Chan with a Plan

How to Know When It’s Time to Move On: 5 Signs You Should Quit Your Job

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max discusses when it might be time to quit your job. Key points he discusses in this episode are the signs you should quit your job and how staying in a bad job can hurt your health and relationships.
TIMESTAMPS
[00:39] Time to quit your job
[01:03] Toxic work environment
[01:44] Toxic work environments can cause negative health issues.
[02:34] Ways to tell if you’re underpaid
[03:10] Work-life balance
[04:52] Lack of growth opportunities
[05:27] Are you being led on about promotions?
[06:09] Misaligned values
[07:12] Summary
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media

No Tech Experience, No Problem: How To Break Into Tech By Leveraging Your Existing Skills

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max Speaks with Priya Sam, keynote speaker, executive presentation coach & keynote consultant and podcast host.In this conversation, Priya discusses how she made a career change from journalism into tech consulting and how she was able to leverage her existing skills in journalism and public speaking to make that leap. 
QUOTES FROM PRIYA
“I've talked to dozens of people. I applied for dozens of jobs. I mean, this one felt like the right fit, but I think so many things need to fall into place. You know, it's like you need the right fit. You need someone who's willing to take a chance on someone with a different background.”
“I found that really being vulnerable with the people around me, as hard as it was sometimes it was so helpful because on the times when I didn't ask for help, that's when it took me so much longer to figure something out.”
“The other thing that helps is just practicing in front of your family, in front of your friends, just record yourself. Watch yourself back, look at things or listen for words that maybe are your crutch words that you repeat over and over again. Those are things that I think can be really helpful as you're getting started.”
 
TIMESTAMPS
[01:04] Priya’s journey
[02:45] Getting over the fear of speaking
[03:57] Recommendations to be a better speaker
[07:38] Getting into show business
[11:17] Making sacrifices without burning out
[16:40] Taking steps to get into tech
[22:52] Finding the right transferable skills
[24:46] Trials and tribulations of journalism
[31:41] Finding transferable skills for tech
[32:56] Starting a podcast
[35:38] One big career challenge for Priya
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Priya Sam on Social Media:Website
LinkedIn
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media

How to Deal with Rejection in Your Job Search: Tips and Strategies for Moving Forward

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max discusses the pain of job search rejections. Key points he discusses in this episode are the reasons you might get rejected, feelings that come after getting rejected, and how to overcome them.
TIMESTAMPS
[00:57] Reasons you might get rejected.
[02:55] Feelings that come after getting rejected.
[04:24] How to move forward from job search rejection.
[04:34] Staying positive.
[04:42] Stay active and engage in your job search.
[04:57] Ask for a second opinion.
[05:37] Talk to someone about your feelings.
[06:34] Summary
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media

Creating a Life You Love: Tips for Finding Career Happiness

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max Speaks with Steph Shinabery, CEO of Genius Code Academy. In this conversation Steph discusses changing careers even if you’re older and when is the right time to go all in on your dream career.
QUOTES FROM STEPH
“But say you're kind of like still the solopreneur. You're doing a lot of, maybe you have a little bit of a team. How can you maybe decrease your profits for a shorter period of time to figure out what it is that you really want to do?”
“It's figuring out how to close that gap between the nine to five and this. Some people have a big nest egg and they're like, okay, I'm just going to go through my nest egg and I'm going to do the entrepreneurial idea and then if it doesn't work, then I'll go back to the nine to five. It’s not a one size fits all.”
“When your alarm clock goes off in the morning am I excited to get out of bed or am I just hitting the alarm clock full of dreads. If you are dreading it, it's time to have like a self-assessment of like, what can I do differently?”
 
TIMESTAMPS
[03:42] Making the move and starting over in your career
[05:59] Finding career clarity
[08:23] Age and career change
[12:02] Conversations about career change with parents
[16:39] Navigating a 9-5 & entrepreneurial journey
[18:59] Worrying about money loss
[25:28] Deciding to make a career move
[30:07] The X Factor
[34:40] Action item to change career trajectory
[39:12] Having curiosity and a mindset to lean into your passions
[40:36] One big career challenge for Steph
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Steph Shinabery on Social Media:Facebook
LinkedIn
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media

5 Resume Mistakes That Could Cost You Your Dream Job And Derail Your Career

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max discusses 5 common resume mistakes. Key points he discusses in this episode are the 5 common mistakes people make on resumes, how to write a summary correctly, and bad formatting practices.
TIMESTAMPS
[00:40] Your resume is the snapshot into your whole career
[01:20] Don’t put your education above experience
[01:55] Listing a bunch of job duties can hurt your resume and why
[03:19] Highlight more than generic soft skills
[04:14] Review the job advertisement
[04:30] Make sure you have a career summary
[06:20] Bad resume structure
[07:55] Summary
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media

What to do after your job offer is withdrawn

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max Speaks with Colleen Paulson, a career consultant with her business Colleen Paulson Consulting. In this conversation, Colleen discusses what happens when a job offer gets rescinded and how you can recover from it happening.
QUOTES FROM COLLEEN
“It's getting in the mindset that just because this didn't work out for you, it has nothing to do with your abilities. You know, you shouldn't let it shake your confidence once they take it personally, even though it has nothing to do with their ability.” - Colleen Paulson
“Try to make friends with some recruiters on LinkedIn and really be honest about the situation that you find yourself in. Again, you don't need to hide that information. It's nothing to be embarrassed about, but you want to be proactive about reaching out to folks.” - Colleen Paulson
“You need to be really careful in your resume. It is a marketing document, but when you are giving that to a company, you're saying that this is true.” - Colleen Paulson
 
TIMESTAMPS
[01:17] Is getting your job offer rescinded common?
[02:41] Negotiating for a later offer
[03:50] Risking job hopping
[07:37] Addressing employment gaps
[11:00] Economic climate and risk of rescinded offers
[12:40] Seeking out lawyers
[14:32] Getting back on your feet quickly
[18:01] Spelling out the work you’ve done
[20:53] Improving your chances of landing your next job
[24:10] Good industries for career pivots
[27:59] AI and Careers
[29:34] Engineering to Career Coaching
[33:14] Colleen’s big career challenge
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Colleen Paulson on Social Media:LinkedIn
Colleen Paulson Consulting
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media

Your Career Roadmap: How To Answer The Job Interview Question Where Do You See Yourself In 5 Years

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max discusses how to answer the question “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” Key points he discusses in this episode are how to prepare for this question and how to craft an answer that will help you stand out.
TIMESTAMPS
[01:03] Companies want to know your long term goals 
[01:13] Your answer shows your commitment level
[01:25] How you answer also helps the company plan
[02:32] Don’t be vague or non-committal
[02:46] Being unrealistic and overly ambitious is bad
[03:02] Don’t be self-centered
[03:16] Align with the company’s mission
[03:34] Breaking down the structure of the best answer
[03:37] Show how there is alignment
[03:41] How will you make a positive impact
[03:55] Highlight your professional development roadmap
[04:12] Template for your response to this question
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media

Navigating Heartbreak: Coping with Unexpected Career News

EPISODE SUMMARY
In this episode of Chan with a Plan, Max Speaks with Liz St. Jean, founder of The Mint Ambition, a website in growing leadership skills and advancing careers. In this conversation Liz discusses overcoming obstacles, navigating layoffs, and her 3 question framework to handle gut-wrenching news.
QUOTES
“I do hard work. I should be rewarded for it. And sometimes that can really trip us up because to move into a supervisory position or a management position, it's not about doing good work of what you're doing at the individual level. Like it's a whole new role.” – Liz St. Jean
“The foundation piece is like being kind to ourselves, giving ourselves that space and the grace and the compassion to essentially feel the feels.” – Liz St. Jean
“We all love to do it. And one of the challenges with advice is that most of the time we're giving advice from our experience and our lens and our life and our personality and how we would approach things. And that may or may not be helpful for the other person.” – Liz St. Jean
 
TIMESTAMPS
[00:50] Liz St. Jean and Mint Ambition
[04:17] Coping with gut-wrenching news
[07:15] Clearing your mind
[08:45] Having a support network
[10:16] Venting and listening well
[13:58] Getting the right advice at the right time
[15:33] Speeding up the healing process
[17:15] 3 question framework for gut-wrenching news
[21:51] Real life scenario for the framework
[26:12] Giving yourself enough time vs procrastinating moving on
[30:23] Getting passed up for promotions
[33:02] Not just about working hard
[34:34] 3 question framework during job hunting
[39:34] Creating the framework and using it herself
[42:18] Liz’s big career challenge and how she overcame it
 
RESOURCES & RELEVANT LINKS
Liz St Jean on Social Media:LinkedIn
Mint Ambition
Chan With A Plan
Max Chan on Social Media