May 16, 2015 – Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter's Blog

Job Search Lessons from Super Bowl 47

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

I loved Super Bowl 47. The battle between the two teams was one that I expected to be as fierce as it was and be as close as it was. As those who know me would say, the only thing that would have made it better is if the Giants played in it and won.

It’s hard for me to look at the game and not be reminded of certain truisms from job hunting.

1. You don’t think these teams got there by accident?

These are organizations that have prepared for years to put the talent on the field with systems in place to support that talent. It has been an organizational effort, not just an effort by the players.

You need to engender the support of family, friends, (former) collagues, relationships, former vendors, ANYONE who can support you to victory.

2. Take risks and don’t second guess yourself.

The 49ers were a very good team, solid on offense and overwhelming on defense. Their head coach made a decision during the season. While their starting quarterback was injured, he decided to replace him with the backup. A solid offense became a great one.

The Ravens were a very good team but their offense was “stuck” and had been for years. Their head coach fired their offensive coordinator with only a few weeks left in the season. That usually isn’t enough time to make such a change and have a positive impact in the current season. Yet Baltimore’s offense blossomed under their new coordinator.

Both men were second gruesed for their decisions yet they made them and stuck by them.

There may be times when a calculated risk on your part is called for. It’s OK to be afraid when you take that actiuon. It is not OK to be paralyzed.

3. Establish your best effort immediately!

Baltimore won the coin toss and, instead of receiving the kickoff, decided to establish their will and determination with their defense on the field first.

Where can you establish your will and determination where you have been passive and predictable up until now?

4. Mistakes are costly!

On their opening drive, Baltimore’s offense was stopped on third down in 49er territory only to get another chance when a penalty was called on the 49er defense. The Ravens scored a touch down on the next play. Understand, Baltimore won by 3 points. The difference between kicking a field goal there and that touchdown was 4 points, WOW!

The 49ers were driving the ball and soon fumbled and another time threw an interception. These turnovers destroyed their momentum and kept them from establishing their will over Baltimore. Although the game was close, these turnovers and mistakes made a big differnce in the game.

Be aggressive but avoid mistakes.

5. How do you re-kindle your energy

This is an unusual one . . .

After halftime, Batimore returned a kickoff for a touchdown. They seemed like they were ready to finish the destruction of their opponent. Suddenly, the lights went out and the Ravens seemed flat when they came back out to play. On the other hand . . .

6. Use opportunities to shift momentum in your favor

San Francisco could have been ready to accept defeat but used the same 34 minute power outage to change their play.

Never cave in to negative thoughts. Use every opportunity to use the opportunities afforded to you to get ignited.

7. How can you re-kindle your energy when it is waning?

Coming out of the 34 minute power outage, San Francisco scored 17 straight points. The momentum on the field had shifted to them and it looked llike what once was an easy Baltimore victory might be turned into defeat.

Baltimore received the kick off and controlled the ball and the tempo of the game, extending their lead and putting the 49ers on notice that they would not roll over and collapse.

When you face adversity, pull yourself together and fight back!

8. It isn’t over until it is.

Both teams fought very hard down to the very end. Some fans and sportscasters point to a final incompete pass by San Francisco on which they think a penalty should have been called.

Even after that, Baltimore got the ball back, couldn’t move it and was forced to punt to the 49ers with 12 seconds left on the clock and leading by 5 points. Except, San Francisco was not prepared for the next play.

The ball was snapped back to the punter and, instead of rushing him San Francisco laid back to receive the punt and work to a long punt return. Except the Baltimore punter was prepared.

Instead of immediately kicking, he ran around the end zone for 8 seconds before giving up a safety and two points.

That left San Francisco with 4 seconds left on the clock and one play . . . receiving a free kick and trying to score a touchdown on the return. It was not to be.

Concede nothing. Fight until the end.

9. Winners find a way to win and losers have explanations and excuses for why they didn’t.

Focus on all the details that will halp you win. Be fearless. It’s OK to feel fear. Just don’t let your fear keep you from focusing on victory.

Summer Job Search

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

I lived in the New York metropolitan area for much of my life. I noticed that when warm weather arrived and cold weather arrived, the mood for hiring managers changed. Suddenly, warm weather brought their thoughts to vacation and taking it a little easier. Conversely, cold weather often reminded them that Christmas was approaching and to get on the stick about getting presents for their family.

So as we complete Memorial Day weekend, the official “job search stretch season” starts.

“Job Search Stretch Season?”

Never heard of it, you say?

Job Search Stretch Season is the season in which job searches become stretched out a little bit because of vacations.

They get stretched out because hiring managers and HR professionals would rather get home to spend time at the BBQ, at a concert in the park or at almost enything other than a job interview or work.

They get stretched out because hiring managers have fewer choices of candidates because job applicants feel exactly the same way as the managers who are doing hiring and, thus, the right person doesn’t walk in the door so readily.

But what most job hunters don’t understand is that it actually is a great time to year to find a job?

Why?

Because many of these managers have spent months already interviewing and have decided they’ll just take a consultant from a vendor and make the consultant do the interviewing for them. After all, they already behind on their work on on a project that they committed to thaht has to be done by a certain period of time. Thus, consultants and temps get hired a lot.

In addition, comes mid-August, and there are people who work for calendar year-budgeted companies that are starting to work on their budgets for the next year. They have to spend the money in the current budget to justify asking for it in the next budget. They need to hire so one.

In addition, many of them have the opportunity to write into their next budget someone with particular skills so itu becomes an opportunity to network with those managers, directors and executives so they write your skills into the job they are trying to have budgeted.

So, don’t sit back on your hands and not take advantage of this great time of year to job hunt.

Career Management Mistakes: 10 Things You May Be Doing Wrong and MUST Stop Doing

May 30, 2016May 16, 2015 by Jeff

Most of the time, I focus on helping job hunters find work by helping them correct mistakes they make when managing their job search. But that is a battle that most people face every few years.

Career management is a lifetime responsibility you have to yourself and your Board of Directors (your family). Unless you take it seriously, your career will lurch from job to job with no forethought or planning. You may wind up successful but it will be by accident, rather than by design.

Here are some of the mistakes I see people making when managing their careers:

1. Never thinking “big picture”

Do you have an idea of what you want to accomplish in your career? Do you tell yourself you want to be a C level executive and never find out what it takes to accomplish your goals?

Talk to people who are already in the role about what they did and the price they paid to get there (Yes, there is a price to achieve your goals)

2. Not Implementing

For years, I had great ideas and did nothing to implement them. I was scared to make a mistake. It took guts to start writing an ezine regularly, write my first book, do video, allow myself to be interviewed on tv and shoot for a pilot for a cable tv show (it wasn’t picked up). Once I started to do the first thing, more ideas came to me and it became easier to do them.

In my opinion, there are very few “safe jobs” or careers. Take risks! Experiment. Be great, not ordinary.

3. Not investing in your career

Life is expensive but not investing in yourself is more expensive because it may cost you opportunities for more satisfaction and money. Take classes regularly; learn to do things you are not good at now. You’ll get better at them and remove another excuse you and employer might have for why you’re not ready.

4. Being unprepared . . . badly

We are never completely prepared when we step into a new role but if we have done our homework we will succeed and have people notice that we “stepped up.” The positive attention will get you closer to your ultimate goal.

5. Being rude to recruiters

Most of the time, when we reach out to you, it is because you sent a resume to us, put it on a job board where we found it (after all, you announced you were looking for work) or because your experience may fit a position available that will pay you more money (yes, we sometimes ask for referrals but most of our attempts are for the reasons I site).

Sometimes recruiters make mistakes. Sometimes we catch you at the wrong time. It happens. I have a stack of people I will never help if they were the last candidate who could do a particular type of work because they believed they had the right to berate me for trying to help them accomplish what they said through their actions they wanted me to do. Be polite in all your dealings, particularly with search firms.

6. Undervaluing yourself

You may not be worth as much as someone with a PhD from a particular university who has worked for a particular firm but you are probably worth more than your manager is telling you are worth.

If you change jobs twice in 5 years (let’s say in your third and fifth year) and earn $10000 more with each job change, you will have earned more than $70000 more in those five years than if you had stayed at your current firm. Can you afford that?

7. Avoiding public speaking

Standing in front of an audience and speaking is just another skill. The great public speakers are people who have practiced to the point that they seem as though they are speaking “off the cuff.”

If you are uncomfortable speaking in front of an audience, find a Toastmaster’s meeting near where you live or work and overcome your fears

8. Not leveraging technology to your advantage

LinkedIn is an obvious place to build up your presence (I have a guide, “LinkedIn Job Search Success Made Simple” that will help. You can also read the chapter in, “Look Me Up: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Social Networking Your Way to Job Search Success”). Suffice it to say, LinkedIn is the preeminent place to build your professional social network. In Europe it is Xing. Google+ is very good too.

You can also set up a WordPress blog very cheaply at any number of webhosts, create videos for YouTube (and then post them to your blog or to LinkedIn. It all helps create an aura about you as a leader.

9. Not asking for what you want

In your marriage or in your relationships with a partner, are there times where you or they seem to think one of you should be able to read the other’s minds about what they really mean or want just because you love them?

Many people expect their manager to be able to read their mind and give them what they want without having told them. Along the way, you need to tell people what you’re striving for and what they can do to help you get there.

And if they don’t give it to you, take the message that they are giving you with their inaction and change your circumstances.

10. Not taking risks

This may seem oddly phrased but not taking risks is the riskiest thing you can do. After all, trusting that someone else or some enormous company is going to wisely look after your interests and those of your family and career is a proven losing strategy. Yet people continue to make this mistake and act like sheep taken to the slaughter.

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Do you really think employers are trying to help you? You already know you can’t trust recruiters—they tell as they think you need to know to take the job they after representing so they collect their payday.

Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter has been a career coach and recruiter for what seems like one hundred years.

JobSearchCoachingHQ.com is there to change that with great advice for job hunters—videos, my books and guides to job hunting, podcasts, articles, PLUS a community for you to ask questions of PLUS the ability to ask me questions where I function as your ally with no conflict of interest answering your questions.

Connect with me on LinkedIn

Ask The Big Game Hunter: Online Applications

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

“Q. A lot of companies don’t make it easy to apply for their jobs. I have filled out countless pages of online apps, plus taken personality tests and God knows what, usually with zero response. Even a rejection letter is nice to get in lieu of nothing.

Answer:

Online applications are the worst but not for the reason you think of.

Firms are using online applications as huge tickler files.

You enter your data where it isn’t looked at but satisfies government reporting requirements. Then, someone like me tries to enter the applicant and they claim, “Oh! We know that person!” and still don’t call you because they just have too much to do to catch up.

So you’ve do a bunch of “stuff” and don’t get an interview now and often not in the future either. I had a client do this.

The job applicant entered their resume. He’s interviewed for one practice that pays $50K less than he’s earning. Surprise. He isn’t interested.

I submit him for a different position, they are about to make an offer. They discover the candidate there with two different email addresses (the one he originally used and the one that was on the resume when I submitted him).

They don’t hire him even though it was his preferred job because executive management looks down from up high and will probably fire the peon who allowed the interviews to go on so long without noticing the issue.

Who’s wrong and who’s screwed?

Answer: Everyone.

So try to avoid the online applications at all costs. it is better to network to a real decisionmaker that do pointless data entry.

Ask The Big Game Hunter: Returning to the United States

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

“Q. I am thinking of coming back to US after working in Dubai for 17 years, which is five years more than I worked in US.

Is this a handicap? A managing director friend of mine still hasn’t found a job a year later after coming back to DC.

How do you suggest I test the waters? I just spent three weeks in eastern US and I think I would love to come back.

Answer:

Yes, it is a handicap. There is much more effort hiring people abroad than there is someone in their local geographic area, especially given that firms have choices.

They also may not know “The brand” of the firm you worked for. They may have a good association for people working for a particular local firm and have no opinion other than judgement based upon bigotry for the firm you work for (Overseas firms do not do things “like we do.”

Lastly, there are times of the year where senior professionals are more likely to find work than others. Generally, it is the end of the third quarter through the early part of the first quarter. We have almost completed that cycle.

>How do you suggest I test the waters? I just spent three weeks in eastern US (yes coinciding with Sandy) and I think I would love to come back.

OPINION.

(1) Start networking on LinkedIn with people you know who are stateside and who know and like your work.

(2) Use the holiday times to re-connect with people, you have not spoken with in a long time to let them know how you are, what you are doing and what you are thinking of doing.Drop these same people notes every three months from here on out.

(3) Put your Skype ID on resumes as well as time zone differences to where you are

(4) Look at your job search as a marathon and not a sprint. It will take determination to get back to the US. DO NOT QUIT ON YOURSELF.

Those are the starting places. The rest involves hard work, networking and effort.

Ask The Big Game Hunter: Competing Against Younger Workers

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

Hey, Jeff, how about the topic of 48 year olds trying to compete with 28 and 38 year olds for a topic? It is what I have been going through in my job search for the past 2 1/2 years here in xxxx. I have no problem getting interviews and have been told by many people that I interview very well. But then they always hire someone 10 years and sometimes even 20 years younger.

At the time I write this, I am 61 years old. I compete every second of the day against younger workers in my office (and older ones as well) and in other recruiting firm’s offices.

I always find this a tricky subject because although age bias is rampant in our culture (if you don’t believe me, watch tv advertising critically and see who it is geared toward), it is often not as rampant as people believe it is in the job market.

You see, by the time someone is in their 40’s or 50’s, for example, they have far surpassed the job requirements of positions for which someone in their 20’s will be hired for.

If they are in technology fields, often the technology has changed two or three times since their 20’s and although someone =may be capable of managing someone who develops in the technology, that doesn’t make someone actually able to develop in it on a day to day basis.

So, although you may arrive at an interview ready and willing to do the job, you are competing against someone more able than you to do it . . . and willing to do it for a lot less money, too.

So in these cases, you really cannot compete with someone who can do the job better than you.

However, if you are competing with others with similar or identical skills and coming in second or not being invited back for second interviews, there are some things to be aware of that you can improve upon.

1. Even though you are being told you’re interviewing well, you aren’t.

Feedback that is passed on often isn’t truthful because firms don’t want to be sued and recruiters don’t want to explain themselves further. It is easier to be dishonest than engage a candidate with the hard truth. Push to get more detailed feedback than you were “too light.”

2. You haven’t made them comfortable enough that you will fit into the group

This is the one that people confuse with age bias. Let’s assume that you are my age interviewing with a 32 year old. The group consists of 26 and 27 year olds. In other words, you are the age of a grandparent and they are interviewing you for a job working at the same level as a 27 year old.

#1. You need to demonstrate identical skills competence as a 27 year old competing for the job and

#2. You need to confront the potential for ageism by using your experience as an advantage for you.

How?

There will be some point in the interview where you can go off scripted questions and, if there isn’t an obvious point, at the point where the interview is about to end, before they are about to conclude it, ask them, “Before we conclude, may I make a point or offer some information to you?”

“Sure.”

Use your own language to convey this message. you don’t have to use my words.

“Although we and your team might be of different generations, I want to make it clear that I am interested in doing this job, fitting into your group (company, organization, team), doing a great job and helping you look good to management.

“Where some on the team will buck to earn more money than your firm is willing to pay or advance to a job like yours even if it means moving to another firm to get it, I want to join, learn and do a great job here and not use it as a stepping stone to advancement. Frankly, I’ve been there and done that and I like this a whole lot more.”

“I also may have some experience that can be useful to help mentor and coach your group and can be helpful to you at times. But I want to assure you that I won’t second guess decisions you make with the team. I’m here to support you with doing (whatever the job is).”

“So, if you decide that I am someone who can do this job well, and certainly, this seems like a great job to me, I just ask you to rest assured tat I will be excited to join you.”

3. You convey “the know-it-all syndrome”

Sometimes, people with significant experience have a way of carrying themselves as being so confident or self assured that it crosses the line into arrogance. They tell interviewers that they have done this job before and it would be a snap! A breeze! Easy!

You haven’t done the job before for them in this organization and for these folks. You’ve heard of “The Easy Button?” Try “The Humble Button.”

Again, age discrimination is common but often people over use this as an excuse for why they are rejected from a job. And where it may exist, there are ways to position yourself as a humble servant that will make them realize what a treasure you would be if they hired you.

How NOT to Quit Your Job

December 29, 2015May 16, 2015 by Jeff

Greg Smith, a former banker with Goldman Sachs in London, set off a firestorm when he resigned publically with an OpEd article in The New York Times.

Smith alleged that Goldman put its needs ahead of the client, an allegation that was embarassing to his former employer.

Very few of you are employed by firms that are symbols, nor are you in jobs that place you in positions of prominence.

Very few of you can afford to be out of work for any length of time.

I suspect none of you will receive a sizable advance from a book publisher to write the story of your experience with your former employer.

When Smith is done with his moment in the sun, he will discover what many people have discovered when they go out like a comet that is flaming out in the heavens.

His career is over.

He will not find work in the career he trained for his entire life.

He has hurt clients and not just his former employer.

He hurt himself and his former colleagues who experience the collateral damage in the wake of his story.

Smith has become a temporary hero with his allegations but will suffer for the rest of his life because of his action.

Yes, he has a sizable advance for his book but he better sell those books or the publisher will come back for its money.

And he better save his money because once the book has been written, he is unemployable. He has annoyed colleagues who will not trust him and not provide him with references.

As much fury as you may feel, hold your tongue and simply resign or find something else rather than “going out in a blaze of glory.

The likelihood of you affecting the change you dream of by being a whistle blower is extremely small and there is little probability that you will profit by it sufficiently.

“The Celebrity Apprentice” and Job Interviewing

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

Donald Trump’s, “The Celebrity Apprentice” puts a number of “B” and “C” actors and actresses together on two teams for several weeks working on projects together. Each team will select a project manager for the task that they are competing over.

Each week, one team wins; the other team loses. The winning team’s project manager wins a contribution to a charity of their choice; the losing team’s project manager gets to bring two people into the board room to argue as to who was the one most at fault for their team’s failure. Trump ultimately fires at least one of them.

It’s reality television so the cameras follow the teams around and you get to see what is going on behind the scenes. Who complains about whom. The trivial anxieties blown out of proportion. The egos inflamed.

But looking at it as a hiring process, Trump has put these people into a position where he has an actual opportunity to see them do the job that he would like to hire him for and see if they can do it . . . not just once but many times.

Several smart employers I am working with have constructed their own version of “The Celebrity Apprentice.” One this week, flew up several people for interviews and, after the interviews, put the three program managers together on a project to work with one another.

The project was more symbolic (siting a building in a foreign nation and how you would prepare and present the program to government officials) but the process would be the same. The hiring firm had a team of people watching how the team worked, how they assigned work and how it was done, then listened to the proposal.

Some companies are having people do a presentation at the white board; some are asking potential hires to teach a class or do other tasks that relate to the job the candidate is being considered for.

Start to keep in your metaphorical back pocket a simple presentation you could do at a white board about how you did something for your current employer.

Be prepared to do a short project related to your current work or sell something to the interviewer.

Just don’t always expect to recite some facts about what you do and how you do it and expect to be hired.

Finding a Job You’ll Love: 5 Ways to Avoid Employment Divorce

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

With Valentine’s Day here, writers thoughts turn to ideas of tying the art of love into an article idea. I am no different.

But actually, job hunting is very much luck dating and success after you join is very much like having a successful marriage.

There are things you can do while dating that can lay the foundation for a successful marriage and a successful job experience.

1. Do You Get That Certain Feeling?

In job hunting, I am certainly not speaking of the feeling of a teenager’s hormones going wild. Often as an experienced professional, you seen it all and very little seems new and different. Is there anything there that piques your interest? Are there people you would work with who you can like, trust and respect? Does the physical office seem to make you feel large and expansive or like you are working in a dump?

You know what you feel like when you feel great. Unless you need the money, there should be little room to compromise your gut instinct.

2. What Do Your Friends Say?

The older we are, the more we tend to think we need to make our own decisions without any advice from anyone. I personally think that is a mistake. Knowing that you need advice and having the wisdom to ask for it is among the smartest things someone can do. I will also tell you that too often, people take jobs thaht gthey know aren’t good for them and, like bad boyfriends or girlfriends, find out that it was a bad match.

Be smart and be proactive. Ask someone to help you sort things through before making a mistake.

3. Ask great questions!

When many of us were young and in lust, we really did not know (OK. I’ve been married more than once so I’ll admit it. This was about a mistake I made) enough about our future partners to make a wise choice. As a result, it is no surprise that the marriage would end in divorce because as time went on, things would be revealed later that would prove to be untenable.

There are many questions you can ask.

4. Get Out There!

You won’t find a job sitting home and you won’t find a job if all you do is scour job boards. By all means, look at the listings, but also get out there with people and talk to them. Network. Ask for suggestions. Just don’t appear desperate. No one likes a desperate date and no one wants to help a desparate job hunter. Stay cool, particularly when it gets hot.

5. Be honest!

This is the one that should go without saying but, like in dating, job hunters (and employers) often lie. The problem is that that one day you wake up wondering whether or not they loved you or the fiction you told about yourself. That little wedge will grow bigger with time and cause irreconcilable differences.

Dishonesty while dating always leads to conflict. Dishonesty while interviewing does too when disappointment sets in.

So remember, many of the problems you face in your next job can be avoided before you join. Take the time to balance your head with your heart.

Job Search Lessons From Super Bowl 46 (2012)

May 16, 2015 by Jeff

Another fabulous game to watch and although I am a Giants fan, there are things I noticed about each team and how they played and prepared that I believe are extremely valuable when applied to job hunting.

1. The value of a system

Each team operates within a system with nothing left to chance. The Giants loss key players during the off-season and were able to draft, sign prepare replacements that proved valuable. Travis Beckham. Bear Pascoe. Linval Joseph. Aaron Ross. David Baas. These were all Giants who stepped up to replace departed or injured players and made a difference. New England’s offense runs through Tom Brady and his ability to make smart decisions given the situation. Danny Woodhead was someone who did a few things well and was only used in situations where he could take advantage of those talents.

Do you have a system in place to help you reach out and find opportunities oir are you just “winging it.”

2. Preparation

You don’t think these teams just “show up” and play, do you?

They go through a lifetime of preparation for the 60 minutes of game time. They practice plays. New England even practiced what it would be like to come back on the field after a thirty minute half time and not the customary 12.

These teams were well-couched and well-prepared for their moment in the spotlight.

Do you just show up at interviews and expect to do well or do you practice?. Do you look for coaching about resume writing or hire an expert to write one for you or do you expect to learn from your mistakes and miss opportunities though lack of preparedness? Have you read a book to help you do a better job job hunting or are you going through the motions and think you’ll get a job anyway?

3. The Importance of Patience

Both teams defense bends but does not break to big plays. They do a solid job, not a spectacular job. Both teams’ offense took what was given to them and delivered an excellent performance just taking what was given to them.

Are you trying to “force things” by demanding a company respond to you quickly “or else?” Do you expect others to jump through hoops to see you instead of being courteous and adapting to circumstances. When the interview process slows down as it often does, do you grow impatient and make a big mistake?

4. Mistakes are costly.

There are many many details that go into a team winning the Super Bowl just like there are many many scenarios that go into job hunting. When William Boothe had a costly penalty in the first half, taking away a Giants’ first down, giving them a third and long that they did not convert, that mistake cost them at least three points (they were within field goal range) and possibly a touchdown (Remember, the Giants were losing by two points when they started their final drive).

Wes Welker dropped a pass that would have finished off the Giants. The announcers commented that this was a pass that he catches 100 out of 100 time . . . yet not this time.

Mistakes on interviews, with your resume, with your online profiles or online conduct can be very expensive lessons.

5. Greatness rises to the top.

Eli Manning. Tom Brady. Two great quarterbacks who played a great game. Other players who were considered great became invisible when the spotlight shined in their direction. When Eli Manning completed that great pass to Mario Manningham with the game on the line, both players showed greatness. Manning perfectly thrown ball caught by Manningham between two defenders who were both go to smash him, stretching out and still getting both feet down inbounds.

When an employer turns the heat up on you, do you complain about their bad behavior that cost you the job or do you stand up and do a great job on the interviewing, showing fight and resolution?

6. You Make Your Own Luck.

On two occasions, the Giants fumbled the ball and other Giant players came out of nowhere to recover the fumble and avert disaster. One fumble occured deep in Giants territory and would have resulted in a New England touchdown. Some people call it luck. Others call it hustle.

What are you doing to make yourself lucky? How hard are you really trying?

7. Learn to Adjust on the Fly.

Sometimes a surprise occurs. Successful professional teams are coached to be able to make adjustments by themselves during the game.

Is every tool a hammer in your tool belt. Do you send out the same resume to every job you see or do you make adjustments?

I am reminded that winners find the way to win and losers have excuses and explanations from why they lost.

Your job is to find the way to win and win.

There are many more things that we can point to but, like a said, there are so many details that go into winning or not.

Here are a few things I think are worth taking away from watching a great game.