Success! Job Search Efforts That Paid Off -
I don’t have children, but I think I know how proud parents feel when their kids achieve their goals and soar past milestones on their way to bigger dreams.
Recently several of my clients have had some pretty noteworthy successes. After a long, difficult trudge through our region’s devastated job market over the past two quarters, they have built new opportunities for themselves to get back on track with work that is in line with their life plan. On the surface, each is showing the results of very smart and often hard work. Their efforts required a great deal of thinking, planning and extra effort to ramp up their job searches to produce the obvious results: they now are all working. Pretty exciting, very cool, and definitely worthy of celebration – There is more to celebrate, though.
In each case, these folks have followed some very basic concepts that are at the root of my coaching, teaching, and preaching. The most exciting part is not just that they are now employed, but each has a clear plan for what it will take to move forward, whether that is to maintain or build their value with this particular organization, or out in the broader scope of the job market, should their organizations change or hit tough times. Each of the people that hit their target (“Plan A”), as well as the ones that accepted less than their optimal target, (“Plan B” or “Plan C”), have kept their eye on the ball. They all have planned and measured out what it will take to build their value where they have landed or move forward toward their targets as the market improves.
There is nothing to be taken for granted in this market and it is unlikely things will change for quite a while. These folks are living proof that there are jobs- that you can take a controlled approach, you can influence your own situation favorably, that you can look forward to better things by keeping your eye on the ball. None of their work was random, none based on “luck”. It was planning, discipline, endless preparation and a commitment to getting forward. They might say it wasn’t pretty. But the rewards are pretty fun!
Well done!
Own your glory! Let others know what things made a difference in your job search.
So, you find yourself unemployed, now what? (2)
Every day, I hear from people that tell me they aren’t sure what they should be doing in regard to their job search. Many end up chasing job announcements on all the major job boards, or not doing anything at all. Others just seem to get distracted with absolutely anything else that comes up.
It is easy to get caught up in marathon laundry days, house cleaning, birthday parties, painting or remodel projects, or spending five hours at the gym. Whether it is not knowing what to do next and giving up, or getting distracted with other projects/activities, both situations require a better focus and establishing priorities. Before you get involved with other things, get a better handle on what you need to accomplish to fulfill your goal of going back to work. Then break it down to all of the tasks required and plan each day in advance, so there is no hesitation about what to do. (If you need help with this, then get it!)
If you aren’t getting the results you seek, then take a look at your investment each day. Set yourself up to succeed, rather than taking a passive approach by waiting to see what happens next.
Start each day as if you were going to work. If you want to be the one catching the worms, then you simply need to get started before a normal business day begins, not when it is half gone. Get dressed. Schedule chores around the necessary work on your job search, not in the middle of prime business time. If you are only working a few hours per day on your search, you’re not likely to produce anything of value in this market. Someone else will always be two steps ahead of you.
Establish a routine. Act like you are working. Get into a routine and function on a schedule that can be followed once you go back to work. Go to the gym early, late or on a lunch break. Stick to a schedule you will be able to follow when you return to work. It is certainly good to work out, sleep, and take care of yourself, but check yourself to make sure you are not taking any of these activities to such an extreme that you are prevent from spending the time you need to attend to your search.
Use an active search. Research – stop wasting time on a passive search by only looking for job announcements. Dig in. Get to know companies in your field and start reading about them. Use the internet to identify more companies/organizations you can pursue. Use social networking tools to connect with people in those companies to learn more. If you do learn of openings, you can ask for a referral.
Stay connected. Reach out beyond your former coworkers that have been laid off. Connect with people that are working. Find out what is going on in their worlds. Ask about their challenges. Listen for clues about openings that may fit others in your network if they don’t fit your skills.
Be ready to act immediately. Your resume needs to be ready to fly within hours of learning about a posting. Make sure your information is in a form that allows you to make edits quickly, without spending hours and days agonizing over what to send. If it is already the day after you learned of an opening, there is a good chance the organization is already being bombarded with responses. Three days later? Forget it.
Review your progress. If you have been at this more than a month, then evaluate what you have been doing every day. Is what you are doing getting results? If not, do you know why? Are you doing enough or is your work incomplete? Are you truly investing enough time each day? Do you need help with what you are writing, saying, or with knowing what to look for?
Don’t give up. Review past opportunities. Many times companies will interview candidates and select someone that ends up not working out. It is a good idea to check back in 30 days to see how things are going. Track when you last spoke to a contact or when you were advised a position was filled. Continue to check their websites for new opportunities. Be on top of anything new and contact them immediately. Don’t assume they will remember to call you without some prompting.
Get help. This is not meant to ignore the emotional issues we face when we have been laid off. It is common to grieve the loss of your job and your daily routine. You might feel somewhat less than whole. This is normal. If you are having difficulty dealing with this, then get it is even more important not to isolate or get sucked into any self destructive habits. Get professional help if you are stuck. Don’t ignore how you are feeling by getting caught up in distractions. It will only cause more grief later.
Are you really prepared to go back to work any time soon? What struggles have you encountered? Are there tips you can share that have helped you stay on track?
Who’s Really in Your Network?
For those of us that were around long before social networking sites were the rage, many of us actually knew people. Yes, I know the number of contacts you have may exceed 300. But how many of those people do you know? For that matter, how many of those people know you, I mean, really know you? Are you able to trust someone you don’t know? Can they trust you?
You may wonder why I bring up trust in relationship to networking, especially as it relates to the job market. It seems pretty simple: if you need a job, how can someone connect you with an opportunity if they:
1) Don’t know what your actual (not imagined)skills are
2) Don’t know what you are really qualified for (not just a “wanna be”)
3) Don’t know what else is going on that may prevent you from pursuing an opportunity they suggest
4) Aren’t sure they want to risk their reputation
And conversely, how can you trust that they:
1) Are recommending something that makes sense
2) Really know the people involved
3) Understand why/or why not a situation would be a good fit
In most cases, if you have access to contact information, then you have opportunity to get to know a person, to some degree. It’s really up to you to make an effort to get to know people, if you are interested in developing trusting relationships. It doesn’t happen overnight, and won’t happen without effort.
The real question is, when we talk about networking, how much do you show you really care about knowing other people? If people don’t seem to be hearing you, thinking of you, reaching out to you, then before you isolate, take action:
Ask questions. Stop talking, telling, arguing, complaining, and ask questions. If something sounds odd, then think of a question to pose that genuinely sounds like you are interested in understanding.
Pay attention. Listen to what is going on with others. Know or learn about the issues others are facing. Their angst, edginess, poor choice of words isn’t meant to hurt you or insult you. It just is how they may feel or what they are experiencing right now.
Reach out. Don’t just “link” to someone new. Communicate with them. Show you want to know them. Don’t expect people to come to you without an effort.
Participate. Joining ( a social website, an association, a church-whatever) doesn’t do it alone. You need to participate.
Get over yourself. It isn’t always about you. Have some empathy for where people are coming from before you interpret their actions as a snub or insult.
What can you do today to really get to know someone else, or help them to know you?
Are You Getting Any? (Referrals for Jobs!)
The most productive, qualified job leads typically are the end product of an inside connection or referral from a valued contact. Although it may seem like a thoughtful gesture, receiving job postings sent from someone that spotted it on an online database rarely amounts to much more than a flurry of emails. In order to get the good stuff- the inside scoop on what’s opening up – it is important to go beyond broadcasting your unemployed status, blasting out resumes or signing up on Linked in, MySpace, and Facebook. It requires positioning and making sure your contacts understand what you are truly capable of and qualified for. It also requires their trust that if they refer you, you won’t embarrass them.
So, you may ask, how does that happen? It is not as hard as you think. The good leads go to those people who are responsive, cooperative, helpful and reliable. Here are some pretty simple tips for ensuring when something relevant turns up in their arena, your contacts think of you first:
Have a clear, precise “elevator speech”. (I dislike that terminology, but most readers will know what it means. I prefer to call it a “30 Second Introduction”). Provide information someone needs to know about what you do, want, need, and are qualified for.
Stay in touch beyond just contacting people when you need something. Approaching anyone with your hand out, and showing no interest in them prior to that moment is extremely unattractive. You may not feel like you have much to offer right now, but, you really can find many ways of helping others by simply asking what they might need. They actually might surprise you and tell you what they want and need. Wow- imagine that. No guessing. And, it could be as easy as taking their dog for a walk. (And that would make you feel better, too.)
Act right. Ok, that’s a pretty broad statement, but it really is a pretty simple concept. It means when you put something out as a question to others, then you need to make yourself available to acknowledge the receipt of their response. Follow up and thank them. Follow up with others that have possibly referred you to the person/place that actually provided what you needed so they know they were helpful to you. If you are in the middle of a job search in 2009, then you need to learn to use email/internet as a tool. That means you need to check your email regularly for new information, and learn how to research to get information you need.
Show up. If you frequently cancel meetings or appointments, show reluctance to commit to job search or other activities, or tend to arrive late, people will and do notice. Simple logic follows. Is this person going to behave the same way when they go to work?
Create a reputation for being reliable, resourceful and proactive. Be on time. Follow through with requests from others. Follow through on leads/or introduction given to you by others within 48 hours. Exhibit good problem solving skills. Go the extra mile to help yourself and others. Be diligent about following up with leads that may have not immediately led to your goal. Be flexible.If you are going to use descriptions on your resume like “extremely effective managing multiple priorities”, “able to multitask”, “high performer” ,”service driven”, proactive”, “team player”, or “excellent problem solving skills” – you need to be exhibiting them.
Get real. If you are not able to spend 8 hours a day on a job search because of health issues, then why would you think you are ready to take on full time employment? If you are currently going to school part time, or caring for someone else, and are unable to spend 8 hours per day on your job search, what kind of work are you seeking that will coordinate with your schedule? Take inventory and determine what you are truly able to do. If you are able to work 8 hours a day, then you need to be using the same amount of time on your efforts for getting to work.
It is far easier for others to offer help to someone that is visibly helping themselves. In this economy, everyone is being impacted in some way. Make it easy for someone to help you. Show people you are ready, willing and able to go to work, and that you are someone they will be proud of recommending.
If you are in a position to help others with leads right now, what suggestions would you add?
