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CNN Live Today

Interview With Tory Johnson

Aired October 30, 2003 - 10:25   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Well these can be difficult times for anyone who is looking for a job. And when you're getting ready for that all important interview it's critical you present yourself in the best possible light.
Well women sometimes have a tougher time in singing their own praises than men. So joining me now with some advice on putting your best foot forward is Tory Johnson. She's the CEO of Women For Hire, a company dedicated to helping women get hired in corporate American. Good morning, Tory.

TORY JOHNSON, WOMEN FOR HIRE: Thanks for having me.

LIN: Some great advice. You've got some tips that I want to run through because when I read about this, I am in complete agreement. Even for successful women, it's very tough sometimes to do things. For example, we talked about promoting ourselves.

JOHNSON: That's right. Self-promotion is a critical element in not only getting a job but also getting any kind of promotion. or advancement once you have that job. And a lot of times we shy away from tooting our own horn because we don't want to come across being conceited or a braggart or a showoff.

LIN: We think our work speaks for itself.

JOHNSON: That's right. And it doesn't. You have to be able to articulate confidently your successes and just not talk about the previous responsibilities but point to the results that you have achieved. Point to the successes because results are what gets an employers attention.

LIN: How do you go about doing that?

JOHNSON: You have to have in a sense of confidence level. You have to be a willing participate in doing it. You have to be able to --sometimes it's as simple as taking a pad and writing down what you think some of the successes are. Looking at the responsibilities, seeing if...

LIN: When do you do it? Do you make an appointment and say I'd like to discuss some of the accomplishments I've had?

JOHNSON: If it's in the job search process, you're going to do that in all of your networking conversations, you're going to certainly do that in any interviews, you're going to do it in a resume even, you're going to do it in a cover letter. You want to make sure any communication related to the job search touts your successes.

LIN: All right. Networking then, taking care of your own personal relationships. How can they help you?

JOHNSON: Women are great as nurturing personal relationships, yet when it comes time to me making a phone call, Can you help me with the job search, can you help me with a promotion? That's what women tend to be shy about. We tend to not want to abuse personal relationships. We don't want to be seen as using somebody, so we sort of fend for ourselves.

Yet in the job search process 80 percent of jobs are being found through networking. That means you have to contact people from an alumni association, people from professional organizations. Have to go beyond the inner circle of the ten closest people.

LIN: What about negotiating the money?

JOHNSON: That's always the tough one because whether by nature or nurture a lot of women tend to shy away talking about money. Polite girls don't talk about money. We often take whatever is offered to us instead of saying here's what I deserve based on the research I have done. Based on what comparable industries and this geographic location pay.

The first step is being a will participant. Saying to yourself, I know it's not something that's necessarily comfortable, but I'm going to negotiate. I'm going to force myself to do it based on research and based on knowing what I deserve.

LIN: X amount of experience for x number of years...

(CROSSTALK)

JOHNSON: Here's what I'm going to bring to this position. Here's why you want to use always a business case to justify it. It's irrelevant what the rent or car payments are. You don't want to bring any of the personal stuff into the conversation. You want to be able to say based on my skills and experiences and the successes that I know I'm going to be able to contribute to you, here's what I deserve.

LIN: Do you hit the number right on the mark or do you try to go 10,000 above and negotiate?

JOHNSON: That's sort of a touchy thing. You never want to give a range that's too broad. Oven times when you give a range that is too broad you price yourself out. When you give a big range, they're going to go for the lower end. So it's important to do research. Talk to peers, that's why networking's really important so you get a sense of...

LIN: You touched on something very important for research. How do I know -- if I'm going for a vice president of marketing job, how do I know what other vice presidents of marketing make and their comparable experience? JOHNSON: First of all you're going to talk to your peers who have similar positions. It's why women have to feel comfortable about talking to each other about salaries. I shouldn't be afraid to tell you what I earn. You shouldn't be afraid to tell your peers what you can earn because it can only help each other.

There are also a lot of great resources. In our book, we have a lot of salary negotiation tips, a lot of resources like Salary.com. There are a lot of salary wizards on line that...

LIN: And you are holding some workshops.

JOHNSON: Yes, we hold career fair that are free for women throughout the country. In the next two weeks we have events in Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago, Washington D.C. It's a great opportunity to come to meet people on the front line of the hiring process and be able to practice the self-promotion and networking skills.

LIN: All right. Don't be shy.

JOHNSON: That's right, don't be shy.

LIN: Thank you very much, Tory Johnson.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired October 30, 2003 - 10:25   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Well these can be difficult times for anyone who is looking for a job. And when you're getting ready for that all important interview it's critical you present yourself in the best possible light.
Well women sometimes have a tougher time in singing their own praises than men. So joining me now with some advice on putting your best foot forward is Tory Johnson. She's the CEO of Women For Hire, a company dedicated to helping women get hired in corporate American. Good morning, Tory.

TORY JOHNSON, WOMEN FOR HIRE: Thanks for having me.

LIN: Some great advice. You've got some tips that I want to run through because when I read about this, I am in complete agreement. Even for successful women, it's very tough sometimes to do things. For example, we talked about promoting ourselves.

JOHNSON: That's right. Self-promotion is a critical element in not only getting a job but also getting any kind of promotion. or advancement once you have that job. And a lot of times we shy away from tooting our own horn because we don't want to come across being conceited or a braggart or a showoff.

LIN: We think our work speaks for itself.

JOHNSON: That's right. And it doesn't. You have to be able to articulate confidently your successes and just not talk about the previous responsibilities but point to the results that you have achieved. Point to the successes because results are what gets an employers attention.

LIN: How do you go about doing that?

JOHNSON: You have to have in a sense of confidence level. You have to be a willing participate in doing it. You have to be able to --sometimes it's as simple as taking a pad and writing down what you think some of the successes are. Looking at the responsibilities, seeing if...

LIN: When do you do it? Do you make an appointment and say I'd like to discuss some of the accomplishments I've had?

JOHNSON: If it's in the job search process, you're going to do that in all of your networking conversations, you're going to certainly do that in any interviews, you're going to do it in a resume even, you're going to do it in a cover letter. You want to make sure any communication related to the job search touts your successes.

LIN: All right. Networking then, taking care of your own personal relationships. How can they help you?

JOHNSON: Women are great as nurturing personal relationships, yet when it comes time to me making a phone call, Can you help me with the job search, can you help me with a promotion? That's what women tend to be shy about. We tend to not want to abuse personal relationships. We don't want to be seen as using somebody, so we sort of fend for ourselves.

Yet in the job search process 80 percent of jobs are being found through networking. That means you have to contact people from an alumni association, people from professional organizations. Have to go beyond the inner circle of the ten closest people.

LIN: What about negotiating the money?

JOHNSON: That's always the tough one because whether by nature or nurture a lot of women tend to shy away talking about money. Polite girls don't talk about money. We often take whatever is offered to us instead of saying here's what I deserve based on the research I have done. Based on what comparable industries and this geographic location pay.

The first step is being a will participant. Saying to yourself, I know it's not something that's necessarily comfortable, but I'm going to negotiate. I'm going to force myself to do it based on research and based on knowing what I deserve.

LIN: X amount of experience for x number of years...

(CROSSTALK)

JOHNSON: Here's what I'm going to bring to this position. Here's why you want to use always a business case to justify it. It's irrelevant what the rent or car payments are. You don't want to bring any of the personal stuff into the conversation. You want to be able to say based on my skills and experiences and the successes that I know I'm going to be able to contribute to you, here's what I deserve.

LIN: Do you hit the number right on the mark or do you try to go 10,000 above and negotiate?

JOHNSON: That's sort of a touchy thing. You never want to give a range that's too broad. Oven times when you give a range that is too broad you price yourself out. When you give a big range, they're going to go for the lower end. So it's important to do research. Talk to peers, that's why networking's really important so you get a sense of...

LIN: You touched on something very important for research. How do I know -- if I'm going for a vice president of marketing job, how do I know what other vice presidents of marketing make and their comparable experience? JOHNSON: First of all you're going to talk to your peers who have similar positions. It's why women have to feel comfortable about talking to each other about salaries. I shouldn't be afraid to tell you what I earn. You shouldn't be afraid to tell your peers what you can earn because it can only help each other.

There are also a lot of great resources. In our book, we have a lot of salary negotiation tips, a lot of resources like Salary.com. There are a lot of salary wizards on line that...

LIN: And you are holding some workshops.

JOHNSON: Yes, we hold career fair that are free for women throughout the country. In the next two weeks we have events in Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago, Washington D.C. It's a great opportunity to come to meet people on the front line of the hiring process and be able to practice the self-promotion and networking skills.

LIN: All right. Don't be shy.

JOHNSON: That's right, don't be shy.

LIN: Thank you very much, Tory Johnson.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com