Starbucks takes a coffee break

See Starbucks. See Starbucks sell coffee.  See Starbucks sell coffee, sandwiches, muffins, newspapers, mugs, CD’s, and games. See Starbucks sales dip, see Starbucks regroup! Yesterday for the first time ever there was a nationwide coffee break. Check that: baristas nationwide closed shop at Starbucks on Tuesday for three and a half hours to relearn the basics of their business.

You can guess what happened next: competitors like Dunkin’ Donuts took advantage of their competitor’s employee training. They did the inevitable and offered specials of 99 cent lattes during that time frame so coffee drinkers could get their jolt of java. 

While Starbucks says they’ll close 1% of their current coffee shops in the US by the end of September and they’ll no longer sell their ham, eggs, cheese, and bacon sandwiches, it’ll be interesting to see if the powerhouse continues to flourish, if this is merely a blip in their business model to get back on track, or if Dunkin’ Donuts will take a hold on the market. Personally I prefer Dunkin’ Donuts but quite honestly, there is nothing quite like discovering a little mom and pop coffee shop with charm, character, and yes — coffee.

Blog is the new black!

Welcome back to my blog! Ok, maybe this is a note more for myself but I’ll be dishing on a daily basis as it relates to the latest business buzz. Whether it’s about the economy, jobs, new businesses that soared, start-ups that failed and lessons learned or an overall trend, this blog will cover a variety of angles.  Game on!

Super Fat Tuesday

The Superbowl.  The Primary Elections.  Fat Tuesday a la Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Here in Gotham there’s quite a buzz in the air. As the nation’s future lies in the hands of voters today for primaries across several states, there’s a certain excitement.

A sense of change. A rebirth, if you will.  As the underdog, the NY Giants proved to be victorious over an undefeated Boston team, one thing’s for certain: never rule out the little guy.  So as it comes to the economy and business how can we still have faith in a lagging recession?  Belief, conviction, and above all hard wor. That’s all I have to say. Good day!

Chainless Jobs

The numbers were startling: as the NY Times referred to the US Jobs Report published last week the number of people who were unemployed for six months or more as of January was 1.38 million.

That’s 1.38 people. 1.38 people. Let’s repeat it one more time for impact: 1.38 million people.  Ironic this report was published as I was working on a piece for the 175 Best Jobs Not Behind a Desk. Some people may be grateful just to have a job but isn’t there always the silver lining to look forward to?

Without sounding myopic, immersed in a global economy opportunities are everywhere. You need to seek them out and think out of the time zone such as working remotely for an organization in Singapore or being flexible regarding your working hours.  When it comes to true job satisfaction other than simply being employed and snagging an “ideal” job, what really gets you going? Better yet, what constitutes  “ideal”?

Is it the job? The boss? The challenges, not to mention the salary? The perks (sure we all enjoy free office supplies every now and then) but as for me? This killer view of the Empire State Building and Chrysler Building of a sparkling skyline is reason enough.

While all these factors play into the bigger picture of job satisfaction when it comes to environment, where do you truly work best? For lack of a better word, are you chained to your desk and a slave to e-mail? Or are you out and about working “on location”?  Working off-site, remotely or is it consistently out of the box, er cubicle?

After interviewing the author of this book for my piece I couldn’t help but wonder. While some jobs are at a desk 24/7 and others are completely desk-free (think: nurses, construction managers, teachers), there are jobs in between. I guess the key here is finding a job you enjoy, one in which the environment equates to the sum of its parts.

Ooh la la, c’est cher!

Okay if you’re like me you’re reading the headlines on a daily basis. Check that – you’re devouring them. China’s economy is soaring as they prepare their country, not to mention their congested highways for the upcoming Olympics. The economy in the US, well let’s just say on this side of the pond it’s flatlining at the moment, and for other news well there’s a junior trader with a major issue.

The name?  Jérôme Kerviel. The place? France. The issue? $7 billion! How could one person instigate billions and billions in losses? How could one person cause such overwhelming damage to one company? I’ll give you the answer. Deception. Faux.  A fraud.

And this is what I don’t quite understand. If someone is that shrewd, that smart, and say it with me now – deceptive and manipulative, why not use that ability for good rather than evil?

Perhaps it’s myopic of me to say. Maybe in that business as a trader it’s an insurmountable high; a fallacy if you will as the stakes get higher so do the trades. Fictitious trade after fictitious trade, perhaps he needed to be micromanaged?  Apparently the fake trading increased in frequency and size therefore heating up the charts. My question is this: how will companies prevent this from happening again? What are the internal controls when a junior trader is mixing it up and hiding some trades and canceling others? Hmmm.

Is America for sale?

From China to the Middle East and back again, the American economy continues to weaken while, according to a features piece in today’s New York Times, other countries see this as valuable investment opportunities. 

According to the article last year foreign investors spent $414 billion into American companies, factories, and properties.  Think this is a new trend? Think again. The article continues: this was up 90 percent from the previous year and more than double the average for the last decade. 

While the foreign funds pouring into America has left many people wondering the status of the US economy in relation to the global economy as a whole, there’s no doubt the influx and interest of our neighbors to the north and south are on the rise as well.  Is it igniting the economy? Hmmm, not so sure.  Is it stimulating growth? The jury’s still out. One thing’s for sure: as the R word (shhhh – recession) continues to echoes among headlines one person – or rather, country’s – situation is opportunity for growth in another.

Plenty of Fish: unique business idea

After reading a business article in today’s New York Times, “From Ten Hours a Week, $10 Million a Year,” it made sense how something so simple could be so successful.  This will be a rather short blog but essentially a dating website is free. Think about it: in America alone the lucrative online dating industry ranging from Match to eHarmony to Chemistry charge users a membership fee.

Plenty of Fish is different; it’s free.  And it’s a $10 million dollar biz relying completely on advertising dollars.  Now that, my friends, makes dollars and sense.

Landing tomorrow’s hot jobs today

Every few years the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics creates a “Hot Jobs” report; that is, which areas of the economy they forecast to be thriving with careers to match. As I researched the topic a few weeks ago and noticed a heavy emphasis on the service sector, it was certainly apparent that baby boomers are driving the workforce. 

According to BLS, the civilian labor force is projected to increase to 164.2 million throughout the year 2016.  The increase may be attributed to an aging population which is continuing to work and delay the retirement age. Plus, this particular generation has an affinity towards living the “good life.”  As such, there’s a surge in the hospitality, recreation, and leisure fields. 

As for other areas of growth?  Health care, education, information systems, trade, government opportunities, and financial opportunities. So as people decide this will be the year to make a change for the better and explore new career opportunities, one may simply conclude now is the time! For the job strategist at heart, not only are they following their passion and skillset, they’re also reviewing the BLS list for areas with the most growth and security.

http://www.bls.gov/oco/oco2003.htm

What’s your career personality?

It’s a funny thing about passion. When you love what you do, it doesn’t feel like work! After interviewing the author of The 50 Best Jobs for your Personality for a piece I was working on for ClassesUSA, I simply had to reflect.  Sometimes things are so obvious but we’re so immersed in our careers that in some instances the most blatant observations may seem the most obtuse: our career personalities are really extensions of our own personalities. They’re one and two in the same. And when people are unhappy (aside from things like having a turbulent boss or being underpaid), maybe it’s the actual job. It may not be a fit with the true you. Or it may be the environment. Or it could be both.The career personality aspects (the book actually outlines jobs to match personalities) provides an introspective look at personalities, essentially equating to our own careers for optimum happiness and success. Based on John Holland’s theory of personality types, there’s the artistic type (self-expression), enterprising (desire to start and carry out projects), social (helping careers – think teacher or social worker), conventional (following set routines and procedures), realistic (practical, hands-on jobs like agriculture or airline pilots), and investigative (think engineers and economists).

For instance, I interviewed actress Mena Suvari recently and she simply loves loves loves her craft. While she falls into the artistic scenario as she’s worked on a photography project in conjunction with limited edition scarves, it’s still in the same family of self-expression.

For another source I interviewed, a chef, suffice it to say he thrives on creativity cooked up in the kitchen. Others seek structure like finance-oriented jobs.

Here’s the kicker: it’s not unheard of to have multiple personalities since jobs often have multiple dimensions. For instance, a teacher may be a social personality wanting to help people but by virtue of grading and having lesson plans, it’s a hybrid with the conventional personality. As a writer I definitely fall into the artistic realm which fabulously fuses with the enterprising type. While I love networking, as a recruiter the job may be considered a hybrid of social and conventional, yet I thrive in an enterprising environment yet again.

Interestingly enough I wrote the piece several weeks ago and as it went live on AOL I relived the self-exploration I enjoyed while initially immersed in working on the piece. People who love what they do, people whose personalities are on the same page as their careers, seem to be happy. Success often follows suit. You and I, well, we are who we are. As our personalities shine, so do our careers to match.

How to Court Your Career

As I interviewed the author of a new book, Courting Your Career, for a piece on Yahoo! Hotjobs, I couldn’t help but wonder. As the book incorporates the metaphor of dating (i.e., how to identify your type, play the field/cast a wide net, present your very best self), it seems the resonating theme for success in any realm such as business or dating is communication and relationships.

While the author talked about relevant strategies such as “clubbing” at a job fair by exchanging phone numbers and meeting a relatively large number of people in a small amount of time, it’s interesting to recognize “the other half.”

Sometimes candidates hear the, “It’s not you, it’s me speech” and they’re thinking, “Then it’s definitely me!”  In all honesty, sometimes a job rejection may not be a reflection of your candidacy. Sometimes job requirements change during the recruiting process.  In other instances a position is filled internally.  There could be a variety of reasons as to why it’s not meant to be.“It’s out there,” you reassuringly remind yourself during the comprehensive job search. 

That’s just it. Sometimes it’s not necessarily a matter of meeting Mr. Right; rather, it could be meeting Mr. Right Now. Perhaps there’s a job which can get you from your current situation, Point A to Point B and you know you really want to end up in Point S for Spectacular. 

By recognizing your short and long-term goals you’ll be able to see which positions will offer you the opportunity to at least meet your short-term goal in anticipation of a stepping stone to the long-term goal later on.  It could fulfill your immediate need for advancement instead of holding out for the elusive “one.”

Plus, in the job search process, how’s this for empowerment? You have the ability to assess the situation, future colleagues and organization. It takes two to tango, and well you always have the opportunity to opt out of the dance.By asking the right questions/observing/being immersed in the courtship perhaps you’ll realize a particular company or job sizzles on paper and then disappoints in person.  Hopefully this can be assessed prior to accepting a job and realizing it’s not a fit. And how about mentoring programs? Work/life balance?  Benefits? Perks? The job exploration process incorporates intangible aspects as well.

The author, Shawn Graham, reminds us something which often gets lost in the shuffle.  Identify your priority (essentially, what’s your type?) and remain steadfast in your journey. Sometimes it’s imperative to go back to basics, to not compromise, consistently review your list and just like dating, to have a whole lot of patience.