Film documents job club project

To celebrate the first anniversary of our first job club meeting at The Flourishing Job Club, a film documenting the project was released. The short made-for-web flim Making The Impossible, Possible Through Community Involvement can be viewed on YouTube.com. Enjoy!

The Flourishing Job Club lessons learned - Part 1

Recently I was asked to speak with a group about lessons learned from The Flourishing Job Club. I'll share the secrets in 2 parts.

Part 1 - the 5 Key Questions for those who are interested in starting a job club.

Part 2 - the 5 Success Factors to start a great job club.

5 Key Questions

If you want to start a job club, I have learned it is important to have the answers to the following questions:

1. What is the purpose of the job club?
2. Who will collaborate to launch and maintain the job club?
3. Who can participate in your job club?
4. What (if any) is the cost to participate in your job club?
5. What will the members do when they get together? (agenda)

Click here to watch Heather discuss the 5 Key Questions in more detail.

Job Club Update on Talk Back

On September 22, Heather was back with Sean Haggerty to update viewers about job club activity in the Toledo area. The Lucas County JumpStart Job Club was built on the system developed by Heather and she discusses how the program offered at The Source can help local job seekers.

Watch the segment

Lessons Learned From The Flourishing Job Club - Part 2

Recently I was asked to speak with a group about lessons learned from The Flourishing Job Club. I'll share the secrets in 2 parts.
Part 1 - the 5 Key Questions for those who are interested in starting a job club.
Part 2 - the 5 Success Factors to start a great job club.

5 Success Factors


If you want to start a job club, I have learned the following factors can help create a success group.

1. Don't re-invent the wheel -there is lots of info on the web about what works and doesn't work when starting a job club
2. Clearly set expectations - be clear about what your job club is and is not. - you will get a number of requests - be clear and practice saying no or you could get overwelmed
3. Enroll supporters - community members want to know how they can help
4. Be innovative - we hosted a Reverse Job Fair, iniviting hiring mangers to come and meet with our job seekers
5. Draw on the talents of members - job clubs have resident expertise you can draw on to run the club and they are willing to help their peers

The Flourishing Job Club featured on 13abc

From it's inception, The Flourishing Job Club has enjoyed the support of members of the media. We thank them all for their continued interest and help to spread the word.

On Sunday August 30, 2009, TFJC was featured on Jeff Smith's Roundtable to discuss progress since visiting the show back in April. Joining me was Alan Maag, an alum of the club and Wendy Gramza, Executive Vice President of the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce.

It's always exciting to share the story of this successful pro bono project. In this program Alan shared his story as a successful job seeker, Wendy discussed the transition of TFJC to the Chamber Job Club and I talked about the Reverse Job Fair. Thanks Jeff!

You can watch the show on-line. The program is loaded on the net in two parts.

Part 1
Part 2

Managing conflict in job clubs

We hope all goes swimmingly within our job club and we are not naive enough to think that conflict will never, ever arise in a club meeting. We get out in front of the issue.


As job seekers sign on as members, we request they read a short yet effective article, Managing Conflict. While I co-authored this piece for a legal audience, our job seekers identify a useful approach and powerful skills should conflict arise.

What is a job club?

Job clubs are small groups of people who meet regularly to talk candidly about their job search with the goal of supporting the success of all members. Rooted in the belief that each member has something valuable to contribute, job clubs create the opportunity for everyone to benefit from the advice and encouragement of a diverse, dynamic group.

What is The Flourishing Job Club?

The Flourishing Job Club (TFJC) is a network bringing together pods of 8-12 job seekers in the Greater Toledo area to provide support and increase capability. Heather Bradley, local business and career coach, designed the system and volunteered to launch and coordinate the network. She is joined by like-minded area professionals who volunteer their time to facilitate the launch of pods of job seekers.

What The Flourishing Job Club IS NOT

The Flourishing Job Club is not a search firm, job bank or career coaching services.

Additional Frequently Asked Questions

If you are interested in learning more about how The Flourishing Job Club operated, we invite you to visit TFJC FAQ page.