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Show Notes:

I am so thrilled to introduce you to this week’s Career Foresight guest! Meet Dielle Charon.

Dielle is a business coach and founder of School of Ambition, her podcast and resource website.

Her sweet spot is helping coaches launch their programs and sign clients--even while they have a full-time job.

What I love about Dielle is that she has structured her business in a way that minimizes stress and the “always-on” hustle. She aims to take both Saturdays and Sundays off from both her full-time job as a social worker and from her business. I love that! Do you know how many people work on the weekends when they only have one of those things (full-time job or business)?!

Dielle has a history of being an ambitious, high-achiever.

But unlike many who possess those traits, she is actually able to communicate the habits and mindsets she leverages to lead to her success. And that’s what makes her such a fantastic coach and podcast host!

P.S. You can check out my interview on the School of Ambition here!

In our conversation we discuss:

How student debt inspired Dielle to start her thriving online business
Her “One Thing” method that helps Dielle and her clients build and manage their businesses with full-time jobs and other pressing priorities
How building a CEO mindset helps you reach your business goals

To connect with Dielle & the School of Ambition, go to:

Website: www.schoolofambition.com
Instagram: @diellecharon

Weekly Listener Question

This week’s listener question is from Kaitlyn. She writes:

“I’m a military spouse. For the past 10 years, I’ve either moved or been preparing for a move every few years. I have a teaching degree, but each state’s licensing requirements are different, so I can’t just jump into a new teaching position when we move. Especially with the duty of solo-parenting while my husband is deployed, it hasn’t seemed worth the financial or time commitment to meet the requirements when I know we'll be moving again in justs a couple of years.

I’m ready to invest in myself and build a career I enjoy. But I’m not sure where to start. I know you have moved a couple of times recently. How do you approach building your network in new cities and finding opportunities that are a good fit?”

Wow! What a wonderful question, Kaitlyn. First of all, I want to honor you and your family’s dedication to serving our country. I commend the difficult choices you’ve had to make to put your family first during all the transitions you’ve been through over the past ten years. And, I congratulate you for getting to the point where you’re ready to prioritize your career and build a fulfilling vocation for yourself!

Secondly, you’re right! I have moved a couple of times in the past 5 years. First, from Grand Rapids, Michigan to Tucson, Arizona, and then to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Interestingly enough, both Tucson and Albuquerque have Air Force bases, and that’s given me the opportunity to have met several military members and spouses.

It wasn’t until my move to Albuquerque that I really realized the impact of moving for a spouse’s career and all the challenges it brings with it. I haven’t had to deal with the other factors you mentioned like solo-parenting, but I am happy to speak about what I’ve learned about networking and finding opportunities in a new city.

Create a networking statement

What are you looking for? What do you bring to the table? The more clearly you can communicate what you want and what you’re looking for, the better-equipped people are to help you find and land it!

Try filling in this template sentence, then commit it to memory:

Networking Statement (Making it easy for people to help you)

Hi, my name is __________. I am a ________________.

I'm looking for [companies/roles] that are in need of __________________________.

Do you know anything that fits that description?

Example:

Hi, my name is _Kaitlyn_. I am a _graphic designer_.

I'm looking for [companies/roles] that are in need of _design services_.

Do you know anything that fits that description?

Set up informational interviews

What’s an informational interview? It’s a meeting that you coordinate to learn more about a specific company or role. You reach out to people and ask for 15-minutes of their time to answer some questions about what their work is like. This is great especially if you aren’t sure what type of work you really want to do yet.

Apply and follow up

If you have gaps in your resume, you can consider a skills-based resume format instead of a chronological one. Don’t know what that is, or want some expert eyes on your resume? Go to: jenniferspoelma.com/shop to learn more about my resume & cover letter consultation services.

Become a regular at coffee shops, and make friends with the baristas and owners.

Why? Because the movers and shakers, and great networkers in your city are doing the same thing! Especially if they are business owners, or are working on a start-up, they are probably chatting about their hiring needs while ordering their coffee.

Find existing communities and join them

Existing communities can be business-related, or simply a hobby or interest-related. For example, churches or places of worship, sports teams (for you or your kids!), meetup groups and networking groups.

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Now Enrolling: Group Coaching Program

5-week program starting January 28

Over the past couple of months, I’ve been working with some amazing, ambitious people during my beta group coaching program--In just 5 weeks, by following the program, they have each experienced incredible results such as:

Getting interviews and killing them because the position was a perfect fit & they knew how to communicate it
Making connections & having conversations with people who work at their dream companies
Gaining newfound clarity and confidence about their strengths, zone of genius and career goals

It’s been so much fun to lead and see them get results that I knew I had to offer it again as soon as possible.

If you have a goal for 2020 to change your life by finding a career you actually love, improving your financial situation, or stepping into your full potential -- you might be the perfect fit for this group coaching program.