“STAY-AT-HOME MOM” IS NEW LINKEDIN JOB TITLE
Garrison Leykam
April 07, 2021
A shout out to moms! LinkedIn is recognizing your hard work by making its social network more inclusive for stay-at-home parents. It’s official: “stay-at-home mom” and “stay-at-home dad” are new LinkedIn job titles!
See publication
Tags: Management, HR, Future of Work
LINKEDIN PROFILE ADVICE FROM 1944: LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Garrison Leykam
April 06, 2021
Harold Samuel coined the phrase “Location, location, location” in 1944 when he founded Land Securities, one of the United Kingdom’s largest property companies. In 2021, his quote is as valid today when it comes to being found and searchable on your LinkedIn Profile.
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership, Marketing
PUT OFF RETIREMENT AND FIND ANOTHER GIG YOU LIKE
Garrison Leykam
April 05, 2021
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) expects the trend of older people working to continue, estimating that 13 million Americans age 65 and older will be in the labor force by 2024. While earlier generations viewed retirement as a time for rest and relaxation, in the last 10 to 15 years, the retirement age has crept up to 68. As of February 2019, more than 20% of Americans aged 65 or older were working or looking for work, a 57-year high, according to federal data.
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership, HR
HERE’S WHY YOU SHOULD UPDATE YOUR RESUME NOW
Garrison Leykam
March 30, 2021
If the most recent version of your resume is on a floppy disc in that lower drawer of your desk that you only venture into when it’s the place of last resort for finding something you’ve lost, it’s definitely time to update it (as well as save it on the Cloud!).
See publication
Tags: Cloud, Management, Leadership
COVID-19 HAS REDEFINED THE WORKPLACE OF THE FUTURE
Garrison Leykam Career Blog
March 20, 2021
American multinational software company Citrix Systems, Inc. partnered with OnePoll to survey 7,250 employees in 12 countries to determine how their attitudes and expectations on work have changed since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Three findings strikingly illustrate how the workplace we formerly took for granted will be unrecognizable in the future of work.
See publication
Tags: HR, Future of Work, COVID19
AGEISM STRATEGIES FOR YOUR 50+ JOB SEARCH
Garrison Leykam Career Blog
March 05, 2021
In states that require helmet use for all riders (operators and passengers), 99% of motorcyclists wear helmets. Nowhere near the same compliance when it comes to age discrimination in the workplace.
See publication
Tags: Leadership, HR, Future of Work
NETWORKING ON LINKEDIN ~ TAKE THE POLAR BEAR PLUNGE
Garrison Leykam
February 07, 2021
The polar bear plunge is held during the winter when participants enter a body of water despite the extremely low temperature. For LinkedIn members who have used the premier business networking site as just another online place to download their résumé, putting their toes into the networking waters often freezes them into inactivity.
See publication
Tags: Social, HR, Business Strategy
IF JOB DESCRIPTIONS COULD TALK
Garrison Leykam
February 05, 2021
Joel Schwartzberg, in his insightful article, What Job Description Jargon is Actually Saying, makes this important point: A job description (JD) is more than just a summary of a role. A JD may hold more clues than first meets the eye, including hints about corporate culture, the true prioritization of their needs, and what might be secretly negotiable. Knowing how to find these clues may give you a distinct advantage over other applicants. Knowing how to find these clues may give you a distinct advantage over other applicants.
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Culture, Future of Work
IF ALL YOU REALLY NEED TO KNOW YOU LEARNED IN KINDERGARTEN YOU ARE GOING TO BE LEFT BACK IN YOUR CAREER
Garrison Leykam
January 31, 2021
By 2022, 42% of core skills required to perform existing jobs are expected to change. The solution: develop a continuous learning mindset throughout your career because lifelong learning is more important than ever before.
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership, Business Continuity
THE KEY TO RESUME KEYWORDS
Garrison Leykam
January 24, 2021
Keyword Density: “On-page SEO” is the practice of optimizing individual web pages in order to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic in search engines. When used correctly, it can help attract search engines and boost a page’s visibility on search engine results pages (SERPs). When ignored, it can keep a page from ranking or even result in a search penalty, removing it from SERPs altogether. Keyword density is an element of keyword optimization that refers to the number of times a target keyword is used on a webpage. If you’re an aspiring marketer, learning how to calculate keyword density is fairly easy. You simply take the number of times the target keyword appears on a page and divide it by the total number of words on the page:
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership, Marketing
11 RESUME TIPS FOR 2021
Garrison Leykam
January 07, 2021
To get the interview for your next career move, your résumé has to communicate that you are the ideal candidate. Here are 11 résumé tips for selling yourself in 2021
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership, HR
LINKEDIN CAREER EXPLORER: THE SECRET SAUCE FOR CAREER TRANSITIONS
Garrison Leykam
January 03, 2021
The path to a new job isn’t always clear. But, one way to get a handle on figuring out your next move is LinkedIn’s Career Explorer which helps you uncover potential career path transitions and see how your skills match to real job titles.
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership, HR
TOP TEN 2020 LINKEDIN CHANGES FOR YOUR 2021 CAREER BRANDING
Garrison Leykam
January 02, 2021
TOP TEN 2020 LINKEDIN CHANGES FOR YOUR 2021 CAREER BRANDING
See publication
Tags: Social, Management, Leadership
NARRATIVE PSYCHOLOGY AND YOUR LINKEDIN CAREER STORY
Garrison Leykam
December 06, 2020
Narrative psychology, a term was introduced by Theodore R. Sarbin in Narrative Psychology: The Storied Nature of Human Conduct , investigates the value of stories and storytelling in giving meaning to individuals’ experiences. It’s an especially relevant topic for job seekers, especially late blooming career changers, when it comes to writing your summary for your LinkedIn About section. According to legendary film professor Howard Suber, “You seek your destiny; you succumb to your fate. Destiny originates within the self; fate comes from outside. Fate is the force that lies beyond individual will and control; it pushes you from behind. Destiny is the attracting force in front of you that acts like a magnet and that you choose to acquire.” Controlling your career destiny should shape the story you tell in your LinkedIn Profile About section.
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Culture
USE SOCIAL MEDIA TO FUEL YOUR CAREER SEARCH
Garrison Leykam
December 05, 2020
LinkedIn is unquestionably the social network for job-seeking professionals – even if you’re not looking right now. 92%of recruiters use social media in their work today and LinkedIn is the social network they use most. But, don’t eliminate other social media sites in your online job search toolkit. Here’s how they stack up in terms of recruiters’ use in their candidate hunting:
See publication
Tags: Social, Leadership
ARE YOU A T-SHAPE OR I-SHAPE JOB CANDIDATE?
Garrison Leykam
November 30, 2020
T-shaped skills are referred to in job recruitment to describe the abilities of candidates. The vertical bar of the T refers to expert knowledge and experience in one particular area. The horizontal top of the T refers to an ability to collaborate with experts in other disciplines. Immensely empathetic T-shaped individuals can see through others’ eyes, walk in their shoes, listen actively, and create solutions that build on their ideas. They shine in diverse, collaborative teams and standout among recruiters and hiring managers compared to I-shaped job applicants.
See publication
Tags: Innovation, Leadership
SENIOR JOB SEEKERS: ARE YOU FUELING YOUR CANDIDACY WITH GF, GC OR A MIX?
Garrison Leykam
November 24, 2020
With the exception of diesel fuel, the choice of train engineers, truck drivers and automobile owners who are indifferent to this highly corrosive fuel causing serious damage to a car’s paint job if left unwashed, most drivers select from three octane levels: regular (87), mid-grade (89) and premium (93). Today’s vehicles are technologically advanced enough to tell the difference between lower octane gas and higher octane gas. The electronic fuel management systems detect the switch and adjust the ignition timing and fuel injection to cope. Similarly, Applicant Tracking Software aka ATS can match a resume against a posting and determine whether a candidate match is regular, mid-grade or premium.
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Autonomous Vehicles, Business Strategy
IS YOUR CAREER A SELF-DRIVING CAR OR AN OPEN ROAD MOTORCYCLE
Garrison Leykam
November 23, 2020
I love motorcycling. Riding has been a passion of mine since I was a teenager. The joy of traversing the terra firma on two wheels has continued well into my adulthood and motivated me to ride over twenty thousand miles of highways and main streets crisscrossing the state of Connecticut to research Classic Diners of Connecticut for The History Press.
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership
CHALLENGE TO UP & OUT EMPLOYERS
Garrison Leykam
November 21, 2020
Robotics and AI are rapidly changing the way goods are manufactured today but the typical career is still stuck in 20th century assembly line thinking. Employees take an entry level job, move up the ranks, get promoted, make more money and then are forcibly put out to pasture as part of the up & out employer attitude as to how business works. Up & out is based on the principle that older workers become a liability in their 50s and 60s and that younger employees have more to offer. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
See publication
Tags: AI, Innovation, Leadership
NOW IS THE TIME FOR LATE BLOOMING
Garrison Leykam
November 09, 2020
Let’s pretend for a moment you and I are taking a road trip. The luggage is secured, snacks are within reach, the GPS is plugged in and the gas tank is filled. You lean over to me and ask, “Are you ready?” I respond, “No” and proceed to get out of the car, select the screwdriver from my Swiss army knife and remove the side mirrors. I reenter the cabin and you yell, “Are you crazy?” to which I unaffectedly respond with, “Oops, forgot this one” and remove the inside rearview mirror as well. You have now deemed me certifiably crazy as well as a significant safety hazard. I account for my actions with, “We’re not here to look back and see where we’ve been but rather to experience where we’re going” and I toss the GPS out the window.
See publication
Tags: Leadership
HEADS UP ON RESUME HEADERS
Garrison Leykam
November 08, 2020
You may not be familiar with names like iCIMS, Bullhorn and Ascendify, but these software gatekeepers decide whether your resume or online application is passed through to a hiring manager or discarded. Commonly referred to by their acronym, ATS, Applicant Tracking Software (ATS) compares submitted resumes and online applications to job postings to determine whether there is a strong candidate match to what the employer is looking for. Resumes and online applications are stored in a database and recruiters can search submissions using keywords and phrases to identify who to advance through the hiring process based upon applicant rankings. Avoid this one critical mistake so many job seekers make on their resume!
See publication
Tags: Leadership, HR
THE NEW INTERVIEW QUESTION: BE PREPARED TO ANSWER IT
Garrison Leykam
November 07, 2020
There is a new interview question that is rapidly becoming standard during Covid-19: “What did you learn during the pandemic of 2020?”
See publication
Tags: Innovation, Leadership
THE ART OF BLOOMING LATE
Garrison Leykam
November 02, 2020
My idol for as long as I can remember is George Plimpton, American journalist, writer, literary editor, actor and occasional amateur sportsman. Plimpton is renowned for “participatory journalism” which included competing in professional sporting events, acting in a Western, performing a comedy act at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and playing with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. His influence on me spanned my career and inspired me to be a career coach; producer, engineer and talent scout for London Records; host my own radio show on WSTC/WNLK; produce and host for public television; write several books; perform at iconic venues like CBGBs and Nashville’s Bluebird Café; head-up my own record label; serve as a senior leader for companies including MCI, Cablevision and Cablevision; and even take a motorcycle trip across Egypt featured in New York Rider. I am a staunch believer that you can achieve fulfillment and do meaningful work at any age.
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership
TELL ME ABOUT A TIME WHEN
Garrison Leykam Career Blog
October 17, 2020
The hiring manager is impressed with your resume and you did well enough on the Zoom prescreen interview that the company wants to bring you in for an in-person meeting. You depart early and arrive on time. You remembered to bring extra copies of your resume and are prepared to take notes
See publication
Tags: Leadership, HR
SKILLS MAKE YOU RETRIEVABLE AND RECOMMENDATIONS MAKE YOU BELIEVABLE
Garrison Leykam
September 25, 2020
When you want to be found by recruiters and hiring managers on LinkedIn remember that Skills = Keywords and play a significant role in matching you to what a prospective employer is looking for. So, make sure you are taking advantage of all 50 Skills slots on your LinkedIn Profile and that your Skills are targeted to the positions you want to be found for
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership
ERROLL GARNER’S MESSAGE ABOUT MEANINGFUL WORK
Garrison Leykam
September 19, 2020
I had the honor and pleasure of handling production for legendary jazz pianist Erroll Garner for London Records. Known for his signature playing style that involved his right hand playing behind the beat while his left strummed a steady rhythm and punctuation, his words were music to my ears and continue to inspire me: “Playing is like life. Either you feel it or you don’t. Nobody can hear you read music.” So, too, others can’t see our dreams but if we live our calling and serve others our work has purpose.
See publication
Tags: Management, Leadership
DON’T LEAVE DIVERSITY OFF YOUR RESUME
Garrison Leykam Career Blog
September 19, 2020
Don’t leave off diversity in your resume. Diversity encompasses race, gender, ethnicity, generations, religion, sexual orientation, life and work experiences, language, and anything else that gives you an expanded perspective. Employers look for key abilities and attributes that demonstrate a candidate’s diversity experience
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Diversity and Inclusion
WHAT DOES YOUR LINKEDIN ACTIVITY CONVEY TO EMPLOYERS
Garrison Leykam Career Blog
September 10, 2020
Your LinkedIn Profile Activity section will only appear IF you create and post content. Think of your Activity section as a highway billboard. The average driver will only have about 5 to 10 seconds to view a billboard, read any text and comprehend the message. What do you want the recruiter (driver) to see in your Activity (billboard) that strengthens your job candidate potential? Your goal should be to increase your visibility, not only in your field and with your peers but with recruiters and hiring managers. You’d be well-served career-wise to post content on LinkedIn that continuously promotes you as an expert in your target next career step.
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Business Strategy
CREATE THE RÉSUMÉ TRAILER TO THE MOVIE OF YOUR CAREER
LinkedIn
May 20, 2020
See publication
Tags: Social, Future of Work, COVID19
HOW-TO NOT SELF-SABOTAGE YOUR REMOTE JOB INTERVIEW
Garrison Leykam Career Blog
May 07, 2020
Remote interviewing has taken center stage with employers who are looking to screen job applicants. It’s a trend that has been increasing in recent years but has escalated dramatically with COVID-19’s impact on being unable to travel for in-person interviews. Social distancing has quickly made virtual interviewing a recruiting staple so it’s to your benefit to master it.
See publication
Tags: Future of Work, COVID19
Tips for Adding a Visumé to your Job Search Branding Package
Import from wordpress feed
April 16, 2020
Video resumes were first introduced in the 1980s for use and distribution on VHS tape, but the laborious technology dampened the idea and it never took off. However, with the modern capabilities of transmitting streaming video via the internet, video resumes aka visumés are taking on new populari
See publication
Tags: Business Strategy
Keep Your Career Search in Perpetual Forward Motion During COVID-19
Import from wordpress feed
April 14, 2020
The Beverly clock is the closest anyone will ever see to a “perpetual motion machine.” Invented in 1864 by Arthur Beverly and located in the foyer of the Department of Physics at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand this clock has yet to be wound and dependably keeps running on atmosp
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Future of Work, Business Strategy, COVID19
Working from Home without Losing Your Mind
Import from wordpress feed
April 13, 2020
COVID-19 has made working from home an inescapable reality, especially challenging for straphangers, rail riders, and road warriors who’ve made commuting to and working from an office part and parcel of their daily work life. The new distractions and absence of familiar job routines can be especia
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Business Strategy, COVID19
You Have to Thrive, Not Simply Survive, During COVID-19
Import from wordpress feed
April 06, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has created uncertainty in every facet of our personal and professional lives. It’s quite easy right now to live in survival mode. And, while it is necessary to take care of ourselves and our significant others, when it comes to managing your career you have to not just survi
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Business Strategy, COVID19
Your LinkedIn Profile is a “Behavior,” not a “Place”
Import from wordpress feed
April 02, 2020
Having a successful LinkedIn profile means being findable and searchable by recruiters and hiring managers. That means having and maintaining the mindset that your profile is a “behavior,” not a “place.” Once you’ve created powerful, keywords-filled Headline, About and
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Business Strategy
Cracking the Code for Hidden Job Market Opportunities
Import from wordpress feed
April 01, 2020
The “hidden job market” is where recruiters are actively searching for candidates to fill job openings that are not publicly advertised. While most of these opportunities are filled internally through employee referrals, a significant number of them are not. And, that means you have a shot at th
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Future of Work, Business Strategy
5 Questions to Ask Yourself about Remote Work
Import from wordpress feed
March 30, 2020
1. What are the differences between remote work, distributed workforce, work from home, virtual job, work from anywhere, telecommute, and agile workforce? Your answer is crucial to targeting your job search and using the right keywords. 2. Does my concept of remote work allow for business trips and
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Future of Work, Business Strategy
Prepare for Your Video Job Interview
linkedin
March 21, 2020
Video interviews have become an increasingly common part of the hiring process. With the transformational influence of COVID-19 on the job market and economy, video interviewing is already an all-pervasive social distancing and interview engagement tool. Here are 10 tips to quickly help you master the medium:
See publication
Tags: Leadership, Business Strategy, COVID19
Job Searching During the COVID-19 Pandemic
linkedin
March 20, 2020
While the world comes to terms with the COVID-19 pandemic, the job search landscape is being redefined and redrafted in real time. There's no YouTube "how-to" manual for dealing with this all-pervasive new challenge as it impacts your career search. However, I can offer you some constructive feedback from my most recent conversations with hiring managers and recruiters:
See publication
Tags: Future of Work, Business Strategy, COVID19
Eric Clapton, the Pentatonic Scale, and your Transferable Career Skills
linkedin
December 21, 2019
Eric Clapton is one of the greatest rock 'n' roll guitarists of all time and an icon of musical career reinvention. In 1963, he joined the Yardbirds in which his blues-influenced style and commanding technique began to attract attention. Clapton left the Yardbirds in 1965 and joined John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers where his guitar playing soon became the group’s principal drawing card on the London club scene. Continuously reinventing his musical career, Clapton formed a new band in 1966 with bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker called Cream, a sophisticated, high-volume fusion of rock and blues featuring improvisational solos. Clapton’s high energy and the emotional intensity of his playing on such songs as “Crossroads” and “White Room” set the standard for the rock guitar solo.
See publication
Tags: Entrepreneurship, Business Continuity
Five Ways To Tame Your Fear Of Public Speaking
Forbes
September 13, 2019
igh school, I was so afraid of being called on to speak that I would sit in the back of the classroom. In college, I so dreaded taking the mandatory public speaking course that I put it off every semester for three years, upon which I transferred to another school where it was no longer required. In my early business career, I never wanted to respond to questions in staff meetings and was terrified of having to make presentations (and I was in sales!). As a certified professional career coach, public speaking has become key in establishing myself as a thought leader, building my client base and helping others develop strong public speaking skills to add value to their own careers. So, how did I go from cowering in the back of a classroom to most recently presenting in a theater that seats more than 2,500 people? I did it by taking several roads less traveled and picking up a few tips along the way.
See publication
Tags: Leadership
Five LinkedIn Profile Tips From A Successful Career Chameleon
Forbes
August 15, 2019
My personal LinkedIn profile is in the top 25 MA, Ph.D. profiles in the United States, is in the top 1% LinkedIn industry social selling index (SSI) and has the highest rating (All-Star), and I’m in the 4% of LinkedIn members statistically deemed Super Connectors. It didn’t get that way by accident or complacency. The biggest surprise to me, however, when I recently took stock of my profile, is just how much of its strength reflects the chameleon-like diversity of my colorful career path. Here's how you can enhance your own profile.
See publication
Tags: Social, Leadership
10 Lessons From The Music Industry On How To Rise Up In The Gig Economy
Forbes
July 30, 2019
Midway through my decade as a producer, songwriter, engineer, performer, and artists and repertoire executive for London Records during the height of the British wave, I was an analog guy struggling to escape the undertow of receding vinyl LPs, 24-track tape machines, cassettes and 8-tracks as CDs and digital recording were quickly revolutionizing the recording business. But, as I reflect back on the 70s a half-century later, and the fact that according to Intuit, 43% of Americans are projected to be working in the gig economy by next year, the success lessons I learned from music while “gigging” are timelessly relevant to the emerging future of independent gig work.
See publication
Tags: Social, Marketing, Business Strategy
Defining Success And Failure Precedes Career Reinvention
Forbes
July 05, 2019
When Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman, co-writers of the Oscar-winning screenplay Annie Hall, were interviewed in 1977 by journalist Susan Braudy for the New York Times, Woody would be credited with telling the world that, “80% of life is just showing up.” Woody’s often quoted comment actually reflected the post-World War II stage in the evolution of the American worker when paternalistic employers were still offering their workers job security and retirement in exchange for loyalty. But, today, “just showing up” no longer generates job security nor is it the path to finding the elusive meaning in work that so many yearn for.
See publication
Tags: Entrepreneurship, Business Strategy
Audacious at Any Age
Postcards from the Highway of Life
Classic Diners of Connecticut
Audacious at Any Age: Second Act Strategies from a Career Chameleon
DESIGN YOU
Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC)
Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW)
Certified Remote Work Professional
Certified Life Coach - Expert Rating
Certified Remote Work Professional
Certified Employment Interview Professional (CEIP)
2nd Act: Garrison Leykam
GARRISON TALKS ABOUT 2ND ACTS WITH RADIO ICON BRAD DAVIS
Garrison’s amazing life journey from music producer to corporate podium
Connecticut's Best Diners: 22 Great Greasy Spoons
Special Guests on Those Diner and Motorcycle Guys
Author Writes Book On Classic Connecticut Diners
New book about Connecticut diners
Food, Frogs, And Fondue At Hall Memorial Library
‘Classic Diners of Connecticut’ author talks in Guilford, West Haven
The Resume Leg of Your Career Branding Stool
Certified Business Coach (Expert Level)
Live Your Passion
An Expert's Top 5 Diners
How To Be A Standup Comedian
Touring Connecticut Panel
GARRISON LEYKAM: CLASSIC DINERS OF CONNECTICUT