Job hunting during down times brings questions
By Joan Lloyd
Dear Joan:
I have just started looking for a new job and I’m
concerned about panicking and taking the first thing that comes my
way. With the economic situation I am worried that good jobs will
be in short supply.
I have a solid background with a lot of strong results in the
HR area. I was fired from my last position because of my
relationship with a toxic company president. He is notorious in the
community for being extremely difficult to work for. I was one in a
long string of terminations resulting from not seeing things his
way. Right now my job objective is to find any job where I
don’t have to report to him!
I interview pretty well and I have a few coming up. I’m
concerned that I will want to jump at the first offer I get. How
can I manage my fear that if I pass something up I won’t find
anything else? I don’t want to derail again and I need this
next job to be a longer lasting, more successful experience.
Answer:
You’re smart to recognize this tendency—it’s
very common after losing your job and especially in an economy like
this one. The best remedy is to have a career planning discussion
with someone you trust.
During the planning discussion, brainstorm a list of all the
characteristics of a job. Then go back and rate them from 1-5.
1=little to no importance to you. 5=very important to you.
For example, a job in which you:
Are of service to others; feel excitement; get a raise based
on your performance; others are highly dependant on your
work; you do (or don’t) travel; you have a wide variety
of activities; have little stress; have the freedom to do
things your way; are responsible for initiating change; have time
for non-work activities; get recognition from management for doing
a good job, have contact with a wide variety of people; feel
secure; are part of a team; have lots of surprises;
aren’t criticized for performance; are highly
specialized; have high visibility; are accountable for results;
have a lot of responsibilities; have no relocation; don’t
have to travel far to get to work; can predict your schedule; have
certain benefits, and so on.
Then take the top ranking items and rank them
again. Those are your primary motivators and should be used to
guide you in your decision making.
You can then rate your last job or any job you’ve had in
the past, which will probably give you insights about why you liked
or didn’t like those experiences.
Once you have your primary motivators clearly articulated, use
them to weigh each job after an initial interview. That way you are
less likely to be swayed by other elements of the job and you
won’t be as tempted to take anything out of
desperation.
Dear Joan:
Recently, I interviewed for a position I am extremely
qualified for. I have great references. I was contacted by a
head hunter and interviewed with HR by phone. A manager spoke
with me by phone and then flew into town and interviewed me in
person. She was very complimentary and the next week I
was flown out to the corporate office where I interviewed with the
director and a couple others.
It seemed to go very well, but after a couple weeks the head
hunter received an email stating they liked me, thought I was a
good candidate, was still under consideration, but they wanted to
interview other candidates and asked her to send them some other
candidates.
They are still interviewing and I have found out there is
little hope I will be chosen. The head hunter says I am the
best candidate she sent them and she has no idea why, as they will
not give her any reasons. Is it usual practice to not
let a candidate know so they can avoid a possible interview
mistake in the future? Do you think it could be a reference I
am not aware of? It is so frustrating to not
know.
Answer:
It’s impossible to know why they wanted to cast a wider
net. Interestingly, the fact that you have a head hunter working
with you usually enables you to get that insider information. The
fact that they won’t give her a reason is a little odd. It
may suggest that they really don’t have a good reason, other
than to see who else is out there in the hopes of getting the best
of the best.
If it were a reference who undercut you, I think they would
have told the recruiter. If you want to check that out, you might
suggest to the recruiter to call your references and test that
theory.
In the meantime, don’t obsess about it. It has happened
to me, too, and to many others…you may never know, so just
focus your efforts on finding something else. If you were that
appealing to
them, you will be appealing to many others. Who knows, they
may come looking for you once they find you were indeed the best
candidate after all.
