Synopses & Reviews
THREE STEPS TO BECOMING YOUR OWN CAREER COUNSELOR
An interactive, in-depth guidebook based on the career design workshops run by Crystal-Barkley, TAKING CHARGE OF YOUR CAREER turns the traditional job search on its head-by focusing on the individual, not the position-to give job seekers and practical dreamers the tools they need to find careers that are meaningful, well-paying, and secure.
Step 1: Who Am I?
What your life story has to do with a job. Uncovering over-looked skills. Determining the values that are most important to you. Learning to talk about yourself.
Step 2: Where Am I Going?
Reading life's compass. Visualizing a career. Establishing the direction you want to go in. Goals, and how to set them.
Step 3: How Do I Get There?
Assembling a plan of action. Surveying a potential workplace. Making effective introductions. A negotiation primer. Closing the deal.
Nella Barkley co-founded the Crystal-Barkley Corporation with John C. Crystal, who was the major contributor to Richard Nelson Bolle's What Color Is Your Parachute? She also provides management training to AT&T, General Motors, IBM, and other corporations and institutions.
Eric Sandburg, a former business professor, is president of Career Design Software, which brings the Crystal-Barkley process to the home computer.
Synopsis
Written by career guru Nella Barkley, this book turns the traditional job search on its head-by focusing on the individual, not the position-and gives people the tools they need to find work that's meaningful, well paying, and in tune with their needs. An interactive workbook, the Crystal-Barkley Guide takes a holistic approach to answering three key questions: Who am I? What do I want? How do I get there? Readers quickly become their own career counselors-experts, perhaps for the first time, on themselves. By learning which questions to ask, individuals learn how to accurately gauge their skills, identify talents, assess values. They learn how to put it all together, how to set goals and establish a direction. Then, once readers identify what they want, the authors show how the time-tested Crystal-Barkley methods can help them achieve it: How to visualize a career. How to survey a prospective workplace. How to negotiate. How to be a self-marketer. How to make job security permanent-because it comes from within.
About the Author
Eric Sandburg, a former business professor, is president of Career Design Software, which brings the Crystal-Barkley process to the home computer.President of the Crystal-Barkley Corporation of New York (with offices in Chicago and Los Angeles), Nella Barkley is one of the foremost career consultants in the country.
Table of Contents
CONTENTS
Introduction
PART ONE: WHO AM I?
Determining your skills, attributes, and values
Discovering Who You Are
Telling Your Life Stories
Defining Skills
Organizing Your Skills
Talking About Yourself
Uncovering Values
PART TWO: WHERE AM I GOING?
Uncovering your interests and goals
What Do You Want Out of Life?
Interests and Fascinations
Finding Direction
Determining Your Goals
PART THREE: HOW DO I GET THERE?
Landing the job
Assembling a Plan of Action
Making a Survey Plan
Effective Introductions
More About Surveying
Deciding Where You Want to Work
From Surveys to Proposals
Negotiating the Relationship
Long-Term Survival and Satisfaction
APPENDICES
Appendix A: Tips on Getting (and Staying) Organized
Appendix B: How to Handle the Standard Interview
Appendix C: From Resumes to Proposals
Index