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01 Follow Up After Interview For Consulting

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After Ron Szweda interviewed with CareerLab for a consulting position, he sent us this superb post-interview follow-up letter. The tone is excited and positive. Ron compliments me and our company several times, and also toots his own horn. He lets me know he is interviewing other places (in Chicago) and is publishing in the field--just the kind of successful, upbeat, enthusiastic person we'd like to hire.



Unfortunately, we weren't able to hire Ron. He was an excellent candidate, but our workload did not warrant additional staff. When Ron heard the news, he wrote an upbeat follow-up letter which showed he had a lot of class, and certainly kept the door open to him in the future.  


RON SZWEDA
10200 East Evans Avenue, #202 | Denver, CO 80231-5202
H: 303-555-1212 | C: 720-690-5578 | szweda@ix.netcom.com


October 27, 20—

William S. Frank
President/CEO
Careerlab
10475 Park Meadows Drive, Ste. 600
Lone Tree, CO 80124-5437

Dear Bill:

I want you to know how terrific I felt following our discussion last Tuesday, October 26, at your office. It was very, very refreshing to experience the feeling of such a positively charged atmosphere.

Your marketing efforts involving books and tapes on careers are quite impressive. No doubt you have other ideas in the works for the future. It's obvious you are a leader in the center of an extremely supportive staff. How stimulating.

Please compliment Diane for me regarding her professional assistance with my persistence.

Incidentally, after previewing your tape, my wife, who assists in making educational videos which her company sells, commented on the quality of your presentation. I, too, thought it was a job well done. I am enjoying your two outstanding publications as well.

It's stimulating to know you plan to talk to some of your staff on my behalf. I would welcome another get-together to discuss my contributing to your continuing success. The last word form Chicago is that I'll be needed by December/January.

For your information, I am communicating with Tony Lee, of the National Business Employment Weekly, about running some of my upcoming articles in his column. In addition, just today, I was invited to speak for several hours on the Basics of Job Hunting, to a class of medical graduates at a local medical center. I was asked to do this on the strength of my last article.

I look forward to hearing from you in about two weeks when you return from your trip.


Sincerely,

Ron Szweda

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William S. Frank, M.A.,
            President/CEO
25 Reasons I love consulting.
by William S. Frank
  1. Brand. You are your own brand, and you can define it any way you want. For many years, I provided outplacement to the ex-employees of Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield service corporation. When departing employees left the company, they didn't request outplacement in their severance package. They said, "I want Bill Frank."
  2. Demand. The world will always be full of terrible problems that need solving.
  3. White Hat. I can be a helper and get paid for it.
  4. Pay. I can be paid to do things I'd gladly do for nothing.
  5. Variety. Every day is different.
  6. Happiness. At this stage of my career, I only work for people I respect and care about. If a client micromanages me or is otherwise no fun, I complete the assignment and replace them.
  7. Talent. I'm using 110% of my talents and stretching myself to the max.
  8. Change. I can change my focus any day I want. If you're a McDonald's franchisee, you don't say, "Hey, I've got this great idea for a meatball sandwich—let's try it out today." In consulting you can adjust your focus hour-by-hour, as long as your clients still understand and appreciate what you do.
  9. Income. No one else would pay me as much as I pay myself.
  10. FUN. I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing.
  11. Retirement. I can write and consult as long as I am physically and mentally capable. Peter Drucker worked into his 90s, and when asked which book was his best, he said: "My next one."
  12. Job Security. Although clients come and go, no one can come into my office and say, "Pack up your stuff . . . You don't work here anymore." In 29 years, I've only had one employer: ME.
  13. Travel. I don't have to travel unless I decide to. I travel if it's both FUN and profitable—or at least FUN.
  14. Commute. I live five minutes from my office, a corner office in an upscale six-story tower. In winter, I leave a heated garage at home and drive to an underground heated garage at work. There's seldom time to hear even one song on the radio.
  15. Vacation. Consulting is more fun than vacation (except on Wailea Beach in Maui).
  16. Friends. I have developed hundreds of close acquaintances and several lifetime friends.
  17. Time. I can work as much or as little as I like: four-hour days or 18-hour days. (Of course, my income will reflect that.)
  18. Employees. I can work with employees, subcontractors, partners, or alone—I've done it all.
  19. Passive Income. I've developed several products that provide "mailbox money." I earn while I'm sleeping.
  20. Ethics. I've never had to violate my values or personal code of ethics. I've never had to lie, purposely deceive or harm others, or promise things I can't deliver. I go to bed with a clear conscience. That doesn't mean there's never any conflict. But the conflict is conducted according to generally accepted business practices.
  21. Virtual. My career is fairly portable. With the Internet, e-mail, cell phone, and FedEx, I can work nationally, even internationally from my office—or anywhere in the world.
  22. Purpose. I make a difference in peoples' lives every day. I see it in their faces, hear it in their voices, and read it in their thank-yous.
  23. Experience. Every painful or joyful life experience makes me a better consultant. So does every person I meet or book I read. Grey hair can be good in consulting.
  24. Structure. I have to work very hard, and the clients expect superb results—but I get to structure my days, weeks, months, and years.
  25. Boss. Most of the time, I love my boss.
As I was posting these letters online, I realized I want to communicate my love for consulting. It's just a great business. The single letters, taken together, may create a picture of enjoyment, but in a burst of creativity I listed some of the reasons consulting is such a good fit for me—and perhaps for you, too. They are not prioritized; this is just how they came out.