I Like to Move It Move It...

Bored? Tired? Not sure of your direction? Need advice?

Want to meet other professionals in the logistics and supply chain industry?

Want to develop and improve your leadership, communication, and team building skills?

All of these things can be yours today for the low, low price of TIME.

Opportunities abound for those who want to get involved in the logistics/supply chain industry. Investing your time to participate in industry events whether on the national, regional or local level will pay off. You’ll build relationships, guide and provide direction to how the industry thinks about different topics, especially those you’re passionate about.

Working with a committee for a national professional organization like American Society of Transportation and Logistics, Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals and the Warehousing Education and Research Council are great ways to gain practical experience that your job may not provide.

CSCMP is looking for young professionals to join its Young Professionals Committee. This is a great opportunity for your voice to be heard.

WERCouncils near you are looking for young professionals. You can help plan programs, facilitate meetings or tours and interact with leaders in the industry.

Just don’t forget to Move it!

I’d love your feedback – and would love your help in sharing questions and comments about being a young professional. If you have a question, comment or feedback, please send me an email to [email protected].  The blog on the last Wednesday of each month will be a question and answer session from those that I receive from you, my audience. If I use your question, I will send you a free copy of a book mentioned in that month’s posts. 

Image: Getting started by _Pixelmaniac_ via Flickr

RU CAAC DITR w/ a *$ Frapp?

Probably not if your palms start to sweat, the lights blind you and you stumble through your presentation. You’re trying to motivate your audience into action, persuade them to accept your position and create buy-in for the next steps in the plan. At the conclusion, crickets and pin drops can be heard.

Communicating – whether presenting at a conference, writing an article, sending an email to a client – may well be the first impression of you for many people.  It is important to really nail it the first time.

First we have to like, present, you know, a professional image of like ourselves. A great you know, example is like Lady Gaga. Consider this video of her from an early 2009 interview with Yahoo! Compare her tone of voice, inflections and accent to this interview in March 2012 with Oprah. Did you notice the difference?

Ensure your emails send a clear picture that you care. Read through your emails a few times out loud to make sure you don’t miss any gaffes. A couple of recent examples range from Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s app misspelling America, the University of Texas misspelling of Public on commencement programs and the word “kindle” being Nook’d from Tolstoy’s War and Peace.

Don’t use shorthand to convey important information, even when texting or tweeting! Our attention spans are constantly being shortened by the discombobulated assortment of information coming at us from all sides and the need to interpret all of it.  

Clear and accurate communication skills are vital in this fast-paced, multiple app and portal world, even more so as we move up the career ladder. Adrian Gonzalez has it right in his post on Logistics Viewpoints. As future supply chain leaders, we need the ability to motivate our peers towards a common vision, persuade upper management, and to create buy-in from our partners in the supply chain—our customers and suppliers. 

Here are a few ways to start improving your skills:

• Look for opportunities to present in front of senior leadership
• Talk with your mentor about writing an article or two
• Submit proposals to present at industry conferences
• Become a Toastmaster
• Ask former professors if you can speak to their classes about your current job

Working to improve our verbal and written communication skills is not difficult – it simply takes awareness and practice.

BTW, if you’re still struggling to translate the title you probably aren’t cool as a cucumber dancing in the rain with a Starbucks Frappuccino.

I’d love your feedback – and would love your help in sharing questions and comments about being a young professional. If you have a question, comment or feedback, please send me an email to [email protected].  The blog on the last Wednesday of each month will be a question and answer session from those that I receive from you, my audience. If I use your question, I will send you a free copy of a book mentioned in that month’s posts. 

 

Image: Modern Communication 03 by ChrisM70 via Flickr