Job Hunt Success Stories
From the Telephone Coaching Program
-by David Madison, PhD

Landing at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory

How do you find a job that will allow you to use a background in physics and software testing? That was the challenge facing Brian Newport, who lived near Seattle. He searched the web for “career coach” and discovered the Five O’Clock Club teleconference coaching program. “I would have preferred face-to-face meetings when I first heard about it, but I thought it was an interesting idea, so I went for it.”

It’s important to go back to the dreaming part—the Seven Stories.

Brian had worked for 11 years at the University of Chicago as a research physicist before changing careers. He’d landed a job as a software test manager at a small company that specialized in precision measurements. “I had assumed that I would leave science forever and go into industry, and I was very unhappy and frustrated as a result of that move. I decided to take a risk and return to my roots—which is how I ended up here.” Brian’s new job is at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory near Los Angeles.

“It’s very important to go back to the dreaming part—the Seven Stories,” Brian recommends. “The biggest single benefit from the Five O’Clock Club process is that it forced me to go back and evaluate what I’d done in the past.” He also credits the advice and encouragement of his group coach based in New Jersey, Sharon Kassakian. “Without her support, it wouldn’t have happened.” But Brian also points out that he read the books thoroughly, and was especially appreciative of the tapes: “The good part is hearing a real person on the tapes talking about what’s in the books—this reminds you that the books are written by a real person. It helps to have that personal connection. I’m keeping the tapes for future reference.”

In Brian’s case, going back to his roots included reconnecting with his graduate school advisor, who referred him to another former student—whom he’d never met, but who worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Having applied for positions at JPL through its website—with no response—he was happy to have this lead. He soon discovered that there was no record of his résumé arriving through the website! With a key Five O’Clock Club motto in mind (“the ball is always in your court”) Brian became a little more aggressive than otherwise would have been the case. “I forced them to interview me by saying ‘I’m going to LA for personal reasons and I’ll come by and see you!’” Over the course of a few days he met with 6 or 7 people, and conducted the kind of smart follow-up urged by the Five O’Clock Club. “I wrote to them all. Each letter was tailored, and my general approach was, ‘this is the problem you’ve described and this is what I can do for you.’” He followed up further with phone calls, and about a month later got the offer he wanted. Brian is responsible for data analysis of the JPL Global Positioning System ground station network.

Not unsurprisingly for a physicist, Brian suggests that one of the most helpful aspects of the Five O’Clock Club methodology is “the explicit itemization of all the steps in the process.” And, as he proved with his experience with JPL, “the opportunity to do more after the interview” was a valuable lesson learned. “I had to keep bugging them every week.”

“I wrote a tailored letter to each of them: ‘This is the
problem you’ve described and this is what I can do for you.’” Then I followed up with calls.

In Search of ‘Best Practices’
 As a data warehousing executive, Karen Jordan found a certain appeal in the Five O’Clock Club stress on following a proven system. “I’m a methodology person. I like to develop a plan of action.” All the signs pointed to a downsizing at her company, and with good progression in her career—at American Airlines, KPMG and IBM, among others—Karen wanted to take the initiative to keep things moving in the right direction. From her home in Texas, she found the Five O’Clock Club after a little bit of Internet research, and signed up.

“I was a little disappointed when I found out that I would have to participate by teleconference,” she admits, but the experience turned out to be exactly what she had hoped it would be. Headed by one of our Chicago coaches, Ann Brody, “…the group provided moral support, and good ideas for expanding my network right here in Texas. I rate Ann very highly for her ability to get the team to drive the process, and encouraging us to work together.” The geographical spread of the people in the group proved to be an asset as well: “This was an added value. We got different perspectives and a broader understanding of the job market.”

The geographical spread of
the people in the group proved to be an asset: We got
different perspectives and
a broader understanding
of the job market.

Wanting to follow the Five O’Clock Club “plan of action” from the beginning, Karen did the Seven Stories and the Forty-Year Vision, and, at the urging of the group reworked her résumé according to Five O’Clock Club principles. “Basically I tried to make my résumé look like one of the examples in the book, and I know that the new format got me more calls and interviews than anything else.”

Always on the lookout for “best practices,” Karen read the books and listened to the tapes—and, for her, the tapes were the best way for absorbing the methodology. “I listened to all the tapes multiple times, while I was in the car or on the treadmill at the gym.” She decided to use all four ways for generating interviews, and came close to getting her ‘6 to10 things in the works.’ And she never turned down an interview: “Even though you think you don’t want a position, the interview is good practice. Until you truly know what a position is all about, you should keep going on the interviews. In fact, the position I ended up taking was one I thought at first I wouldn’t want.”

Networking brought Karen in touch with a recruiter who referred her for interviews at Cadbury-Schweppes.  Following nine interviews—after which she always sent letters stressing “how I would add value”—Karen received the offer she was looking for, and is now the Director of Data Warehousing, Americas Region. She had attended the Insider Program for 9 sessions.

“Follow the methodology,” Karen recommends to others. “Be true to yourself in following it-utilize every part of it you can.”

Finding a Job in the Desert
By his own admission, Bob Wells was in a tight spot in late 2001 in Las Vegas—and it had nothing to do with gambling!

With 16 years in banking behind him, he’d taken an entrepreneurial leap that didn’t work out as he’d hoped, and he was looking for work. September 11th had made the difficult job market even worse. A friend urged him to join the Five O’Clock Club, with the observation that her friends who took this advice ended up with jobs. Those who ignored her were still looking for work the next time she ran into them. Since Bob made occasional trips back to New York in his search of banking positions there, he joined the Club, bought the books and attended a session at the main branch in New York.

“I was eager to be on the phone with the group and have weekly contact. They gave me a timetable and kept me on track.
The assignments and the accountability were worth it ten times over.”

But since he wasn’t in New York most of the time, “the teleconference made a lot of sense,” and he was assigned at first to the West coast Insider Group led by Terry Pile. As his focus shifted more to exploring the East coast banking opportunities, he shifted to Ellis Chase’s group in the Eastern time zone.

“I was eager to be on the phone with the group,” Bob says. “It was important to have the weekly contact. The group gave me a timetable and kept me on track. The assignment and the accountability were worth it ten times over.”

“I listened to all the tapes several times.
This absolutely changed my entire job-search
methodology.”

But he admits that assessment done the Five O’Clock Club way was crucial to his eventual success. “I did the Seven Stories and the Forty-Year Vision, and they were the key to identifying myself and what I really want. I had been looking for CFO positions, and I came to see that I was barking up the wrong tree.” And the methodology kept him on course. “The books are phenomenal, invaluable-and I like the tapes a lot. I listened to all the tapes several times. This absolutely changed my entire search methodology. I learned that networking is so much more than telling everyone you know that you’re looking for a job.”

Bob intensified his efforts both in New York and Las Vegas, using all four ways to generate interviews, and eventually was referred by the friend of a friend to the Bank of America in Las Vegas. Having his Two-Minute Pitch perfected didn’t hurt when, in a social setting, he ran into the man who would be future boss. Bob was called in for interviews, and was hired as VP Client Manager in the Commercial Real Estate Group of the Bank of America. Having Five O’Clock Club wisdom at hand as he closed the deal was vital: “Without the salary negotiation process, I would have blown it.”

“I had to reorient my thinking about who I am and what I want, and what it means to network.” And he sees the value of having a trusted career advisor. “When I got depressed Ellis was great at pumping me up and telling me how valuable I am. I will keep in touch with him forever.”
 Bob attended 9 Insider Program sessions before landing his new job, and he has much the same advice as the friend who urged him to join the Club: “Follow the system, keep reading, keep doing, keep attending.”

Sometimes interviewers ask me where I see myself in five years. They are always amazed when I tell them
I have a Forty-Year Vision.

On the Phone from the West Coast:
a Longtime Fan of the Five O’Clock Club
 “Sometimes interviewers ask me where I see myself in five years. They are always amazed when I tell them I have a forty-year plan.” Tom had been getting used to the Five O’Clock Club way of doing things for a long time—since finding out about the Club several years ago from the Fortune magazine video that features the Club’s main branch in New York.

Tom loves his work as an international logistics specialist, coordinating the shipment of cargo by air and sea worldwide. And after a couple of downsizing in his industry, as a resident of California he was pleased to discover that the Club conducts sessions by teleconference. “I was delighted when I found out about the coaching by phone—I’d already taken courses by tele-classes.”  Getting into group was a morale booster. “The thought of revisiting my network was a bit daunting, but when I got into the group, I found that there were other professionals in the same boat. That helped get me energized to get to work—it helped my self-confidence, which I wouldn’t have had without the group.” 

I had taken it for granted that I would do certain things someday. Buy the Forty-Year Vision forced me to realize that I’d better get going!

Early on in the process Tom landed a job—one of three offers, in fact—but concentrated work on his Forty-Year Vision had prompted him to begin thinking more seriously about eventually setting up a consulting practice. “It made me realize that there were a lot of things I’d taken for granted that I would do someday. But by saying, ‘this year, at this age, I’ve done only a few of them,’ I realized that I’d better get going. And doing the Seven Stories helped me see the skills I’ve not really tapped into yet.”

Tom’s pay-off interviews came through direct contact, but he says that networking was the other technique he used the most. And he used all of the Five O’Clock Club support materials. “The books are phenomenal refer to them constantly—and I listened to all of the tapes several times. Especially right before interviews I re-listened to key tapes. It’s so important to keep in mind when you walk in the door for interviews, ‘It’s a game!’”

Tom’s advice to people who are actively in job search: “Do all of the exercises, read the books—and when you get into group, don’t be shy about asking questions. You can enter the process knowing that everyone wants to help. My coach was Sylvan von Berg. He always went the extra mile with his follow-up. It made me feel like I had a personal coach even within the group setting.”

Working the Five O’Clock Club Method in London
 “When you need a shot in the arm, it’s great to put on one of the tapes and hear someone say, ‘Get up out of your seat, just go do it, make another call.’ Energy, enthusiasm and optimism come through on the tapes. You need a bit of cheerleading.” In the London job market in the Fall of 2002, Cassandra Carraway found it helpful to keep plugged into the Five O’Clock Club, via the tapes, books and Insider Program group.

I was delighted when I found out about the coaching by phone—I had already taken courses by tele-classes.

A media consultant who helps companies with marketing strategies—especially new market entries and product development—Cassandra had been aware of the Club for some time. But at the urging of a friend, she joined during the summer of 2002 as she was intensifying her efforts to land a position in England. She was put into one of our senior groups, headed by coach Mary Anne Walsh, a seasoned international consultant herself. “It’s great to have a coach with more international experience that I do, who has worked with a lot of senior executives. I didn’t have to bring the coach up to speed on what I am trying to do. She’s someone I can look up to in that respect.” Since Mary Anne is herself in London frequently on business, they have been able to meet for one-on-one sessions on both sides of the Atlantic.

With the coaching I’m more likely
to push and drive myself. Having to report every week is a driving
mechanism, knowing that there are expectations placed on you, knowing there are deliverables and milestones.

“But the London market is pretty thin right now,” Cassandra points out. “In my target market, you just don’t hear about full time openings and people getting hired.” Hence she is pursuing two tracks, working on projects week-to-week or month-to-month, while scouring the market for the rare full-time openings. “You keep working the process, calling the same people, networking—it’s continuous, it has to be non-stop.”

This includes checking in with her Five O’Clock Club group. “There are people in the group from Texas, Canada and the New York area. There’s good diversity job-wise too—all executive level people in marketing and finance. We relate to one another, we help each other with résumés, suggestions and even leads.” Cassandra draws a parallel to the experience of going to the gym and using a personal trainer. “With the coaching I’m more likely to push and drive myself. Having to report every week is a driving mechanism, knowing that there are expectations placed on you, knowing there are deliverables and milestones.”

“I’m very structured about this kind of thing,” Cassandra points out, and finds the books appealing for that reason. “They’re great. They put you right into the process, they’re very systematic.” And she has words of counsel for others who may be searching in tough markets: “You have to adjust your expectations appropriately. Work to keep your head above water, find the right things to do, and stay in conversation with people.”