Horizon Point Consulting

Category: Beyond Work

Beyond Work is our line of resources for people and community leaders looking for something new and innovative outside, be it a new job, career change, or personal development outside of work.

  • A Book Review of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain

    A Book Review of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain

    Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking is a must-read for introverts and extraverts alike. It explores the misconceptions of introverts and their many positive attributes.

    I have two children who are on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to introversion and extraversion. This book resonated with me on so many levels. I also love that it has a Tips for Educators section at the end. 

    The back cover notes Quiet as The Book That Started The Quiet Revolution. It explains:

    At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over working in teams. It is to introverts—Rosa Parks, Chopin, Dr. Seuss, Steve Wozniak—that we owe many of the great contributions to society. 

    In Quiet, Susan Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and shows how much we lose in doing so. She charts the rise of the Extrovert Ideal throughout the twentieth century and explores how deeply it has come to permeate our culture. She also introduces us to successful introverts—from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who quietly taps into the power of questions. Passionately argued, superbly researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how they see themselves.

    Here are a few of my favorite quotes from Quiet:

    “We don’t ask why God chose as his prophet a stutterer with a public speaking phobia. But we should. The book of Exodus is short on explication, but its stories suggest that introversion plays yin to the yang of extroversion; that the medium is not always the message; and that people followed Moses because his words were thoughtful, not because he spoke them well.”

    “Introverts, in contrast, may have strong social skills and enjoy parties and business meetings, but after a while wish they were home in their pajamas. They prefer to devote their social energies to close friends, colleagues, and family. They listen more than they talk, think before they speak, and often feel as if they express themselves better in writing than in conversation. They tend to dislike conflict. Many have a horror of small talk, but enjoy deep discussions.”

    “So stay true to your own nature. If you like to do things in a slow and steady way, don’t let others make you feel as if you have to race. If you enjoy depth, don’t force yourself to seek breadth. If you prefer single-tasking to multi-tasking, stick to your guns. Being relatively unmoved by rewards gives you the incalculable power to go your own way.”

    Regardless of your MBTI results, you will find value in this book. Unsure if you are naturally an introvert or extrovert? You can check out 16 Personalities to find out for free!

  • Satisfied or Standing Still

    Satisfied or Standing Still

    I’ve been thinking a lot about satisfaction at work and in life. If you’re a fan of Hamilton, you know the iconic song, “Satisfied”, about the struggle of feeling dissatisfied with your life when you’re aware of other possibilities. I’ve felt this personally, and we’ve seen it in others through our work helping individuals and organizations find mutual FIT. We believe person-organization fit leads to job satisfaction and engagement.

    If you know “Satisfied”, then you also know the line “I am not standing still, I am lying in wait” from the song “Wait For It”. (Is it obvious I just rewatched Hamilton on Disney+?) That line – and the entire song – describes those of us who find ourselves waiting for something better to come along. A better job. A better boss. A better company. We’re waiting for something better, but we’re not taking any action.

    My message today is to stop standing still and take action toward satisfaction. That doesn’t have to mean leaving a job, although the timing for that might be right. It could simply mean taking a moment for self-reflection to understand yourself and identify why you might not be satisfied. Is it a values mismatch?

    We know from research and our work with organizations that a mismatch of values or work environment preferences is likely to lead to dissatisfaction, disengagement, and eventually turnover. Long-term FIT is more likely to occur when individuals and organizations share a common approach to work and balancing that work with life.

    Question of the day: Are you satisfied or standing still?

     

    Jillian will be speaking at the NASHRM September Workshop on Tuesday, September 8th. Find out more information or register here.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Want to learn more about finding your fit? Check out our sister company MatchFIT. Visit thematchfit.com

  • 3 Tips for Your Job Search During a Pandemic

    3 Tips for Your Job Search During a Pandemic

    Almost every event I’ve attended lately, I’ve had conversations with individuals or overheard discussions about furloughs, downsizing and layoffs. The job market is volatile, and more and more people are searching for new opportunities, and many of those people haven’t had to search for a job in a long time.

    My husband and I have had conversations about what we would do if one of us lost our job. It’s scary to think about. We agree that we would do whatever we needed to do to continue to support our family. Which leads me to my first tip:

    1. While searching for the next best opportunity, find a side hustle that will allow you to pay your bills during your search. Instacart shoppers make way more than you would think! Also, during your downtime, check out The Next Right Thing, a book about making life decisions.
    2. Network like it’s your job. Networking is something we do on a daily basis without even realizing it. During my career, the majority of my positions have been obtained through networking. Not sure how to get started? Check out this article from Balance Careers: How to Use Networking to Find a Job.
    3. Stay busy. As a Certified Professional Resume Writer, I often help clients with gaps in their resume. The best way to avoid gaps in your resume (& questions about them in an interview) is to keep yourself busy while you are searching for your next job. Volunteering or continuing your education area great ways to avoid resume gaps. The Muse shared 5 Better Ways to Talk About the 5 Most Common Resume Gaps.

     

    Check out The Point Blog for more resources to help with your job search.

  • Turn Your Passion into Your Career

    Turn Your Passion into Your Career

    Forgive me if I get teary-eyed, but my oldest just started his junior year of high school. And while he still has two years left, the serious conversations have begun- careers, colleges, and scholarships, oh my!

    Since he was little, he’s always known that his biggest passion is music. And I’ve encouraged him to explore that over the years, he’s got such a knack for it. He’s self-taught on drums, guitar, bass guitar, and he has an amazing voice (my house is rarely quiet!). Last year his high school partnered with a local music conservatory to start a music production club and he was hooked. He would spend weekends at the conservatory learning how to use music production equipment and playing around with creating his own music. A year later he’s still hooked. After saving up his own money he bought a (ridiculously expensive) music production software program and spends hours creating music, learning how to use the software, and taking online courses to learn from the professionals. He’s also starting to slowly collect his own production equipment.

    I’ve always encouraged my children to find their passion and then figure out how to make it a career. I often get asked why I chose consulting instead of working as an HR Manager or Director for a company and my response is simple and honest- I tried it briefly and I just wasn’t happy. My passion is helping companies. I love to go into an organization and help them build up an HR function where there wasn’t one or help them fix an HR function that’s broken, then I want and need to get out and move on to the next. I thrive on that challenge, but once the challenge is completed, if I don’t move on I stop thriving.

    I want that for my children, I want them to find a career that they are passionate about, that they thrive in, that makes them want to get up every day and go to work. Not one that makes them dread the next day. And I want them to understand that money doesn’t equal happiness. I’d much rather my children have a career that they love that pays just enough to get by than to choose a career they hate just because it pays well. I want them to find a career that doesn’t feel like work. And I think my oldest is well on his way to doing just that.

    Is your career your passion or your prison?

  • Relationships in Business

    Relationships in Business

    Written by: Lucy Orr, Horizon Point Consulting Summer Intern

    My name is Lucy Orr, and I interned with Horizon Point Consulting this summer. In my first blog post, I discussed what I hoped to learn from this experience. Not having a “dream job,” I was able to use this experience to get a taste of several different careers by observing Horizon Point as well as their clients. 

    While I certainly got a taste of different jobs throughout the summer, the part that struck me the most was the importance of relationships in every aspect of the business.

    The most obvious relationships that they spent significant time fostering were with their clients. By taking people out to lunch, forming friendships, and following through with timely expertise, each member of the Horizon Point team valued their relationships with everyone they contacted. This impacted me, not because of the novelty of the concept, but because of the sincerity with which they cared about each person and each business. From my perspective, the intentionality reinforced the quality of business that Horizon Point provides, both being equally important.

    The bond between the women that make it all happen was the most unexpected. I had never considered the importance of encouraging business partners, but it makes sense. They support each other, exalt each other’s accomplishments, and are attentive to each other’s needs. Though I was there temporarily, they welcomed me, were generous with me, and spent time to show they cared about me beyond the things I was doing to help the business. They are honest with each other about their strengths as well as their weaknesses which allows the group to come together and grow more efficiently. This is a great example of the community that is possible in a work environment- camaraderie that I can only hope to find or promote in my future workplace. 

    The last relationship that I noticed this summer impacted me the most deeply was the significance of family in work. I babysat for Mary Ila’s two older children regularly throughout the summer to give her a few hours at a time to focus on work, so I was able to learn from the intentionality with which she balanced these two things: work and family. This experience has shown me the blessing of valuing family. By constantly thinking of fun things we could do that her kids would enjoy or clearing entire days to spend time with them, she showed me that it is possible to work hard while prioritizing family. This balance definitely looks different for everyone, but it was so helpful for me to see such a wonderful example of this aspect of pursuing a career. 

    Horizon Point was a great example of strong relationships in each of these areas. When narrowing down my interests for a future career, I will look at how they play out in the workplace of each field. My time this summer gave me unexpected insight through simply observing Horizon Point’s focus on each type of relationship and realizing the difference it made in the all-around effectiveness of their work.