I never could understand why people who spent time, two to five years, in the gulag called “College” often froze, especially when they had to write or discuss anything about themselves.
Hey, you graduated! You had enough credits to get your diploma. A piece of paper is pushing you out into the real world. Now your adult life really begins. You know, get a job, buy your own food, pay too many taxes, spend money on entertainment & relationships, and maybe even get access to a vehicle (and the costs that go along with it).
The usual statement from my prior coaching clients when I told them to write about who THEY were, are, and want to be was invariably “I cannot do that”. My response was always the same: Bullshit!
You know it and so do I. It is ok to be afraid you are going to reveal too much about yourself. I assume you are using a computer with a keyboard, or maybe pen and paper. You do know things can be edited and changed, right? The first draft is still only the first draft. Besides you, who else is reading it until it is almost finished?
The fascinating thing about this process is that you go from too little information at the beginning of the assignment to too much information at the end. when you are editing your own work.
Our TJC process forces you to first do a series of Personal Introspection questions! The goal is to “force” you to write down answers to several questions about yourself. Questions such as “What do you want to do?”, “What will make you enjoy the job?”, and “What don’t you want in a job?”, and “What makes you valuable to a company and why?”
The questions we ask you are not in a specific order on purpose; some are repeated from a different vantage point to gain a diverse perspective. We are trying to help you to get to the truth about YOU.
The Introspection Unit gives you the insight to be candid and honest about you. It also forces you to take inventory about yourself and, more importantly, to see if you change your mind.
What is the worst thing that could happen as a you begin to write? You possibly freeze with writers block? That’s why we give you these questions. The other major advantage is that you know your name, addresses, and phone numbers so you can begin to write. You do exist. Good, bad, or indifferent … you are still here.
I have been doing this kind of work for nearly 50 years. There is hope here for you to discover you by writing it down. If these thoughts are only floating in your head, it always gets out of order, lost, or all jumbled up.
You know there are always dictionaries, thesauruses, or plenty of examples on the web. The great thing about the web is you can always find someone else’s examples and fit them to your needs.
If you start looking for a job without this preparation first, you will not be ready when SOMEONE eventually asks you about who you are, what you are looking for, and why did you apply to this company.
If you still have doubts, look at our Mini Introspection document in the Introductory Unit … caution, it will cost you $5.
Enjoy the process. This is your solution to Getting Noticed.
Bruce
