Hi Realists! 👋

Welcome to Cup of Ambition, Volume 4!

Get the scoop on:

💰 The Resume That Landed a $1.2MM Offer

🕶️ Robbing Job Descriptions

❤️‍🔥 So be it, See to it - Lessons from Octavia Butler

🌞 Summer Priorities

9-to-5 Dilemma

“I’ve been in the same role with my current company for 5 years and I know I am underpaid. I just trained a new hire who told me that they negotiated two additional weeks of vacation, a sign-on bonus of $5k, AND they’re making $12,000 more than me… with LESS EXPERIENCE. I met with my manager about 3 months ago and asked about an increase or promotion and he told me that the budgets for increases were too tight this year and there wasn’t money available for adjustments.

I really don’t want to face finding another job, but I realize I may need to. Is there a way to negotiate at my current company to at least make what others around me are making? I feel like I’m being taken advantage of.”

-Played Out.

_____________________________________________________

Dear Played Out,

There used to a phrase in the 90’s that EVERYONE couldn’t stop saying… “don’t hate the player, hate the game.” Unfortunately, in the working world, there are a lot of games and a lot of players that have mastered the game.

Compensation is often unclear within organizations and salary transparency can be seen as taboo, mainly for the exact reason you just mentioned. Companies feel uncomfortable talking about pay because they know inequities and disparities exist. So rather than saying, “hey, the market has shifted and we had to bring in someone above market to fill the need. Because of the market shift, we are adjusting your pay to stay competitive for your role,” they saying… nothing.

It feels like you’re putting a puzzle together without seeing the picture on the front of the box when companies don’t communicate a transparent compensation philosophy, clear pay bands, and leveling for roles.

I hear this from clients quite frequently and always recommend a few things:

1) Get clear on your value.

Take some time to reflect on your achievements, skills, and the impact you've made during your tenure. Consider your unique contributions, such as projects you've led, cost savings you've achieved, or improvements you've implemented.

If you’re tracking your Wins + Impact, pull up the file and start building a business case that positions the value you’ve generated as a key component of the team (and the organization’s) success.

Understanding your value proposition will give you confidence when discussing compensation.

Remember, we bring our value TO work. We don’t get our value FROM work. Don’t let your imposter syndrome tell you that you don’t generate much value or that you’re useless because you don’t see clear impact in your work. The unique skills, strengths, talents, experiences, and ways of thinking that you bring to your work generate VALUE for the company.

2) Research the market.

Conduct thorough research on current market rates for your role and level of experience. Websites like Glassdoor, PayScale, and LinkedIn Salary can provide insights into what similar positions in your industry and location are paying. This data will help you benchmark your current compensation against market standards.

Research the job market and identify what skills and experiences you have that are in demand. Are there more postings externally for similar roles? What value are they placing on those skills in the market? Understanding that what you offer is in demand only supports your case.

3) Build a business case.

Compile a compelling business case that outlines why you deserve better compensation. Include specific examples of your accomplishments and how they have benefited the company. Quantify your contributions wherever possible (e.g., percentage increase in sales, cost savings achieved). Use your research on market rates to show where your current compensation falls short.

Use AI to your advantage and use a prompt, with your salary data and value statements to ask: “Take on the persona of an executive within an (insert industry) company. What objections might you have to the following business case requesting additional compensation for (insert job title)?”

4) Time it right.

Timing is crucial when negotiating for better compensation. Consider factors such as the company's fiscal calendar, recent financial performance, and any upcoming strategic initiatives or budget cycles. Aim to have the conversation when your manager is receptive and when you can demonstrate recent successes or additional responsibilities you've taken on.

Read the room and strike when you’re hot— when you’ve just wrapped a presentation, finished a project, or received accolades from your boss on a job well done. If you’ve recently had some performance challenges, that’s ok. Give yourself some space between the challenge and your ask.

5) Shoot your shot.

Schedule a meeting with your manager to discuss your compensation. Approach the conversation professionally and respectfully in the same way you’d present any other project or business case.

Present your business case confidently, focusing on facts and data rather than emotions. Be prepared to have a constructive dialogue about how your contributions can be appropriately recognized and rewarded.

Remember, this is a dialogue, not a negotiation so no need to come in on the defense. Good faith negotiation requires a little finesse and conversation.

After all that, you may still get a “we just can’t swing it right now” response. And that’s okay— that’s data to tell you it’s time to move on. You’ve put forward your best business case, advocated for what is equitable, and the company chose not to value or honor that.

Don’t immediately start rage applying to 150 jobs with the mantra “I have to get out NOW!” Slow down and sit with where you want to go next. What spaces, places, and experiences will value what you offer? Use that to build a strategic and intentional plan forward.

And remember…

The resume that landed a 7-figure gig.

I recently worked with a Wealth Management Executive to land a seven-figure job offer, representing a nearly 30% increase in total compensation from where he’d been.

He had been laid off in March and was spinning his wheels in the job market for about 6 weeks. He was sending out resume after resume, networking, and still coming up short.

The Before:

Where we started was nowhere near the caliber needed to make an impression at the level my client was hoping for. To play at an Executive level, the narrative has to change, but the before resume was full of responsibility language, didn’t sell ANY of the value that he generates, and the format felt more like a new grad resume than an experienced senior leader.

The After:

Here's how we crafted a standout resume that caught the attention of a Senior Executive:

1. Compelling Header and Summary: We started with a clear header and a powerful summary that highlighted Kendrick's expertise in institutional sales and wealth management.

2. Highlighting Key Achievements: We dedicated a section to Kendrick's key career wins, showcasing impressive statistics like a 331% YoY increase in referral activity.

3. Core Competencies: Listing core competencies helped quickly communicate Kendrick's areas of expertise.

4. Detailed Work Experience: Each role in Kendrick's work experience was detailed with key achievements, emphasizing quantifiable results.

By focusing on these elements, the client’s resume effectively communicated his value, leading to a significant job offer.

The client applied to several roles and followed up with decision makers on LinkedIn, sending a copy of his resume with a brief note. Within 2 hours, the owner of a large wealth management firm responded and said he liked how clear and straightforward the client’s resume was… he was impressed. He wanted to meet as soon as possible to discuss a new role he’d been thinking about.

Fast forward 3 weeks later and the client had met the owner, the team, and a few members of the board. He texted me and told me he’d nailed it— an offer letter was being sent over offering him a base salary + incentive structure that meant he’d be making just over $1.2MM at baseline target.

Will every resume land a 7-figure gig? Unfortunately not. But a clear, compelling, impact driven resume opens more doors. And when you walk through more doors, you get more offers.

In applying these tweaks to your own resume, remember— show, don’t tell. Don’t tell your reader what you’ve done, show them the impact you generate when you do what you do.

Rob the Job Description to Nail Your Interview

Preparing for a job interview can be daunting, but leveraging the job description to guide your preparation can make a significant difference.

A job description is the blueprint to a successful interview.

By focusing on keywords, crafting relevant impact statements, and keeping essential points at your fingertips, you can make a strong impression on your potential employer. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you prepare effectively.

1. Highlight Keywords from the Job Description

Why It Matters: There are many, many different ways to describe the same thing and each company uses their own unique terms to describe the same job. Keywords in the job description are often what the employer is looking for in a candidate. These include skills, qualifications, and specific experiences.

How to Do It:

• Identify Core Requirements: Go through the job description and highlight the skills, qualifications, and experiences mentioned multiple times.

• List the Keywords: Create a list of these keywords. They will guide you in tailoring your responses during the interview.

Example: If the job description frequently mentions "strategic planning," "client relationship management," and "sales performance analytics," these are the areas you should focus on.

2. Prepare Relevant Impact Statements

Why It Matters: Impact statements demonstrate your achievements and how your skills have benefited past employers. They provide concrete evidence of your qualifications.

How to Do It:

• Use the PAR Method: Structure your impact statements using the Problem, Action, Result method.

• Match to Keywords: Ensure your statements align with the keywords and requirements highlighted from the job description.

Example: For "strategic planning," you might say, "In my previous role, we struggled to bring in comprehensive approaches into our strategic plans, leading to siloed approaches that didn’t generate the results we needed. We were working on an aggressive timeline from our board of directors to deliver an updated plan that addressed the broader issues with targeted solutions (Problem). I led a strategic planning initiative with the C-Suite to redefine our market approach. I worked with a team of analysts to review historical outcomes and build comprehensive plan (Action) that resulted in a 20% increase in market share within a year (Result)."

3. Keep a Post-It with Key Points

Why It Matters: Having a quick reference during the interview helps you stay focused and ensures you address the most critical aspects that the decision-maker is interested in. Having the full job description in front of you can often be a distraction— you don’t have time in an interview to listen, read through the job description again, and then match your response.

A post-it makes it easy to see the most important and relevant information to tailor your response.

How to Do It:

• Identify Top Priorities: From the job description and your research on the company, identify the top three to five points that are most important to the interviewer.

• Write Concisely: On a small Post-It, write these key points in a way that they are easily readable at a glance.

• Refer Discreetly: Place the Post-It somewhere discreetly visible during the interview to quickly glance at and ensure you stay on track.

I saw this TikTok recently that had a brilliant idea— write your notes on the sticky side so you can stick them up by your camera for easy viewing!

@next_great_step

Best interview hack #grads #collegeseniors #collegejuniors #interview #jobinterview #interviewhack##jobsforgraduates#jobsfor#jobsforstuden... See more

Example: Your Post-It might include:

• "Client relationship management"

• "Increased sales by 20%"

• "Strategic planning success"

• "Team leadership experience"

• "Salesforce proficiency"

Putting It All Together

Here’s how you can use these strategies in practice:

1. Before the Interview:

   • Carefully read the job description and highlight the essential keywords.

   • Develop impact statements for each key area.

   • Write the most crucial points on a Post-It.

2. During the Interview:

   • Use your impact statements to answer questions confidently.

   • Refer to your Post-It to ensure you cover all critical points.

   • Align your responses with the keywords from the job description.

Example Scenario

Job Description Excerpt: "We are seeking a proactive Sales Manager with expertise in strategic planning, client relationship management, and sales performance analytics. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of increasing sales and leading a team."

Preparation:

• Keywords Identified: Strategic planning, client relationship management, sales performance analytics, increasing sales, leading a team.

• Impact Statement Example:

  • Strategic Planning: "In my last role, I spearheaded a strategic planning project that increased our annual revenue by 15%."

  • Client Relationship Management: "I managed a portfolio of top clients, increasing retention rates by 25% through targeted relationship-building strategies."

Post-It Notes:

• "Strategic planning success"

• "Client relationship retention +25%"

• "Led team to 15% revenue growth"

• "Expert in sales performance analytics"

By following these steps and staying organized, you can approach your interview with confidence, demonstrate your value effectively, and increase your chances of landing the job.

Reminder, it’s okay to have BIG goals and ambitions. It often feels scary to write down goals because we’re fearful of looking silly or like a failure if we don’t achieve them. Instead, we settle for what is right in front of us or around us and tell ourselves this is the best we’ll ever be.

There’s power in writing down what you want from your career. If there were no barriers, expectations, biases, or other detours to your goals, what would you do? Who would you be?

This journal entry from Octavia Butler, an American science fiction writer, says it all.

In one of her most quoted statements, she described herself as “an oil-and-water combination of ambition, laziness, insecurity, certainty, and drive.”

Whew, that feels familiar. We can be all of those things, at exactly the same time, and achieve incredible dreams.

So what’s your dream?

Summer Priorities 🌞

Somehow, we’re already in the thick of summer. I’ve been keeping a summer bucket list to focus on stepping away from the keyboard and resetting in things I love.

Strawberries from the field, kayaking on a warm day, vacation to our family lake house in Nisswa, MN, farmer’s markets, gardening, and patio nights.

More of this:

Less of this:

What’s on your summer bucket list?

Dollyism.

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