There is a multitude of job options for the attorney who no longer wishes to work in a law firm environment.

If you are considering an industry change, the following valuable tips will help you take action:

Make a Plan

First comes the soul-searching. What do you want to do?

Do you like research and dislike litigating? Are you drawn towards conflict resolution? Love rain-making and billable hours? (I was just seeing if you are paying attention!) In other words, what motivates you? Know yourself — write down your strengths and begin to crystallize your core competencies.

Have you evaluated your law-related career options? Did you know that many lawyers make very successful transitions into roles such as:

• Alternative dispute resolution specialist

• Association executive

• Human resources manager

• (Legal) executive recruiter

• Risk manager

• Bar association professional

• International trade and investment consultant

• Social legislation analyst

• Acquisitions/divestitures professional

• Economic development specialist.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Put the Plan into Action

Once you have your goals clear, develop a strategic plan to discover opportunities to move your dreams to reality.

Uncover the jobs both in advertised and unadvertised markets. The best jobs are not necessarily easily found, but the best career marketing approach that gives you the greatest marketing exposure is to use multiple strategies, simultaneously. For example, consider open positions (found on the Internet); somewhat hidden positions (recruiters/trade associations and networking); and unadvertised positions (identification of companies within your industry of choice that have indications of growth, which could expose a need for someone like you to fill).

There are many ways to do this. To do it well, the busy attorney often times needs help. But, if you choose to go it alone, here are some ideas to help you use your time wisely.

Respond to open jobs by having jobs come to you 24/7. Set up e-mail agents so the jobs come to your e-mail inbox through a job search engine. Resist the temptation to get lost on the Internet for hours, only to feel frustrated in the end..com.

Network with the right people. Activity is no substitute for progress. Most job searchers have heard the long-standing advice about the benefits of networking. There is an erroneous understanding that building contacts and networking with friends, family and associates reaps the greatest reward.

Make a positive first impression. Your resume and career marketing correspondence must be written to the target audience. Law resumes, CVs and business resumes have dramatically different elements. Here’s where a little consultation with a professional consultant might prove valuable, as he or she will likely know how to specifically-tailor your resume to showcase your best strengths, capabilities and transferable skills.

On a positive note, it may help you to know that most employers are always on the lookout for good people. They are appreciative of foresight and ingenuity. And most are willing to look in unconventional places (trade associations, referrals, etc.) before they “post an ad” for an open position.

With clear goals and a strategic plan, followed consistently, you will increase your chances of landing your dream job exponentially.

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Just wanted to share this article on FINS about resumes for career changers. I was quoted as well as several other industry professionals. (thanks WSJ!)

You can view all the tips here.

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Are you wondering if your resume stacks up?

My friend Kevin Kermes is hosting a free webinar tomorrow titled: Fixing the Bad Resume You Don’t Know You Have.

You can grab your seat here now.

I have sat in on this webinar before. It is excellent so if you want some great info from an insider that truly knows what he is talking about – be sure to sign up!

-Mary Elizabeth

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Mark Hovind, President of Jobbait.com – a service for high six and seven figure executives, published this excellent (and provocative) piece on executive job search tips titled: Real Executives Never Look Tasteless & Cheap.

Read it here:

http://jobbait.com/a/real-executives.html

I like the way Mark covers seemingly small points that can work against you in a job search including what kind of paper to use when printing out your resume, thank you cards, telephone connections and even email addresses.

I agree with every one of his points. And the best thing is – once you know what to do you are empowered to make the right decisions – confident and moving forward knowing that you look the part 100%. Very important tips in today’s tough job market.

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From the Houston Business Journal

Date: Wednesday, August 3, 2011, 2:36pm CDT

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My friend Kevin Kermes, President of Career Attraction just sent me the email below. Kevin gives great content and if you are curious if your resume passes the sniff test, you won’t want to miss this free training!

There are about 10 mistakes I see people
making in their job search pretty consistently…

most make 4-5 of these 80%+ of the time…

a lot have even had their resumes “professionally” done…

on Wednesday, August 10 at 12pmEDT I am going
to share these errors that can be job search killers…

and how YOU CAN FIX THEM!

http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?Clk=4353735

This training session won’t cost you a thing.

And, just for registering, I am going to share an
extra, complimentary resource that will get you
great results with your LinkedIn Profile!

http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?Clk=4353735

I hope to “see” you there.

Best,

Kevin

P.S. – feel free to pass this along to anyone you
think might benefit.  Repost it on LinkedIn or
Facebook…retweet it on Twitter.  I appreciate you
helping spread the word!

http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?Clk=4353735

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My dad was a self made millionaire. But when he died, he was driving an old beat up 1970’s Ford Truck.

I had never seen him drive a vehicle that wasn’t really nice.  He always bought a brand new SUV each year.

But right before he died he had a transformation.

He started wearing an old straw hat.

He listened to Johnny Cash.

And he started driving an old white Ford truck that he picked off of the used car lot that he owned at the time.

My dad found out just a few months before he died that he had pulmonary fibrosis.

A grim feature of this unfortunate diagnosis was the oxygen tanks he had to haul around with him.

He had a portable oxygen tank and also a larger one for the house.

I remember right before he died he wanted to go up to our cabin at the base of Yosemite Valley.

My family begged him not to go. The elevation was high and the population was sparse.

If there was a problem it would take an hour just to get him to the hospital. Too late for help when you need air.

But my dad didn’t seem to care.

In fact, he seemed defiant.

He was going to make the 3.5 hour drive up to the mountains with our without us.

So I went with him.

Just me and my dad.

For a week’s “vacation” in the mountains Northern / Central California.

I followed him up in my car.

He strapped the big oxygen tank to the back of his “new” old ford truck, put on his straw hat, inserted a  a Johnny Cash tape in the cassette deck and drove off into the sunset as I drove behind him.

Though it was 20 years ago, that picture will be etched in my memory forever.

My dad had a lot – but now he seemed to want to shed those material things he had and simplify his surroundings. In the end, it wasn’t money or things that were a reflection of my dad.  And somehow he needed to get in touch with that. He wanted to be surrounded with reflections of who he truly was. And he was, at his core, a simple man, who enjoyed simple pleasures. He loved God and loved the land.

And he loved the rugged, grounded simplicity of that old Ford truck.

And I, as the daughter of this pioneering entrepreneur, have followed in his entrepreneurial footsteps.

When I was a teenager, my dad used to talk to me a lot about owning businesses and the opportunities we have in as Americans – in this great Country – to work and be successful from the fruits of our labors.

But the greatest lesson he taught me about true success was one he wasn’t trying to teach. It was watching him “show” me right before he died – what was truly important in life.

I guess that is why in my business today – I have been called a contrarian …provocative…and a maverick.

When you work with jobseekers, people who have families to take care of, when you get to know their stories….little else besides getting them educated on the truth of what really works in today’s job market is important. At least to me.

And although people hire me for over $200 an hour – not everyone can afford that.

So I decided to write The Career Artisan Series eBooks and offer them for just a few dollars each on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Because in the end it’s not money that truly matters, is it?

So if you know someone who needs help in their job search and you want to help… you can share this link with them:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?ie=UTF8&rh=n%3A133140011&field-keywords=the%20career%20artisan&page=1

You know, my husband keeps telling me he wants to buy me a new vehicle.

But I really do prefer my old  Ford truck.

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I am a big fan of Timothy Ferriss and have read both his books. His first book, The 4 Hour Workweek, helped me to cut my work week down by 20%.

Imagine how tickled I was when i saw on Amazon that my new book had outranked his. Atleast for a day….:)

Just want to say thank you again to everyone for your support and for spreading the word.

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This is for everyone that is looking for that once in a lifetime deal.

If you are in the market to write your own resume – you just found it.

And that is not hype.

The Career Artisan – 21st Century Resume Guide for the Perplexed is on sale

at amazon (it’s an eBook and if you don’t have a reader you can download kindle for PC for free right on amazons page)

The book is .99 cents right now.

It is filled with incredible information that is going to help you improve your resume so you can win more interviews and offers.

And it includes a link to online custom resume templates (that i designed myself) for you to download and keep.

This Friday the price of the eBook will increase to $5.99. Still an exceptional value.

But why pay $5.99 when you can get it for under a dollar right now?

Here is the link:

http://www.amazon.com/Century-Resume-Perplexed-Artisan-ebook/dp/B005BSTIWC/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1311703521&sr=1-1

enjoy!

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My collegue Mark Hovind, President of Jobbait.com – has completed an extensive study which he has posted on his website. He tackles the question: should top executives use Linked In?

More specifically, should those executives use LI as a mouthpiece in their job search?

Here is the link:

http://jobbait.com/a/linkedin.html

Mark approaches the question from several angles and leaves no stone unturned. You can always count on Mr. Hovind to de-gloss latest trends and marketing strategies – always with exposing the “truth” as the cornerstone of his efforts.

You gotta love it. True advocacy for the jobseeker.

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