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“This may be the BEST day of my life . . . I just got fired!”

That’s not what you feel like saying on the day you lose your job, but it may be true!

As for me, well I’ve been fired twice in my life.

The first time I got fired I had been absent from work due to a flu bug that had worked it’s way through the office. The boss called me and told me not to come in to work the next day. Half delirious I thought, “how nice of him to be concerned about my well being.” When I finally awoke from my stuper I realized he meant, “or the day after that, or the day after that, or ever. . . ” Boy was I pissed! What a whimp to call me on a sick day and fire me! He didn’t even have the stones to tell me to my face!

However, as it turned out, that firing led to an opportunity for me to return to school and complete a degree I needed in order to move to the next level of my career.  Little did that whimpy boss know, he actually did me a favor!

The second time I got fired I had been working on it for several months. I was making good money, but the company I worked for had no soul. In fact, they went out of their way to suck the soul out of their employees. Clearly, the company had some ethics problems, and after 2 solid years of enduring them I decided I had to go. They were good at getting rid of people! The company had a nearly 200% annual employee turnover rate.

I wanted out, but couldn’t justify leaving. If I was going to go, they needed to provide me with the safety net of a severance package.One day responded to an email from the site manager — although some might say  I picked a fight with him.  He was clearly breaking his own “office computer use policy” by sending inane and meaningless emails to the entire staff. I sent a “reply to all” indicating the violation and 10 minutes later I found myself in his office. This was my chance. . .

Unfortunately, he was willing to let me off with a warning. Bummer! When I got back to my cubicle my supervisor said, “what do you think you are doing? Are you trying to get fired?” I answered, “Yes. But the site manager didn’t take the bait. I guess you are stuck with me a little while longer.” He replied, “Go home, I’ll take care of it.” The next day I came in to find my cubicle cleaned out, a moving box full of my stuff, a pink slip with my name on it and a severance package that helped me bridge the gap between jobs. That was one of the happiest day of my life! As it turns out, both of those days were!

So you’ve been fired? Join the club.

It may feel a bit devistating, but in reality it could be the best thing that ever happened to you.  The key is to learn from you experience and move on.  Here’s my simple formula for doing that without taking the poison from one position into the job search with me.

1. make a list of what you did well at you job.  Be specific.  Give numbers whenever possible. You will use this list when you create your resume, interview, and negotiate for your next salary.
2. make a second list of what you did not do well, and what went wrong.  You are going to use this list in your next job search when researching company culture.
3. purge yourself of the poison feelings you have about getting fired.  Talk to a friend, a counselor, a career coach or someone who can help you get the venom out of your system.
4. develop a statement about why you left your last position that allows both you and your former employer to be seen in the best light.  Le me be clear here — DO NOT LIE!  EVER!  On the other hand, you don’t have to “bleed” all over the place either.  Something like, “After 7 years things had changed, and we came to an agreement that it was time for me to look for other opportunities.”  You don’t really need to say much more than that.  You former employer won’t, in fact, they have probably already forgotten about you.

I hope these tips for getting past getting fired are helpful to you.  I’d love to hear some of your experiences.  Feel free to share them with us below.

In the mean time, happy hunting!

Just one more thing — Peter Clayton of Total Picture Radio believes recruiter confidence is picking up.  He writes, “According to the latest ExecuNet Recruiter Confidence Index, a growing number of companies are adding new executive jobs, and fewer are eliminating them, leading executive recruiters to confirm economic recovery is beginning to take hold.” You can listen to the podcast at: Total Picture Radio (with Peter Clayton).

Andy wrote an interesting and challenging response to our post on writing an effective resume (http://careeradvice4u.com/effective-resume/).  I LOVE it when a reader challenges us!  So in response to all of the Andy’s out there who are frustrated with your job search, here are some examples that have actually worked for clients of ours. Hopefully they are not too full of BS!

Example 1: HR Generalist I

Human Resource professional with progressive hands on experience in diverse organizations from start-ups to industry leader with revenues of $8 billion including multi-state U.S. and global locations.

Resourceful, organized team player able to provide business partnership and HR guidance to both management team and employees. Recognized for being ethical and approachable with a focus on the big picture. Strong hands-on approach, can manage diverse projects simultaneously and with excellent communication skills.

Experience working with HR and Business partners in Europe and Asia as well as multiple locations in the US.

Example 2: HR Generalist II

Broad knowledge of HR principles and services. Exceptional proficiency in Employee Relations and Leave/Workers’ Compensation coordination. Effective at building relationships with employees and managers at all levels within an organization to support the business strategy, resolve communications issues and motivate individuals to optimal performance. Conscientious and resourceful advisor with a reputation for sound judgment and achieving positive results.

Specialties include:

Employee Relations FMLA/OFLA/ADA Coordination OSHA/WC Management
Policy & Procedure Writing Building & Leading Teams Staff Planning & Recruitment

Example 3: Software Developer

Experienced Software Implementation Manager with 11 years of extensive enterprise resource planning implementation experience
• Successful implementations of PeopleSoft, SAP, Lawson and other applications at more than 14 public and private sector clients and corporations across a wide range of industries and locations
• 9 years of consulting experience with a major international consulting firm earning performance ratings consistently above my peers and an executive promotion to Senior Manager
• 8 years of project management and team lead experience with a PMP certification
• Solid reputation for meeting aggressive deadlines and providing high quality deliverables within budget
• Mature leadership and communication skills with an exceptional ability to plan and organize work efforts and excel in a team environment. Core competencies include:

Project Management Application Development Application Security
Configuration and Conversion Testing and Validation Implementation and Cutover
Production Support Sales and Business Development Software Selection

Example 4: Engineer/Engineering Manager

Demonstrated ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams of engineers delivering high performance, low cost product technologies from research to market on time and on budget. A leader in defining methodologies to use to turn more research elements into products faster. Strong technical design, modeling, and statistical background; excellent leadership vision, systematic planning, and two-way communication skills. Over 20 years of research and development experience, including 10 years progressively responsible management experience. Extensive experience managing international development teams/suppliers in Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea, including 3 years working in Japan. Ph.D., M.S., Engineering Mechanics.

Resume Advice Related Posts

• Writing An Effective Resume
• How To Write a Professional Summary Statement for Your Resume
• 3 Different Types of Resumes You Need To Know About
• Why a GREAT Resume is Not as Important as a DECENT Network
• Resume Writing Tips

A while back I attended an event at which three recruiters from large companies told us what they look for in job candidates. It was interesting to get “the inside scoop” on the hiring process. VERY interesting! Here are some of the things I learned [peppered with my own HINTS]:

1) When a company posts an opening they usually get 500 or more applications. The ONLY way they can sort through that kind of volume is to use a piece of software to do it for them. Guess what means to you.  If your resume doesn’t exactly fit the key words for the specific job posting it probably won’t make it through the initial screening. [HINT: If you are going to apply for an online posting, be sure your resume fits as closely as possible with the job description in the posting -- and NEVER lie about your experience!]

2) Recruiters KNOW that this process screens out dozens of candidates who are more qualified than the ones they are actually interviewing, but they simply have no choice. [HINT: Get to the recruiter BEFORE they put the posting online -- we have some helpful ways to do that!]

3) Recruiters would rather view their job as a strategic effort of the organization, than simply a “position filling” service. In that regard, the BEST recruiters are looking to fill positions down the line as well as the one in front of them. [HINT: Upsell yourself by helping the recruiter see your potential to get promoted through the ranks of their organization. That way you will help them fill both the current job for which they are interviewing AND the one they will need to fill in a year or two.]

Perhaps the most important thing to remember when working with recruiters is that less than 15% of people find their job this way.  You can increase your odds by treating the recruiter as a networking partner.  Follow the rules of networking, and recruiters can become a helpful tool for helping you find a job.

Happy Hunting!

Related Posts

• How To Work With A Recruiter In Your Job Search
• Are You Ready To Get Hired?
• Are You Sick And Tired of Being Sick and Tired?
• What is a Personal Brand and Why Do You Need One?
• 7 Key Ways to Promote Your Personal Brand

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“How much did they pay you to give up on your dreams?”

That’s a direct quote from George Clooney in the movie Up In The Air. My wife and I saw it yesterday, and it really made an impact on me.  One, because this is some of the work I have been doing for the last 16 months – not the firing part, but the part about helping people move past the job loss on to a new opportunity.  Two, because it deals with an issue that more that 20% of us have had to face in the last 12-18 months — losing a job and its affect on our career, family, psyche and life.

I won’t spoil the movie for you. You should really go see it.

Now read this next part carefully, because if you don’t you may think I’m saying that working isn’t important.  I’m not saying that at all.  Our jobs allow us to exchange time for money.  Money allows us to purchase the things we want and need — i.e. food, clothing shelter, and cool stuff like iPhones and computers.  The problem is that too many of us take a job to pay the bills then end up settling for something less than we really want.  We work our jobs and they consume us.  We get tired and worn out.  Something has to give, so we settle.  We HAVE to have a job, so we give up on the one thing that really matters to us . . . our dreams.

If you have lost your job recently you have been forced into something that you didn’t want and which doesn’t feel very comfortable.  The good news is that the time you have been given may just be the ticket you need to re-focus on what really matters to you. I hope you will take the time to do that, even though it may be uncomfortable (or even a bit painful).

When our clients are evaluating their next career position we coach them to look at 4 things:

1. Job Satisfaction
2. Growth Opportunities
3. Proper Environment
4. Compensation ($$$)

When you evaluate your next position you should look for a balance of these 4 things.  If you don’t, you will probably have an opportunity to do it again within 18 months.  That’s because studies show that more than 50% of all employees are dissatisfied with their current job.  Nearly half of them state that they are looking for a new position. I assure you, that will be YOU if you don’t try to balance job satisfaction, growth opportunities, proper environment and compensation within your next position.

You don’t have to settle.  You don’t have to take a position that will suck the life out of you. You don’t have to give up on your dreams…and I hope you don’t, because life is just too short!

Happy Hunting!

If you liked this post, you might also like . . .

The week before Christmas we held a workshop on developing your Elevator Pitch to promote your personal brand. We taped participants before and after the workshop, and here are a couple of those examples.

Mike before:

Mike after:

Kim before:

Kim after:

You can read the four steps these two used to develop their pitch at: http://careeradvice4u.com/4-step-process-writing-elevator-pitch/.

Now, we know these are as polished as they need to be.  Both Mike and Kim came a long way, and here’s why:

1. They focused on their most pertinent strengths
2. They let go of everything they do not want to bring to their next career
3. They state their claims in terms that focus on the audience rather than on themselves
4. They are looking forward, rather than backwards.

Try it and let us know how this work for you.  In fact, why don’t you create your own video and post it on YouTube with a link here. It would be a great way to promote your personal brand!

Personal Brand Related Posts

• What is a Personal Brand and Why Do You Need One?
• Your Personal Brand – Tips From A Branding Expert
• Important Personal Branding Links
• 7 Key Ways to Promote Your Personal Brand
• Use LinkedIn to Promote Your Personal Brand
• What Everybody Needs To Know About Writing A Blog To Promote Your Personal Brand

Your network let you down?  Really?

If you feel like your network has let you down, then you really don’t understand what a network is, how to develop it, or how to use it to help you in the job search.  Listen up, kids.  There WILL BE a test at the end of this post, and if you fail you will add several months (not weeks . . . MONTHS) to your job search.

What you must understand first and foremost is that networking is NOT about you. Ever.  It’s about connecting people to help them get what they want or need. Anything that comes your way out of networking is a bi-product of you connecting other people. Many job seekers don’t understand this, and thus, are frustrated when their network doesn’t produce the results they think it should.  Many job seekers think the network is there to serve them, to pass along job leads, or to help them get a foot in the door. That is NOT what a network is for.  YOU exist to serve the network. The network is not there to serve you.

Here’s the tricky part. It is a proven fact that most people find their job because of a network connection.  They know somebody who knows somebody who needs what that particular job seeker has to offer. Your name gets passed along as a potential fit, and before you know it you are sitting in an interview.  Somehow that confusingly gets turned into, “my network is there to help me find a job.”  Look closer, because that’s not what is happening at all.  That scenario is not about YOU, it’s about the person or company that has a need for something.  Your name gets passed along because you have built up trust and respect within your network.  You are the connection that helps the other person fulfill their need.  Don’t ever get this confused, because that’s when people feel that their network has let them down. In fact the opposite is true — YOU have let down YOUR NETWORK.  You haven’t shown yourself to be trustworthy, so nobody passed along your name as a potential solution to the other person’s problem. Bitter medicine, perhaps, but that’s the way it works!

In their book, Trust Agents, Chris Brogan and Julien Smith offer a mathematic formula for trust.  (It’s not theirs originally, but that’s where I saw it, so they get the credit.) The formula goes like this:

(C x R x I) / S = T

That is, CREDIBILITY times RELIABILITY times INTIMACY, divided by SELF-ORIENTATION equals TRUST.  The key here, as I see it, is to understand that as SELF-ORIENTATION (or self-interest) increases, your TRUST factor decreases.  The more you are in it for yourself, the less trust you obtain. Networks are driven by trust.

So, the next time you feel like your network has let you down check your heart and clarify your motives.  Others can tell if you are there for yourself or for them, and they won’t tolerate it.

What’s your TRUST factor?

Today’s post is a way for me to organize what happened in the 30 days of blogging challenge.  Hey, it’s New Year’s Day, so not many people are reading anyhow. . . They are all watching the Ducks!

Resume Advice Related Posts

• How To Write a Professional Summary Statement for Your Resume
• How Effective Is Your Resume?
• 3 Different Types of Resumes You Need To Know About
• Why a GREAT Resume is Not as Important as a DECENT Network
• Resume Writing Tips

Job Interviews / Interviewing Related Posts

• Want to Ace the Behavioral Interview?
• How To Conduct An Informational Interview
• The Art of Interviewing to Land Your Perfect Job
• Interviewing Tips – a Video Montage
• 101 Job Interview Questions
• How to Nail The Job Interview

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• What is a Personal Brand and Why Do You Need One?
• Your Personal Brand – Tips From A Branding Expert
• Important Personal Branding Links
• 7 Key Ways to Promote Your Personal Brand
• Use LinkedIn to Promote Your Personal Brand
• What Everybody Needs To Know About Writing A Blog To Promote Your Personal Brand

When I asked for input on what to write about in this blog I received the following request from Doug:

“I would be interested in hearing about effective uses of time when you are looking for work.  How much time should be spent on internet search engines, linkedin, attending network marketing meetings, having one-on-one network meetings, time spend with an accountability partner, exercising, prayer/meditation, time spent not working on the job search (I feel guilty doing this), volunteering, or other valuable uses of time.  Alternately, what are poor uses of time.  As I go through this process, I have been advised to do everything and say a yes to everything.”

This is a GREAT question Doug, I’m glad you asked it. Let me take a shot at answering it. . .

Going through the job search process is challenging.  Because it’s so new to most of us, choosing how to spend out time each day/week/month can be confusing.  On top of the confusion there are several pressing issues, such as:

• our husband/wife wondering when we will find a job and asking us daily what we did to accomplish that goal.
• our own feelings of self worth (or lack thereof) — let’s be honest, in our culture one of the first questions asked when we meet a new person is, “What do you do?”  If we “don’t” then how do we answer that question?
• advice from everyone and their brother as to how we should navigate this time – “go to everything you can”  “put this on your resume” “don’t put that on your resume” “always wear a tie when you leave the house” “don’t dress to formal or people will know you are unemployed” and so on.
• a feeling that sometimes we just want to curl up in bed and avoid the whole thing.
• a desire to make the most of this time with family and friends — “After all, I have a lot more free time now that I don’t have work getting in the way.  So why do I feel guilty when I’m out enjoying myself with the kids?”

As someone who has helped hundreds of people successfully navigate unemployment and career transition this past year, let me share with you some of what I see to be most effective uses of your time in this process.

1. Don’t bother spending more than about 30 hours per week in the job search.  There are physical, social and psychological effects of being on a job search that make it unproductive for us when we go past 30 hours per week.  I know you are supposed to consider your job search to be a “full time job”, so for our purposes let’s consider 30 hours to be “full time.”
2. Spend some at least 20 minutes EVERY DAY doing some form of physical exercise.  Go for a walk. Go go the gym. Play with your kids on the jungle gym.  Exercise is good for clearing out the brain and increasing energy.
3. Don’t spend more than 37 minutes per day on the computer. Likewise, DON’T go online during daylight hours.  Think about it, if 80% of jobs are found through some form of networking, then you should spend at least 80% of your time networking.  The internet will be there when you get home, after everyone is in bed.  Heck, you are probably going to be awake at 3:00 this morning anyway.  If you spend the whole day online, what will you have to do when you wake up in the middle of the night?
4. Have a networking strategy and stick to your plan.  This is tricky, because your plan should evolve as you progress in your job search.  I would recommend that early on in your search you attend lots of events where other job seekers hang out.  These are great places to meet new people, develop and practice your elevator pitch, and get some support.  However, within 6-8 weeks you want to begin moving AWAY from those kinds of events to places where potential employers and people close to potential employers hang out. The former of these events will usually be free.  The latter may cost you something.  That’s why you want to work out the bugs in your verbal and printed “brand image” in the early stages of your job search.  And yes, Doug, this means you will say no to some things. You want to be strategic!
5. An accountability partner is a great idea! Plan to check in once a week for at least an hour.  Take notes and hold each other accountable for goals set at the previous meeting.  Choose wisely. To be successful at this you need to choose someone who will kick your butt — not be your friend.

Some of the activities that have proven to be the worst use of time for job seekers include:

1. Spending time on the Internet job boards – less than 6% of all available jobs are posted on these boards. If you were digging for gold, wouldn’t you want to spend your time in a place where other people have found gold rather than someplace where the prospects for finding gold are shallow?  Well guess what. . . you ARE digging for gold! The best place to find it is through your network of friends and colleagues.
2. Writing/revising your resume (or your LinkedIn profile. Or your Visual CV. . . ). Yeah, I know, you NEED a resume.  It needs to be polished and professional.  However, your resume is a dynamic, living document. It will need to be revised continuously throughout your career.  Work on it a little at a time and track your improvement.  Besides, YOU are your best resume, so get out there and show people what you have to offer!
3. Simultaneously, paying someone to write your resume for you is a huge waste of both time and money – unless you are a high level executive commanding a 7 figure salary.  If you feel the need to pay someone, pay them to coach you how to write a quality resume. You are going to go through the job search process again in the future, so this is a skill that is worth learning as best you can! Besides, the tools you use to write a resume will be extremely helpful in interviews, and it’s pretty tough to get a professional resume writer to go with you to an interview!

This is just a beginning list of how to structure your job search efforts.  The key is to have a strategic plan with specific goals that you can track and measure each day/week.  We have more resources on this topic inside the Careers 2.0 membership site.  The Basic Membership is free, so sign up and take a look!

Thanks for asking Doug!

How about the rest of you?  What would YOU like to read about in this blog?

Related Posts:

• Our 4 Step Process for Writing An Elevator Pitch
• How To Conduct An Informational Interview
• What Is A Personal Brand And Why Do You Need One?
• How to Work With A Recruiter In Your Job Search
• Why A Great Resume Is Not As Important As A Decent Network

You will only have about 8 seconds to get the attention of the person reading your resume.  That’s nearly impossible, UNLESS you have a clear and concise Professional Summary Statement.  Here are some tips for writing that concise Professional Summary:

1. You Professional Summary needs to be built around your own personal brand.  What do people think about when they hear your name?  What do you WANT them to think?  Tom Peters has written the classic article on ‘Brand You’ — and you can find it at Fast Company (here).
2. Keep it short — 10-15 words is best.  At MOST it should be only 2 sentences.  You want the reader to know what you can do for them — without putting you in a box. Your goal for the Professional Summary is to get them to read the rest of the resume. Period.
3. Don’t put yourself in a box — don’t use a title unless you are applying for a specific job.  Think about what you do for a company.  What kind of ROI (Return on Investment) will their organization get from hiring you?  If you say, “Accountant” they will put you in the “Accountant” box in their mind.  If you say “Save a company money by organizing key financial data” they will actually want to read on.
4. Get them to read further and make EVERYTHING on the rest of the resume point to your Professional Summary.  If you have done things in your past that don’t relate to your summary, you probably want to leave them off.  The resume should be a FOCUSED document.
5. Remember that the point of the Resume is to get an interview.  The Professional Summary should get them to read the resume, so that they will want to interview you.

With only 8 seconds to grab the attention of your potential employer, you better have a clear Professional Summary.  A good Summary will help them see that you are a person they want to learn more about. . . and ultimately that’s what it takes to get the job!

Need more?  If you want some samples of professional resume summary’s please shoot me an email – info@orcms.com

Resume Advice Related Posts

• How Effective Is Your Resume?
• 3 Different Types of Resumes You Need To Know About
• Why a GREAT Resume is Not as Important as a DECENT Network
• Resume Writing Tips