A well-paying job is the foundation of financial stability. Our mission is to help remove barriers to successful employment. One of the biggest barriers to attaining and retaining employment is unresolved trauma. Building client resiliency, along with the more traditional workforce development practices, can help increase the likelihood of success in the workplace. This guide represents our efforts to share what we have learned through researching best practices and from collaborating with professionals who work in the field.

We are encouraged and inspired by the dedication of Chicago’s many workforce development organizations to help uplift neighborhood residents and provide the resources they need to find stable employment.

Helping clients practice setting goals can lead them one step closer to their ideal future. As you help your clients develop this skill, you will find that some goals are not “set in stone,” they may change as your clients change and grow. Change is good – the important thing is for your clients to have a positive vision for their future and begin the process to make that vision a reality.

Goal Setting Step #1: Personal Vision Worksheet

The questions below are prompts for your clients to begin exploring their Personal Vision — who are they? What kind of life do they want to live?

1. You. What kind of person do you want to be? What qualities do you admire in others and would like to possess?

2. Health. How does your physical health factor into your life vision? What aspects of your health would you like to improve? In what ways are physical exercise and healthy eating habits a part of your vision?

3. Home. What living situation do you want to create?

4. Material Things. What things would you like to own or have in your life?

5. People. Who else is in this picture of your future vision? How are your relationships with friends, family, co-workers, community members, and others?

6. Life Purpose. Your life has a unique purpose—fulfilled through what you do, your relationships, and the way you live. What is this purpose?

7. Work. What would you like to create in terms of your career or profession? How much energy are you willing to spend to create this situation? How does your chosen work impact others?

8. Community. How is the community a part of your life’s vision? What do you give to your community? What do you receive?

9. Hobbies and Interests. What activities, hobbies, or interests will complete this picture?

10. What Else? What else could you create or have in your life?

Goal Setting Step #2: Vision Board

Writing is a powerful tool to help process your thoughts and create goals. However, sometimes writing is not enough. Using images can reinforce goals and create a clear picture of what you want to achieve. One way to develop a strong mental picture if to create a dream board, also known as a vision board.

To create a dream board, have clients cut out pictures from magazines that create a picture of their goals and glue or tape to cardboard or corkboard. They can hang their dream board where they can see it every day. As they combine actions with this vision, they will be well on their way to making their goals a reality.

Developing a 30 Second Commercial

After your client has developed clear goals and a vision for their future, they can begin to develop a personal sales pitch. Developing the ability to describe what skills and talents they bring to the workplace can help them land a job. The commercial will help the listener quickly become aware of the client’s interests and talents.

Remember to write the word that best describes your skills and attitudes. This commercial is a thirty-second chance for your clients to shine!

Tips for developing your commercial:

Use crisp, clear language

Say what position you are seeking

Talk about your abilities and experience

Emphasize your individual strengths

Use good eye contact and body posture

Samples of sentences to help you write your commercial:

Hello, my name is…

I am a…

I am passionate about…

My strongest skills are…

Preparing For the Interview

Interviews can be stressful. Clients only have a few minutes to showcase their personality and skills to an employer. The interviewer isn’t just evaluating WHAT they say, but also HOW they say it — nonverbal communication is important.

Tips to help clients prepare for their interviews:

1. Do a mock interview several days before your scheduled interview. Practice more than once.

2. Remind clients to lay out clothing the night before. They don’t want to figure out what to wear on the day of the interview.

3. Clients should make sure their outfit is clean and neatly pressed and should take care of other tasks the night before (polishing shoes, nails, etc.)

4. Clients should also gather all of the important materials that they will need—put them in a folder or portfolio. Place them where they won’t forget them. Include things like a resume, letter of reference, directions, identification cards, etc.

Interview Do’s and Don’ts for Clients:

DO —

Arrive 10-15 minutes early to show eagerness and have a chance to get a feel for the environment.

Greet the interviewer with a smile and a handshake.

Answer the question thoroughly.

Write a thank-you note within 48 hours of the interview.

Maintain good eye contact.

Ask questions about the job and organization to show your interest.

Show some knowledge of the company, position, and career field.

DON’T —

Chew gum.

Smoke prior to your interview.

Interrupt the interviewer.

Look at your watch during the interview. This tends to hurry things along. Let the interviewer set the pace.

Talk negatively about former employers, co-workers, or professors.

Common Interview Questions:

Preparing some responses in advance can help clients be more relaxed during the interview. Below are common interview questions to think about.

• Tell me about yourself?

• Why should we hire you?

• What is your greatest strength?

• What is your greatest weakness?

• Why are you leaving or why have you left your job? What are your salary expectations?

• Why do you want this job?

• How do you handle stress and pressure?

• Describe a difficult work situation or project and how you overcame it?

• What are your goals for the future?

Clients should note that they may be asked interview questions for which they cannot think of an answer. The important thing is to remain calm, honest, and try to stay positive. Clients should be encouraged to utilize a self-regulation technique to help keep focus during a stressful interview.

Dress For Success

As the saying goes, you only get one chance to make a first impression. The way you dress is one of the first things that a potential employer will notice about you. Of course, you want to make the best impression possible. Nonverbal factors play a big role with employers — a firm handshake, eye contact, body language, posture, listening skills, clothing, and grooming all make a difference. Clothes do not “make the person” but they do convey your commitment to professionalism. Unfortunately, it’s very difficult to overcome a poor first impression, regardless of your skills or unique qualities, so clients should be thoughtful when preparing their outfits for an interview. If they come to an interview dressed professionally and in an outfit that makes them feel good about themselves, they will project a sense of confidence that others will sense.

Strengthening client’s ability to work well in a diverse environment can give them an edge.

Valuing and respecting differences makes for more successful working relationships and more enjoyable work experience.

In the workplace, diversity refers to the differences we recognize in other and ourselves, such as:

• Gender

• Culture

• Race

• Ethnicity

• Age

• Religion

• Sexual orientation

• Physical and mental abilities or challenges

Diversity can also be used to describe differences relating to our workplace relationships, such as:

• Management vs. non-management

• Main office/headquarters vs. field/satellite offices

• Technical vs. non-technical

• Employees with families vs. single employees

Dimensions of Diversity Exercise: Valuing and respecting differences in the workplace begins with individual self-awareness. It is up to each of us to take a deep look into our feelings and beliefs so that we can understand how we can open our minds and change our behaviors to more effectively value the diversity around us.

Directions: During this exercise, clients will have an opportunity to think about their belief systems, and try to identify how they were formed. How has their family or others influenced their attitudes about cultural differences? Some of their beliefs may be based on how they were raised or their own experiences.

Have your clients look at the Dimensions of Diversity Model above and answer these questions:

1. Which of the dimensions of diversity are a part of your core identity? Which of the dimensions would be part of your inner circle? Write the three most important things in the space below:

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Now think about yourself at work. What are the two or three special contributions that you would bring to the workplace because of your own unique diversity? In what way would these contributions make the workplace better?

_____________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Tips for Improving Relationships in a Diverse Workplace:

• Communication: Utilize all aspects of effective communication, including words, body language, eye contact. Practice conscious self talk to change old assumptions about differences.

• Key skills are openness, active listening, and respectful language.

• Think before you speak: Be sensitive to others.

• If you accidentally offend someone, apologize immediately.

• Avoid generalizations.

• Key skills: avoid using words, images, and situations that suggest that all or most members of a particular group are the same.

• Listen more: When people feel that they are being heard, it increases their self-esteem and confidence. Listening encourages people to be less defensive and talk through concerns or problems. People are more likely to cooperate with a person who listens.

• For additional skill-building focused on diversity and inclusion, this short video OUCH – That Stereotype Hurts, is a must-see. Click here to watch.

The CLARA Technique – A Tool for Effectively Negotiating World View Differences

Gandhi taught that one of the things that make nonviolence work is that “everyone has a piece of the truth.” Training yourself to look for and find that truth can help to make space for different perspectives and connect with others regardless of their world view. This may change your life in unexpected ways.

All of us have hot buttons in the back of our minds. When these buttons get pushed, conversations often get heated. By using the CLARA technique, we respect each other’s differences so we can have more meaningful connections and resolve conflict effectively.

The Steps of the Technique:

Calm Internally calm yourself sufficiently to…

Listen To exactly what the other person is saying

Affirm Say something that acknowledges one “piece of the truth” you can honestly

recognize in the person’s statement (not the reflection of active listening, but

something you can genuinely acknowledge).

Notice that the first “A” is “Affirm” not “Agree”—it’s not the same thing. What you’re really trying to find is the common ground you have with that person.

Respond To the exact concerns the upset person raised when you were listening

Add: Something about the way you see the topic that may not be the issue they raised

Important!

• Never use “but” or “however” when you use CLARA. “But” or “however” invalidates the idea that “everyone has a piece of the truth”

• Use “and” or “at the same time” instead

Final Comments:

• Like any tool you learn as a formula, it can seem forced and unnatural

• Your partner, friends, and coworkers may ask you to stop and talk to them “like a human being”

• As you practice, CLARA can become a part of your language and authentic self.

CLARA Method Scenario

Ask clients to think about something that a coworker or supervisor could say that would trigger them. What is the statement/situation? Have them describe it briefly to you or write it down.

Use the steps and questions below to practice using the CLARA Method –

Calm: What steps will they take to relax their body? What will they do to calm themself?

• Assess your reactions and emotions

• Prepare yourself for the conversation

• Calm yourself, breathe and relax your body

Listen: What do they hear the other person say? What is the meaning behind the person’s words?

• Intentionally listen to the speaker for something that you understand

• What is the person really saying?

• Practice active listening and attentive, nonjudgmental body language

Affirm: What can they say to show that they understand and relate to some aspect of what the person is saying?

• Say something that acknowledges that you can relate to at least one viewpoint of the person’s statement; that you “get” what they are experiencing.

• Consider what in your experiences can help you understand what the person is saying even though the situation may not be the same.

• Remember that all of us hold “a piece of truth.” Remember that you share common ground even though it may not feel like that at the moment. Your common humanity, if you cannot connect with anything else, is firm common ground.

• Remember that when we feel heard and affirmed, we are generally more receptive to feedback and less defensive.

Respond: What can they share from their perspective that connects with the issue at hand?

• Perhaps there is something in your lives that helps you to understand how the other person is feeling.

• REMEMBER! Never use “but” or “however” when you use CLARA. “But” or “however” invalidates the idea that “everyone has a piece of the truth.” Use “and” or “at the same time”.

Add: What new piece of information can they share that the other person can think about?

• Share your perspective with the person with the intent of reframing or showing the person another way of thinking about or understanding the issue.

• Remember to continue to practice intentionally attentive, nonverbal communication.

Being a workforce development professional can be extremely rewarding but it can also be a source of stress. Supporting clients, many of whom have experienced trauma, can take a toll on your mental health. It is important that you take care of yourself and build your resilience.

Resilience exists when a person can bounce back and thrive. Work often tests resilience by placing us in stressful situations.

Resilience is a key element in well-being.

• Resilience is associated with greater job satisfaction, work happiness, organizational commitment, and employee engagement.

• Strengthening resilience contributes to improved self-esteem, a sense of control over life events, a sense of purpose in life, and improved employee interpersonal relationships.

When Stress is High, Strengthen Resilience!

• 65% of US employees view their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives.

• The likelihood of developing depression or anxiety is higher for those who work in stressful work environments.

• Stressful work environments can lead to negative physical and mental health outcomes for employees and organizations.

• Alcohol and substance misuse has been linked to employees experiencing high-stress levels.

• Initiatives and programs that foster a resilient and mentally healthy workplace increase productivity, lower healthcare costs, lower absenteeism and decrease turnover.

Staff can strengthen resilience by learning the Three Antibodies for Compassion Fatigue – Self-Regulation, Reframing, and Self-Care.

1. Self-Regulation – Relax the body to relax the mind

When we perceive a threat, real or imagined, the Sympathetic Nervous System activates. Our bodies are sent into a fight, flight or freeze mode. Our impulse control is weakened and we lose the ability to problem solve and use rational thought.

You can benefit from the same skills you teach clients! Incorporate the Body Scan and Mindful Breathing from the Succeeding at Work section into your daily routine.

2. Reframing – Intentionally change the perception

Supporting clients can be challenging. When you are having an especially tough day, it can help to think about the promise you made to yourself when you became a workforce development professional. You can keep this promise to yourself by remembering to reframe your perspective and remind yourself that you are doing the best you can under stressful circumstances.

Try the Great Supervisor Email Exercise below –

Exercise: Dear Supervisor Email or Text: Take five minutes to write an email or a text to yourself. The message is from a Great Supervisor, the ideal supervisor that notices every good thing you did today at work and praises you for it. Think of at least two effective things you did this week and allow your Great Supervisor to give them credit for each. Try this exercise today!

3. Self-care – Refuel and access support

Self-care gives us the fuel we need to keep going. One of the most powerful techniques for healing anxiety and secondary traumatic stress is by putting it into words and sharing (unloading) this narrative with someone “safe”. This is something that needs to happen periodically throughout our careers. Each of us needs someone to listen to our stories of caregiving. Someone who will listen and understand.

Dare to Trust (social self-care)

Find a person in your life to be your support. Tell them how you want them to listen to you when you come to them for support. Reach out to them when you need someone to listen to you when you are facing something difficult.

Personal Self-Care

Make a list of 2 to 3 things to do today to refuel and commit to them. It may be calling a partner to hear ‘I love you,’ or humming your favorite song. It may be looking at a picture of your family, friend, child or seeing the beauty of something we take for granted (a tree, breathing, tasty food, warmth of the sun)

_____________________________

References

A Workforce Development Professional’s Guide

Job Readiness Instructor’s Guide

East Baltimore Pipeline Job Readiness Training Curriculum