Training & Speaking
Want to meet the author? Check out the calendar of Cathy's upcoming appearances, signings, and talks.
Looking for a Speaker/Trainer? Browse the list of presentation topics below or send an email to discuss a customized session.
Presentations For all Audiences
- Not for Sale! How to Transform Your Job Search
- When Your Networking is NOT Working: How to Network for Career Success
- Networking When You’re Shy or Introverted
- Resumes That Reflect a Real You
- Interviewing with Integrity
Training For Career Counsellors & Career Centres
- Are We Selling Our Clients Short? (Interactive presentation)
- Job Search Advising: All Sizzle, No Steak? Exploring How To Transform Your Job Search Support (Hands-on working session)
Presentations for all audiences
Not for Sale! How to Transform Your Job Search
Discover why a sales approach to job search can lead to frustration, isolation, and a slow leak in your confidence. Learn how to counter this with a new mindset for job searching based on integrity, authenticity and boldly being Not for Sale!
When Your Networking is NOT Working: How to Network for Career Success
Perhaps the most challenging (and important) part of your job search is networking. All too often, networking is misunderstood, misused, and avoided. If your networking is NOT working (or not even happening at all), attend this session to learn how to move your career forward with confident and comfortable collaborations with other people.
Networking When You’re Shy or Introverted
Does the thought of networking strike fear in your heart? Typical advice about networking can seem tailor made for extraverted, gregarious types – but what about the rest of us? Explore how to take the fear out of networking for your career.
Resumes That Reflect a Real You
Learn strategies for writing your resume in a way that presents you – not just a list of where you have worked and studied. Learn to write a resume you are proud to call your own.
Interviews are an important part of securing a new job. Learn strategies for approaching interviews with confidence, authenticity and integrity.
Training for Career Counsellors & Career Centres
Are We Selling Our Clients Short?
A job search should be seen as a sales campaign – right? A lot of job search advice tells clients to market their skills, find their brand, and craft their 30 second commercials. This approach may be popular, but is it helpful? Is making job seekers products to be sold serving our clients or selling them short? This presentation will challenge our profession’s longstanding use of sales as a metaphor for describing job search and will engage you in exploring alternatives based on integrity.
Format: Interactive presentation
Length: 1 – 1.5 hours
Job Search Advising: All Sizzle, No Steak? Exploring How To Transform Your Job Search Support
Job search advice that emphasizes the sizzle (marketing and sales pitches) over the steak (the human) can damage the spirit and enthusiasm of even the strongest job seeker. Examine your own advising practices and services and explore how you can transform your job search support to put people first and help clients job search with confidence and integrity.
Format: Hands-on working session
Length: 1.5 – 2 hours
Participants will review their past and current practices (including bringing samples of their current training materials if available) and will then brainstorm and discuss concrete changes to implement in their programs and their own job search advising.
If you have another idea for a topic, please email and we’ll discuss it!
Comments from past training & speaking
Cathy Keates served as keynote speaker at the recent CCIA-ACADOP Annual General Meeting. Attendees came away from the session feeling challenged in their methods and many were planning on incorporating a more authentic approach into everything from their counselling to their in-house resources to their communication style with clients. Cathy is a great and thorough presenter who succeeded in sparking a lot of thought and in-depth conversation and left all of us with much to contemplate. Thank you Cathy!
Anna DeGrauwe, Chair, Canadian Career Information Association
"There are really no words to explain the value of this training. Endless is the only word springing to mind right now."
"Every aspect described, every anecdote and experience, as well as every resource shared spawned ideas for us and opened our eyes to, literally, a whole new world with which we need to become familiar and prepared to deal with. I think I can safely say on behalf of my colleagues, that we now feel more prepared for the current and upcoming challenges."
"When I found out that you were leading this training, I knew that this would be the most valuable PD of the year. You are highly knowledgeable, respected, and approachable. It is a privilege to consider you a colleague in the field. I will highly recommend this training to anyone who is interested."
