Category Archives: Enhance Your Career

It’s been said that your house or 401K is the biggest investment you’ll make in your lifetime. That’s not true. Your career, by far, offers the potential for greater rewards monetarily, as well as in personal fulfillment.

Here are 5 steps to enhancing your career success. Think strategically.

It’s essential that you assess your organization’s resources, goals and plans for the future and align your leadership strategies accordingly. A leader with true executive presence can assess his or her company’s business model and growth strategy, as well as the capabilities of its people and processes, and use this information to out-think the competition. Communicate from a financial framework.

The higher you advance, the more bottom-line, financial responsibilities you’ll assume. It’s imperative you know how to communicate accomplishments in terms of specific, measurable results. This will clearly demonstrate your value and enhance your credibility. Effective financial communication will help you … Continue reading 5 Steps to Enhancing Your Career →

How important is networking to finding a new job? According to the U.S. Department of Labor, only five percent of people find jobs through the open market, usually through help wanted ads, internet job boards and so on. Another 24 percent find jobs by contacting companies directly while 23 percent are successful thanks to employment agencies, headhunters and college career-services offices. The remaining 48 percent — almost one of every two job-seekers — find employment through referrals from others.

That’s why networking should be your number one job-search strategy. This article about career planning provides you with key networking tips you can utilize while you are currently working.

But, even if you have a job that you love, I encourage you to develop your personal networks and networking skills. In today’s troubling economy, no one’s job is totally secure. If you should suddenly find yourself unemployed, having a … Continue reading The Time to Start Networking is When You Already Have a Job →

Do you truly love your job? Is it as fulfilling as it could be?

If you were able to say a resounding YES in response to both questions, congratulations! You have achieved true career success.

If your answer to one or both questions wasn’t all that positive, I hope you realize that job fulfillment is possible. In fact, it might be closer than you realize.

These seven tips offer a good place to start in factoring into your career success. Used separately, each can give your career a boost, but if you want to really accelerate your forward momentum, address all seven tips.

Come up with a system that allows you to focus on a different tip each week for seven weeks (or each month for seven months if that’s what your schedule allows). At the end of that period, you should see some amazing improvements in your perspective, … Continue reading 7 Factors for Career Success →

As leaders, we can learn a lot from the goose. Geese are intriguing creatures and while considered pests in certain situations, they also have an incredibly strong sense of family and group loyalty. Probably one of the most phenomenal geese facts is that their desire to return to their birth place every year is so strong that they will often fly up to 3,000 miles to get there.

Leadership Lessons Learned From Geese

As you consider these fascinating facts, think about how you could apply these lessons to incorporate a bit of goose behavior into developing leadership skills to create your own style.

Fact 1:

As each goose flaps its wings, it creates an uplift for the birds that follow. By flying in V formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone.

Geese Leadership Lesson:

People who share a common direction and … Continue reading Leadership Lessons from Geese →

There are many pathways to success, happiness, and fulfillment, and the right path may be different for each person. There are, however, ways to reach your goals faster that will boost your chances of getting where we most want to go.

4 Suggestions on How to Achieve Your Goals Faster

Here are four suggestions that can make your journey less rocky and help you deal with any obstacles you encounter. Read on, and you’ll learn about using preparation, fear, intuition, and acceptance as tools to reach your goals faster.

Tempered action with right preparation.

Do your homework and be prepared. It won’t ensure smooth sailing in every circumstance, but you will face fewer challenges when you move forward from a place of preparation. And, when you take the necessary time to prepare before taking action, you will more often make the right decisions so that you can overcome the obstacles … Continue reading Learn How to Achieve Your Goals Faster →

Recently I had the honor to speak with and interview a living legend in the coaching profession.

His name is Marshall Goldsmith, one of the most successful executive coaches in the country. In fact, the American Management Association recently named Dr. Goldsmith as one of the 50 great thinkers and leaders who have influenced the field of management over the past 80 years.

An author of 23 books on leadership, coaching and executive development, Marshall has worked with more than 80 major CEOs and their management teams.

Joel Garfinkle Interviews Executive Coach Marshall Goldsmith

Joel Garfinkle: How do you develop yourself and continue to grow?

Marshall Goldsmith: I do three things — teaching, coaching and writing. Teaching is what I enjoy the most. However, coaching is where I learn the most. My whole job of coaching is learning. I work with incredibly brilliant people who are trying hard to … Continue reading Interview with Executive Coach Marshall Goldsmith →

Sometimes you kind-of know or understand a principle. Sometimes you’re stumped. Smart executives turn to articles on leadership skills to answer questions and resolve problems.

Take a tour of the Garfinkle Executive Coaching site and check out all the free articles. They will boost your productivity and increase your leadership skills.

Start with Top Must-Read Articles on Leadership Skills.

These cover all facets of leadership. Whether you are looking to move up, support those below you, or make yourself more valuable to your company you’ll find answers here. For example:

6 Strategies to Building a Stronger Team

focuses on building relationships. Learn six strategies that build strong teams and develop intrapersonal relationships between employees. These tactics work for relationships with your customers as well as your team members. Read this building strong team article. Bring Your Work and Life Into Balance

helps you cope with the relentless pressures … Continue reading Articles on Leadership Skills →