Who do you take career advice from?

Perhaps it's just because the topic of career development and job search issues is often on my mind, but it seems that everywhere you look these days someone has advice for you on how to get the job, how to have a better career, or how to have better work-life balance.  There are blogs, columns, and books galore. I love reading and learning more about this topic, and for a long time enthusiastically digested everything available.  But as I've matured in my career, and had years of watching people succeed and fail in their job-related pursuits, it has become apparent that there is a lot of bad advice out there that folks are following to their own harm. 

Recently I've had some instances of speaking to job-seekers who they tell me they are following some advice they read in so-and-so's column, or on the XYZ blog, and I am shocked at how useless the advice is.  At best it is ineffective, and at worst it could be harming the job seekers reputation to engage in some of the fad practices advocated. 

Because this is the Career Encouragement Blog, I won't disparage any career advice sources by name.  However I do encourage you to think carefully about who you take career advice from.  Some general guidelines to consider:

#1 - Seek career advice from people who are successful at what you want to do.  Be careful taking advice from someone who's entire career has consisted of career advising unless you also want to be a career adviser.  If you want to be a lobbyist one day, talk to and read advice by people who have had succesful careers in government relations.  If you want to be a CPA, talk to people at accounting firms. 

#2 - Seek advice from the people who hire the people that do what you want to do.  Talk to recruiters and HR folks who fill the positions that you want to hold some day.  Don't treat them as obstacles to your job search - rather, view them as collaborative colleagues who can give you the inside scoop.  Check out the HR Manager's Blog and Ask a Manager's Blog to learn what folks in these positions are thinking about.

#3 - Seek career advice from people who seem genuine happy with what they do.  These days there is a lot of sarcastic and snarky advice posted on the Internet.  I often see postings that have a downright disrespectful tone - towards HR, towards management, towards business owners.  Disrespect and sarcasm are not the building blocks of a good career.  A woman that has given me a lot of terrific career advice over the years is in a completely different field than I am in.  Yet she is able to share with me principles about navigating difficult situations with people, or facing tough challenges that I find useful in my work.  Because she is so successful and contented with her own work, and because she respects the profession I am in, I welcome her advice and have learned a lot from her. 

#4 - Seek advice from people who have been able to structure their work the way you would like to structure yours.  If you want to work part-time, talk to and read stuff by people who have successful part-time arrangements.  If you want to be an independent consultant, talk to people who are successful as independent consultants.  It's always a good idea to listen to people who are in different situations than you are in to challenge your own thinking.  However, be wary of taking career advice from someone who couldn't wait to "bail on corporate culture" to start their own gig when your own personal goal is to be a Corporate Director one day.

#5 - Seek advice from people who understand that there are many, many ways to have a successful career.  Be wary of advisers who think "up" is the only direction a career should go, or who think everyone should be self-employed.

#6 - On the same note, seek advice from people who can see the good in what you have already done, and who will help you build on that foundation.   I am particularly wary of career advice that suggests in order to find happiness or "follow your bliss" you have to chuck it all and go to school to be a ____ (fill in the blank with massage therapist, dog walker, teacher, etc.).  Very often, most people just needs some refreshment and tweaking of their current path in order to find satisfaction and success again.  I've talked to so many people who bailed on the corporate world in a misguided search for "passion" only to realize that the job they formerly held actually used their talents and offered a lot of rewards that they enjoyed - and now they are struggling to figure out a re-entry plan.  Whole scale makeovers make for sassy book covers, but rarely make for sound career moves for most people.

#7 - Don't confuse a professional resume writer with a career adviser - there is a big difference.  BTW - My personal bias as someone who does a lot of staffing: Write your own resume.  Most savvy recruiters will know if you've outsourced it.  You will interview better and ultimately you will have a more successful job search. This doesn't mean that you don't get help with presentation and editing, but don't outsource the entire job.

#8 - Don't confuse someone with savvy writing and self-promotion skills with a trained career counselor who can help you identify your own skills and talents, and create and navigate a path that will bring you fulfillment.  The best career counselors I know are terrible at self-promotion but are really, really good with people.

#9 - Don't take advice from someone who knows it all!  A good career coach should be able to point you to useful resources that broaden and extend the advice they are giving you. 

Have you received good career advice in the past that paid off for you?  Have you received bad career advice that you'd like to warn others about?  Please leave a comment and encourage our readers!

Comments

[Anita Bruzzese]

This post makes a lot of really good points.
I like to say there is no "Holy Grail" of workplace advice. Everyone faces a different situation every day at their workplace, so I think it's a good idea to check out a variety of advice and then use what you believe will work best for you.
When people take responsibility for their own careers, they are usually much happier. Information is power, and by educating ourselves, we have more control over our own career destiny. And isn't that what most of us want?

Anita Bruzzese
www.45things.com
"45 Things You Do That Drive Your Boss Crazy"

---------The Career Encourager Says....
Anita -

Thanks for your comment. You make some really good points that I hope our readers take to heart and use to their advantage!

~ CEO

[almostgotit]

This is a great post!

Life-while-looking-for-a-job, especially if it goes on for a while, can be more than a little treacherous. There are so many temptations to shrug off one's own human responsibilities and find someone else who will provide definitive answers or even short cuts; who will make it easier; who might even be willing to nurture all the negative, *snarky*, and defeatest urges that are only naturally going to arise from time to time as one walks this difficult road (which, may I add? Really does *stink* sometimes!)

I must admit I felt a little uncomfortable myself -- :) -- as I read, knowing I've not lived this stage myself as perfectly as I would like. Nor will I put the burden of responsibility-for-my-own-career-life on YOU. But I do choose to claim you as one of my companion-advisors. As I will also continue to endeavor (however imperfectly!) not to "cause another to stumble" by the way I'm currently living it myself.

(LOL, I *am* being serious, but it's hard not to sound pretty corny at the same time, darn it. So go ahead and cue the angelic choir music here!!)

[Lea]

Even though my goal is to make my resume-writing business successful, I agree with your statement that people should write their own resumes. Whether they CAN do it all on their own depends on the fields they work in.

A graphic artist might need to work with an editor to help with content while doing the design work herself. A writer might need to work with someone with design skills so the resume is easy to read (and I say this as a published writer who used the Microsoft templates until I became a newspaper page designer and learned better!). Someone who works exclusively with numbers, or computer code, might want a writer to help translate their work into words. And most people need the help of someone objective to figure out what belongs in a resume.

Resume writers shouldn't put words into people's mouths, but they should help people find the words to describe themselves and their achievements. My experience as a newspaper reporter taught me how to ask people questions to help them describe themselves and their work, then took those words and put them on paper. That remains my goal as a resume writer. I'm not transcribing what my clients say, but helping them articulate what they have accomplished in the past and how that will matter in the future.

Now the cover letter, on the other hand, should definitely be written by the job candidate!

-----The Career Encourager says....
Lea -
Thank you for your thoughtful post. You raise some excellent points that I hope our readers will take to heart. My caution to job-seekers is simply that the skills required to write a good resume are different than the skills required to assess career interests and goals and make sound decisions about next steps. It sounds like you help job-seekers articulate a truth they already know rather than spinning words into a story of your own design. Working with a resume writer like yourself who helps candidates articulate what they know about themselves (vs. putting words in their mouth) can be a very helpful step in the job search process. I wish you great success in your business!
~ The Career Encourager