Top Shelf Reading Picks:

This week, I had an opportunity to read an advance copy of Dan Schawbel’s Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success (April 2009).  The focus of the book is on personal branding. However, the emphasis is on how Web 2.0 tools play an integral role in building your personal brand.  While Schawbel is targeting younger audiences, if you’re looking for a job or worried that you may be looking for a job in the near future, this is a must read–no matter what your age.

Times have changed.

As Schawbel points out “Back then [Diane's note:  I’m assuming by "back then"  he means the dark ages when I was typing up resumes on my Selectric IBM typewriter], a resume and a cover letter were the sole criteria for the job application screening process. . . . Candidates who appeared qualified on paper were granted standard interviews; hiring managers had only a resume, cover letter and a standard interview at their disposal.  It was challenging for candidates to express themselves freely, showcase their full range of talents and stand out from the crowd.”

That statement captures the heart of this book.  Readers of Me 2.0 shouldn’t be thinking of “social networking is something I HAVE to do,” but really, it should be something I “want” to do because it’s a way to distinguish myself from the rest of the pack.

Over at the Downtown Women’s Club, we survey businesswomen about online networking.  What struck me while reading Schawbel’s book is that each year, four of the top five reasons women choose not to network online are always “it’s too impersonal,” “I can’t leverage my personality,” “I’m better on the phone or in person” or some variation of the same.  Yet, Web 2.0 is all about letting your personality shine through, even when focusing on your career.

As Schawbel puts it: “Social media will put the personality into resumes.”

Throughout the book, Schawbel explains exactly how to build an online personal brand.  Along the way, he has some terrific quotes from people that really emphasize the main point of Me 2.0: How we go about managing our own careers has changed.

“In a world where there are no more corporate ladders to land on, your brand is the platform your career will stand on.”
- Penelope Trunk, career columnist

“Until roughly five years ago, finding great talent was like finding a needle in a haystack.  Today it’s like finding a needle in a stack of needles.”
- Harry Joiner, executive recruiter

“I believe the effect will be less ‘applying’ for jobs, more of employers finding you.”
- Libby Sartain, chief people officer, Yahoo!

“For those that embrace these new personal branding tools, ‘Google me’ is the new business card, and thus, the blog and social network profile [are] the new resume.”
- Jeremiah Owyang, senior analyst, Forrester Research

So, enough about why you should build a personal brand with social media. Here are some of Shawbel’s tips on how to do it:

Step 1: Discover your brand.

He starts this section by focusing on the three key elements of effective personal branding:

1. A strong personal value statement
2. A plan to differentiate your brand
3. A powerful marketing strategy

This is followed by a number of tips on everything from appearance to communicating in person as well as online.  He also talks about how to make a personal marketing plan, conduct a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats), and create budget and action plans.

Step 2: Create your brand.

In this section he looks at the different things you’ll need to enhance your resume:

1. Resume (traditional, LinkedIn and video)
2. Portfolio (CD/print/website)
3. Interviewing skills
4. Blogs
5. Online social networking sites

Of note in this section was the statement that by 2011, 50 percent of online adults will be active in social networking platforms.  “Before long, when meeting others, fewer people will ask you for your phone number or e-mail address; more frequently they will either Google your name or add you as a friend in a social network.  If you aren’t actively involved in social networks, you will be at a competitive disadvantage in both being recruited professionally and interfacing with your friends, family, fellow employees and potential key contacts.”

I liked how he closed the section with an emphasis that your online and offline brand presence must be consistent.  As anyone who has ever dabbled in online dating would know, “[D]on’t create a false expectation for those who get to know your e-brand who’ll be disappointed when they meet you offline.”

Step 3 & 4: Communicate your brand/maintain your brand.

In these next two sections there were lots of tips for using social networks, personal press releases, blogs, etc., to further your brand.  I appreciated the big emphasis on “search.”  It seems that in today’s society, it’s less and less who you know, but who can find you.

The final section: entrepreneurs

At first I felt this section was just tacked on here, but in retrospect, a lot of the book focused on getting a job and a traditional career, so it was a nice addition to apply the Me 2.0 philosophies directly to entrepreneurship (although clearly almost everything else in the book applied).  Yet, there is one difference in personal branding when it comes to entrepreneurs–in many cases, much of an entrepreneur’s personal brand is wrapped up in his or her company brand.

Top Shelf Bottom Line:  If you have been avoiding the social media phenomena, this book does a good job of pointing out that you do so at your own career peril.  If you are just getting out of college and have made social use of online networks, it can also serve as a guide for how social media should be used in a positive manner to help (not hinder) your career prospects.  Finally, for entrepreneurs, it’s a primer for how you should be marketing yourself and your services/products.  Me 2.0 is an easy, thought-provoking read and recommended for anyone who may find themselves back on the job market with only a paper resume as a calling card.

I requested a review copy of Executive Warfare: 10 Rules of Engagement for Winning your War for Success by David F. D’Alessandro because I recalled finding his earlier book, Brand Warfare, insightful. Also, in a former life as VP of marketing for a commercial real estate company, I spent a whole lot of time  constantly trying to “save” the John Hancock account, so D’Alessandro was a name with which I had become quite familiar.

Despite the fact that the focus of the book is about working within a large company, I found it relevant to entrepreneurs as well. Why? First, D’Alessandro is more of an “intrapreneur” than a corporate, by-the-book guy, and for those of us who have ever tried to be entrepreneurial in large, decades-old institutions, there’s no good handbook. This one is perhaps the closest I’ve seen. Second, human relations is human relations. Whether you are competing for the top spot in an established company, managing employees in your own company, merging with a larger company or trying to forge partnerships with other entrepreneurs, the human drama and motivations are basically the same when it comes to office politics.

One caveat–if you are happy in your position at your company and are not looking to make it to the top or if you are satisfied running a small business, then this book is not for you. Executive Warfare lives up to its name. So those of you who didn’t like my review or the concept behind What Men Don’t Tell Women About Business: Opening Up the Heavily Guarded Alpha Male Playbook by Christopher Flett, you’re probably not going to like this one either.

I agree that it can be a turnoff to read about all the high-stakes politicking and gameplaying (aka “warfare”) going on at the office when you really just want to do your work and be rewarded for it. However, even for those who don’t want to play the game, I strongly believe it will help your career in the long run if you at least know the rules the others are playing by.

A note about style
When it comes to style, I have to admit that I wish D’Alessandro had taken the Jack Welch Straight from the Gut approach and made it more biographical. Since he’s weaving in stories of his own experience, I would have learned just as much from a book like that and probably found it even more interesting. Instead, this reads like a bunch of blog posts put together. However, they are well-organized, which makes the book easier to read than most compendiums of essays or blog posts.

My only other stylistic comments have to do with visuals. Word of warning, masculine metaphors run amuck on almost every page. First we’re legion commanders; next we’re courting consiglieres and hunting carcasses. One would expect this based on the title, and I found the metaphors both amusing and helpful in illustrating his points. The last stylistic note I’ll make had to do with his using pop references throughout the book. I’m a huge fan of that in any business book. Why? Because of all the things throughout the book, those references gave me the most insight into D’Alessandro the individual. He watches what I watch, he reads what I read . . . Admittedly, I am “pop culture” gal, but it meant to me that this guy is not out of touch with what’s happening in the real world.

So “Where’s the beef?” Sorry, the masculine metaphors are contagious. This is one of those books where I had way too many Post-its marking thought-provoking ideas, so here are just a few that I particularly liked because they turn traditional career advice on its head and made me consider how they fit in a bigger picture.

Command and Control /Gen Y clash
Conformity is not a prerequisite for power. This goes against most career advice. Yet his point is that you risk things by going along just as much as you do by being yourself.

• Problem bosses are not rare. “Anybody who assumes that the King knows what he’s doing just because he’s the king really needs to go buy the movie ‘The Madness of King George.’ “
• Don’t hitch yourself just to your own boss. Bosses can have surprisingly short life spans. He has a good section about why your boss should not be your mentor (something I learned early on).
• It’s not important to be the solitary genius who dreamed up, financed and implemented a great plan all by yourself. What’s really valuable is showing that you are the kind of person other powerful people want to work with.

While this is a book clearly written for those who want to thrive in a traditional command-and-control hierarchy, as I put this review together I began noticing that these tips (and others) had some very Gen Y/Millennial traits: Be yourself, participate as a team, be loyal to self vs. company. This got me thinking that perhaps there is some middle ground between “command and control” and “free form” (for lack of a better term). Just as we’re seeing the need for a middle ground in politics as well as our economy–somewhere between overregulation and deregulation–this may not have to be an all-or-nothing question. Hmmmm. Now that’s a business book I’d like to read.

Office politics exist, now deal with it
The most dangerous enemies for you in the office (and yes, there will always be enemies) are not the ones who would prefer somebody else be their boss, but the ones who just don’t want you.

• When it comes to rivals (and rivals can be different from enemies although not mutually exclusive), your objective is not to exploit their weaknesses, but demonstrate that you don’t have those weaknesses.
• If you must take on a rival, don’t shoot to wound. Finish off the person as a rival.

There was a whole lot more in the book about office politics (in fact that really is what the entire book is about), so I couldn’t put it all in here. This is because politics is defined as: any activity concerned with the acquisition of power. What this means is that if you are trying to get a promotion, switch departments or capture more market share from your competitors, there will be politicking. What I picked up most from D’Alessandro’s take on office politics was how to participate while staying aboveboard and on the up and up.

Know your office persona, and those of all major players
I particularly liked his chapter on “Position: Get into Place– Whether You Are a Hunter, Skinner or Diner.” According to D’Alessandro, there are three types of people in any organization.

1. Hunters: Go out with their spears and bring home the meat that feeds the entire tribe (fundraisers, salespeople).
2. Skinners: Take the meat, weigh it, dole it out, store it and trade it (financial types)
3. Diners: Eat the hunters’ meat because they perform some other useful function for the tribe (PR, lawyers, HR).

Of these three groups, the hunters are always given the greatest respect and the widest berth along with the most promotions and authority, even if they are not smart or politically astute. It’s much harder to rise to the top if you are a skinner or diner. Although he notes that skinners are getting a bit more respect at the top as companies become more complex financial entities. Diners, on the other hand, are those who spend the company’s money on marketing, IT, etc., so they’re rarely going to make it to the top without breaking out of that mold by getting a revenue-generating job on their resume.

From an entrepreneurial standpoint, I would recommend that you figure out which one you are and, since you need all three types to succeed, find others who can fill in the rest of the skills.

For the entrepreneurs
If you really believe that you’re meant to run something, go run something. Even if it’s a small startup, a smaller division, because if you want be in charge, you should be in charge and it will be better for your career in the long run.

• As you begin to manage more senior people, one of the things you have to accept is that you won’t spend most of your day having fun conversations. The people working for you now are experienced and capable. They’re not going to ask your advice unless there is something wrong.
• Luck favors those who have already begun maneuvering themselves into the positions they want.

These three tips hit home the most for entrepreneurs. If you are a born entrepreneur–then go do it. You’ll be happier even if making less money for a time. But also expect that if you grow your company, you’ll probably think wistfully back to the good old days when you had fun. And while there are instances of pure luck occurring (both good and bad), those who are ready for it can make the most of it when it happens.

Top Shelf bottom line: Great book for intrapreneurs (entrepreneurial types within an established company), as well as managers trying to manage their own career as well as others. But I would also say it might be helpful for an entrepreneur who might be trying to land a larger company as a client. It’s great insight into what might be going on in the executive suite and how it might ultimately affect you.