EDITORIALS

I don’t know if you remember “Rain Man” with Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, but there was one scene where Tom Cruise either hit or yelled at Dustin Hoffman and Dustin proceeded to write it down in a notebook he carried. He was very meticulous in noting the “offense” and the date and time.I...

There was a time, I suppose, when it was really hard to get back to people. Let’s say someone sent you a smoke signal. I guess you would first have to build a fire, and a smoky one at that. If they sent you a message towards the end of the day, would you really have enough time to respo...

When asked how your job search is going or your job, the best answer is “unbelievable.”Unbelievable can of course mean in reality good or bad. If things are really really bad, they are certainly unbelievable. And if you are pinching yourself to make sure you are awake, they could also be u...

One of the core values of being a member of The FENG is that we share job leads.There are a lot of reasons why we do this, and it isn’t just because it is a nice thing to do. It is actually a very smart thing to do. The only problem is that it is apparently a counter-intuitive idea. So, fo...

I am more often than not surprised by the amount of time it can take for a company to develop a position description and yet at the end of the day not really be able to capture the essential elements for a particular opportunity.I suppose in part this is because senior level position descr...

It is a sad fact that most men don’t appreciate getting unsolicited advice. That said, there are even those among us who reject advice they have asked for out of hand and in a dismissive way.The giving and receiving of advice is always a delicate balance. Even though probably 75% of my mai...

For those of you who are sailing fans and/or history buffs and saw the movie Master and Commander: The Far Side of The World, there was a scene where Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany were having a heated argument about the merits of flogging. The comment made by the captain was that the good...

In late December, there as an article in The Wall Street Journal titled “How Kindness Echoes Around Our Worlds.” My initial reaction was they had found out about us. But, no, we weren’t mentioned.As I hope you know, The FENG is an unusual organization. We are a society of friends, not a “f...

During the upcoming New Years Day holiday weekend, a great opportunity will be presenting itself to you in the form of gatherings of those who know you (and presumably love you).In order to enjoy the greatest benefit, you need to paint on a smile. I don’t care if you have been out of work ...

In a sense, a sailboat isn’t a complicated machine. Compared with other means of transportation such as cars or planes, there really isn’t much to a sailboat. Sails are pretty simple, and if you are like me, you don’t use the motor if you can avoid it. (We only burned 50 gallons of diesel ...

I have been known to get seriously silly at times. (I know this will come as a great shock to all of you.)Back in the old days when I was able to stay up late, Saturday Night Live had an ongoing skit about an individual named Pat. Over the course of the seasons or season it was on (as I in...

One of the very nicest parts of the holiday season is getting greeting cards, both email and physical, from the many people that I know.The good ones are filled with newsy information about what the sender has been doing for the past 12 months and perhaps what their plans are for the year ...

I don’t know if all of you are old enough to remember the CB Radio craze, but it was a fun period in America. I assume no one still uses this technology, but for most of us it is a fond memory. I remember how all of us used to talk about our “handles,” and putting the antenna on the top of...

Since much of what we do in The FENG is about job search, I thought it might be appropriate to make a few suggestions to everyone about what to do when you do actually find a new job.I’ll be blunt. Job search is primarily filled with uncertainty, highs and lows and activities like making n...

From time to time, someone tells me that networking as an approach is falling into disfavor. (If it does, we will have to change the name of our networking group, and I am at a loss as to how to come up with another name!)When people talk about networking in this way, the networking that t...

I have at this point in my chairmanship of The FENG listened to a fairly significant number of 90-second announcements.I try to listen patiently and assess how best to help and make suggestions for improvements in the delivery of this vital communication.The time frame presents a formidabl...

The definition of networking I use is: Networking is a process by which you can create meaningful business contacts and relationships to further your career and enhance your professional life.On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most difficult, networking is a 5. Building friendships is a...

I don’t know what it is about returning emails and phone calls. I get them by the truck load and still do my best to return them all. (Sometimes it does take a few days.)Perhaps I have a high level of curiosity, but I have found that you can never tell who has contacted you or what they ha...

There was this very amusing comedy routine that I heard many years ago. During part of it, the comedian pointed out that when operating on a patient under local anesthetic, surgeons are not allowed to say “oops.” (I know what I mean when I say oops. What did he mean?)In much the same way, ...

I know we don’t mean to do it, but as financial types who come to our decisions the hard way (usually the long scenic route), we often react to information being presented to us by others in a dismissive, “oh, I knew that” manner.I suppose there was a time in my life when I actually though...

The words we use when referring to others are important in that they affect our thinking and ability to problem solve.I don’t know if any of you have noticed, but I usually refer to “members of the search community” or to “search professionals.” I sometimes refer to them as “recruiters.” A...