{"id":5635,"date":"2016-06-19T06:32:27","date_gmt":"2016-06-19T10:32:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=5635"},"modified":"2016-06-19T13:25:34","modified_gmt":"2016-06-19T17:25:34","slug":"career-tip-that-i-live-by-every-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kerryhannon.com\/?p=5635","title":{"rendered":"Career Tip That I Live By Every Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"NextAvenue_logo\"<\/a>The eighth anniversary of my dad\u2019s passing was a few weeks ago. He pops into my mind almost every day, and with Father\u2019s Day approaching, I wanted to share my favorite career advice he gave me. (Previously, I\u2019ve written for Next Avenue about his five money lessons<\/a> that have guided me for decades.)<\/header>\n
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The most important tip about work that dad shared, which I follow daily, is to believe in myself and to take charge of my career. \u201cNo one else is going to do it for you,\u201d he liked to say.<\/p>\n

And the curious part is that this advice not only got me my first job, but a job at his favorite magazine.<\/p>\n

Read my column on FORBES<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

You took a risk on a kid from Pittsburgh with a photo album full of clips and a dream.<\/p>\n

When I was growing up, my dad loved Forbes. He read it before he went to bed and on weekends. At that time, I fancied becoming a journalist and even before I left for college, I swore to myself that I\u2019d land a job at Forbes one day.<\/p>\n

Applying to Work at Dad\u2019s Favorite Magazine<\/h3>\n
\"hannon-300x195\"<\/a>
John “Jack” Hannon, father of Kerry Hannon Credit: Photo courtesy of the author<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After graduating from Duke and amassing an eclectic portfolio of clips \u2014 writing about school board meetings for The Pittsburgh Press, small businesses for The Pittsburgh Business Times, marketing for Advertising Age and entertainment for Pittsburgh magazine \u2014 I screwed up the courage and applied to Forbes in 1985.<\/p>\n

I mailed my manila envelope to New York and followed up with a call to the editor in charge of hiring reporter\/researchers, Jean Briggs, saying I\u2019d be in New York the next week and asking if I could stop by for a meeting. Amazingly, she said yes.<\/p>\n

In truth, I had no plans to be in New York, nor did I have money to pay for a plane ticket. But this twentysomething had the courage and fearlessness that Dad had instilled.<\/p>\n

In shock, I called him at his engineering and consulting business office and told him my news. In a nanosecond, he bubbled: \u201cYou\u2019re going! I\u2019ll pay for the ticket and your hotel room.\u201d<\/p>\n

My Big Job Offer<\/h3>\n

During the interview, when Jean asked me why I wanted to work at Forbes, I blurted out that it was my dad\u2019s favorite publication. (I blush even writing that today.) Well, Jean didn\u2019t have a job for me that day. But six months later, she called and offered me one.<\/p>\n

Jean just died at 72 on May 26, after a battle with cancer. I was grateful to have been in New York the week before that and to have had the opportunity to thank her. \u201cYou changed my life,\u201d I told Jean. \u201cYou took a risk on a kid from Pittsburgh with a photo album full of clips and a dream.\u201d We both cried, and we smiled, as we wiped the tears way.<\/p>\n

Looking back on the start of my career, I dreamed big and took a risk. So did my Dad when he dropped me off in New York City and waved goodbye, then drove back to Pittsburgh, alone.<\/p>\n

Dad\u2019s Can-Do Philosophy<\/h3>\n

I\u2019ve continued to adopt dad\u2019s can-do philosophy throughout my career and he has often been my biggest supporter. Whenever I asked his counsel about a goal I had, he would always ask, \u201cHow can <\/em>you?\u201d even when others were telling me I couldn\u2019t. He never once doubted that I could.<\/p>\n

And then he and I would break the goal down into steps for making it happen. Dad always said \u201cyou have to dream\u201d to get somewhere. And sometimes that meant dreaming of a better job and work life. One time, when I wasn\u2019t loving my job<\/a>, he advised me to quit. Three days later, I did.<\/p>\n

I never looked back and am forever grateful for dad pushing me to follow my dream. Because of that, I started my own business as a freelance writer, with my ex-employer as one of my first clients. Since then, I\u2019ve also become an author of numerous books<\/a>, public speaker, and an authority on jobs for people over 50<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Thanks, Dad.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Kerry\"<\/p>\n

By Kerry Hannon<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>Money & Work Expert<\/span><\/p>\n

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