Sorry to those of you have followed these posts for my being remiss in not keeping up with my thoughts on careers, job search, interviewing and writing the killer resume.
Does this ever happen to you? Just an excuse really.
We are moving and what a friggen pain in the arsse. So……… promise, I’ll be better with current posts, with not too much lag time in-between.
Ciao,
Chet
It’s pretty much universal in the professional career ranks that “overqualified” means that the company doesn’t know what to do with you, can’t afford you, you’ll make the rest of them look unqualified, we’re looking for younger people, etc . Don’t blame it on a recruiter, it comes straight from the companies department hiring authorities doctrine.
DO NOT take it personally. I repeat, don’t let it get to you. An excuse not to hire you is just exactly that. An excuse. It could just as easily have been that they didn’t like your purple tie, or the color of your hair, or that leisure suit, or the wrong degree or something just as stupid. If they call it “overqualified” just chalk it up to just another company who didn’t get it.
If indeed they are looking for a newbie to train, something little more than an intern, then they should say so and indicate you just don’t fit the profile. But to call it “overqualified” is just lazyness.
In these tough times, the smart companies will take advantage of the “wonderfully experienced and talented” people out there on the market. If the subject begins to peek its head out early in the interview, take liberties early to express how grateful you are to be sitting in an interview with a company who is insightful enough to be seeking experienced people. And somewhere slip in that you will be anxious to be led and learn so much more by such a sophisticated company.
Remember, “overqualified” is just a code work for excuse. Take heart in that it has nothing to do with you.
Urgency is high, the will is strong, persistence shows up every morning and drives you to continue your search to find that new job. It’s been 6 months since the layoff. And you still haven’t found that position you so desperately need.
So, you’re working hard, but you don’t have much to show for it. Click, click..the picture isn’t very clear right now. Why after all the work isn’t it happening for you? Spinning Your Wheels?
This list partially represents why candidates feel they are not getting anywhere in their job search. Do you recognize any of these 1-12? Any chance you’re guilty of any of them?
I didn’t put urgency on the list because lack of urgency indicates low enthusiasm. That means the wheels aren’t really turning at all. These 1-12 mostly are actions that aren’t going anywhere.
Confluence, Commitment, Courage,….
“Simple, I’ll just quit and find a new job.” Often easier said than done, especially in these times. Taking on a new direction, like a major change change of jobs can be one of the scariest, and especially difficult to get rolling.
Let’s say you’ve been teetering over the idea of making a change in your CAREER. Each week, the urge gets stronger. Your sleep has been affected. Your work ethic compromised. Your attitude is taking a hit, turning real crappy.
CAREERS rest almost at the dead center of our life’s components. Careers dictate your daily, weekly, monthly schedule. It’s the center of your financial well-being, relationships, health, socialization, etc.
Debates over what drives someone to do what they do for a living has been raging for ages. We won’t go into that debate here and now. But we do want to know what it takes to make a meaningful change in a job, or a career transition or simply get out of the rut. It’s safe to say, it ain’t always easy.
So, let’s say you’ve decided to move on it. The stage has been set. You know you need out of what you’re doing. You need another work environment, a place you’ll wake up and feel excited to go to to make your living. Wouldn’t it be nice to have new friends to work with, better pay perhaps? Whatever it is, satisfaction hovers around the top of the list.
You’ve mapped out where you need to look, send your résumés, pray for an interview. You know what companies, locations, products and services are agreeable to you. The time has come. Time to leave the current petri dish behind and start fresh.
So, let’s say it’s Sunday evening. Realization that you need to move on. But, things change Monday morning; here come the cold feet. You’ve slept on it. Courage has wilted, the commitment isn’t there as it was over the weekend. “Foolishness,” you call it. ”What was I thinking?” So you pack up your lunch, jump in the Mazda and arrive at your cube right at the bell. Another day comes and goes and the pain and suffering continues.
Why? Who knows why. But whatever the reason, whatever you decide to do, however you decide to do it, you need to line up three pieces of self-determination: the three “Cs” of beating down the demons of fear and bust out to find that new job:
The 3 “Cs”… Confluence, Commitment and Courage.
Recruiters, Headhunters…I’ve heard it said that they’re just hired guns, surely, insensitive….never return a phone call, don’t give the whole story, don’t know the jobs they are hawking, and certainly don’t understand their candidates value or urgency and don’t give a damn about a candidate. All they think about is the money.
I was one of em. Heard it said about me. When I was told, point blank, I didn’t give a damn about one of my candidates, it hurt. But I must admit, some of the characterizations about recruiters have merit, some don’t. Misconceptions might be the reason for much of the negativity. Let’s take a look.
Let’s start with the realization that recruiters are people too. They have families and they need to feed their families. A recruiters job/life is not the easiest. Long hours, uncertain clients, quantum rejection every day! Persistent candidates without a clue. That’s why after 10 years in the business, I gave it up.
There are several types of recruiters. For purposes of this writing we’ll refer to the primary types: retained, contingent, contract, corporate – otherwise known as in-house recruiters.
In normal times, not this 08, 09, tsunami of a recession, the recruiter is generally behind the eight ball with not enough hours in their day. Short on time and long on assignments. Meaning……… s/he has little time to linger on a single candidate. One should understand that every recruiter is paid by the “company” or “client,” not the candidate. The client is the one writing the check and they call the shots. The recruiter must pay respect to these shots, or directives. Under the direction of the client s/he is desperately looking for the best candidate to fill the requisition. Period! A recruiter makes a living filling requisitions whether by the company that writes their W-2 salary, or the contingent recruiter that doesn’t make a dime unless they make a placement. A recruiter, in a lot of cases doesn’t make more than 8 or 9 placements a year depending, of course, on the level of placements they specialize in. A contingent recruiter is like a gun slinger, the fastest wins! And there you go. Most of the recruiters you’ll encounter will be gun slingers. Tuck that bit of info. away in the memory banks for future recruiter relationships.
In some business sectors, how attractive and in-demand a job might be, the pool of candidates can be in the hundreds. Here’s where it gets difficult to be sensitive and as empathetic as a recruiter would like to be. You’ve probably heard that a résumé might only get about a 15 second look from the HR screener. True. And in some cases the résumé might never get a human eye on it’s heading, much less page two. That’s because many companies have turned to using Automatic Tracking Systems( ATS) to scan and qualify the résumés. Getting very impersonal, isn’t it? And I think this is where most of the animosity and the judgment and the name calling begins.
In my opinion it’s very important, and ethically necessary, for a company to show recognition to a candidate that their résumé has been received. Even if the notice or letter is a canned reply. And if this is the case, it will probably be something like: “we have it, don’t call us, we’ll call you if you make the cut.” Yet, I’m sorry to say, many companies don’t bother. So on this count, and as a candidate and never hearing anything, is inexcusable.
To the knocks: recruiters don’t give the whole story; they don’t don’t completely understand the job, can’t adequately match-up a résumé with the job description, can’t clearly define the job….. ummm, true in a lot of cases. I was guilty of this on occasion. But the job description comes from the hiring authority. And if the job isn’t properly spelled out, not clearly defined to the recruiter, it’s not necessarily the recruiters fault. Remember the recruiter doesn’t get paid until s/he makes the placement. And the best way to match-up the right candidate is to have a good grasp of the job, it’s sponsors, and the chemistry. I used to beg… yes beg for clearly defined, job descriptions. It’s a very touchy situation, continually bugging the company or department head for better details. And if it’s a contingent recruiter that get’s his hands on a snapshot of a job description, rather than a complete requisition, it’s not unusual for that recruiter to rush into action before getting more info. Not always, but not unusual. Remember, they don’t get paid unless they beat all the other recruiters to the punch with their candidate that get’s the offer. It’s the “mud on the wall” theory- more mud, some sticks.
So, remember, a recruiter isn’t always working with a hiring authority or HR department who knows what they are really looking for. Need to cut the recruiter a little slack on this one.
And about the statement that recruiters won’t tell the whole story. Can’t deny this one. At times, it just makes sense to play their cards close to the vest. The recruiter wants to build a short list, which can be a juggling act, and doesn’t necessarily want to cut a candidate lose until it’s mortal. Hence, string a few candidates along. Sometimes the client doesn’t want to divulge who they are until the interview stage or give up company details. The candidate must play by the rules established by the client. Don’t take it personally. Just the rules of the game.
So, these are a few of the reasons the “headhunter” gets the bad rap. Some valid, some not.
Final words of advice when working with a recruiter:
Final words. Don’t dismiss the recruiter’s role in the job search. They can put you into the job you have always wanted easier than you ever could yourself. They may be difficult and hard to figure out. But they can also be a blessing.
“It takes courage to be the author of your life.”
I wish I could take credit for that quote. It’s the opening line under a short heading “Courage” in the chapter “Living A Life You Love,” from the book – “Pathfinder” by Nicholas Lore. “Pathfinder” is a wonderful read focused on finding a successful career. The passage continues:
“When you are struggling through one of the difficult parts of turning your dreams into reality, you may wonder why you always get stuck with having to put up with so much fear and uncertainty. Why, you wonder, couldn’t I feel more courageous, like those other people do.
You don’t feel courageous because courage is not an emotion. There is no such thing as feeling “courageous.” It is an imaginary emotion.
Courage consists of doing what you said you would do even when you don’t want to.
In the face of danger you have a choice to be the delegate of either your commitments or your feelings. It’s as simple and as difficult as that.”
Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that
something else is more important than fear.
-Ambrose Red Moon
This short concept rests on page 61. Just 1 page, 1 out of 374 pages, pretty much embodies the spirit of so many people who have overcome the stumbling blocks of phone fear, and found their stride in effectively achieving worthwhile goals.
Busy sending out that resume? Over and over? Not getting any nibbles… Not even a phone call! Could you be using any or all the five worst ways to find a job?
Ask yourself, honestly – Are you spending too much time in front of the computer screen?
1. Depending primarily on the Internet is a notoriously bad way to get in front of a hiring authority. Technical, computer-related, engineering, finance or healthcare sectors have a success rate of only about 10%. For all other technical sectors the success is only 1%. Overall it’s about 4%.
Bought a list? Blasting out your resume on one of the many “blaster” sites.
2. For mailing out resumes to employers at random the success rate is only about 7%.
Sending targeted résumés to ads from familiar firms in your trade rags?
3. Applying to ads in professional or trade journals. The success rate is only 7%.
Sending résumés out every Sunday, after combing through the Want Ads?
4. Sending résumés to local newspaper ads will only produce a 5-24% success rate.
Banging on the recruiters or employment agencies?
5. Going to private employment agencies or search firms for help. 5-24% success rate.
NOTICE THE COMMON DENOMINATOR?
Now, let’s look at the top 2 best ways to find a job.
1. Networking. Contacting as many friends, relatives, business associates, mixers, etc. This method has a 33% success rate.
2. The Creative Approach, a combination of identifying your skills and abilities, to you and employers. Discover the building blocks of your real value and how it will play out to your top 10 or 20 companies and develop a method to contact the hiring authorities with a compelling story. Get in front of them, however you possibly can. Get creative. This method has a return rate of about 86%.
WHAT’S THE COMMON DENOMINATOR HERE? The same, both for worst and best.
CONTACT!!!
In the 5 worst ways, there is NO direct, face-to-face contact. Candidates are mostly firing from behind the safety of the cyber barricade. Lobbing résumés, answering ads, completing on-line applications.
In the 2 best ways of finding a job, as shown above, the commonality IS direct contact with people. And eventually with the one who is going to offer you a job.
Remember the résumé is only a tool to get an interview. The best way to deliver a résumé is by hand. Directly to the hiring authority. It might be argued that it’s difficult to do. Granted. But let’s remember, you are only needing 1 job. So get creative. There are many ways to meet and state your case. What have you got to lose?
Visit: www.denvercareergroup.com
