DC Flacks will celebrate a HAPPO Happy Hour this Tuesday at District Chop House in Downtown D.C. If you’re a communicator in the area, please join us! RSVP here.

ABOUT HAPPO

If you’re following social media and PR Twitters like Mike Schaffer, Robert French, Heather Huhman or Sarah Evans, you’ve likely read about HAPPO via the hashtag #HAPPO. It stands for Help a PR Pro Out, a brilliant concept that connects PR job seekers with employers looking for top talent.

Although folks are Tweeting gigs and using the hashtag daily, the real event is on Friday, February 19, from 10am-2pm CT, when some of the nation’s leading PR pros will Tweet job openings and help facilitate matches. Read More…

It’s been nearly five months since I moved from Nashville to D.C. to take on an extraordinary job opportunity. Though I miss my family and peeps terribly,  I couldn’t be happier.

Establishing the Team Newman D.C. Bureau has been an incredible experience for my career, my marriage and my faith.

Moving away is scary but, if done correctly and for the right gig, is totally worth it. Here’s what I tell folks to consider before they pull up stakes:

1. Provide and demand transparency in the interview process. Moving for a new gig is the equivalent of moving in with your significant other: your family will freak out, your friends will become nervous and protective, and you’ll find yourself half thrilled, half second-guessing yourself.  Take no chances. You must know what you are signing up for and your employer should, too.

Examples: If you are, say, a blogger and technology columnist back home and you have no intention to stop when you get this gig, make that clear.  If you approach your work with an eye for detail that is only achieved in an environment with little-to-no distraction, say so. If the most important signpost of your workplace productivity is your vision of an ideal office culture, give your interviewees the third degree until you know know the ins and outs of your potential office.

2. Have at least four months of savings in the bank. Relocating is freakin’ expensive. SERIOUSLY. Unless your employer is paying to relocate you, your family, dogs, cars, house and will pay for your temporary housing while you look for a new place to land, you will need at LEAST four months of reserves. This means everything from first and last month’s rent up front, four months of car payments, four months of groceries. If your employer is paying for your move, congrats! Now, you’ll only need THREE months of savings.

3. Reserve judgment until month three. Know this: you are going to dislike your job, be homesick and wonder what the heck you’ve gotten yourself into for the first three months. Be prepared to think you’ve made a mistake – relocating is scary stuff — but trust your gut and know this is a smart move.

Example: As a purposeful job-hopper, I have never once started a new gig that I didn’t spend the first three months wondering what I had done to myself. Without fail, I find a comfortable stride, friends and a feeling of productivity in month four. Everyone I talk to - when they stop and think about it - finds truth in this timing. I have no idea why.

What about you? Have you ever moved for a gig? (I’m looking at you: RA, Noodles, Mere) If so, do these hold true? Have I left something out?

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Ah, career advice. As much as I love giving it, I really love to hear it. I’m dork, I know. Sometimes it’s commonsense and rather pointless like “work hard” or “never give up.” But many times it makes you step back and access your situation. It makes you grateful for what you’ve got and/or passionate about what you could attain.

It’s even more fun when the advice is cool. Like this offering from career strategist J.T. O???Donnell, which points out that since the vast majority of new jobs are landed based on who you know, you should probably start caring about who you know and how they remember you.

To this point, O’Donnell asks if you are a marble-type or sponge-type employee and warns, “your answer will determine the quality, quantity & quickness of job offers you receive.”

So … are you a marble?

Marbles are people that as they progress through their careers, don???t take the time to connect with others and build meaningful professional relationships. While they maintain a shiny professional persona, they fail to gather any weight in the form of contacts and resources that can help them in the future.

Or are you a sponge?

Sponges are people who make it a point to connect and build relationships with managers, co-workers and clients. They see value in building a strong professional network by getting to know people on a deeper level. By acquiring and maintaining workplace connections, they build professional weight that they can leverage in the future.

Why does it matter?  Read O’Donnell’s explanation here. I can testify to the impact a first/only impression makes on your future. That dude you just stood next to at the Shelby County Imagination Library event may be your next boss. Just say’n.