These days, being a project manager is a completely different animal, isn’t it? Although tech-savvy and writing skills are required, they take time to implement with finesse. However, all six of these writing skills will help project managers produce better results for their clients and make tons of lucrative professional connections.
Related:How To Manage Without Being Mean (Is It Possible To Not Be Pushy?)
As you’ll see, these six writing skills pretty much cover the entire gambit, without actually sounding like an English or copywriting course. I'm going to stress this a few times: it’s about all personal relationships. Reaching your contractors and talking to them on their level increases the value of their work, their responses to criticism and deadlines, and it helps increase retention. Alright, let’s get to it.
1. The Ability To Cleanse Muddy Waters
When there are five tiers of contractors, all with different skill-sets, in three different time zones who all need to consistently know what’s going on, things can get mucked up something fierce! And in a hurry, too. Being able to break things down into bite-size bits is an especially welcomed talent.
Project managers need to be able to speak to web designers about design, copywriters about the copy, and business owners about the progress… all in terms and using language these people relate to.
2. The Ability To Stay Cool & On-Point
When crunch time approaches, or things are on the verge of falling apart, it takes talent to write tension-easing e-mails. Keeping in touch via social media networks is completely acceptable these days in most startups, and SMBs (small to medium-sized companies like Essay Tigers). Use it liberally. Why? Because it’s typically informal and you can socialize while talking business.
Always stay on point in a way that doesn’t feel stoogey. Don’t be a stickler. Stay cool, use lots of humorous wit and help contractors stay focused on the end-game.
3. The Ability To Not Come Across As A Nag
Some people require more hand-holding and encouragement than others. Maybe the graphic artist is being flaky. Maybe the brand designer hasn’t responded to e-mails in a couple days. Whatever the case is, project managers need to have the gift of gab which allows them to touch base often without coming across as a nag.
4. The Ability To Showcase The Vision, Not The Process
Being able to lift contractors above their own specific roles to see the bigger picture, or the vision, is a valuable trait. Always keep things upbeat by stating the good news first and focus on what’s working. Don’t be a downer. Don’t try and sell the fear of failure. Instead, seek to inspire, motivate, and enthuse people by showcasing the dream. What’s in it for the minions?
5. The Ability To Increase Retention Through Personable Writing
Retention is a big deal, even in the virtual realm of freelance contracting and team management. It takes time and man hours for recruiters to find and then screen/interview the right people for the job. The cooler the project manager, the lower the turnover rate’s going to be. Everything is contractual now.
Part of what it takes to get that amazing copywriter to stick around is the project manager’s ability to establish a relationship through positive feedback, clear and concise instructions, and easy to read messaging.
6. The Ability To Speak The Language Of Ideal Contractors
This is part and parcel to all the other skills we’ve mentioned. Being intense and formal just doesn’t work for the millennials or the freelancers. At least not the vast majority of them. They now have the liberty of working for who they want, when they want and however they want as long as the results are there. As long as they fulfill their contracts.
Set a good conversational tone with contractors. Don’t get straight to business. Think of it as a dinner meeting. First you sit and chit chat for a few minutes, order some drinks, chit chat some more and then maybe before the meal start talking business. Then you’ve got to get everything across quickly and using semantics they respond to. Remember, it’s about personal relationships.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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