Alexandra Levit's Water Cooler Wisdom

Be a Cross Functional Whiz

In every company I’ve ever worked for, interdepartmental communication has been a problem.  Groups are viewed as silos instead of a part of a single well-integrated organization.  Therefore, it stands to reason that the person who interacts seamlessly across departments would be a valued team member – a team member whom your group relies on to get things done and is least likely to be sacrificed in a layoff.  How can you be that person?  Here are some ideas:

E-mail your contacts from orientation:  During the day or two you spent with HR at the beginning of your tenure, was there anyone who seemed interesting and went on to work in a different discipline?  Invite her to lunch and find out more about her personally and professionally.  Work to strengthen the relationship over time so that you have a friend to call on when your group needs something from that department.

Study the other departments: In order to be a cross-functional whiz, it helps to have a solid understanding of what the other groups in your organization do.  Pretend you are interviewing for a position in each department and study the relevant online and offline materials.  For example, if you want to establish a better relationship with R&D, learn about the product pipeline and attend a voluntary meeting of the innovation committee.

Walk around the building once a week:  Slot a half hour to grab your coffee and meander around the floors of your office.  While you shouldn’t stop and chit chat for too long, it’s a good idea to say an in-person hello to people in other departments so that they can put a name with a face the next time you contact them. 

Engender cooperation: Always keep in mind that colleagues (especially those not in your group) don’t care what you want — they want to know what’s in it for them. By approaching negotiations with an attitude that allows both parties to win (i.e. do a good job and stay out of trouble), you’ll be more effective at eliciting cooperation and ultimately getting what your group needs.

Be the mediator: If a dispute between two colleagues is causing a breakdown in communication and/or effectiveness between departments, set up a formal meeting to discuss the issues. Once you are all together, tell the arguers that you wish to clear the air by talking to them one at a time about the situation and then allowing the other to respond to what was just said.  Remain impartial and encourage the arguers to come to a mutually-satisfactory resolution.

Did you like this post?  Check out the other content I'm writing for Intuit's QuickBase blog. 

Happy Job, Happy Marriage

There are lots of reasons why loving your job makes you a happier person. But did you know that job satisfaction also makes your marriage happier?  Based on Terri Orbuch’s research into marital satisfaction, which she has outlined in a new book, 5 Simple Steps to Take Your Marriage from Good to Great, here are some ways to put this finding into practice:

Seek support and help from your spouse: If you're having a problem at work, solicit advice from your spouse. Research shows that the need for assistance is one of the three basic needs of all people in relationships (intimacy and reassurance of one's value are the other two). Seeking solutions to work-related problems together strengthens the marital bond and feeling that "we're in this together." Moreover, because your spouse knows you so well, he or she is likely to come up with valuable insights and feedback.

"Grow" in your job. The number-one factor that keeps employees happy and motivated in their job is "making progress"--the sense that they are provided with enough resources and time to excel at their job. Workers who are fulfilled and stimulated during the workday tend to be happier individuals, and much of that happiness gets transferred to their spouse at the end of the day.

Practice behaviors that relieve stress: Numerous studies have documented a link between workplace stress and poor health. The two most common workplace stressors are feeling as if you haven't been heard or supported, and negative interpersonal work relationships. Find ways to express your needs, ask for assistance, and manage conflict at your job. Good health is sexy and attractive to a spouse, and so is an upbeat attitude.

Share your work life: Orbuch’s study found that the happiest marriages were ones where partners felt their spouse regularly disclosed information about his or her life, and did not keep secrets - even details from work that might be deemed boring.

Insights from SXSW

I had a great time at SXSW. It was my first sojourn to this Austin-based interactive conference, and you guys were right, it was a larger than life experience. The best part was not the keynotes or the sessions (although we couldn't have been happier than the ROWE at SXSW panel had a full house and a line out the door), but the chance to meet people in person who I have known for years online. Thanks to everyone who took the time to chat with me for a few minutes at the various social events. Here are the few people I was able to get on video. Enjoy!

Chris Brogan and Tim Hayden

Ramit Sethi

Chris Guillebeau and Jonathan Fields

Gretchen Rubin and Laura Mays

Monica O'Brien and Sarah Davidson

Peter Shankman

Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson

Hugh MacLeod and Jason Korman

New Episode: 30/20 Vision

Join me and my wonderful co-hosts, Christine Hassler (author of The 20-Something Manifesto) and Lindsey Pollak (author of Getting from College to Career), for our next 30/20 Vision podcast tomorrow (March 22) at 5:00pm EST.

Our topic this month is how to get in the "spring cleaning" mindset and improve your personal productivity!

Click here to join us live or download the episode anytime.

How to Have a Short Meeting

Says the always insightful Scott Berkun: “No one likes meetings and for good reason. In most meetings, most of the time, most people think most of what goes on is a waste of time.  So what if you took out all of the stupid, wasteful stuff and left only the useful parts?”

Nicole Steinbok presented the concept of the 22 minute meeting at Microsoft a few months ago, and it’s brilliant.  In fact, I’ve seen it used in my partnership with Microsoft, and as a result, I know that when I meet with my clients there, I know that my time will be used wisely.  Here are the specifics according to Scott:

Schedule a 22 minute meeting:  Who decided meetings should be 30 or 60 minutes? What data is this based on? None. 30 and 60 minute meetings leave no time to get between meetings, and assumes, on average, people need an hour to sort things out.

Have a goal based agenda: Having an agenda at all would be a plus in most meetings. Writing it on the whiteboard, earns double pluses, since then everyone has a constant reminder of what the meeting is supposed to achieve.

Send required readings 3 days beforehand: The burden is on the organizer to make this small enough that people actually do it. Never ever allow a meeting to be “lets all read the documents together and penalize anyone diligent enough to do their homework”.

Start on time: How often does this happen? Almost never. Part of the problem is Outlook and all schedule programs don’t have space between meetings. By 2pm there is a day’s worth of meeting time debt. 22 minutes ensures plenty of travel/buffer time between meetings.

No laptops, but presenters and note takes: If you’re promised 22 minutes, and it’s all good stuff, you don’t need a secondary thing to be doing while you pretend to be listening. One person taking notes, and one person presenting if necessary.

No phones, no exceptions: see above.

Focus! Note off topic comments:  If you have an agenda, someone has to police it and this burden is on whoever called the meeting. Tangents are ok, provided they are short. The meeting organizer has to table tangents and arguments that go too far from the agenda.

Send notes ASAP: With 22 minutes, there should be time, post meeting, for the organizer to send out notes and action items before the next meeting begins.

Leadership Lessons from James Cameron

Claims Rebecca Keegan, the author of The Futurist: The Life and Film of James Cameron:

If you sat through the endless list of credits for Avatar, you saw that it took about 3,000 people to make the CGI epic, which has now grossed more than $2.5 billion worldwide, shattering box office records, earning nine Oscar nominations and reinventing cinema for the digital age. The boss of all those people was director James Cameron. Cameron is still roughing it by Hollywood standards. From my seat on the Avatar set, these are the rules he manages by:

Break New Ground: "It's Avatar, dude, nothing works the first time," read a whiteboard in the spare Los Angeles warehouse that served as the sci fi film's motion capture soundstage. Breaking new ground is Cameron's raison d'être — nothing interests this man unless it's hard to do. But innovation has also become a way of bonding his teams, both on Avatar and on his deep sea expeditions.  For Cameron, a sense of exploration isn't just personally enriching, it's a crucial tool for motivating and uniting his teams.

Firing Is Too Merciful: Many Cameron alumni will share a story from their first film with him, a day they were sure they were going to be fired, almost hoped for it. But Cameron rarely fires people. "Firing is too merciful," he says. Instead he tests their endurance for long hours, hard tasks, and harsh criticism. Survivors tend to surprise themselves by turning in the best work of their careers, and signing on for Cameron's next project.

Lead from the Front: Cameron is almost comically hands-on. He does things elite directors don't do — hold the camera, man the editing console, sketch the creatures, apply the makeup. The truth is, he would do nearly every job on a movie himself if he could.  Forced to lean on others, Cameron sets the pace. Among his 3000-strong stable of artists and engineers, he's the first to try a new challenge, the last to quit at the end of the day, and the hardest to please.

Good Enough Isn't: Avatar took more than twice as long to make as an average film. Much of that added time was due to the film's Herculean design demands and its reliance on untested technologies, but some of it was thanks to Cameron's perfectionism. Hours were spent on the smallest details, like getting alien sap to drip precisely right.

Hire People People: Aware that he can be a hard man to work for, Cameron wisely surrounds himself with amiable deputies. "I have my bad days, and on my best days I'm no Ron Howard," he admits. Cameron's closest associates, his producer, Jon Landau, and the head of his production company, Rae Sanchini, are management savants. They know when an exhausted crew needs a pep talk, when a wounded artist's ego needs soothing, when an anxious studio executive needs reassurance.

Next-Level Networking

I’m going to the SXSW Interactive Conference in Austin this week, and a lot of high-profile people whom I’ve wanted to meet for a long time will be there.

I’ve talked to some other attendees, and we all have the same goal. But if everyone has the same goal, how can we make the most of the little time we might get with the big shots, and how can we encourage them to remember us?

First, we should be optimistic. We need to assume that we will, in fact, come face to face with our role models, and we need to be prepared. We will have done our homework to determine if said big shot (or said big shot’s company) has been in the news lately, and our opening statement will demonstrate this knowledge. We will have a goal for the brief conversation — a specific question we want to ask, for example. 

Although we will, no doubt, be screwing up the courage to approach the big shot after his or her session, we must recognize that a different type of meeting might happen by chance. We could unexpectedly meet a big shot in the elevator or at a social event. When opportunity strikes, we must move quickly.

When approaching the big shot, we can’t be too informal, as he or she won’t appreciate a hug from a stranger, but we shouldn’t be too stiff, either. We should be conscious of time, and the longer the line behind us is, the faster we should get out of there.

Finally, we should let no more than three days pass before sending a thank-you e-mail and following up. If we’re lucky, this could be the start of a fruitful new relationship.

How to Neutralize an Angry Customer

What do you do if you’re sitting at your desk, minding your own business, and an irate customer disturbs your peaceful day?  People who work at call centers for a living are experts at neutralizing angry people, and they suggest acknowledging the customer’s frustration and listening without interrupting.  If you get defensive or sound annoyed, you'll fuel her fire, but if you let her vent for a few minutes and don’t allow her to engage you, she’ll eventually cool off.  Even if your ears are burning, try not to revert to these common but ineffective responses:

“Calm down” – this is bound to elicit the response “Don’t tell me to calm down!”

“That’s not my fault” – whether true or not, the angry customer will not appreciate hearing you deny responsibility.  He is looking for your help.

“You’re way out of line” – needless to say, this will just make the situation uglier.

“If you just hold on, I’ll transfer you to-” – this lack of urgency and personal ownership will just irritate her more. She wants YOU to come up with an action plan NOW.

The point is worth repeating.  Remain calm.  People don’t want to argue with themselves. Empathize with her problem and try not to take accusations personally, even if they are directed specifically at you.  Show that you’re eager to do whatever it takes to remedy the situation, and then follow through.  You’ll derive some satisfaction from the fact that you turned an unhappy customer’s day around, and plus you won’t have to explain to your manager why you got into a screaming match on the phone, or risk losing the client. 

Book Review: The Twitter Job Search Guide

One of the most common questions I get asked during speaking engagements is 'Tell me why I should be on Twitter.'  Well, if you're a job seeker, this book answers that question and many more.  The eminently readable Twitter Job Search Guide: Find a Job and Advance Your Career in Just 15 Minutes a Day will have you excited to leverage Twitter's potential for your own professional gain before you finish the last page.

 

The book was packed with so much valuable information, I almost felt like I was getting several books for the price of one (disclosure: I did get a free review copy so that I could share my thoughts with you).  I thought I knew a lot about Twitter already, but I learned a ton from this book.  Some of my favorite gems?  How to write the most effective Twitter bio, how to write tweets that show up in the search engines, how to stay out of legal hot water, and how to attract recruiter and employers’ attention with strategic tweets.

 

Since I’m writing a book on business myths right now, I particularly liked this section that busts the current myths when it comes to Twitter and the job search:

Myth: There’s one right way to use Twitter for your job search.

Myth-buster: There’s no “one-size fits all” rule for using Twitter for your job search. Use the best approach that fits your needs. (It’s also up to you as to when and how you disclose that you are actively seeking employment.)

Myth: Twitter works for job search only in certain professions: You need to be a public relations guru, tech savvy, or experienced in using social media to land a new job through Twitter.

Myth-buster: Nonsense! Employers and hiring managers across industries and professions—from the National Hockey League to Tasty D’Lite—are finding new ways to integrate Twitter into their communication strategies. From Fortune 500s to mom-and-pop companies, organizations are finding new ways to increase consumer interest and advertise through Twitter. Police departments share public alerts and safety tips through Twitter. Nonprofit organizations and schools use Twitter to disseminate knowledge, share best practices, gather community support, and raise awareness of resources and needs. Politicians, government officials, and NGOs are increasingly using Twitter as a tool for public policy and diplomacy, from Congressmen to the White House to the Consulate General of Israel and Canada’s National Aboriginal Health Organization.

Myth: Twitter can only help you meet people online.

Myth-buster: Your Twitter job search is not limited to online connections. Although several Twitter accounts interact with users through “bots” (automated code that generates responses to users), the majority of Twitter handles are used and maintained by real people. Relationships that begin electronically can translate into powerful connections in person. Many Twitter users regularly broadcast local networking and professional events. You can expand your circle both on- and offline through “tweetups” (community gatherings), charity fund-raisers (Twestivals), and other events you learn about through Twitter.

Reinventing Yourself in a Recession

I recently did an interview with Jessica Stillman at BNET on strategies for reinventing yourself during a recession.  Here are some snippets from the interview:

Statistics show that the average young American will change jobs nine times by the time they’re 32, which is many more times than in the past. Do you think younger workers have a different attitude towards career change compared to older workers?

Yes — on the whole, younger workers are looking to adapt their work to the lifestyle changes they’re making as they mature. They cannot relate to their parents’ one-career lives at all — for them a career is a journey without one particular destination.

That said, the most active career reinventers right now are Baby Boomers. They may have had one career for 30 years, but they are looking for new and different challenges now that traditional retirement age is approaching and they don’t have the desire nor the financial ability to pack up everything and move to the beach.

Career change can be great, but Gen Y is often accused of taking it too far.  How can a job hopper know they’re a job hopper? Or is the whole idea of the job hopper outdated?

In my opinion, someone is a job jumper when they don’t give each job at least one full year, and/or leave before learning everything they can from the position. Although the notion of a job jumper is not as strict as it used to be, I think it still leaves a bad taste in employers’ mouths when they see a string of positions in a shorter period of time.

And to end on an optimistic note, can you share a story from your research that proves career change is possible, even in difficult circumstances?

There are a lot of these in New Job, New You, but one that comes to mind right now is Norene’s story.  Norene, a customer service representative, pursued her dream of becoming a folk musician in the midst of a breast cancer diagnosis and the deaths of both her parents.

She looked back on her customer service career and employed many of the things she’d learned about how a good business operates and grows. She joined a local Chamber of Commerce and went to every networking event she heard about, and in a short period of time, she progressed from the unemployment line to teaching choir at an elementary school, seeing 18 students privately, playing keyboard and singing with a church praise band, and performing her original music regularly in the greater LA area as Tyler Noren.