Avatar photoSteven Savage

Weeky Challenge: When it’s time to wait?

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Everything comes and goes in the cycles of life.  We, careerists and professionals, are used to trying to figure these cycles out to ride them – or run from them.

Now and then, we end up at a difficult period in our lives when the various forces in our lives are at a crossroads, things end, and we're trying to get a handle on what's next.

So today's challenge?  Ask yourself what is on hold in your life – and that should stay on hold.

Take a look at your career goals – what is on hold now and why?  Of these events on hold, what are ones where you need to apply timing – to wait for an economic change, someone to return from a trip, etc.  What parts of your great life plan just happen to be caught up in the cycles of change.

Now for a second part – what of these "on hold" goals should you NOT try and tackle?  Are there things that, if you try and ram them ahead, you'll only end up in trouble?

What in short, are you just going to be bet off waiting on?  As much as people that try and encourage others on their career (like me) push you, sometimes you gotta wait.

– Steven Savage

Convention Idea: Put It Online!

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The roundup of convention ideas is here.

You've got your career events at your conventions.  Teachers and experts and progeeks are speaking.  You've got workshops and gameshows and lectures.  You've got it all.

What about after?

Well in your mind after probably means "cleaning up after the con and wondering why someone left their Keyblade in a potted plant."  But, post-con-cleanup trauma, what are you doing with the panels and workshops and career events you had?

What about putting them and their materials online so others can benefit them and attendees can review them.

Consider how you can extend the value of your career events:

  • If the presenters had handouts, ask them to put them online or give you copies.  That way you can link to them from the website (in fact, you could do this before the con).  Observe proper copyright statements of course.
  • Did you film some of the events?  Can you stream them, put them online, make them available as podcasts?  Again, watch for copyright issues, but consider it.
  • Is there work that was done during workshops, panels, and other career events?  Can you post it online or post photos of it so people can see – and learn – from the results?

Think of all the materials involved or produced by your career events.  With proper procedures and approvals, you can put them online.  With them available to the world you can help those who attended – and those who didn't – easier.  It also promotes those kind enough to give your convention their time and effort to do those events.

It might even inspire events for next year, or build an archive to enrich the experience of the attendees in the years to come.

– Steven Savage

Realignment Not Recovery

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I think I'm going to stop talking about economic recovery from the Great Recession because it won't happen.  What will happen is Re-Alignment.

Whenever there's a downturn, recession, economic shift, etc. we always hear about how there will be a "Recovery."  Recovery, as far as I can tell when that word is thrown around casually, means that everything will Go Back To Normal.  It'll all be like it was before whatever nasty economic business happened.

One can argue that many of the past economic recoveries were not exactly returns-to-normal.  That is agreed, but I think that the aftermath of this Great Recession won't even be something you can describe as a return to normal.

It's going to be a Re-Alighment.  What will come out of this economic mess is not going to be the world we were used to.  It's going to be something else.  You may recognize the pieces of the economy to come, but not always the way they're arranged

Career-wise, you'll want to be ready.

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