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I have a lovely golden retriever named Clive. Watching him grow from a little tiny puppy into a full grown dog has been, except for a few nasty biological waste incidents, a really rewarding experience.

His approach to life is basic but useful to observe.  Perhaps, there are lessons here for our own lives.

1.  If you can’t find the ball, start sniffing around the last place you saw it and work in concentric circles until you find it.  
2. When you think a stick might be thrown, be sure to look up so you can see where it’s going to land.
3. When you meet someone new, greet them with a warm enthusiasm but don’t jump in their face.  That’s just too much for most people.
4. Even if it’s a really busy day, make sure to spend some time in the back yard enjoying the fresh air and squirrels.
5. If someone is offering to rub your head, then for heaven’s sake, stop and accept it.  Don’t waste that kind of opportunity.
6. Several times a day, stretch your whole body.  If it helps, make a little growling noise in mid-stretch.  There’s a reason yoga people have been doing the “Downward Dog” pose for centuries.
7. When someone comes home, always stop what you are doing (even if you are napping) and go to the door to say hello.

So the next time you see someone picking dog hair off their pants before a meeting, stop and see what they have learned from their dog.

Things don’t go well all the time.  Even when you work really hard to do the right things the right way, shit happens. People who are angry or unhappy lash out and toss around mistruths or accusations. Sometimes the crap lands on people who had nothing to do with the problem.

When this happens, our tendency is to get bug eyed and then close the door and cry.

And that’s okay.  Crying is good.  It gets the shock and awe (how could they say that?) out of the way so you can move on to dealing with the problem.

We can’t control people who throw crap at us, but we can control how we deal with it.

Yesterday, when I asked a good friend how she was, she replied “Well, I spent yesterday crying but now I’m getting constructive.”  Brilliant.

How you react behind closed doors is one thing.  What you do after that, is quite another.

Sure, take moment to vent, cry, swear, whatever, but then sit down and make a list of damage control items.  Consult a trusted advisor.  Take a deep breath and take action.

While you may have to accept that you did not get the job or that your colleague took credit for your idea, you do not have to let it end there.  You can send a gracious note to the hiring manager letting them know that you respect their decision and that you would be open to considering other roles in the future.  You can find a way to mention your contribution to the project while your boss is listening.

But it takes clear thinking and a desire to rise above it, to let the world know that you really do care about what you do and that a little crap thrown your way is not going to change that.

My husband and I have taken to watching The Rosie Show in the evenings.  It seems to be the perfect compromise.  He likes daytime talk shows and I like late night stand-up comics.  Rosie O’Donnell stands in front of a microphone with a live audience and actually interacts with the crowd.  It is fresh and funny – a real kind of reality show.

Each day, Rosie’s staff pick an audience member to do the announcements and on Tuesday, they picked a woman named Hollee.  Rosie starts her monologue by introducing Hollee to the audience.  Then the banter begins:  where are you from?  Who did you come with? And then the kicker: what do you do for a living?

“Well”, says Hollee. “I actually just joined the ranks of the unemployed.”

Instead of a stunned silence, Rosie asks her what she used to do and how she is coping.  Hollee grins and says her friends have been really supportive and she thinks this will really turn out to be a blessing. On national TV in front of a live audience.  No rehearsal, no nothing.

In 20 seconds, she was able to project all kinds of great things about herself and her approach to life.  You have to believe that those qualities would be present in her work life too.  That her infectious smile and positive attitude would impact any team she was on and that her confidence and poise would allow her to deal well with all kinds of people.

Apparently, I was not the only one thinking that.  On the show yesterday, Rosie invited Hollee back to do the announcements again.  After all, Hollee’s schedule was pretty open.

The last announcement that Hollee was called on to read was (again, live taping and live studio audience) that she, Hollee, was going to be hired as the permanent announcer for The Rosie Show until the end of the year.  Her smile was so big, I thought her face was going to split open! You can see it here.

Sure, we all love happy-ever-after stories and sure, it was TV, not real life but it does prove that if you are willing to really put yourself out there, good stuff will happen.

The executive and marketing teams where I work have rolled out a new brand: new logo, new website, the whole nine yards.  Two weeks ago, they threw a big launch party to celebrate the new image and message.  As part of the swag bag, we got new business cards in fancy hand crafted boxes.

When I got back to the office and shook off the late night and the wine, I realized that the new cards featured not just the new logo and new colours, but a new title as well.

At first, I dismissed it.  I did not even give it a second thought.  But then I realized I was doing exactly what I tell people NOT to do:  downplaying a success.

Even though it felt like I was not doing anything different than before I got the new cards, clearly someone in my organization thought that it was time to recognize my growth and development, even in this small way.

When I think about my recruiting practice now, compared to two or three years ago, it is different.  It has grown and evolved and so have my skills and even my style (okay, this one is work in progress).

So other than walking a little taller with a bit more bounce in my step, what else should I do with this?

1.  Add a new title and set of bullet points to my resume
2. Change my linkedin profile
3. Work it into a few conversations so that it feels more real

For most of us, work evolves.  It does not just change on a given Thursday so when something does change for the good, make the most of it because six months from now, it will all be a blur.  So if you see that I have not changed my linkedin profile, call me out – I deserve it!

Today is Rosh Hashanah, the celebration of the jewish new year and so to recognize the arrival of 5772, I have made some resolutions.

1.  Be more respectful.
2.  Stay on task.  I’d like to learn to stay with a project until it’s complete.
3.  Get some exercise.  It would be good to sweat every day for something other than anxiety.
4.  Develop a better balance between my drive and my patience.
5.  Stop eating cheeseburger Happy Meals for snacks.  Just because I have milk instead of Coke does not make it healthy.
6. Get more people in to better jobs.

Happy New Year!  May it be a good and sweet year for you and your career.

You have your resume in hand and you’ve plotted the address on your GPS.  You are ready for the interview.

But wait!

Here are some final tips for you to consider when going for the big interview:

All these tips aside, all you really need is a firm handshake and a great opening line and you’ll be just fine.

Harry Chapin was not wrong when he sang about his life being circular and everything going round and round.  It’s been my experience that you really have to be nice to everyone because you just never know when you will be talking to your neighbour’s best friend.  You make one unkind remark and all of the sudden; no one on the street is talking to you.

This is especially important in the world of work, which is, frankly, a tighter and more fickle community than your neighbourhood block.

In my line of work, this is especially true.  After all, everyone is a candidate sometime and should be treated with respect and dignity.  Today’s candidate is tomorrow’s hiring manager.

But this is true in other spaces as well.  Your manager and colleagues are future references or current recommendations on your linkedin profile.  They are also great sources of information about what’s happening in the industry/space/company.  By the way, this is not an invitation for gossip, it’s a reminder to keep your eyes and ears open for the information that might lead to the next opportunity.

We are not perfect.  There are days when we are not in the mood to be friendly (blame the moon!) and there are days when we over react to a situation or lash out in anger that’s unrelated to the situation.  It’s okay.  It happens but own up to it as soon as you can.  That’s where a good reputation comes from.  People will remember that you came forward and dealt with the issue in a way that was clear and authentic, not that you threw a temper tantrum in their office.

You have probably already seen the signs on your neighbour’s lawn.  And you have probably rolled your eyes about living through another election campaign.

But wait!  The campaign presents a great platform for people who are looking for new opportunities.

1.  If you are unemployed, volunteer with one of the campaigns.  They can always use help especially during the day. You will meet some cool people and maybe even learn some new skills.  You can do this if you are employed too – it’s just harder to juggle your schedule but you will enjoy the same benefits.
2. Go to an All Candidates Meeting.  Sit beside someone you don’t know.  You may have to opportunity to introduce yourself.  Typically people who go to All Candidates Meetings are engaged and interesting people.
3. If you go to an All Candidates Meeting, ask a question of the candidates.  That’s what they are there for.  Here are some suggestions:
   1. As an unemployed machinist, I have some concerns about the future of my industry in Ontario.  Could you comment what your party is doing to support it?
   2. What are your plans for job creation?  I was laid off two months ago and I am finding things very discouraging.
   3. My son is in university and is not sure he will get a job when he graduates.  How will your party tackle increasing the jobs for young people?

There are lots of other questions you could ask but these get your message out to the candidates and to the audience at large.  People have a lot of respect for someone who is willing to stand up and ask the big questions.

Bring your business cards because it may turn out that there is an audience member looking for someone just like you.

So you sent in your resume and now you have an interview next Thursday.  Now what?  Don’t just pace and eat chocolate – get constructive.

1. Get a haircut.  Don’t wait until the day before – those funny tan lines will give it away.
2. Research, research, research.  Not just on the company website but newspapers, trade magazines, linkedin – the whole nine yards.  Find out what’s been happening lately – awards, new projects, new executives.
3. Layout your clothes to make sure you have everything you need including shoes and socks that are clean and neat.
4. Think about what you will need to bring with you and what you want to put it in.  You can go with a briefcase, folio or satchel.  I would avoid a huge purse or backpack – too distracting.  It looks like you are sleeping over, not just there for a meeting.
5. Print several copies of your resume on nice paper. Gather any reference letters, articles, awards and make copies of them, too.  When you offer a copy of your resume to the interviewer, you can also offer some of the other material.  It makes you look organized and accomplished.
6. You might want to have a nice pen with you too.  It adds an extra bit of polish when you whip it out to make notes.

I hate to point out the obvious but don’t bring:

• Your dog
• Your Timmie’s medium double double (even if it’s still warm)
• Anything that rings, beeps or buzzes

Remember that an interview is just a conversation about a potential shared future. Take a deep breath and enjoy it.

You may have missed it but Anderson Cooper dissolved into a fit of giggles the other night while broadcasting live.

He was delivering his nightly Ridiculist monologue about Gerard Depardieu and his plane/urination/bottle/no bottle incident when he just cracked up all together and lost it.

After several minutes of wiping his eyes and putting his head down on his desk, he managed to compose himself, finish the monologue and get to a commercial break.

So here’s the question:  should he be fired for non-performance or at least written up?  I am sure his job description does not include giggling.  It might not forbid it, but it’s probably not what they had in mind when they hired him to anchor the evening time slot.

This is the sort of thing that happens when you push the boundaries of your job.  Creating the Ridiculist feature meant that there would be an opportunity for humour or at least, substantial eye rolling.  When he got the go ahead from his boss, there must have been some awareness that this behaviour could occur.

Think about when you volunteer to sit on the social committee or lead the United Way campaign at your company.  At some point, some manager will mutter something about when you will be going back to your regular job (“you know, the one they pay you for” will likely be the phrase) but stick to your guns.

Doing activities outside your normal scope are where new opportunities come from.  You get to work with different people.  You get to work towards a different (and sometimes more meaningful) objective and sometimes, as Anderson Cooper can attest to, you can have some real fun.