Jim Thomason's "The Business of People"

Six months before my job went away at Thomas Nelson I knew that having to leave was possible. When bonus time came in the summer I set money aside and made three purchases that were the smartest money I have ever spent: I bought two quality suits and a MacBook Air.  I did this because job hunting, aside from strategy, requires three things: appearance, mobility and communications. With these new assets I was able to send and receive resumes, applications and references, surf the web, and show up anywhere in the country on short notice looking like the job I wanted to find. In my career as an interviewer I am constantly surprised and disappointed at how candidates present themselves.  Now before you go jumping on me for insensitivity to people who are out of a job and can't afford such things, remember that I mostly recruit for upper level positions. This was true at my last job and my current job as well.  If you are looking for upper five or lower six figures and that ...

One of the great things about a traveling job is the people you get to meet. You never know who you get to talk to on the road and what you might learn.  This is particularly true on Southwest Airlines where the Senior Vice President of Don't You Know Who I Am typically won't fly. The remaining passengers tend to be a more friendly and down-to-earth group and chances of a chatty seat mate are higher. Such was the case last week flying out of LAX to Phoenix where I met a graphic designer/student/entrepreneur/retail worker whose name is  Adewale Agboke Jr . , who works professionally by the name "Kjen" but calls himself simply "JR". Dressed in casual urban clothes with a skull cap that read "Brooklyn", he had the aisle and I had the window toward the rear of the plane.  Our conversation first started when people were getting on the plane late and JR commented about his disdain for people who don't show up on time.  Then the guy behind us got...