Skip Community

16 Strategies for Tech Job Seekers: New Skip Podcast Episode In today's challenging job market, with fewer quality roles and more candidates, it's easy to feel discouraged. But don't lose hope! My latest Skip podcast episode offers valuable insights to help you navigate these turbulent waters. Listen here: https://lnkd.in/g7euD7EK Episode Highlights: [Live coaching session] I had an in-depth conversation with a long-time colleague feeling stuck in her job search. We explored practical strategies and mindset shifts to overcome obstacles. [The athlete's approach to transitions] Let's take a page from the playbook of professional athletes. They train intensively in the off-season to prepare for the grueling regular season and playoffs. The difference between good and great athletes often isn't their innate abilities, but the training they invest in their craft before the season begins. If you find yourself in transition, think of it as your off-season. When you return to work, it's beneficial to be in top mental and physical condition. Sure the time off is a great opportunity to recharge, but it's equally important to connect with people you don't normally have time for. Learn new tools, build new skills that will benefit your next role, and work with professionals to expand your mindset and overcome mental barriers. Don't just use this time for interviews; the next season will come. Focus on maximizing your impact for when it does. [Here's a sneak peek at the other advice I share in the episode:] 1. Maintain unnatural confidence, even when it's tough. 2. Grit and hustle often trump experience. 3. Stay relevant (and optimistic) as markets change quickly. 4. Set realistic goals and break down the job search process. 5. Be creative: Take classes, explore AI, consult, join communities. 6. Balance your time off before starting your search. 7. Cream rises to top: Get your foot in the door anywhere; if you're good, the company will find you a better role. 8. Choose jobs that tell the best story for your next role. 9. Prioritize company health in your decision-making. 10. Every job has its set of problems. Don't search for a perfect job; look for roles where you're excited to solve the challenges. 11. Leadership recruiting is different: Expect a longer, more competitive process. 12. Good people sometimes leave companies abruptly – and they're still good professionals. 13. Stay organized: Keep thorough records of your job applications, follow-up emails, and interview schedules. 14. Practice self-care to avoid burnout. 15. Seek support through job search groups or career coaching. These are just a few of the insights I share in the episode. For more details on these, listen to the full episode. Whether you're actively job hunting or planning future transitions, you'll gain valuable insights to supercharge your tech career. #TechCareers #JobSearchTips #SkipPodcast #CareerDevelopment

Just Published: Skip newsletter article on telling your career story I think in every interview, I eventually ask "tell me about your work at [company X]". Nine times out of ten, I come away dissatisfied. So my latest newsletter article is a step-by-step guide on how you should craft a compelling story about the role you've held. https://lnkd.in/ex2XZnKh (Note: this article is a companion piece to the podcast episode on the same subject: https://lnkd.in/ga-FKUdr) What are the common pitfalls in broken stories? - Too long and boring, making it hard to remember - Too much detail and too little structure  - It's unclear what the candidate specifically contributed and impact they had  - Solutions are listed without any context on what was hard or challenging  - No opinions, insights, and lessons learned  - Assume I have context about the company, product, and market  - List of responsibilities rather than unique achievements  - Overly rehearsed and monotone, not conversational Yet telling the story of what you achieved in a role is crucial to selling your qualifications. And we tell career stories all the time, not just during interviews. We describe our work in performance reviews, team meetings and even social settings. So it really matters. Ensure you practice a 2-minute version of the job that you have today. Use the simple framework in this article to help organize the key information and opinions and avoid getting stuck in minutiae. - Start with context about the company, product, and market to set the stage - Be clear about your specific role and how it changed over time - Zero in on the key challenges you faced and your unique approach to solving them - Share what you built and why, including your perspectives and opinions - Be candid about what worked, what didn't, and the lessons you took away - Tie it all together with a compelling conclusion that sets up your next chapter In this article, I work through a case study on how I apply these steps to a fictitious role on Gmail.  But if you want to work with me on improving your own story, I’m workshopping with a few folks for an upcoming live podcast episode.  Drop me a note and keep practicing those stories

📢 Announcing a New Community for Product Leaders When I was a Chief Product Officer (CPO), I often felt isolated, without anyone to share my struggles and insights with. Upon transitioning out of that role, I coached many others facing the same challenges. To address this, four years ago, during the pandemic, I gathered six fellow CPOs, and together we founded the Skip Community. The Skip Community facilitates conversations that you simply can’t have anywhere else. Discussions like: - How do I navigate working with my boss, who is also the founder? - I’m starting my job search… what interesting positions are you seeing in the market? - How should I manage a layoff? - I’m about to hire a second-in-command, has anyone worked with her before? - I had a huge win at work, can we celebrate together? - I’m concerned about the management team’s culture, should I consider leaving? - Is it worth exercising this stock? - How should I evaluate these three job offers? - Should I double-down on my core product or split part of my team to innovate? - Has anyone run an M&A process before? - Ugh… today was a tough day… While there are many valuable product communities, ours is unique due to the trust between our members. We prioritized quality over quantity, slowly growing by adding a few heads of products each quarter for several years. Last spring, we realized that many of the up-and-coming PMs we knew could benefit from a curated, trusted community. Could we expand our close-knit group and retain the quality of conversation, but accelerate the next wave of leaders? Although we are still only 1% complete, I’m thrilled to share that we now have over 75 Skips in our community, adding new members each month. Visit us here at https://skip.community One of the many products that Skip will eventually deliver is a community for every tech professional. None of us should feel alone in our jobs. We all face questions and challenges that others have already solved. Connecting with the right people at the right time can make all the difference. While we are growing the group slowly to maintain trust, we maintain that trust is crucial, even if it we desire to expand to thousands. If you want to join and know an existing Skip member, connect with them for a nomination. We prioritize referrals and manage a waitlist. And if you can’t join Skip yet, I encourage you to create your own support group. Having a network to support you on both good and bad days is a key unlock to your career. Let’s build this together. #ProductLeadership #TechCommunity #SkipCommunity

📢 Announcing a New Community for Product Leaders When I was a Chief Product Officer (CPO), I often felt isolated, without anyone to share my struggles and insights with. Upon transitioning out of that role, I coached many others facing the same challenges. To address this, four years ago, during the pandemic, I gathered six fellow CPOs, and together we founded the Skip Community. The Skip Community facilitates conversations that you simply can’t have anywhere else. Discussions like: - How do I navigate working with my boss, who is also the founder? - I’m starting my job search… what interesting positions are you seeing in the market? - How should I manage a layoff? - I’m about to hire a second-in-command, has anyone worked with her before? - I had a huge win at work, can we celebrate together? - I’m concerned about the management team’s culture, should I consider leaving? - Is it worth exercising this stock? - How should I evaluate these three job offers? - Should I double-down on my core product or split part of my team to innovate? - Has anyone run an M&A process before? - Ugh… today was a tough day… While there are many valuable product communities, ours is unique due to the trust between our members. We prioritized quality over quantity, slowly growing by adding a few heads of products each quarter for several years. Last spring, we realized that many of the up-and-coming PMs we knew could benefit from a curated, trusted community. Could we expand our close-knit group and retain the quality of conversation, but accelerate the next wave of leaders? Although we are still only 1% complete, I’m thrilled to share that we now have over 75 Skips in our community, adding new members each month. Visit us here at https://skip.community One of the many products that Skip will eventually deliver is a community for every tech professional. None of us should feel alone in our jobs. We all face questions and challenges that others have already solved. Connecting with the right people at the right time can make all the difference. While we are growing the group slowly to maintain trust, we maintain that trust is crucial, even if it we desire to expand to thousands. If you want to join and know an existing Skip member, connect with them for a nomination. We prioritize referrals and manage a waitlist. And if you can’t join Skip yet, I encourage you to create your own support group. Having a network to support you on both good and bad days is a key unlock to your career. Let’s build this together. #ProductLeadership #TechCommunity #SkipCommunity

🚀 New Episode Alert: The Skip Podcast - Avoiding Burnout for High Achievers 🎙️ I take a lot of calls on this subject and have struggled with it myself. Tech jobs are pretty intense, and work often expands to fill whatever space you give it. Despite knowing you need to set and enforce boundaries, it's tough. There's a constant tension between your ambition, personal demands, and even your biology. Sometimes, it feels like the only way to win is to equally dissatisfy everyone, including (and perhaps especially) yourself. Burnout is often a direct consequence of success; the more successful you are, the harder it becomes to manage the pace and the obligations that stack up. I’ve spent nearly 20 years prioritizing work, but I’ve made key observations that helped me shift my mindset and combat burnout. I hope these insights can help you too. 🎧 Episode Highlights: - High-performing companies will always push their best people. - Family planning requires rethinking your career timeline. - Ambitious, overworked people will eventually resent their job. - Adding a hobby to your calendar surprisingly helps avoid burnout. - It’s not the hours, it’s how you use those hours. 📢 Listen now: Avoiding Burnout for High Achievers (https://lnkd.in/gJ-zWfgB) If you find this episode valuable, please share it with others who might be struggling with burnout. Let’s support each other in achieving career success without compromising our well-being. 💪 #TechCareers #AvoidBurnout #CareerGrowth #Podcast