Cool Things My Friends Do - Tim Tyrell-Smith's Job Search Software

Each Friday on this blog I enjoy highlighting some of the cool things my friends do in their work and personal lives. 

My friend Tim Tyrell-Smith just launched something that he’s been working on for about five years.  Well, that’s a long time, so I figure Tim deserves a spot here in this week’s “cool things my friends do” post.

Tim’s a 25-year marketing guy who quit a full time VP Marketing job to become an entrepreneur. And to dedicate a larger portion of his life to helping people do great things. 

Tim and I met at San Diego State University back in the late 80’s .  We were in "rival" fraternities... but really everyone was friendly. Tim is a Sigma Chi and I am a Beta -- not that any of that stuff matters 20 years later!  ;-).  I had lost touch with Tim for many years, but we reconnected via social media and have become great friends again.

Over the last five years, Tim’s been working hard to create helpful content for a community of professionals going through job search transition. It’s been a passion project for him to reach this community with structured and strategic guidance. And to watch their positive progress toward a new job.

During these five years, a complete strategy was born. From each blog post, template, speech and video he created, the puzzle pieces came together. And about two years ago, he decided to formalize the strategy and make it available as an online software program.

So that’s what Tim just launched – his job search strategy software.

The software offers a structured, step-by-step process to establish a job search strategy. As one user said, “It’s like tax software for your job search”. A complex and often misunderstood process is broken down into smaller, “easier to chew” pieces. And there is significant help (including video) at every step.  Specifically, the software delivers the following:

• Identification of clear and specific job search objectives (plus help with target companies)
• A personal branding strategy and profile
• A complete set of personal marketing materials (resume, cover letter, bio, business card, elevator pitch, references)
• A customized networking strategy including targeted introductions
• A purposeful strategy for interview preparation

And since I told Tim I might write about his new software, he said: “Make sure they know about the early bird special we’re running through December 31.  It offers a big reduction in the sign up fee for anyone who will offer feedback during the beta period.” If you are interested or have any questions, you can contact Tim via his blog. Tell him Thom Singer sent you!

And so there you have it. If you are out of work and need new structure and a strategy for your job search, you should visit timsstrategy.com to learn more.  You can also find him on Twitter (@TimsStrategy) and on Facebook (TimsStrategy).

WATCH Tim's Video Here!  (http://youtu.be/uyp_j_vRfG0)

Have A Great Day

thom singer

Cool Things My Friends Do - Marc Miller Gives Career Advice To Baby Boomers

Each Friday on this blog I enjoy highlighting some of the cool things my friends do in their work and personal lives.   

Marc Miller is a baby boomer who is not waiting silently for retirement.  Marc is blazing a path forward and helping others deal with the changes in the world of work.

His career journey included 22 years at IBM, several thriving tech startups, a painful stint as a high school teacher, a gig raising funds for the Jewish Community Association of Austin and a near fatal bicycle accident that changed his perspective forever.

On a July morning in 2002, he was riding his bicycle and hit a car head on where the combined speeds exceeded 50 mph. After five days in a trauma center he was up on crutches, within ten weeks was back on a bicycle, and four months later was traveling internationally on business after surviving an accident that has a 10% survival rate. That gave him a new perspective on life.

Today Marc Miller is the founder of CareerPivot.  He consults with Baby Boomers who are unsure of what they desire from their careers, and helps them find their passion.  Many feel trapped in their jobs and are unsure and overwhelmed by the thought of change.  

I have been very impressed with the precision and planning that Marc has put into launching his company.  He deeply cared about doing it right, and cares even more about his clients.  He has become a leading authority on the subject of Baby Boomers and their future in the workforce.  

Have A Great Day.

thom singer

LinkedIn and The New Hire

My friend Leslie recently started a great job as Marketing Director at a cool Silicon Valley start-up.  On her first day the CEO sent out the typical email to the entire company announcing her arrival and welcoming her to the team.

Then it began.  Within minutes she started getting LinkedIn requests from the other employees.  Some came by or emailed first, but others just tossed the link requests over the wall.

I have mixed feelings about this.  I have written in detail about my belief that LinkedIn is not a way to connect to anyone with a pulse, and profess the "Coffee, Meal, or Beer Rule" (which basically means I want to know you before we connect on LinkedIn or Facebook).

In this case she works for a small company.  Since it is an intimate group and she will be working closely with everyone, the relationships are guaranteed to follow.  However, if she was working for a big company the amount of LinkedIn requests could have little meaning.  I used to work for Wells Fargo Bank and I still get requests from random bank employees from around the country who say "I see you once worked for Wells Fargo, I think we should connect".  Huh?....  that is just not enough of a reason.  They might as well say, "I see that you breath air, I think we should connect".

Leslie's company has ten sales people and several of them immediately combed her LinkedIn connections to see if she had contacts at any of their prospective client companies.  This was smart.  She has worked inside many technology companies as a marketing employee or consultant and has developed a wonderful reputation throughout the tech community.   Using LinkedIn to discover who are the first degree contacts of the "new hire" is a great idea.  It is a win for the company and a chance for the new person to add value right from the start.

This is another reason to be judicious in your linking policy.  If your new employer comes to you on week one and says "WOW, I see you are connected to Ryan Terrell, can you make an introduction", and your answer is "WHO?", it does add value!

I do believe that Linking with co-workers (with whom you know) is an important way to utilize LinkedIn.  It not only helps those inside the company find contacts that can lead to new sales opportunities, but someday when you move on you want to make sure that those who worked closely with you know how to find you!

What do you think?

Have A Great Day.

thom singer