No one ever said the job market was fair. That’s even more true in the current economy that’s plagued with layoff after layoff. Now, in this race for a new job, some candidates are clearly driving race cars, while others are struggling to make it around the job search track with an underpowered engine or even a flat tire. Why is that? Let me play with this metaphor for a bit, starting with the diagram below. Note: I go into a lot more detail in the podcast recording. So, scroll up, hit...

In this podcast episode, I share a sneak peek at my recent Invincible Career Job Search workshop I hosted on April 1st. In the previous podcast episode, when I shared a preview of the workshop, I talked quite a bit about the Connecting strategy. In this episode, I discuss positioning (e.g., LinkedIn, resume, cover letter) a little more and then dive into the Broadcasting strategy. If you want opportunities to come your way, the professional world has to know you exist. Enjoy! I’m Larry...

In this episode, I share an overview of the presentation materials to give you a sense of the 2-hour workshop I’ll be hosting on April 1st. So, make sure to play the audio since I’m not including 2 hours of text material in this newsletter article. ➡️ “Find a Better Job Using 3 Essential Job Search Strategies” The price for the workshop goes up again next week. So, if you're interested in joining us, grab a ticket now. Or, use the advice I share in this episode for free! ​⏰ This is the last...

This is one of the worst job markets I’ve experienced in quite some time. It seems like new layoffs are being announced every day. In this podcast episode, I talk more about what’s going on, how to tell if a layoff might be coming, what to do about it, and how to get back into the game after one happens. I’ve linked some of my past articles you might find useful if you’re concerned about a layoff or recently went through one. Have you ever considered starting a business to escape the...

The most successful people in your industry and profession may not be better than you. They also may not be more intelligent, talented, or hardworking than you. However, I bet they are great at something most of us usually are not: Promoting themselves. Of course, self-promotion isn’t enough. You do need a baseline of competence in your job. However, I think we’ve all noticed that management will promote someone who is good enough at their job — and great at getting noticed — more often...

This year, I spent hundreds of hours researching and writing newsletter articles — and recording podcast episodes — to share with you. I listed the top 10 below. If you found my advice and articles helpful this year and would like to support my continued writing and podcasting next year, please consider upgrading to a premium membership that also grants you access to: * My private Invincible Career community of ambitious professionals (from entry-level to executives). Note: I now offer a...

Why do some people hear about opportunities before you do? * Are they that much smarter than you? * Are they liked more than you? * Are they better than you? Before you get angry with me, let me say it’s probably none of the above. When this happens, it’s usually because: * More people know who they are. * More people see their work. * People think about them. But why are more people thinking of them more often? Well, the answer lies in a lesson about how memory works. The big “neural...

“Staying employed at the same company for over two years on average is going to make you earn less over your lifetime by about 50% or more.” — Cameron Keng You may be underpaid if you’ve stayed with your current employer for longer than two years. Consider the following chart. On average, people who change jobs see bigger increases in their income. Haven’t you noticed this in your career? When you took a new job, you probably enjoyed a nice bump in title and compensation (you negotiated,...

Let me start by saying I’m using a metaphor here. I haven’t hunted since I was a teenager in the Midwest. I love animals, so please don’t take my talk of “hunting” literally and miss the advice I’m trying to share in this article. Human beings have been acquiring food to survive for millions of years. We’ve used a combination of active/direct and passive/indirect methods to find the animals and plants we eat. * Actively hunting, scavenging, and gathering food in the moment. * Building...

Have you ever worked for a showboat? That’s the kind of leader who wants all the attention. They lead from the top down and expect everyone to get in line behind their vision of the future. They’re not usually open to hearing new ideas from the organization below them. Showboat leaders are incredibly charismatic figures. So, it’s not surprising that they rise to the top. * They have a grand vision. * They speak well. * They are great on stage. But it’s all about them. They tend to use...

My guest for this episode is Tim Yeo (@timyeo on Twitter). Tim coaches introverts to have impact and influence without pretending to be extroverts at The Quiet Achiever. He is currently Design Director @ IBM, helping Enterprise clients transform their businesses with enterprise scale at startup speed. In IBM, Tim focuses on DesignOps for the Customer Transformation design practice in Australia. Previously, Tim was the first UX and Design leader at fintech startups @Finder, @OFX and @Prospa...

My next live fireside chat with Q&A will be on Monday, June 26th. Join us to talk about careers, job searches, job interviews, offer negotiation, professional growth, and more! I want to thank the folks who gave me feedback about how to keep improving this newsletter. I’ve already incorporated some of it and made changes. One excellent piece of feedback from Michelle was to be more inclusive with my career advice and not always talk about tech jobs, for example. Many folks work hourly...

I hosted another live fireside chat via Zoom last month. In this podcast episode, I share some of the questions and answers we discussed. As usual, people sent me questions ahead of time. But in this session, we also covered questions raised during the Zoom. For example: * “What is there to write about (related to my profession)?” * “Do I even want a career anymore? Do I want to do something for myself?” * “I changed careers and industries… how can I best adapt to a new job and collaborate...

I hosted a live fireside chat via Zoom last month, and I’ve already shared the first half of the Q&A. This is part 2. People sent me questions ahead of time; then I shared my answers with the attendees. We had some more detailed discussions later. For example: * “How to adjust to a new controlling boss?” * “How do I persuade my colleagues to take action on one of my initiatives?” * “What questions can I ask in an interview to make sure my manager is one of the good ones?" * “What...

I hosted a live fireside chat via Zoom last month. People sent me questions ahead of time, then I shared my answers with the attendees. We had some more detailed discussions later. For example: * “What can I do to stand out amongst hundreds of other applicants?” * “Should I change my resume?” * “What are some strategies to network more effectively with professionals at my level or higher and what are some ways to maintain those relationships long-term?” I recorded the call and uploaded it...

Invincible Career® is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. He frowned and said, "That's a stupid idea. It will never work."  "How do you know? We haven't even tested it yet!"  He leaned back in his chair with a slightly smug look on his face. "I've been working on this product for five years. We've tested hundreds of concepts, and we tested something like this a couple of years ago. It failed." She was...

Invincible Career® is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. "It used to be so easy for me to get a new job. I didn't even have to look or try. People came to me! But, now? Now I'm struggling to get to the final round and I haven't received any offers in over a year? Something has changed…" — My new client My coaching client was pretty unhappy about this twist of fate. That wonderful well of endless jobs had...

This year, I spent hundreds of hours researching and writing newsletter articles — and recording podcast episodes — to share with you. I listed the top 10 below, and I’ve also categorized most of the other articles and episodes for easier browsing. If you found my advice and articles helpful this year and would like to support my continued writing and podcasting next year, please consider upgrading to a premium membership that also grants you access to: * My private Invincible Career...

Do you have a colleague or friend who might be interested in the advice I publish in this newsletter? Feel free to share it with them! Did you know the average American hasn’t made a new friend in five years? As we grow older, we make fewer friends than we did as children and young adults during school, college, etc. It’s probably not surprising that many of our friends come from our work experiences. I used to work at eBay many years ago, and I recently attended an alumni event in the...

A storm is coming… * The economy is not in great shape, and we are probably entering a recession. * Companies have been instituting hiring freezes since the summer.   * Startups and larger corporations have been laying off thousands of people this year.  The last few years have been an employee’s market. Hiring was booming, especially after the recovery from the quarantine months of the pandemic. It seemed like companies couldn’t recruit fast enough to replace the millions of workers...

Do this today Take a moment and assess the balance of how much you are giving to your job vs. how much it is giving back to you in return. Is it equitable? Are you receiving more than you are giving? Or is your job taking more than it is investing back in you? I can’t stand it when bad things happen to good people. I’m sure you’ve experienced some pretty bad things in your professional life. You might be going through this right now in your job. If so, read on to learn more about how you...

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“You know, I could fire you.” I stood up, put my hands on the conference table, and leaned closer to my seated boss.  "Oh, really? You're gonna fire me after all I've done for this company? The sacrifices I've made?" He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "I'm not going to fire you. I'm just upset that you're quitting." I guess my resignation came as a surprise, but I'd done nothing wrong. I had used a couple of vacation days to take time off from work and used that time to interview...

Strike 1! “Facebook turned me down. It was a great opportunity to connect with some fantastic people. Looking forward to life's next adventure.” — Brian Acton Strike 2! “Got denied by Twitter HQ. That's ok. Would have been a long commute.” — Brian Acton Most people would experience back-to-back job interview rejections like that and feel pretty discouraged. Who knows? Maybe Brian felt pretty down on those days. However, those rejections were an incredible gift. Brian left his...