a memoir, a letter, a flirty email, a toast, reports for work, or your Elevator Pitch.

In my class at the Hired Guns Academy, “What’s Your Story: Master the Art of the Elevator Pitch and Harness the Power of Short-Storytelling“, we’ll spend part of our time together “writing drunk.” Read More →

THG @SXSW: Getting Internet Buzz Without Spending a Fortune

Larry Smith on March 9, 2011

A number of Hired Guns are presenting at SXSW Interactive this year. This series profiles a few of the proud and the brave. Please tweet and like this story so as a community we can build a little buzz for them.

How to Create an Internet Phenomenon for Peanuts
Tuesday, March 15, 12:30
Presenter: Larry Smith

Your Twesume
(your resume in 140 characters or less).
“Everyone has a story. I help you tell yours.”

What inspired you to submit your idea?
As I’ve told and retold the origins and subsequent amazing journey of the Six-Word Memoir project, I’ve thought a lot about the reasons it caught on. Whether the audience is members of a youth writing center in Bushwick or 800 big brains at PopTech, there are some clear lessons about why Six Words works so well, and how and why it spread across the world in an organic, authentic way.

Why are you the expert on it?
I created the phenom and have nurtured its growth carefully and obsessively for five years.

Why did you want to speak at SXSW?
These are my people! I’ve learned so much in the years I’ve gone to SXSW, and I’m thrilled to offer any knowledge I can back. Above all, it will just be fun.

Who should come to your talk?
Anyone who loves stories on how things start and grow; anyone who is interested in starting or growing his or her own project; anyone who loves the Six-Word Memoir project and other projects that have gone from nothing to wildly popular without tons of money….

What will people walk away learning from you?
How I did it and how they can, too. If you stick to it and truly, truly love it, it’s quite possible to turn a passion into something that goes viral and even makes a profit.

What do you hope you learn from your SXSW experience?
Same as always: meet new people; fill my head with new ideas; stay up late and get up early; have a blast in Austin.

Round Peg In A Cube Farm: Will Your Next Company Be As Innovative As You?

Jeff Gothelf on March 4, 2011

Jeff Gothelf, a user experience designer working for TheLadders.com, blogs for us about project management and UX careers and trends.

Recently I wrote an article for Smashing Magazine about how to manage a personal brand within a corporate environment. At the end of that article I mentioned that if personal brand building is one of your goals and your employer doesn’t support it, you should consider another employer–or even consider going out on your own. Read More →

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