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Want A Successful Work Life? More Cowbell!

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Did you know that the More Cowbell sketch from Saturday Night Live is actually a powerful metaphor for a successful work life? Plus, it provides insight into the kind of people you need on your team, and what makes an effective team.

Everyone has at least one cowbell — it’s your unique, profitable talent people pay you for or your company’s unique offering. It’s something people have a fever for. When you discover it and give those people a ton of it, you gain success and happiness for both yourself and others. It’s a win-win.

A cowbell is simultaneously something you love doing and something other people really want as well. A cowbell creates joy for you and other people. It makes them yell for more. They can’t get enough.

Identifying Your Cowbell

America has changed immensely since the 1970s and 1980s. Entire categories of work have disappeared because of globalization. The Internet has created jobs that didn’t exist 20 years ago.

China seems to be the future, and America is losing steam. Throughout history, there has been a long line of primary world powers: Britain, Spain, Rome, and Greece, to name a few. Is it the fate of Americans to follow the British? What can Americans do that can’t be done better or cheaper elsewhere in the world? Not manufacturing. Perhaps not programming.

America still leads in some areas — the Internet, technology (more in software than in hardware), consumer goods, medicine (especially pharmaceutical), and entertainment. Some marketing is hard to outsource because it requires cultural and linguistic fluency. We are competitive in telecommunication, but other countries like Norway and Japan are at least as competent. And anything that can be more cheaply outsourced will either disappear from developed countries or at best become much less lucrative.

There are limited areas that offer job security for Americans. The people who earn this money will continue to finance the local support professions like construction, accounting, and food service.

The point here is this: As you identify your cowbell, consider whether it’s something the people in your country will be able to pay for.

Endangered Jobs to Avoid

These are jobs noted to be vulnerable to outsourcing: call-center operators, customer service and back-office jobs, information technology, accounting, architecture, advanced engineering design, news reporting, stock analysis, and some medical and legal services.

Relatively Safe Jobs To Take

Some jobs have a more stable prognosis in the States; maybe your cowbell fits well into one of these areas. Or, if you’re not sure about your cowbell, maybe you can develop one that caters to one of these job categories. Either way, it’s good to know that in America (until robots take over), there will always be:

  • Schools, teachers, janitors, bus drivers
  • Police, ambulance drivers, and firefighters
  • People working in the jails and in law enforcement
  • Nurses, doctors, medical technicians
  • Government jobs
  • Construction workers
  • Grocery workers
  • Garbage men

People to make robots and repair robots until we make robots that can make and repair robots.

The point is not all doom and gloom, but don’t be the person who was killed by the saber-toothed tiger because he didn’t want to face reality! Think about what your cowbell is, and try to make it one that can beat your competitors not only in America, but all around the world.

#TChat Wednesday

This post is adapted from “The Cowbell Principle: Career Advice On How To Get Your Dream Job And Make More Money,” co-authored by Brian Carter and Garrison Wynn. Brian and Garrison will be appearing on the #TChat Show Wednesday from 7-8 p.m. Eastern time.

photo credit: MoEaFaTi via photopin cc

Small Business the Bigger Picture: #TChat Preview

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Originally posted by Matt Charney, one of #TChat’s moderators, on MonsterThinking Blog

It’s hard to overstate the impact of small business, even by presidential proclamation, as Barack Obama kicked off National Small Business Week, declaring:

“From the family businesses that anchor Main Street to the high-tech startups that keep America on the cutting edge, small businesses are the backbone of our economy and the cornerstones of America’s promise.”

As Obama (or proxy) observed, it turns out Mom & Pop and VC babies share more in common than size; they share spirit, “the idea that if you have a good idea and are willing to work hard enough, you can succeed in our country.”

Every big company, Monster Worldwide included, started out with no more than the courage to turn an idea into action, passion into profit.  Proctor & Gamble, Kellogg, Ford, and a multitude of other global corporations, have rewarded those visionaries by turning their founders into, quite literally, household names.

Look at the NASCAR-esque list of sponsors for National Small Business Week, which might seem ironic until you consider that topping Fortune takes, well, fortune.  From Google (Page & Brin) to Sam’s Club (Walton) to Microsoft (that guy), these familiar corporate creation myths each began as any small business.

For many more millions of small business owners, and workers, who have dared to dream and injected so much sweat equity into their bottom line, that creation myth is still being created.   They might call themselves small businesses, or entrepreneurs, or start-ups, but our economy – and our jobs – depends on their growth.

So we just wanted to say thank you.

For those who have made it, or those who are starting out, growing an idea isn’t always easy.  That’s why tonight’s special National Small Business Week #TChat wants to turn conversation into innovation.

Join us on Twitter tonight at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT as we discuss the challenges – and opportunities – faced by entrepreneurs and their employees today.  We’ll also be highlighting some of the biggest ideas and trends in small business all week here at MonsterThinking during our National Small Business Week salute.

Here are the questions we’ll be discussing, along with some recommended reading to help inform, and inspire, your participation in tonight’s #TChat conversation: click here for more from MonsterThinking or check out the Monster for Employers Small Business Resources site.

#TChat Questions & Recommended Reading (5.17.11)

1. How do you define ‘small business?’  Is this the term we should be using?

Read: How To Scale Your Business To Billions In Revenue by Alyson Shontell

2. Would you prefer working for a small business or a big company?  Why?

Read: How To Make Your Small Company Culture Stand Out by Eric Herrenkohl

3. What role does talent play in small business success?  How can small businesses successfully compete with bigger companies in the ‘war for talent?’

Read: Six Ways To Maximize Your Small Business Hiring Advantage by Connie Blaszczyk

4. What are some of the biggest advantages of working for a small business employer?  Drawbacks?

Read: Bright Bulb Workers Get the Benjamins by Sal Iannuzzi

5. Do you think employers and recruiters value small business and big company experience differently?

Read: Why Are Hiring Managers Scared of Entrepreneurs? by David Mesicek

6. What should big business workers know about moving to a small company (and vice-versa)?

Read: How To Evaluate A Job at A Start-Up by Monster.com Career Advice Experts

7. What’s your best advice for someone thinking about starting a small business?  Any myths vs. realities?

Read: Is Starting Your Own Business the Answer? by Susan Bryant

Visit www.talentculture.com for more great information on #TChat; for more resources and advice for small businesses from Monster, click here.

Our Monster social media team supports the effort behind #TChat and its mission of sharing “ideas to help your business and your career accelerate – the right people, the right ideas, at the right time.”

We’ll be joining the conversation live every Tuesday night as co-hosts with Kevin Grossman and Meghan M. Biro from 8-9 PM E.T. via @monster_works and @MonsterWW. Hope to see you tonight at 8 PM ET for #TChat!