Misconceptions

Misconceptions

When individuals learn that I am a Career Coach, often they believe they have a sense of what I do and how I go about it. I’ll hear such things as “So, you find the people that work with you jobs,” or “You will tell me what I need to do to find a job.” And, while I may make suggestions on why they may want to approach their search in a certain way, or I may connect them to others that may be a lead for them in the hiring process, it is a major misconception that I am actually finding them employment.

First of all, I am not hiring anyone at the moment, (or do I foresee hiring in the near future). Secondly, what I do is help work with my clients through a structured process that has been proven to work for many in job search, but in no way plays out the same way each time it is used. A lot of what I do involves getting those who work with me to talk and for me to intently listen to what is being said. Many times initial questions are followed with additional questions. Through a continual dialogue, I’m often able to understand concepts which I may initially not, especially if they are very technical in nature, and have a stronger idea of the value the individual I am talking to brings to those whom they ultimately serve.

Our world moves at an increasingly faster pace. As such, it is often difficult to get others to truly listen or understand what we are all about. Recently, I was working with a new client. I met him at his work space in Manhattan. My client is active in the stock market. While we were talking he had in front of him 4 computer screens, and was listening to a television program about what plans the Federal Reserve System had for interest rates in the coming months. At the same time he was attempting to speak to me about what he would like to do next in his life in terms of career, and listen to what help I had to offer him. While we “talked” to each other, true communication did not get through. A follow-up phone call (when he was not distracted by other items), helped for us to have a more meaningful conversation where he could see that I indeed might be able to assist him.

Misconceptions come from lack of focus in our conversations with others. They come when we assume we know what the other person is thinking, be it from what we have read about them, or perhaps simply because of the path their life has taken them on, or by the job that they do. It takes true discipline, and a desire to really want to get to know another, learn what it is they seek to do or perhaps what is “blocking them,” from knowing what it is they want to do next, to be able to help them.

So as you move forward in the coming days and weeks, take a step back, take a deep breath and ask yourself are you guilty of “misconceptions?” Are you that job seeker who assumes even before going in for the interview that a company is not going to want you because of your age, or because they don’t hire people from the school from which you graduated, or whatever reason you have in your mind? In your relationships, are you already assuming how someone whom you meet is judging you? There are misconceptions throughout this world. Try not to make them a part of your life, by staying truly focused on learning all you can about another or a situation that perhaps you can help solve. Be open to realizing that there may be more beyond the surface than meets the eye.