More Money Podcast - 256 How to Secure Your Dream Job During a Pandemic - Isi Aladejobi, Salary Growth & Career Strategist and Founder of Powerful Women Make Power Moves

Episode Date: December 9, 2020

Is it a smart move to think about asking for a raise, switching employers (or careers), or searching for your dream job during a pandemic? Well…why not? Employers are still recruiting, so why can’t you be the one recruited? That’s why I’ve got career growth strategist Isi Aladejobi on the show to share her expertise on how to navigate the career landscape during these still uncertain times. Through her Power Women Make Power Moves program, which is a community of over 10,000 Black women, she been able to help countless people win in their careers and lives, even during the pandemic. She believes that with the right tools, mindset, and strategies, women can 100% successfully achieve their purpose, find the right career (that pays their true value), level the playing field, and of course, smash that damn glass ceiling already. Career growth is always one of the most popular topics on this podcast, so I know you’re gonna love this episode! Isi is so inspirational, she’ll make anyone feel like they can make some power moves no matter what’s going on in the world. For full episode show notes visit https://jessicamoorhouse.com/256 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hello, hello, hello. Welcome back to the Bum Money Podcast. This is episode 256 and I am your host, Jessica Morehouse. Welcome back to the show. You're going to love this episode because every time I have someone on the show that is an expert about salary negotiations or just how to get promotions or just how to scale up your career when you're an employee. I get a ton, like people love those episodes. I mean, I love those episodes. I'm not an employee. I work for myself, but I still love those episodes. It brings me back. I mean, I was an employee for my whole career up until four years ago, and I made all the mistakes. I was a good employee. I was terrible at the career part, if that makes sense. I was just like,

I mean, I never negotiated. I never got a raise or a promotion because I didn't know how to ask properly. And I worked for a bunch of companies that in hindsight, I mean, I probably shouldn't have stayed at some of them for as long as I did. I mean, I just made all the mistakes, which is why I am not talking to you about what you should do to be better at your career. This is why I have my next guest on the show, Isi Aladjobi. She is a wife, mother, career growth strategist, and the founder of Powerful Women Make Power Moves, a community of over 10,000 Black women determined to win in their careers and in their lives. And she believes that excitement doesn't birth dreams

and taking action does. So she created her movement, so to speak. So she could bridge that gap between vision and execution using strategic training, community and accountability systems. And she believes that with the right tools and strategies and tactics, women can successfully navigate and achieve their purpose level, the playing field and smash the glass ceiling. And I am all for all of that. So there's so many great nuggets in here. I'm telling you, she really knows her stuff. You're going to love this episode. So before I get to that interview with EC, here's just a few words I want to share about this podcast episode sponsor. This episode of the Momentum Podcast is supported by Passive. If you've been a long time listener of the show, then you know that I am a big fan of passive investing.

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podcast. You see, I'm so excited to have you on the show to talk about how on earth it's possible to focus on your career and growing your career in this weird world we now live in. I know. I'm so happy to be here, Jessica. I cannot wait to share what I've been doing with my clients to help them land their dream jobs in the midst of a pandemic, just left and right. I just can't wait to share with you. Oh, good. I'm so excited. Well, let's start at the beginning a little bit. So for people who don't know much about your background or your story, can you share a little bit about how did you become a salary growth strategist and now the founder of Powerful Women Make Power Moves? How did that start? What a journey. So I am Nigerian American,

right? So I am the daughter of incredible immigrant parents. And I was actually born in Nigeria and came when I was five months old. And so my parents saw from a young age that, you know, I was a smart young lady and they wanted to be a doctor, right? And most immigrant parents, they want you to either be a doctor, engineer, or a lawyer. And so I went through thinking that's what I wanted to do. And I get to college and I'm a bio major, I'm taking chemistry, and usually I'm a stellar student, right? Like 3.8 GPA, all that. And I failed organic chemistry. I've never seen an F like in my life. And that was jarring for me. And, but what it was, it was for me, it was like a God moment for me because it made me think,

EC, do you really want to do this? And so I embarked on this journey of figuring out what it is I really wanted to do. I had like three or four and a half majors in college and I finally discovered business and I networked my way into the business school, into two essentially dream job opportunities that I didn't really apply for. And so fast forward to a couple of years after working, I realized, okay, I wasn't really in alignment. I wasn't loving my work. I didn't feel like it was where I was supposed to be. So I get back into the job search pool and I'm like, okay, I have a great resume. I have a master's. I'm going to just get handed a job. Jessica, no one was trying to hire me. It was insane. And I was like,

are you guys crazy? Do you know how great I am? Right. And so I kept on getting rejected. I was like, well, what did I do in college? It was so easy. And I was like, Ethan, you networked your way to your dream opportunity and you really positioned yourself. So I start this movement called Powerful Women Make Power Moves, which is a movement really focused on helping Black women identify, attract and secure their dream jobs and live a fulfilling life. Because as an African-American woman, I knew I was super talented, but I knew I saw a lot of my counterparts not really being able to access a lot of incredible opportunities. And they just weren't given the game book, right? Like how to really make this happen. So I end up starting this movement and I start working with women, teaching them what I did to land my dream jobs. And then I just really developed the program. And I put months and months of extra research and speaking to experts and taking my knowledge and creating this incredible program. And now we've had hundreds of women go through it. And hundreds of women

get super clear on what they want to do and triple their salary and double their salary and finally have the confidence they've always desired. I mean, it's just been really incredible. So that's been my journey, right? I created the program that I essentially wish existed when I was going through my process. That's so interesting. So I mean, obviously, we all want to know what are the things, what's the secret ingredient? And also I'm curious, just hearing you say this, it seems like part of it is what you can do, what you can take responsibility for and take action on. And then there's obviously,

and there's been more kind of conversations about this, like sometimes there's things beyond our control, society and all that kind of stuff. So I guess you're really focusing on we obviously can't control what's outside of our realm, so we can only do so much, which sounds similar to when that book Lean In came because it was all about women, we're not making as much, we're not getting the opportunities, what could we personally do? So is that your focus is like, this is what we can take control of? 1,000%. I'm always telling my women, blaming other people, focusing on what's going on in the world and things you can't control, it's not going to get you to the next level. Yes, we are very aware of what's going on. We're very aware of the challenges, but people are still winning. So let's focus on what are the winners doing that's causing them to continue to win? Like my

client who tripled her salary and she got an offer, what, two weeks ago? She went from 110K to essentially 300K. That happened in a pandemic. So my thing is if she can do it, so many other people can do it. So yes, we really dive into total ownership and what we can control and what we can change. So I 100% keep in mind. One, you have to be clear about what it is you want. Jessica, you would be appalled at how many people just kind of spray and pray like they'll wake up and auto apply to like 400 places. They don't know if it completely aligns. They don't know if their resume makes total sense. It's just like something has to work. I've applied to 600. Somebody's got to hire me. But there's a type of energy and feel that precedes you when you move in absolute clarity. So the first thing is sitting down with yourself and truly understanding what is it that I want to do? Where do my skill sets, my experience, my passions, the wins I've experienced at work, the volunteer work I've done outside of work, my leadership

experience, the things I went to school for, where does this all converge and where do I want to go? What do I want to be doing? How much do I want to be making? What kind of problems do I want to go? What do I want to be doing? How much do I want to be making? What kind of problems do I want to be solving? What type of titles solve these type of problems? What kind of companies and cultures fit with who I am and my core values? Doing the research and the work is so vital. So that's my first step because that's the foundation. Yeah. I feel like not many people do that, especially I feel like that would be really helpful while we're considering going to college or university, thinking about those things, because I guarantee you, none of us do. We always think, well, I'm kind of interested in this topic,

so maybe I'll do a whole degree on it. Exactly. Yeah. And it's interesting because when you're in college, you're really trying to figure things out. Awesome. But when you're out of college, you really need to have more of a handle and spend time reflecting. So either you work with a coach to help you reflect or you ask yourself some questions, you pull out a journal. But the self-reflection is so important. The second major thing I would say is once you've reflected and you have a strong understanding of who you are, your wins, your strengths, and the type of job you want, then you really start to think about, well, how am I positioning myself in the marketplace? If you're not using LinkedIn, you are shooting yourself in the foot. I agree. LinkedIn is actually so powerful. And I think younger people, they're just starting to adopt it. But it's so, so helpful.

It's a game changer, Jessica. And recruiters use LinkedIn like crazy, like crazy. And you have to have the right strategy, right? You have to have the right keywords in your headline. You have to have a clean picture. Your summary has to be strong. Your overall LinkedIn profile needs to be strong so that you can actually come up and search. And it needs to be targeted. That's where that step one comes in, really knowing what it is you want, because now you can position your LinkedIn profile and you can position your resume. I always say your resume has to be able to tell a story when you're not in the room. Ooh, I like that. Yeah. And how does it tell a story? What story is it going to tell? It goes back to step one. Well, I know I want to be a data analyst at a tech company or at a nonprofit. And this entire resume tells that story. I pulled out all the wins from my past positions

and from my leadership experience and from my volunteer experience and the things I do outside of work. And I put it in this resume. And when you read it, people are looking at it. Recruiters are looking at it like, oh my goodness, we found the person we're looking for because it speaks so strongly to that position.

So that's the second major piece, right? Having these, what I call story selling assets, your LinkedIn, your resume, having them really align to what you truly want. The third piece, and it's my favorite piece, and whether you're an introvert or you're an extrovert, you hate people or you love people, it's about networking. Cutting through the noise of the ATS database and having the machines read your application, it's cutting through that noise and getting to a human being and building authentic relationships. And I have my women, a lot of times build relationships, not based off an ask and saying, you know, I need a job at this

company, what you got, but it's really, I want to learn more about you and your career journey. You're doing what I want to be doing. I want to hear how you got there. You're working at a fantastic company. I want to hear what it's like. You're working at a fantastic company. I want to hear what it's like to work at that company, what the culture is like, what the team is like. And you start having these high quality conversations and you start asking really good questions. And you know what the natural follow-up is for the person on the other line? Tell me more about yourself. Tell me about the work you're doing. Tell me about what you're trying to do. And there's such a natural progression. And we're in a time, you know, the flip side of this pandemic, people are seeing that we need each other more than ever. So people are really willing to help. It might take people a little longer to get back to you because people are really busy and schedules are just insane. But people really want to help people. At the core of it, pandemic or not,

people like to help people. And it actually makes them feel really good. So if you're able to approach someone appropriately, right, and you're kind and respectful of them and their time, a lot of times they're going to say yes. Some people will say no. But I always say you're one connection away from your whole life changing. So all you need is one yes. I think you really hit on something there. And I think this was something that it took me a while to learn. And I think a lot of people don't understand what networking actually means. And it really means creating an actual genuine relationship. It's not, what can you do for me? Because no one wants to feel used. Like if you think of yourself on the other end of that, it's like, you can feel when someone is just talking to you because they want

something and you don't want to help someone who seems like they're just want to take. You want to, you want to, like for me, like I've definitely referred out work to other people because I genuinely want to help them. And it's because they took the time to get to know me and they'd never asked for anything like, give me something right at the beginning. And I think that's so, so powerful. It's so powerful, Jessica. And you'd be shocked the person that'll say, you know what? Send me over your resume. I would love to send it over to our hiring manager. This is the number one way our women are landing their dream jobs.

And another thing they'll do is they'll connect with people at their dream company so that when they do, if they do send an application, because I'm not really big on applications. If they send in an application, they can put a name to it. They can put a face to a name because they've done the networking already. They're not going in cold. It's a game changer. I mean, even just thinking of, you know, lots of my friends are like, how did they get their jobs? A lot of it honestly is through other people they know or friends. Like a lot of that is happening.

And yeah, I mean, that's how I got lots of my different jobs. It's so important. And I find it so much like it sounds harder to go that route, but it actually is kind of easier than I mean, I've done the thing where you apply to hundreds of jobs through these, you know, faceless forums. And that's actually harder. That takes way more time and energy. And there's no, you know, you may not get even an interview.

Exactly. And that's the thing, you know, you deal with, you start dealing with so many rejections, it really starts to mess with your confidence. But when you have these life-giving conversations with people in your field, a couple of things start happening. One, having informational interviews, it helps you get really clear on what it is you want to do. You might have thought, I want to go into data and analysis. And then you speak to like four people and you're like, oh, is that what you guys really do? I don't think so. Right. So these conversations can save you years that you would have lost at a job you would have hated because you literally, boom, have spoken to someone who does it day in, day out. And then you start to realize that you're having conversations with people that

are in the field that you love and they're affirming you. So you're speaking to them about your experience. You're talking to them about your desires and what you love to do. And they're like, oh my goodness, we need someone like you. And you were thinking that, oh, all these rejections, I'm just not good enough. No one wants me. But it's your resume wasn't positioned properly. And a slew of other things, the machine was taking your stuff in and just spitting you out. I actually had one of my connections tell me that a recruiter shared with her, listen, you guys have to network with us because our ATS machines, what is the applicant tracking system? They're so strong. They actually reject applicants that we want, but because we get so many in,

the bar is so high. So people are getting rejected who they would have loved to interview. Think about that. That's insane. I think it's so important for people to really, especially what you say, need to get really clear on what you want. And I think a lot of us don't. I mean, most of us get our first jobs after school because we need a job and we need to make money. We need to move out, all that kind of stuff. And so we're like, it's okay. I just need a job right now. And then I'll find another job. You get stuck into that job and years go by and you realize, what career am I? I mean, that was definitely my experience. I was in a career for a long time. And I'm like, what am I even doing here? How did I get here? But like you said, what I did, I mean, part of

the reason I did kind of do some of what you suggest, which is interview people, get to know people, to be like, I think I want that career path. So important to actually go out for coffee, have a phone call, send an email to actually know, is this actually what I want? Because you may realize it's not. And I have this very vivid memory of moving from Vancouver to Toronto, thinking my kind of dream was to work in kind of the movie business, but more in the administrative side or working in, you know, I had a couple of companies like, oh, I'd love to work there. And I remember having this meeting with a client. I used to work for a newspaper and she was a client of the newspaper. We had a meeting, you know, we were

pretty close. We worked together for years years and she basically told me she's like you don't want to work in this industry and i'll tell you why it's going down uh there's hardly any growth like she basically sat me down like listen i know it looks really nice from the outside i would not suggest it she's like i've been in this business for decades and it was kind of a game changer like whoa whoa i never even considered not working in that industry and because of that i definitely pivoted and although i pivoted quite a few times after that, like that was such an important part of my career, because otherwise, I would have kept on pursuing something that overall wouldn't it wouldn't have been I think what I actually wanted it to be. And also there's been that whole industry is not so good no more. So she actually really saved my butt. And it's so important. We need to take the time to actually interview people about like, is this actually what I

want? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Wow. So important. Yeah, that's so crazy. That just like came to my mind. I'm like, yeah, if I hadn't had that interview, who knows where I'd be right now?

I want to talk a little bit about the pandemic because you've mentioned it and we're still living through it, though. Hopefully things are going to get better next year. But who knows how long things will take to kind of reset? What has your experience been working with clients? Is it harder now or is it just different? What can you do if there's still people unhappy in their jobs or want to change careers and we're in this weird pandemic world, is it possible to make a change? Oh, my goodness. There is no better time to actually reinvent yourself. There is no better time.

People are listening. People are paying attention. Hiring had slowed down earlier in the year, but companies are still needing to hit their goals. Yes, some industries we know, like the tourist industry, tourism industry, RIP, yes, it's gone through a lot. But there are other industries that have seen growth. Even let's just talk about online education. I had a client who got a 16K salary increase and a 3K relocation bonus to work at an awesome online education company. Wow. Right. And so and one thing I talk a lot about is people would be shocked when you think about what you're passionate about and what your skill set and expertise is in, you'd be shocked where you can end up. You might think, oh, an education company, does that fit?

But you love data analytics. And I keep saying that because I know data analytics is big. You love data analytics and you really love seeing people learn. Well, you could do really well at an education company. But if you don't have that self-awareness, you wouldn't know. So right now is a great time to pivot. It's a great time to nail your story. Listen, people cannot, what's the word I'm looking for? People cannot resist a great story. So if you have a handle on who you are, what you want to do, what makes you great, and you're able

to articulate that on your resume, you're able to articulate that on LinkedIn. You're able to articulate that in conversations and networking conversations. You will have multiple offers. But if you continue to do what everyone else is doing and you don't rise to the top and really make yourself stand out and produce your best work, you are going to struggle. Because the days of being mediocre in this whole career search, those days are long gone. Yeah, you have to stand out. And I feel like there's a time, I feel like maybe not as much anymore, but I remember maybe when I was in my 20s, so almost 10 years ago, it was the flashy thing to do to get employers' attention was to do something that would go viral or send a basket of goodies or something like that. I feel like that's kind of gimmicky and that's not what you're talking about. So how can someone, especially now

since we are kind of all still staying at home and we can't really go out and ask someone for coffee or anything, everything's kind of online. How do you stand out? How do you, I know you mentioned the story part, which I think is so important. Like how does someone make an exciting story that will grab, you know, an employer's attention? That's a great question. So here's like just a really quick tidbit, right? When we talk about standing out, someone might go and get their resume and create a resume in Canva. And it's just the most confusing graphically displeasing thing you've ever seen. I don't believe in those resumes at all. We have like, exactly. We have clean, modern font focused resumes that we use. And two things we'll do on

the resume really quickly to kind of stand out. Their name will be in a different color. So like a blue, maybe like a green and just, it causes it to step out and stand out, Their name will be in a different color. So like a blue, maybe like a green and just, it causes it to step out and stand out, but it's still super professional and clean. Another thing, the bottom of all our ladies resumes, we always tell them, listen, throw in an interest section. And it's like, I love French cuisine. I love karate. And they won't say I love. They'll say French cuisine, karate, 18th century novels, film, food. So when people see their resume, they're like, okay, this person's cool. They're like, wait, karate?

It just added some color to that human being. That's so interesting. I used to think that, oh, no, that was something that you did when you were younger, like when I was in like high school making a resume. But I thought that was something that you shouldn't have in a resume because it wouldn't look professional. But you're saying no, it's actually super important. To absolutely have. And there's a way to do it, you're not going to go on there and start putting like, I make cheese sticks for dinner, like just random things. So there's a strategic way we teach them to do it, but it's super authentic. And we've seen people say, oh my goodness, she was a Lakers fan, I was a Lakers fan.

And we talked about that for like 30 minutes because hiring managers, they are human beings. So those are two smaller things, but really great things to do to really help you stick out. Another thing, it's really simple, Jessica, but you'd be surprised how many times people don't do the simple things. Asking really good questions will make you stand out from the crowd. Yes. Yes. That's one thing I learned and it works. It really does because it makes you look like you did your research, your homework, and also you're interested. Because I think that's

the thing sometimes as interviewees, we're just ready to ask or answer the questions. But there's always that part of the interview where they're like, do you have any questions for me? And I know it's a vital part of the interview. If you say no, that's not good. That's never good. And that's when you can blow their socks off, right? Whether it's a question as simple as, I know you mentioned earlier, you've been at the company for five years. What keeps you coming back year after year? Yes. Ooh, that's a good question. That's a good question. And they're like, oh. Ooh, you're asking about me? Right. Well, if you say it like that. And the thing is, when you're asking that

question, you get a feel for the true culture of the company, right? And because whenever you're interviewing and people need to understand this, you're an asset as well. People think like you're at the mercy of these companies. Companies spend tens of thousands of dollars to recruit you. You make your company a whole lot of money. If they are paying you 80 grand, 90 grand a year, I want you to think about just how much money you're saving them or how much money you're producing for them. You would be shocked. So when roles go unfilled, companies are losing money. So when you come into these conversations, don't just think, oh, companies have the upper hand. They want you just as badly as you want them. And you have to walk in that confidence.

And so you have to know that you're interviewing them to see if they're a good fit for you and your life and your journey and your goals just as much as they're interviewing you. So answering these high quality questions, I'm telling you time and time again, the interviewer will not be able to forget you. They just won't be able to shake how intelligent and sharp you were because you were asking amazing questions. Even when you're networking and doing informational interviews, having three to four really good questions makes you stand out. Researching the person beforehand and not in a creepy way, but like on their LinkedIn, right? Which LinkedIn is very like, everyone's building their brand. Go on their LinkedIn, look at what they've shared, go on YouTube, type their name into Google, see if they've written on the company blog lately,

see what they've done or see what the company's done. And then you come to the conversations and you're like, I noticed that Nike has expanded to Italy and they are creating this entire XYZ. I would love to know more about that. And they're like, whoa, well, my team didn't work on that, but my friend Sam's team worked on that. Let me put you in contact. These are the things that top performers that actually are putting any effort into this process. These are the things that top performers that actually are putting any effort into this process, these are the things that they do that make them stand out from the crowd. Yeah. Wow. Yeah. And when you think about it, these are things anyone can do.

These are very simple things. But most people just don't, I think, take the time and energy to do it. I think, like you said, it was a spray and pray. There's like, whatever, I'll just put it out there. It's like, no, if you just actually don't do that, but you're more strategic and like, you know, sending out five resumes, but really taking the time to do that, that might be more effective than just, you know, I'll apply to 500 and see what happens because you only need one job, you know? There you go. And if you really identify the companies you want to be working with and the roles that really speak to you, then you can strategically connect with five, 10, 15 people at that company. And then when your name comes up, it's like, oh, I had a conversation with Jessica. Oh my gosh, me too. I had a client. She got an offer to the number one firm in New York for her space.

This was her dream firm. She went on LinkedIn. She connected with at least four to five people in the company. She connected with the CEO. The CEO and her actually share something in life in common, right? That's really cool. And they connected on that. She went to see the CEO speak and then he invited her to something he was speaking at. She went and stood up and asked a question and he goes, and I'm going to change her name to Samantha. He goes, everyone, this is Samantha. I met her on LinkedIn, invited her to this event and she came. This is the kind of person I want working for our company. Everyone needs to be like Samantha. He said this in front of a room of like 400 people. Let me tell you, she got hired at this company. Two departments were literally fighting over her

because they wanted her for themselves because she's a top performer. She's incredible, but she was just super stuck in landing her dream job. So she came and worked with us. We got her unstuck. We gave her all the strategies. She reworked her resume, her LinkedIn, and became a networking ninja. And now she's at the company. I spoke to her yesterday and she's going to be having a conversation about promotion soon. She is annihilating it and they love her. And this happened at the top of the pandemic when things were like really getting crazy and no one knew what they were doing. So that's just the power of positioning and networking properly, pandemic or not. And I guess that kind of makes

me think too that when we talk about networking, it's not just a thing that you do in order to get the job and then you stop. It's kind of a thing that you always, you're always networking because networking again, is just building relationships because you may not want to stay at that company forever. You may want to go somewhere else. So the more people you know that you have genuine relationships with, it's easier to kind of go to another company because you'll know people that are connected there. Is that kind of what you suggest? Oh my goodness. So we train on this entire thing, this whole concept of positioning yourself for promotion and building your internal brand and getting sponsors in the company. I mean, it's an entire strategy unto itself, Jessica, but a short answer is absolutely. You should continue to build relationships within your

department, other departments, with your boss, with your boss's boss, with your peers. I mean, you should continue to build. It is so important. And when it's time for those promo conversations, right? And there's only one spot and there's multiple candidates, guess who has multiple people going to bat for her? It's the person who built relationships. And not because they're trying to, you know, do the whole favoritism thing. Sometimes people are like, oh, you're butt kissing. That's why. But people can't promote people who they don't know are winning. You have to become your own self advocate, your manager and your boss and your boss's boss. Their

heads are down working. They have things to produce. So it's not their job to keep tabs on your wins. And this is what I tell my women. You have to own your career journey. Every time you experience a win, file it away. You should be having regular conversations, regular meetups with your manager on the calendar. And you should be talking about ways to improve. You should be talking about projects you just rolled on or rolled off of and how the role you played, what you did, your wins, and you keep, you build that story and you build that brand with your manager. It doesn't just happen magically. So when it's time for promo and all these things, people know your brand

because you've told your story and you've advocated for yourself. No one does that, Jessica. But no one really teaches people how to do that. No. Yeah. And I think that's so important for people to know because that was something that I did for years that didn't work out. I always assumed promotion was just based on merit. And then they would just know this just by being a boss and knowing what I... No, you have to tell them. But finding a way to do that where you don't feel like you're, you know, because I feel like especially as women, we have a hard time speaking up for ourselves or like bragging, if you will. But I think, yeah, especially with my last job, like, no, no, no, the only way I was really able

to, I feel like get noticed was to be more vocal about this is what I'm doing. Because your boss may, like you said, they're busy working on their own jobs. They are maybe not paying attention. So you do have to tell them. You have to show them and tell them. Absolutely. So you have to take the initiative, don't you? Wow.

Yeah. Well, before I let you go, because there's so many things we could talk about. But I think the one thing, especially since we're talking about women, that they have a hard time doing is the money part, which is asking for the right amount of money. I think there's so many stats out there that we land the job, but we land the right salary for our worth, our skill set, our value? Jessica, this is a whole other podcast. I know. I know it is. But just like a few little tidbits. Absolutely.

Let me share some of my key tips. It starts with research. You have to understand what that number truly is. So there are websites, of course. But one of the ninja skills that we teach our women is speak to other recruiters at recruiting agencies. They will really let you know what you should be expecting for that role because they eat, sleep and breathe numbers all day. Really, really powerful. So you have to understand your numbers. You have to know your numbers. I like for my women, whatever the top of your range is, is really make it the bottom number of your range when you're speaking to the company. And because you've done your research, you go in with a level of confidence. We're not talking about go to a job where you're supposed to, it's a 50 grand job. And then you're asking for 150K. That doesn't make sense. That's not what we're talking about. We're talking about truly understanding the value you bring to the table and the value you provide. I cannot say this enough. People like to float through their career journey and you ask them what they've done. And we do this with the women

in our program. Okay, it's time to build your wins oriented, impact oriented resume. Your resume should not be a list of the things you've done. They know what you did, right? That's why they're hiring you. They know you can do things. They want to know what impact you've made. They want to know how you've helped the company move and grow. And so we find so many people struggle because they're so in the day-to-day of their career, they don't have any time to really work on, or they don't think about working on their career. So you need to understand, what have I done at other companies that has been extremely valuable? Here's another tip that I tell people if they struggle with this. If you were not in your position for two weeks, like you went on vacation, no one else did your work. They did not hire anyone else. What would

not have gotten done? Then you start to see just how important you are and how integral your role is to the company. So the second thing is getting really in touch with the value you provide. Then it's setting up the ask. This is the thing that you get the biggest jump in your salary when you move to another company, usually hands down. Now, if it's time, if you get another offer from a company and you take that to your boss and you let them know very respectfully, like, hey, I have this offer, they might want to counter it to keep you. And if that offer jump is quite big, they might meet you there depending on the budget and so many other things. But the biggest, like my clients get their biggest jump, like my client who tripled her salary, that was a new company. Right. So that's when you get your biggest jump. You always ask. The only time you don't ask, and this is very rare, if they like supersede your top, top number where it's almost like, wait, are these people overpaying? Like, did they, did they just say the right number? Then we're like, okay. And that's what happened to one of my clients. Right. She's like, yeah, they went over by like 5K, my uppermost number. Because this isn't about trying to scam or like,

oh, you know, no, I want 300K instead of 200K. Like, no, everything is strategic. But always ask. I had a young lady, she got an offer. She was unemployed and she got an offer for $102,000. Now someone would think, oh, you're unemployed. You should just be happy you got anything. No, that company was elated to have her because she was going to come in and solve a problem and fill a need that they needed. Correct? So even if you've been unemployed, even if you've been underpaid, which most people are severely underpaid because they never negotiate their salary. So you're most likely, if you are most likely underpaid, if you're listening to me, especially if you're a woman, because men will ask. One of my friend's husbands was like, I'm going to ask for 20K more just

because. And he got it, right? That's how men are. For women, they really struggle. So she had a 102K offer and we talked and she asked for $10,000 more. And they said, absolutely. Because yeah, they're not going to give you their best offer right off the bat because they expect a negotiation. Absolutely. I think a lot of us women, I mean, this is what I did for years and I always regret it. I always just thought that was it.

That was the number and that's what I needed to accept it. And I had the mindset of like, I should just be grateful I'm getting number. And that's what I needed to accept it. And I had the mindset of like, I should just be grateful I'm getting a job. And that's not helping anybody. At all. So that's what you make that ask. And you take those steps. It really positions you to ask for more money and do it confidently. There's something to be said of confidence, Jessica. This whole thing. I mean, it's a confidence game. And so you have to do the internal work, reflecting, getting clear on what you truly want and figuring out your wins because that helps you to step into this entire job process with another level of confidence, which people can perceive and people are attracted to. And people want to

hire confident people because confident people make you feel like they know what they're doing. So confidence is really big. That is so helpful. I feel like, yeah, so many people are going to get so much out of this episode. Where can people find more information about you and your program? Because I'm sure people will be like, oh, I need some help here. Yeah, absolutely. So you can find me at www.becomefulfilled.com. So that's I S I M E another M E N as in Nancy A. So it's actually E C M M N A. Give me a follow. If you hear this podcast episode and you adore it, shoot me a DM and let me know. I love to chat with folks. Amazing. Oh, thank you so much for being on the show. It was so insightful to

have you on and share your expertise with everybody. Thank you for having me, Jessica. It was awesome. And that was episode 256 with EC to Ella DeJobe. Make sure to check her out at becomefulfilled.com. You can find her on Twitter at EC, I'm just going to spell it out, I-S-I-M-E-M-E-N-A. And that's the exact same thing for Instagram. So it's like E-C-M-E-M-E-N-A. Just check out the show notes, jessicamorehouse.com slash 256. I will include all the links to her social profile so you can follow her, keep in touch. Not only that, she shared with me a very special link. If you go to bit.ly slash salary class, you can find a free training on how to negotiate a $10,000 to $30,000 salary increase in the middle of a pandemic. You can watch the training for free. So make sure to

check it out. Again, I'm going to include that link in the show notes, jessicamorehouse.com slash 256 for information on that. And yeah, so I, of course, got some things to share with you. So do not go away. Just want to share a few words about this episode's sponsor. This episode of the Momenty Podcast is supported by Passive. Are you tired of spending time on spreadsheets to manage and keep track of your investments? Passive can help you invest, rebalance, and keep track of your account so you can get rid of your spreadsheets. Once you set up a portfolio, passive will do all the calculations to keep it balanced, send you notifications when your portfolio needs attention, and you can even

place your trades across multiple accounts at the click of a button. Another bonus, Passive is free to all Questrade clients. To learn more about how it all works and to sign up for an account, visit Passive.com slash Mo Money. And that's spelled P-A-S-S-I-V. Once again, to learn more about how Passive can help lighten your load as a DIY investor, visit Passive.com slash Mo Money. So first and foremost, like I mentioned in last week's episode, I'm giving away a ton of books and there's only a few more weeks of episodes. So only a few more weeks to enter to win a copy of one of these books. So basically every guest who's been on the show who has a book out, I'm giving it away. I'm giving away their books. So

go to jessicamorehouse.com slash contest to find out which books I'm giving away and enter to win a book. Another thing, which I actually think is kind of funny, but this is just how things work out. Last week I mentioned I'm no longer taking any financial counseling clients. I'm actually kind of shifting. So I can create a program with my upcoming new financial planning course that I'll launch in the new year that will include some kind of one-on-one counseling. So I'm just changing the way I work with clients basically. But with that said, I'm working with PC Financial on a special campaign where basically I am giving away some financial counseling sessions. Isn't that funny? I literally decided a little while ago,

I'm not taking on any new clients. I want to focus on these new projects. And then PC Financial comes to me. They're like, hey, we want to work with you. And this is our idea. And I'm like, yeah, all right. All right. I'll do it. So you can find out all the information you need to know about that by basically following me on social media. If you go to my Twitter, my Facebook, my Instagram, that is how you can find more information about this contest and enter to win. And yeah, I feel like I was supposed to say something after that, but no, I think that's

kind of it. Just like follow me on Twitter or Facebook or Instagram and you can find all the details about the giveaway, the contest on there. And of course, how you would find out about all of these things right away is getting on my email. It's jessicamorhouse.com slash subscribe. And as I kind of mentioned also last week, I've been talking about my Facebook group for years and years and years, cause I've had it for almost five years, but I have come to the decision to actually close it down. Basically, I, I want to kind of close that chapter cause I'm working on a bunch of new

things. Um, and you know, specifically like the real reason is I don't feel like I've really had the time and energy to, to make it as great as it could be just because I'm pulled in so many different directions. And moving forward as I launch my new courses and I'm going to be creating new Facebook groups for those specific courses just for students, I want to put my time and energy into that. So we have a specific purpose for the course and it's really about achieving your financial goals and all that kind of stuff. So, so that is kind of what's going on. Um, so it kind of, um, shared like there,

there's a possibility that I may be handing over the reins to someone. Um, I'll let you know more, um, soon, um, when I know, because this is all very new. So we'll see what happens with that. But regardless, um, I will not be part of the group as of December 30th is when I'm going to be shutting it down or at least handing over ownership to somebody else. But with that said, you can still join the Facebook group if you go to facebook.com slash group slash Money Life Balance. I'll let you in. And then, you know, either it'll be shut down, but you can maybe make some friends in the meantime or find some cool, you know, resources that are shared, or it'll be, you know, a kind of a new group,

but hopefully it'll kind of basically, I want it to be, I'll only hand off the reins if it could be maintained in a way that's similar to what it is, which is a safe space where people can talk about money is predominantly, you know predominantly about Canadian personal finance, though if you're in any other country, you can of course join, but it's just like we do talk about Canadian finance a lot. And it's just like a positive judgment-free zone. So that's the latest on that. I'll let you know more when I know. I think those are kind of like the major things I've got going on. Yeah, I think so. So thanks so much for listening to this episode. I've got, let me see, how many more episodes do we have going on just for your information? One, two, three. We got

three episodes. We got two weeks left and we've got three episodes. I've got two episodes for you next week. Very exciting. And then I'll wrap things up with one last episode, December 23rd. I was thinking of doing a solo episode, but honestly, I think I'm going to leave that to kick off season 12 of the podcast in January. So yeah. I mean, I just feel like I'm like, I don't have enough to share. Well, I've got some things to share, but I'm going to wait until the new year. And also maybe it'll be like a, Hey, it's the new year. Let's pretend like 2020 didn't happen. So, so yeah, so that's what's going on. Thanks for listening. See you next week. This podcast is distributed by the Women in Media Podcast Network. Find out more at womeninmedia.network.