How Do I explain my year off of work?

Q: After more than a year's absence from the work scene, where my last job was deputy education director of a large professional organization, I am now considered ready to begin work again. How do I explain this absence? G.L., Montreal

A: We all have gaps in our careers. This is often a challenging issue to deal with, but it is not as unusual as you might think.

I have seen many examples of where a person took time off to travel or spend time with their children, or took a break from work for other personal choices. What makes your situation unique is the health aspect. Don't get into specifics in your cover letter or the resume. This would be inappropriate and would leave far too much room for misinterpretation. You can leave the dates on your resume, and if it comes up, deal with the time issue in the interview.

One important step is to get your references in order so they can back you up on your professional results and why you left. (Canada has privacy laws about the release of medical information to employers, and you may want to review these rules before you go to any interviews.)

One exercise you can do is to write down why you left and why you are back in the market. The process of writing it down will help you organize your thoughts and put together a message that flows and is truthful.

Do your job search the same way you would have in the past: Touch base with all your connections, pay attention to job boards and go about your search with confidence.

Personal confidence is often one of the biggest issues to deal with when moving back into the workforce. You need to be aware of this and protect your confidence along the job search. One great resource is the book Confidence: How Winning Streaks and Losing Streaks Begin and End by Rosabeth Moss Kanter (Crown Books, 416 pp., $27.97). She really nails this issue and offers some good sound advice.

In addition, make sure that physically you are 100% sound, as the new job and related stress may take some toll on you. Build up your reserves and get yourself ready to achieve the kind of success you have had in the past.

Different Strokes For different folks

'Coach Phil Jackson motivated Michael Jordan and Denis Rodman in very different ways; this was one of the keys in delivering championships for his team and his owners.'

Q: I am vice-president of sales for a mid-size company in the health sector. For the past two quarters, our sales have been flat. We are looking at different ways of dealing with this issue with our sales team. Would money motivate them? What else can we do? T.C., Vancouver

A: Motivation lies at the heart of most issues related to organizational performance. Often a minor change in rewards and feedback can return big dividends.

The Gallup organization has done some great research on motivation. They looked at 10,000 work groups in 30 different industries. The results have been published in How Full Is Your Bucket? by Tom Rath and Donald O. Clifton (Gallup Press, 128 pp., $19.57).

One of the most interesting findings was that emotional feedback is far more important than time and money. Yet 65% of people surveyed had had no meaningful feedback in the previous year.

A powerful tool suggested by the authors was to ask your team this question: "What is the greatest recognition you have ever received?" The response to this question will lead to a motivational plan that suits the individuals on your team. This is important because each person has a unique "motivation bucket," and requires different elements to fill it.

When Phil Jackson was coaching the Chicago Bulls, he motivated Michael Jordan and Denis Rodman in very different ways; this was one of the keys in delivering championships for his team and his owners.

The other advantage of delivering an individual message on performance is that you are giving each person a very specific and measurable way to see where they are hitting their goals and where the gaps are. The key is to make the elements specific and measurable.

Like Phil Jackson, you will need to tie together the individual needs and the key goals in your business, that is the art and science of motivation.

How To Get Out of the Tender Trap

Q: I have been positioned as the "finance specialist" in our division. I am doing really well in my position, I am well-respected, and the work needs to get done. While I have excelled in this area, I feel a strong need to move in a more strategic direction. How do I break out of this internal brand that I am stuck in? A.T., Calgary

A: This is one of the key issues in formulating a career strategy: You have become blocked in by your strengths. This is often one of the tougher situations in a career. You are no longer in your sweet spot -- but you are in the organization's sweet spot.

The obvious response, and often the most likely, is to look for a new job with another company. However, it seems you still see a lot of opportunity in your current company. Having a strong internal brand has both challenges and risks. The good news is you have built up professional capital that you can leverage to move forward.

You have already taken the first step, which is to recognize your need to take control.

The second step is to take control. Your boss and your peers need your contribution for the company's projects and their own professional success. Look for special projects where you can contribute in a unique way, so you still contribute in your current role while you build bridges in other areas of the organization and get exposure to new challenges. This will keep you engaged while extending your brand within the company and exposing you to other executives.

Ask yourself this question: "Is there someone else on my team with a similar skill set who could replace me?" Do you have someone else who could step up to the plate? If you do, make sure you promote their work, mentor them and help them build bridges. Finding your replacement is one of the key things you need to do. If you don't have such a person, get hiring.

You can also ask your company to sponsor you for an executive education program, which is offered by many business schools, or to sponsor your executive MBA. We often use the term "disruptive technology." Sometimes education can be disruptive in a positive way. A discussion about education will test your company's long-term view and create an opportunity for a conversation with your boss and others on where you want to head in your next phase.

Finally, put in place a timeline for change. It is easy to get lulled into a comfortable role. If you hit your deadline and things have not changed, get your resume up-to-date, and start connecting to your headhunter and your network.

Give Tasks to the Best People You Can Hire

Q: As a new director, I am responsible for hiring and managing a larger team. Are there some best practices that you have observed for building great teams? T.S., Montreal

A: One of the strengths of a great leader is the ability to hire and develop successful teams. The Gallup Organization interviewed 80,000 managers in 400 countries to determine what some of the best managers do, and what key mistakes are made.

The results are documented in a book called First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently, by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman (Simon & Schuster, 272 pp., $28.35). According to the study, many managers make two key mistakes:

1. They assume that each person can learn to be competent in almost anything.

2. They believe each person's greatest room for improvement is in their weakness.

Great managers, however, do not help people overcome their weaknesses so they can do a competent job, because competency does not lead to excellence. Which would you prefer, a "competent" surgeon or a great surgeon?

Identify what core competencies you have on your team, and where the gaps are. As you mould and develop your team, work diligently at having your key people in the right roles. Don't be afraid to bring in experts from other parts of your organization, or even from outside the company, to fill in the gaps -- and do it sooner rather than than later.

It can be dangerous to focus on improving an individual's weaknesses. This can take an enormous amount of energy on the part of both you and the person you are managing. This could put your project at risk.

Obviously, we all can improve; encouraging a strengths-focused philosophy, however, increases the likelihood of success and is much more profitable and enjoyable for all involved.

Marketing Director Needs to Sell Self

Q: I'm currently a marketing director with a well-known national consumer packaging company. In order to have more flexibility in my personal and professional life, I'd like to pursue a career in consulting. What are some suggestions on the best steps to take? S.A., Toronto

A: You are coming at this from a good perspective; as a consultant, people "buy" your expertise. Since you are a marketing director for a brand name company, you're at an excellent starting point.

Remember, consulting is clients, clients, clients -- this is key. The first question I have is what kind of previous experience you've had with "selling" yourself? This is vital because you have to know what makes you unique in a highly competitive business. What do your experience and your education offer the market? Another key question: Who is your market? Who are you targeting and who do you know in the market? How will you package yourself? This includes your education, the developments you have made in your career journey, and the niche that differentiates you from others.

How good are you at getting work? This is the consultant's dilemma. I know quite a few people who, while of equal ability in their field, are set apart by their ability to acquire work. How good are you at negotiation? This is another essential strength. How self-motivated are you to work independently? All of these points are vital questions to bear in mind when considering the consulting field.

Once you have answers to those questions, here are some actions to take:

1. Develop your own personal branding statement and a 30-second commercial summing up what you have to offer.

2. Connect deeply within your network to let them know what you can do for them. Meet as often as possible over coffee or lunch because, in the beginning, this is more than likely where you will get most of your work.

3. Look for partners. You may be able to complement the work that others are doing with some of your own experience. There are many "virtual" consulting shops that work together on projects.

In the long term, you may end up building products or running into company opportunities that could lead to an extended relationship, thereby building a larger consulting practice with its own benefits. Either way, if you go for it, the worst-case scenario is that you will have gained new perspective. The best-case scenario is a whole new direction and wonderful opportunities.