Tips for Work and Life with Andrew LaCivita

Ever have a tough time you thought would never go away? Maybe you were at mile 20 of the marathon. Maybe you were in the middle of a one-year-long job search. Maybe that stinker-of-a boss has been dangling that carrot-of-a promotion forever. No matter the issue, we need something to pull us through. This being Valentine's Week (let's celebrate all week, shall we?), I want to talk about the most im...

Money. Actually, more like money you'll get in the future. Money is funny that way, especially when the money we're talking about is your salary. We negotiate like heck for what we'll be paid in the future. So, why is it that so many employees try to argue for a new salary based on what they did in the past? Isn't that so yesteryear? Wasn't that so your last job? Past performance is not an indicat...

We're about to wrap up a big month for hiring. How's your job search coming?! I hope you're getting those interviews and, today, I have a not-so-little something special to help. I'm covering one of my all-time favorite questions to ask an employer in a job interview… "What does success look like—exactly?" If you don't know what success looks like, how will you know what goals to shoot for? How wo...

Do you want to be known as "the man" or "the woman" in your field? A legend? I do. And, I'm proud to say so. But I don't master my craft because I need external adoration. That's not the driver. I do it for me and because it serves you. My friends and family don't understand my uncommon drive probably because it's uncommon—truly rare. If you want to be a 1%-er do you think behaving like the other...

Today, let's talk how to answer negative job interview questions. These are brutal. Tricky. And, to boot, give you loads of opportunity to mess us. They are literally a complete waste of breath and give the interviewer absolutely zero data on whether you'll be a star employee. But, for some unknown reason, instead of asking you bright and effective questions that elicit information to actually hel...

Happy Sunday! Let's start the New Year with a BANG! Shall we? Full-fledged job search lesson today. 10 major tips on how to win your search in 2025! Key download you must take if you don't already have my 10X10 formula. Inside the video and booklet, I hit the gamut from getting your requirements in order to resume writing to searching to interviewing and negotiating. Took me 31:10 to get that all...

Got a special, powerful message for you today. I discussed this concept back in August (on the 8 th ), but held it so we can wrap 2024 with a bang and get you pumped for all you WILL accomplish in 2025. It's a lesson on the 3 factors of high performers. This isn't your run-of-the-mill pep talk—it's a masterclass on harnessing your mindset to fuel success and resilience. Inside, I hit… Attitude as...

If you're a smart person, work hard, have the right attitude, great! You get a pat on the back. All that goodness will only take you so far if you don't have a few key guardrails set up to ensure you crush your career. These are like the common-sense, must-dos of developing yourself and your people. You know what they say about common sense. Right. Common sense in not always common practice. Lucky...

I'm not gonna sugarcoat it. Job search is rough. It's lonely. It's confusing. It's like the trifecta of pain.  I feel for you. I truly do. But, since I use a lot of "empathic concern," I'm not just going to feel for you. I'm going to act by sharing 10 secrets to stay positive in your job search on your way to better results. (If you're just dying to know what empathic concern is, check out page 11...

My entire life, I just needed to know. I'd never let myself wonder. How great could I be? The not knowing would just kill me. A regret I'd never let myself live with. Ever feel this way? Ever wonder how good you could be at something if you let yourself be? If you—literally—gave it your all? After going through my entire career (eh, life) all-out with no brakes (yes, I meant brakes not breaks), I'...

I realize it's mid-November and the Christmas décor has already draped many stores for an entire month, but your career doesn't take a holiday (nor do I). Today, I'm serving up a major lesson on why now is literally THE BEST time to job search. You're at the start line of a 3-month hiring frenzy. It doesn't matter whether the year is 2005, 2010, 2015, 2020 or 2024 or any other years I omitted. It...

In my lifetime, I've prepared, oh, conservatively, about a bajillion job candidates for their interviews. Most are so worried about the wrong stuff. Most prepare backwards. They think What questions will I be asked? I need to come up with a good answer for [insert the dumb ones here about disagreements and conflicts and weaknesses, etc.]. Uh, no. As is, heck to the no! It's not about what the inte...

Who doesn't want to sound more accomplished? Amiright?!?! More accomplished = more attractive to potential employers. I'm not talkin' "accomplished "in the "overqualified" sorta way. I wouldn't run that risk. I'm talkin' "accomplished" in the I'm-smarter, more-knowledgeable, performed-more-repetitions, solved-more-problems, achieved-more-goals sorta way! If you sound more accomplished, you have a...

It hurts me when I see people make a mistake. It practically kills me when I see them repeating—on purpose—the same mistake. I've made lots of mistakes, so please don't think I think I'm a know-it-all. I don't judge anyone because they made different mistakes than I did. We're all different and have walked different paths, experienced different things, and built different perspectives. I like to t...

The job market is tricky these days. It's always confusing for some, but nowadays it seems like it's unknown for all. Good news. Your favorite career coach has yet another timeless lesson on steps you should ALWAYS be taking to protect yourself, your career, your family, friends, neighbors, and everything else connected to you! Yes, there's A LOT riding on this. Which is why I like the always-kind...

If you're struggling in your job search, you're in luck today! I've got 10 big tips to help you ignite your results. They're not your run-of-the-mill-tips and you can't get them anywhere else. I know this to be true because I'm the only person on the planet who wrote The Zebra Code : A Step-By-Step Guide to Mastering Career Skills That Make You a Standout Professional . And that's where these tips...

I have a new podcast this morning titled How to Tell a Story That Wows the Interviewer | A Job Seeker Case Study because, well, it wows the interviewer and it's a real-life example from someone I coached (hence the case study part). It'll be the best 11 minutes and 13 seconds you spend all week if you're in job-search mode next to the few hours you can spend with me live this Thursday at 11 AM CDT...

I spent more time coming up with complete title of The Zebra Code: A Step-By-Step Guide to Mastering Career Skills That Make You a Standout Professional than writing the entire book. 7 months for the title. 6 months to write the entire book (really 5, because I spent a month polishing). True story. Why? I wanted to get in… Something unique (and avoid generic leadership-y titles like The Leadership...

I've changed careers twice, which basically means I've got it down to a science. It's absolutely brutal. You deserve the truth. How brutal? This picture of my office popped up in my "memories" on my phone. It's from August 25, 2015, a shade over 9 years ago. 3:43 in the AM. I was knocking off for the evening so I could catch an hour or two of shut-eye before Harley or Ginger started licking my fac...

What would you give to be happier in your job? In your office? In your career? Would you give 25 minutes and 52 seconds? If you're willing to do just that, you'll learn exactly what I'd do. Warning: I'm not going to say anything to you like smile, have a better attitude, or blah blah blah. I wouldn't insult you with that trite stuff. I'll get you focused on and building the six "deliverables" I'd...

Have you been struggling to get your career to the next level? Maybe you're awesome at your trade. Maybe you are well networked in your company. Mayyyybe you're even the go-to person that seems to be able to fix everyone's "problems." So, why is awesome you not getting awesomely ahead? It's one thing to be great at your job. It's entirely another to be all-out spectacular in your career. As a cons...

Ever been snookered by a fake job? I mean, if you know you have? You might have been hoodwinked and didn't even know it. Perhaps you applied and silence. I glanced over a survey from Resume Builder very recently (not a site I recommend, but they ran the survey so what the hey?). A few key findings... 40% of companies posted a fake job listing this year. 30% of companies currently have active fake...

Asking questions in a job interview is so important. I know I'm stating the obvious, but just because something is obvious doesn't mean people know how to do it—well! Today, I'm gonna give you a triple-header of high-quality questions. But, because I'm me and you're you and you deserve more, I'm not just going to tell you what questions to ask. Just because you ask a question and get an answer doe...

Have you ever heard me speak of THE GREAT 8?!?! As in, like, how could you not have unless this is the first email you've ever opened from me? The GREAT 8 are the major accomplishments employers shoot for. Don't sprain your brain: 1) revenue generation, 2) market awareness, 3) customer attraction, 4) customer happiness, 5) corporate growth, 6) employee happiness, 7) cost reduction, 8) process effi...

Have you ever been in a position where you were asked to sketch out your dream role? Perhaps during an interview, or maybe in a casual informational chat, where it seemed like the company was just intrigued by your background and potential? Imagine this: You walk into an interview, or maybe even a discussion with your boss, and instead of being handed a job description or assignment, you're asked,...