Insights From A Recruiting Perspective

I've held a handful of positions relating to recruiting applicants, talent acquisition, or interacting with HR personnel and senior HR executives. I thought I'd share some insights from my various experiences about working from the inside.

Answering Reader Mail: Finding Temp Agencies in Los Angeles

JH recently wrote me and asked the following question, "With so many temp agencies out there, I don't know which is/isn't good. I was wondering if you could give me the name of the temp agency you worked with. Thanks so much in advance!"

How I Broke The #1 Rule As A Temp & Lived To Tell It

A great way to get your foot in the door with a company is to be a temporary assistant. You fill in for people if they are sick, on vacation, or on maternity leave. The assignments can last for a day or two to even a couple of months. The best part is, there are a ton of temp agencies and anyone can apply. I had zero connections in Hollywood, so this is how I got my start.

The Difficulties of Blogging Daily & Networking

As you know, I'm new to the blogging world. Penelope wasn't lying when she said the biggest challenge is to have something great to write every single day. I've only been doing this for 2 weeks and I'm fast running out of ideas on what to write about.

Although I love my life, I don't think something special happens every day. Mix in the fact that I'm slightly annoyed at life that I don't want to write about anything I'm annoyed about cause I'll completely forget why I was annoyed in about 3 days! LOL So why record inconsequential details? What's surprising is nothing ever annoys me and for the past week little things have been getting on my nerves. It will be some minute incident in the day and the very next day something else will happen that I've realized I've never been this annoyed in I can't remember when!

Only 3 Things Are Needed To Be Happy / DJ AM

Whenever you are in a funk and aren't sure what to do to pull yourself out of it, focus on three specific areas that will truly make a difference in your life. Gordon Livingston, M.D., speaks from lot of experience - both personally and professionally. He's one of my favorite authors.

Gordon says you only need three things to be happy.

The True Meaning Of Being In Control

I assume most people on the Brazen Careerist network are go-getters, initiators, and passionate about their career and going after what they want much like myself. From a young age, I've been working and have sought out opportunities to learn and grow. It was always instilled in me that through hard work and sheer persistence, I could get what I wanted. It's what I was told and it's what I was rewarded out in the real world time and time again.

The difficulty arises when what you've been doing all your life no longer starts working through no fault of your own. For example, getting laid off due to a world wide economic crisis. You beat out all the other candidates to get your job, you work hard with rave reviews, and your position is eliminated in the end. The formula has always been motivated action equals great results equals having control of my life and destiny. Until it just no longer is...

Often The Why Of Something Is Irrelevant

Since the economy crashed and thousands have become unemployed, many might have questioned, "why me?!" even though they were dedicated, hard workers. The fact that job stability doesn't exist and lay offs seem inevitable or random can be very disconcerting. Most become mired in the whys and how could this have happened to me cycle.

Fortunately or unfortunately, almost every single company that I've ever worked at has either been bought out or merged. Luckily, I was unaffected most of the time, but the sense of doom and low morale in the company always prevailed. Before I even graduated college, the idea of zero job stability was already on my horizon.

Why People Don't Change

During a three-hour conversation not too long ago, a friend and I briefly discussed what it means to truly be an adult. He remarked, for him, there was nothing definitive about adulthood and it was more of a gradual process. For me, it was hitting a milestone birthday and realizing the world didn't see me as a kid anymore and any mistakes I would make could no longer be blamed on youth or naivete.

One of the more difficult realizations as an adult for me was learning a great majority of the population hates change. Even when you think whatever really bad situation they are in now couldn't be any worse than death, hell, or what have you, most people refuse to take action and instead stay in the same horrible circumstance day in and day out.

I could never relate to this way of thinking or living life as I'm very much about learning, growing, and being the best person I can be. Granted, I may take some time to figure out a strategy or think things through to best conquer a situation, but that mental thinking through process is still action, awareness, and productivity. I want to live the best life I can, while I can, as I understand life is very short. So to sit back and do nothing, and waste each day away is one of the biggest insults of mankind to humanity.

I researched this, trying to understand why some people act and others don't. It took me a couple of books to find the most concise answer and reasoning behind why people refuse change. And here is the truth:

The Worst Mistake Women Can Make

Slowly a lot of my friends are getting married and bearing children. One of the most neglected areas of discussion and thought are finances and looking at the big picture amid the excitement of wedding planning and greeting the joys of parenthood.

Among my group of friends who are mothers, some work and some don't. My sister is also hoping to have children soon and we had a passionate debate about why it's very important to keep working, at least part-time, even if you have young children. She didn't think it was a big deal or necessary if the husband made enough so the wife didn't have to work. I took the other stance.

Interview Attire For Hollywood & Other Non-Traditional Jobs

For my entire career I've been dressing up the same way for a job interview in Hollywood. I wear what I call the "publicist's outfit." What is the publicist outfit? An all black suit, black purse, black portfolio, black pointy-toe heels, flats or boots, and a non-black collared shirt with at least the first button undone so it creates a V-neck shape for my necklace to show through.

How & Where Do I Find More Job Leads?

I'd like to think of myself as having a lot of initiative, creating my own luck, and being pretty good at networking. Often, my hard work, optimism, and drive pays off in job leads, but since I'm looking for the RIGHT job, it's been a long journey. I'm curious what else I could be doing.

Despite never having any background or experience in recruiting, I was offered a four-month contract job as a senior coordinator which I happily took. The great thing about the job is I learned what it's like to be on the other side. I loved being a cheerleader for the company and helping people get hired. One of the unexpected surprises was that once my contract ended all the recruiters that I worked with said I did well and offered to help me with my job hunt too! They are all extremely gracious and kind! Herein also lies my difficulty in what else I could be doing - when I have several recruiters/HR people who are keeping their ears open for me half my work is done. The entertainment industry is so small that these people also know everyone else in recruiting or HR too. I check in with them periodically to see if they've seen the latest movie we both helped staff or how my job hunt is going or if they'll be in LA soon so we can go to lunch, etc. So I'm covered at the central hub.

Is My Career Specialty TOO Specific?

I've been reading a lot that having a specialty or a niche is very important. The idea is to be an expert or the top candidate in your field so you become the "go to" person. The last thing you should want is to be good at everything because then you aren't really good at any one thing.

My first job after college was working for a Chairman/CEO. And then I got laid off in a merger. However, even after the first CEO I was pegged as "the assistant to CEOs." So be warned - often unfairly, the first job you take out of college becomes your specialty.

How A Thank You Card Launched My Career

I've been very lucky my entire career with having wonderful bosses and co-workers and being consistently groomed in the same way by all my superiors. It has allowed me to be in the entertainment industry for almost 9 years now.

While on a job interview not too long ago, I was asked how I ended up working for everyone I have and how I got started in the industry. My first answer was, "No nepotism here!" but the more serious answer is I did A LOT of internships, I started on my career early, and I did it through hard work because I had ZERO connections in Hollywood. Yes, ZERO. I've found every single one of my jobs through a temping agency. But in reality - the most useful skill that opened a lot of doors for me were my soft skills.

A Noteworthy Lesson on Movie Distribution Anyone Can Use & How It Affects Your Haircut

As a high-level executive assistant in the entertainment industry, most of my friends are in the biz. And most of my career being at film studios, it's obvious I love watching movies. I think this weekend was an extreme example. And it's the first time I've done such a thing. Here's an edited snapshot of my weekend.

Fri - dinner & Inglourious Basterds (loved it)
Sat - dinner & Post Grad (eh...)
Sun - dinner & Cold Souls (eh...)

Now, the lesson here is that before you go watch a movie, pay attention to which theatre # it's in and how long the movie has been out. Why? Because if the movie is in theatre #10 on opening weekend that's a bad sign.

Is there a profession that DOESN'T need a blog?

I started my blog because I love Penelope's posts. I agree almost 100% of the time with her. However, I'm wondering if I need a blog. I'm a high-level executive assistant, in the entertainment industry, and I've been lucky enough to be headhunted by Fortune 75 companies through word of mouth or finding my LinkedIn profile.

The question I'm really asking is, "Do I need to blog?" because I'm at a loss of what to write. And is there a point in expending so much energy in a life-long project that may not have any positive benefit? I feel like I may not fit the typical demographic of bloggers. I like being a career executive assistant, I like working from nine to six, I even enjoy overtime as long as it doesn't top 55 hrs a week. And I feel as though most people who have a blog want to be freelancers or their own boss, which I don't.

Book Review: Womenomics: Write Your Own Rules for Success by Claire Shipman & Katty Kay

This book is not just for women! - 5/5 stars

I just finished reading this book the other day and I strongly encourage everyone to read it whether you are a young professional, an HR manager, or even just a regular employee. This book sheds a lot of light on the struggles many working professionals have. How does one balance work and life?

Book Review: Good In A Room by Stephanie Palmer

A MUST-READ FOR EVERYONE and ANYONE - 5/5 stars

Before I explain why this is an excellent book, I'll give you some relevant background information.

I spent 6 years working directly for three well-known, high-profile, respected Chairman/CEO billionaires within the business and entertainment industries. What Stephanie writes is EXACTLY what I observed day in and day out, firsthand and up close, every single day. Her book provides the insight, rationale, and step-by-step business etiquette that most people don't have the opportunity to learn, practice, or get exposed to. I was extremely grateful and lucky in that regard. Stephanie's book closes the gap of the age old catch-22. To get invited into the room, one needs to have a lot of experience, to get experience one needs to constantly have successful meetings.