Harvey Mackay's tips for job seekers

Job search
Nichole Grant of Chicago, holds onto an employment guide tabloid while attending a job fair Thursday, Feb. 25, 2010, in Chicago.
AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast

Harvey Mackay bought a failing envelope company in 1959 and turned it into the Minneapolis-based MackayMitchell Envelope Company that has 600 employees. Mackay, a motivational speaker and best-selling author spoke with Morning Edition's Cathy Wurzer about his new book, "Use Your Head to Get Your Foot in the Door: Job Search Secrets No One Else Will Tell You." Here are some tips Mackay included in their conversation about finding and keeping a job.

Be creative. "There's no correlation between IQ and creativity," Mackay says.

Develop a personal brand. Mackay said if you're looking for a job, you have to market yourself. "When you're out there looking for a job, you have to be out there," he said. "You have to be at weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, symphony balls, whatever." As Mackay sees it, "you're only as good as your name; you're only as good as your brand."

Help people and don't expect anything in return. Mackay likes to tell the story of his father, who made little money. "He lived like a millionaire," Mackay says. "Why? Because of his contacts, because of his friends."

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Have long term goals and make agreements on those goals with your boss. Mackay says it's harder to fire a face. He also says it's important to show your boss who you are. "Everything is long term," he said. "I believe that agreements prevent disagreements."

Be nimble and keep learning. Workers in any job must enhance their skills, Mackay said. "You don't go to school once for a lifetime," he said. "You're in school all of your life."

Volunteer to help a nonprofit organization raise money. When you're unemployed, you can work at something you're passionate about while also gaining some important job searching skills, Mackay said. It's also a good way to network. "You have to go out there and knock on some doors. Now you're going to be prepared for the no's when you go out and get a job and rejection sits in," he said.

Definition of success. Mackay says success is "having a predetermined plan and successfully carrying it out over a long period of time," he said. "Success to me is getting up every single day and really finding something you love to do. You'll never have to work a day in your life."