The newest advice floating around the job discussion boards is: think outside the box. “Hmph,” I thought, “sounds like a cliche to me.” The stinky thing about that is that cliches frequently become cliches because they’re true.

The word is, if you are having trouble finding a job, point yourself in another direction. A goodly number of the folks are new consultants. That’s a very catchall title. Sounds great. The only thing is, and I kept trying to figure this one out, what are people supposed to consult them about? I certainly don’t claim to be the clearest communicator in the world, but now that I’ve stepped out of my box, I want to find a better way to convey what I can do for someone.

According to Dictionary.com, one of the definitions of renaissance is:
( lowercase) a renewal of life, vigor, interest, etc.; rebirth; revival: a moral renaissance.

Renaissance woman is my leaping off point to find a new me. I have been charged with not clearly branding myself, of not having a clear, defined goal in my job search so no one knows what to do with me. My problem is that I became the gatekeeper for all sorts of esoteric information at my last job. I like to help people. If someone asked for help or asked a question, I usually tried to help or figure out an answer. You’d be surprised at the information you accumulate when you do this.

I became the de facto network administrator when we installed a PC network in the mid-nineties. I asked a million questions of everyone who came in to help set things up. I learned how to set up the PCs myself, add the software, set up the terminal emulation to interface with the business system. When we needed to have more bandwidth for better performance at the branch locations, I had salesmen coming in from AT&T and from MCI. They started throwing terms at me I didn’t understand, like T1 and fractional T1. MCI wanted to put in a multiplexer and run our long distance through that so we could split the T1 into voice and data. Those people had to spend a lot of time with me, explaining everything. I didn’t end up with any depth and breadth of technical knowledge as a result, but I did have a basic understanding of the technologies being recommended. From there, I could explain the choices to management and what seemed best to me.

I learned one piece of the business at a time. When I realized that I wasn’t catching all the potential costs related to a machine, I started asking questions of purchasing and how the machines were built and where all the costs came from. I learned another piece of the business, how to order from the vendor  site, how to use the build machine module, how to order attachments. I learned that all the attachments didn’t come from the same vendor; I learned about a lot of attachment vendors. Eventually, I learned how to order parts and receive them in.

At the end, I knew how to do most accounting functions, network administration, payroll, and a host of other oddball things needed to keep a dealership rolling along. What does that best equip me to do now? Well, pretty much everything.

You need some bookkeeping for 3 hours a month? I can do it. You need a small payroll prepared? I can do it. You need some flyers designed and some catchy text written for them? I can do it. You need to have a paper edited (college paper with references, business paper to share with colleagues, whatever)? I can do it. You need some basic PC help, setup, show you how to do something? I can do it. Payables, receivables, payroll, sales taxes, account analysis, PC support, networking, financial statement preparation, writing, editing, minor website changes – I’ve had my fingers in all these pies.

And I realized as I was thinking of all this that in most cases, it’s all possible electronically. Windows has share built in these days, so I can get right on your computer at work and do what you need. Or you can send me what you want to have done. I’m not limited to my local city. In fact, I’ve been doing some of these things already for my sister who lives in Washington state.

My big idea for re-birth: 65 clients who need me for 3 hours a month would replace the full time job I
had before. I’m virtual staff (staff in a box – a computer is a box)! No benefits to pay, no interviews and worrying about whether your business will support an employee yet you need some administration and/or bookkeeping and/or PC help from time to time for a few hours. I’m very good at all these things. But I’ll admit, it would be just plain fun to learn about a bunch of new businesses. The Queen of Questions would ride again.