The Job Search and the Five Rules My Father Passed Along

Yesterday I wrote about the five things my father taught me about life. As I look at them today, and review the various comments and news about the dismal job market, I realize that they are words to live by while job hunting.

There is no doubt in my mind that the employment market is lifeless.  The jobs are lacking and the unemployed are discouraged.  The anger, frustration and cynicism can be seen on any LinkedIn groups, the newspapers, and in the comments section of each article on job search tips.  A growing number of unemployed renegades are out with a vengeance and are lashing out at anyone who may offer a suggestion or make a comment.  Overall it’s discouraging, frustrating and a day-in day-out blow to even the strongest of constitutions.

Getting back to my Dad’s advice, here is how I see his words as they apply to the unemployment mess.

1.    There is no such word as “can’t”: In other words, don’t say there is only one way to do something.  Hard as it is (and I seriously know it is hard), you may have to step out of your comfort zone and job search differently.  Some suggestions may be to network more or with different people, change your resume to reflect each and every job posting, telephone people rather than emailing them... your gut probably can give you some more suggestions.

2.    The harder the hammering, the stronger the steel: Get punched and fall down. Get back up. The job search can feel like this on a daily basis. Sometimes it’s hard to find the good in ourselves after being knocked down so many times. You are who you are first and what your job is second.

3.    The world is your oyster: It’s a big world with many possibilities. Learn new skills, take some free classes, get out and meet new people and share your passions. Share yourself with others by volunteering.

4.    Treat everyone with respect: Whether it is on line or in person, respect is the Golden Rule.  People that you treat kindly may reimburse you some day by remembering you and your job needs.  Plus, aren’t we trying to teach our kids that bullying is wrong? Why do it as an adult?

5.    Do what you love and love what you do: There are a couple of meanings here.  If you love to garden, go outside and blow some steam off. If you love to sing, dance, exercise, write, paint, volunteer… do it. Keep busy and do something else besides job search. There are 24 hours in a day and while many of them should be used for the job search, use some of the others for you and your family. The other meaning here is to figure out what type of career you are passionate about by thinking of your skills, values and personality. Take an assessment and brainstorm people/ways to possible pursue that avenue.

Anything else? Let me know and I'll add it.

Memorial Day and my Dad

Memorial Day has been seared into my heart because of my Dad, Arthur R. Range.  He was a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army who piloted Search and Rescue missions over “The Hump” of China, Burma and India during World War II and later on worked in Army Intelligence during the Cold War.  He often said that his place in life was to serve God, country and his family.  I hated being number three on the list but over the years learned to live with it.   My father died on a Memorial Day seventeen years ago; it wasn’t happenstance that was the day he left us. That was his way, his choice and it certainly made sense, given how he lived his life. 

My father showed me the world; whether we were stationed in Heidelberg, Germany or Eatontown, NJ. Every place was an adventure.  He was the one who taught me how to fold the American flag, make a bed so a quarter would bounce and to stop whatever I was doing, stand up and place my hand over my heart whenever I heard the National Anthem.   I was his “Monkey”, and his lessons have made me who I am. He said:

1.       There is no such word as “can’t”.

2.       The harder the hammering, the stronger the steel.

3.       The world is your oyster.

4.       Treat everyone with respect.

5.       Do what you love and love what you do.

I learned that my dad would take three minute power naps while waiting for takeoff clearance on the narrow landing strips in the jungles of Burma. He told me that he did that because he was nervous. He also lovingly placed the letters and pictures of his nieces in the cockpit with him for good luck. Today, somewhere in Afghanistan or Iraq, there is a brave serviceman or woman doing a similar thing. I thank them for their service, for following in my Dad’s footsteps and for keeping us safe and free.

Handling Various Job Search Situations Part 1

I gave a resume preparation and interviewing class this past Saturday in a local community center.  It was the first nice day this area has seen in weeks and sure enough the rains came back on Sunday. I didn’t think that too many people would come because it was a beautiful day and it was a free class.  Given those odds, it would have been me and the program organizer sharing the platter of a dozen sandwiches.  Much to my surprise, a nice sized group came in and they ranged in age from 15 through the mid-forties. They were all ready to either start or get back into the job market and wanted to know what to do.  My time with them flew and I was humbled by their stories. Some were just getting started (the 15 year old) and others had been affected by serious illness or another disabilities and were concerned that they would be turned away because of the number of years between them and their last jobs.  It seems that the average time away from work with this group was around four years and they were surprised to learn how dramatically the job search scene had changed in that short time.  Here are some of their questions.  How would you answer them?

1.   How do I explain being a stay at home mom?

2.   Will a company lose interest in me because I left my former job on disability?

3.   How do I explain that I left my former company on bad terms?

4.   Most companies want experience but I can’t get it unless someone hires me. How or where can I get it?

5.  As a high school student I like to write. Other than school work, where can I get more practice writing?

Finding Employment After a Conviction

The other day I was asked if I knew of any resources for finding employment after serving out a conviction.  Here are some helpful links.

1. A CNBC Article on finding employment after serving out a sentence. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24428747/

2.America Works has locations throughout the United States.  http://www.americaworks.com/mericaworks.com/

3. An article and video from eHow Money:http://www.ehow.com/video_4908852_employment-ex_cons.html 

4. A series of articles from Love to Know and other sources are at:

http://jobs.lovetoknow.com/Ex-Convicts_Search_for_Employment

5. A blog of articles and resources for ex offenders is: http://jailtojob.com/wordpress/

Some other sites include The Sentencing Project and the Legal Action Center.

Confusing Resume Jargon

The other night on LinkedIn there was a lot of talk about the pros and cons of using a professional resume writer.  One LinkedIn group member was angry about the jargon and tasks associated with writing a resume and wrote a heated entry expressing his frustration. His comments reaffirmed the fact that if you don’t keep up with the new trends in the whole job search process; it’s easy to get lost in the jargon.  He had issues with the newer phrasing that not only professional resume writers are using but also the actual words that have become common place and are thrown around by all job seekers.  Some of these common job search phrases include:

Tailoring Your Resume

Measurable Accomplishments

Skill Set

Tailoring Your Resume – Tailoring is aligning what you did in your past job (or as a volunteer or member of a professional group) to the wording in the job posting. A friend of mine defined it beautifully with, "Words are indeed a suit of clothes; we put them 'on' to express ourselves precisely." If a posting says that you must negotiate, then your resume better show your accomplishments in negotiation.  You should (must) tailor or rewrite your resume for every job that interests you.

Measurable Accomplishments – Everyone has measurable job accomplishments.  These are specific metrics; the “how much”, “how many”, “ahead of schedule”, “exceeding client expectations” of your job. They can include percentages, savings, customer satisfaction numbers, etc.  To find them, you’ll need to examine your Skill Set (see below) and figure out where you exceeded the expectations for your position. Think, “Where was I great and why?” If possible, think about your past annual goals or performance appraisals ratings.

Skill Set- The term skill set refers to the six or so areas that are your strengths. They should be a combination of your job-specific skills and soft skills. To find them, write out your tasks (both professional and as a volunteer or member of a professional group). Next, put a check mark next to the tasks that you enjoy doing.  Of those checked, rate your skill level (high, medium or low).  Finally, identify six skills that you rated as both enjoyable and highly skilled.  This is your skill set.

Like everything in life, change is inevitable and this applies to the job search too. Technology, processes, key words, software scanning systems and so much more have taken what was once a difficult and draining process a step further. Unfortunately, if we don’t go with it (or at least try), someone else will win the golden ticket.
(Post Edited May 22, 2011)

The SMART Resume

Did you ever have to write out your annual goals while working for an organization? If you did, chances are you were asked to make them SMART; Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely.  You can use this for creating your resume too. Let’s look at an example.

 I ask:  "What do you do?"

You say:"I am a learning and development specialist."

I ask: What do you do in that job?"

You say: I create training programs for my clients.”

I ask: "So what?"

You say: "So what? This is a huge undertaking..."

I ask: "That's what I'm saying, "so what" does it involve and how have you made a difference in your former company?"

And so it goes.  You need to ask yourself, "So what?" for everything you put into your résumé to make it SMART.  If you don't, your resume will sound like a job description and will be tossed in the trash. Like a SMART goal, your resume statements need to be SPECIFIC and MEASURABLE (remember data) and you have to constantly ask yourself about the results of your efforts (the So What?).  Keep in mind the timely aspects of your achievements and if anything went above and beyond the scope of your position.

Let's look at the Learning and Development example again.  Instead of saying “I create learning and development programs for clients”, the “So What?” can include the following questions:

WHO are your clients?  4000 global and domestic clients in the financial services industry.

WHAT do you create? Employee development programs including performance management, coaching, employee development.

WHAT does this involve? Assess, design, development, implementation, media selection, and evaluation.

WHAT were the results? 98% retention and 96% job satisfaction on internal employee satisfaction survey.

WHEN: According to project schedule

WHY: To increase employee engagement and retention.

Then put it together:

Led the Financial Services department in the design, development and implementation of a worldwide employee engagement and performance management initiative. This model was the global standard used within the organization and resulted in 98% employee retention and 96% employee satisfaction. Responsibilities included assessing employee and management needs via gap analysis, program design and development, vendor management, program implementation and measurement. 

See the difference? If you use the SMART acronym for each of your position responsibilities as well as the "So What?" analogy, you'll be well on your way to creating a stronger, focused resume.

Questions to Ask the Interviewer

This is a reposting of a blog from several months ago.

Last night a friend asked me if I could suggest some dynamic questions that she might comfortably ask a Vice President on her second job interview. She did the leg work and studied up on the company and had some questions of her own but just wanted to bounce some ideas off of me.

As we got to talking, we went over the three major areas that a company wants to learn about you. If there is a good match, you are that much closer to getting the job!

1.   Can you do the job?

2.   Do you fit into the company culture?

3.   Do you want this job?

Can you do this job?

This is the regular interviewing discussion about your skill sets and measurable accomplishments.  We’ve talked about these before; you’ll need to review the key words in the job description and tie them to your accomplishments. Be prepared with specific examples of your past behaviors and accomplishments.

Can you fit into the company culture?

Your knowledge of the company, major competitors, recent news articles, key executives and company values will show that you have done your homework and have an understanding of the company. Your responses and questions will help solidify your fit into the organization. 

Do you want this job?

This is obvious but your punctuality, attire, preparation, motivation and body language along with your knowledge of the company and your responses to the interviewer’s questions will convey your desire to do the job. These, along with your specific questions for them can help translate your enthusiasm and eagerness to work for this organization.  

Don’t save your questions for the end of the interview.  An interview is a two-way conversation and your questions may naturally come up in the interview.  Here is a sample list of questions that I gave to my friend.  Like her, you may want to tailor them to your needs.  You can change them to suit the level of the person with whom you are interviewing.  For example:

1.    What are the short and long term goals of this department?

2.    What are the short and long term goals of the organization?

These questions along with more detail on interviewing techniques can be found in my book, Job Search for Moms.

a. What are the short and long term goals of the company?
b. What is the vision of the department?
c. What is the company environment like?
d. What concerns need to be addressed immediately?
e. What do you see happening with this position for the next 3 to 6 months?
f. What are the particular attributes needed to succeed in this job?
g. What are the challenges a person coming to this job will face?

Another Resume Resource

Last night one of my friends came over to work with me on designing her resume.  She has a lot of experience in documentation but I didn't quite understand what that meant.  After much questioning and asking for examples, I got an idea of what she does. This morning I reviewed our notes, sat down to write her resume but forgot some of the detail.  I figured that I would turn to the Occupational Outlook Handbook for guidance in case I needed more descriptive words.  Just for fun (fun?) I entered her job title into Yahoo Search to see what came up and found this great, easy to read resource; EHow™ Money.  What a find!

Here's how it works.  In the Search area, enter your job title and the words "job description" (Accountant Job Description or Training Manager Job Description) and you'll get a wealth of descriptive information.  It's a great site to add to your resume writing tool collection (Occupational Outlook Handbook, various job search engines such as Indeed.com and Monster.com).  Why go crazy trying to figure out what to write?  By taking this information and tailoring it to include your specific accomplishments and measurements, you'll be well on your way to creating a specific, focused resume.  

Employee vs. Consultant

When I was working for a company there was one thing that bothered me. Why would a company spend tons of money to bring in an outside consultant to do something that an existing employee could do (and want to do)? It used to frustrate me to no end. So many times as employees we are expected to put out fires, do the needed and the necessary and rarely have time to learn, train and develop. Then, when an opportunity arises, it is passed along to the outsider.

Now, I am the consultant and believe me, I am enjoying being the subject matter expert. I love that a client calls me at any time and asks my opinion on how to handle a certain situation or solve a particular problem. It is so refreshing to be looked at as knowledgeable and capable. It is a whole new world but something that I, like so many other people, know I was capable of doing at my former place of work.

If you are employed and want to get noticed and given more responsibilities, I suggest doing the following:

1. Volunteer to research a new process or method that will impact productivity in your department.
2. Ask for a mentor who is a level or two above you and ask that mentor for a truthful opinion on your business image and skills. Listen, learn and make changes.
3. Learn. Don't say that you don't have time to take any training.  You need to grow and learn all there is about your position, new skills or methods to increase performance. Then you need to meet with your manager and ask to implement one or two of these.
4. Read up on your field and find out what's new, what's out and be able to speak knowledgably about these. This is so important.

What's curious about the current recession/unemployment crisis is that so many people who thought they were secure in their positions were blind-sided when they were released. Make yourself a commodity in your business by staying fresh. The worst thing that can happen is job loss.  The best thing that can happen is staying on top of your field and being known as an expert.

What Do You Really Want To Do?

The other night I gave a presentation on career and personal excellence to a group of lovely women from the Dress for Success organization of Mercer County, NJ. One woman in the meeting asked a question about my career; learning and development.  As a temporary worker in a human resources department she was interested in the field and wanted to know how I broke into it. After going through the ins and outs of my first few jobs and the qualifications/job requirements needed to break in, she got a funny look on her face.  She said, "I've done training but I never thought that those sessions counted for anything.  In fact, it's not even on my resume."  Wow #1.

Yes, I said, they do count and they count for a lot. It turns out that this woman has given several small group sessions within her church and her former place of business on a number of communication topics. She also heard a rumor that a graduate degree is a definite requirement for entry into the Learning & Development field. She never checked out the facts, just assumed it was true and never looked further into a career that she thought she might really enjoy. Wow #2.

The interesting thing is that this woman is not alone.  I've often heard similar comments in my job search sessions.  Other than challenging yourself to dare to dream, the advice I share is this:

1. Know your value. Inventory your skill set, strengths, weaknesses and everything in between.
2. Research the requirements of the particular jobs in which you are interested and see if there is a match.  Look at the Occupational Outlook Handbook and pull up the jobs in several popular job search engines like Indeed.com or Monster.com.  Read the requirements for many similar sounding jobs.
3. Network: Schedule an informational interview with people in your field of interest and make sure one of your questions is, "Do you think that I have the skill set to step into a position like this?"
4. Volunteer.  Develop your current skills or learn new skills as a volunteer and add these to your resume.
5. Identify your Transferable Skills: Consider your entire work and volunteer history and make sure to include the skills, knowledge or behaviors that you picked up.
6. Don't ever think that you're not good enough. Enough said.

I am happy to report that the woman in the session planned to go back home and think about her background, the trainings she presented in the past and plan the next steps.  I can't wait to hear how she does. 

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all!

Using Facebook for Your Job Search

The other night I gave a Networking training session as part of a job search series at a local library. With the unemployment rate still so high and the percentage of jobs found through networking (over 85%) soaring as well, networking is still the very best way to find a job.

One of the topics tackled was using social media to network.  It’s interesting; since the class participants ranged in age from the 20s to retirement, I could tell from the body language who was comfortable using it and who would rather network the old-fashioned way.  Once we looked at some of the statistics though, it started to sink in. According to a 2011 survey from Jobvite, Inc., this year 80% of the companies’ surveyed plan to recruit through social networking. Add to that, the very low percent of success of finding a job through job boards, well…. it makes sense to jump on the social media train. Let’s look at Facebook.  How can you find a job on Facebook?  Here are a couple of hints.

1.  Tell your contacts that you are looking.  If you announce that you are looking for a specific type of position in your status line, you are going to get many comments back from your pool of contacts. Also ask your friends to tell their friends. Clean up your profile, add contact information and update your friends on your progress. By the way, I looked at the number of contacts that the average person in their twenties has.  The average number ranges between 500 and 1000! That’s a lot of friends which may equate to a lot of networking contacts.

2.  Start a professional Facebook group and refer your contacts and their contacts to it. Here you can include a link to your LinkedIn profile and your other professional information (such as any blogs that you may have created). Add links to interesting articles in your field and encourage discussion with these. NOTE: Facebook group comments can be found in a Google search so make sure the content is ALWAYS professional.

3.   Look for contacts by typing in the company name. You may find company pages, groups and general information containing names.

4.   Look for job specific groups: Look for your job type and “Like” that group. Comment, ask questions and let them know that you are looking for a position.

5.  Search for employment agencies.

6.  Create a Facebook Ad: For a fee, you can create an advertisement about you and your strengths/skill set.

Anything else? Please add to the list. What has worked for you?

Networking at the Wedding

Networking. Give me a break; do I have to network all of the time? Well, if you want a job you do. 

Case in point. This weekend the son of my very dear college friends was married. It was a wonderful, beautiful affair. The cocktail hour offered time to eat, drink and smooze with new and old friends. You know how it is. When you share a table with perfect strangers the conversation usually starts with how you know the bride or groom and then turns to where you are from and what you do. You don't have to use your entire, professional elevator speech here but you can mention that after working at such and such for ten years, you, like so many others were downsized.  You are now in the market for a new position doing such and such.  It can sound like this, "After working in human resources at the Smith Company for ten years, my position was eliminated.  I've been looking for a similar position in the metropolitan area."

You can leave it at that but most likely the conversation will continue and you might end up making a networking connection. The same thing works when you move to the dining room. Yes, it can work; just don't go overboard.