Get Rich Slick

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I wrote this post to answer a few questions I kept getting about my successes personally and professionally and I continue to get an occasional e-mail on this post every now and then.  Originally published May 2007.

Health care, Energy & Technology fields are red hot right now and various colleagues have been asking me how they can get in and make some real money in these industries. Most of the people I’m hiring these days are starting close to or above 100k in base salary and earning 10% to 20% bonuses on top of various other incentives (e.g. stock options) so they’re all licking their chops asking me what they can do to get in.

I’ve come up with a list of things you should have in your resume toolbox to get you in the door and hired:

1. Although I don’t particularly feel it necessary to have a college degree for many positions, most HR people won’t let you through the door unless you have a college diploma. You toolbox should include a degree, ANY degree to get you in the door. For goodness sake, even a liberal arts degree will help! Just don’t LIE about it because that will get you fired and tarnish your reputation.

2. Speaking of reputation, if you don’t have a college degree, it helps a great deal to have a network of references that will vouch for you and your work. I have a standard policy of writing letters of recommendations, recognition and commendation for people that do good work and am happy to be a reference for people that do quality work. NEVER burn any bridges, you’ll eventually come across them again in your lifetime.

3. If you are a manager or plan on being a manager (of any kind) you should consider training and certification in Project Management. The Project Management Institute is a great place to start - become a member. As a manager, it is inevitable that you’ll work on projects and having this certification and/or training is a great plus.

4. You should have professional certifications: If you are an accountant, you should receive and maintain your CPA; If you are in Technology, you should be certified in your specialty (e.g. Oracle, Microsoft, Cisco); If you are in Payroll, you should become a Certified Payroll Specialist; If you are a mechanic, you should get ASE certified. I could go on but you get the point.

5. You should have a professional wardrobe. I can’t tell you how many people I “skipped” over despite great credentials because a person dressed like a slob. When you’re climbing up the corporate ladder, you’ll be dealing with various executives, the media, and to some extent Wall Street pros, no one wants to see how frugal you can be with your money & wardrobe.

6. If you want to make some really big money, you’ll likely need to work for a public company that can issue you some juicy stock options. If you are a manager for a public company, you need to train yourself in Sarbanes Oxley compliance NO MATTER WHAT YOUR FIELD IS. I don’t care if you’re in HR or Marketing, knowing SOX compliance in a public company will make you MORE valuable than the person who doesn’t know it. Hence, when it comes around to issuing those stock options, the key people will remember how valuable you are to them with that SOX training.

7. If you’re working for a public company, you should know how to read the company’s financial statements. I don’t care if you’re in sales, marketing, technology,operations, human resources, or other department. If you’re lost, go over to http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/finance/quotes/quote-03.html or http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/finance/tools/research-21.html and start learning. As a manager, if you can intelligently discuss the company’s potential, problems and opportunities via the company’s financials then you’ll be much more valuable than someone who doesn’t.

8. If possible, learn a foreign language; real growth is coming from overseas these days and every edge helps. You don’t have to become fully fluent in another language but being able to get by helps tremendously.

9. You should have a mentor. You need someone to go to be able to talk about things when the going gets tough. Someone that can help you with salary negotiations when settling on a new job or help you through employee disputes or simply someone to celebrate your successes with; a person that you can trust implicitly.

10. You should have a career plan. I recommend 3 to 5 year goals, 8 year goals and 15 year goals. In essence, what title and salary do you want to earn 3 to 5 years from now, 8 years from now and 15 years from now. Write it down and work toward it everyday by doing 1 thu 9 above.

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A few friends in the medical field are finding it increasingly difficult to make a living out of the medical profession.  The medical field has a high barrier of entry.  Many doctors are saddled with a great deal of debt after 8+ years of medical school followed by an internship.

Once in actual practice, liability insurance, office expenses and poor payments and delayed reimbursements make it very difficult to earn a profit and run a business.

Contrast this with someone who might study to be a software programmer or network guru who might study for a couple of years at a technical college or perhaps be self-taught for a few years and starting salaries in the 80k, you have to wonder if a person is better off being a “computer doctor” than an actual medical doctor.

The computer doctor isn’t going to have to worry about liability insurance, insurance companies not paying on time or other such nonsense and there is a clear advantage here in favor of the computer doctor.

Food for thought….

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A reader, Mercedes, beat me to the punch on free gym but I also wanted to talk about getting free business class airfare all over the world.   How is it done?  If you’re a key employee for a multi-national/global company then you’re likely to travel all over the world in business class for various business affairs.

As you travel the world, you’ll rack up frequent flyer miles which can be redeemed for upgrades or free travel during your own vacation time off.   Most companies allow this perk because globe trotting isn’t the glamorous  activity most people think it is as you’ll likely spend 10 hours flying to Europe only to spend a few hours in a layover to catch another 12 hour flight to another continental destination or return trip.  Effectively, you’ll lose days of your life away from family and friends for the company.

There are other perks too; you might be able to get your company to subsidize an American Express Platinum card which gives you access to world traveler lounges which give you access to free internet, free booze, free food, free showers and more!

You might also be able to negotiate memberships to business clubs, professional associations, and trade groups.   Some companies offer other perks such as free breakfasts, free dry cleaning, free roaming internet access cards and, of course, free gym.

Since it’s Friday, I’ll stop this little series on career counseling but I hope you got some ideas on how to think outside the frugal box.  I titled these “non-frugal” because frugality has nothing to do with getting Free Steak & Lobster lunches, Free Activities, Free Cell Phones, and Free Education but everything to do with career advancement and excellence.

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Why pay for your own MBA when you can get one subsidized or paid in full by someone else? How do you get a free BA or MBA?   It’s not government grants, charitable scholarships or your parents paying for it.

Businesses really do take care of their own and it is a strategic business move that will ultimately lead to higher profits for a business.  An educated employee adds value to a business and a highly educated employee adds greater value so most businesses have a policy of providing assistance or in some instances paying for an employees entire college tuition in an undergraduate or graduate program.

Additionally, if you are a key employee, you’ll likely be able to negotiate bonuses or other awards as part of your retention plan after completing your degree program so your employer won’t lose you to the competition.

If you already have a graduate degree then there’s nothing wrong with expanding your horizons and getting a secondary degree or various certifications in your career field.

All you have to do is ASK!  And for goodness sake, keep your toolbox updated!

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Why pay for cell phone services when you can get them for free? Why pay for regular parking when premium parking can be had for nothing? Intrigued?

While some people spend countless hours devising ways to save a penny here or a penny there, time better spent on career advancement may actually lead to significant yet subtle returns on investment in a grander scale than shaving pennies.

With most cell phone plans now ballooning up to the $70+ mark when including voice, text, and data services it makes sense to try to get these services for free. Seventy dollars a month after all translates to$3.5/work day which is just enough to buy a nice StarBucks latte.

So what’s the secret to free cell phones? The secret is to become a key employee in your organization; an employee so important that it would be detrimental to the company if they wouldn’t be able to get a hold of you whenever they needed you.

History shows that if you’re important enough to command this type of accessibility then it should follow that premium parking spot should be provided to afford you with faster access into the organizations location(s).

This is the third post in this series and I hope you’ll see the pattern forming from post one and post two in the series.

Tomorrow, I’ll follow up with another post.

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As I wrote about yesterday in the Key To Free Steak & Lobster, today’s non-frugal tip lesson involves getting free concerts, sporting events, golfing, fishing, and other activities at no charge.

It was well known that movie stars and other celebrities received serious swag during the Oscars and at other award events but it wasn’t until the IRS started threatening celebrities with tax penalties that the practice became better understood by the general public.

There is something similar that happens in the business world but it revolves more so around less expensive items such as invitations to concerts, sporting events, golfing activities and other such business gatherings.

The key of course is to get invited to these events and that is usually accomplished by being a crucial person in your organization from which your advice or counsel will generally be wanted or needed. In some instances, it may even be the same armada of sales people who take you to lunch that may offer you these free activities.

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