By  John P. Creveling Career Resources Management

                                                                                                        

 

During career coaching to hundreds of individuals, I’ve come to realize that  the people who take longest to find meaningful employment tend to commit the same blunders. Singled out here are ten of the most egregious career-stalling maneuvers. If you are (or plan to be) looking for a job and you recognize a little of yourself in any of these ten areas — listed from least to most egregious — take immediate remedial action, along the lines suggested in this article.

 

The road to finding the work you want need not be so grueling as we ourselves sometimes make it!

With little prompting, most people can recite what they are not good at, and can readily acknowledge their weaknesses when being interviewed. When an interviewer asks us what are our weaknesses or developmental challenges, we admittedly need to acknowledge those deficiencies — but we should promptly follow with what remedial actions we have initiated, perhaps building these upon our strengths.

   

More importantly, we need to know our personal proficiencies, interests and core values. What is it we do well? Insightful job seekers are able to focus upon the specific competencies they possess, and are ultimately capable of communicating these competencies to a prospective employer in a cogent résumé and during the interview. By knowing what we are skilled at, we’re able to make needed connections, and are thus in a better position to convey how we will add value in our work.

 

In the fast-paced environment in which we live and work, it should be unequivocally realized that prospective employers do not have time to thoroughly read all the résumés they receive. Résumés that are nothing more than “data dumps” and that list past employment history without providing essential information and strategic insight are destined for the discard heap.

   

On the other hand, potential employers and bosses do take the time to review those résumés that are clear and concise and make an impact. Naturally, your résumé should also be free of grammatical errors, poor sentence structure, and misspellings. When written effectively so as to highlight your selected accomplishments, a résumé is a tool that prompts a prospective employer to pick up the telephone and invite you in to be interviewed.

 

When drafting a résumé, many people begin with an Objective Statement. Although you should indeed have a job objective in mind when preparing your résumé, it is wiser in most cases to instead place the objective statement in the cover letter. What a prospective employer really wants and needs to see up front in your résumé is a verbal “snapshot“ or “profile” of you. With this type of information at the beginning, he or she is in a position to make an immediate decision (usually within 10 seconds!) as to whether your résumé merits further review. By providing an attention grabber up front, you invite prospective employers to read more, and thus decide that you are the person with the skills needed for the position they want to fill, and ultimately call for an interview.

 

With the perpetually changing global economy and increased competition, people in career transition surely should recognize the value of having a strategic plan for finding employment. In fact, however, all too many job seekers plunge into the marketplace without first thinking out and articulating the specific steps that can best lead to getting that right job. 

 

 Far more promising is the job-search situation for people with clarity of purpose. Aware beforehand of the actions they need to take in order to find the position they want, they are more self-assured and successfully move into new opportunities more rapidly. And, much like business entrepreneurs, they have ways to measure their successes. They’re able to perceive what actions are working well, and which ones instead need to be modified.

 

In the past, when people were seeking new employment opportunities, predictably they would do nothing but pick up the local newspaper and read the Help Wanted section. Many people did in fact find new jobs that way. In today’s fast-paced job search environment, it doesn’t happen. Successful job seekers today draw upon an assortment of efforts, while planning their campaign (as discussed under the previous point) and exercising time-management skills. They embrace a variety of behaviors: not just reviewing the newspaper Help Wanted section, but also attending job fairs, working with recruiters, using the Internet for research and job posting, deliberately targeting companies in a growth mode, attending professional meetings, volunteering in their professional societies (which develops positive visibility), and, of course, networking (discussed below). You have 24 hours in a day, and those hours are irreplaceable. Use your time and energy judiciously, engaging in many job-search activities but at the same time being selective and focused on those activities yielding the highest return for you.

 

Going for an interview is no casual event. But some people approach it with no more preparation than if they were going to a social affair. Individuals who instead prepare for an interview increase the likelihood that they will be viable candidates. Preparation should include more than just researching the company and people who are interviewing you. It is prudent to learn in advance what specific needs the company has, and to be ready to describe how you will fulfil them.

Do you need to practice interviewing with a friend? By preparing for the interview, you will enhance your level of confidence and minimize your stress.

    

However, a caution is needed here. If you have prepared and practiced, try not to let that fact dominate your demeanor during the interview. Instead, be natural! Let your personality and energy come through. During your preparation, do not forget that just as the company is looking you over, so you, too, must look the company over, to make sure that you want to work there. What questions do you need to ask to help you make an informed decision?  Also during preparation, do not overlook simple things, such as what you will wear, and making sure that your shoes are shined. Dress appropriately for the company culture. Remember that too much cologne or jewelry can be distracting to an interviewer. Keep in mind that first impressions are difficult to alter. You don’t want your appearance to hurt your candidacy.

 

Your résumé has been read, people liked what they saw in it, and they have called you to schedule an interview — congratulations! Now what? People who experience the most difficulty when being interviewed habitually fail to make definite connections with what the interviewer wants, and needs, for filling the position. During their remarks to the interviewer, poorly prepared interrviewees forget the importance of matching their skills and strengths with what the company desires, and are unable to support their assertions of accomplishments with explicit examples. On the other hand, people who excel in being interviewed are focused, deliver a strong message and establish a rapport while adroitly engaging in conversation and exhibiting good listening skills. This latter approach makes it almost effortless for the interviewer to visualize how the interviewee will be able to fulfill the position needs.

 

Let’s admit it; interviewing is not a time to be either modest or overtly candid. You don’t go into an interview saying “Let me be honest and candid with you, that’s not one of my strengths.” Of course you are honest; no one individual can do everything well. But you also need to communicate that you are flexible and a quick learner. People good at being interviewed know to offer a firm handshake, make good eye contact, turn off the cell phone, take notes, and ask thought-provoking questions. They show vitality and energy throughout the interview. They know not to demean previous bosses nor employers. They are able to say “Here’s why I’ll make a good employee . . .” Finally, those who do well in this phase know the value in understanding the next steps, and they send thank-you notes. In short, they are fully present during their interviews.

 

While some people question the value of networking, the concept is alive and doing quite well. People who take the longest in their search of employment resist networking, and consequently miss out on many new opportunities. Networking is not about asking people if they have a job for you. It is not phoning someone you graduated with from high school 15 years ago, whom you haven’t spoken with since graduation, and requesting to unexpectedly get together.

 

Instead, networking means continually sharing your knowledge, and supporting others in their professional career development while you are seeking information about new opportunities. It’s building alliances, continuously cultivating relationships, and finding people who will be advocates for you. Those individuals who productively manage their careers and job search campaign are people who stand out in networking and recognize it as a process that is ongoing and never-ending — even after they have gotten the jobs of their dreams.

 

Many of the people who struggle the most while in career transition (and, for that matter, in the workplace) have little or no balance between their work and personal lives. They associate who they are with their work, and when they become unemployed they feel out of control. Wiser individuals who move through job search (and day-to-day life) more energetically find ways to focus on their basic (not job-related) values, and they achieve harmony between seeking employment and taking care of themselves. They often engage in activities that give them opportunities to replenish themselves. Even after they are reemployed, they recognize the need to maintain a work-life balance.

 

Downsizing, rightsizing, restructuring, are all euphemisms meaning that good people lose jobs. Mega-mergers and acquisitions will continue to take place, and will adversely impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. No one possesses job security or guaranteed employment. Perhaps the very biggest blunder that people can make is becoming complacent after having found new work.

 

Once you have a new job, it’s a time to confirm to your new employer that the company has made a smart decision in hiring you. Demonstrate that fact by meeting with other company personnel, volunteering for new job-related experiences, making evident your added value by contributing to the team, and continually building upon your strengths. Even so seemingly trivial a matter as eating in the company cafeteria can have its value. As an empowered employee and individual you need to commit to ongoing growth, learning, and development. Doing so will not only help you with your present employer, but also make you all the more ready for effective action should you again find yourself in the job-search mode.

 

John P. Creveling, Career Resources Management

Edited by Nicholas P. Chopey

 

Reprinted by special permission from CHEMICAL ENGINEERING (June 2006)

Copyright (c) (2006), by Access Intelligence, New York, NY 10038