Thursday, January 26, 2006
Job Offers Gone Bad? Well sort of!
This is the story of Brenda and Cindy. Brenda attended our first CareerBoard webinar and then retained me to be her job search coach. She received a job offer that she really worked hard to secure after about 60 days. She passed the drug test and her references were stellar.
On December 19 at 4 PM Brenda received a written job offer complete with agreed compensation and a starting date. On December 22 at 2:30 PM she received a form letter of rejection. On December 22 at 2:31 PM she had a panic attack and called me.
Was this for real? No but we had to handle it very delicately while making sure nothing had changed. Should we be contacting the woman whose name was on the offer letter or should we call messenger of bad news?
Brenda went right to the source; she spoke to the gentleman who had signed the job offer letter; she placed a phone call to confirm her starting date, indicating how she had been working on strategies to increase market share. Her new boss requested that she put them in a PowerPoint and submit sometime within her first week. She never had to mention the confusion.
Cindy had an offer with a small consulting firm owned by a highly visible female entrepreneur. In charge of business development, marketing and project management, she could see that her time to develop new accounts would be limited, thus minimizing her commission potential. So in a very logical and respectful email, she asked for a reasonable sign-on bonus. Twenty-four hours later her job offer was withdrawn on the premise that she was no longer a good fit. After a 24-hour period of shock Cindy moved on.
Although these are very unusual tales and seldom occur, both of these candidates were extremely lucky. Brenda never lost her hire and Cindy was spared a tyrannical boss.
On December 19 at 4 PM Brenda received a written job offer complete with agreed compensation and a starting date. On December 22 at 2:30 PM she received a form letter of rejection. On December 22 at 2:31 PM she had a panic attack and called me.
Was this for real? No but we had to handle it very delicately while making sure nothing had changed. Should we be contacting the woman whose name was on the offer letter or should we call messenger of bad news?
Brenda went right to the source; she spoke to the gentleman who had signed the job offer letter; she placed a phone call to confirm her starting date, indicating how she had been working on strategies to increase market share. Her new boss requested that she put them in a PowerPoint and submit sometime within her first week. She never had to mention the confusion.
Cindy had an offer with a small consulting firm owned by a highly visible female entrepreneur. In charge of business development, marketing and project management, she could see that her time to develop new accounts would be limited, thus minimizing her commission potential. So in a very logical and respectful email, she asked for a reasonable sign-on bonus. Twenty-four hours later her job offer was withdrawn on the premise that she was no longer a good fit. After a 24-hour period of shock Cindy moved on.
Although these are very unusual tales and seldom occur, both of these candidates were extremely lucky. Brenda never lost her hire and Cindy was spared a tyrannical boss.
Friday, January 20, 2006
Talk to Me
Hi loyal blog readers. Just wanted to remind everyone you can talk to me LIVE, next Wednesday night, January 25th, from 7 - 8p EST. Check the blog early next week for log-in information.
Have a great weekend!
Have a great weekend!
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Times They Are A Changin'
Christmas 2005 retail sales were higher than predicted, the Dow Jones Industrial average recently topped 11,000 for the first time since 9/11, and the unemployment rate, not under 5% since 2001, was 4.9% for two out of three months Q4 2004.
If there was ever a time to polish your job search skills it's January 2006! While reminiscing about last year's clients, I came up with some really important suggestions. While I won't mention any names, those of you who joined my flock might just see yourselves!
To the Executive Vice President - Get a new email address. Just because you breed and show dogs, BOXER XXX still sends a different message. YourName@ - is best if you can get it.
To the Database Administrator - You're 55 years old and you can't have a one page resume. A resume without achievements is like a report card without grades. Why select you if all you provide is a list of your employers, job titles and education?
To the Technical Manager - Get a voicemail message and make it your voice! That cold digital person doesn't verify that I called the correct party and simply saying your name does less than impress. Remember if a prospective employer calls his first impression is your voicemail!
To the Production Manager - You're 55 years old and if you'll take a break from believing that's a problem you'll run circles around the 35 year olds. You've got project achievements that will allow you to name your price. Flush the depressing perspective! Get over it! Boomers rock! X'ers just think they do!
To the Administrative Assistant - You certainly do have achievements! Don't believe that only those in sales achieve. Learn the concept of project-based achievements. These are specific involvements in which you participated in making the workplace better. Perhaps you came up with the idea for a suggestion box!
To the Marketing Coordinator - You now have a beautiful resume. You need to post and send it everywhere. Come to CareerBoard daily! If there's one office in the city of Akron who hasn't received your resume you will not have done your job to get a job. Be selective about whose offer you accept, not whose company you visit.
If there was ever a time to polish your job search skills it's January 2006! While reminiscing about last year's clients, I came up with some really important suggestions. While I won't mention any names, those of you who joined my flock might just see yourselves!
To the Executive Vice President - Get a new email address. Just because you breed and show dogs, BOXER XXX still sends a different message. YourName@ - is best if you can get it.
To the Database Administrator - You're 55 years old and you can't have a one page resume. A resume without achievements is like a report card without grades. Why select you if all you provide is a list of your employers, job titles and education?
To the Technical Manager - Get a voicemail message and make it your voice! That cold digital person doesn't verify that I called the correct party and simply saying your name does less than impress. Remember if a prospective employer calls his first impression is your voicemail!
To the Production Manager - You're 55 years old and if you'll take a break from believing that's a problem you'll run circles around the 35 year olds. You've got project achievements that will allow you to name your price. Flush the depressing perspective! Get over it! Boomers rock! X'ers just think they do!
To the Administrative Assistant - You certainly do have achievements! Don't believe that only those in sales achieve. Learn the concept of project-based achievements. These are specific involvements in which you participated in making the workplace better. Perhaps you came up with the idea for a suggestion box!
To the Marketing Coordinator - You now have a beautiful resume. You need to post and send it everywhere. Come to CareerBoard daily! If there's one office in the city of Akron who hasn't received your resume you will not have done your job to get a job. Be selective about whose offer you accept, not whose company you visit.
Monday, January 09, 2006
We All Really Do Belong Somewhere!
Probably the most interesting part of job search coaching for three decades has been witnessing outcomes. I am there from the beginning, middle and end of a job search. The outcome of a job search is really easy to predict. Candidates either get hired with quality or give up and settle. Everyone ends up working somewhere, but the one factor that defines how well the search ends has much to do with perseverance and self-esteem, i.e. how good they feel about themselves.
I'll continue to spend my days on our blog warning that your resume may well be killing your opportunities or that if your interview is off just a bit, the next candidate will take for himself what, perhaps, you felt was meant to be your opportunity. But way beyond these mechanical exercises, remember that he who wins is many times he who endured the battle the longest. Boxing comes to mind.
Job search can really challenge your sense of identity, shake your confidence and make you question whether or not those achievements in your past were even valid. Anyone who denies they have ever felt this way, no matter how great they may appear, is not forthcoming.
I'm a big fan of authors like Rick Warren and Max Lucado because they reinforce things I may lose sight of on a January day when I don't see the sun. Mr. Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life reminds me that I'm here on a specific mission. And in fewer but no less compelling words Max Lucado says,
"You Were Knitted Together... You Weren't an Accident.
You Weren't Mass Produced... You Aren't an Assembly Line Product,
You are a Wonderful One of a Kind... "
May we all win our competitions this year and may we all be here to encourage each other to accept the mission. I know I will! See ya in a few!
I'll continue to spend my days on our blog warning that your resume may well be killing your opportunities or that if your interview is off just a bit, the next candidate will take for himself what, perhaps, you felt was meant to be your opportunity. But way beyond these mechanical exercises, remember that he who wins is many times he who endured the battle the longest. Boxing comes to mind.
Job search can really challenge your sense of identity, shake your confidence and make you question whether or not those achievements in your past were even valid. Anyone who denies they have ever felt this way, no matter how great they may appear, is not forthcoming.
I'm a big fan of authors like Rick Warren and Max Lucado because they reinforce things I may lose sight of on a January day when I don't see the sun. Mr. Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life reminds me that I'm here on a specific mission. And in fewer but no less compelling words Max Lucado says,
"You Were Knitted Together... You Weren't an Accident.
You Weren't Mass Produced... You Aren't an Assembly Line Product,
You are a Wonderful One of a Kind... "
May we all win our competitions this year and may we all be here to encourage each other to accept the mission. I know I will! See ya in a few!
Thursday, January 05, 2006
My Psychic Job Search Predictions for 2006 and Your Career!
Your Resume Will Open Doors - You will realize the necessity of logic in your resume. Your objective will be stated in your vocational title, i.e. Staff Accountant, Physical Therapist, Electrical Engineer, not that tedious "room for advancement" speech that guarantees to put most readers into a sound state of sleep. You will no longer think merely in terms of "I do this and I do that." You will develop a keyword list in a table to describe your skill sets and will feature compelling performance highlights and achievements in addition to describing what you do.
You Will Distribute Many Resumes - You will realize the importance of unannounced and unadvertised job opportunities, and you will send print and e-resumes to companies because you feel a compatibility between what a company does, what you can do and what you want to do. You will not be concerned that they may not be expecting your arrival. You will target numerous product and service segments with your resume. You will post your resumes on numerous job boards and you will answer ads both on-line and from print sources. You will keep a consistent send-out momentum rather than waiting for response from the first batch if resumes before sending the second.
You Will Persevere During down times - When the company doesn't call immediately or the interview don't always go your way you will continue your momentum. You will not second-guess the impression you made nor will begin to question your value. You will realize that no one scores every time and they may have had no choice but to hire the boss's son. You will remember that if you hang on and continue your momentum long enough you will see results. You will never give up only to have to begin again. Failure is not an option. It isn't even necessary. Everyone gets hired.
You Will Win the Interview Competition - You will master the ability to deliver a strong message. Because you will research each company's needs and because you will then practice looking inside of yourself for specific compatible qualifications, you will learn that specifics, not generalities get hired. You will practice explaining your offerings and examples of your glory days until you have a smooth presentation. You will carry yourself with confidence but never arrogance, and you will cause the employer to realize that in order to have best team you must be the newest member.
You will benefit because all the stars are aligned for a great 2006 economy and job market. Consumer confidence is up and the stock market continues higher. I like being a psychic! Go get hired and have a happy new year!
You Will Distribute Many Resumes - You will realize the importance of unannounced and unadvertised job opportunities, and you will send print and e-resumes to companies because you feel a compatibility between what a company does, what you can do and what you want to do. You will not be concerned that they may not be expecting your arrival. You will target numerous product and service segments with your resume. You will post your resumes on numerous job boards and you will answer ads both on-line and from print sources. You will keep a consistent send-out momentum rather than waiting for response from the first batch if resumes before sending the second.
You Will Persevere During down times - When the company doesn't call immediately or the interview don't always go your way you will continue your momentum. You will not second-guess the impression you made nor will begin to question your value. You will realize that no one scores every time and they may have had no choice but to hire the boss's son. You will remember that if you hang on and continue your momentum long enough you will see results. You will never give up only to have to begin again. Failure is not an option. It isn't even necessary. Everyone gets hired.
You Will Win the Interview Competition - You will master the ability to deliver a strong message. Because you will research each company's needs and because you will then practice looking inside of yourself for specific compatible qualifications, you will learn that specifics, not generalities get hired. You will practice explaining your offerings and examples of your glory days until you have a smooth presentation. You will carry yourself with confidence but never arrogance, and you will cause the employer to realize that in order to have best team you must be the newest member.
You will benefit because all the stars are aligned for a great 2006 economy and job market. Consumer confidence is up and the stock market continues higher. I like being a psychic! Go get hired and have a happy new year!
