I was approached by a Community Manager at Webucator, an online learning company, asking me to write a blog posting for their "Most Marketable Skill" Campaign in honor of the class of 2014.

I jumped at the chance to write for such an inspirational publication and started brainstorming ideas. After writing down a few thoughts it dawned on me, my most marketable skill is definitely my confidence.

The job market is a scary place to navigate, especially for new graduates. I've been hired, promoted and fired. All of my experiences taught me that the way to survive and thrive in the world is to have complete confidence in your abilities and your decisions.

I describe myself first as nice and bubbly, yet always firm, fair and an aggressive leader. I am that person who's always smiling, bopping around the office, telling jokes, trying to get the happiness out of everyone. Then there's manager Mary, she is assertive, matter of fact, and only deals in black and white. 

I once fired an employee because she was late to work, she had a history of being late and the straw that broke the camel's back came on September 11th. I had no idea we were under enemy attack, so her excuse of 'I though the world was ending' didn't go over well with me. I sent her home and started her termination papers right away. A few weeks later my boss's boss called me and told me I was doing an outstanding job, they all agreed that employee was not a good fit for the company. I had to be confident in my decision to fire that particular employee and it paid off. I was offered a promotion at the end of that phone call. 

I have to assert myself immediately because I am a woman and my sweet, soft appearance can be used against me if I am unable to create appropriate boundaries. The people I'm chatting up and making laugh are the same people that have to report to me if there is a problem, so it can be tricky balancing the line between having a fun/functional working environment. 

The best advice I can give is to have true confidence. Confidence in your decisions, confidence in your interpretations of the rules and regulations, confidence in your leadership skills, and most of all confidence within yourself. Without confidence in yourself you can never be true to yourself or a true leader to others. 

Every job I've held I've excelled in! Well every job except working at a sunglass kiosk in the mall, that job sucked. Every time I was hired I had to be confident that I could do the job, master it, and excel at it. I've never staid in an entry level position for more than 6 months, at my last job I actually created a position for myself. 

I received 3-4 promotions within 2 years of being hired. I made a slow and steady climb up the corporate ladder and even met with the "Big Bosses" asking me what my goals were, telling me that I could one day help run the company. I accomplished all that with confidence, because I was truly proud of myself, my skills, and my ability. By the way, I also started in a position "created" for me prior to being promoted to a position created by me. 

I've given you the keys to the kingdom now how do you open the door? How do you become confident? How do you believe in yourself even when you feel young, dumb, inexperienced, and intimidated?

Ready for this one??

FAKE IT!!!

I've been an avid fake it until you make it girl since I was first introduced to the real world.

When applying for a job look at the required skills section and tell yourself you can handle the riggers of the job and add new value to the company.

Apply for the job and show your personality. Interview with confidence. Assure everyone that you are the only one for this job. Impress your potential on them with your knowledge of the company and the business landscape. Finally, please remember that true confidence is a product of true preparation. The more you prepare the more confident you will be.

Once you get the job DO IT! Work Hard! Make yourself indispensable. Have confidence in your skills and don't be afraid to ask for help or admit you don't know something.

Confidence isn't acting like you know everything, it's admitting that you don't.

Anything and everything you do, do it with confidence and you will not lose. 

Work hard, be fair, never gossip, never be intimated about taking on more responsibility, and always be confident in knowing you can do it. 

Now go forth and take over the workforce!

Peace & Love,

Mary