The 405 Club

Many people have been “out of the swing” of interviewing for many months, perhaps a year or more. “It’s been so long,” I hear. It sounds like someone who hasn’t had a date in months! After a while it seems like people shut down and become so discouraged, they no longer seek out opportunities and they become frightened of opening up about themselves to anyone. In this age of Internet and privacy paranoia, it is easy to isolate and no longer be in touch with what you once meant to say…if only you were given the chance.

It doesn’t help that we continually hear about the horror stories at interviews, the reneged offers, subterfuge and general mistreatment and disrespect of job search candidates. It’s a lot to ask of ourselves to put it all out there for a total stranger and not know how we will be received and if we will have a job offer we can live with. And that the economy needs to come back up and jobs need to be created again.

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(Editor’s note:  I would like to thank those who volunteered their experiences for this week’s writing.  In return for their stories, I have changed their names to insure anonymity).

One of the most critical times during job search occurs when you receive an employment offer.  If you have done your homework and impressed your future employers, the offer should represent fair and equitable compensation for your abilities.  If however, you feel that the offer has come too quickly, or you notice a problem with the employment offer, it is best to ask questions before you accept the offer.  If you are one of the few fortunate individuals who jumped directly from your previous position to new one, the degree of caution you need to exercise must be even greater.  You will discover the dangers of accepting an offer too quickly from today’s lessons.  

Lesson Number 1 (Major Misrepresentation):   Charles thought he was making a good career move…

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(Writer’s note:  I would like to thank those who volunteered their experiences for this week’s and next week’s writing.  In return for their stories, I have changed their names to insure anonymity).

My job search consisted of over six months worth of networking, cold calling, lengthy interviews and follow ups.  For me, the end result was a combination of timing, skill, and yes, some good luck. 

For those of us who are fortunate enough to be in the final phases of job search, it is imperative that you are just as careful in considering offers of employment as you were in the earlier phases of your search.  In order to prove this point, some of my friends and associates shared their personal experiences which I, in turn, would like to share with our readers.  The point which needs to be emphasized is that good judgment and caution are required during all phases of job search. 

With this in mind, my writings for the next two weeks have to do with Employment Offer Horror Stories, and the lessons that can be learned.

Lesson Number 1 (The offer that went away): 

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I’m not going lie to you. Most people I know from conducting business in the field of employment and training—not all of course—but most people who are laid off—are over 50. It is so devastating for this population because not only do they have to cope with the financial and social aspects of unemployment, they have the added burden of fearing that they will never recoup for their elder years. Their jobs are gone and they believe they personally are finished, washed up, done, caput.

Somewhere in the dungeon of lost jobs lies the demon of ageism. Ageism is the work world’s fear, prejudice and shunning of older working people. Worse yet is the buying into it by the very people being victimized by this thinking. It’s the same old jazz about workplace discrimination against older workers.

I’m sick of it! Do you hear me? Fed up!

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The keys to successful reentry into the world of work depends on knowing yourself, and understanding where and in what fields opportunities are most likely to take place, labor economists advise those seeking work. Unemployed people can rescue themselves from their current states with commitment to some soul-searching and research.

Knowing yourself means having the mindset attitudes to think like an entrepreneur as if you were starting your own business because in today’s marketplace, you actually are. Being in the mindset means self-managing your skills and being flexible to discard the old and augment your tool chest with new skills. Most importantly, do you know what you like?

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