Discouraged and despair are taking over? time to reflect! October 4, 2010
Posted by jvmullin in Job Searching, Job Searching.Tags: attitude, career, career search, careers, job hunting, Job Search, job seeking, jobs careers job hunting, research
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This recession, I don’t care what they said on the news to us its still a recession, is lasting far too long. The end doesn’t seem to be in sight for a number of unemployed. More and more jobs and functions are being offshored.
That is the bad news so face it and get on with your life!
Really are you just going to give up?
NO !!!!
It is time to take a day off and clear your mind of all the baggage you have built up in the last year or two.
Start fresh by taking inventory again of all your skills and abilities.
Then get going on researching your industry and what is going on in it. Does it even still exist in your area. You may be chasing a ghost!
Next take a close reflection on your expectations knowing what is going on with companies. Are you being part of the problem with your search? Are your expectations too high or even too low?
Have you lost focus? Have you become so desperate that you can no longer think or see straight?
Are you depressed?
The best part of being an intelligent human being is that you have a brain and you can think logically strategically and calculate things.
SO take out the garbage in your head and get back to doing what you do best…..think!
You are a professional so act like one!
Develop a plan, write procedures that you will follow for every position, plot out a schedule. Reorganize and hit it hard!
Applying for a job is not just sending your resume. If that is all you are doing then there is no hope for you. It takes work and there are too many out there playing the whoa is me card. Well stop it!
There are plenty of resources out there for finding information on companies…use them. Use LinkedIn to search the company and find people to network with while you are waiting for your resume to miraculously bubble up to the to of the black hole.
If I sound harsh and rude it is for a reason. I hate to see talented people not using their talent when it counts the most.
Google the company to see what information comes up. If they are publicly traded then go to the SEC.gov website and read their 10K reports there is a vast sea of information there for you.
Research what companies are left in your area that could use your skills and talents and then target them. Set up an aggressive plan to network your way right to the decision maker. Develop your best this is what I can do for you speech. You r best this is how I can help the company do better speech. Talk about it in business terms as well as solving problems. Tell how you can save or make time, save or make money and how you can solve problems that relate to the last two statements.
So remember you are a skilled and talented professional. Get focused and organized then write your plan, procedures and schedule, then execute it!
Have faith in your self get out of the house and network. Ask for help and join a buddy group it will help you be accountable to others.
Career Fairs Great opportunities October 1, 2010
Posted by jvmullin in Job Searching, Job Searching.Tags: attitude, career, career search, careers, job hunting, Job Search, job seeking, jobs careers job hunting
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We all know how Career fairs are run today.
Most of them have some flunky standing behind a table collecting resumes. Others have an low level HR person collecting them who can not tell you much about the company they work for or the position.
While others have hiring managers working the table but why is it they are not the ones that will be hiring you. Such is the realm of career fairs.
Oh one last pet peeve the fairs I have been to lately are great if you want to sell insurance, be a financial advisor, or sell Avon.
So with all this negativism why should go to a job fair?
Because it is a place of opportunity if you know how to work the floor!
The floor???? What are you talking about?
The most important people at the show in my opinion are the job seekers. Yes the job seekers!
These are people who have worked at companies that you may be interested in. These are people who may know someone that works at a company that you are interested in.
These are the people you should be talking to.
I started doing this awhile ago and it works great for a number of reasons.
One it builds your network and it gives you the opportunity to maybe help someone.
You may get the inside skinny on a company that you are interviewing with.
It gives you something to do instead of just standing in line looking at your feet.
It makes the time to get to the table to dump your resume go faster.
If there is by chance a hiring manager at the table you are more open to talking and asking the right questions because you just spent all that time talking to a bunch of strangers.
It makes the fair much more enjoyable.
So how do you do this?
While standing in line turn to the person behind you and say something like what do you do? My favorite ice breaker is “What do you want to be when you grow up?” It usually gets a smile, a chuckle or a laugh but it breaks the barrier immediately.
So after a couple of minutes say excuse me and tap the person in front of you and get them engaged. Then the person behind the person behind you. Then the person in front of the person in front of you. You should know have a 5 person network meeting running.
Oh but you are not done because there are more people in the lines on either side of you so get them engaged in the network meeting also.
As the lines move and people drop out engage more people to keep your mini-networking meeting going.
I have found out some interesting information while conducting these meetings. While at a Monster.com fair I had a woman who works for Monster come up and give me kudos for starting it.
So do not look at Career Fairs as boring and not worth the trip or effort go have fun and start your own networking event on the floor. Be sure to bring plenty of business cards and practice your pitch.
Success can come from some strange places August 19, 2010
Posted by jvmullin in Job Searching, Job Searching.Tags: attitude, career search, Job Search, jobs careers job hunting
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I have a friend Nick Iandolo who is a screenwriter and fellow WIND member. Nick is a high energy person who is fun to be around as it is contagious for one thing and to watch him shutter trying to release his pent up energy is just fun to watch.
So what does Nick have to do with the topic? Well the story goes like this. Nick wrote a book “Cut the crap and write that damn screen play” , great book go to Amazon and buy it it is worth the read. ANy way in the process of getting his book published he needed a cover. The cover needed artwork or pictures. Nick gets the crazy idea to enlist his friends in role model playing. I played McKee a pretentious author of book on writing who has you do more writing about writing than actually doing the writing. I hope you followed that because I can’t do that twice. So we set up outside B Goods at Legacy Place in Dedham, MA, Great burgers and thick strawberry shakes! Anyway we are outside using the patio furniture and I play McKee and Nick jumps in my face screaming the title of his book. The people sitting around us were either amused or in shock it was hard to tell.
Anyway cut to scene two:
Nick lands himself on Money Matters radio. This is cool he can push his book. Yes that is me on the back cover at the top! Anyway Nick promoted the hell out of being on the show.
I do not have an AM antenna on my stereo so I am forced to go online and watch the streaming video and audio. I realize that they are only focusing on a niche market for the book …screenwriters. Wait! I have read the book and I am not a screenwriter the book is for everyone. So I do the right thing. I call into the show to tell them this!.
Nick the host and I have a good laugh when I reveal that it is I on the back of the book. I tell her that Nick’s book has inspired me, a business person, to write my first book. My book will be title LinkedIn screwdriver or power tool?
Scene Three:
I get invited to do a show, Ah! Networking at its finest! So I go and do my show and push my new business Evolution Career Business Leadership. I get a mention in of my branding statement; “You train dogs you coach athletes We develop people!” Denis Vaughan was a great host and made the show very fun.
Is that it???? You got your own time on the show. How melodramatic for this topic.
Ah but here is scene 4: Fade in!
They sent me the wrong audio files. So in trying to get the right files I receive an email from the station that the Program Manager liked my “On Air” presence and wants to talk to me about further shows.
I have an appointment Monday so I will have to add a comment as to the conclusion of this.
But if you look at the sequence of events you can see that you never know where your success will come from.
From a crazy friend having a crazy idea for a book cover to getting on radio.
Always keep your options open you never know where they may lead you.
My comment could be that I am just going to do a series of shows or it could be that I get my own show. Whatever the outcome it has been a wild ride getting there. I am enjoying the ride while it last.
What ride is coming your way or is starting to brew for you?
Reality check time! August 14, 2010
Posted by jvmullin in Job Searching, Job Searching.Tags: attitude, career, career search, careers, job hunting, Job Search, job seeking, jobs careers job hunting, starting a business
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The stock market was down again for the fourth day in row Wednesday. The great recession continues. National unemployment is still over 10% despite what the media quotes.
So what is the reality check your preaching to the choir!
Here is the check!
If you are still devoting a lot of time to job boards then you will be out of work for a longer period.
If you are not getting out of the house and networking you will be out of work for a longer time.
If you are not using social media (LinkedIn Twitter Facebook) effectively you will be out of work a long time.
If you have lost your focus and drive for what you want to do then you will be out of work along time.
If you are using the shot gun approach well good luck to you.
REALITY CHECK!
Learn what the hidden job market is! Research make a list of target companies and then form your strategy, your game plan to land a position there. It take work and determination.
If you want the job and you want to work there, then do the work. The pay off is better than sitting there reading this.
If you have or others around have convinced you that you will never get another job doing what you have been doing, then what?
What is your passion? Is there a market for it? Can you develop a business plan for it? Well then just do it! You will probably be happier doing what you have a passion for and working for yourself. Then if it takes off you can hire other people to help you.
As Nike says Just Do it!
How do you stay focused and positive after a year? March 24, 2010
Posted by jvmullin in 1.Tags: attitude, career, career search, job hunting, Job Search, job seeking, jobs careers job hunting
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Well I have been unencumbered by employment now for 1 1/2 years. I have heard of people giving up, I have heard of people changing careers, I have heard of people loosing focus and taking anything, I have heard of people that have gone from focus to the shotgun approach.
They say desperate times call for desperate measures. Do they really? Or is that a cop out statement?
When they talk about people over 40 they always mention career transition like after 40 you have to seek a new career. What was wrong with the one I was in? It is still around and I still like the work so why do I have to transition?
I might be an enigma. I have worked in the same industry for a number of years. I still have a lot I can contribute. I still have the time to do it also. I really like my industry because it is constantly changing and you get to learn new things all the time. I have worked with some great people and I have worked with some real pain the asses.
I have hired people and I have fired people. It was just part of the job.
They tell you in these times to surround yourself with positive people who will support you. People who have been out this long have a hard time staying focused and being positive. I have my ups and downs but I try hard to have more ups than I do downs. When you start having a down day it can drag you down fast. You have to be aware and not let that happen.
How do you stay focused? I know what I want to do. I know that I can do it very effectively. I know there is a position out there for me. I just have to find it . So I keep looking for it and nothing else.
I know I have hurdles that I have to overcome. Knowing what these are gives me the advantage to address them in positive ways. This allows me to stay focused and up beat because I know that I can jump these hurdles with ease.
Staying positive is hard especially after all this time and then loosing my last 2 extensions because I worked a part time gig for a friend of mine. I have stopped watching TV there was nothing worth watching anyway except maybe the DIY and NAT GEO channels. Not listening to bad news everyday helps you stay positive. I would get my information online in daily emails from the business journals and the tech wires. This allowed me to be selective on what I read especially if it related to my industry. I could see if my target companies received a contract or bought another company or merged with someone. It kept me informed with what really mattered.
Getting into discussions and answering questions on LinkedIn helped a lot for me to stay positive because it provides a sense of worth. Especially when you get voted best answer or someone in a discussion gives you kudos for your part.
Writing this blog helps me stay positive as it has been my hope to help others who are job seeking. I have received good feedback from other seekers thanking me for it.
I guess what it really comes down to is the person character. Do they have the discipline to keep themselves focused and upbeat when the world is crumbling around them? Do they have that dogged determination required to go the distance to achieve what they desire or are they going to throw in the towel and take what ever and be miserable until something better comes along?
If you have been unemployed for a year or more please tell me here what you have done and what you do to keep focused and keep going. I would like to know and I am sure it may help others who read this blog.
Whats with Unemployment and Career Centers? March 17, 2010
Posted by jvmullin in 1.Tags: career, career search, job hunting, Job Search, job seeking, jobs careers job hunting
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Here in Massachusetts there is a growing concern about a particular issue. That concern is about your UI benefits and extensions when you hit the one year mark in your endeavor to find gainful employment.
The career centers are encouraging you to find part time and contract work. They will tell you upfront that you can only make X number of dollars over your unemployment before it has an effect on your weekly UI check.
What they neglect to tell you is what effect it will have on your UI benefits if you are still unemployed after a year.
The eligibility amount is $3,500 to get UI benefits. I only worked a 3 week part time gig for a friends company and only made $2,300. When I went to file for my next to last extension I was told I was not eligible due to the fact I only worked 3 weeks in 2009 and did not make sufficient monies to collect. So now I am at zero income and no safety net left.
What others in Massachusetts are finding out is that there benefits are being greatly reduced because of their part time work. I know of a number of people who have gone from the maximum to $94/wk because of part time work. This places a further financial burden on these people and myself. It makes it many times harder for us to job search when we cannot afford gas to travel other than an actual interview. It hampers our ability to network as we cannot afford to buy the contact a simple cup of coffee much less the gas to get there.
So if you are starting or have been on unemployment and are working part time and /or contract I would suggest strongly that you go to your UI office and ask how this will effect your benefits down the road. The job market is going to be slow to recover and many of us will be unemployed or underemployed for years to come.
Start of a new year and it looks like more of the same January 18, 2010
Posted by jvmullin in 1.Tags: jobs careers job hunting
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When you have been out of work for more than a year things can start to look very dismal. Some markets are picking up but very slowly. Other markets are still stagnant. The management of some companies are still trying to figure out their next move in this uncertain economy.
Wall Street and the big banks are claiming they are back and healthy while a large number of small banks are going under. We do not know what to believe anymore. The unemployment numbers are going down but then what is that based on and who does it include or exclude. There will be another graduating class in a few months and the outlook for them is bleak. They could go back home but then their parents may still be unemployed and it would just increase the burden.
The government is slow at doing the right things to energize the job market and what they have done so far hasn’t worked. Tax incentives for businesses has historically never created the number of jobs it was intended to. But the government, never being one to learn anything from history, will do it again. The monies promised to small business or to start-ups is either non-existent or disguised so that it is very difficult to find it.
I am optimistic that I can find a job. I will once again look over my resume to see how I can make it better. To better sell what I can do for a company. My expertise is in new product introduction (concept to market) and streamlining efficiency. I am very good at finding ways to reduce cost, implement cost saving initiatives, and make processes run better. One would think that in this economy I would be the one person that companies would seek out to help them. In this economy it is the perfect time to have someone like me working for you. But alas it has not happened. I guess I am not selling it correctly on my resume.
I also will be working on a better branding statement for myself.
For the rest of my fellow seekers I suggest you do the same. Take time to analyze what is working and keep it. Analyze also what is not working try to understand why. It may need a tweak or the effort put into may need to be reduced. It may also need to be discarded as it will never work for you.
We must practice our pitch, our networking skills and interviewing.
We must persevere!
Resumes and Cover Letters December 11, 2009
Posted by jvmullin in 1.Tags: cover letters, jobs careers job hunting, resumes
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There is a never ending debate on the use of cover letters do I or don’t I send one.
The other never ending debate is resumes, which style, which format what content. There must be thousands of books written on this subject alone.
So the big questions would be what works and what doesn’t. Who should I listen to?
We know or should know by now that your resume and your cover letter are pieces of marketing material. Your resume is not your professional life history. It is no longer a list of former jobs and responsibilities either.
We are currently in the most competitive job market I have ever seen in my years of professional work. There is also a very bad trend going on as well (despite the great debate that is brewing in a LinkedIn group) as to companies hiring new talent vs. seasoned talent. Actually they are doing neither. Companies are trying to muddle through this with bare-bones staffing. They have cut themselves to the quick in order to look profitable.
What does that have to do with resumes and cover letters? It has everything to do with it. In order to compete in this market you first need to understand what the field is. Next you need to learn how to play in this field and be successful at it.
What is the secret? There is no secret! However! You must differentiate yourself from all the others in order to be successful. Okay! How do I do that? You do that with your cover letter and resume. I address this is an earlier post but I am going to do it again.
Your resume and cover letter is a representation of you! That being said how can you differentiate yourself if you are using the format you got out of a book that was written many years ago. Is that resume in the book tailored exactly to you and what you do? I highly doubt it. Does it fit your personality, your style, your capabilities? Again I doubt it. The same holds true with cover letters. I have been caught in right sizing(todays term) many times and each time the rules have changed and so I have found that the many myriad of books on these two subject become basically outdated.
I am not saying that they are totally useless. They are useful in setting the basis but by no means should be considered a bible.
The one consensus today is that the Objective statement is out! If you have this on your resume and you are wondering why yo do not get calls? Well there it is get rid of it. Everyone knows what your objective is to land the job “where you can use your knowledge and skills and move forward”. ZZZZZZZZZ!
You should have a base resume that includes every accomplishment and skill you have. Do not ever send this resume out to anyone. Unless they are looking for an over-achiever or you want to be placed in the ” we can;t hire them they will get bored too easily” category. This is the resume you work off of to create your personalized resume for that company and that hiring manager.
What do you mean?
Lets say you had a great accomplishment at a pass position. However, the skills you used to do that are not needed in this position you are applying for. While you are proud of what you did, the company does not need those exact skills. This counts against you!
So what do I put in the resume and cover letter?
Hopefully you have researched the company and have a good understanding of what they need. Then go to your base resume and see what you have that fits. Copy and paste that into your submittal resume. NOTE: save your best accomplishment for your cover letter and do not repeat it in your resume. WHY? I will get to that. Now you cover letter should start with how you heard about the position. A very brief explanation is sufficient, one line. This helps the company understand where there dollars are best spent in their search process. The next paragraph better be about the company and how you understand their need and how you can help them. The next paragraph should be your best accomplishment, be brief but concise. It should also fit directly inline with their need. The last paragraph should be a request for a meeting to further discuss. Do not be passive but do not be overly aggressive.
DO NOT COPY THE FORMAT IN A BOOK! HR and hiring managers actually love to see resumes and cover letters written by you in your own language. Your writing skills, your personality, your style. Why? Because this tells them a lot about you and if you will fit in. IF you copy the resumes and cover letters out of a book, it is boring and shows you have not put in the effort and that is the type of work that I can expect of you. If you have someone else write them, it shows that you will expect someone else to do your work. Either way they will get you in the circular file quickly.
WHY? !
Your resume and cover letter as I stated earlier are marketing materials about you. Not the person in the book, not the person writing in their style about who you are but you. The way to differentiate yourself from the competition is to write your own cover letters and resume. These are dynamic documents! You will constantly need to ask for feedback about what they liked and didn’t like about your resume and cover letter. WHY? So that you can make changes to the next ones. Unfortunately this is a trial and error system. Try something if it works use it if it doesn’t why would you want to keep making the same mistake. Talk to others and see what works for them. This does not mean it will work for you but it may be an idea to think about and if it is valid for you then try it.
WHY? ! Why do I insist that you write your cover letter and resume. Because it will differentiate you from the others and today in this market that is the name of the game. I have been a hiring manager and I am seeking a manager position now. I can tell you as a hiring manager having looked at hundreds of resumes and cover letter, your resume and cover letter will stand out. The next thing I expect from those is good content. I can also tell from your writing if I like you enough to want you in for an interview. I want to see that you have taken the time to research the company and have some idea on how you are going to help me meet my goals. You may not need all the requirements that I asked for if I think you can work with the team, learn quickly and get the job done.
NOTE: You are dealing with humans (when your resume gets through the scanner that is). We all have our preferences and likes and dislikes. We do agree on one thing we want to see your resume and cover letter written by you.
That said let me tell you what I and a number of others don’t want to see; colored paper, fancy fonts, too much bolding and underlining, some people any bolding or underlining, scented paper( I might be allergic to that scent and then where will your resume be) and the same old format as every other resume. Believe or not we can also tell if you wrote it in most cases.
Length of the resume I believe is based on the position you are seeking. If you are going for a manager position or a C level position I do not see how a 1-2 page resume full of bullet points is going to convince anyone to call me for an interview. But, again that is my opinion.
FEEDBACK!
I mentioned feedback earlier. Where do I get it and how do I get it. If you get rejected by a company call HR and ask for their help. You need to ask if there was any specific about your cover letter or resume that hurt your chances of getting hired. Show your resume and cover letters to recruiters and other unemployed people and get their opinion as to what you might be doing wrong. Like I said these are dynamic documents that are under constant changes while you find what is working.
Good luck! Any questions please comment to this post and I will try to answer them.
Job seeking from a hunters perspective Blog 