Check back soon
Once posts are published, you’ll see them here.
top of page
Welcome to the official website for The Career Playbook: Essential Advice for Today’s Aspiring Young Professional.
We hope this will be a valuable resource for students and new graduates seeking to land, launch and navigate their best possible careers.
I Hate My Boss
S1E1: Fear, Change, and Six Glasses of Rose
April 4, 2017
Liz and Larry introduce Penn & Pencil, our fictional ad agency whose characters will sound too familiar. Lisa, the CEO, believes fear is a powerful motivator. Do you? Does your boss? When the company goes through a significant change, everybody starts reevaluating their priorities and loyalties. How should you deal with change? Prominent headhunter and author Jim Citrin of Spencer Stuart has some answers.
Quick Links
Buy the Book
Buy the Book
The Parent's Guide to The Career Playbook: What Every Parent of a Graduate or Graduating Student Needs to Know
​
Do you want to help your college-age children and students find the right job, achieve career success, and live the life they want to lead?
Download this free, 43-page guide with exclusive advice for parents, educators, and career services professionals.
Forget Coding - Here's The Skill You Need Most When You Start Your Career
February 7, 2017
Lars Schmidt| Fast Company
Your technical chops may not give you the edge when you're new to the workforce, but this might.
12 Rules for New Grads
May 31, 2013
Michael D. Watkins | HBR
Twelve key pieces of advice — “rules” if you will — for getting off to a good start in one’s career.
Focusing on Specific Skills Is Not Enough. Here's What You Also Need.
January 31, 2016
Sanyin Siang | LinkedIn Pulse
‪When looking at prospective team members, it's easy to think about them and the specific skills they have in a linear way - focusing solely on how their skills can immediately shore up the skills gaps on your team.
However, the marketplace is changing so fast that a coveted skill today can become an obsolete one in a few years. And a career outlook by many millennials towards jobs as transient rather than permanent, means that a filled skills gap can open up again in a few years.
[VIDEO] Connect@WES on the Road: Boston
December 8, 2015
Connect@WES | Wesleyan University
Connect@WES is an exclusive crash course on charting your professional future, featuring Wesleyan trustee Jim Citrin P’12, P’14, Leader, CEO Practice at Spencer Stuart and author of The Career Playbook, and Wesleyan Career Center Director Sharon Belden Castonguay.
The Greatest Career Advice of 2015
December 11, 2015
Devin Tomb | Levo League
As the new year approaches, take a look back at the 15 best gems of career advice of 2015 (via Levo League).
How to Come Back to Work After A Vacation Without Being Miserable
July 14, 2015
Laura Vanderkam | Fast Company
Vacations are great, but they exact a price. You come back to such a pile of work that you wonder if going away was worthwhile.
The answer is probably yes, but even so, there are ways to make re-entry less traumatic.
5 Things a Job Hunter Should Be Thankful for This Season
November 24, 2015
Arnie Fertig | U.S. News & World Report
Beyond the blessings of family, friends, parades, turkey, football and the beginning of Black Friday sales, there are five things for which job hunters should be especially appreciative.
How Do I Figure Out What's Even Out There?
October 19, 2015
James M. Citrin | Chegg.com
At the end of the Q&A there was a final question that nearly took the air out of the room...
[VIDEO SERIES] 1-2 Minute-Long Career Advice Videos
August 13, 2015
James Citrin | CommonReads
In this CommonReads video series, Jim Citrin offers advice on relationship-building, interviewing and more.
How to Use Your LinkedIn Profile to Power a Career Transition
July 20, 2015
Jane Heifetz | Harvard Business Review
How do we use LinkedIn to help change careers—to make sure we’re found by the right recruiters, hiring managers, colleagues—not ones from our past, but from our future careers?
3 Steps to Build Confidence as a First-Time Job Hunter
July 20, 2015
Amanda Abella | SALT
Don't let the job hunt scare you.
Your Career Needs Many Mentors, Not Just One
January 19, 2017
Dorie Clark | HBR
‪You'll learn more from a wider group of people.
Parents, here's what your college grad needs to know about landing a job.
April 18, 2016
James Citrin | The Today Show
‪For college grads going into the job hunt, there is good news: unemployment is down. There is also bad news: underemployment is up. So how do parents help their kids understand that the degree they worked so hard for may not necessarily be needed in their future job?
10 Questions You Should Never Ask In A Job Interview
January 12, 2016
Forbes.com | By Next Avenue
Career experts agree that asking questions during a job interview is the best way to determine whether the organization is the right fit for you. Questions are also a great way to show the employer that you’ve done your homework and that you’re enthusiastic about the job opportunity. However, they will only work to your advantage if they are the right questions.
Here are 10 questions you should never ask during a job interview. Keep in mind that asking bad questions might be worse than asking none at all.
7 New Year's Resolutions for Career Success in 2016
December 7, 2015
Adam Heitzman | Inc.com
‪With the new year quickly approaching, many of us are starting to reevaluate some life and career choices. New Years resolutions are a perfect way for us to focus on certain areas that we would like to improve on for the upcoming year.
Your Presentation Skills May Be Holding You Back
December 7, 2015
James M. Citrin | LinkedIn Influencer
‪Whether early in your career or as you rise towards the executive suite, it’s critical that you learn how to present well. Meetings and formal presentations are often the stage on which you make or break your reputation.
35 Things You Should Do for Your Career by the Time Your Turn 35
November 29, 2014
The Muse
When it comes to your career, there are some things that we do recommend getting started on sooner rather than later. Not because some all-knowing career god out there says you have to, but because you'll make your professional future — not to mention day-to-day work life — a whole lot easier.
Everything You Really Need to Know About Happiness: Meet Paul Dolan
November 14, 2015
James M. Citrin | LinkedIn Influencer
I think we are all on a never-ending quest to find ways to cope with being overwhelmed in today’s world Âwhen we just don’t have enough time to do the things we feel are important and get paralyzed and overwhelmed as a result.
Interviewing to Live, Living to Interview
October 10, 2015
James M. Citrin | LinkedIn Influencer
Whether you are interviewing for an internship, a public company CEO, or anything in between, the keys to effective interviewing are surprisingly the same...
[VIDEO] The Career Playbook for Young Professionals Event
August 25, 2015
IU Alumni Association
Watch as Jim Citrin, author of The Career Playbook: Essential Advice for Today's Aspiring Young Professional, engages a powerhouse panel made up of IU alumni in this thought provoking and solution-focused video on careers.
Your Kid Needs a Job, Now What?
August 13, 2015
James Citrin | LinkedIn Influencer
Do's and Don'ts for helping your kids with their careers.
[VIDEO] Author James Citrin Joins "Wake Up With Al"
August 3, 2015
Al Roker | The Weather Channel
James Citrin, author of The Career Playbook, joins WUWA with career advice.
Follow The Career Playbook
bottom of page