The BIG Guide to Finding a Job

This is as comprehensive a guide to job hunting as we dared create without writing a book. In it we've included the various steps, checklists, and suggestions that seem to work best. We've also included a section on job termination. Read this part even if you don't think it applies to you, because some of this advice can be useful in many business situations.

Table of Contents

Job Termination

You've just been downsized, rightsized, terminated, laid off, let go, or restructured. It really doesn't matter what you call it, it means the same thing--you are unemployed. So what do you do now?

Return to Table of Contents

How to Handle the Termination At Work

• Accept the fact that the termination is real.
• Negotiate. You can't talk your way back into a job but you can try to get more severance, an extension of your benefits, out-placement assistance, etc.
• Don't threaten your employer. If you feel an injustice has been done, consult with legal counsel or your local labor board.
• Get everything in writing from your employer--your last day, severance pay/package, vacation pay due. Clarify everything before you leave.
• Leave as a professional. Return everything that belongs to your employer, such as keys and ID badges. Take your personal belongings home.
• If your duties are to be transferred, help out--don't impede the process. Remember that the people around you rarely have any control over your situation.
• Ask for written references and, if you were laid off, have your employer provide a reference with information on the contributions you made to the company. Note that many companies have policies against giving any references, either positive or negative.
• If you were terminated, try to find out why. It could help you foresee and possibly avoid similar situations in the future.
• Don't bad mouth the company or any individual. It could come back to haunt you.
• Leave on a positive note. Say good-bye to your fellow employees.

Return to Table of Contents

How to Handle the Termination At Home

The most difficult aspect of losing a job is dealing with the anxiety and loss of self respect. Remember, in these economic times, unemployment is a reality that most communicators will face at least once in their careers. If you were terminated, don't focus on the negative aspects of termination. There are thousands of different reasons for job termination and few of them have anything to do with your skills. Losing your job does not make you an incompetent person.

• Don't try to keep your termination a secret. The more secretive you are, the harder it will be for others to help you. Quite a few of your fellow professionals have been in your shoes and are willing to share their valuable advice.
• Don't avoid your friends, but be prepared for some disappointments. Understand and accept the fact that your situation may make some people uncomfortable.
• Discuss your situation with your family. They may feel just as anxious about your situation as you do. Give them an opportunity to express their feelings. Try to support each other.
• Find out about unemployment benefits. Call your local unemployment office to see if you are eligible and when you can apply.
• Don't jump into the job market until you are ready. First deal with your anger. Then formulate your career objectives so you can focus your job search more clearly.

Return to Table of Contents

Helping Your Partner

Keep these in mind regardless of whether it was you or your partner who was terminated.

• Talk. Invite open-ended questions about the job search.
• Be prepared for your partner's mental highs and lows. This is natural.
• Remain socially and physically active. Provide continuity for yourself and your family.
• Be positive with your friends. Don't cry on their shoulders.
• If possible, seek or provide practical help (i.e., typing or answering the telephone) for the job search.
• Assess your financial condition. See the next section, "Steps to Financial Organization."

Return to Table of Contents

Steps to Financial Organization

• Assess your net worth
• Create a realistic budget and keep it.
• Establish priorities.
• Plan now for major expenses that you know you will be facing.
• Review your investments.
• Examine your insurance policies. When are the premiums due? If necessary, can you borrow against them?
• If you have trouble sticking to a budget, keep a chart of what you purchase and go over it weekly.

Return to Table of Contents

Beginning Your Job Search

The first step in your job search is to conduct a thorough assessment of your skills and needs, and then try to determine where you'll fit best in today's job market. This section has three exercises that will help you with this difficult task: a Personal Assessment, the Personal Experience Inventory, and our Self-Assessment Checklist.

After creating these lists, you will be able to focus on developing a resume that emphasizes your accomplishments and reaches your target audience. You will also be better prepared for the interviews that will follow. Remember, like it or not, you're in sales now!

Return to Table of Contents

A Personal Assessment

A vital part of your career campaign will be learning more about yourself--your abilities, interests, and personality attributes. Since you will be selling yourself, you must know what you are promoting. Let's take a look:

• Review your current situation, your personal and financial needs and priorities.
• Think about your abilities, skills, and past experiences. Make a list of all your skills and note which are strong and which need improvement; which ones you like and those you would prefer not to use on a daily basis.
• Decide what aspects of your prior work experiences have been the most satisfying.
• Determine what direction appears harmonious with your interests and abilities.
• Contrast environments--like corporate, agency, non-profit, or self-employed--and functions, such as media, new business, etc. Then define your preferred industry/organization, positions, location, and working atmosphere. These questions may help:

• -  Should I stay in the same industry?
• -  Should I look into new fields; into a career change?
• -  What kind of organization do I like best?
• -  Where do I think I want to be five years from now?
• -  What do I really want? Security, less pressure, or a fast track and tough competition?
• -  What are my long-term goals?
• -  Has my previous experience helped develop the tools to achieve my goals?
• -  What does my family want?

Does your assessment fit with you career goals? Are you looking for a corporate media relations position when your skills are not in this area?

Return to Table of Contents

Personal Experience Inventory

The Personal Experience Inventory will sharpen your awareness of your abilities and will provide you with a ready base of information. It will help you perceive the results of your work efforts in terms of contributions, impact, and skills rather than by titles and job descriptions. All of this will become extremely valuable as you present yourself both in written materials and during your interviews.

• Collect your work samples, names and address of former employers, and other references.
• Make a chronological list, including dates and organizations, of every job you have held.
• Prepare a list of accomplishments, at least 25. Try to include accomplishments for each of your past assignments, although most of them should be from your most recent assignments. Include some form your personal life if you consider these accomplishments important in defining your ability and skills (e.g., volunteer work).

When your list of accomplishments is completed, you should memorize it and become skilled in recalling each accomplishment. Practice applying these accomplishments in a mock interview.

Return to Table of Contents

Self-Assessment Checklist

Self assessment is time-consuming and extremely difficult and absolutely necessary. It will facilitate preparing your resume and other written materials in your job search and, most importantly, it will help you handle the all-important job interviews:

• List 10 major influences in your life
• List 10 specific strengths you feel you have.
• Explain why you view each of these as strengths
• Identify 10 weaknesses you think you have
• Why do you think each weakness is a weakness?
• Name 10 things you like to do in your spare time and 10 things you dislike doing. Why?
• Name 10 things that you do well and poorly.
• Select five of the things you do well and identify the skills you use doing them.
• Analyze your experience and identify 10 skills you feel you have developed from studies and/or outside activities
• Summarize your responses and specifically list your five strongest skills.
• Make a list of the types of jobs you want. Review this list against your list of skills.

Return to Table of Contents

The Resume--What It Is and What It Isn't

Your resume is not your autobiography or your memoir. It is not a description of every job you have ever had. It is an advertisement for you. A well-written, crisply prepared document that sells you. Its primary purpose is to get you interviews with potential employers.

Although there are several important and specific rules for writing a resume, there is no one "right" resume style or format. The right style and format is the one that you feel most comfortable with and the one that gets you interviews. Remember that your resume is an advertisement for you. It should tell enough about you to interest an interviewer but not enough to eliminate you from the search

Return to Table of Contents

Resume Formats

Resumes can be done in several different formats, the most common is Chronological, followed by Functional, Combination, and Targeted.

Return to Table of Contents

Layout

The layout of your resume should be given special attention. Some pointers are:

• Avoid long, indigestible sentences and paragraphs. Break up what you want to say in short sentences for easy reading.
• Arrange various aspects into sub-topics. Use bullets, asterisks, etc., to highlight these. Try to keep these sub-topics to one line each.
• Leave space between each item. Don't crowd the resume. White space makes it much more attractive and inviting to read.
• Use good paper, white or light colored. Don't use odd-sized paper or a color paper that will not copy or fax.

Return to Table of Contents

What to Include

• Your full name, address, home and work telephone numbers, and e-mail address
• Your experience
• Your achievements
• Your education

Ask yourself: "Will this information increase my chances for an interview?"

Return to Table of Contents

What to Leave Out

• Names of references
• Reasons for leaving a position
• Your present or desired salary level
• Outside activities that are not relevant
• A snapshot or picture of yourself
• Clichés

Return to Table of Contents

Test Market Your Resume

• Select someone to review your resume who has had experience in the field.
• Have the person read your resume once or twice. Then ask them to describe what they have learned about you.
• If you do this with someone who does not know you too well, the feedback you get will reflect the overall impression created by your resume.

Return to Table of Contents

Before and After--Cover Letters and Follow-up Letters

Cover Letters

There are no set restrictions on length. each letter should be personalized and tailored to the recipient. Your cover letter should:

• Stress how your background relates to their particular firm or industry
• Convey the idea that you have some knowledge or understanding of the organization and that you can be an asset to them
• Stimulate the recipient's interest in talking with you personally

Your letter should contain:

• An interesting opening
• A summary of your qualifications
• A statement of your objectives
• A brief statement of your personal situation
• A closing statement indicating how and when you intend to follow up

Return to Table of Contents

Follow-up Letters

Each time you are interviewed, you should follow up with a letter to the person you met with, as soon as possible. Include:

• A statement of your appreciation for the interview
• Details of the interview that will show you are serious about the position. If possible, relate your background more closely to the job opening. Mention something that occurred during the interview that will help them remember you.
• Close be expressing an interest in hearing further from the employer

Return to Table of Contents

The YOU Marketing Plan

Develop a marketing plan to help yourself generate job interviews by using:

• Published openings and non-published positions
• Executive search, recruiting firms, and/or employment agencies
• Mailings to companies
• Personal contact network

Experience indicates that some 75 percent of executives in the private sector locate their new positions through personal contacts, 13 percent through recruiters, and 12 percent through mailings and answering ads.

Return to Table of Contents

Sources for Employment Leads

The librarian at your local library will be one of your best friends as you research sources--they have a vast array of information. A lot of information is available online--the Business Research and Job Hunting Resources sections of our Web Portal have many useful links.

Return to Table of Contents

Building Your Personal Network

Start your personal contact network by making a list of all your "primary contacts." Your primary contacts are seldom people who can offer you a position--they are sources for expanding your network. Once an interview is arranged with a primary contact, the next step is to secure at least one or two other contacts known by the individual. The bridge to these "secondary" contacts is thus made and you will find that your personal contact network is growing rapidly.

Primary contacts can be:

• Friends, former employers
• College classmates, professors, placement officers
• Professional acquaintances: lawyers, stockbrokers, accountants, bankers, real estate brokers, church leaders, insurance agents, etc.
• Members of clubs and associations where you are a member or have been a member
• Association members or officers, local chapter job lines
• participants you meet at professional meetings
• Editors, writers, or reporters you know
• Family members and their contacts

Return to Table of Contents

Following Up

When developing your secondary contacts, try to maintain control. Even if your primary contact offers to send your resume and credentials to others on your behalf, it is very important that you develop your own method of following up. If you decide to follow up by calling, keep these in mind:

• Be prepared before you call
• Identify yourself
• Clearly state why you are calling
• Ask if it's a good time to talk
• Call early in the morning or around lunch
• Remember to speak at a normal speed
• Ask for an appointment--have your calendar handy

Return to Table of Contents

Record Keeping

Keep accurate records of all your contacts and their relationships to each other. This is an invaluable list for follow up now and for future reference. These are contacts that you worked hard to develop, don't let them fall by the wayside. They can often become sources of information or business.

Return to Table of Contents

INTERVIEW

The ultimate goal of your job search is to land a position and, to do so, you will have to survive at least one interview. This face-to-face meeting gives you a chance to learn more about the company and to reinforce the potential employer's favorable impression of you. Remember that they already have a favorable impression, which is why you were called for the interview.

The interview is thus a two-way process. You are both evaluating and selling.

Return to Table of Contents

Interview Guidelines

• Respond to questions briskly and concisely.
• Be certain you understand the questions. If a question is not clear, ask for clarification.
• Respond only to the questions asked. Don't volunteer information unless it is pertinent and positive.
• Watch for opportunities to ask questions that show you have done some homework on the company.
• Be sensitive to the interviewer. Notice the office surroundings, the desk arrangements, mannerisms, etc. Try to take stock of the interviewer's style and respond to questions in ways your intuition tells you.
• Strive to develop as quickly as possible a natural dialogue and rapport with your interviewers. But allow them to feel that they are in control of the interview, even if you're doing most of the talking.
• When you answer questions, avoid the use of negative terms. Instead of "problems," talk about "challenges" or "opportunities."
• Try to discover all relevant details about the position to determine if you are seriously interested.

Return to Table of Contents

Interview Questions You'll Probably Be Asked

• Tell me about yourself.
• What are your strengths?
• What are your weaknesses?
• What salary do you have in mind?
• What do you like most/least about your current job?
• What kind of work are you looking for?
• Where do you hope to be in five years?
• Why did you leave, or why are you leaving your current position?
• Can you explain why you've been out of work for so long?
• What can you offer us--why should we hire you?
• What accomplishment gave you the greatest satisfaction?
• What was your worst mistake?
• Do you have any questions?

If you find yourself getting all tangled up on certain questions, remember:

• Don't ramble, be brief
• Quit when you've answered the question
• If you can't answer, say so
• Use positive terms

Suggested answers for most of these questions are contained in "Interview Questions You'll Be Asked (and Answers)."

Return to Table of Contents

Interview Questions to Ask the Interviewer

The Company

• What plans does the company, division, and/or department have?
• What impact will they have?
• Are there any short- or long-term problems with financing, production, or marketing?
• Who are your key people and what are their backgrounds?
• Do you have personnel problems?
• What is the company's management philosophy?

The Position/Products

• Why is the position open?
• What are the responsibilities and reporting relationships of this position?
• What are your six-month and one-year goals?
• What is the history and growth of the product line?
• Are there product line changes?

Your Final Interview Questions

• Don't ask these questions until the end of the interview process
• What are your Human Resource policies?
• What is you employee benefits program?
• When do I become eligible?

Return to Table of Contents

An Offer!

Once you get a job offer, give yourself time to think. Talk it over with your family, friends, and associates. And:

• Never make assumptions. If some things haven't been discussed, ask about them before you accept.
• Make certain you will have the resources available to you to do the job.
• Don't accept an offer if you can't live with the job "as is." No job is perfect, but don't assume you can significantly alter the nature of the position or the employer after you're hired.
• If you accept the job, express your enthusiasm.

Return to Table of Contents

Confirmation

When you receive a verbal offer of employment:

• Ask about any further conditions that must be met, such as medical examinations, psychological testing, completion of reference checking, etc.
• Orally review your understanding of what was agreed upon.

Ask if the company can give you a letter of confirmation. This letter states that you are offered a position and usually includes the position title, salary, and other negotiated benefits. The agreed upon starting date should also be noted.

Note that a potential employer may be uncomfortable with written offers. If so, you must weigh the risks. You might decide to continue your job search until you are actually on the payroll.

Return to Table of Contents

Get Ready, Get Set, Go--To Work

But first take the time to examine how you feel. Are you angry? Relax, this is a normal feeling if you are leaving an employer, especially if you have just lost a job. Consider yourself normal. Try to remember that anger significantly clouds your judgment. Learn to let go of your anger and get on with your life.

Unfortunately, not everyone does this. As difficult as it is to believe right now, your life is changing--not ending. Now is the time to create a new and rewarding work situation.

Summary:

• Don't mouth off in public. You may want to tell people off or to settle old scores. Don't. You never know when you might be able to use them.
• Don't be uncooperative before you leave. Train your replacement and keep up the quality of your work. Support the company because you would like them to support you through your re-employment efforts.
• Don't criticize your former company to anyone. Most people won't know about your company or work environment, so your criticisms will only reflect on you. And that impression may be negative. It's not worth the risk. From an interviewer's perspective, if you criticize a past employer, why wouldn't you criticize a new one?
• Be positive and upbeat. An interviewer may be more (or less) sensitive to your situation, but they will base their decisions on the person they met. Would you hire an angry, depressed individual?
• Good luck in your job search! It can be a long, tough road, albeit a well-traveled one. Seek out people who have been there--if you ask, they will usually help in any way they can.

Return to Table of Contents