wenrhire.c
I had always been a fan of
Good Morning America,
so I was thrilled when more thantwo years ago a producer at the show askedif I’d be interested in appearing as a careerexpert. I jumped at the chance.
My rst segment on maing extra cash dr
-ing the holiday season went over well so Iwas invited back again. I had been a guestalmost a dozen times when a couple of thewriters and producers started whispering inmy ear, “You know, you should be a con-tributor here.” They wondered if or when I
was going to become an ofcial reglar.
I remember asking, “What exactly doesthat mean?” And without hesitation they allsaid, “You get paid!”
My rst reaction was don’t roc the boat. I
told myself I had a pretty good gig going.Diane Sawyer and Robin Roberts routinely
praised my efforts. I gred I shold be
happy with the way things were. Youknow, just leave well enough alone.For all of my “You go, girl” statements andmy determination to tell everyone else to
be gtsy, my very rst reaction was to shy
away from that same sense of bravado. Iwas convincing myself to go against all thecounsel I preach.Not good.I quickly snapped out of that funk, andthought, “What kind of career coach wouldI be if I didn’t follow my own advice?”So I mustered the courage to speak up for
myself. The rst step: Anticipate the oppo
-sition and prepare responses to overcomethe potential rejection. (In fact, you shouldnever ask for something important until
yo’ve played devil’s advocate and gred
out how you’d reply if shot down.)The decision makers at ABC could hit me
with any nmber of excses:
• “Budget cuts.”• “We need more time to evaluate yourwork.”• “I’ll think about it and get some others toweigh in.”I picked up the phone and called the execu-tive producer. I gave him my two-minutepitch explaining why I should become theWorkplace Contributor and receive all of
the benets that go along with being part of
the GMA family.I braced for rejection during a two second
silence, bt instead he said jst one word:
Done. Just like that, my request was ap-proved.There are moments when you know intui-tively that smooth sailing isn’t all that it’scracked up to be. Sometimes you must bewilling to rock the boat. Shake the statusquo by going after what you want.Is it always easy? No. Will your wishesalways be granted? Nope. But shouldyou simply sit in silence abandoning yourgoals? Absolutely not.Instead of allowing a fear of failure orrejection to hold you back, it’s essential to
gre ot exactly how to go after what yo
really want. Use the ideas and advice onthese pages as inspiration for going afterthe other career dreams on your wish list.If you don’t know how to tackle a particu-lar goal, seek help from people who’vealready been down the same path.Here’s hoping you cherish the satisfactionthat comes not solely from succeeding,but from attempting what you previously
deemed difclt or impossible.
Tory JohnsonFounder/CEOWomen For Hire
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