Filed under: Executive, Legal, Professional, Recent Graduates | Tags: anger, job search, layoff
Whether you ascribe to Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’ theory on the Five Stages of Grief or not, you can bet that one thing I felt when I was laid off was anger.
It hit me with all the subtlety of a dump truck when I lost my job at a software company. I wasn’t just angry – I was mad.
This came after the hurt and fear. It came with such force and was so primal that it shocked me.
One of the things I know about anger is that it stores itself up in your body. And you’ve got to get it out.
Here are three ways to get anger off your back:
Go bowling
We’re in the dead of winter, reeling from huge snowstorms in the East. This isn’t the time for a Californian to recommend that people get out for a brisk walk.
Bowling (with or without beer and snacks) is a great way to shove a huge weight down an alley and wreak some havoc. Highly recommend it – especially with friends, especially if you don’t bother keeping score and just throw the ball as hard as you can.
Batting cages
Get into a cage, get your helmet on and whack the hide of a couple hundred baseballs. If you work up a sweat, pause, switch, and try hitting from your other side. Follow through with everything you’ve got.
Catch
A good game of catch lets you burn one. There’s great satisfaction in the ‘thwack’ of the ball hitting the pocket of the glove. When friends ask you what they can do to help, now you’ve got the answer.
Filed under: Executive, General, Legal, Professional, Recent Graduates | Tags: CEO, job search, referral
My friend who got laid off? His combative, sarcastic boss emailed him a referral to another company on the same day.
Normally you’d think this would be a good thing, right?
My friend was furious. He told me the guy was a self-aggrandizing piece of work and felt the guy (in this case, a CEO) was just jerking his chain. He read the email to me and continued to rant.
I said, “Stop. I don’t think that’s what’s going on. He’s definitely someone who plays psych games and belittles people, but he’s not a sociopath. Are you letting your anger in the moment color what you feel?”
Because that’s exactly what we do when we’re hurt.
There’s no such thing as a bad referral. Even if it doesn’t work out, I’ve heard plenty of stories about a job coming out of left field, because the person who got the original referral didn’t have anything available, but her friend did and she passed along the name of a candidate she was impressed with.
Be your best self with every referral you get on your job search – people are willing to help others more than you know.
In my former life as a buyer in retail, I was extremely proactive regarding references.
I knew when I snagged an interview with the VP of Women’s Wear that it was a one shot deal – everything had to be perfect. It was like Kate and Laura, the brilliant sisters who design Rodarte showing their line to Anna Wintour of Vogue…the first impression was the only chance. They did such a great job she was completely won over and because she’s a believer, Wintour recommends them frequently. You just can’t buy that.
So I decided to red carpet myself.
I got my current boss and former boss to call the VP before I interviewed with him.
I talked with each of them beforehand, because they knew the VP I was going to interview with. I got the inside scoop from them about his likes and dislikes and they told me what they were going to say to him about me. My references knew exactly what would make an impact with him – and said it.
I call this ‘red carpeting’ because, like Sandra Bullock or George Clooney strolling the red carpet to garner support and gain critical awards for their films at Cannes, the Golden Globes or the Oscars, I was prepped within an inch of my life.
Everything was choreographed to perfection, rehearsed and rehearsed again. With that kind of concentrated work, the chances of success are better, because even if you miss getting that particular job, you’re establishing a work ethic, a practice that shows itself to each interviewer. From that point, it’s just a matter of time. You will win.
This kind of preparation is critical. I asked a recruiter friend this weekend about the difference it makes and she told me it was so clear to her when candidates did it that it made her job easy – they were the obvious choice and far superior to any of their competitors.
Nick Corcodilos, one of the world’s smartest headhunters [RECRUITERS: If you're not reading Nick's Ask The Headhunter, you should be!], did a post on this called The Preemptive Reference. The technique requires planning, a great reputation and people who are willing to back you up.
Read Nick’s take and start using it – it works!
A good friend was surprised by a layoff last week. As we talked about it tonight, he was thoughtful and already had a very good plan for his job search.
For those of you who may not have been so prepared, here’s how to take a personal inventory:
Do a quick financial review
Back of the envelope, ball park figures – whatever you want to call them, estimate what you’ve got. Take a look at your current checking and savings, add whatever settlement you received from your employer. If you’ve got stocks, bonds or other security-type accounts, calculate whether you’re up or down – also note if they’re private, 401K, IRA, Roth, or other types. Each has different rules, so keep it clear.
If you’ve got real estate, are the payments caught up and made on time? Is your mortgage a 30-year fixed? If not, get one if you can. Is your real estate under water? Don’t take SCUBA lessons and plan to sit on the bottom – be realistic about the amount of time you can actually wait. Crunch the numbers and know when to do yourself the favor of cutting your losses.
Who do you know?
Sketch out your network. Draw three circles inside one another. The first, for family and close friends. The next, for business associates. The outermost, for acquaintances like your butcher, dry cleaner or other people you may know, but not that well.
Be clear with you’re looking for, then ask them who they know. You’re aiming for three names per person.
What do you know?
The degree in finance is self-explanatory. Your knowledge of hedge funds and investments in Dubai isn’t. What else will fill in the gap for a company to the extent that they’ll pay for your smarts?
We’re looking for marketable skills. Stretch away from what’s been common – look toward other industries, companies you might not have considered.
Articulating the value you bring is important to a new employer, but when you’ve been surprised it’s even more important to yourself. Describing that value helps people link you to others who will employ you. Do it.
As we watch the Super Bowl, a lot of attention will be paid to players and coaches – after all, the teams are what it’s all about, right?
But what about the venue? Before there can be a Super Bowl, there has to be a venue capable of hosting thousands in a city with an NFL team.
The community chosen to host the Super Bowl comes out as a huge winner. Many companies use the week before the event to do business, then top it off by taking their best customers to the game. Millions of dollars are injected into the economy by people patronizing restaurants, hotels, night clubs and other spots for pre-game entertainment. In these tough economic times, that alone is hugely attractive to everyone with a business in the immediate area of the venue.
What’s the process and how does it relate to a job search?
You’ve got to know someone
Current policy is that the venue selected must be the home of an NFL team. If you’re not in the game already, fugheddaboudit.
I’ve said it before, and here it is again – people help people find jobs. Who do you know who knows someone with a need you can fill? Ask. Track down people who can tell you about people. Ask everyone for three names of people you should be talking with. Online services are great, but they won’t result in a broader, more focused network.
No team plays in their home stadium
In the search for a Super Bowl venue, teams may play near their home – but no one gets a home field advantage.
In a job search, the closest you’ll ever come to a home field advantage is a phone interview. Don’t blow it. I always loved doing these because I assumed candidates would be prepared and sharp. I was wrong.
Don’t be the candidate who sends out one resume, then has another in front of her for the interview. Prepare, practice and turn it to your advantage.
Prepare in advance
Venues for the Super Bowl are chosen about 3-5 years before the game.
Your interviewer will ask you about yourself and your experience – that’s a given. You should have done enough homework about their company that you can easily answer the questions in a relevant way that matters to them. Be prepared and make sure you’ve scouted it out ahead of time.
Know your material at such a deep level that you can adjust to changes as they come at you – just as they happen in a football game.
Designate yourself as the ‘home team’
The AFC is designated as the home team in even-numbered Super Bowls, while in the odd-numbered ones the NFC is the home team.
You can make yourself the ‘home team’ by being smart about your job search:
- Make sure every contact is meaningful and that everyone is treated with respect.
- Double and triple-check your materials each time before they go out.
- Send thank you notes that support your candidacy and stick in the receiver’s mind.
- When interviewing, answer questions directly.
- Demonstrate that you can do the job.
Keep in mind that the search is worth a lot. The two teams we’ll be watching on Super Sunday have spent months – in fact, years – getting ready for this game. The winning team will get more than just bragging rights. For many players, their contract indicates specific bonuses for the big win – with even more to be realized for those with sporting goods supplier contracts with firms like Nike, Speedo, Wilson, Adidas and others.
There’s a lot on the line – give it your best!
While you can’t always make your search shorter, you can at least make better use of the time you’re spending on it.
This can free up time to take on a temporary job or project that brings in a bit of cash. Getting entrepreneurial can also net some green. How? Helping senior citizens for pay. Tutoring kids after school. A bread of the month club that people subscribe to. Think of more…
But here are a few ways to speed it up:
Time what you’re doing
If you’re finding that it’s taking you forever to customize those resumes before you send them out, allow yourself 15 minutes of editing, then press the button. Compressing a task will often give you focus. And instead of floating out paper airplanes, it makes more sense to spend time talking with people who may know someone in a company or joining a job club.
Shift to one or two industries
A broad spattering of goals is less likely to net a job. Tighten your focus, get particular. Aim, then fire. If you’ve been connecting with five industries, make it one or two.
Look into short-term training to add a skill
One additional element can tip things in your favor. Maybe it’s being bi-lingual. Or it could be having a CPR certificate. I recognize that the language example could take years. That’s not what I mean. Short term. Basics. No more than 6-8 weeks. Make sure it’s relevant to the companies and industries you’re targeting.
Tighten up – and keep going.
Bobbi Brown started her company with just one lipstick.
She’s a creative who doesn’t want to exchange emails. She’d rather hear a human voice – the tone, nuance, that catch of the breath when an exciting idea arrives.
Whether success shows up in the form of a CEO, a tennis player, or a teacher, we can always learn something new by listening to others – here’s Bobbi’s take on work:
When you’re talking to someone, look them in the eye. Always tell the truth. And you have to start at the bottom. I don’t care who you are and what you do, you have to start at the bottom. If there’s a job as a receptionist at a company you would love to work at and there’s nothing else, get that job. And don’t just sit there.
A lot of people have moved up in this company. Be open and be a sponge. I’ve always been a sponge. You’re around really cool, creative people, you see what they’re doing, how they’re dressing, what they’re reading, what their tastes are. I mean that’s what makes someone better at what they do — they’re just open to what’s going on.
Have the courage and humility to reveal who you really are. Bobbi says a lot that is very interesting about hiring people. You can read the rest of the interview with Bobbi Brown here.
If you’re an expert and you’ve had positive reactions to your resume over the past few years, skip this post.
But if you think you might be missing something…maybe even something basic…stick around.
Paper stock
I’ve been given resumes on pink paper, onionskin air mail paper, copier paper, parchment, rag bond – you name it. Unless you’re an actor or in design, stick with basics and let the written content tell your story. Ditch pink, onionskin is far too flimsy, copier paper is too cheap, parchment too stiff, rag bond is fine. I’m sounding like Goldilocks.
White, off-white, beige are all fine. You want a paper with a good, heavy texture. Commercial patterns? Not so much.
Of course you’re emailing your resume to employers. When you’re called in to interview, you can provide the people you meet with one of your copies.
It’s all about you
Make it easy for the recruiter, HR person or cousin Floyd’s mother-in-law – your name needs to appear front and center in an easily read serif font. Times roman may bore you, but it’s easy on the eye.
Naturally, if you’re a graphic artist you’re going to use a layout and font that demonstrate your skill. The rest of us will have to settle for being neat.
Your address, however you decide to arrange it, should appear below your name and must include both your phone number and your email address. Don’t use your work phone unless your company has set you up with an outplacement firm and is keeping you on while you conduct your job search. Use your cell number.
Keep it easy for recruiters to find you and name your resume file something like this: Maria Genova Resume 1-2010, 201-356-2918.
Add the year to your degree
Recruiters and HR people never have enough time. If they’re doing a background check on you – and many recruiters do some checking before presenting you to the client to protect their reputation – make it easy for them to confirm your degree.
And Boomers – dropping the year you graduated isn’t going to fool anyone about your age. If you’ve got a superior attitude because the interviewer is 15 years younger than you, drop it now. It doesn’t serve you, it alienates others and it’s stupid.
Describe the company, describe your responsibilities
Check this out with people you know in HR, but you wouldn’t believe how many job applicants don’t bother to describe the company they worked for or their job responsibilities. Develop a 1-line bio of the company that includes its major product/service, industry, size (people and dollars), and other key features.
Follow that with a description of what you did. What was your part? One line or two will be enough. Spend the rest of the space focused on results. Quantify. Most resumes don’t have enough quantification. Add numbers, dollars, percents. Specify the results you obtained. Results tell the recruiter or HR person that you can produce work that helps the company make money.
Get the basics right, be succinct and know the elements of your story that are saleable and contributed to the bottom line.
The job search involves etiquette. Hard to believe, but our behavior – or the wrong behavior – gets us in the door or finding that it’s been closed in our face. So how do you know what’s offensive to a recruiter or an HR person?
Right now, it’s safe to assume that recruiters who are not just surviving but thriving are excellent. Some industries appear to be coming back, but that great sucking sound some months back was thousands of recruiters going down the drain as positions dried up. Some are back, excellent ones kept their clients and relationships and are moving ahead.
What gets the button pushed by HR people and you (with your resume and application) sent down the chute?
Thinking HR people are the key to a hire
Think again. HR people are positioned to keep people out of the company. It’s the person with the hiring authority who actually taps you with the magic wand and makes the offer. HR folks function as gatekeepers and do the initial check – do you actually have knowledge or are you spouting key words with nothing to back them up? Are you actually demonstrating lack of smarts and sucking up to the wrong person entirely?
HR people make note of this and torpedo you. Irritants need not apply. Determine who has the power. It’s probably not a VP. More likely a line manager, maybe a director. Here’s a hint: if you talk with people, you can get pointed in the right direction. Yes, that would be a human being.
Cold calling HR
Read the above graph again. HR is not your first call, and if it is, that makes you look like a rank amateur. Which is more likely than not to, once again, send you down the chute.
Holding the HR person hostage
Of course you’re not going to really hold them hostage, but making contact and launching into a script is the same thing.
Be real when you talk with people. Don’t just talk at them a mile a minute – it’s more than irritating, it’s rude and counter-productive. Do ask if they have 30 seconds – then make them relevant, make them count. If you can’t think of a benefit you’re giving them during the planned conversation, stop. Regroup. Think again. Read my lips – NO SCRIPTS!
Now for the bonus round, which may be upsetting.
How about not calling HR at all, unless they ask you to.
Radical, but an email is an opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of business etiquette (there’s that word again), writing skills, your knowledge and your ability to be persuasive. Think HR people aren’t deluged with calls right now?
Step back and put yourself in their position for a second. A well-written email will be better received than a cold call.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: candidates, HR, job search, jobs, Neil Hirschfeld, NYT, recruiters
Those who do the hiring often complain about candidates who ‘just don’t get it’ while they conduct their job search. But what about recruiters and HR types who miss the boat?
One man decided to exact revenge – and caused quite a stir.
Imagine you’ve sent the above candidate an editing or other test, asking that they return it to you pronto. They do. But the job has already been taken by the CEO’s favorite nephew, Ralph. Not the brightest tool in the shed, but nepotism happens.
Two months go by, then three. You’ve forgotten about that stellar candidate. Until…
“Sitting down at my computer one morning, I e-mailed the managing editor to say that I had happily accepted the job. More specifically, I wrote that I was “delighted to learn that I will be joining the editorial team!” I went on to say that “the salary and vacation are fine and I will report for duty bright and early Monday morning.””
You’re toast. You don’t remember who made the offer. You didn’t – did you? Your heart pounds, you break into a cold sweat while you pound out a response to the email that has ruined your day, possibly your week and maybe your career. You ask, no, you demand that the candidate call you immediately. After what seems like days, but is only an hour or two, this happens…
“When I finally did call back, the H.R. director was beside herself. “Who authorized this?” she demanded breathlessly. “Who was it that told you? There must have been some mistake. Nobody cleared this with me. I don’t get it.”
“Well,” I said sweetly, “I spoke to the editor in chief and he told me I’ve been hired, so I’ll be there first thing Monday. And, let me tell you, I am truly excited about joining your team!”
“But … but … but …” she sputtered.”
Your company doesn’t have to look like a schmuck. Set up a policy and make it clear to candidates. You appreciate their interest in ACME Corp., but they’ll only hear from you if there is an apparent fit. When they send in requested materials, have someone, anyone, acknowledge receipt. Then calendar the appropriate follow-up.
No one knows how long the economy will make it an employer’s market for jobs. Keep in mind that candidates are like customers – they talk. If the talk is good, you’ll find lots of people for openings in good times and bad. If word gets around that you don’t care, Neil Hirschfeld’s column in the NYT could be a charming experience you’d rather not have.
Don’t be a jerk.
