February 6, 2008 – 11:41 am
By: Carole Martin, The Interview Coach
You name it - Blackberry, Skype Connection, Cell Phone, iPhone – these are the tools of this trade.
Has it happened to you in your business? You reach out to someone in a far away country and work with a client via a Blackberry or an iPhone or a cell phone? Believe me, this is the way of the future – and it is already here!
Picture this scenario:
My phone rings and I answer to find that the call is from a man and he says, “Hello, I’m calling from Israel.” I’m sitting in California, USA and I am a bit shocked by this announcement. Why would someone from Israel be calling me?
He is calling to get interview coaching for an interview that will take place in Israel – in Hebrew. .
My immediate response is, “I can’t help you, I don’t know anything about Israel and interviewing there.” But this man is determined and he says that he will also be interviewing in the US. He wants feedback on his techniques and answers and has found my website on the internet.
If he is willing so am I. So, the coaching progresses over a few weeks and a few calls – over the BlackBerry and email and even my cell phone when I am out of town visiting in the east coast. Our final session is to coach him through his salary negotiation on an offer he has received after his successful interviews.
The wonderful ending to this story is that the man “got the job” in a very competitive situation at one of the most prestigious companies in Israel - and was able to negotiate a higher salary offer – after our work together.
He is thrilled and thinks that our work together was the reason for his success. He thinks that I am a great coach!
This is what I call exciting work. What a wonderful, crazy world we live in. In a business where the sky’s the limit!
The business of coaching is growing like crazy. In fact, it is quietly taking over the $427 Billion home-business sector by storm. The average income generated by home office households is $63,000 a year.
How do you size-up with those figures? Well, I have learned some secrets of success after being in the interview coaching business for over ten years.
It seems one of the secrets to success in a coaching business is to find the right niche for you. It’s not always easy to find that niche – the one that will satisfy your needs – a niche where you can make a difference - a niche where you can make some serious money.
I found my niche after some trial and error – and that niche is Interview Coaching. This is my means of connecting with people all over the United States and way beyond. This is my method of being able to reach out and help people –that’s what my business is all about.
I was one of those people who wasn’t satisfied with my job as an HR Manager and when life offered an me an opportunity – I took it. I went back to school to earn my Master’s degree in Career Development. I had a very specific niche in mind and that was to “help women in transition to re-enter the workplace.” That was where I was in my own life and thought I could help these women because I had walked in their shoes.
Well, niches have a way of bending to the right and then to the left - and today I find myself coaching people from all “walks of life.”
A single phone call I received one day placed me as the “interview expert” for Monster.com. I have now been writing and have been quoted by Monster.com for the past eight years. This started the ball rolling.
Another phone call came one day from someone who wanted to be an FBI agent. He asked me if I knew anything about the FBI interview process. My answer was, “No.” But, a part of interview coaching is understanding Behavioral Interviewing, which happens to be the basis for the FBI interview. He hired me to help him, and over the past six years I have become the “Guru” of the FBI interview.
As you can see, these areas are very far from my original goal of “helping women in transition.”
My clients are not only people in job search – they are from every field imaginable including – authors who want to sell their books to agents; entrepreneurs who want to sell their businesses to investors/or sponsors; someone who wanted to be on a major quiz program and couldn’t get through the initial interview; and, even a beauty queen who needed answers to difficult questions.
Can you imagine how interesting and exciting this work is? There’s something new everyday. It’s so rewarding, it doesn’t even feel like “work.”
You might think that just anyone could hang out a “sign” or create a website and advertise themselves as an Interview Coach. In reality they can do that, but that doesn’t mean that they have what it takes to do a good job or that they will be able to reap the benefits for their clients or themselves. There are some factors that will determine what makes a really good interview coach.
Here’s a little quiz for you to take to determine if this might be a niche for you to explore further.
__ Are you making the revenue that you had hoped for?
The amount of money you make through interview coaching will be determined by the amount of time and effort you put into marketing - getting the word out that this is your niche - or that you’ve added a niche. The more services offered means more money for you.
__ Are you looking for added value to give your clients?
If you already a have a career business, or are a resume writer, or even a career counselor – the more credibility you have through great results, the better the referrals, and that will give you added clients and more income.
__ Are you up to a new challenge of learning a new skill set?
Cutting edge techniques and methods will only enhance your credibility and give you the savvy to present yourself as an “expert” in new areas that you may not now offer or feel that you are really qualified to delve into.
__ Are you a good problem solver – able to diagnosis the problem?
If you like diagnosing problems and getting to the root of what’s going on with a person – this is right up your alley. The first thing you want to find out from any client is “Tell me what’s been happening in your job search and interviews?” Then the listening and problem solving begin.
__ Are you ready to give straight-forward – sometimes difficult feedback?
The clients that call you for interview coaching want to find out what they can do to be the best contender – or what they have been doing wrong. It’s up to you to give them the “real” scoop. Sometimes it is difficult to tell a client something about how they are coming across or how their appearance could be keeping them from getting those offers. Good communication skills and practice are the key to your success.
__ Are you willing to spend time marketing this new service?
If you have an established practice, this will be an add-on to your marketing efforts. If you are starting a new line or business then you will have to use some resources to get your business going.
__ Are you patient with people from other cultures?
Often people who contact you for services will have English as a second language. It will be your decision if you can work with people who require a bit more patience and coaching on how to use the language and how they can better be understood.
__ Are you willing to be the client’s rock when they get rejected?
When someone has been “beat up” or “wounded” in the workplace, it will be part of your job to let them know that life goes on – and that they can’t give up. Sometimes this will be in the form of just plain listening. And sometimes you will be asked for advice – even outside the interview arena – encouragement about life’s lessons.
__ Are you ready to make a greater difference in peoples’ lives?
You may already know how good it feels when you actually make a difference and you get those calls or emails letting you know that you have helped someone over a speed bump or given them the confidence they needed to take a risk.
How many checks were you able to put on the list? If you have seven out of the ten skills required – or higher – this may be a place for you to explore – to make a difference in peoples’ lives – through interview coaching.
What is life after all if it isn’t about making a difference? You can make a difference in your own life as well as other peoples’ lives. The rewards are when a young college student sends you an email that says she just got the job. Or a man who has been on 20 interviews with no offers writes that he finally received a job offer – and he is calling to thank you for making a difference in his life. Those successes are the emails and the calls that “make my day.”
Being an interview coach offers new challenges, variety and the chance to play many different roles during a single day. The roles may vary with each client. The clients are all different – people in transition, or up for an internal promotion, or people changing fields, or even young people entering the work force. And, don’t forget the “walking wounded” – who have been laid off, or fired, or just quit when they couldn’t take it any longer. These people need help – they need encouragement – they need caring for. And they just keep on coming – and keep my phone ringing.
You too can play a role in peoples’ lives, in their successes, and in their job satisfaction. It can be a very rewarding experience for you – that happens over, and over, and over – extending all over the world. You can make a difference as an Interview Coach.
Carole Martin, America’s #1 Interview Coach and author is sharing her interview coaching business success secrets for the first time ever. Visit her web site at www.interviewcoachtraining.com
Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry-level jobs and other career opportunities.
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