HireDiversity

Working Wounded: Finding Work

Bob Rosner

D E A R W O U N D E D: I've been unemployed for a long time and I'm starting to lose hope. Tell me the secret to getting a job.

A N S W E R: Takashi Chiba was having a great time playing pachinko, a pinball machine that is popular in Japan. The only problem was that Mr. Chiba is the deputy governor of a prefecture in northern Japan and a powerful earthquake had just hit his town injuring 100 people and damaging many buildings, roads and railways.

I've been unemployed and I know how emotionally draining it is to look for work. I find that many job seekers are like Mr. Chiba, playing games instead of doing the work it takes to get a job. How do you get one? By making your job hunt your full-time job, spending at least 30 hours every week networking, pursuing leads and contacting companies. This forces you to get more creative and to make more contacts than you would in a part-time search. For more, check out "Diary of a Job Search" by Tim Johnson (10 Speed, 2003).

Do you leave bitterness and resentment at home? It's hard to be upbeat when you don't have a job. But let's do a quick role reversal. If you were interviewing job candidates, would you hire someone who was bitter, burned out and hostile? It's important to pursue hobbies or volunteering, anything that will make you feel better about yourself and provide energy that you can bring into your job search.

Do you remember that a certain amount of your search is out of your control? I get a lot of e-mail from people who say that they've never had such a hard time getting a job. Let's face it, the economy has been tough. It's important to take external factors like the unemployment rate, how your industry is doing, etc., into consideration before you beat yourself up about how long you've been unemployed.

Change is the only business constant. I'll never forget an e-mail I got from a third-generation logger who felt that he was owed a job in the timber industry. Unless your name is Gates or Rockefeller, you'll need to prepare for a minimum of one major career shift during your working years. And for many of us there will be considerably more than that.

Do you put effort into networking? Every study that I've seen says that the most successful way to get a job is through networking. Yet I still get e-mails from people who put all their eggs into sending out resumes or working with an employment agency. Contact every customer, client and co-worker you know and tell them you are looking for a new job.

Do you accept that careers go sideways and backward as well as up? It's wrong to think that every job should pay better, have more responsibility and a better title than your last one.

Follow these tips and you'll stop pinballing around in your job search; you'll find the job that is right for you.

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