What motivates you

Motivation is personal and unique to everyone. Money is a huge motivational factor for some while work-life balance, climbing the corporate ladder, praise, philanthropy, and comradery are other examples. Being thoughtful to what motivates people will help you better understand how to interact, collaborate, and lead. Understanding what motivates you will allow you to make better decisions for yourself. Of course, more money sounds great but what if that meant you couldn't spend time with your family on the weekend?

When I meet with clients they often don’t realize what is important to them, or to be more precise, what is most important to them. Career decisions don’t just affect your career, but also the rest of your life. Knowing what gets you up in the morning and finding it will be the key to your long term success and happiness.

How can you figure out what motivates you? Try writing out a list of things that are important to you. Really think about it and spend a couple hours on this project. Once complete, rank the list. No ties allowed. Share the list with a close friend or loved one. Let them ask you questions on your rankings. They could share a perspective you hadn't thought of. Then take that list and re-rank once again on your own.

When it comes time to make a decision, take a look at this list. How does that decision fit in with the important things in your life? How could that decision enhance or detract? What other choices do you have that could increase your happiness?

To learn more about career coaching go to www.katekibler.com

Happy New Year!

You hear so much about New Year's resolutions. You may think you need to eat healthier, start working out, take up a new hobby, or whatever it is you are trying to achieve. This is also an opportunistic time to look at your career: successes from 2016, your accomplishments and anything you might have done differently in looking back. Consider being introspective, think about what will make you successful in 2017... and even, what defines success to you in 2017? 

If you are in a corporate job, you are likely writing your self review now. I encourage you to take your self review seriously, rather than treat as a task you need to accomplish. If you are hoping to be promoted, take time to understand what roadblocks are in your way. Be honest with yourself if those roadblocks are something you control or not. Most people are surprised when they realize they are the one standing in the way of their own success. Are you lacking a skill needed to do your job well or get to the next level? Ask your manager for the resources or opportunity to gain that skill. Take control and manage your career because I guarantee you there is no better advocate for your career than you. 

Happy New Year! Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2017.

Kate Kibler

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Take Control

Sometime it feels like everything is out of control. The subway is having mechanical problems, it's raining, it's taxi change over time, you can't find an Uber, some man spills his coffee on you getting off the bus, and you have that important 9am meeting.

Even though you are having a terrible morning where unpredictable circumstances leave you off centered, you still have control of what happens the rest of the day. It's hard to feel that way in the moment, but you still have many choices on what happens next. Let's explore.

Option 1- You walk into your meeting clearly frustrated and disheveled. You apologize for being late and jump right into your presentation feeling unnerved.

Option 2- You contact the people who are in your meeting, let them know about the unfortunate coffee spill and tell them you need an extra hour to stop home and change.

Option 3- You pull a shirt off the sample rack (this is a fashion industry blog, so it's likely there are samples around) quickly change in the bathroom, enter your meeting a couple minutes late with the now entertaining morning you've just had.

There are probably 10 more things you could choose to do in the moment. What sounds like the best option? The point, there are always options.

Things happen that are out of your control: the boss that hired you leaves the company, your company gets sold to a private equity firm, your division is being moved to New Jersey, or your partner on a key project just took all the credit on the work you did. It's how you react to those situations that will stall your career or keep you moving forward.

First, decide what you want out of your career. What type of leader or teammate do you want to be?

Then, think about your situation carefully. What options do you have? There are usually two obvious ones, but there are generally several others that aren't so easy to see at first.

Finally, make a decision and take control. How will you reflect back upon the decisions you are about to make? How will you be perceived based on your planned reaction?

If you believe things are out of control and you are powerless in a situation, you are powerless. If something happens that's out of your control and you make a decision on what happens next, you have control. The decision is yours.

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Time to Think

There are lots of things that go into being a great leader. There are all the standard, yet important components of being a great leader like listening to your team, developing people, the ability to make decisions, clear communication, building and sharing a vision, the list goes on and on. What you don't hear a lot about is how a leader can accomplish these things.

Being a great leader means making time to be a great leader. It means not filling every single second of every single day with meetings or tasks. Balancing the time to give your team what they need, and taking time for yourself to think will enhance your abilities as a leader. How much time do you make to really think?

Thinking time is critical to building your vision and innovating as a leader, but it can easily be pushed to the side for more tactical pursuits. Time contemplating gives you the ability to take what you've heard from your team and synthesize the information into actions and decisions. Thinking helps you understand the market landscape and to see the bigger picture, or "see the forest through the trees" as they say. While it seems as though you are making a trade off between crossing that meeting off your list, getting home to your family an hour earlier or and taking time to think, you can almost guarantee that time reserved to think will save you time in the long term.

When do you usually make time to think? How do you find time to think? Where is your favorite spot to focus your thoughts?

Working with a career coach can help you carve out time to focus on your refining your leadership. To learn more, go to www.katekibler.com

The fashion industry

How can I get into the fashion industry? I hear this question a lot. Before asking that question, I recommend asking yourself, “is the fashion industry right for me?” There is a unique culture to every company/ industry and that is also true for fashion. Movies and runway shows don’t really tell the whole story. People think the fashion industry is glamorous. While it is true that there are some cool perks, there are also some major downsides. In terms of perks, in most roles you get to travel the world, meet interesting people, some celebrities, and eat in some great restaurants (generally speaking). On the downside, you will work late hours, weekends and sometimes holidays. There are few boundaries between your personal and professional life. 

While neither positives nor negatives, there are some definitive traits of the fashion industry. Fashion is more irreverent than most. The definition of professionalism is not the same as it would be in say, the finance industry for example. You will be in a very heated, serious conversation with someone for an hour talking about a button or thread color. People are very passionate about… well, it could be anything. The industry is subjective and you need to be comfortable with ambiguity and change. Things are done in the name of ‘brand’ rather than what makes sense on paper. Gut is as important as the analysis.

After hearing a little more on the fashion industry, how do you feel? How does your current skill set align to some of the descriptors you read above? Where do you think you would fit into the fashion industry?

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Making time

It has been over four months since I have posted on this blog. I am sure many of you are wondering why I've gone MIA. I can make lots of excuses as I've started a new job, moved, done a ton of traveling, and the holidays, but the reality is I just need to make time to get back on track with my blog. Day to day activities like work, travel, and even laundry can take up every minute of every day if I let it.

What is interesting is that the same phenomenon happens at work. There's always that project lingering that continually gets pushed out because there are too many immediate day to day tasks that need to be accomplished. Getting your day to day job done will make you a solid employee, but tackling that big lingering project will likely get you to that next level. If you want to grow in your career, you need to make time to get beyond your "day job". For me, I block time on my calendar to be strategic or to tackle that big project that is looming in the office. I hold that time as sacred and turn off my email and hide my phone so I don't lose focus. It looks like I need to set up 'untouchable' time to write my blog as well!

How important is it for you to grow in your career? What are some tactics you can use to get past the day to day tasks on your plate? What are the obstacles in your way to get to the next level in your career?

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Stay flexible

This industry will drive you crazy if you let it. There is very little predictability in what a day could look like. In my first day at one company, I found myself re-designing a collection, collaborating with the founder of the company and making changes to a line I had never seen... all prior to finding my desk or learning the location of the bathrooms. It was definitely a first for me, but in this industry, sometimes you just need to go with the flow.

The only thing you can consistently expect is change. Starting from a place of curiosity and being open will serve you well in your career in the fashion world.

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com.

Keeping the boss's hours

I noticed a trend over my career. People tend to show up in the office when the most senior member of the leadership team arrives in the morning & depart when s/he leaves in the evening. If you are the boss in your area, take notice. Come in a half hour later for a month and watch the team get in later. Come in an hour earlier the following month and watch the trend of the team change. How come this happens?

There are a few reasons: First, hours are generally loosely defined in the fashion industry. It depends on the company and the corporate culture, but because people tend to work longer hours, start and stop times seem to vary. People take their boss's comings and goings as the official office hours.

Secondly, if there is a culture of getting ahead, people want to get there before their boss. It's an old, but often effective method of letting the boss think you are the hardest worker in the office- get there in the morning before your boss and leave after s/he leaves. If your work isn't up to snuff it doesn't matter how long you are in the office, but it can be an effective method for getting recognized with some executives. Others may not notice at all and you could be wasting what could be time away from the office with your family or friends.

Finally, most days in the fashion industry are very hectic. If you need to get time with your boss, the only availability may be before or after regular meeting hours. Use caution on this one however. Your boss may be staying late or coming in early to get their own work down and not appreciate you popping in off hours.

So, what's the point? Come in early, stay late, or set your own schedule? Know what that executive cares about. Know what you care about. If your goal is to get ahead and you know the executive values someone who puts in the hours, then go for it. If you are getting your job done and your boss isn't watching the clock, set your own schedule. More importantly, if you are that executive, pay attention to the team and set expectations. You may be having an effect you don't realize.

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Making friends in the office

I've heard lots of debate from both friends and clients on the topic of making friends at the office. What are the benefits or detractors of keeping your work and professional lives separate? It is true there are a lot of things to consider. Think about the following:

• How much do you have in common with your co-worker outside of work?
• What do you really like about that co-worker that would make you want to become their friend?
• How confidential are your responsibilities in the office?
• How often do you drink with your friends?
• Where do you draw the line between sharing with a friend and sharing with a co-worker?
• What are the pluses and minuses of venting about work to a co-worker over drinks?
• What are your short and long term career goals?
• How do you want to be perceived by others in the office?
• How do you want to be perceived by your friends?
• What do you like to do with your friends? Colleagues? 
• How important is a separation between your work and downtime?
• If you were to quit tomorrow, would the co-worker you consider as a friend continue to be your friend?

The reality in the fashion business is that it is almost impossible to completely separate your professional and home life. With casual, creative environments, client or vendor dinners,  and late nights, you will find yourself in social settings with your co-workers. It is only natural to start creating bonds. As you start to develop these relationships, keep in mind the answers to your questions above. Be selective and make sure you are making friends at work for the right reasons.

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Losing motivation

You can't target the exact moment it happened, but it happened. You are showing up for work later and later. You care just a little bit less about getting your work done in a timely manner and you stopped being curious about what's next for you at work. It does sound a little like the movie Office Space. 

At certain points in our career, we lose motivation at our jobs. How could this happen? It was a job you loved six months ago. So, what made you stop caring? It's a great question and one you need to ask yourself if you are going through this phase. How can you get to the bottom of it? Try answering these questions:

• How long have you been in your current role?
• What has changed about your job?
• What has changed about your personal life?
• What's the most challenging thing about your job right now?
• What is the most challenging thing about your life right now?
• What do you feel passionate about (either inside or outside the office)?
• How successful do you feel at your job?
• What could make you feel more successful at your job?
• What is the next step in your career?
• What fulfills you?
• What are you missing in your daily life?
• What types of challenges do you find exciting?

After you answer these questions, take a step back and think about what you want. How much do you want to regain your motivation? What are the obstacles in your way? How can you remove them?

Once you come to understand yourself a little more, your next steps will be clear. 

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Get a second opinion

If you are like me, your career is important to you. Deciding whether or not to apply for a job, sending a resume, going on an interview, or making a decision whether or nor to accept a job are all big decisions. The choices you make could lead nowhere or they could change your entire life. 

When considering a career move, find someone whose opinion you trust to be your sounding board. Make sure this person understands your goals and helps to keep you focused. Before making a move, consider the following:

How come you decided to update your resume? What made you decide to interview for this role at that company? How come you are considering leaving your current position? How does this new job fit with your current life? How does this new job fit into the life you want?

The closer you are to an actual job offer, the more that's at stake and the more your judgement could be clouded. Write down the answers to the questions above. Talk to your 'second opinion' about your answers. When it comes to decision time, you should have a clear path. 

What's the hardest career decision you've ever made? Who do you trust to be your sounding board? 

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com 

What do you want?

Defining what you want in your career is the first step in getting what you want. Unfortunately, many don’t take the time to figure out what they want in their careers. If you know what you want, you can focus on how to get there. You can outline a plan, make yourself present in the right meetings, and step up to where you see yourself in the future. You have heard the old adage, dress for the job you want, not the job you have, right? It’s the same idea for how you preform and how you behave. Perform in the job you want, not the job you have. Change your mindset so that you are already functioning at that level.

The bigger question is: how do you really know what you want? How can you focus on your future rather than getting bogged down in the day to day? Spending time understanding what you are good at, what makes you happy & what you want in your personal life will help guide you at understanding what you want in your career. Talk it out with a friend, trusted coworker or family member. Seeking the guidance of a career coach is also a great option for someone working to define his/ her future. A career coach can give you unbiased guidance to what it is you really want.

What have you done to define your future? How can you use your resources to determine what you want? How can a career coach help guide you?

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

In the face of change

How people handle themselves in the face of change can advance or ruin a career. Leadership changes often in the fashion industry. In my career of 17 years, I have seen 9 different leaders. That means a leadership change has occurred just about every 2 years (Keep in mind I have only worked at 5 companies). Every time a leadership change was about to occur, the gossip would ramp up. People could feel it coming and start to panic. It didn't matter if they loved or hated the current leader. Strange factions would start to arise. People would begin to ‘position’ themselves closely with one leader or another.

My message to you: stay out of it. Do your job. Focus on getting the job done & getting it done well. Every leader will appreciate this. It doesn't matter if this leader is your boss or your boss’ boss’ boss’ boss. Just focus on doing your job and staying out of the politics. It will also keep your stress level low. If a colleague wants to come to you and vent their fears, you can listen but not join in the panic. Listening doesn't mean you have to chime in on their fears or even agree.

How have you reacted in the face of change? What can you gain/ lose by involving yourself in the office politics? How could aligning with a current leader help/ hurt your career?

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Internal PR

Sometimes people get bogged down in doing their job that they forget how important it is to let others know what successes they have had. In smaller companies, your impact is usually clear. In larger companies, people in your division may be aware of what your success, but other divisions may not be aware. What if a role comes up in another division that interests you? How will other leaders know what a rock star you are if they don’t know what you have done? 

Sometimes your boss is busy and cannot see all of the great things you have accomplished. Earning a great track record is important, so how can you let others know about it without seeming arrogant? If you have a weekly meeting with your boss, why not share what happened in the week? What if you talk about the problems you solved and proactive steps you are taking? 

To learn more about career coach Kate Kibler, go to www.katekibler.com

Advocate

Being great at your job often isn't enough. If you've ever been passed over for a promotion, you know what I am talking about. Whether you like it or not, office politics can play a big role in whether or not you are promoted. Your direct boss can think you are terrific, but it's unlikely you will be promoted unless others agree.

Many people think politics and networking imply a lack of integrity. While in some cases that might be true, you don't have to compromise your integrity to get ahead. How can you ensure others see the great work you are doing? Think about who will advocate for you. Who sees you as a strong player? How are they positioning you in front of the right people? What are you doing to make sure everyone knows the good work you have done? If your peers and reports see you as a confident, inspiring, moral leader, they will start to follow and your value will be seen to others.

Who in the executive team do you have the strongest connection with? How often do you interact with that person? What can you do to show your value and regularly interact with that leader? When you build the foundation on these relationships, it will become evident who will advocate for you.

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

Retail Careers SmartBrief

If you haven't seen this resource, it could be great for those trying to learn more about the retail industry:

Thousands of people have signed up to receive the Retail Careers SmartBrief. Have you? Last week, the most popular stories in the Retail Careers SmartBrief were:  How-to-get-hired tips from Nordstrom's recruiter Networking tip for introverts Retailers, LearnUp offer online classes for job seekers 3,000 of your peers read these stories because they signed up ( to receive our free, biweekly newsletter packed with career advice and insights. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to get your career on track toward success. Take advantage of this valuable resource and sign up today to receive your Retail Careers SmartBrief each Monday and Wednesday.

Think about your reference

Building relationships are critical to business success; sometimes even more so in the apparel industry. A referral means more to most hiring managers than your degree and sometimes even your experience. Likewise, the referee carries more weight if it is someone the hiring manager knows, trusts and respects. Before picking your references, think through all the details. Talk with a recruiter you worked with to find out what type of referrals may carry more weight. Scour LinkedIn before your interview to see if there are any connections to anyone you are meeting with. If there are, reach out to your connection before the interview to see how they know the person you are meeting. Ask how their relationship with the interviewer is (I know you will be shocked to hear that not everyone in the fashion industry likes each other.) A liked common connection could put you on top of a large pile of resumes.

What are some other ways you could use this common connection to secure the job? If you were the hiring manager, how much would that connection mean to you?

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

What type of employee are you?

Over my career, I’ve had all different types of employees. Some have been very independent while others need a great deal of attention to perform. While everyone needs direction, not everyone needs a detailed to do list. Understanding what your employee needs is key to both their and your success. On the flip side, you need to understand what kind of employee your boss wants you to be. What does s/he respond to- your independence or your attentive behavior?

I prefer a team that is more independent than not. I consider my leadership role as the conductor. I make sure the team all knows where we are going, following the traffic signals and remove any potential obstacles that get in their way.  What does that mean exactly? I can help an employee problem solve to a resolution they might not have considered. Or if a team member is taking longer than expected on a project because they don’t have all the information they need, I can make a couple calls to uncover the missing data.

Where do I draw the line? Interpersonal conflict. I am not a therapist, counselor or parent. I will not step in the middle of a conflict between teammates. Each employee is responsible for their own relationships. I once had an employee, Jack*, in a conflict with a coworker. He didn’t feel as though Sally* respected him. Jack asked me to “tell Sally to respect me.” I almost rolled my eyes. If you have gone to your boss and said something like this, I want you to think about how immature that sounds. This employee just told me he can’t earn a coworker’s respect and wasn’t up for trying to fix the problem on his own. Admitting you don’t have a great relationship is one thing, but wanting your boss to fix your problem is a whole other issue. What would I have responded better to? “I don’t think Sally respects me because she didn’t get me the project completed on time as I requested. I feel like I have tried several things to build the relationship, but nothing is working. What are your thoughts on how I can change the situation?” This is something that would have worked with me. I could brainstorm with the employee. Maybe share observations about his behavior that could be creating the problem. My goal would be to give him the tools to solve his problem on his own. Think about your boss, what message you are sharing and consider his/her response before having the conversation. On the flip side, I know many bosses who enjoy handling their team’s interpersonal problems.

How do you need to change your approach to match your boss’s preferences? What is your style? How do you communicate your style with your team?

*Names are changed to protect the privacy of employees

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com. 

Getting Outside

How often do you walk outside during your workday? The apparel industry can be demanding and often people immerse themselves in work. I am guilty. I realized at 7pm the other day that I hadn’t been outside since I walked into the office that morning. The next day, I promised myself I would at least walk outside for ten minutes. If that meant I was ten minutes late for my next meeting, so be it. Even a short break can change your perspective and refresh your thinking. The next day, I stayed true to my self-promise and made my way outside. I felt focused, positive and recharged. Every meeting I had was more productive as a result. My coworkers got a better person.

What can you do to stay focused during the day? When are you at your best? How have you taken care of yourself so that you can be at your best? What differences have you seen in yourself when you are recharged?

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com

The pendulum swing

Fashion is famous for going to extremes. One season, a style (sold in one color only) sells out. A relatively small quantity was purchased of that style and the retailer now thinks this will be a great style in a larger way. So the brand makes this style in 10 colors for a future season and buys a huge quantity. The style hits the selling floor with no support or marketing and it fails. We are now calling this style an epic failure. How could it be so successful one season and such a bad style the next? This is a classic fashion example of “swinging the pendulum”.

Finding a reasonable balance can be challenging in an industry with so many passionate people. It’s easy to get carried away and swept up in a moment. Hardly ever do these extreme shifts lead to success. It is important to take risks in an ever changing industry, but there are ways to handle where you can increase your chances of success. First, how far do you really need to move from your current position? After dipping your toe in the water, think through your next step. Maybe you don’t need to dive in the deep end, but rather swim swiftly to the deep end.

Risk is important, but a calculated risk has a better chance of success. In the style expansion example above, think about how a company could handle this differently. How could a marketing plan help turn this expanded style into a product launch versus expansion? What if the company carried this style in 10 colors and but bought a moderate amount. To cover the upside, the company could position fabric with a vendor and replenish the style if the expansion was successful- it protects you from the downside, but creates the opportunity for upside.

How many times have you seen your company swing the pendulum? How many times has it led to a successful outcome? What can you do in your position to create calculated risk rather than swinging the pendulum? Who can you work with in your role to ensure success for your company and the product you deliver? How can finding balance help you advance in your career? 

To learn more about career coaching, go to www.katekibler.com