Section # 6861 - Monday 7 pm - 9:15 pm - 1.0 units 1/11 - 3/15
Section # 6864 - Monday 7 pm - 9:00 pm - 1.0 units 3/22 - 5/17
Section # 4914 - Tues/Thurs 11am - 12:00 pm - 2.0 units 1/12 - 5/20
Instructor: John Geary (707) 525-8085
Consult the Schedule of Classes for enrollment information. Visit the Santa Rosa Junior
College WEB site at www.santarosa.edu (There are
Guidance 61 classes scheduled on other days and at different hours. All classes are taught
by qualified and experienced counselors. Consult the Schedule of Classes.)
The Career Development courses as well as other courses in the Counseling Department are "windows" to –all- the services available at the Santa Rosa Junior College. The courses offer you the opportunity to obtain heads-up information. Information that an intelligent consumer of educational/training services (a "student") needs, to get ahead of the curve. The Guidance courses are particularly recommended if you are returning to the academic environment after an absence or exploring a college environment for the first time. Consult the Schedule of Classes for more information.
Please do not enroll in this class unless you are ready to take the initiative in planning your career. The purpose of the class sessions is to assist you in completing the projects to identify an occupation, career, educational program and prepare a plan to reach your goal. Consequently, the class sessions are designed to offer you the opportunity of asking questions and discussing issues that you introduce. There is no hand holding. There is nothing more boring than students who do not ask questions!
The college course, Guidance 61, Introduction to Career Development offers students the opportunity to receive professional career counseling at a minimum cost for counseling and guidance to assist in degree preparation, occupational training and employment search. The course is taught by a professionally trained counselors of the Counseling Department. The course is scheduled at a variety of times during the day and evening. There are weekend classes, eight-week classes and semester length classes. The counseling department offers a variety of courses in addition to Career Development.
There are courses in Effective Study, College Survival Techniques, Overcoming Math Anxiety, Job Search & Attention, Theory, Techniques & Practices in Human Development, Understanding the Transfer Process, Identity and Cultural Diversity, and College Preparation Skills. All of these courses are designed to help the motivated student direct their self-esteem and ambition to succeed at the Santa Rosa Junior College.
Jack Geary, MA, CRC taught the Introduction to Career Development Course since 1975.
The Santa Rosa Junior College is ranked 10th among the 107 California Community Colleges for its completion rate and 15th among community colleges in the number of students who transfer to CSU, UC or California private colleges in 1995-96. In 1995-96, 1127 SRJC students earned AA/AS degrees and the college granted 498 vocational certificates of completion and achievement. The latest available figures indicate that 1,130 SRJC students transferred to UC, CSU campuses, and private colleges and universities. Many qualified high school students take SRJC courses under an enrichment program. The outstanding faculty is dedicated to teaching. Supported by superb facilities and support services, the student is offered an excellent opportunity to achieve their goals at the college. A Reentry Program will help adults who are returning to complete their education or transition to a new career. This program is staffed by professional counselors. The Student Services Department offers programs to help the new student assess their skills and enroll in the appropriate class. There are also programs to support the student after enrollment.
Each student in Guidance 61, Introduction to Career Development will receive individual counseling to guide him or her in developing an occupational and/or educational plan.
Each student will receive an assessment of his or her aptitudes. The results will be interpreted by a professional counselor to help them explore occupational alternatives.
Each student will receive an assessment of his or her basic skills in reading and math. Although a student may have good aptitudes their basic skills may be very weak and need remediation. The student will be referred to the College Skills program for individualized and self-paced instruction. The instruction is open ended. The schedule is flexible. There is no fee or required books.
Each student will be assisted in learning how to identify job leads, prepare resumes (electronic and scanable) and application forms, research a position title and employer, practice oral interviews, review videotaped interviews, and generally learn how to network for employment and prepare a job search plan.
Each student has unlimited use of computer terminals for Internet search and use of computerized programs- Eureka, SIGI+, and DISCOVER. Students can access and register with America’s Job Bank, CAL JOBS, and Federal agency job sites. Staff assistance is available.
Each student has unlimited use of the excellent Career Center. The Career Center also offers excellent staff assistance in researching occupations. The center offers computerized programs, Internet resources, videotapes, and books.
Each student is eligible for services from the Student Employment Office. The Work Experience and Internship Program will help the qualified student tie their formal training experience to the world of work.
Each student is encouraged to explore the services of the Financial Aid and the Scholarship office to determine how the services of these offices may help facilitate the acquisition of training at the college. There are a number of programs designed to meet the needs to students. Visit the Financial Aid Office to get more information.
The Career Guidance course will help the student explore the occupational programs available at the college. Many of the courses the student completes towards an occupational certificate are also transferable to the University of California, California State University, and many private colleges and universities. Students can acquire valuable short-term job skills while building a foundation towards future educational achievements.
The Career Guidance course and other classes at the SRJC may count towards the total number of undergraduate units required to qualify for acceptance in accelerated degree programs from accredited colleges, such as, but not limited to: University of San Francisco, Dominican College, St. Mary’s College, and Phoenix College. The Career Center has a complete list of these institutions. The Career Guidance course will help you prepare a detailed autobiography of your life experiences to help you develop your portfolio. You will be assisted in researching the most appropriate programs. You will also receive assistance in determining the specific classes and the units you need qualify for the school of your choice.
Instruction in career planning including personal or occupational assessment, to determine compatible job alternatives. Jobs, market trends, & skills in the procurement of employment. (CR/NC option) (Repeat Code 5. Transfer: CSU (Recommended eligibility for English 100A or equivalent. See Schedule of Classes for Placement Test Schedule.)
Student:" Definition: A Scholar, one who studies. "Scholar:" A learned woman or man. The term "student" used in this course is not a designation of age level. Over the past twenty years I have worked with high school students who demonstrated more maturity and common street intelligence than some "adults." Adults have learned to fake their uncertainty better.
In Guidance 61, Introduction to Career Development you do, act, and decide.
This is not a lecture class. There is the assumption that you must make decisions quickly and get on with your life. There is also the assumption that you will invest the necessary time to complete the work needed to help you make appropriate decisions- so clear your calendar.
There are three categories of "core" projects. (1) Self Assessment Projects, (2) Exploration & Planning Projects, and (3) Job Search Skills Projects. There are additional supplemental projects and Optional Projects. You will receive individual guidance in completing the projects.
The economy continues to change at an exponential rate. "Take a job and you’ll work for a day. Master a profession, craft or trade and you’ll work for life" says OD/Career Consultant, Beverly Kaye. According to Kaye, jobs are notoriously unstable. I would add that during the next decade professions as well as industries and employers will not only experience structural change but rapid exponential transformation. We are at a stage comparable to the transition point from the horse and carriage to the railroad engine and automobile on to airplane; from the telegraph to the telephone on to cellular phone; and from the traveling carnival/vaudeville to the radio/TV.
Just imagine the structural changes these technological developments precipitated in their time? Today there is instant "real time access" computer camcorder, imbedded computer chip under your skin to record your location, and random visual recognition systems that can automatically recognize your face in a crowd of people. Soon you may report to your home camcorder for instructions from Mr. Big.
Consequently, "labor" (that is you- the job seeker, the employee, the independent contractor (you bought your job), the small business owner (you bought your job, too), and the entrepreneur must build a "portfolio" of your skills, talents, abilities, achievements, accomplishments, and experience. Then you must learn how to use your portfolio to assertively market your skills and negotiate your compensation and working conditions - more than ever before. Workers who do not use their portfolio effectively will have no control over their work-life, standard of living, and their earning yield. They will remain "job beggars."
The "core" projects will help you extend your "portfolio." You already have substantial material to add to your portfolio right now. The projects consist of simple but important tasks. Career Exploration is not Rocket Science. With reasonable effort you can do the projects regardless of your academic skill or experience. Each person brings to the projects their unique circumstances. The projects require time management. Optional projects are suggested to address relevant issues.
Review the projects, plan your approach, schedule your time, and execute the projects. Prepare a schedule of all your weekly activities including assignments for other classes. Start the projects immediately because they will take time to complete. The instructor will "walk through" the project so you can plan ahead. The projects are not rocket science. They are intellectually easy. However, the information is important. Important information does not have to be difficult to process or difficult to obtain. ACTION is, however, difficult. Procrastination is the villain in this course. I suggest you use three-ring binder paper so you can file the assignments in your binder along with your notebook. Submit the completed assignments when they are due.
Complete the projects using clear handwriting or type your copy on one side of 8 x 11.5 paper with 1" margins. (The resume and cover letter must typed). Place your name and the project description on each page and staple the pages together, including any attachments. Do not place projects in report covers. Place the projects in the large brown envelope. If the project is a "form" print clearly in ink. If the project is an exercise from the textbook, photocopy the exercise page.
Prior to the first class session or immediately following the first class session but no later than the fourth class session complete the following:
See College Skills in Schedule of Classes.
The project descriptions are located in this Syllabus, Part D - Projects. You may work in teams of two. Except when noted you must submit your own personal work or responses. In some instances you and your team member may submit one work product.
Exploration Industries, Employers, Occupations, Position Titles
Select Optional Projects from the list contained in this syllabus. You may also select projects from Part D that are not designated required projects. You decide what projects you want to work on. You may also suggest other projects. If you want to add an Optional Project of your choice, describe the project in less than 25 words and submit it for approval. The combination of required and optional projects will offer you the opportunity of working on projects that are relevant to your unique situation.
Submit the all projects as soon as they are completed but no later than one week prior to the final class session. Review the projects, schedule your time, and begin working on the projects. The project will be reviewed and returned to you. Schedule an individual meeting, e-mail, or call the instructor for guidance. Projects will not be accepted after the final class session. You need to manage your time so that you are spending a small amount of time each week working on a project because some projects require information from other projects. If you want individualized counseling you must complete or attempt the projects before scheduling the meeting with your counselor.
I may suggest some guidelines on the project length. However, it is not possible to estimate how long you will take to complete the project. Block out a two-hour period for each project. If the project can not be completed within that time contact me so we can discuss it. The purpose of this class is to help you make educational and occupational decisions.
The projects should facilitate this purpose and not present an obstacle to this purpose. So speak to me- call me, e-mail me; schedule an appointment to meet outside of class time. Communicate – do not procrastinate!
The primary purpose of the class sessions is to provide you the opportunity of discussing the project, asking questions, and sharing your work. You may work with other students as a team but you must submit your personal responses to the project. If you are not working on the projects there will nothing to discuss in class. (Very boring.)
The assignments will be graded "acceptable quality," or "needs more work (resubmit)." A letter grade is awarded in this class. The criteria for awarding grades are explained in this Syllabus.
If you miss a class session complete a Make-up Project. Arriving on time is necessary. Missing more than the first half-hour or leaving early will count as a missed session, unless this has been previously discussed.
Copies of the required books are available at the Career Center, and on Reserve for Guidance 61.
(Yes, but this time you will read it thoroughly.) www.tenspeed.com/parachute
Selected vocational interest survey instruments and aptitude assessment.
The activities recommended in this course, if completed, will help you make successful educational and career choices. However, no one can guarantee that you will make best occupational or career choice within the timeframe of this course or any timeframe for that matter. I am confident, however, that heads-up career planning will produce positive results for you. Advance planning will help alert you to the minefields, help you avoid inappropriate choices, and position you to take advantage of unintended consequences of good luck. Good luck happens, too!
Your effort in completing the recommended assignments will be catalytic towards helping you achieve the results you want. Since the assignments are directed toward achieving your goals and not mine, I am quite sure you will attempt the best job within your capability. Life is not so neat and structured.
Most of the time you will need to self-initiate assignments, structure your time and resources, choose your benchmark, and monitor your progress to achieve the goals you set. You must establish an internal reward system. Grades are important but internal motivation & rewards are also important.
External motivation when inappropriate, however, can become a leash. Leashes are also attached to the source of the external reward- the person(s) or ideas that pull the leash. It is unlikely that you want a leash and someone pulling that leash or your chain. For this reason, it is essential that internal motives drive career planning.
My hope is that the assignments will supplement your self-initiated activities and compliment your resourcefulness, your intuition, and your creativity. The probability that you will achieve the qualify-of-life according to you want, will be in direct proportion to the degree of your internal motivation. You will be assigned projects that must be completed on your own.
I welcome individual meetings or conferences. In fact, I encourage individual meetings. If you want to arrange a conference at a mutually agreeable hour during the course, contact me during the week by telephone rather than trying to schedule an appointment during class. Conferences are held at the Career Center on campus.
When a conference is scheduled, bring your notebook, text, and manual with you so we can review your work product in addition to discussing your questions and concerns. To reach me call my number (525-8085, or geary@gearyassociates.com) at any hour, leave your full name, the best time(s) to call you back, and the best time to meet. If you only need information, include your question(s). I may be able answer your question before I get back to you. (Avoid phone tag.)
This syllabus contains basic information about the course- texts, required assignments, and grading. Career planning, however, involves all the courses you will attempt and complete to achieve your goals. Consequently, this syllabus also contains material that is relevant to the point of view or mindset needed to achieve.
Some of the recommended activities and assignments may not appear relevant at the time you work on them. With respect to personal information that will requested to disclose in assignments, at no time will you be required to disclose or volunteer information that exceeds your level of comfort. All the information requested is intended to help you clarify your goals and objectives- it is not needed for any other reason.
You may decline any request to disclose personal information. The information, point of views expressed by the instructor and opinions of the instructor are offered to provoke questions on your part.
The Guidance 61 course is one of the few courses in which you are given the opportunity to put the instructor to work on your behalf. The purpose of this course is to help you take the next step in your career and/or educational planning process, and/or to help you make an occupational choice. At the end of the eight-week or twelve-week course, you will know what you need to do during the ninth or thirteenth week.
Consequently, you need to let me know where you want to go and permit me the opportunity to help you get there wherever "there" is. It is unlikely you will make a final choice or career, educational major, or occupation by the end of this course. You will be able to narrow down the possibilities. You will know how to prepare a plan of action to help you achieve your objectives so that when you do make a decision you will now what to do. The plan could be an educational plan, a short-term training plan, a job change plan, a job promotion plan, or job placement plan.
If you are interested in self-employment, you will need to consult with a self-employment specialist to prepare a credible self-employment plan. The SRJC Small Business Center may be helpful. Participants will complete field (not in the vineyard, but during the week between class sessions) research projects to obtain information, identify occupational/career alternatives and prepare a written educational/training plan and/or job placement plan directed to securing employment in the labor market area of choice.
The plan may include short-term training at a public or private post-secondary institution, a certificate or degree program at a private or public community college, an undergraduate or postgraduate degree program at a private or public institution, or complete an advanced degree program through a non-residential, seminar format program. This course can assist the prospective student of an accelerated degree program by developing the documentation for their portfolio to earn credit for previous experience.
A Career Management Program is designed for adults who need to secure gainful employment and/or select the most appropriate educational or training program. Now not later. The course will help individuals make smart, heads-up, occupational and career decisions.
Career Management is designed for ambitious persons who want to take charge of where they are going. Ambitious individuals do not want to waste time. They are not interested in "psychobabble" and fad psychology.
Career Management is much, much more, than the personality type indicators, vocational or career interest instruments (tests), color psychology, computerized-interactive software, and the Internet. In some respects, Astrology is as good as most personality and interest "tests" with respect to how the results could be utilized.
Career Management will help you choose a major field of study, and occupation, or a Career. Fundamentally, however, unless you have a independent source of wealth to draw on for your rent, Career Management has a lot to do with "money" and financial resources, personal productivity or earning yield, leveraging time and achieving the quality of life you want. Whatever the quality of life or lifestyle you want is will most likely be funded by your job. The money follows the intent to make money (period).
You can sign up for programs that may cost you $ 1000 to $ 3000 if you like- it is your money. Some individuals may think they must enroll in a "university" program. Let me tell you a secret of the trade- the location of the class (SRJC Campus) and other participants in the group will not make any difference- it is what goes on between your ears that is important.
The program will help individuals who are uncertain about their goals or who need to clarify vocational, occupational, and educational and/or career goals. The course will help industrially injured workers develop a vocational rehabilitation program.
This course is open to individuals under the age of 25 or over the age of 25, the so-called "re-entry" student, qualified high school students, high school graduates, managers, executives, and professionals, and recently terminated supervisors, managers, and executives, and professionals, and spouses of relocated supervisors, managers, executives, and professionals. (If the economy is so good, why is there so much downsizing?) Ambition level is more important than age level or occupational status. The course is particularly suited to adults who experience:
The Career Management Program uses a non-lecture - consultation format to help the participant identify and analyze job content, functional, and managerial skills - also called "transferable skills." This program has a point of view, a purpose, and concrete activities. The course breaks down the process into eight areas:
The course is based on an aggressive marketing approach to secure employment and/or to make a decision regarding educational or training options. This course is not psychotherapy or group counseling. The course is designed to support functioning adults who are ready to "hit the bricks" and make decisions.
Guidance 61, Introduction to Career Development is an excellent course for the so called re-entry student, the individual who has limited recent experience in the academic/training environment or the individual who is exploring the pro’s and con’s of investing in formal education. This syllabus is designed to cover the issues involved in any academic course and to help you become an intelligent consumer of educational services.
This course involves reading a variety of texts and materials, library research, structured and unstructured projects, and many of the mechanics of classroom performance and behavior. Consequently, this course, as well as other Guidance courses, is an excellent first attempt and introduction to the college experience.
The consultant’s role is to coach and mentor you through the program, stimulate questions, lend emotional support, help you generate career options, suggest directions, suggest redirection as needed, and in my opinion the most important role, to keep you focused. You must do the work, however. This course is about you, so make yourself interesting. If you expect to sit back and listen to a lecture, enroll in a lecture class. If you are doing the work, you will be asking questions. If you are not asking questions, you are not doing the work. You may not need the course. You may want to spend your time doing something more productive for you.
Certainly! Do you think I would require that you purchase books and then not expect you to use them? You need the required books immediately to participate in the program. You will need to decide if your career and your participation in this course are worth the cost of the books and materials. Fees and tuition for career planning courses, other training and education, books, materials, and equipment represent an investment in your career.
You have to decide if your objectives justify the investment. These books will become valuable reference books for years to come. You will, no doubt, have the opportunity to use them repeatedly. "Required" does not necessarily mean that you must purchase the texts.
Required in this course means that you must have access to the texts. Budgets are tight so I have placed copies of the required and recommended texts behind the counter at the Career Center and on reserve at Plover Library. If purchasing the Assessment Package is a challenge talk to me.
Outside fieldwork projects require time during the week. If you were not prepared to spend time during the week to complete the field research projects why would you take the class? The essential knowledge acquired in this program is a product of the reading and fieldwork projects completed during the week, not during the class session. I may like to think your personal contact with me in the class would be magical and inspiring, and it may well be, but the fieldwork is equally important.
Plant tours will be scheduled. I do not know the names of the companies at this date or the number of tours. The tours are optional since they will be off campus. The plant tour can be considered "employer" research. The plant tour will likely be scheduled on a day and at a time other than the scheduled class time. If a tour is scheduled during a time other than a scheduled class time, the plant tour will replace a scheduled class session that week. A plant tour can be used as a make up assignment. You may not bring visitors with you and you must use your own transportation. The tours will be scheduled with companies in the Santa Rosa metropolitan area that includes Rohnert Park and Windsor. The tour will be scheduled for no more than 1.5 hour to factor in driving time.
When you sign up for the tour, it is essential that you are present at the appointed time. Dress is business casual. Men will remove hats/caps when inside a facility. Permission to use a camera must be obtained from the employer. No tape recorders are permitted. Should you want to apply for a position with the firm it is up to you to contact the employer on your own resources. If you are considering contacting the firm following the plant tour I suggest you show up for the tour as if you would interviewed for a position. The companies permitting plant tours may not be staffing positions.
Guest speakers will be invited to the class. A schedule of speakers and the occupations, companies, and products/services they represent will be provided when the schedule is confirmed. Speakers are encouraged to describe their occupational duties, company product or services. If you want to contact the speaker about a position or obtain more information about their product or service, it is up to you to make these arrangements with the speaker. It is anticipated the speaker may or may not suggest that you contact their company with respect to their product or services. The speaker will likely pass out company literature, product or service promotional literature, business cards, etc. Whatever happens after the scheduled event is your business.
Students may not make sound or video recording of class sessions. Certain mock interviews may be video taped by the instructor in the class with other students present. The videotape will be replayed to the student immediately and then erased. Students are not required to submit to the videotaped interview. The Instructor, Jack Geary, MA, CRC and other professional staff employed by Geary & Associates, Inc. will not accept self-referrals of students currently enrolled in the class sections assigned to Jack Geary. Referrals will not be accepted for a period of less than eight weeks following the last class session in which the student was enrolled.
With respect to career resource speakers and scheduled plant tours, SRJC and the instructor are not responsible for any contact between you and the speaker and with representatives of the speaker's company following a class presentation and with representatives of companies visited following the plant tour. SRJC and the instructor do not specifically endorse the speaker, the speaker's product or service, or the company visited.
The speaker and company toured are engaged in a legitimate business purpose. The speaker or company representative may contact you following the class session if you give them your name, telephone number or address. That is up to you to provide your identification.
Students are advised to be aware that career resource speakers may be networking just like any businessperson or professional person. The company that is visited is promoting the company, the image, product, and/or service. The instructor will make a reasonable effort to give consideration to suggestions from students on career resource speakers and companies to visit.
The speakers, SRJC, or the instructors are not engaged in rendering legal, financial, business consulting, accounting, psychological or other professional services other than what is contained in the College Catalogue. If legal, accounting, financial, psychological, business consultation assistance is required; the student should retain the services of a competent professional.
Students who take this course should consult multiple resources before making a career decision. The student should avoid making decisions to proceed with or change career directions based on the opinions of one person, an instructor, counselor, a textbook, a test, or one course. The SRJC and instructor are not responsible for your choice of career, occupation or program. This course does not offer the instructor the opportunity to obtain a complete evaluation of the student to the extent needed to confirm the accuracy of information provided by the student in order to form a professional opinion on the most appropriate educational program, career choice, or occupational choice. Students are advised to consult a staff counselor who is authorized to confirm and approve an educational program at the SRJC.
In this course, students will not be advised to select or deselect an educational program, career choice, or an occupational choice. The instructor will not endorse or support the choice of an educational program, career choice, or an occupation. Vocational rehabilitation plans required by governmental agencies will not be endorsed, developed, or prepared. All personal information developed in this course is self-developed by the student and retained by the student. The instructor does not prepare written narrative evaluations or assessments. The instructor will assess student projects, apply a grade to the project, record a final grade, and maintain attendance. Progress reports requested by a third party must have the students written permission on file with the Registrar.
If I do not bring it up, students want to know about my background. In order to give you an example of how to present your background in the third person, I will take this opportunity to summarize my experience for you in the third person. This format is useful when you are preparing brochures, entering the speaking circuit, etc.
Jack Geary, MA, C.R.C., provides case management services to third parties who are legally liable to provide services to individuals who must change careers due to a disabling injury or disease or the economic status of the employer. He and his wife Edelweiss own a private consulting firm with offices in Eureka, Ukiah, Napa, and Santa Rosa.
Since 1975, Mr. Geary has counseled, evaluated, developed return to work plans, assisted in job placement, and managed cases for hundreds of employees. Case management services included vocational evaluation, vocational testing, earning/capacity assessment, job analysis, labor market research, vocational counseling, vocational ability testing, rehabilitation plan development, job development, and job seeking skills. Jack specializes in working with employers who need to terminate employees due to downsizing, industrial injury, or for personnel issues. He is skilled in helping the employee focus quickly on pragmatic solutions that lead to gainful employment.
Mr. Geary is a Certified Counselor by the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification. He is also Certified by the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs to provides vocational consulting services to worker's covered under Federal Employment Compensation Act, Longshore & Harbor Worker Act, & civilian employees employed by Department of Defense.
He provides services covered by Long Term Disability Insurance Contracts, and the State Teacher's Retirement System. He is a Qualified Rehabilitation Representative for California Workers' Compensation Cases and meets the qualifications for the Independent Vocational Evaluator of the Department of Workers' Compensation and participated in formal mediation conferences scheduled by that office.
Mr. Geary provides litigation support services to plaintiff and defense counsel involving file review, testimony in depositions, administrative hearings and in Superior Court in regards to vocational potential and earning capacity.
Mr. Geary took his BS in Management with emphasis in Accounting and Economics from the University of Arizona, Tucson, and a Masters Degree in Counseling at Sonoma State University.
He completed post-graduate work in Family Therapy, and an internship in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling / Work Evaluation under Lawrence J. Deneen, PH.D. and Colleen Deneen, M.Ed.
He holds a California Standard Secondary Life Teaching Credential (Business, Mathematics), California Pupil Services Credential (Counseling), and California Community College Credential (Counseling, Industrial Management)
He has taught at the elementary, junior high and senior high classes.
He worked under Dr. Darryl Laramore, Vocational Psychologist and taught classes for Counseling Education Graduate Program for the Extension Division of Sonoma State University.
For the past twenty years he has taught Career Development courses for the Santa Rosa Junior College individuals changing careers. He has been employed in private industry as a Restaurant Manager in Philadelphia, Display Advertising Sales for University Magazines, Pneumatic Drill Operator for San Manual Copper Mine, Appliance Repairman and Floor Covering Sales for a national retailer, and Accountant for a California food processor & distributor.
He is active in professional organizations. He served as President of the North Bay Chapter of California Association of Rehabilitation Professionals and has served on the State Board of Directors of that organization on two occasions. He served on the State Board of the National Association of Rehabilitation Professionals in the Private Sector.
He was instrumental in establishing the North Bay Council of the California Career Development Association, a division of the California Association of Counseling Development, and the Sonoma County Mayor's Committee for the Employment of People with Disabilities
He is an active member of the Rotary Club of Santa Rosa and member of the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce.
Schedule the English & Math Placement Test (see the schedule of classes for times and dates), if you have not yet taken these important diagnostic tests. There is no charge. Many classes desire specific scores on these tests as a prerequisite, such as this course. The ability to reason analytically and with the language will be, without doubt, essential for competing in the labor market. Robert D. Reich, Secretary of Labor and author of Work of Nations (Vintage Books) refers to these phenomena as the education of the "symbolic analyst." These tests can help you select the right course to improve your skills in mathematics and language.
Your purpose for reading the assigned material is not to memorize or recall facts, but to get some directions on completing the projects and exercises and to increase your special knowledge of career planning skills. The questions you frame and the conclusions you reach are more important than memorizing facts and reading speed.
If you're reading skills are weak, you just have to work harder and longer. Start reading the textbook by skim-reading the textbook as quickly as possible. Then return to read the chapter more carefully, completing the assigned exercises. Therefore, push yourself to read quickly. Keep a record of the amount of time it takes to read and execute the assignments. Use the SQ3R method. Survey the material, form Questions, Read to answer your questions, Recite from memory, Review the material as needed. You should survey all text material at the beginning of the course- the table of contents, illustrations, index, headings and subheadings. Students who are somewhat unsure of their ability to handle the reading and writing assignments will find the assignments an excellent opportunity to practice important skills in reading comprehension, reading speed and retention, and writing.
The College Skills program offers open-entry, self-paced basic skills (reading, writing, and math and study skills) in a brush up format. Instruction is provided in a supportive stress-free learning environment. I recommend these courses.)
Check the courses in the SRJC Schedule of Classes under the College Skills Program. These courses are designed to help you prepare for and avoid difficulties with college level courses.
There are excellent booklets available in Bailey Hall that will explain Financial Aid. Make sure you understand that you may be obligated to pay back some educational loan, even if you withdraw from a program. Always ask, "What happens if..."
It is worth your time to investigate Financial Aid if your plans involve extensive education/training? Introduce yourself to one of the staff at the Financial Aid Office. Visit the Scholarship Office to find out how you can take advantage of this resource.
Whenever you are stuck with the assignments in this course or need an explanation, call me at (525-8085). Do not attempt to reach me on campus. (I'm not there!) When you have questions, call me rather than someone else. Please do not wait until the beginning of the class session or after the class session. I have voice mail. It is not possible to provide everyone a detailed explanation or rationales for the assignments in this class before you start the assignment.
Sometimes you just have to start the assignment and then ask questions. This is one of the great reasons for working with another student. The assignments are designed to generate questions- that is the point! In doubt, do something. In addition, do not assume anything. I can best help you by responding to your specific questions.
When you need assistance in scheduling classes, counseling to handle issues that impact your overall participation at the SRJC, I recommend that you establish a relationship with a full time professional counselor on campus who is authorized to confirm your enrollment and educational plan. You can schedule an appointment in Bailey Hall. If you intend to complete a certificate program, degree program, and/or transfer program you will be ahead of the curve by establishing a relationship with a staff counselor as soon as possible. Do not wait until the last minute. Do not assume anything. There are many changes taking place on this campus with respect to curriculum, certificate and degree requirements, and transfer requirements. Why wait?
If you have questions regarding selecting the most appropriate courses, schedule an appointment with a SRJC counselor who is authorized to confirm your educational plan. Contact the Counseling Department and schedule an appointment. Do not wait until the last moment.
If you decide to transfer to another institution, you must contact that institution to find out their requirements and the SRJC courses that will be accepted by that institution. Counselors can help you with the Transfer Process.
Remember it is the target institution that determines what courses will be accepted. I recommend that you obtain personal assurance from the institution to guarantee what courses will be accepted and required. Do not assume anything. Be careful about verbal guarantees. Agreements in writing are preferred. Requirements change frequently. Do not assume anything.
Every student should read the entire college catalogue and class schedule to become acquainted with the organization of an educational institution, especially the institution you are or will be attending and in which you will be investing your dollars.
You will learn about the specialized terminology used by educational institutions. You will find out about the administrative offices and the services available to you. You will also obtain information about the standards & policies, such as grading and attendance; the location of buildings; and the school calendar.
You should read the catalogues and course descriptions of different private and state colleges and universities, paying particular attention to how the courses are organized into the various departments or fields. These documents often contain excellent career planning information. Reviewing course descriptions is an excellent technique to translate the words you use to identify your present skills and knowledge into terminology or industry-specific jargon. The new language may help you understand how your skills and knowledge can transfer to other fields.
Brief, short-term psychological consultation is available from the SRJC staff psychologist. There are other certain health services covered by the health fee you paid.
The Self-Paced Career Guidance course is an excellent SRJC course to follow-up the research you started in Guidance 61.
Study Skills and Interpersonal Relationship Skills
Consult the class schedule for other excellent Guidance classes pertaining to Study Skills, Transferring to and Succeeding in College, and Personal Goal Setting. The class schedule lists courses designed for exploration of some occupational areas.
Plover Library and the special collection in the Career Center are excellent resource of career material. The main library and the Career Center offer orientation programs to teach you how to use the resources. Sonoma State library has a good collection of reference books, trade magazines, government publications, and more. The Santa Rosa downtown library is a good source for reference material and on-line services. Always check with the reference librarian if you can not find what you need. You can access the reference material from home via Internet.
The Career Center is opened from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8:00 am to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday. The Career Center staff is very experienced. The Career Center also hosts career resource speakers. Pick up the schedule of resource speakers at the Career Center.
The Internet is available through the SRJC link at the Career Center and Plover Library. You need to call the Career Center to schedule time to use the computer. The library will hold short-term classes on using the Internet.
Contact the SRJC Career Center to schedule an appointment to use the SIGI+, DISCOVER, or the EUREKA Computerized occupational exploration program. You will need about 1.5 hours to complete each program. There is no charge.
Remember that all the computer program can do is to help you add to your prospect list of occupations for further research. You must follow-up by researching the occupation. Computer Software Programs do not make decisions for you. It is important that you obtain labor market from live resources rather in addition to libraries. The library has a variety of short-term courses if you are interested in learning to use a library, especially the computerized reference services.
A variety of excellent video taped programs are available at the Career Center
(INC) may be awarded the grade of "I" (Incomplete) only under exceptional circumstances. The "I" grade signifies that the student has enrolled and has attended classes throughout the school term; that only a minimal amount of the course work has not been completed in the prescribed time period due to unforeseen (but fully justified) reasons; and that there is still the possibility of earning credit. The Incomplete grade will not be assigned just to afford the student additional time to finish course requirements, to retake final examinations, or to resubmit assignments. Incomplete work not made up within one year will be assigned the default grade recorded by the instructor.
No auditors. (Why?) (See Class Schedule for more information.) (Rubbernecks slow down traffic.)
Visitors, including children are not permitted in the class unless cleared with instructor in advance. Dogs in training for people with disabilities are permitted if cleared by the Enabling office and if other students are not subject to allergic or phobic reactions. A companion dog does not cut it. You may need "dog care" in the same sense the other students arrange childcare.
Are your expenses, including the cost of transportation, childcare, and telephone charges, for taking this class, a legitimate tax deduction? Check with your tax expert.
Your progress related to your purpose for taking this course can be best determined by reviewing your notebook, completed assignments, and your written plan. You must give me advanced notice that I will be contacted, provide me a signed release with the name of the person you designate to contact me, and show me your notebook and completed assignments before I respond to any request to report your progress.
You are the best person to report progress on working towards your goals. I also need to know why I would be contacted in advance. I will sign an attendance form (that you must maintain) to avoid telephone inquires pertaining to attendance. If a caseworker wants to call me he/she should call my office (525-8085) and leave a message on the two or three best times to call back to avoid phone tag. The purpose of the call would be helpful so I can be prepared with the information requested. I will relay to you the content of all verbal conversations and copies of requested written progress reports.
Industrially injured workers covered by a workers’ compensation vocational rehabilitation plan a can obtain a Letter of Recommendation and confirmation of a course of study to waive services of the QRR (for injuries occurring on or after January 1, 1994). For more information, contact the Student Services department.
You must have the school confirm that you have met the requirements listed in the Rules & Regulations of the Department of Workers' Compensation. You must develop "Course of Study" supported by a "Letter or Recommendation" from the designated school official.
This letter is required to obtain a waiver of the services of the Qualified Rehabilitation Representative in Worker's Compensation Rehabilitation cases. The instructor of Guidance 61 can assist you in developing the research needed to prepare a written educational plan. You must complete the plan. Since the legislature included this provision in the Labor Code, the Division of Workers' Compensation is responsible for its implementation. For more information, contact the local Rehabilitation Unit or the Information & Assistance Office with the Department of Workers’ Compensation in the State office building, your employer, the employer's representative or insurance carrier, or your attorney. If you are interested in waiving the QRR let me know and I will help you take the next steps.
Intervention strategies range from Acceptant (developing rapport), Catalytic (reinterpret perceptions of facts/research), Confrontational (challenging ideas and conclusions), Prescription (taking charge when appropriate to move the process forward), and Theories/Principles (encouraging analytic, cause-effect principles to diagnose situations). The Introduction to Career Development course offers the opportunity to learn the basics of career planning for in house career development.
Taking Charge of Your Career, by Lock, available on Reserve at the Library provides a good explanation of technical issues associated with Career Development, Vocational tests, and Theories of Career Choice. This text also contains many useful exercises and references to primary research books. This is an excellent text for Human Resource Professionals, OD people, Counselors, para-professionals, job developers, career center technicians, mentors, managers, and parents. It covers all the basics.
I am recommending activities that any person reevaluating their career or occupational plans should complete. The assignments are minimum activities. You need to go beyond the activities in this course to prepare a career plan. So, do not expect that a "career counselor" should know exactly what each individual should do to achieve their goals.
There is no magic pill. The counselor can help you assess the direction you are contemplating, suggest options to redirect your efforts, assist you in measuring your progress, provide you a structure and time line. There are no guarantees that you will make an occupational choice or make the best decision. The decisions you make are your total responsibility.
Do not worry about "dead ends." The truth is that you will engage in many activities that will result in "dead ends." That is life. There is no way around it. It is "trial and error." The "dead ends" are essential.
No one should attempt to save you from the "trial and error" or "dead ends." However, if you are investing quality time and effort it is likely you will overall make smart choices.
Field Research Projects are required. I do not know how long you will take to complete these assignments. You need to block out the time you have available during the week for this class you do the best you can. I would estimate that the assignments would require approximately two to four hours per week between class sessions. With time management and the reordering of your priorities there will be ample time to complete the assignments on time with excellent quality. If you do not have time to do the assignments then other activities have a greater priority. Will those activities take you where you want to go? If yes, then do it.
Your purpose for taking this course must be to achieve your goals. Your motivation must be internal and not dependent on "M & M's" (points) from the instructor. I will review your completed assignments. Assignments in this type of course will build on one another so do not wait until the last moment to get started.
Consequently, the assignments must be completed on time if you want to stay current with the rest of the class and achieve the momentum that is essential to achieve your goals. Serious career planning requires a strong commitment. If you balk at the low cost of this course and the modest time investment, you will probably balk at the outside work required or find another excuse.
You cannot bargain with success. Career Planning that works cannot take place unless there is a significant amount of enthusiasm, commitment, and hard work on your part between class sessions. Some students ask what I want in regards to assignments.
Let's turn this question around. You volunteered to take this class to achieve your objectives. Are the assignments working for you? You are not taking this class for my benefit. So you tell me what you want. Remember, the assignments are just "tools" or "vehicles" to guide you through a decision making process. Assignments are not the course. So if you are serious about working on your career, than you will complete the assignments and more- much more. You volunteered for this course, and you can leave anytime you like- the doors are not locked. Your questions and the detail in your field research work will demonstrate your involvement. Let’s not become bureaucratic wonks and focus on the assignments- how many pages, words, etc., etc., etc. These remarks apply to all participants regardless of age.
One of the purposes of this course is to develop a list of occupational or career prospects, including a list of possible training programs and institutions or college majors and schools. Please note I used the word "prospects." While you may not make a definite selection or choice of occupation, career, training program, college major, or university by the end of this course, you should be able to narrow down your choices to the top three according to your criteria.
The tests in the Assessment Package are designed to assist you in identifying possible occupations and college majors. There are other test instruments available at the Assessment Office for a small charge.
What difference does it make? This course – your plan – will take as much time as it takes. Why would you ask this question? If you knew with 95% certainty that after completing an eight-week or twelve-week Career Development Course you would achieve your goals how much time would you invest? So what was your question again?
The pace is quick. This course provides weekly group sessions to discuss issues, questions, problems, and share information. Each session provides you the opportunity to discuss completed assignments. When you arrive, do not just sit and stare at the chalkboard and use up the air in the room. Do something.
Use this time to read Parachute or work on your reading plan. I could not count the times that I noticed students sitting in the classroom before the class started doing nothing (certainly they were thinking) and then tell me they have no time to do the reading!
Develop a reading plan and use spare time to complete your daily reading schedule. The assignments are designed to take you through a structured and systematic career decision making process. Each assignment is designed to build on the previous assignment.
You will waste your time in this course if you do not complete the assignments in a timely manner. You do not have to like the structured approached or the activities. Give this approach a chance to see if it works for you. What have you to lose?
One of the purposes of this course is to teach you how to obtain the information you need. I will help you obtain information about the labor market and occupations, but you will need to do the work. The only way you will find out what is "out there" is to open your eyes and look. There are no quick & dirty lists. Well, there are lists. There are the Yellow Pages, Directory of Manufacturers, and the Book of Lists published by the Business Journal.
I can help you in deciding where to look based on specific questions that you frame. Yes, framing the question is 75% of the task. The more you ask, the more I respond. I do not lecture in this course or provide information about the job openings, labor market information, or careers, unless asked a specific question. Then I will tell you how to look it up.
Turn off the TV, clear your calendar, and eliminate all unnecessary activities. Are you addicted to TV? Can you go without TV for a week? Listen to the radio, KFRC, KGO, KSRO, to mention a few stations. Most of the assignments in the textbook can be completed in your non-productive time. I recommend that you schedule some time every day. Withdraw from this course, now, if you are not prepared to give it your highest priority. If this class (career planning) is not your highest priority, what is?
Purchase an appointment calendar if you expect to get "anywhere." Project your vital daily activities for the next 90 days. Record your daily activities (events) especially the activities related to this course. Time yourself in completing these assignments and push yourself to complete them quickly. Remember you are not reading for "recall." You will not need to memorize the material. The outside field research projects should also be completed quickly. Do not let people waste your time.
You will be directed to keep a calendar to record your time, activities, expenditures, and food consumption for reasons that will be discussed. This is a very simple exercise that you will discover to be very difficult to complete.
Money has the potential of having no limits (especially if you are the government with a printing press and the force of law to impose and collect taxes). Time, however, is limited. You can not save or borrow time. You really can not "manage" time. Time has its own existence. It goes on without us. It does not need you. But we will stay with the conventional notion.
Time measurement is a convention, manufactured by "man/women" for his/her own convenience. Unless you can slow down or speed up the planet time from your perspective can not change. However, you can determine what behaviors you will perform within the time (revolution around the axis) you have. The government can not make more of it and neither can you. You have only so much time on this planet and you will have less when you are finished reading this document.
Time can be invested in the sense that you can choose the right behavior within periods of time to produce a "yield" or favorable benefit, such as income- money, you know, the green stuff.
In order for your use of time to realize a "yield," time must be leveraged. That is you must produce benefits that far exceed your own personal time expenditure. In order to leverage time you must manage this limited resource. Career planning and development is essentially time management to achieve leveraged time.
The amount of work required in this course will test your ability to work efficiently and quickly, and help you learn how to manage your time.
If you are not working on these assignments, you will be doing something else anyway. Time management is "event" management. Everything you do during the day is an "event." Completing an assignment is an "event." Hanging out is an event. Shopping is an event. Sleeping is an event.
Schedule appointments in your calendar to complete assignments (events) and exercises. Take the monthly and weekly planning sheet that will be distributed to you and block out high priority time commitments (events) beginning today through the end of the year. Schedule blocks of time during the time of day and the day of the week when it is possible to complete the activity. Research projects will require your time during working hours.
On Sunday evening plan take a few moments for quiet solitary reflection and plan out the upcoming week. Each day spend a few moments in the morning reflecting on your plans of the day.
Each evening spend a few moments to reflect on how much you accomplished during the day, what you have learned, who you helped, and what steps you need to take to do a better job on tasks that did not work out. Quiet reflection for just five minutes pays off in large dividends- less feelings of stress.
Organize a work area at home or at work and have all your needed clerical and administrative supplies available. Make sure that your family, husband/wife, children understand your time commitments and respect your privacy. If you are the head of household with children, your may need to make arrangements to free-up your time by transferring household chores to others (your children), or eliminating unnecessary activities, such as low priority meetings, social events, and time with friends. Stay up later or wake up earlier. If you are a single head of household with children, you have a challenge. Call me if you are experiencing a time challenge. I recommend that you explore the services of the Reentry Program.
Time management is of little value unless you have worked on clarifying your short term and long term goals and objectives. At the root of time management are your values that explicitly and implicitly govern your daily activities and attitude.
Time management requires that you first identify and clearly describe your governing vales- your own constitution. Then you need to determine where you want to go in your life, otherwise known as your AIM. Goals are the mechanics of implementing your governing values and you aim. The Constitution of the United States is an example of the governing values of a nation of people. (These values and the culture based on them must be valid because thousands of people want to immigrate to this county and leave the conditions not necessarily the culture or identify. It is hoped that the cultural is retained while learning and respecting the new culture. How do you think people in other countries describe Americans?
Take a moment and clarify your reasons for taking this course. The course may have been recommended to earn extra units. (I also am paid for teaching the course.) I have no problems with taking the course for units. You made a good choice in taking this class for units. But I hope you were informed that the course does require substantial at-home work and you must possess the required books.
To reach a goal you will probably need to leave your comfort zone. Take a few minutes right now and identify one of your governing values, one goal that is consistent with that value, and how you would need to leave your comfort zone to achieve that goal. For example, if financial independence were your governing value, what goals would you select to achieve financial independence?
Your Governing Value ________________________________________
A goal that is consistent with that value ____________________________
A daily event consistent with that value _____________________________
Look in your calendar or checkbook. Do you have a specific activity in your calendar related to your goal or have you spent any money toward achieving your goal during the past month? (You do not have a calendar. Well if you do not have a goal or a plan, I suppose you do not need one.)
It is said that you will become like the people you associate with and the books you read. Will these individuals support your efforts in this program? Will they pay your rent? Do they represent a role model?
This course is for the "job intrepreneur" not the JB (Job Beggar- all of us to some extent are Job Beggars, some more, some less). I assume that you selected the course because you are very serious about your career development, expect to work hard, and need to make educational, training, and/or employment decisions within the immediate future. This assumption is based on the following factors: enrollment is voluntary; the course is not required for a degree or certificate; and the description states that the purpose of the class is to instruct you in career planning- and only you can plan your career.
Need Units?
Certainly, it is acceptable to take the class to accumulate the units needed for graduation, student loans, work-study, and other programs requiring a minimum number of units. However, this course does require attending group sessions and "at-home" activities to earn the units. This class is not recommended for rounding out your schedule unless you also want to intelligently take charge of your "career" plans.
You wouldn't expect to know everything about real estate, computers, French cooking by just taking a short class. So do not expect to achieve clear & precise goal statements unless you are ready to study, research, practice, read, explore, dream, associate, and act. Do not expect to know everything about Career Management, Job Seeking Skills, Labor Market Information, and your occupation of interest in just eight weeks.
Tip # 1: Short Cuts & When Things Aren’t Working Out. See What Color Is Your Parachute? for Short Cuts and Self-Diagnostic Trouble Shooting Tips
Tip # 2: When you are in a hole, Stop Digging!
Tip # 3: There are no short cuts!
When you complete this course and the recommended projects, you will know how to develop a career plan. You will:
Any Questions At This Point.
If you are not satisfied with your present job or line of work, this course can help you explore other lines of work. However, it is very important to identify the skills used in your present and past occupation. It is also important to analyze your present or most recent employment status so that you can evaluate job offers. Moreover, it is important to be able to evaluate all costs associated with a decision, including hidden costs.
Before you take the leap and change jobs, occupations, or careers OR mortgage your home, wife/husband, and kids to start a small business you ought to complete the following questions. That may help you avoid jumping from the pot to the frying pan. With some exception, most self-employment is just purchasing a job, substituting a customer for a boss. In both instances, the JOB is "just over broke."
What is your gross income from your employment in the preceding tax year? (Actual income earned in twelve months.) $ _______
What is your average monthly income over the past 36 months? $_______
What is the dollar value of your fringe benefits (medical insurance, disability/life insurance, paid holidays, vacation days, paid sick leave), other than Social Security, State Disability Insurance, Unemployment Insurance, and Workers' Compensation Insurance? $ _______
Does your current monthly gross taxable income support your Quality of Life, i.e. your lifestyle?
What is the shortfall, if any? $ ________.
How does this figure compare to your short-term debt (five years)?
If you live at home, what do your parents charge you for room and board, telephone, and laundry? $ _______.
What would it cost you to take your own room or apartment for the first year, including set-up (kitchen utensils, furniture, etc.) and moving in costs (telephone, PGE, deposits)? (Include the increased cost of auto insurance if you are not living at home AND cannot be included on your parent's policy, or not listed as a dependent on their tax return. $ _________
Are you covered under your spouse’s or parent’s medical insurance?)
Could you quit your job and secure other employment with the same compensation package (actual gross wages plus the value of fringe benefits) with another employer within the next month?
If you quit your job this week, what job could you obtain with another employer with a high degree of certainty?
With a high degree of certainty, what would be the total compensation package? $ ________
How much gross taxable monthly income do you want to be earning within the next three, $ _______; five $ _______; and ten years _____?
Where could you earn this income? Name three employers and the respective position titles. Name three persons who hold these jobs.
Contrast & compare yourself to these individuals.
What are the minimum hiring requirements needed to qualify for these positions?
Career Development and Planning is only one small issue in achieving financial independence or freedom. Securing employment at a "good wage" does not mean you have achieved financial independence. Why?
Financial independence occurs when you do not need to trade dollars for hours- or work. I would suggest that you would experience difficulty in supporting your quality of life goals based on a "job." I would suggest that over a three year or five year period the "job" will provide an average yearly income at a rate (over a three or five year period) that will always lag the cost of living, changes in your lifestyle with age, inflation, and tax bracket creep.
Financial independence occurs when the dollars to support your lifestyle are generated by sources of income that are independent of your job (or your time).
Your choice of a "career" or occupation should support and influence the circumstances of your life, rather than letting the circumstances of your life influence the career choice.
The job or career is only one source of income needed to support a life-style or quality of life.
The career will seldom, by itself, fund the quality of life that you will desire. Therefore, whatever money follows from "doing" what you like, will usually be insufficient for financial independence.
If you are unable to "do" what you like due to an injury or some other reason, "no" money will follow. Consequently, you need to create a variety of income sources that do not rely on "time."
Money follows the intention to make money. Financial security is achieved when the quality of life can be supported with income that does not depend on the job or the career- in other words your personal time investment.
If you for one moment think about self-employment, I recommend that you read Richard Gerber, The E Myth. If you are considering self-employment you need to compare anticipated annual personal draw/taxable earnings over the first five years of your business to the value of the total compensation package based realized during the previous five years.
You may not have all the details to complete the following questions. The questions, however, illustrate the point, that self-employment for most individuals is just a job that you purchased and where you pay the cost of the fringe benefits rather than the employer.
What is the total gross income from sales and services needed to achieve the net spendable income, after taxes, to fund or support you and your family, provide all health insurance, disability insurance, savings, life insurance, retirement, sick leave, and vacation time per year for 12 months? $______.
This assumes you have a figure representing estimated operating costs for the level of sales you estimated. Make sure you add the start up costs during the first year of operation.
If your business is a service or consulting business, how many billable hours are you projecting for one year? # ______
Add to this total of billable hours the following: administration time, training time, commuting time, personnel management time, vacation time, holidays time, and allow for sick days, emergency days, etc. Total # hours __________
Deduct an estimated downtime hours for your illness, family illness, external problems, inservice training, regulatory problems, organization/association time, lobbying time, etc.
Divide the total gross business income or revenue by the total net hours noted above. Revenue earned per hour $ _______
What is the hourly rate charged by your competition? $ _________
What did you earn per hour in your last job? $ _________
What is the total first year operating costs, including: start up costs (installation of phones, the cost of the phones, door signs, shelving), business stationery, envelopes, forms, cards, inventory, technical reference library, licenses, permits, taxes, computer software, clerical assistance, workers’ comp deposits, office liability, business liability, business tax, tax on business property, office supplies, advertising, and including repayment of any business loans for the first year of your business.
Your start up costs $ _______ just to open the door. Operating Costs for one year regardless of the sales volume. $ _________.
Add in the figure for lost income (income that you could have earned if you did not start the business) during the start up phase, plus a reasonable figure for uncollectable accounts receivable. $__________
What is your total gross taxable business income projected over a five-year period?
$ ________; less the total operating expenses projected for that five year period
$ _________; less estimated federal and state taxes $ ______
Your draw for that period $ ________ divided by 5 = $ ________ per year. Deduct your total yearly living expenses, including all insurance and self-invested retirement monies. The net/net disposal income = $ _____
What is the reasonable investment yield for your type of business? ______%
What is your source for this estimate? Take your total cash investment and apply the investment yield for the type of business you used to work this exercise. This is what you could have earned by investing this capital rather than starting a business. Use the yield of a money market fund.
How does this figure compare to the net disposal income? If your projections for the next five years were accurate, what would you realize from the liquidation value of your business after taxes? $_________.
In many small businesses, there is little or no liquidated value.
IS IT FUN YET?
Yes there are opportunities in self-employment that avoid the risks of traditional self-employment that will permit you to leverage your time and maximize your earning yield so that you can achieve the quality of life you want for yourself and your family. But you must think sideways. How could you leverage your time now to maximize your earning yield?
The Career Management course relies on a variety of methods of generating occupational prospects for further research and does not rely on tests. Interest inventories and computerized software programs are useful in generating occupational prospects but not more than that. If you need a test to identify your interests, than you do not have any interests. The information generated by interest inventories must be supplemented by follow-up research. Otherwise, these "tests" are a waste of time.
There are a number of excellent methods of exploring occupations, including your interests and talents. For instance:
This course presents a systematic, rational approach to career & occupational decision making- not often considered a natural or comfortable method. The socio-cultural determinant approach to career choice drives many occupational choices as well as the accidental approach, which occurs most frequently.
Perhaps these approaches were acceptable in the past. But in the accelerating changes in structure of work today, I believe that the selection of a practical occupational choice must be preceded by first determining the quality of life goals (QOL).
I also believe that the career and/or occupational choice serve both economic purposes and the expression of the self. It is vital that the individual clarifies their economic needs and responsibilities when choosing and maintaining a career or occupation. It is also vital to avoid acting on the assumption that choosing an occupation for self-expression will also satisfy economic needs.
Economic needs and self-expression needs are mutually exclusive. In the 1990's, an occupation will not alone support the quality of life or lifestyle. The first fundamental concern in choosing an occupational or career is to acquire sufficient skills to obtain work so that you are able to support yourself and your family without government support.
This means that we need to have multiple skills in the event that our preferred skills can not generate employment to provide self-support.
Initially careers and occupations are often selected on the basis of a combination of accidental, emotional and status needs, family/parental influence, and/or what is available within the neighborhood/local community, the employer's organization or the predominant industry in the community- this is just a variation of the accidental approach.
Sometimes the individual's occupational choice represents the least distasteful choice. More likely than not the choice of the occupation did not follow a systematic analysis of potential alternatives. Despite the popularity of "interest inventories", I do not believe they influence people in choosing occupations.
More often than not, it is only after the individual reaches a life crisis do they finally stop and think through how the occupation will satisfy both economic and self-expression needs.
I believe this choice process becomes more manageable if the individual first clarifies as much as possible their governing values and the desired quality of life, then selects the best occupational/career vehicle to reach and maintain the quality of life desired.
The assumptions behind the approach taken in this course anticipate that the individual will change the occupation/career (vehicle) and employer (vehicle) as needed.
The primary purpose of Career Planning, in the context of Guidance 61, is to increase your ability to maximize your "earning yield" by "leveraging your time" in order to achieve the quality of life that you want.
Choosing a "college major" or training, with some exceptions must be secondary. Identifying "satisfying work" is incidental. "Happiness" is not a goal.
"It" is the result of working towards your goals. Yet, these statements are true only in a relative sense. The quality of life is funded 100% by the net/net/net income from the JOB. This course will argue that you need to seek alternative sources of income that are not dependent on your time (the "job") to fund as much of the quality of life you want.
All of us have difficulty identifying our skills for two reasons. First, since we seldom place labels on the activities we have mastered and routinely perform without much thought, we take them for granted. Second, since we seldom discuss "shop" or closely observe workers in other lines of work we lack the experience needed to understand the transferability of skills to different situations. Consequently, we lose the perspective that comes from comparison.
This course uses specific "tools" to help you place the labels on your skills and observe them from other perspectives so that you can articulate them intelligently. This is how you determine if your skills can transfer to other occupations, industries, and employers.
This course assumes you are changing careers, positions, and employers, attempting to make an occupational choice, or asking related questions about training and education, including occupational majors. The primary focus of the work in this course is on developing clear quality of life goals and learning how occupational or career choices support these goals. This course covers the basics on Job Search issues.
However, this course goes beyond the occupational choice or job search, by taking the position that when your goals are clear and when your goals are supported by occupational choice, the job search is simply a numbers game. Furthermore, the most successful job search technique is to put your face in front of an employer as frequently as possible, and ask for the job.
Never contact an employer to seek employment under the guise of obtaining career information a.k.a. informational interviewing. Most (85%+) of employers will co-operate and accommodate your request for career/job information.
If you plan to visit the employer, obtain directions and arrive just a few minutes (about five minutes) early. Be prepared, have questions written out, notebook out, and get to the point. Use appropriate dress & grooming standards. Ask them for 5, 10, or 15 minutes of their time, and stick to that schedule. Most employers will tend to give you more time than you ask. You need to make it easy for them to end the interview.
Do not stay beyond the time you asked requested. Ask the person if you can reschedule at a future date if you need more information. Always get the right full name, business card, and title. Always send a very short, thank you note right away. Always ask for the names of other individuals who might be able to answer your questions.
Never use the informational interview deceptively. Read Parachute about researching employers. Remember you are a potential customer to every employer that you may contact Three books (available on Reserve) that may be helpful in this activity are Networking, Informational Interviewing, and The Right Place at the Right Time. Two additional books are How to Start a Conversation and make Friends, and Working a Room.
Daniel Porot’s new book, The Pie Method for Career Success, JIST Publishers is a great book on the entire process of identifying position titles related to your interest and skills and networking to obtain information and job interviews.
The point of view taken towards Career Management is different from traditional courses, sometimes referred to as Career Counseling, Life/Work Planning, or Career Development. Career Management goes beyond the traditional approach and practice by placing "work" or the "job" in a secondary role to quality of life issues (inferred value system), which include, financial, health, time management issues.
Career Management keeps your feet on the ground by emphasizing pragmatic achievement planning, time management, the concept of "earning yield", AND leisure & health concerns. Most of all, Career Management views an occupation as a "vehicle" or a means to an end, in achieving the quality of life you want.
Most of all, the Career Management approach is economically honest, in that it has a strategy and tactics to develop actions plans in the present time period, to achieve stated goals in a future time period and does not dodge financial issues. For instance, no career or job can be relied on to provide 100% of the funding needed to achieve the quality of life you define. The general purpose of this program is to help frame the right questions and obtain answers that you can rely on.
What Color Is Your Parachute? has an excellent list of resources for career exploration. Those of you who are "geniuses" should sample those resources. They are even great for us normal folk. Magazines and newspapers are also good resources about career/occupational issues. The Press Democrat, Sonoma Business Journal, Sonoma Business Magazine, Wall Street Journal, Investors Business Daily, and the Conservative Chronicle, and American Spectator should be on the reading list of individuals who claim to be well informed.
How do you get a jump-start to get on top of your career plans and/or to feel confident that your education/occupational plans are on a solid footing? You can start immediately, right now, this very moment, to get a jump-start on your career management objectives.
This hour represents the future you thought about in the past. Assembling a coherent list of objectives that will help you reach your goals is hard work. How do you prepare goal statements and break down goals into component parts or objectives?
Career objectives need to be based on QOL objectives. How do you start to design the QOL when the term is not easily defined? Some people think that they have to get their life in complete order before they can proceed with career issues.
Unfortunately this does not work, since we can not control all the curve balls thrown at us in life.
Why wait? How do you anticipate obstacles and respond to external changes?
Where do you start this process? What do you do first?
This course shows you how to be a "job intrepreneur" or "job resource person," not a "job beggar" or (JB). A JB is passive person who does not attempt to take charge or shape the quality-of-life or (QOL) he/she seeks, or manage the "career" to help him/her reach a QOL objective. The JB does not have a QOL objective. The JB does not have objectives or goals that extend beyond the time to collect the next paycheck.
The QOL is a state of "being" and the "role" played in family and community activities. A QOL is certainly represented by the ability to acquire material goods, but more important, it (QOL) is maintained through the rights to income from capital investments and other "vehicles" that do not depend on the investment of your personal time.
Yes, the QOL also includes "time," but the QOL also depends on health practices. Of what value is there to have material goods, a good income, plenty of time to enjoy the benefits of time and money if you do not have good health. The QOL will also reflect a fundamental value system, which drives your mission in life. Of what value is it to have free time and no income to take advantage of it?
The JB never thinks of these issues. Job Intrepreneur's think about these things all the time! The JB leave clues. The JB relies on the resume and is preoccupied with the resume. The JB does not do any research about the employer or the position before an interview. The JB thinks the employer will take care of them. The JB believes that the employer will look out for their interest & welfare. The JB is unable to evaluate their ability to obtain employment with another employer at comparable wages.
The JB evaluates the "good job" by the amount of the "good wage," regardless of other costs, such as commute time, time away from home, seasonal factors, or growth potential. The JB is always broke regardless of how "good" the wages.
Most JBs who make "good" money are broke, just at a different level: because when they lose their job, they are in deep %#@& within weeks or months.
There is a cure for the JB’s. There is hope. The JB can be transformed into a "job intrepreneur" or "job resource" person. Maybe! This course is designed to make JB's uncomfortable. See more about JB and "job resource persons" in Parachute. Everyone to some extent, some more than others, suffers from the afflictions of the JB. In what ways are you a JB?
The JB does not know anything about the job, seldom attempts to secure a job description, does not know anything about the employer's product or service, the names of the key people with the company, the problems of the employer, and the current wage range for the job targeted.
The JB does not focus on how the employer makes money and how the "job" contributes to the company's bottom line. The JB does not ask important questions in the interview, uses employment agencies inappropriately, expects to obtain employment leads without effort, and/or expects the training program or school to obtain job leads.
The JB relies on "interest inventories" and tests to make the job choice, accepts everything reported by an employer or school as accurate, and never checks out information obtained from an employer or a school.
The JB doesn't have a calendar or a notebook. The JB does not know how the job will help them achieve their career goal, does not have a career goal, and does not have a goal.
The JB believes there are such phenomena as a "secure job," "job security," and a "challenging job." The JB even believes that someone else will contact the employer on his or her behalf, especially when the JB has a disability.
The following projects or exercises should be completed quickly. The purposes of these projects to help you prepare a Career Management plan unique to your needs. The projects should not distract you from that purpose. Compile the information in a binder. You can perform a thorough job or a superficial job. You can also stay broke.
Career Management requires an understanding of how industries and companies affect employment potential. This preliminary project will increase your understanding of the financial world that impacts the economy and how the economy influences your employability and earning capacity.
Using any Stock Exchange tables in a newspaper (NYSE, AMEX, and NASDAQ), select twenty (20) companies. Record the date, trading symbol, and closing price in a special section of your notebook. Leave some space since you will be following these companies. Plover library has a reference book that translates the trading symbol to the full company, e.g., IBM = International Business Machines, ATT = American Telegraph and Telephone Company.
There are reference books in the library (Hoover, Walker, Standard & Poors, Dun & Bradstreet) that will provide a brief company profile. You can also obtain a company profile by using the Internet Search Engine. You can use any resource to research the companies.
After looking up each of the companies you selected, narrow your list down to ten companies. Invest a hypothetical $ 100,000 in the companies you selected in blocks of 100 shares. Any excess cash can be invested any way you want. However, you must be able to determine the capital appreciation of the investment and/or the interest rate.
Forbes and Fortune Magazines contain order forms for Annual Reports at no charge. Send a request for at least four annual reports of the companies you selected.
Purchase a calendar that has space to record daily time and cash expenditures. You can purchase 60 day and 90-day schedulers at a local office supply store. The Franklin Day Planner (Franklin Quest Company) would be an excellent investment. You can also construct these calendars and save money.
Prepare a sheet of paper with all the 12 months and block out, in pencil significant events and time commitments for the next eighteen months.
Pencil in time commitments and events that are more detailed. Begin with the same date used in Task 1.
Record in pencil your scheduled daily activities in increments of one-quarter hour for the next week four weeks. Generally, your events will fall in to the following groups: Family, Domestic, Occupation, Financial Development, Leisure, Spiritual, Community, Health, and Career Management.
List the top twenty most critical/urgent events requiring a commitment of your time from any one of the three schedules completed in the previous activities. Highlight the commitments or events that are vital.
Take the Decision Making Grid in the text, What Color Is Your Parachute. List these twenty commitments on the Grid and complete the Grid as instructed. When you are finished review the Grid and determine if you left anything out, in the area of Family, Domestic, Occupation, Financial Development, Leisure, Community, Health, and Career Management.
Make a note of any observations in your notebook. This exercise should help you find out if you are focused, if you waste time, spend too much time on activities that do not benefit you, etc.
Prepare an Income-line (use a large sheet of accounting paper 18 Columns, 11 x 17 inches.) On the bottom horizontal row, list the numbers representing your age 10 through 90. On the vertical left most column list numbers beginning with $ 5,000 at the bottom up through $ 200,000, in increments of $ 5,000. Place a mark on the horizontal axis to represent your age. Then draw a vertical line (Black) to the top of the page.
Using different colored markers draw four horizontal lines using a different color for each line to represent an estimate of your: Gross personal taxable income from wages & salary, since age 10. Then project your expected income for the next ten years (use Green): Your legal rights to income from pensions & profit sharing programs beginning when you would be eligible to receive the income (use Blue). Your estimated income you can expect to collect from Social Security when you are eligible to receive the disbursement (use Brown). Your legal rights to income generated from investments in Real Property and other assets not previously mentioned (use Purple).
Along these lines at various time intervals make a few notes to identify what you need to accomplish or any thoughts that are triggered by the activity.
Go back and draw a horizontal line (Red) starting at your current age to the right that represents an estimate of your bare bones cost of living.
Beginning with your current age, draw a horizontal line (Yellow) through age 90 representing the financial ups & downs you would anticipate over this period of time in which you want to achieve specific goals.
Design a form for Projected Income & Expenses Projections (use 18 column, 11 X 17, accounting paper).
You may have trouble in estimating expenditures, income, and spending patterns or habits. With practice, your ability will improve. Data from the IRS, Social Security Administration, Census Bureau, the American Demographics Magazine, and selected research studies that are related to financial planning support the grim picture of the financial health of the people in this country. Project your income and major expenses using the following captions for an eighteen-month period.
Total All Expenses for the Year
How much (percentage) of your income do you receive from investments or other sources of income that do not depend on your personal time?
Contact a specialist in this area and find out how much the premiums would cost for income disability insurance. Record that information. What is the cost (premiums) of unemployment, state disability, and worker’s compensation insurance to and your employer? This information is confidential and you are not expected to discuss the contents with the counselor.
Referring to the worksheet you completed, highlight your total net (disposable) income figures for each month, using the color Green. Highlight the total income for the each category (at the end of the eighteen-month period) with a Blue highlighter. Convert each line total to a percentage of the grand total.
Highlight the total expense figures for each month and for each category with a Yellow highlighter. Highlight major periodic one-time payments (such as Auto Insurance Premiums or Property Taxes) with an Orange highlighter. Spread out these one-time payments over the entire period and highlight each amount with the same color. Note differences between disposable income and expenses. Highlight negative differences in Red.
Record your personal gross taxable income for the past ten years. Compute your average income in three-year increments. Plot the average numbers. Where is your trend heading? Plot this income on the Income Line.
Design a Lifechart (use accounting paper 18 col. 11 x 17) The purpose of the Lifechart is to help you trigger important memories of past activities that will be used to identify special knowledge, talents, and motivated skills; to suggest how you were influenced and how you influence others.
Complete the Lifechart as directed. Use a pencil and print clearly in block style. Beginning at the top left most column list the numbers 1900 through 2070. Use two sheets if necessary. Place the headings listed below in the columns across the top of the chart:
Write a autobiography of your life experiences, including positive experiences and those experiences that were challenges in your life beginning as far back as you can remember. It is recommended that you complete all previous projects, especially the Lifechart before starting the autobiography. Write the autobiography in your notebook. Leave a blank page after each page your complete. You do not need to remember everything for the first draft of your autobiography.
After you write one draft and read it, you will remember other details. Refer to the material on writing autobiographies in the books, Where Do I Go From Here With My Life? and Parachute.
On your first attempt to write this autobiography, block out a three-hour period. Use the entire time, write only on one side of the page, and leave a three-inch left margin. During the upcoming weeks, you can add more detail. Therefore, leave a few extra pages after each year so you can add more detail. Do your first draft in cursive style. Later you can type this draft if you want (double spaced). It is helpful, if you would select and read an autobiography of a person whose career you respect, admire, and would like to emulate. Try Benjamin Franklin for starters.
Draw a diagram representing your relationships with all the significant and not so significant persons, events, values, issues, and concerns in your world. You might construct a series of connected circle, squares, geometric figures, placing your name in one of the figures and connecting it to other individuals. This is a form of a Sociogram.
In your notebook list and briefly describe the factors that will interfere with your career planning, career transition, promotion, and job search. Factors can include the following: relationships with co-workers, supervisors, customers; psychological states of mind; financial resources; family/spousal support & responsibilities; health and wellness issues; and time management issues. Include factors that would interfere with additional training if your plans would require training.
What factors have hampered you most recently? For instance, what factors are interfering with the time needed to complete the projects required in the Career Management Program? To what extent do these factors involve people, work responsibilities, non-work responsibilities, family or social responsibilities, or other factors?
What activity would you suggest to help you minimize the impact of the factors that are hampering your current activities and future planning.
What factors are hampering your close friends? (Remember, all excuses work, all the time - exceedingly well.)
In your notebook describe the most distasteful working conditions that you have experienced. Include the year, employer, position, and the persons, data, and things involved. If you have time, try distasteful living conditions.
Now describe the working conditions that are unpleasant but tolerable. Some factors (hygienic) exist on every job that most workers care nothing about as long as they are not causing problems. For instance, no one cares about the plumbing system until it breaks down and floods the floor on which you are working. These are "hygienic" factors. Plating the sewer pipes with Gold would not make your day any better either. What difference does it make as long as it does not leak within smelling distance? Can you think of other "hygienic" factors? Examples of poor working conditions may include working under unrealistic or unnecessary deadlines, unclear instructions, implied criticism, multiple supervisors, inadequate support, crude co-workers or supervisors, dishonest or unethical situations, poor qualify control procedures, broken equipment, unsafe conditions that are ignored, various company benefits and human relations hype, stupid or crude co-workers and supervisors.
Positive factors are health insurance, interesting work, job security, opportunity to learn new skills, vacation time, ability to work independently, recognition from coworkers, regular hours, limiting job stress, high income, working close to home, work that is important to society, chances for promotion, contact with a lot of people, and flexible hours.
List the factors (at least ten) that are important to you on a Decision-Making Grid (photocopy the grid from Parachute).
Take the Weekly Scheduler and list your typical activities at work. You may add additional captions to reflect your work environment. The events listed here must include what you do, to whom, and why, and what others do to you, and why. Include deadlines, demands, uncertainties, challenges, telephone calls answered (from whom, the reason for the calls), telephone calls placed (to whom, and reasons why the call was placed), correspondence written (to whom, and why), correspondence received (from whom, and why).
Most important list the interruptions you encounter and how you handle them. Indicate if the interruption is a telephone call or personal encounter, such as, secretary, co-worker, supervisor, customer, client, student, stranger, or family member.
In regards to your job, describe how you measure your productivity. Do not be surprised if this is a difficult task to complete. Remember the operative word is "measure."
Diagram the people you meet during a typical week at work. Note their predominant personality. Use geometric figures connected to one another to represent the relationships.
If you were self-employed, create a Board of Directors with at least six members listing the member’s names, if possible, and/or their areas of expertise.
Write an analysis relating the information in Step 1 & 2. What conclusions would you draw about yourself specifically regarding your strengths, assets, weak area, and preferred and least preferred styles of relating and working with people?
If available, complete the Self-Directed Search and the Myers-Briggs or PF 16 FACTORS. How does your analysis in Step 3 compare with the results?
Design a work environment including the people that would be most facilitative in helping you achieve your career goals.
What types of people in your work environment can cause potential problems for you. How can you minimize these problems?
What Leadership or Management Style is suggested by your responses?
Secure your own catalogue or class schedule of a comprehensive vocational school, community college, and four-year college (select the school you attended if possible). Review all the course descriptions (from A to Z). Underline any of the words or phrases that illustrate a special knowledge (history, psychology) and a skill that you possess even to a minor degree. Please use a (Red) pen for "Skills" and a (Yellow) pen for "Special Knowledge;"
List in your notebook, the statements, words, and/or phrases in the course description that approximates your special skills and knowledge.
Group your list of skills and knowledge in to categories that make sense to you.
Place your college transcripts in your notebook. Underline the courses that you enjoyed and/or involved a particular achievement. Translate the courses you completed into skill words or terms that represent the special knowledge you acquired. List in-service training, training you complete for certification or re-certification, licensure, or special job requirements. The main point of this exercise is to connect your learning outside of formal education to the traditional course descriptions and language used in formal education and training.
It is recommended that you use the catalogues from a variety of schools (University, Four Year College, Community College, Post Secondary Proprietary School, and Independent In-Service programs like the American Management Association) representing different levels of education. If you can not obtain your own copy of the catalogue, note the words or phrases in your notebook.
The purpose of this project is to help you trigger memories of past experiences and to assist you in translating your life experiences outside of formal education into a terminology that permits the exploration of transferable skills. How do you distinguish between a "special knowledge" and a "skill?"
Every employer and industry has its own skill language or terms for a "skill set." There are general foundation skills, self-management skills that are relevant to many occupations, such as showing up on time. These skills transfer readily.
There are job content skills that are associated a position with a particular employer. These skills may not transfer. Often job content skills may not transfer because the worker does not know how to label the skill and translate the label so that it makes sense in another industry.
You need to know how to learn the language in order to translate words from one industry or career to another. The DOT, OOH, California Occupational Guides, and especially the GOE (yes, I know about the O-NET) are useful reference books that use a common skill language that is used by many employers.
Reviewing published job descriptions and reviewing trade magazines is another method of leaning "skill language." Listening to the jargon used by workers is most helpful.
Lets start by acknowledging that you do not know how to label most of your skills. Before you can attempt to even start labeling your skills you need to place on paper a complete dossier of your pertinent life experiences, such as, but not limited to, your work history. But you need to record this information in a manner that permits translating the information to skill words that permits you to make a connection to other occupations, professions, employers and industries.
One of the main points of self-assessment exercises is to help you describe your "skill set." A successful job search (and career plan) depends heavily on your ability to communicate clearly (verbally and in writing) what you can do well and what you want to do in the language of the customer- the employer.
You need to take the occupation or career that you want, and then determine the skills needed to secure employment or participation in the occupation or career. When you can define your skill-set, then you can determine how and where to get them.
Research your own occupational title to become acquainted with the formal language used to describe occupations. Identify the codes- DOT, GOE, OOH (page #), COG, Physical Demands, SVP, GED, etc.
Associate your company with a SIC code. Name three competitors in your marketing/trading area. Obtain a written job description used by a competitor if available.
With respect to your position, what is the next position on the career ladder? What is the salary range for your position with competitors?
What is your "skill set."
List the "labor markets" that you know something about and provide a very brief explanation of the distinguishing factors of those markets. Would you use the same research techniques or job search techniques to obtain employment in each labor market?
During the course of our daily activities, we have access to occupational information. The following sources of information are often within our grasp without making a special effort to access the source. See how many sources you can access during your activities of daily living. Collect a pre-employment application form, job description, or position announcement from the following:
Collect information from other public and private educational and training institutions in your County if you are considering formal training.
Include information about external and accelerated degree (career center), degree programs, and the college level examination program (CLEP). List two-year and/or four-year colleges or universities that offer programs in your County. (Minimum of six) Which organizations in your career field or industry provide in-service training programs or classes?
Identify and become acquainted with the following publications:
The publications noted above are in the library, or you can purchase them at bookstores with large magazine sections.
Trade Magazines & Company/Organizational Newsletters, and Professional Journals can be obtained from employers and organizations. There is a Directory of these publications in the Library. The Library will have some technical publications. SSU library holds many technical publications.
Do you have access to Investment Newsletters? They are an excellent source of information on industries.
Document your research notes and time in your notebook or calendar.
Where would you find the following information? Other resources that you believe would assist you in occupational research.
Ten (10) job titles associated with the Insurance Industry and Electronics Industry.
In order to practice your ability to collect information (intelligence), collect information on two hobbies. Select one hobby that you know something about. Select a second hobby that interests you but about which you know nothing. Summarize the data in your notebook. You should attempt to contact ten individuals for each activity in addition to researching five other resources such as publications.
If there is a retail outlet associated with the hobby, visit the retail outlet. There may be an organization or club listed in the Yellow or White Pages. The Chamber of Commerce has a list of associations and organizations in the County. Check the City Recreation Department.
Reserve a section of your notebook for one hundred (100) names of individuals who may be informational resources. (Yes, I know you think this is impossible. Trust me, you can do it!) Fill in the name, occupation, employer, and telephone number. Initially, you may only be able to come up with ten or twenty names. As you work on the projects in this program during the upcoming weeks, you will be able to add to your list. When you focus your efforts on a task, it is amazing what you can accomplish. It is best not to screen out any names at this point. Include your enemies.
The more information you can include with each name the better such as address, phone number, occupation, position title, employer, organizational membership, etc. You do not necessarily need to be acquainted with these individuals. You can name individuals who you do not know but may be a good source of information. The most important characteristic of the individuals you name is that they are a potential source of important occupational, career, employment, and labor market information. You will also use this list when you begin networking for employment. VIEW the videotape on Networking (located at the Media desk, listed under my name) at the Santa Rosa Junior College library.
Can you make a list of 100 names. Individuals you know- family, friends, business associates, classmates, acquaintances. Anyone you come into contact during the day. List the name, address, telephone, occupation, employer, and other information. Check out Contact Management Software Program (PIM).
Research activities take time. You may not have time to complete 100% of the following tasks. What is important is that you schedule the time you have available and get as much done as possible. You can continue with this project after this course. With experience you will learn how to research occupations very quickly.
Identify three major industries- no more, no less. Your choice. Perhaps you may want to select the industries associated with the companies you selected. Research each industry. The research must include at the minimum five personal contacts (face to face or by telephone) with individuals who are considered knowledgeable and competent in their field, in addition to literature research.
The variety of resources is more important at this time than the depth of information from any one source. Each edition of major financial newspapers and magazines will list the names of the companies noted in the publication.
Summarize your research in your notebook including sources of information. Document your research activity and time in your calendar.
Using results of your Field Research - Industries select three employers for each of the industries you selected. The employer must represent the industry. The employer's core business must fall in the industry category you selected.
The employers selected should be of different sizes such as a Corporation with over 10,000 employees, a smaller company with 5,000 employees, a local company with 200 employees, and a local company with less than 50 employees.
(For each industry, note one government agency (Federal, State, Municipal) that could be associated with the companies core business, service, or product.) Research each employer (literature, brochures, key contacts, and plant visit). Document your research and time.
For each of the employers you selected, identify three different position titles staffed by the company. Once you identified the position title, determine the "career path" of that position, including lesser, promotional and horizontal/lateral positions.
Now obtain information about the position titles (DOT, GOE, and Holland Codes). If additional education and/or formal training is essential to become employed in the areas of your research, include information about the required training such as subject matter, length of training, and representative schools.
Complete a job analysis of the position and a work capacity evaluation of your physical capacities and limitations.
Select one occupation from your research. Use a variety of resources to research the occupation. Interview at least one person who is employed in the occupation you are researching.
However, never use an informational interview as a devise to obtain a job interview. This is dishonest and unprofessional.
Plan the research by first listing the activities you anticipate will be necessary to obtain the information, noting the sources of information you will need to consult. Organize these activities and schedule them on your calendar even if the activity requires you to make telephone calls. Often, it is necessary to engage in a variety of initial activities just to determine what questions you need to be asking. If you plan to contact individuals in person or by telephone write out your questions. Be careful about starting with open-ended questions. Ask for two to three minutes of their time. Refer to Parachute, for additional information on informational interviewing. Never use the informational interview as a trick and/or technique to get a job interview.
Interview a representative of this occupation. (Keep your notes in your notebook, and please give references for the sources of information.) A list of information categories and sample questions are listed below. Complete this research in your notebook.1 – Occupational Research: (Keep your notes in your notebook, and please give references for the sources of information.)
(Draw a circle, and make a pie chart to reflect the following)
A = would best represent the time spent
B = would best represent the time spent
C = would best represent the time spent
D = would best represent the time spent
A typical day would begin at _______ and end at __________.
Other job obligations would include:
Field Research Projects are the Most Critical Projects in this Program.
When you finished you will have researched:
You will have completed a minimum of fifty-one (51) contacts if you complete this exercise.
(An excellent resource for researching college majors and educational institutions can be found in Taking Charge of Your Career Direction by Locke, available at the Reserve Desk, Plover Library, and Santa Rosa Junior Collage)
When you narrow down your choice of colleges to two or three institutions complete the following checklist to help you think through your choices.
Read the directions, and then complete this exercise. The purpose of this exercise is to get you acquainted with the terminology and the unique way of thinking of achievement motivation. Equally important, this project is designed to help you become more specific and concrete in formulating goal statements. This project is considered a preliminary statement. You will be updating this project in the future.
Three pictures will be presented to you. Look at picture # 1 for a few seconds. Then make up an imaginative story that is suggested to you by the picture, and write it out on the back of the picture. Limit your story to five minutes. When you are finished, repeat the steps with the second and third pictures.
These are guides. Your story should be continuous, not just specific answers to these questions. There are no right or wrong answers. The picture does not have to be described perfectly. Write the story in longhand in your notebook. Do not type them.
After you write your stories, write a response to each question based on your story in your notebook. Add additional details to your story in order to respond to the questions. The purpose of these questions is to help you prepare more complete and detailed achievement imagery. If you have a high achievement motive, you no doubt have a variety of feelings and demonstrate the behavior that is essential for sound achievement planning. The feelings and behaviors may include:
You may think the following statement to be an over-simplification of your problem or concern, but you are challenged to give it your singular consideration. Career Management that will help you reach your goals begins by first just wanting to achieve, imagining what success or achievement would be like, and deciding you want to achieve. The thought must precede the act. The mind cannot achieve what it first cannot perceive. You get what you set. Career Management, then, begins by preparing an achievement story. Writing an achievement story is an excellent method of becoming achievement oriented. If you could not identify with the previous statements regarding the achievement motive, then the practice of writing achievement stories can help you develop achievement thinking.
Create a story about yourself in which you will achieve something very important. Write your story in your notebook during one sitting. Your story must be at least 500 words, but not more that 1,000 words. Please do not type your story. Use legible handwriting. Write it yourself without any help. Do not tear out revisions. Consider this work a rough draft. Leave a two-inch top, bottom, right, and left margin, and do not write on the backside of the paper. Do not start the remaining projects until you are finished. Do not write about a past experience. It must be about a future experience. Finally, complete your story within sixty minutes. Note the obstacles from external sources and internal sources. Include some detail of the actions or activities that are needed. Will you experience some failure feelings, fear of failure, success feelings, and anticipation of success feelings? Whom will you use for help or support along the way?
Use the questions in Step # 2 above and write a response in your notebook.
Now it is time for you to begin forming your own specific achievement goals, aims, or "action plans." Consider this project your first draft. There will be opportunities to polish your Action Plan in future projects.
After you write your achievement story in your notebook and respond to the questions in Steps 1, 2 and 3 read the following questions and write a response to each question. Do not spend more than three minutes on each question. Describe your goal or (Aim) as precisely as you can. In what way will you measure your success or failure? (Your Aim broken down into stages, with a time line)
Now begin and complete the Quick Job Hunting Map, in the What Color Is Your Parachute? Workbook Section (1998) pages 10 to 76 or The Flower Exercise, page 262 to 303, in the 1999 edition. Plan your time so that you complete this project. Follow the instructions. Photocopy the workbook or exercise pages and submit the finished work.
The following information will help you identify a specific position goal, specific employer, prepare a tailored resume, prepare for the oral interview including the application form, and help you identify potential sources of job leads.
There are many very good books to guide you in completing a resume. Review some titles and read one to two thoroughly. I would also discuss the paper application process including resumes and application forms with an employer to gain some insight on these topics.
Review books about resumes in the Career Center, Plover Library, or on Reserve under Guidance 61, Instructor, Jack Geary. Select a book that you like. You will find books on specific occupations that include information about special considerations on resumes.
You cannot prepare a resume properly unless:
If you are unable to prepare a resume, you are not ready for the job you are seeking. If you cannot prepare a written argument to convince the employer to hire you, then you are not prepared for the oral interview. Only you can prepare the resume. Paying someone to be a publicist and write the resume for you means you will continue to be a "job beggar" even if you get the job. However, paying someone to provide consultation on your work and research may be helpful.
I do not believe you are qualified for a job unless you can complete a resume yourself to justify your employment.
You need to spend time researching the specific labor market. Then you need to prepare a rough draft of your resume and have it critiqued by someone employed in the field/occupation that you are seeking. Review the information below regarding compiling your background file and the questions to test your job readiness.
Prepare a draft of your resume. Submit the draft. When the draft is returned prepare a final version. Type the final version. If you use a computer load the file on a disk.
Visit the Federal WEB site at www.usajobs.opm.gov California Job Service at www.caljobs.ca.gov State Civil Service at www.spb.ca.gov and America’s Job Bank at www.ajb.dni.us Complete the registration and information requested.
Email me your resume. My address is geary@gearyassociates.com
Preparation for the job search requires that you are able to anticipate all obstacles to the search, employer objections, and job retention issues. The job search preparation includes preparing for the first promotion before you end the final interview.
Review the following information and prepare a written response to any item that would pose a problem for you.
The following information in addition to the information you will record in the workbook titled Job Finding Fast, or Getting the Job You Really Want should be compiled and placed in a confidential file for your eyes only. Howard Figler’s book, The Job Search is another great book. This project will help you learn how to evaluate and minimize the impact of negative information.
The employer has a right to ask your permission to conduct a background inquiry to obtain information that is related to assessing your skills and candidacy for the position for which you are seeking. There are legal guidelines to what information the employer can request and the timing of the request. Be prepared. Always attempt to obtain or to know if there is any negative information that the employer will discover before you submit an application or interview for the position. You must always provide truthful information but you do not have to provide all information. You need to know what you do not have to provide.
Official Degree Check: If you have attended one or more colleges including military training, but do not have a degree schedule an appointment with a counselor. It may be possible to have the Registrar evaluate your work towards an AA/AS degree and evaluate your progress towards completing undergraduate degree requirements.
Verification of Employment: Send a letter to your previous employers for the past five years, and request a verification of employment, including dates of employment job title, and salary. This project will help you identify the contact person of your present employer.
Degrees, Certificates, and Licenses: Obtain photocopies of all documents supporting degrees, credentials, certifications, and registrations available in your file, but do not send them or give them to the employer. Do not volunteer them until you are in the interview, and then ask the employer if they are needed first. You should know the exact terminology, especially the name of the issuing agency of any piece of paper. If any certificates have expired, you must know what to do in the event you may need to reinstate the certification? Obtain a copy of your DMV record and check it for accuracy.
Do not give an employer copies of your documents unless the employer is making a bonafide job offer. You can have the school send the employer verification of courses taken and degrees awarded. The employer may not need your grades in unrelated courses. If the employer wants verification of grades in courses unrelated to the job requirements, you will have to evaluate that request. If the employer wants your grades, ask the employer to specify the courses and provide information that grades are positively related to successful performance on the job. Why does the employer want grades? Information is negotiable-- the employer should give you valuable information for each piece of information you give the employer.
Medical History: If you have a significant medical impairment, obtain an exact medical diagnosis of the impairment, learn how to discuss the condition in lay terms, and learn how to explain restrictions that may interfere with a job function. You need to know how to relate a medical impairment to vocational restrictions. You must be prepared to show the employer how you can perform the job tasks using your capacities. Focus on ability not disability.
Contact your physician or a RN Nurse when you need help in explaining medical conditions that you may have to discuss with an employer. Remember, check off only those conditions on a medical form for which you have received a medical diagnosis. Avoid noting minor strains, aches, kinks, etc. This is not the time to speculate or guess. The information in these forms can follow you for life. Ask your physician about his/her policy about providing medical information to third parties. Ask your treating physician to help you complete the questionnaire. You may want to notify your physician in writing not to release any information unless you are consulted first even if you signed a release. Read your chart notes. Even when you call the physician on the telephone, notes are recorded about the conversation.
During your employment physical exam, do not volunteer any information that is not relevant. Answer questions. This is not a chat session. A medical examination is not a psychological examination so politely request an explanation for any questions that you believe exceed the purpose of the physical examination.
Some positions do require a psychological evaluation in addition to a "medical" examination. You are also being observed, such as how you are able to bend over to take off your shoes, sit on the examining table, turn over on the table, all of which demonstrates you agility.
Your demeanor, grooming, and appearance are also being evaluated. Attend the physical exam dressed as if you were attending the job interview. Look and talk like a job applicant.
Be careful of open-ended questions during the exam such as, "Is there anything you would like to tell me about your family life or personal situation?" The answer is "nothing that I can think of." Ask the employer to discuss the information they receive about you. Your health is always excellent-- do not attempt to diagnosis your health. Leave that to the medical examiner. If you rate yourself less than "excellent," such as "good" be prepared with a good explanation for checking "good." Your interviewer may employ silence as a tool to get you to talk too much. Many individuals begin jabbering away whenever there is period of silence (5 to 10 seconds, that is all it takes). Respond to questions not silence.
Credit History: Contact major credit reporting companies and obtain a copy of your credit report. I suggest you check out TRW, CBI, and a local reporting agency. There may be a small charge. It is worth it. Alert your landlord/property manager that they may be contacted by an employer for a reference. Give the landlord/property manager a copy of your resume. Ask them what they will report.
Psychological Testing and Interviews: If you will be scheduled for a "psychological" interview, make sure you get the name and qualifications of the psychologist or examiner. Confirm and verify that the psychologist is licensed in the State, obtain the names of any instruments (tests) that you complete, and find out how they are scored and who scores them. If someone else administers the tests, get their name and experience. You could schedule an appointment with a psychologist of your choice for an hour to obtain some education about this type of interview if a psychological interview is essential in the job search. There may be a fee.
Some employers will administer a personality test or "lie detection" test. Ask many questions? How do the results of this test prove a person is qualified for the job? If the employer is not willing to discuss the results with you, determine if you want to work for the employer. The employer may ask if you can perform the essential job demands. You need to know what those demands are before you can answer that question. The employer may employ a graphologist (handwriting analyst) and ask you to provide a writing sample. Ask for information that was provided by the graphologist, the graphologist’s name and expertise. Information is negotiable.
Criminal Record: If you have a criminal record of felonies and/or misdemeanors, find out exactly what the record shows. Get a copy of your record. Contact the Police Department or County Courthouse. Seek expert consultation on how to handle this situation with employers. For instance, it is important to know the relationship of the recorded code violation with the type of work you will perform or the type of employer. Some positions require certification that precludes certain types of convictions. Under what circumstances would you be required to discuss your record, and under what circumstances would a discussion of your record not be necessary? Be alert to off-the-shelf application forms that ask for this information such as your arrest record that you do not need to provide.
Identification and Proof of Citizenship: All employers must ask you to prove your identity, your citizenship status, and complete the I-9 Form. Have the necessary documents ready for observation. The employer may not take these documents. The I-9 Form should not be completed unless you have first met the employer.
References: Contact three to five individuals and get permission to use their names as personal references. Give each individual a copy of your resume; discuss the type of work you are seeking, and follow-up after an interview to find out if they were contacted. Send each person a thank you card.
Investigations: In some instances, the employer may have an investigator perform a background check which may include a contact with your neighbors and property manager/landlord to name a few. Let these people know you are seeking employment and give them a copy of your resume. Follow-up and find out if they were contacted. If you are concerned about this (really concerned), contract a company to perform a standard employment background check for you.
Clothing, Uniforms, and Tools: Are you prepared to meet dress requirements of the industry in which you will seek work and/or provide the uniforms and/or tools that the employer may require? Do you know that the employer may be required to pay you extra wages if you provide your own tools? Contact the Industrial Welfare Commission (Farmers Lane in Santa Rosa) and obtain a copy of the Hours, Wages, and Working Conditions Document. The only way you can determine the fairness of paying for these items yourself is to contact other employers to learn about the local practices.
Drug Screening: Make sure you have prescriptions for any medications you must take. Avoid medications if they are not essential. It will take about sixty to ninety days to remove traces of medications. Some foods can produce a positive result. You should first receive a job offer subject to the drug screening. There is nothing to prevent you from going to a lab and ordering a panel yourself.
Automobile, Pets, Smokers, and Drinkers: Clean your car. If your car looks like a junker, do not let the employer see it. If you have pets in your house and if you let them in your car, make sure, you are not carrying their odor with you. With respect to smoking, remember that non-smokers can always tell if another person is a smoker or has been in the presence of smokers (restaurants, etc). Even if you do not smoke but you live with someone who smokes in your car or home, your clothing will smell of smoke.
Eliminate the odor from your clothing and avoid smoking before the interview. Avoid drinking alcohol before a job interview and during your active job search activities. Non-smokers who interview you in a closed room can usually notice the odor of alcohol if you have been drinking a few hours before the interview. If you are a heavy drinker, non-smokers can often tell if you were drinking within the past 24 hours especially if you drink on a regular basis. It comes out of the sweat glands.
Liability Insurance: It is not only the law, but it is important in the job search, to be covered by auto liability insurance. Employers may want you to use your car or the company car from time to time.
Grooming Standards: Are you prepared to demonstrate the grooming standards expected of job applicants for the type of work you are seeking. What are the standards such as hair styling and length, sideburns, mustache, jewelry- on your clothing and attached to your body parts? Can you presently demonstrate those standards? Do you know how to find out the employer's standards? Regardless of the law, do you want the job?
Workers' Compensation Claims: The employer has no need to know you have had workers' compensation claim. If you are discussing the reason for leaving your last job because of an industrial injury, the employer does not need to know about the details of your workers' compensation claim (permanent disability rating or settlement) and should not be asking questions about your claim in the first place. At the appropriate time, the employer can ask about your ability to perform the job in question. Just ask, "How is this information related to the job requirement?"
You were laid off because the employer could not accommodate you in a suitable position not because you were injured. Most people do not know much about the details or technicalities of workers’ compensation claims so you can just state, "I'm sorry, but I just do not know much about the details. If they are essential to your decision about my employment here, I will try to get the information. But, I will need to know why this information would influence an employment decision." If you lost your job due to an industrial injury, you were laid off because the employer did not have a different or modified job.
Wages, Working Hours, Duties, and Supervision: Confirm the wage rate, overtime rate, working hours and days, policy on rotating days/shifts if pertinent, the supervisor’s name, where you will be working, policy about using your car on company business and reimbursement rate, pay period, when salary/wages is reviewed, how performance is evaluated, who evaluates, and when you qualify for any company fringe benefits. Remember the employer must deduct payroll taxes. Send the employer a memorandum confirming these details. Now is the time to discuss wage increases and performance standards for determining increases.
Independent Contractor Status: If the employer pays you in cash, you should sign a receipt and obtain a copy to confirm that payroll deductions have been taken. You can contact the Employment Development Department if you need to confirm that payroll deductions are being deposited. If payroll taxes are not deducted then you are not covered for unemployment insurance, state disability insurance, workers’ compensation insurance, and social security benefits. The IRS may hold you responsible for your share of the payroll taxes if the employer should have deducted the taxes.
Bonding: A prospective employer may need to cover you with a BOND. This will often involve a credit check and other background inquiries.
Fingerprinting/Drug Screening: A prospective employer may be required to include fingerprinting in the background inquiry.
Do you have any specific questions in this area?
When you are on the employer's premises during a job interview, all contacts with the employer's staff including the receptionist and secretaries are deliberate and not accidental. Before we continue, I have a word for the Helping Practitioner! Let us make sure we are on the same playing field. This information does not refer to the chronic and dysfunctional individual with severe developmentally or acquired disabilities that result in substantial vocational handicaps who need an advocate to help them overcome obstacles imposed on them by irritable and stupid employers. I am speaking about functional workers in the workforce who seek employment regardless of their occupation level, previous earnings, medical impairments, vocational handicaps, or educational achievement.
However, any worker who experiences a job loss, may display acute dysfunctional behavior such as panic attacks, disorientation, a feeling of being overwhelmed, a threatened self-esteem, withdrawal, misplaced anger, medical symptoms, and mild depression. Smart job seekers will seek out resources to assist them in the job search, accept the intervention of a counselor / consultant, and then do the work that is recommended. The counseling interventions must go far beyond vocational tests and temperament profiles and trendy phrases and concepts. The best method to help the client is to get out of the way and ask them what they need.
It is often helpful to review their calendar of activities completed over the past weeks to develop a baseline behavior, and then prepare an action plan of daily activities listed in your calendar for the next two to four weeks. Otherwise, the client is paying for a rap session. Inept job seekers will continue doing what they have always done. They never examine their past behavior. They will never do what a competent counselor or mentor recommends. You must to hold your ground and recommend the unpopular activity. They know when you lose it- and we all do from time to time. When you do, some job seekers (job beggars) will exploit the situation while others (job intrepreneurs) will confront the counselor or mentor and seek another counselor / mentor. Looking for work (marketing skills) can be an extremely difficult task for some people, and the job search often requires substantial psychological or emotional labor. The questions that follow provide pragmatic and achievable actions steps that are needed to counteract the potential gravity toward the state of mind of the "job beggar."
The acid test of measuring a job seekers job search effort is to count the rejection letters. If there are no rejection letters there has been no job search.
The effort to perform the research to answer these questions separates the interpreneurs from the beggars. Job interpreneurs intuitively seek information that answer the questions that follow especially those questions that pertain to their job search. The counselor's job is to perform "excuse-ectomies." If you are working with a support group, take turns sharing your answers and call each other on fuzzy thinking. Each question and comment is designed to zero in on a particular job search behavior peculiar to the special context of the job seeker. Therefore, the questions and comments will be somewhat repetitive and overlapping. Furthermore, the questions and comments are written in the first person; and they are not listed in a particular order or grouping. Pick the questions that make sense to you. If you cannot answer these questions, you may not be job ready. You heard this before.
Stupid job seekers (job beggars) will sit in your office and tell you how much they know about seeking work and how much you do not know about seeking work. However, they cannot produce notes about their employer contacts. Stupid job seekers (job beggars) are individuals who are not aware that they are in your office--not theirs. They are living on disability payments, unemployment compensation, and/or their spouses/parents earnings, not their earnings. They are unemployed and you are employed. They are broke. Some job beggars also become "homeless" by choice because they choose to drop out or slack off perhaps due to discouragement, frustration with the current substantial economic dislocations, delayed adolescence, or misplaced anger.
One final point, there are individuals who seek professional services from counselors or placement agencies (It does not matter whether they are paying clients or clients who have third-party support who say they would pay for your services if they could (They Won't) for the sole purpose of getting that famous list of employers just waiting for them to call.
This is no joke. There are job seekers (job beggars) who expect that a counselor will have that list of employers who are on the edge of their seats waiting for them to call. If anyone has it, please let me know. That is why so many individuals visit employment agencies, get the job offer through the employment agency (or through a placement office of a school), and then question why the agency is charging them a percentage of the salary after they start work. These are the individuals who will say you did nothing to help them.
1. What is the preferred geographic area (commute range) within which you will accept employment?
2. What are your top three primary job objectives and top two secondary objectives?
3. How do you know you are qualified? First, what are the essential requirements asked for by the employer? How did you find out about the essential hiring requirements? Connect each of the minimum hiring requirements or expectations of the employer with your specific job content skills and/or previous experience. Are you prepared to negotiate?
4. What are the names and locations of three employers who staff each of your primary and secondary job objectives?
5. What are the names of the position titles used by those employers?
6. What will employers pay you if you were selected to fill each of these positions in the labor market where you are seeking employment?
7. What are the employer's anxieties in the hiring process? How can you help reduce these anxieties? If a manager or supervisor (an employee) interviews you, what are their anxieties? List each anxiety, and write out employer questions that might address each anxiety. Then write out your response.
8. Are you prepared to explain why you are leaving your present job? Why you are currently unemployed? If you are interviewing for a job that is different from your last job, are you prepared to explain the change? Remember that the person interviewing you left a job to fill the one they now have. The issue is not that you left or you will be leaving a job. The prospective employer just wants to make sure he/she is not hiring another employer's problem. Make your change make sense.
9. How does the position contribute to the employer's bottom line? Remember the employer or the manager (employee) may not know how the position influences the bottom line.
10. What is your bottom line?
11. Can you schedule daytime hours to contact employers in person and on the telephone every day during the next four weeks?
12. Take out your calendar and schedule in the time. How much time can you schedule to complete employment research assignments at home, the Library, or Career Center?
13. Have you prepared a list of 100 contacts--friends, associates, co-workers, anyone that you meet during the day--when you are shopping, your landlord, casual friends, enemies, friends of friends, former employers. Scan the yellow pages, and identify a person that you know as you scan the list of businesses.
14. Scan the classified ads for the past ninety days--usually one weekday edition and the Sunday edition. Many employers who use the classified, Help Wanted, section of the newspaper, always use them; and many people who accept job offers do not stay on the job.
15. Do you have a pet? Does the pet ride in your car? Would you offer to drive a prospective employer in your car? Do you smoke? Do your clothes telegraph the odor of smoke and/or the pets?
16. Remember your close friends and co-workers or associates will not come to your aid when you are unemployed. You must ask them for assistance in a business/professional manner. Treat them as if they were the employers. Do not assume friendship will substitute for their professional judgment.
17. Register at the EDD Job Service, every major employer and visit at least five temporary agencies. This activity will help you practice speaking about yourself and increase your network of contacts.
18. Seeking employment is a numbers game. Your job is to contact as many potential employers face to face in the shortest time cycle possible and follow-up, follow-up. At the end of each day, your calendar and notebook will tell you how busy you have been. The sooner you contact 100 people, make 50 employer calls, and complete 10 interviews, the better.
19. Each day, you must add names to your contact list. Remember that the employer is not in business to hire employees. In fact, the employer's job is to decrease operating costs and increase productivity. Employers fill positions and each position contributes to the bottom line.
20. Do you have an answering machine? Call yourself and listen to your greeting. Would you hire the person who made this greeting? Employers have reported calling an applicant to schedule an interview, and after listening to the greeting, hung up!
21. What is the salary paid by employers in your targeted labor market area for the position you are seeking? Are there any significant differences between public and private sector employers, large employers, medium-size employers, and small employers? If the information is available, factor in the cost of fringe benefits. For the position you are seeking, compare the salary schedules of a community college, County, and City Government with a mid-size, established private sector employer.
22. Do you have a current copy of your DMV printout and credit report? Get a copy of each, and make sure it is accurate.
23. Did you contact each of your references and give them a copy of your resume? What about your landlord? Physician? Previous employers? Parole or Probation Office? Instructor/School Official? It is always a good idea to speak with anyone that might be contacted by an employer before that employer speaks with him or her.
24. Did you contact your last three employers to confirm the name of the person in charge of personnel records, verify your job title, duties, wage rate, attendance/punctuality?
25. Have you practiced completing a variety of pre-employment application forms? How is your printing? Use a black, thin tipped, felt pen, and use block style printing with impeccable spelling. Practice, practice, practice!
26. Have you toured the job site of the employer where you will be seeking work?
27. Spend about two hours sitting in the job service office or the personnel office of a large company where you would not be noticed, and just watch, observe, and listen. Who would you hire and why?
28. One factor that separates successful job seekers from unsuccessful job seekers is the quantity of employer contacts. If you were looking for work this week, how many face to face contacts (informational interview, inquiry, submit application, interview) did you make this week? Is your number greater than ten? If not, how does it feel to be broke? Remember that securing employment is the beginning of a relationship that is built on mutual trust.
Employers want to feel comfortable supervising and correcting. Employers do not want to become your counselor, mother, or confidant. Leave your problems at the door. Always prepare for the next job. You do not own the position. Employment is not a permanent parking space.
Prepare for an oral interview. The previous tasks will help you identify potential problem questions. Prepare a response to the questions that you would anticipate. This interview will be videotaped and critiqued. Submit the five most troublesome questions in your opinion and include a brief statement of your response.
Identify ten sources of job leads. Prepare a daily job search plan for two weeks whether or not you are will actually seek work. Submit the plan..
Expand on your educational experiences. What were your relationships with your teachers and other students? Comment on volunteer activities, projects, memorizing facts, taking tests, competing for grades and recess/lunch activities. Where did you usually sit in your elementary classrooms? What did you do with your unstructured, unsupervised, or free time after school especially in grades 6, 7, 8, and 9?
Expand on your employment including unpaid/volunteer work. How did you accept evaluations, corrections, and criticism? Include any self-employment experiences here. Rank ten of your paid or volunteer jobs in order of priority, and briefly describe your most significant contribution and the outcome of those contributions:
1. ______________________________
2. ______________________________
3. ______________________________
4. ______________________________
5. ______________________________
6. ______________________________
7. ______________________________
8. ______________________________
9. ______________________________
List the top three most--liked jobs:
List the top three least--liked jobs:
In your opinion, what job was the most valuable? # ____.
How did you define the word "valuable?"
What excited you most about the top three jobs you held? Can you see a relationship between Steps # 1 and Steps # 2 and # 3?
What irritated you? What are the elements responsible for the least--liked jobs?
What did you do with your time when you were unemployed?
Expand on your family experiences during the time you attended elementary school this time focusing on relationships with your brothers/sisters and other significant people besides your parents.
For each period of your life listed below, describe two events that represented an achievement, something you enjoyed doing, or something you did well: (Ten minutes)
Rank the events in Step 7 above in order of importance to you. (Two minutes.)
Which event was the most enjoyable? #. Why?
Which activities gave you the most pleasure when you were not at work?
In your latest assignment, activity, or work, which parts of it did you do best and enjoy most?
After completing your formal schooling, which two or three subjects did you continue to study and enjoy most?
Describe the top four achievements in more detail.
Describe three situations in which you failed, performed poorly, or slipped-up. What have you learned from that experience? Are there situations, people, tasks, or pressures that you now know you need to avoid?
Remember, very often it is our strengths that get us into trouble especially when these strengths are used to excess or without consideration of other people or situations. What strengths do you have that may get you into trouble?
If you were to make a movie of your life, describe or visualize ten scenes or episodes five years from this date in which you are achieving something that is consistent with the achievements listed in Step 7. Do you see any pattern or theme in your achievements?
Have you been satisfied with your career to date? If not, write down two or three events or situations you believe have interfered with your past achievements or could possibly interfere with future achievements.
Assume you reached your lifestyle objective including your occupational and financial goals; describe what a typical day would be like using the first person singular.
Your Skill Group:
Read through the following groups of skills or functions that make up most varieties of jobs.
Check four or five of the groups that you believe must be part of any job you would like to do or would assist you in securing a job that can help you realize your financial goals. Note one or two of the groups you believe are important to you, and underscore them.
Review the Classified Section of the San Jose Mercury News, Chronicle, Press Democrat, the Business Development/Franchise Marketplace in the Wall Street Journal. Cut out Position Titles or Businesses that relate to the "groups" that you selected in Task 2. Place them in your notebook.
What is your yearly income from your occupation(s)? Refer back to the Income Line project.
Average the five-year, three-year, current year and expected income this year. Increase this figure by about 3.0 % per year for each year for the next twenty years - or until you reach age 70. Plot the figure.
Then draw another line showing the same figure decreased by 2% percent for each year for the next twenty years. Plot this line.
Total the annual income for the twenty-year period. Divide this figure by 25. The new average figure factors in loss work time.
You are worth what you are paid and you are paid what you are worth. If the "garbage collector" makes more than you do, then become a "garbage collector." The annual average income (the average based on 25 years) is a reasonable estimate of your earning capacity over a twenty-year period. If this figure is unacceptable, what will you do to improve it?
List five to ten problems in your community that concern you and affect you in some way. What do you believe should be done about each of these problems?
Select two of the problems that you would like to work on. What would you do about them if you had the time and the financial resources? What would result from your efforts? Could you work on these problems if you were not able to earn enough money to support yourself?
Determine, which of these problems could be incorporated in your career goals and leisure-time (non-work time) goals.
Name a person (in your age group and occupational level or slightly higher) that you admire and who is tackling these problems the way you would like to work on the problems. What do you have in common? What is this person's occupation?
Provide examples of articles in newspapers or magazines if you come across them.
What specific occupational skill do you possess that is needed to solve a community problem?
Meet with two individuals who are also working on their career management. Ask them to review your responses to this assignment when you are finished. Ask these individuals to suggest what broad Fields your responses appear to be pointing to or suggest? Take notes in your notebook.
Using all the data you have collected to date in this program, select an occupation at this point that makes the most sense. Support your choice of this occupation with data from your notebook your argument. Prepare a short presentation (10 minutes) as if you would be speaking to a group of people. Videotape or record your presentation and play it back in about one week.
Listen to the your presentation again. Ask yourself questions to obtain data that you believe is needed to make your presentation tighter more concrete. Your questions should be designed to raise questions to trigger further research and to increase your understanding. Record your questions. Ask someone to listen or view your presentation. Request feedback.
In your best opinion at this time, list three occupational titles or directions that offer a reasonable opportunity of helping you reach your lifestyle goals.
Write a brief supporting statement (one or two sentences) for each choice.
Prepare an Achievement Plan based on the information provided in Achievement Motivation. Or review the Achievement Plan you completed in the Achievement Motivation project if you completed this exercise. Using a different color pen or pencil, update, revise, add, subtract, and change this plan as needed. However, in all cases, add a great deal of specificity to this plan. For instance, what income curve do you want to project over your work life? When do you want to reach a point in time where your assets generate enough after-tax spendable income to meet your lifestyle needs and wants?
What "career path" makes sense with your current level of knowledge of the labor market and your ability to market your current preferred skills and special knowledge? If you were to draw a picture similar to the pictures in the previous project or a series of pictures to reflect your achievement plans, what would the picture (s) look like? If you are not an artist, find a picture or a collage of pictures as a substitute. Give this picture to someone you trust, and ask him/her to write an imaginative story about you just like the exercise in this project. Then take the story and analyze it the same way you analyzed your own story. In what ways did this individual characterize compare to your own characterization?
Prepare a two-page argument in support of your job choice to convince an employer that you can solve his or her problems or contribute to her or her bottom line.
Condense this argument into an acceptable format for a one or two page resume.
Look up America’s Job Bank and CAL JOBS and complete the resume worksheets. Submit your resume and/or the worksheet as directed. Search for an employer WEB site that permits you to submit your resume. You will need to have an email account.
Optional Project # 1: Begin a reading program consisting of books of your choice. You will find many suggestions in Parachute and Career Economics. Begin reading the Wall Street Journal, The Investors Business Daily, Fortune, Forbes, Inc., American Demographics to name a few. You will also find many careers planning issues in the course material of other courses you are studying. Submit photocopies of a few articles, pictures, advertisements, illustrations or other information that interested you. Your Task: Write a short article/essay (approximately five written pages) on your personal reaction one or more of the Chapters in Parachute and/or parts of Career Economics.
Optional Project # 2: Complete the Assessment Package (JOB-0 & SDS) available at the SRJC Bookstore. If you are unable to handle the charges for the Assessment Package, there are alternatives- complete the SIGI+, or DISCOVER, or EUREKA computerized programs at the Career Center. Contact the Career Center and schedule a time to complete one or more of these programs. You may also select other tests available at the Assessment Office. Your Task: Submit a one-page summary highlighting the results and what the results mean to you and how the results are related to other aspects of your background.
Optional Project # 3: Identification of Special Skills & Knowledge: You will need your own SRJC Schedule of Classes. Summarize your notes in one or two pages. Essentially you need to skim read the SRJC Schedule of Classes from A to Z and identify terms, phrases, or words that illustrate some degree of knowledge to a high degree of knowledge and/or skill you possess in your opinion- (triggered by the words, phrases, and terminology described in the course descriptions).
Optional Project # 4: Information Interviews: Contact an employer(s) and complete an informational interview(s) on the telephone or in person. Submit a one-page summary of the interview, including how you selected and contacted the employer.
Optional Project # 5: Send your resume and a cover letter to an employer via surface mail to apply for a specific position. Submit a copy of the resume and cover letter and document any responses you may receive. Include information about the position and the employer. Try www.northbaycareers.com
Optional Project # 6: Find an employer’s WEB page and submit an application for employment. In addition, use Employment Development Departments, CALJOBS resume service (www.caljobs.ca.gov/), Federal Government at www.usajobs.opm.gov/ and America’s Job Bank at www.ajb.dni.us/ or other free WEB page resume services. Submit a copy of the WEB page application forms that you complete.
Optional Project # 7: Complete an application Financial Aid. Submit a photocopy of the application.
Optional Project # 8: Complete an application for Scholarships. Submit a photocopy of the application.
Optional Project # 9:-- Visit a school of your choice. Write to the school for program information and submit a one-page summary of your contacts and experience. Contact the school’s WEB site. Submit a page from their site.
Optional Project # 10: Write a paper (500 words) on career related issues related to one or more GE courses including occupational courses in which you are presently enrolled, such as Economics, Psychology, Mathematics, English, Electronics, Automotive Technology, or CIS. Attached relevant photocopies of illustrations or other material if they are available.
Optional Project # 11: Write an article on a topic related to career planning, occupational choice, or the job search. (500 words). For instance, consider the following: (1) If an occupation funds 100% of a person’s lifestyle, then choosing an occupation on the basis of interest factors alone is foolish. If this statement is true, then what factors should govern the choice of an occupation; (2) Employers not the taxpayer or family should cover the total cost of occupational training including an allowance for living costs because they benefit from qualified workers; (3) Family background has more influence (or less influence) on career choice than aptitudes (numerical ability, analytic ability, language usage, spatial perception, abstract reasoning, mechanical ability) or interests factors.
Optional Project # 12: Using Wall Street Journal or Investors Business Daily invest $ 50,000 in a minimum of five publicly traded companies but no more than 10 in #100 share blocks. Research each company and write a very brief statement of the company’s product or service. Look for articles in WSJ, IBD, Fortune, Forbes or other publications about the companies you select. Check the reference section of the library for books that profile companies, such as Hoovers Company Profiles. Check the Internet. List your stocks, the closing price for each stock, and total your investment for each stock and the total of all stocks. Any left over funds that can not be utilized can be invested in a money market fund or some other vehicle- your choice. The student who has the greatest gain in their portfolio that they hold for at least three weeks will win a prize. Submit your worksheet or list of your portfolio, company description, and articles if you find any, and information profiles on at least five companies in your profile. This project counts for two optional projects. You may work with another student and submit one portfolio.
Optional Project # 13: SRJC Career Exploration Classes. Search the SRJC Schedule of Classes/Catalogue and the Catalogues of two other educational institutions. Identify all courses that are primarily designed to provide career information, such as AJ 58.13 Law Enforcement Career Planning or NRM 79 Forestry Employment. Submit a photocopy of the listing or a list of the courses. Suggest other courses that in your opinion offer an overview of an occupational field.
Optional Project # 14: Transfer Activity. Attend CSU Application Workshop, UC Essay Writing Workshop, a Transfer Admission Agreement, Understanding the Transfer Process, or Schedule an Appointment College Representative of your choice. Check with the Transfer Center for a schedule of transfer activities. Submit a one-page summary of the activity you completed. View the WEB site www.assist.org for an interesting and very helpful site on transferring to UC and CSU.
Optional Project # 15: Schedule a Testing Workshop at the Career Center. In this workshop you will complete instruments to relate your interests to occupations. There is a small charge for the test. Submit the printouts.
Optional Project # 16: View a Video at the Career Center or the Media Desk at Plover Library. There are some videotapes listed under Guidance 61. Submit a one-page paper on your reaction especially how the information may have been helpful.
Optional Project # 17: College Application. If you complete an Application to UC, CSU, or another institution submit a copy. You are advised to discuss your choice of college with your counselor, interview with a representative of the school, and attend a Career Center Workshop on Completing Applications.
Optional Project # 18: Illustration/Collage. Copies of Wall Street Journal, Investors Business Daily, The Business Journal, Fortune, Forbes and other miscellaneous publications will be provided. Select one or more of the publications and create/construct an illustration/collage expressing a concept or issue related to career management. Keep the size below 3’ x 4’ poster board. You may want to work with another student (1) and submit one illustration. Include a one-page paper explaining the project. (Yes, you may clip out the display advertising or other illustrations from the publications.)
Optional Project # 19: Observe a Class. Visit and observe a class session related to an occupational interest or college major. Select a class that you are not scheduled to take at this time and do not use a class in which you are presently enrolled. You are encouraged to select a class another educational institution, such as Sonoma State.
Optional Project # 20: Your Choice. Submit a one-paragraph summary of the project to the instructor for approval. Complete the project and submit a summary of what you accomplished.
Record your response in the space provided below on this worksheet. Please do not attempt to record your responses in your notebook or on a separate sheet of paper. Do not type your responses. Skip any question that does not make sense to you- just note N/A. Some of the questions will not be relevant to your situation. What is important now is to attempt to complete the project as quickly as possible. There will be opportunities to return to the questions later.
As a reminder, please make sure you use complete sentences and attempt all questions.
Do you become somewhat anxious or frustrated when asked questions about whether or not you have "goals"? Please explain.
If you knew with a high level of certainty (95%+) that you could achieve one important goal in the next 180 days, what percent (%) of your time would you commit now to reach that goal? Please describe the goal.
Name the organizations in which you hold membership.
List the names of the persons outside of your immediate family and your employment with whom you spend time. Estimate the amount of time you spend with these individuals.
If you spend time with a group of individuals meeting the criteria stated above, what is your role?
How were your achievements rewarded in your family?
What is your definition of financial independence?
Do you have enough money?
Do you have time to participate in things that are worthwhile?
Are you at peace with money?
Is your life whole? Do all the pieces, your job, expenditures and your relationships, values fit together?
What pieces are missing or need to fit together better?
If you were laid off from your job would you see it as an opportunity?
How much money is enough money?
When do you want to achieve your definition of financial independence? (The date!)
What does "leveraging time," mean?
What concerns do you have about the future?
When other meet you for the first time, they would say you are…
Spouse’s Education _________________________ Degrees ________________
Spouse’s Occupation (1) _____________________ (2) ____________________
Spouse’s Employer
(1) __________________________ City ___________________
(2) __________________________ City ___________________
No of Dependents, Ages, Highest Grade/Degree & Occupation: _________
Other Dependents
Are you currently enrolled in any training (please list the classes)?
Are you enrolled in a college/university degree program?
Name of school, program or major?
Please describe your goal or purpose for pursuing this education or training.
Expected Graduation Date __________ Program on hold?
Why?
List the high school courses in which you earned a ‘B’ grade or better.
List the post-high school courses in which you earned a `B` grade or better.
What is the highest level of mathematics that you successfully completed in school? (Algebra, Descriptive Geometry, Plane/Solid Geometry, Integral Calculus, Differential Calculus, Trigonometry, Analytic Geometry, Non-Parametric Statistics, Tests & Measurements, etc.)
What courses in Programming and Application Programs have you completed? (BASIC, FORTRAN, COBOL, RPG, PASCAL, DOS, C, C+, ASSEMBLY LANGUAGE, D-BASE, HTML, WordPerfect, WORD, PageMaker, LOTUS, EXCELL, ACCESS, JAVA, WINDOWS 95-8, WIN NT, UNIX, HTML, VISUAL BASIC, PERL, WEB/HTML AUTHORING TOOLS, COMMUNICATION PROTOCOLS-TCP/IP, etc).
What tests have you completed within the past five years?
What tests have completed within the past year?
If you are considering attending four-year college to pursue a degree program, have you confirmed that you have met all the transfer requirements?
Have you confirmed you status with an SRJC Counselor?
Have you confirmed your status with the school official where you plan to transfer?
Have you used the services of the Transfer Center?
Have you experienced difficulty with formal education (Elementary, HS, College)? Please describe the circumstances?
Have the circumstances changed?
Is it necessary for you to maintain a certain level of school attendance or units to remain eligible for financial aid or other benefits?
List the tools (by category), equipment, machines, materials, processes, and job-content knowledge that you have used on the job.
As a reminder, when appropriate, please make sure you use complete sentences and complete all questions. Place a N/A in the space if it is not possible to provide any information. .
List the work methods or special knowledge that may have learned but never used on the job. (Powers of Arrest, Taking Blood Samples, and CPR, Operating a forklift, Handing Chemicals/Explosives).
What environmental conditions of the work place must you absolutely avoid? (Dust, Solvents, High/Low Temperatures, Heights, High Pitch Noise)
Do you have a library card? When did you last use it? ___________
Do you belong to a labor union, employee association, or professional association? Please name the organization and your level of activity.
Do you contribute to a pension program?
What type of program is it? _________ Are you vested? _______
If you have income disability insurance, what are the yearly premiums?
Who pays the premiums?
What does it pay you per month if you are unable to work? ______________
Under what conditions does it pay and for how long?
What happens if you are disabled from "Any" occupation or "usual & customary" occupation?
Do you have disability insurance that covers your mortgage or other loan obligations, such as an auto loan?
What is your present earning capacity in the open labor market?
How did you define "earning capacity?"
What is the highest average weekly earnings (yearly income divided by 52) that you could demand now in your labor market, and get it? $ ______________
Do you have a medical impairment that would interfere with work functions, such as lifting, bending, walking, seeing, hearing, or that limits your exposure to environmental conditions, such as dust, extremes of temperature, solvents, fumes, too many work deadlines, interpersonal relationships with co-workers or supervisors?
Do you know your net, net hourly or weekly wage/salary? What is "net, net?" You know what "net" is. Net, net is what you have left after paying "going to work" expenses, such as gas, tolls, lunch, uniforms, tools, equipment, licenses. (Non-reimbursable employment expenses.)
How many hours do you really need to invest to earn your weekly wage/salary? (Work hours plus commuting time, in-service training time and essential job related social functions)
What is the dollar value of your non-wage fringe benefits, such as: vacation, sick leave, other leave, education, contributions to health insurance, (your contributions are usually less that what you would pay if you were not part of a group), employer’s contribution to pension programs, disability/wage replacement, and life insurance.
If you are now receiving medical insurance through your employer, how much would have to pay out of your pocket if you purchased the same insurance benefits on your own, privately as an individual and not as a member of a group? $ _______
Could you secure coverage if you had to change to a different company without exclusions?
If you are funding a pension program through your employer, how much would it cost you to fund the same program privately, taking into consideration your employer’s contributions?
How much social security premiums do you pay per year?
When you qualify for retirement, by how much are your monthly pension benefits reduced by social security benefits? $
Do you receive Social Security benefits?
Have you every contacted the Social Security Administration to find out how much you have contributed since you started working? (Do it, it does not cost anything)
What do you need to do in order to qualify for Social Security benefits when you retire?
How much would you receive today if you retired at the highest monthly rate?
Could you support yourself today on that monthly amount of Social Security Benefits?
What job retention rights do you have if you are not able to work due to an on-the-job injury?
If you are unable to work due to an on-the-job injury or medical condition who pays the medical insurance premiums?
What about your rights to other fringe benefits when you are unable to work due to an on-the-job injury.
What happens if you are not able to return to the same job due to a job related medical condition or injury and the employer is not able to identify a modified or different job that is within you physical capacities?
What happens to the medical insurance and other fringe benefits if you can not return to work with your employer?
What is COBRA?
What happens if you are injured off the job and not able to work?
In this situation, what are you job retention rights, who pays the medical insurance premiums, and what rights do you have to other fringe benefits while you are not at work?
What is State Disability Insurance?
Are you eligible? How much would you receive if unable to work?
Who pays the premium?
How much did the premiums total during the past 12 months?
Does your employer have a legal obligation to give you any notice of a layoff?
Would your receive severance pay? Do you qualify for unemployment insurance?
If you were involuntarily laid off today, how much per week would you receive in unemployment benefits, and when would those benefits begin?
What unemployment insurance premiums must the employer pay on your account? Percentage of wage rate.
How much did the employer pay in your situation for the past twelve months on your account?
The point of asking you to think about these questions is to direct your attention to the bundle of rights you have to potential cash assets because you are employed. If you are not employed you do not have access to these financial benefits.
Your rights to direct cash payments in the event of your inability to work, in addition to continuation of your employer’s payments toward fringe benefits such as medical insurance, represent a significant "asset." The dollar value of this asset, if known, can then be used for evaluating the comparative advantage of other job offers or self-employment ventures.
For most people, the "job" funds 100% and more of their lifestyle. Is that smart?
What is the dollar value of this asset (Per Year) in your situation? $________
It may sound like a simplistic understatement, but this asset is only available if you are employed! In a sense, employers represent one of the largest social service programs in the United States.
Remember all rights are negotiated, some by legislation and some by contract. Do not assume anything about your rights. Regardless of what "rights" you have, they are useless if you do not understand them.
What is the dollar value of this Career Management Program to you?
How can this Career Management Program increase your earning capacity? (Take into consideration that for every month that you do not have a Lifestyle and/or Career Plan, your earning capacity is decreasing. Unless you have a plan of action, you are on the slippery slope. Or you’re sliding down the razor blade of life.)
Who referred you to this program? (Employer, friend, radio, newspaper, brochure, counselor, another student, parent, attorney, physician, teacher, neighbor, employer, support group, agency, past participant)
Have you held leadership positions in professional, community, or trade organizations?
What is the highest degree and occupation of your father?
What is the highest degree and occupation of your mother?
What is the significance of this information to you?
Does the educational level of the mother and/or the father influence the educational level of the children?
What is the occupation and educational achievement of your brother(s) and sister(s) if any?
Who are their employers?
What other information about yourself is pertinent to your Lifestyle or Career Planning that has not been discussed in the questionnaire?
What questions on an application form would be most difficult to explain?
Complete this analysis. Review your responses to the Questionnaire. Complete the following questions. Your first impressions are important. Try to complete this within 15 to 20 minutes.
Personal traits I consider my strengths:
Personal traits I would like to improve.
The traits my friends like most about me are…
I look for friends who…
Ways I am influenced by my peers are…
The greatest challenge to me when making new friends & associates is…
The role models I look up to are…
When others meet me for the first time, they would say I’m…
Concerns I have about my future are…
How are you attacking life issues that are presenting obstacles to furthering your career?
Things I want instructors and employers to know about me are…
(Demonstrate by citing experiences that you that you are responsible, sociable, honest, cooperative, and possess integrity, and self-esteem.)
Describe you skills in sales, marketing, and promotion, helping others make decisions, assertiveness, and making deadlines that rely on other people. Demonstrate by citing experiences that you have effectively developed the following employment related skills: problem solving, negotiation, and listening skills.
Are you persuasive? If you are not good at sales, in what aspect of your understanding of the "sales process" are you ineffective?
Do you get what you want?
Summarize any insights that you have acquired as a result of this project.
Please complete and submit this profile to the instructor. This information helps establish a profile of the class and will assist me in tailoring this program to your individual situation. However you are not required to provide this information. You are not required to disclose information in this document (or any assignment or class discussion) I will provide a rationale to support any information that is requested. Please ask.
Print Full Name _____________________________ Date _______
Street Address _____________________________ Apt # ______ ZIP _________
P.O. Box # ______________ PO Zip _____________
City _____________________________ Your SSN # ____ ___ ____
Telephone Home # ________________ Work # ___________________
__________________________________________________________________
Your Employer _____________________ Location ____________________________
Your Occupation ____________________ Position Title _________________________
Your Hourly Earnings $ _________ Average Weekly Wage (Past 8 weeks) $ ___________
Are there any pre-scheduled activities that will require you to miss two or more class sessions?
Yes No Dates ____________________________________
How much time will you be able to invest between class sessions to work on your career plans (assignments)? _____ Hours per week.
What other courses are you taking this semester at SRJC or other institutions?
How many credit hours per week? ____ Actual contact hours per week # ______
Total credit hours at SRJC ___________
Primary Focus or Objective at SRJC ______________________________
Highest Degree or Certificate Earned So Far _______________________
Major Field of Study __________________________
Are you taking this course primarily for units? __________________________
Will you be transferring to a four-year college? _________________________
Name of Institution: ________________________________________________
Major Field (Best choice at this time) _____________ Minor _______________
When did you plan to begin your studies? _________________
Are you a high school student? ___ Welcome to the class!
Class Standing: _______ Name of school: __________________________________
Counselor: ___________________ Name you best class: _______________________
Do you need the credits in this class to graduate from HS? Yes ___ No ____
Do you understand the requirements for the Letter Grade or CR grade?
Yes ___ NO ___ What steps must you take to request a CR/NC option?
Will this class meet some other requirement or satisfy your participation in another program?
Will I need to confirm your attendance and/or progress with a caseworker or counselor?
Name _______________
What is the Core Business of Your Employer? __________
What is the product/service of your employer?
How many hours do you work per week on average?
Commute hours: _________ Average Weekly Wage in (1997) $ ________
Annual Gross Income (1997) $ ________ Are you unemployed? Yes ___ No ___
Are you seeking employment now? Yes ___ No ____
If yes, what prevents you from obtaining work?
Are you under medical treatment that might influence your concentration, ability to complete assignments, or ability to secure & retain employment?
Is there anything that I should know regarding your participation in this course?
Do you need any accommodation in this class?
Do you need to make an important Career/Job Decision within the next eight weeks? If yes, please explain.
If you obtain employment will certain benefits terminate?
What are the minimum weekly earnings you will accept?
Are you available for employment on Saturday & Sunday?
Are you available for employment between 5 pm - 8 am?
Do you have a Resume (Please attach a copy)
If you obtain employment before the class ends will you withdraw from the class when you start work?
Are there any special topics or questions that you want me to cover in this class?
Are you involved in a Vocational Rehabilitation Program?
Who is your counselor? ____________________
Have you signed a plan? ____ The Objective _____________________________________
Firm/Agency ______________________________________________________________
Who is the sponsor (Private employer/insurer, State, Federal OWCP, Social Security, County,
Corrections, Parole, Gain, JTPA, VA, Long Term Disability, other ____________________ )
Are you involved in a Vocational Evaluation?
What vocational or aptitude tests have you taken in the past two years? (Strong, CAI, Kuder, SDS, WRAT, DAT, ABLE, CAPS, SRJC Placement, WAIS)
Are you taking this class to meet the requirements of a plan, agreement, program, and/or to maintain the minimum credits needed for financial aid, Veterans benefits, or some other program? Please describe the particulars:
May I ask who referred you to this class? __________________
Do you understand the assignments required and the grading system?
(There are no incomplete grades awarded in this course.)
Will I be requested to report your progress and attendance to your counselor or caseworker?
If yes, who will be authorized to contact me regarding your participation in this class?
Name ______________
Telephone _____________ Company/Agency _____________
I need your signature authorizing me to discuss your participation in this program with the person & company noted above:
Your signature ____________________ Date __________
Initial here ____ confirming you have read the course description in the class schedule.
Print Your Name _________________ * Social Security # ____ ___ _____
If you have not taken the English & Math placement tests, please schedule a time and take these tests as soon as possible. There is no charge. Contact the assessment office for the schedule.
Required. What industries, employers, occupations, positions, or careers interest you?
If you have never used e-mail prepare this statement in writing and submit it. Then obtain access to a computer and friend with an e-mail account and sent your statement to my e-mail address at geary@gearyassociates.com You can also connect to my WEB site at the Career Center and send me your response.
Complete the following sentence and attach it to the profile. When this class ends, I __________________, want to have accomplished the following:
Please use responses that permit you to measure your progress. For example: You should be able to identify two to three potential employment goals at the position title level within the first six weeks of this course, including the names of the position titles and potential employers.
You should be able to identify two to three colleges and two to three college majors or training programs that are consistent with your career and/or employment goals. It is essential that you identify the schools first because this decision will determine the courses you need to take, especially at the Santa Rosa Junior College. Your statement must say more than: "Have a better idea of what careers I would be fit to explore." "I hope to have discovered some career interests." "I want to have a goal." or " I want to find out what is out there." At the end of the course, looking back, what would you have expected of the instructor/counselor?
You are offered the opportunity to apply for a $ 60,000 grant to fund three years of education or training. Write a short statement presenting an argument why you should be awarded the grant? Generally, Financial Assistance programs and Scholarships programs will require some type of written statement and certainly a verbal statement.
Describe how this grant would help you reach your goal.
What short term objectives could be achieved with the next 12 months?
What objectives could be achieved within the next 12 weeks?
Copyright pending, 1985 by Jack Geary
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
This publication may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in
whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy,
recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.
This is a working draft publication. Please send your comments to:
Jack Geary, P.O. Box 4426, Santa Rosa, CA 95402