A few months ago I posted some tips on the Care and Feeding of Your References and this month here are some more tips to get past your procrastination. May 4-8 is Update your References Week.
References are people that vouch for your work. Your boss is a key person, but not the only one. You work with many people who have valuable perspectives to help in your career.
Collect your references before you need them. Keep a list of references in the same file as your resume. It should include the person’s name, current title and contact information. Write one sentence describing your relationship like this: [Name] was my [manager, colleague, a vendor, etc.] at [where you knew them if different than their current place or if they are retired]. Don’t embellish, just the facts.
Keep your references up-to-date. You most likely have references from work you’ve done in the past. Too often we lose track of where they are now – and they lose track of you! Reach out via your social media of choice to stay in touch. Be genuinely interested in what they are doing and let them know in one sentence what you are now doing and looking to doing next.
Ask for 2-3 testimonials each year from a variety of potential references. You’ll see if you are branding yourself for your next career step. Timing is of the essence – ask just following getting a compliment or hearing that your efforts were appreciated. Tell them that you are gathering testimonials as part of your on-going career portfolio. All you need is a short 1-2 sentence description of what they thought you did especially well and why it mattered. It could be your technical prowess or quick responsiveness that enabled them to meet a deadline. This is much more helpful than a vague, “Jim was great to work with.”
Help them write it. While it seems awkward to write it for them, you can ask them to write about a particular attribute you will need going forward. You can suggest your contribution to a recent project in terms of your ability to collaborate, lead, influence, analyze and find unique opportunities, cost savings… you get the picture. If you’ve just received some verbal kudos, rather than ask them to put it in writing, ask if you could draft it and if they would put their name on it.
How many of these four tips can you do this week?