Archive for January, 2010

An “Opportunity” to Discuss: Resumes; Recruiting; ….and DATING?!

Posted in Communication, Recruitment, Uncategorized on January 29th, 2010 by HeidiFrye – Be the first to comment
Recently I was invited to be a guest speaker for a college undergrad senior class. The topic was recruiting. The class was engaged and asked a lot of great questions – very fun.  I had two interesting take-aways…
  1. This “opportunity” re-affirmed my direction on experiential-learning, or action-learning. I was hoping to help the class better understand the intricacies and nuances of the recruiting process. My challenge was to deliver this talk in a meaningful, non-boring, impactful way….this was a night class, so I wasn’t sure what kind of attention span to expect!  First of all, like most people, the students thought recruiting to be merely a name-gathering exercise. It is so much more! So how was I going to convey this big topic in the time allotted?! I used my favorite “recruitment process” analogy as a basis for the exercise (see: http://www.upwordsinc.com/executivesearch-process.php) …how the steps of “the dating process” closely match up with the recruitment process.  Since these young adults are in the throes of dating, it seemed like a pretty good angle. I had the students volunteer for various roles in our little analogy drama (the lone guy got to be “the guy”). We also had a Scribe, “the female”, and “the friend”. I had the students physically act out the dating process, stopping at each point to identify the interaction (i.e. finding out if the guy is right for your friend, the blind date, the engagement, etc.). Then….we correlated the recruitment process to the dating process. They had to think…and they had to participate! I am very hopeful and confident they learned something. They got it! …and so did I!! I saw their reactions to a non-lecture-information-dumping approach – it was great.  I saw the wheels turning (they had to actually respond and interact!). Once again, this approach to learning has proved to be the way to go.  They learned, I learned. read more »

Preparation or Wishful Thinking? Our apporach to life, work, success, and resolutions….

Posted in Leadership, Uncategorized on January 18th, 2010 by HeidiFrye – Be the first to comment
As I am an avid reader, a friend and colleague just recommended a book to me – Dare to Prepare by Ron Shapiro. Interesting title, so I checked it out on-line and found numerous 5-star ratings…which prompted me to pick up the phone, call him back, and enter into a conversation about the topic of “preparation”….  Now we didn’t solve the world’s problems, but it did get me thinking about resolutions.
My first question to you is: How is your New Year’s Resolution going? We are 2 weeks into the year, and based on my very informal poll, 60% of the good intentions have already crashed and burned. Are you in the 40, or the 60%? Is this a pattern?
My second question: When you sat down at your desk this morning, did you think “what are the 2-3 things I need to do today to consider it a successful day?” or did you “find something that needed to be done – to occupy you?” Do your days feel reactive or proactive?
My third (and last!) question: Does your life resemble the board game “Life” where the dice determines your fate…you move yourself forward without considering options or strategies…making decisions as the need arises? Or do you create “the board” on which your life plays out? read more »

With a new Attitude and a new Plan, I welcome in 2010!!

Posted in Uncategorized on January 4th, 2010 by HeidiFrye – Be the first to comment

Happy New Year! I don’t know about you, but I am thrilled to see 2009 in my rear-view mirror – bring it on 2010!! …and it seems many people share the sentiment!

2009 was an exhausting year….for me anyway. We made it – and for that I am grateful. As many people in our industry struggled to cross the finish line, the new year couldn’t come fast enough.

Well, it’s a new year and a new race. Isn’t it funny how our attitude changes from December 31st to January 1st? In a span of 24 hours, well really in the span of 60 seconds, people feel lighter, more hopeful, and energized.  Nothing has changed – not really. We have the same economy, the same problems (for the most part), the same jobs, the same leadership, the same news stories… From where I sit, the only change that has occurred is in me – my attitude has changed.  And that is everything.

As I breathe in 2010, I feel light, hopeful, and energized. I’m excited to move forward. My desk is clean. I have a plan. I, with my positive attitude in check, am ready to go.

Here is my simple, yet effective, go-forward plan: read more »