The Invisible Mentor

Posts Tagged ‘Subject Matter Expert’

In a very crowded space how do find a job? How do you stand apart from the other job search candidates? How do you know what tips to follow when there are so many experts out there giving advice? Like anything in life, it’s important to weigh the contradictory information. What makes the most sense to you?

Don’t be afraid to try something new because it’s radically different from what you’ve heard or seen before.

Phil Rosenberg a job search consultant shared a few tips on his webinar, Resume Revolution, which made me think carefully about the new “Job Search” era that we find ourselves in. The old ways of doing things simply no longer work.

The cover letter is no longer QUEEN; her reign has come to an end – if your information is not on your resume that means it simply does not exist. It’s also time to bury the Highlights, Objectives, or Summary statements because they occupy Prime Resume Real Estate, and it is about What’s In It For Me.

The new kid in town is What’s In It For Them.

Here are some tips that Rosenberg shared:

1. When you send your electronic resume, send it in a .doc format and not .docx, .pdf or dot, except if you are a designer and want to showcase your talent use .pdf.
2. Employers get flooded with resumes for each available job so they use Applicant Tracking Systems which search for keywords. All the information that candidates once put in their cover letter to demonstrate why they are qualified for the position now goes into the resume. Make sure the main keywords the employer is looking for is on your resume.
3. Heavily customize your resume for each position you apply for to prevent the Applicant Tracking System from screening you out.
4. The average time spent on a resume to decide whether or not to grant an interview is 15 seconds, so you have only 15 seconds to make a great first impression.
5. Demonstrate value don’t list your previous responsibilities. How did you save your previous employers money? How did you increase revenue and by much? What systems did you introduce to increase efficiency and by how much? Always think What’s In It for Them. If you received a prestigious award, why did you receive it, was it because you solved a critical workplace problem?
6. In fiction writing they always advise the writer to show and not tell, so describe why you are the correct fit for the organization.
7. Do not waste your time applying for jobs on job boards because that’s not how the majority of jobs are found. Instead use them for research to determine which industries and organizations are hiring. Use your research findings to build your target list and gather insider information. Find out more about these organizations from your contacts on LinkedIn and Twitter.
8. Brand yourself as a Subject Matter Expert, the days of the generalists are over.
9. Use social tools and networks like Google, LinkedIn and Twitter to make yourself findable.
10. Use your resume to demonstrate that you are the perfect person to fix the organization’s problem. Organizations hire because they have problems.

Phil Rosenberg offers programs to assist his clients to navigate the new job search maze, but I am sure if you use these tips from his webinar, you are much further ahead than other job seekers.

How can you use this information? What do you have to add to the conversation? Let’s keep the conversation flowing, please let me know your thoughts in the comments section below. Many readers read this blog from other sites, so why don’t you pop over to The Invisible Mentor and subscribe (top on the right hand side) by email or RSS Feed.

How creative are your ideas? How many creative ideas do you get? And what process do you use to generate creative ideas. The ability to think creatively, or generate creative ideas might just be the skill that gives you a competitive edge. Below is a model which is a combination of Graham Wallas’ and James Webb Young’s creativity models (Based on my life experiences, I have added information to the models). What can you add to the model to make it better? If your project is just for fun you do not have to follow all the steps, especially the ones in data collection (for example interviewing subject matter experts and conducting focus group interviews). Some of these steps are more appropriate for a work project.

Step 1: Preparation (Gathering Information)

1. Describe your topic of  interest
2. Develop a set of decision criteria to judge the quality of the ideas

There are two types of information to gather:

Specific

1. Gather as much information as possible on the topic of interest
   1. Look for  case studies in your industry and unrelated industries
   2. Conduct research on the internet
   3. Conduct research using commercial databases, you can access many through your public library portal
   4. Interview subject matter experts
   5. Brainstorm with colleagues
   6. Conduct focus group interviews
2. Read all the information gathered and synthesize them
3. Write down the information on 3×5 index cards, one item per card
4. Classify the information by sections of the topic of interest

Read the post How to Analyze Information to evaluate the quality of the data you gathered.

General

1. This is an ongoing process throughout your life
2. Record any interesting information you come across in a scrapbook or other filing method that makes sense for you
3. Use your cell phone if you have one, or a camera to capture any interesting scenes that you see, both photos and videos and create a file on your computer in which to save them
4. Attend speeches, workshops, seminars and so on that are unrelated to your work just because they interest you and take notes
5. Visit the websites How Stuff Works and Ted.com often and read for a while
6. Every so often, pull up the information and review them

Step 2: Working Over the Information in Your Mind

1. Look at the information you gathered from many different angles
2. Synthesize the information
3. Merge two facts and see how they fit together
4. Connect the information with what you already know, nothing exists in a vacuum
5. As tentative or partial ideas come to you, no matter how crazy or incomplete, document them on the index card, one idea per card
6. Do not stop until you have at least one partial or incomplete idea
7. When everything is a jumble or it is pointless for you to do additional work, it is time for the next step

Step 3: Incubation

1. Turn over the problem to your subconscious mind
2. Take a break or work on an unrelated task or do something which stimulates the imagination and emotions

Step 4: Illumination – Eureka! I have It

1. When you least expect it, the idea comes to you (You have an aha moment)

Step 5: Verification/Implementation/Shaping & Developing the Idea

1. The idea will unlikely be ready to be implemented as is
2. Subject it to criticism – test it, then refine it
   1. Use the criteria you developed in Stage I to judge the quality of the solution
   2. Refine the idea if you have to
   3. Implement the idea
   4. Evaluate the idea
   5. If you find that the solution doesn’t work, go through the process again

Along Yonge Street in front of the Eaton Centre in Toronto, Canada there are always people who are very creative in earning money, what are your thoughts? What have been some of your most creative ideas to generate some extra cash? Did any of these translate into a viable business?

Man Playing Drums in Front of The Eaton Centre, Toronto from Avil Beckford on Vimeo.

Man and Boy Playing Drums from Avil Beckford on Vimeo.

Please keep the conversation flowing, click on the comment link below and leave a note for me. Many readers read this blog from other sites, so why don’t you pop over to The Invisible Mentor and subscribe (top on the left side) by email or RSS Feed.

Photo Credit: Avil Beckford

Are you trying to master a subject? If you answered yes, mastering any subject matter takes a commitment of anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 hours (Read the article Did Malcolm Gladwell Rip Me Off? by Michael Masterson), depending on which statistics you decide to believe. To begin the process of mastering a subject, answer the questions below. While you are reading the books identified at the library, record the information in the Subject Mastery Template. This information is taken from The Invisible Mentor Toolkit.

How to Read to Master a Subject

1. Describe the specific knowledge that you are trying to acquire
2. On a blank sheet of paper do a brain dump for 15 minutes, writing down as much as you know about the topic
3. List the pioneers and subject matter experts in the field. Have they written any books on the subject?
4. Compile a bibliography of books that could potentially help to master the subject?
   1. List books written by pioneers and subject matter experts
   2. Check the bibliography of books written by pioneers and subject matter experts
   3. Ask colleagues for book recommendations
   4. Check the bibliography of scholarly journals and books on the topic
   5. Search the catalogues, or ask a librarian at a good reference library to find titles
5. Spend half a day at the library inspecting[1]the books listed in the compiled bibliography to:
   1. Whittle down the number of titles on the list
   2. Get a cursory understanding of the topic
   3. Determine which  books say anything important about the topic of interest
6. With a cursory understanding of the subject:
   1. Identify the 10 core concepts/ideas that form the basis of the subject
   2. Clarify the information that you are seeking. Distinguish between ‘must know’ and ‘nice to know’
   3. How will you know when you have found the answers?
7. Inspect the books identified as relevant
   1. Find the most relevant passages and record page numbers
   2. By author, record the information that covers each of the 10 core concepts/ideas (Refer to the Subject Mastery Template)
8. Read and analyze all the information gathered
   1. Distill the information germane to the subject
   2. Compare and contrast the information on each of the 10 core concepts/ideas
   3. Interpret the 10 core concepts/ideas
   4. Concentrate on understanding the core concepts/ideas
9. Search online for a site that offer tests on the subject and take the test

[1] Refer to How To Read A Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading to find out how to quickly inspect a book.

Subject Mastery Template

Title of the Book/Author

Why is Author Qualified to Answer?

Key Concept 1

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept 2

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept 3

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept 4

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept 5

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept6

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept7

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept8

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept9

Documentation/Page Found

Key Concept10

Documentation/Page Found

Conclusions by Authors

What are the Weaknesses of the Authors’ Arguments, Evidence and Conclusions?

Special Notes

And whatever you learn, be sure to teach it to others so that you can cement the information into your memory. Let me know what you think about the questions.  I am committed to assist you on your professional development journey. If there are additional ways that I may be of service please let me know.

Click on the comment link below and leave a note for me. Many readers read this blog from other sites, so why don’t you pop over to The Invisible Mentor and subscribe (top on the left side) by email or RSS Feed.

For your research and writing needs, consider my firm Ambeck Enterprise for white papers, articles, fact sheets, anniversary booklets, you name it. Since I am the best kept secret you may not know this, but I have over 15 years research and writing experience. I KNOW content. And if you cannot figure out which books to read for professional development, I am your WOMAN. I can assist you with that too. Visit my sales page for resources such as The Invisible Mentor Toolkit to assist you in acquiring wisdom from a distance. For free white papers click here.

Related Articles

The Precursor to How to Master a Subject
How to Fill the Information Gap
How to Fill the Information Gap Part Two
How to Fill the Information Gap (when you don’t know there is a gap) Part Three

Photo Credit: Google via Apture