Readers:
Dr. Randall Hansen, a nationally recognized career expert, is the Career Doctor.
Discover more about Dr. Hansen, read about the purpose of this column,
and find previous issues of this column at the home of The Career Doctor.
If you have any college, career, or job-related questions or comments that Dr. Hansen could
provide valuable assistance with, please
feel free to email him at: careerdr@quintcareers.com.
Dr. Hansen writes this column on a biweekly basis.
Anonymous writes:
I am currently trying to follow the advice of career planning and job hunting
books regarding how to find a job -- by networking, conducting informational
interviews, and sending the word out to as many people as possible that I
am looking for a job or that I would like to ask them questions about their
career fields. While I have had some success in getting interviews and
getting some information, the sad fact that the books never prepared me
for is dealing with REJECTION. Not rejection by prospective employers
since I haven't started applying yet, but rejection from people I ask for
information and who tell me that I need to know what I want. Or the feeling
that I just made a bad impression by the act of asking questions and
showing my ignorance -- yet isn't that why I am asking questions,
because I am ignorant and I am seeking information? What should I be doing?
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
Let me first begin by saying rejection is part of all aspects of job-hunting.
Job-seekers need to develop a bit of a thick skin to deal with it. That said,
rejection should really not be a big part of the informational interview process.
Most people like to share their knowledge and expertise with others.
Informational interviews are about spending time with someone in higher up in
your career field (or potential career field) in a highly focused conversation that
provides you with key information you need to launch or boost your career.
I think your problem is you are going about the informational interviewing process
all wrong. You shouldn’t just randomly ask people for an interview. Nor should
you ask really obvious questions in the interview.
It’s the job-seeker’s obligation to be prepared -- to conduct research and have a
working knowledge of the career field and about the person you are interviewing.
Remember that your goal in an informational interview is to glean advanced
knowledge from the person you are interviewing, to build rapport and a relationship
-- and ideally add that person to your network of contacts.
Marjorie writes:
We relocated 2 years ago with the plan that I would not work. Now
2 years have gone by and I want to go back to work. How do I explain
the gap of time on my resume or cover letter? I am 56 years old
dealing with age discrimination in this town as well. I have a double
whammy trying to get employment. Help!
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
First, let me stress that you do NOT need to address the issue in
your cover letter. You don’t ever want to point out a flaw or comment
on something negative. A cover letter is a sales document designed
to raise enough interest for the prospective employer to glance at your
resume. Starting your letter with something like “even though I haven’t
been employed for two years” is bound to end any chance you had.
You can deal with the gap in a couple of different ways on your
resume -- and you SHOULD be prepared to discuss it at the interview.
Have you literally been doing nothing the past two years? No part-time work?
No temping? No volunteering? No freelancing? What about continuing
education? Any of these things could easily mask the gap. And if you
haven’t been doing any of these things, now might be the time to start!
You could also consider using a functional style resume, where your
resume is organized around skills clusters rather than a chronological
order of work experience. But beware, because this style of resume
has lost some favor over the last few years.
As for your age issue, remember to remove all older jobs (more than 15
years) and take dates of all your degrees/educational experiences.
Finally, consider adding a qualifications summary at the top of your
resume -- the two to four things that make you the ideal job candidate.
It is not only a trendy item that employers like, but it helps give your
resume focus.
Anonymous writes:
After checking out your website, I didn't find a sample resignation
letter that I can use as a reference. I was wondering if you can help
me. I just started a job last Monday, and now I need to quit since I
found a job that would pay way more than I'm getting now. I took
the job since I needed one badly and I just moved to the area. After
saying that I am dependable, reliable... (per my references, which
are all true), now I am quitting. I feel bad and nervous when I hand
them the letter.
I will start my new job on next week so I don't have two weeks
notice to give them. Can you help me write a good resignation letter?
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
Okay. I’m sorry (well… not really), but I need to start my response with a
lecture. Do you understand how unfair it is -- on so many levels -- to go
through the hiring process, accept a job, work there for a week, and then
quit? It’s unfair to the employer for the time and costs incurred and
unfair to the other job-seekers who did not get the job offer because you did.
And I hate to say it, but you should feel nervous! I usually talk about the
value of a positive resignation letter -- you never want to burn your bridges
by leaving on bad terms -- but in this case I cannot imagine what you
could say that placate your employer.
But whatever you do, don’t start of the letter saying you are leaving because
you kept interviewing once you had this job and now you are leaving because
you received an offer for a much more high-paying job. Wow. Salt in the wound.
Simply write a very short and sweet letter thanking them for the opportunity
and apologizing for leaving so quickly and suddenly. Volunteer to help in
any way you can and state your last day of employment.
Finally, please remember that money is not everything. Money will not
bring you happiness if you are not in a career/occupation that you are
passionate about. If you are generally unhappy, find the time to conduct
some career assessments.
Bob writes:
Just read your advice on getting fired. My situation is extreme. I've been
fired more than six times and have not held a job for more than six months.
I haven't held a job in my career field since October of 2002. I have no
good references and only a bad employment record. What's my first
step in starting over?
A:
The Career Doctor responds:
I think your first step should be to decide if you are in the right career field.
Fired six times? Either you are in the wrong career or you have an extreme
case of bad luck. And remember, you could love a certain career, but if
you do not have the basic competencies, it should not be the career path
you follow.
Your key task to rebuilding. If you decide to stay in the same career field,
you should focus on building up your confidence, skills, and references.
Consider temping or freelancing. Since it’s been a couple of year, you
may need to brush up on your skills by getting more education.
If you decide it’s time to make a drastic change, I think your best course
is to spend the time and energy conducting a detailed self-assessment
of yourself. Examine your likes and dislikes, what you enjoy doing and
what you hate doing, what excites you and what turns you off. Examine
your strengths and weaknesses. Take some online career assessment
tests. Research careers. Consider working with a career professional to
map out some possible new careers.
Finally, no matter what you do, make sure you really examine why you
have gotten fired six times. If you are unsure, consider asking one or
more of your former bosses to give you the straight information about
why you were let go.
Use some of the many resources found in the
Career
Resources Toolkit found on Quintessential Careers.
