Dondi Scumaci - Career Moves: How to Plan for Success, Create Value for Your Organization, and Make Yourself Indispensable No Matter Where You Work

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I AM KEEN ON acknowledgments because this book (and the two before it) would not have happened without extraordinary people standing next to me.

My family is the best support team on the planet. You are all precious beyond wordseven for someone who spends so much time looking for the right words to write and say. Thank you to my husband, Scumaci; my son, Tabor; our lovely Crissy; mothers Elle and Johnny; my father, Rick; and brother, Dean.

Denise Raley, your perspective impacted this work beautifully. You have changed my story in significant ways, and I am grateful.

Thank you to my publisher, Strang Book Group. Behind that name is a group of people who have encouraged, prayed, pulled, and pushed. I am grateful for the invitation and the opportunity to write under your business banner, Excel Books. From Designed for Success to Ready, SetGrow! and now Career Moves, it has been an honor to partner with you.

I still remember the day I received your message, Barbara Dycus. I was sitting on the bench at an airport, waiting for my car, weary to the bone. With nothing else to do, I checked my voice mail one last time for the day; there you weretalking about the books and your vision for them. It was frightening and thrilling all at the same time. Thousands of words (more than 174,000) have passed between us now, but I will always remember the first words and how they made me feel. Challenged. Energized. Refreshed. Thank you for finding me and opening that door. I am grateful.

In almost every state and on four continents I have worked with and have been surrounded by the most fantastic organizations and the most incredible people. Thank you for sharing your stories, asking your questions, and helping me write a book about how to be successfulwherever you are, right where you are.

Finally, I want to acknowledge you, the reader. This book is for you, and I pray that it will give you exactly what you need in this moment to press on, press through, stand out, and create something extraordinary with your work. I do believe in reinvention! I also believe it is never too late to begin. Shall we?

THE QUESTIONS I AM
MOST OFTEN ASKED

F OR SOME TIME now, I have been collecting my favorite workplace questions. These come from live appearances, my Web site, Twitter (@dondiscumaci), podcasts, e-mails, and media interviews.

I love these interactive pieces of my work. Questions like these keep me dialed in to what really matters. They keep it real. If you dont see yours here, I invite you to ask at www.dondiscumaci.com.

Women often tell me this is a challenge. As children we are taught not to brag. We hear things like dont brag, dont fight, and dont be bossy! All grown up now, were trying to figure out how to market ourselves effectively. It is a paradox: we shrink from the idea of self-promotion, yet we are all expected to find acceptable ways of doing exactly that!

Women often underplay what theyve done, and the problem is when you do that, people will start to believe you. Women have to get better at promoting themselveswhat they stand for, what makes them different than someone else. They need to fight for their message, advises author Catherine Kaputa.

This is so true! The first commandment in Designed for Success is, Manage your message from the inside out. What we believe about ourselves becomes what we say to ourselves. That message turns outward as we present ourselves and ultimately is reflected in what others believe about us.

This inside-out process can work for or against you, and it begins with what you believe and say to yourself. Thats why it is so important to carefully monitor your self-beliefs and self-talk. From there its a matter of finding your story and learning how to tell it well.

Here are nine things you can do to craft your marketing message:

1. Find your niche and establish yourself as the expert by learning all you can, staying up to date, and sharing information others need and value. Market yourself by becoming a resource and by helping others become more successful. The key to this tip really is the sharing part. Having information doesnt make you a resource; sharing it does. Think river, not reservoir. A river flows and brings life. A reservoir holds and collects.

2. Shine the spotlight on others. Be generous in giving others credit and appreciation. Its amazing to watch the credit you have given away come back to you multiplied and pressed down.

3. If you make a mistake, talk about what you learned from the experience and the action you have taken to correct the course. People will remember the The Questions I Am Most Often Asked action long after they forget the error. They will also remember your willingness to take responsibility.

4. Be ready to tell your success stories. Collect your success stories, and learn how and when to tell them. Once you have isolated your stories, you might be surprised at how often they are relevant to the conversation.

5. Link your stories with your brand. Lets say you want to be known as creative, resourceful, and strategic. What stories or examples reflect those characteristics? How have you demonstrated these attributes in your work? (Incidentally, you will want to be intentional about using brand words in your stories. Heres how that might sound, This was a great strategic exercise. I loved working on this because it was such a challenge; it required me to be creative and resourceful.)

6. Instead of talking about a weakness, talk about what you are interested in learning and how you are growing. What a difference this makes. Instead of proclaiming, Ive never been good with details, lead with your strength by declaring, I am a bigpicture person; that has always been natural for me. I am learning how to value and manage the details too.

7. Dont throw your promotions away! When someone compliments you, receive it graciously. This is yet another example of the inhaling and exhaling, giving and receiving. When you throw back a compliment by underplaying your results, you block the flow.

8. Pay attention to your presentations, even the spontaneous hallway drive-bys. How do you talk about yourself, and what you are working on?

9. Remember, introductions are like personal commercials. When you meet new people, is your thirty-second promo ready to go?

Before we can do any of these things, we must give ourselves permission to reflect value. As you can see, this isnt learning how to brag. (We must stop thinking about promotion in that way.)

This is learning how to present yourself. It is forging your brand, building credibility, and finding ways to help others succeed. It is making your progress more visible and your results more obvious.

In Zoes story, the mentor Alena found her. That happens sometimes. Mentors see something in us that resonates, and they step into the situation. Perhaps in those moments they are seeing a previous version of themselves, and they can deeply relate to where we are. Or they may recognize untapped potential and understand how to draw it out.

Its wonderful when that happens, but we cant wait for our mentors to appear. Its important to be proactive in searching for them.

1. Look for mentors with the skills and abilities you want to acquire. Who does what you want to do well? Who has mastered the skills you are trying to cultivate?

2. Present your greatest challenge as a mentoring case study. (I call this drive-by mentoring, because it happens in real time.) Honestly, the challenge you are facing right now may be the doorway to your mentoring experience.

3. Go where your potential mentors areassociations, networking events, and workshops. Consider mastermind groups, book discussion clubs, and volunteer work. Look for and create opportunities to synchronize your networking and mentoring strategies.