Interview Coaching: a Home-based Business on the Cutting Edge
Who would believe that someone with a home-based business can reach out to a far away country and work with a client via a Blackberry and a cell phone? That is exactly what I did last month with a man in Israel who was going to interview there. And, he not only got the job, but he was able to negotiate a higher salary after our work together.
The business of coaching in general is quietly taking over the $427 Billion home-business sector by storm. If you are interested in getting in on this wave you will first need to find a niche. A niche that will satisfy your needs – where you can make a difference and some good money at the same time.
My niche is Interview Coaching, which is my way to connect with people all over the United States and beyond. To be able to reach out and help someone – and to be appreciated is what my business is about. Can you think of a better way to make a living?
You might think that just anyone could hang advertise themselves as an Interview Coach. In reality they can do that, but that doesn’t mean they have what it takes to do a good job for their clients or themselves.
Here’s a little quiz to determine if this might be a niche for you to explore further.
__ I am an excellent listener
You should be able to really “hear” people when they talk. You can pick up on hidden things they’re saying if you read between the lines.
__ I am good at “reading” people –
Some people say they are “people persons” but they don’t know how to look beyond what is on the surface. That’s a special gift that will make you very successful at this business.
__ I have great communication skills
Good communication skills begin with listening and then letting the person know that they have been heard. It is also adjusting your communication level to match the person you are talking to – whether it is with an executive or a laboratory assistant.
__ I am patient and will take time to explain what needs to change
Some people do not have the patience to listen to a long story or to have to explain something over in several different ways to get the point across.
__ I am capable of giving straight forward feedback
How do you tell someone that they aren’t doing something affectively? You give straight-forward facts that are sometimes difficult to say. Not giving honest advice will take away from the value of your coaching.
__ I would make a great teacher/coach
If you are starting out, you have to determine if you want to spend time with people teaching them new skills and techniques that will make a difference in their lives.
__ I have patience and good customer service skills
Sometimes people change their minds, cancel appointments, don’t show up for appointments. It’s all part of having a business. Your customer service policy will be of your own choosing and values.
__ I’m good at figuring out problems
This is the most exciting part of interview coaching. To ask the questions and find out what is going on. Asking many questions and listening and reading between the lines will give you clues to helping the person succeed.
__ I want to make a difference
You’ve come to the right place. You can help people change their lives. You can help them to be more competitive in the job market. You can show them that they have power in the interview process.
__ I’m good at giving motivational reinforcement
After you’ve given them the straight-forward feedback you will have to work to build their esteem back to a place where they will appreciate they have something to offer.
How many checks were you able to put on the list? If you have six out of the ten skills required – or higher – this may be a place for you to explore.
Being an interview coach offers new challenges and the chance to play many roles during a single day. The roles may vary with each client. The clients are all different –people in transition, or up for an internal promotion, or changing fields, or young people entering the work force. And, don’t forget the “walking wounded” – who have been laid off, or fired.. These people need help – they need encouragement – they need caring for.
What is life after all if it isn’t about making a difference? You can make a difference in your own life as well as other peoples’ lives – over, and over, and over – extending all over the world. You can make a difference as an Interview Coach.
Elementary School Career Education – The Need, Basics, Examples, and Guidelines
According Ediger (2000), elementary school career education is important. Ediger stated that “the elementary school years are not too early to begin to achieve a vision of what one desires to do in life contributing to the world of work”. Without career education, students have unrealistic perceptions of careers due to a lack of knowledge and poor decision making. Students have limited knowledge and exposure to careers. (2,3) When students look at the different industries e.g. sports, media and entertainment, most students underestimate the skills and time required to have successful careers. (3)
The Basics for Elementary School Career Education Programs
In career awareness programs, students do not make premature career choices. Elementary school career education is not career exploration or career preparation. Elementary students remain open to new career ideas and possibilities. (7,8,13,15) Elementary students build awareness of self, personal interactions, school, and the workforce. (2,15) Elementary school counselors and teachers build self-awareness, family awareness, school awareness, community awareness, career/ work awareness, attitude development, skill development, decision making strategies, and self-worth. (2,4,11)
Career awareness programs use age appropriate materials that match the developmental levels of the students. Age appropriate activities expose students to a variety of different jobs, career information sources, and the reasons why people work. Programs also incorporate academic career pathways into classroom activities. According to CareerTec (2000), the preliminary career education skills serve as foundations for future skills. As the students progress, previous skills are reinforced, developed, and expanded. (2,4,11)
As elementary students get older, the students modify career visions and goals. After completing an elementary school career awareness program, students have higher grades, higher academic achievement, improved school involvement, as well as an increase in career awareness exploration, personal, and interpersonal skills. (1,15) In addition, the students complete more complex courses and have a higher graduation rate from high school. (9)
In summary, in career programs, students:
Learn and apply the academic material
Know and value self
Build self-esteem and confidence
Identify interests and build relationships between the school environment and the work force
Build academic, communication, problem solving, and social skills
Increase awareness of the need for future jobs skills
See the connections between learning in school, academic skills, job related skills, and careers
See career possibilities
See themselves as a future contributor to the job force
Receive empowerment
Build self-determination (2,7,9)
Examples of Elementary School Career Education Resources
Career awareness programs widely use tools are the Individual Career Plan (ICP) and the Individual Career Develop Portfolio. According to the Ohio State Department of Education (2000), Individual Career Plans (ICP) are essential for the development of self-awareness, employability skills, decision making and goal setting, community involvement, economics, and the reduction of bias. Students use the Individual Career Plans as they identify and explore initial career goals and educational plans. Elementary students use Individual Career Plan (ICP) to develop skills and to prepare to make future educational and career decisions. (12)
Another important tool is the Individual Career Develop Portfolio. Individual Career Develop Portfolios are collections of the career awareness activities and experiences that have occurred during the school year. (12) Other elementary school career awareness activities include:
Artistic displays
Career Days
Career Fairs
Career research
Career videos
Collages, murals
Community speakers
Educational games
Family group discussions
Field trips
Information interviewing
Job shadowing
Library book report
Mentors
Poetry
Phonics
Pictured dictionary
Puppets
Role playing
Scrapbook
Story reading
Student group discussions
Word search and comprehension activities (8,9,11,12,16)
Elementary school programs help students build connections between academics and real life situations. (9) Teachers and counselors use career education principles to stress the importance of language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science. Language arts have many uses in the workplace: Reading, writing, and listening skills. The uses for Mathematics include: Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division skills to solve problems. In Social Studies, students gain understanding about other countries, languages, cultures, and the aspects of living in a global marketplace. Students learn the importance of Science having skills to solve problems as well as understanding how science is involved in different industries, such as food, media, agricultural, and automotive industries. (8)
Guidelines for Elementary Education Career Resources – National Career Development Guidelines
The NCDG Guidelines is a career knowledge, skills, and decision-making framework. The NCDG framework has three domains, goals, and indicators. Teachers and counselors use the domains, goals, and indicators as guidelines to design and create career resources. The three domains are: Personal Social Development (PS), Educational Achievement and Lifelong Learning (ED), and Career Management (CM). Each domain represents a developmental area in a career education program. Under each domain are goals or competencies. Under each goal, indicators highlight the knowledge and skills needed to achieve the goal. The National Career Development Guidelines (NCDG) is the foundation for career education products, research development, tests and tools. (14)
Summary
Elementary school career education programs build self-awareness, family awareness, school awareness, community awareness, career/ work awareness, attitude development, skill development, decision making strategies, and self-worth. Elementary school career awareness programs use age appropriate materials that match the developmental levels of the students. As a results of career education, schools reported that students had higher grades and academic achievement, improvement in school involvement and performance, as well as an increase in career awareness exploration, personal, and interpersonal skills. Career awareness activities include Individual Career Plan (ICP), Individual Career Develop Portfolio (ICDP), Career Days, Career Fairs, Field trips, information interviewing, and library book report.
References
1. American Counseling Association, Office of Public Policy and Legislation. (2007). Effectiveness of School Counseling. Alexandria, VA: Author.
2. Angel, N. Faye; Mooney, Marianne. (1996, December). Work-in-Progress: Career and Work Education for Elementary Students. (ED404516). Cincinnati, OH: Paper presented at the American Vocational Association Convention.
3. Benning, Cathleen; Bergt, Richard; Sausaman, Pamela. (2003, May). Improving Student Awareness of Careers through a Variety of Strategies. Thesis: Action Research Project. (ED481018). Chicago, Illinois: Saint Xavier University.
4. Career Tec. (2000). K-12 Career Awareness & Development Sequence [with Appendices, Executive and Implementation Guide]. (ED450219) .Springfield, Il: Author.
5. Carey, John. (2003, January). What are the Expected Benefits Associated with Implementing a Comprehensive Guidance Program. School counseling Research Brief 1.1. Amherst, MA: Fredrickson Center for School Counseling Outcome Research.
6. Dare, Donna E.; Maddy-Bernstein, Carolyn. (199
9, September). Career Guidance Resource Guide for Elementary and Middle/Junior High School Educators. (ED434216). Berkeley, CA: National Center for Research in Vocational Education.
7. DuVall, Patricia. (1995).Let’s Get Serious about Career Education for Elementary Students. AACE Bonus Briefs. (ED386603). Hermosa Beach, CA: AACE Bonus Briefs.
8. Ediger, Marlow. (2000, July). Vocational Education in the Elementary School. (ED442979) Opinion Papers
9. Gerver, Miriam, Shanley, Judy, O Cummings, Mindee. (2/14/02). Answering the Question EMSTAC Extra Elementary and Middle Schools. Washington, DC: Technical Assistance Center, (EMSTAC).
10. Hurley, Dan, Ed.; Thorp, Jim, Ed. (2002, May). Decisions without Direction: Career Guidance and Decision-Making among American Youth. (ED465895). Grand Rapids, Michigan: Ferris State University Career Institute for Education and Workforce Development.
11. Maddy-Bernstein, Carolyn; Dare, Donna E. (1997,December).Career Guidance for Elementary and Middle School Students. Office of Student Services Brief, v9 n1. (ED415353). Berkeley, CA: National Center for Research in Vocational Education.
12. Ohio Department of Education, Division of Vocational and Career Education, Ohio Career Development Blueprint, Individual Career Plan, K to 5 (ED449322). Columbus, Ohio, 2000
13. Splete, Howard; Stewart, Amy. (1990). Competency-Based Career Development Strategies and the National Career Development Guidelines. Information Series No. 345. (ED327739). Columbus, Ohio: ERIC Clearinghouse on Education and Training for Employment & Ohio State University
14. U.S. Department of Education Office of Vocational and Adult Education. (1994, 2004). National Career Development Guidelines (NCDG). Washington, DC: Author.
15. Williams, Jean A., Ed. (1999, January). Elementary Career Awareness Guide: A Resource for Elementary School Counselors and Teachers. (ED445293). Raleigh, NC: NC Department of Public Instruction, NC Job Ready.
16. Woal, S. Theodore. (1995). Career Education–The Early Years. AACE Bonus Briefs. (ED386603). Hermosa Beach, CA: AACE Bonus Briefs.
The Importance Of A Good Job Interview
A job interview is one of the most important events in ones life. If it is your first, the importance increases. How does one pull it off with out nervousness or fear? One of the key things people forget when they go into an interview is that staying cool is the best option. Be relaxed and prepared, the best answers will come on their own. What is the fear when all the knowledge you ever need has been already taught you?
Often, people lose in the interview because they are panic stricken at the last moment. Why does this happen? Well, thinking about the future. The foremost thought running through a lot of our minds before the interview is that if we do not succeed then what will happen? Where will I get the next job? These negative thoughts make us nervous and enable to answer the simplest of questions. So being positive is a crucial point before going to a job interview
Before the interview, may be a day before, remember to mentally rehearse the interview from your own perspective: When you are pleased with the imagined performance you are producing, step inside the image of yourself and run through the scenarios again as if YOU are now doing it. See, feel and hear it as if it is really happening. This time, you are looking out into the world from your own eyes, so your arms are directly in front of you with people facing you, as you feel your clothes on your body. Allow it all to unfold in great detail – make it as real as possible by letting your imagination free to create a rich and colorful panoramic view of a successful day. Finally, pay special attention again to feelings, really spend time imagining yourself feeling exactly the way you want to feel, and then go get the job! It is a proven fact that visualizing your success can get you exactly that. If you think of negative things, then you will be bound to get that.
Like anything in life it takes time to get really good at mental rehearsal. Using this visualization technique for twenty minutes a day will train your brain to perform new behaviors. The results will astound you. Judge mental rehearsal by trying it out in the real world and decide for yourself how effective it can be. Use it to prepare for those crucial job interviews and enjoy the satisfaction that comes from knowing that you are performing at your very best.
Eventually you will be able to use this approach in day-to-day situations on the spur of the moment by focusing on using the power of your imagination. Imagination is the gift an individual has got. Use it today for your success and the stepping stone to a new future with brighter prospects!