The 10 types of crappy interviewees, according to The Oatmeal.

Click here for the other 8…

In the long run, the A students work for the B students. The C students run the businesses.  And the D students get the buildings named after them.

~ Tom Peters: Educate for a Creative Society

What do you think? Let me know!

Are you developing meaningful relationships?

A few months ago, I wrote a post titled “An Explosion of Networking Noise“. The crux of my argument was this: we don’t need any more communication platforms – plenty already exist. What we need is to learn how to use existing platforms to build and develop valuable relationships.

This is something I’ve been thinking a lot about recently. Especially with the rise of personal branding, social networking, and most especially in this economic environment, where a powerful network can mean the difference between moving up in your career or moving back home with your parents.

The sad reality is that most of us simply aren’t very good at meeting new people, winning their support and nurturing vested interest relationships. But let me tell you…it’s not your fault! The problem is that most of us have never taken a course in “Intelligent Networking”. These weren’t skills that we were quizzed on in school. If school didn’t teach us this stuff, it must not be important, right? WRONG!

In fact, dead wrong.

Here’s a little secret: if you develop great networking skills – skills that are employed by other intelligent networkers – you will be able to call your own shots in life. Period.

I was fortunate enough to recognize this as a junior in college. And this realization helped me land my “dream job” out of school. But the fact that I was fortunate enough to stumble upon the importance of networking is not good enough for me. No, no. I want every student in the country to acquire and develop the same skills. Why? Because this is the founding mission of TAG. It’s also my raison d’être.

Within the next few days, I’ll be releasing TAG’s Intelligent Networking Guide for FREE. This Guide will help you navigate your way to social circle mastery – and empower you to take control of your career destiny. All I ask in return is that you spread TAG’s ideas throughout your network by sharing it with your world. Until then…

In fact, these “success skills” are so different that it actually makes you angry to think about what else you could have done with that $100,000 you spent on college – like taking that 12 month world tour you’ve always dreamed about.

Think about it…was Advanced English useful? No, not if you’re a copywriter. In fact, many writers have to be re-trained to write at an 8^th grade level. That’s right…write dumber so people can understand your message! How about Finance…was that useful? Maybe a bit, but it’s nothing you couldn’t have picked up after reading a few decent books. Computer classes? Hell no. You can learn much more from surfing the net and educating yourself than going to class. The truth is, knowledge you acquired in school is not very useful in the real world, at least not on a day-to-day basis.

I became acutely aware of this during my first job at Goldman Sachs. Nothing I studied for the prior 4 years was even remotely useful in that job. It made me wonder what the point of college was. But I digress…

You see, it wasn’t until after I started working that my real education began. As I looked around me, I started to see a knowledge gap – there was a big difference between what it took to be successful in school and what it took to be successful in the real world.

And as my career progressed from Goldman Sachs to a hedge fund, I became more and more convinced about the presence of this knowledge gap. It was inescapable – those who deleted their mental hard drives and forgot all about “getting an A” and instead focused on acquiring “real world” skills were promoted faster, got higher pay, and were happier at work.

As I transitioned from hedge fund analyst to entrepreneur I thought to myself, “How can students benefit from this insight? How can we fill this knowledge gap so that recent graduates can become more successful, earlier in their career?”

And so began the construction of TAG’s Mentorship Program …

TAG’s Mentorship Program is a course in Real World Insight (notice the similarity with the name of this blog?). Not only do students get matched with a professional in their dream company (yes, whatever company they are interested in working for), but they are meeting and discussing topics that are essential to career success. It’s basically an entire relationship designed to help students conquer the “Knowledge Gap” and become more successful professionals.

So, what is this “Knowledge Gap” that students conquer with TAG? Glad you asked…

There are twelve categories of knowledge that students aren’t acquiring in most institutions of higher education (each of these topics is part of TAG’s renowned Mentorship Program curriculum). Without further adieu, here is the “Knowledge Gap” that separates academic success from professional success:

How to network intelligently

Your network is the key to success, in business and in life. Networking the right way – TAG’s way – can mean the difference between achieving your career dreams or working in a dreadful 9 to 5, counting each miserable second until retirement.

How to become more productive and efficient

We all have 24 hours in a day. So why do some people achieve so much, while others seemingly so little? Much of it has to do with productivity and efficiency. If you can learn to master these skills, you’ll gain a competitive edge.

How to sell

You are a product. Companies “shop” for you. If they like you, they’ll “buy” you through a job offer. Knowing how to sell – even if you don’t want a job in sales – is a critical skill that will pay dividends throughout your career.

How to set actionable goals and achieve them

You wouldn’t think this is a skill, but it is. How many of your past five New Year’s Resolutions have you stuck with? Can you name the last goal you achieved? There’s a reason a lot of us have trouble achieving our goals, and TAG’s Program helps answer why.

How to make a great first impression

Think about the power of a great first impression…it can alter the course of an entire relationship. Unfortunately, too many people are not confident when meeting someone new because they never know what to say. If you had the firepower to make an amazing first impression, how different would your life be?

How to market yourself

Personal branding is all the rage. But do you know how to boost your credibility – both on- and off-line? Self-promotion, if done the right way, can lead to fantastic and unexpected opportunities.

How to perform masterfully in an interview

It takes something special to stand out from the 30 other interviewees vying for the job. So how do you do it? TAG’s Program teaches you what your University never did – the skills you need to ace every interview from now until the end of your career.

How to deliver a power presentation

In tests to determine what is most feared among adults, speaking in public ranks first, outstripping the fear of height, snakes and even death. But what if I told you there really is nothing to fear? If you were armed with the right knowledge – the knowledge gained in TAG’s Program – you’d have the clarity of mind you need to deliver a power presentation.

How to conduct primary research

What if you could utilize the same research methods as those used by analysts in the hedge fund world – do you think you would have an advantage when it comes time to interview? These methods – the methods practiced by TAG students – are the key to gaining insight that will blow away your competition.

How to make critical assessments

In school, you’re taught to accept what’s written as fact. But in the real world, these “facts” are sometimes built on ridiculous assumptions (remember the housing bubble?). Recognizing the difference and being able to make critical assessments will put you on the road to becoming an expert in your field.

How to read financial statements

Understanding financial statements is more than just knowing how to read numbers. The most important element is understanding the interplay between a person’s job and a company’s financial results. This uncommon knowledge is the Holy Grail for those looking to rise through the ranks and lead an organization.

How to be successful in life

What is success to you? While some people have devoted a lifetime to understanding what makes people happy and successful, others have never even considered the question. In the final session of TAG’s Mentorship Program, students take a closer look at what it means to be successful and learn how to reach their maximum professional potential.

If you can conquer these twelve knowledge areas – just as TAG students have – you will be in control of your own career. And that’s the greatest position one can ever hope to be in.

What do you think? Are there any “Knowledge Gap” areas I missed? Let me know!

But there is another benefit to having a great network: it increases your productivity, particularly when it comes to in-person networks.

A recent MIT study found that in one organization the employees with the most extensive personal digital networks were 7% more productive then their colleagues—so wikis and Web 2.0 tools may indeed improve productivity.

In the same organization, however, the employees with the most cohesive face-to-face networks were 30% more productive. Electronic tools may well be suited to information discovery, but face-to-face communication, an oft-neglected part of the management process, best supports information integration.

Let me repeat: Employees with the most cohesive face-to-face networks were 30% more productive.

So, if you want to increase your productivity (which leads to better jobs, better pay, and a better life), start networking!

Chris Brogan recently asked a brilliant question. Actually, he asked 5 brilliant questions:

1. How could new ideas change education?
2. How can younger generations learn from the body of work of their successors?
3. How can we marry up all the great resources of people who know something great to those of us who could stand to learn more?
4. How can I help those of us who lived in the cubicle farms, and what can I do to share that information in a way that will empower others?
5. How can we equip our youth and/or our students and/or our business professionals?

Each of these questions dances around a singular issue: Today’s learning models are inadequate.

This message is similar to one Charlie O’Donnell has been spreading: “Structures for industry specific learning, particularly when it comes from learning from the accumulated wisdom of successful and experienced professionals, is horribly inefficient.”

So, we’ve got two really smart guys highlighting the exact same issue. Could this spell business opportunity? Methinks so…

Note: What you are about to read is a radically different idea. This idea serves as the backbone for my company, a provider of real world education services.

You see, a new model for education is quietly emerging. One fully endorsed – and championed – by my company. This new model definitively solves Chris Brogan’s riddles and answers Charlie O’Donnell’s call by establishing an efficient structure for industry specific learning.

A new idea that will change education

Before unveiling this new education model, we must first review its foundational principles. If these assumptions were to prove false, then the model would fall apart:

• Individual, customized learning is better than a generic, one size fits all approach.
• Adults learn best when they are involved in the diagnosing, planning, implementing, and evaluating of their own learning.
• Life’s reservoir of “experience” is a primary learning resource; the life experiences of others enrich the learning process.
• Distributed learning (learning which occurs over time) is a more efficient learning method than massed learning because it allows for absorption and understanding (note: massed learning is also known as cramming).
• If provided the right tools, anyone can be an educator.
  Note: This is the most critical principle of this new education model. The current model has built invisible barriers of entry around the teaching profession – barriers like certification and credential requirements. This new model assumes no barriers to becoming an educator. This assumption is borne from Malcolm Gladwell’s mismatch hypothesis. He explains:

There is no difference between the performance of credentialed teachers and non-credentialed teachers when it comes to increasing student performance. Whether you have a Master’s Degree or not, whether you scored 1400 on your SAT or 1200 on your SAT, it makes absolutely no difference in how you perform at the task of relating to and teaching kids.

…

In the name of trying to make a better decision, we’re spending all this money and spending all this time and none of it is having any effect. In fact, we are doing the very thing that actually defeats the cause of finding better teachers. We’re narrowing – what we should be doing is broadening the pool as much as possible – to find as many of these people with this ineffable, elusive gift called “being a good teacher” but instead what we do is narrow the pool.

Founded on the above tenants, the centerpiece for this new education model is the idea of mentorship. Not traditional Boys & Girls Club mentorship, but a radically new kind of mentorship. One that requires accountability, elicits insightful knowledge sharing and helps build deep relationships.

This new education model re-envisions mentorship and calls for real world professionals to become the new class of educators.

How does this model work?

This new model is brilliant in its simplicity. Professionals are given a curriculum – one that facilitates real conversation and real-world knowledge transfer. Students are matched to a professional in their chosen career field (each professional is screened on multiple levels). The pair meets (either in person or via phone) and builds a relationship around the given curriculum. Each side records his / her thoughts following every meeting, and reports relationship progress intermittently. In the event of negative feedback, Mentors are replaced, ensuring only the best “teachers” remain.

Now, for this model to work, an incentive structure must exist. Why? To ensure engagement from both the student and the professional. In this model, students pay the curriculum provider and the curriculum provider pays its Mentors (Professionals) for their time.

Over time, the curriculum provider becomes much smarter about each professional on its platform. And it tests and molds its curriculum based on community feedback. As time passes, the system gets better!

What is required to make this model successful?

For this model to be successful, three things are required:

1. A renowned curriculum that guides each relationship.
2. Students that understand the importance of professional relationships in the context of their career (and are willing to pay for these relationships).
3. Industry professionals that are willing to offer insight and perspective in exchange for monetary compensation.

Why will this model work so well?

This model recognizes the biggest flaw of our current resource constrained model: the number of educators for each student (the student:teacher ratio is one of the keys to delivering quality education). This new education model leverages industry professionals as its force multiplier to dramatically increase the effectiveness and delivery of education. This market-based approach is unlike anything that exists today.

Will this new model work? It already does.

P.S. Thoughts? Please join the conversation!

The timing of this idea, coupled with the credibility of its protagonist, could finally be the catalyst for positive change within career services departments everywhere. Side note: I am not the first to believe that change is desperately needed…

Our situation is not unlike General Motors in that our profession has been operating on an outdated model which doesn’t necessarily speak to what consumers are looking for. Or how jobs get filled. The one size fits all approach definitely has seen its day.

~ Skip Sturman, Director, Dartmouth Career Services

So, what is this “radical idea?” Put simply,

In 2005, Accenture teamed up with Robert Cross from the University of Virginia and Thomas Davenport at Babson College to answer an important question:

What distinguishes the top performers from everyone else?

What they found is insightful. Their research suggests that the strongest performers share three distinguishing characteristics:

1. A capacity to learn from experience effectively and efficiently
2. Large and diverse personal networks, and a dedication to developing them
3. Access to fluid and customized information environments

At this point, you’re probably thinking, “Great, so what does this mean for me?” Well…

• Do you have access to the experiential knowledge you need to become a top performer?
• Do you have access to a large and diverse professional network?
• Can you tap into trusted sources for personalized information?

If not, then how will you ever stand out from the other white sheep? Hint: TAG is here to help you.

P.S. Want to get more info on how you can become a top performer? Click here.

But relevant to you – and to TAG – is his answer to the question, “How do venture firms hire?”

His response is illuminating. Fast-forward to 51:25 to hear it for yourself.

Tell everyone you’re not hiring. Then, when you do want to hire someone, ask your employees, “Do you know anyone?” and you literally hire someone that’s a friend of somebody who’s already at the firm. So almost everyone in our firm pivoted off of somebody else that we knew.

Note: this is known as the homophily bias in recruiting (the tendency for like individuals to group together). Guess what?

This problem exists everywhere! Life is about who you know.

Do you have the right connections to break into venture capital?

TAG can help you.

6 out of 10 students replied without hesitation: YES.

6 out of 10 are taking Ritalin, Adderall or some other nootropic. That is a remarkably high percentage. And it begs the question: Should it be okay for students to use a drug that gives them a mental and stamina advantage? Should “doping tests” be performed on college students as they are on Olympic athletes?

One thing is certain: If these tests did happen, many of the top academic performers would be stripped of their A’s.

P.S. I never took “study pills” while at UF, but I am curious about this little wonder pill.

P.P.S. Don’t do drugs. Don’t shoplift!

“Hi, my name is Jon and I let the numbers do the talking.  What’s yours?”

Terrible, I know.

But it gives you insight into how I think: I apply an analytical framework to everything I do.  This mindset applies double to my startup.  So when I was asked recently about why I decided to leave a high-paying hedge fund job to bootstrap a startup, I was taken by surprise.

To the uninformed, this decision seems like lunacy.  But to me, the decision was a no brainer.  How can there be such an amazing contrast in viewpoints?  How can one see lunacy while another sees conviction?

The answer lies in logic…

CONVICTION COMES FROM RESEARCH.

The truth is, you can only have strong conviction about something if you have done a tremendous amount of research.  This “deep dive” approach allows you to frame your thoughts, carefully develop your ideas and create a roadmap for success.  This is what gave me the conviction to leave the cush-cush hedge fund world I was in and launch TAG.

The truth is…

TAG’S BUSINESS MODEL HAS BEEN BUILT ATOP MOUNTAINS OF RESEARCH.

Not only Mark Granovetter’s, but many others’.  To offer up a slice of insight…

1.  Why is networking so valuable?

• People that actively network earn more money.
• They also perform better.

2.  What are the benefits of mentorship – to both students and professionals?

• Mentored individuals reported having more satisfaction, career mobility/opportunity, recognition and a higher promotion rate than non-mentored individuals.
• Mentored individuals achieve higher levels of career success.
• Mentors – and proteges alike – earn more money, have higher retention rates, and are 6 times more likely to get promoted.

3.  What are the benefits to employers – why partner with TAG?

• For most entry-level positions, employers don’t really know who they’re hiring. The cost of a mis-hire can be astronomical.  TAG relationships offer insight into candidates that the typical interview screening process could never match. Finally you will know who you are hiring!
• Mentorship provides better performance management, and helps organizations develop critical skills and behaviors. It is also a great tool for leadership development.

4.  What are the benefits to universities?  The compelling case for colleges…

• While tuition costs continue to skyrocket, students are beginning to measure the return on their education.  Can the case be made against your school?
• Alumni that make more money donate more to their alma mater.  Helping students land great jobs will increase alumni donations.

5.  Why is the timing of TAG’s venture so perfect?

• The cyclical [short-term] trends highlight the need for TAG’s services.  The numbers speak for themselves.
• The secular [long-term] trends also point to one irrefutable conclusion: TAG’s services will be in high demand as we continue to transition to a knowledge-based economy.

After all this research, I became convinced of the viability of TAG’s business model.  I felt that if TAG could add value across the constituent chain – from Students to Professionals and from Employers to Colleges – just as the above research suggests, then it could be a really valuable idea.  And it was only then – after this small mountain of research was combed through – that I graduated from lunacy to conviction.

So, what’s the real point here?  The point is this:

IF YOU WANT TO CROSS THE CHASM FROM LUNACY TO CONVICTION – JUST AS I DID – DO YOUR RESEARCH.  EVERYTHING ELSE WILL FLOW NATURALLY FROM THERE.

In an earlier post, I mentioned the vicious cycle.  This idea is also mentioned on my website.  And I mention it every time I speak about TAG.  Why is the concept of the vicious cycle so important to me?

Because I know someone – someone very close to me – that is caught up in the vicious cycle right now.  Let me tell you a story about my brother…

My brother was the kind of guy that never had a career plan.  He was always much more focused on enjoying the moment – he was perfectly happy “just getting by”.  Until graduation day came.

I don’t remember much of that day, but I do remember one brief moment we shared at his celebration dinner.  As our glasses were raised and he was receiving his “we’re proud of you” speech, he leaned over and whispered to me, “What the hell am I going to do now?”

I told him, “Don’t worry, it will all work out” or something brotherly like that….

Three years have passed since that date.  His first 6 months were rough…he searched around aimlessly for something – anything – that would be considered a “good job”.  Desperate and out of funds, he took a job at a temp agency, finally landing a full-time data entry job.  He entered D-A-T-A for two and a half years.  And his life was miserable.

And now, he’s back in school, getting his masters.  Why?  Because he’s trying to break the vicious cycle.

What is this vicious cycle?  Well, it goes something like this:

• Don’t get a great job out of school
• Toil in a second-rate job for 3 years
• Your background is now no longer a good “fit” for employers
• Go to less-than-top-tier business school with hopes of resetting your career direction
• Your education and experience now confirm you will never be the right “fit” for your dream job
• Repeat the gut-wrenching process until retirement

From missed income to lost opportunity, a wrong first career step has a compounding effect that will cost you a fortune.  My brother is one of many to learn first-hand the lesson of the vicious cycle.

He is now getting his masters.  Hopefully, he will be one of the lucky ones that can manage to break away…

And now that you know why the vicious cycle is so important to me, I ask you: do you have the knowledge and network to avoid the same fate as my brother?

So, why should you care about me, my company and this blog?

If you’re working in the career you’ve always wanted, earning a salary that pays for the lifestyle you so ardently desire, than you will not find much value in this community.  You can choose to “not give a damn.”

But if you – like so many others – are still struggling to land your dream job or desperately trying to claw your way out of the vicious cycle, then listen up:

YOU SHOULD CARE BECAUSE YOUR CAREER DREAMS ARE AT STAKE.

What do I mean by that?  Well, we are all witness to two Herculean forces that are permanently changing the employment landscape:

1.  Increasing Competition

• From 1985 to 2008 the number of workers with undergraduate degrees has increased nearly 50%.

2.  Decreasing Employment Opportunities

• Outsourcing / Offshoring of jobs
• Dreadful hiring environment; unemployment in the double digits

THESE TWO FORCES ARE THE THIEVES OF YOUR CAREER DREAMS.

You see, never before has there been so much competition for the job you want.  And never before have there been so few opportunities available.  It’s as if two giant walls are moving in on you, crushing you from both sides.

So, how do you escape?  How do you fight back?  Well, that’s why I’m here – to help you solve the career success equation and fulfill your career dreams.

So, come along.  Take a look around and if you like what you see, please join the conversation.