October 2010

Dear Colleague,

October is always one of my favorite times of the year! Watching the leaves fall and enjoying the beautiful autumn landscapes are one of New England's treasures. There is also much excitement in the air as students start back at school and settle into new routines. The same can be said of the workforce - everyone returns from some fun and sun with new found energy and optimism. The uptick in the economy and marketplace within the first nine months of this year has provided some relief yet cautious planning for what's ahead. It has been a very interesting year as I have heard and seen a lot of positive trends and signs. My experience has included tremendous demand for executive coaching, team building, change management, strategic planning and leadership development. The need has been ongoing and I'm very excited to say there has been a rapid increase in business within these areas in particular. It is inspiring and empowering to see a renewed demand in these areas!

As the market rebounds, have we empowered ourselves in a way to enhance and articulate our personal brand — that which we have to offer, our value-add, our message, the differentiating factors that set us apart from our peers and colleagues? In all of the coaching work I do, I find this is the area that most professionals struggle with and can be at the core of what holds people back from progressing in their careers and becoming leaders. Leadership talent can be uncovered at all levels within our organizations and leadership begins with inner strength. Developing inner strength and identifying our personal brand includes:

• Understanding ourselves first - Self-awareness is the key to unlocking potential.

• Conducting on-going assessment of our strengths, skills, competencies, interests, values, motivations, goals as well as limitations.

• Keeping a history of accomplishments and achievements and being able to distinguish our differentiating factors from our peers and colleagues.

• Just as important is identifying our aspirations and goals — what do we aspire to achieve, what are our needs and desires?

• Once we have defined our brand, articulating it with ease and actively working at enhancing our brand within our organizations as well as externally in the marketplace.

We must ultimately be positioned in a manner that allows us to identify, articulate and enhance our personal brand throughout our career on an on-going basis. I have conducted several workshops based on an article I wrote and published a few years ago on this concept of "Personal Branding and Marketing Yourself". Yet I find developing the ability to do so remains a relevant need during both difficult and prosperous times. Effective leaders in all disciplines, background and levels have three things in common: 1) they know what they have to offer; 2) they know what they want; and 3) they know how to ask for it!

Consider the following question and how readily you would have the answer, "If I was to hand you your ideal job on a silver platter tomorrow, what would that look like?" In my experience in all my travels, 90% of the time, people are not prepared to answer this question……..and I have asked this question several hundred times to senior level professionals as well as those that are mid level in their careers. The truth is many people do not take the time for due diligence when it comes to their own careers and are not comfortable talking about themselves in this manner. As leaders and human resource professionals, it is essential that we provide the tools and resources for employees to empower themselves to do so! In my article, I suggest:

The 3 P's Marketing Technique:

1. Preparation - on-going self assessment; identifying value-add, goals, and differentiators; establishing, building and nurturing network with long lasting relationships

2. Packaging - creating portfolio; building track record; earning credentials; establishing alliances and partnerships; being well-read; staying current and relevant

3. Presentation - crafting and articulating message; proactive and strategic visibility; being own advocate; articulating niche; exhibiting confidence; staying positive

Marketing yourself is an essential ingredient to successfully manage one's career. It may sound too deliberate and insincere but the reality is it can be our most natural and sincere skill. Developing ease, confidence and comfort with a task that is considered so difficult by so many requires a shift in mindset to start. It requires us to not view it as a task but as a required competency for taking charge of our career and executing a successful career management strategy - or in other words, "empowering ourselves to take charge of our career and allowing our leadership capabilities to be unleashed".

Due to the ongoing demand for this topic, I am offering a Half Day "Personal Branding and Marketing Yourself" Workshop the morning of December 1, 2010 at my offices in Waltham. If you would like to attend or send someone from your organization, please contact me for all of the details involved. It will be an interactive session that will include tools and resources to help with this process. Creating our brand and being able to market ourselves are the most critical competencies we can develop. This will convey how we wish to be portrayed in the marketplace - our reputation, our credibility. We will create a niche for ourselves and it will be the message we deliver - the mark we leave with the utmost confidence! I like to refer to it as our journey……..and it continues to evolve as we travel through many peaks and valleys. The key is to empower ourselves to be in the front seat as the driver on this journey rather than sitting in the back seat! Please feel free to email or contact me if you have some interest in attending or sending someone in your organization to begin this journey! I saw this powerful quote that represents this journey very effectively:

"Success in any endeavor does not happen by accident. Rather, it's the result of deliberate decisions, conscious effort, and immense persistence - all directed at specific goals."

Gary Ryan Blair

In addition, I would like to suggest the following recommended books and articles as resources:

• Brag! The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn Without Blowing It, by Peggy Klaus

• Do What You Love, The Money Will Follow - Discovering Your Right Livelihood, by Marsha Sinetar

• Marketing Yourself is a Core Competency and Creating a Plan for Your Career, Articles, by Rita B. Allen Associates

• Use What You've Got & Other Business Lessons I Learned from My Mom, by Barbara Corcoran

On-going demand exists for leadership development programs and workshops as well as management training within a variety of industries. A lot of my work this year has focused on the design, development and delivery of these programs in addition to one-one-one executive coaching. There is a renewed interest and investment in these initiatives where there had been a hold on some of these initiatives in 2009 due to the uncertainty of the marketplace and economy. Here are a sampling of topics for which I offer programs and development sessions:

• Team Building

• Conflict Management

• Emotional Intelligence

• Building High Performance Work Teams

• Change Management

• Communication Skills

• Goal Setting and Strategic Planning

• Assessing and Developing Leadership Capabilities

• Mentor Programs

• Human Resources as a Strategic Business Partner

I remain very optimistic and enthusiastic at the potential that exists in the marketplace today! This is what keeps me highly engaged in the offering of talent management solutions to my clients. As always, I feel very grateful and fortunate to be presented with opportunities that allow me to do work I love and continue to grow my business in my specialty areas of executive coaching, leadership development, management training and career development. The mix of corporate clients as well as individual clients across a range of industries and disciplines has continued to flourish. Please visit my website to see some of my upcoming programs, new articles and events at www.ritaballenassociates.com.

Many thanks to you for your continued support, your business and your referrals. I welcome the opportunity to be of assistance and continuing to provide a variety of talent management/career management consulting and coaching services. Please reach out and share some of your updates, observations and challenges with me. I look forward to hearing from you!

Best Regards,

Rita B. Allen

Rita B. Allen Associates | 460 Totten Pond Road, Suite 110 | Waltham, MA 02451
781-890-6803 | rita@ritaballenassociates.com | www.ritaballenassociates.com