How to get hired--7 secrets to getting a job after a lay-off.

"Insider" advice employers won't tell you--but I will--about getting taken seriously in the job hunt.  

[This is a follow-up to an OPEN LETTER I sent to a friend who'd experienced the trauma of being "down-sized."  I promised to send some advice on how to get back to work--and today I share my thoughts on what my experience has shown me to work as one who's hired--and recommended--more people than I can keep track of.]   

Dear Dana,

I said that I'd send you along some counsel on how you can get back into the workplace at the earliest opportunity possible--here are my thoughts on what you should pay attention to and actually do--and which most other people either don't know about or, if they do, choose to ignore.  

[1] Think and act outside of the box everyone else is stuck in.  Take stock on a wide range of matters that might just parlay your bad luck [at being down-sized out] into better circumstances.  Reconsider your ambition to seek exactly the same job or title.  Ask yourself the question, "With my previous experience, am I prepared to do something else that I'd rather do or enjoy more--or get paid more for?"  Also consider relocating or a longer commute to be identified with a better job or bigger-deal organization.  Get a no-fee head-hunter, so you'll have someone working on your behalf.  Most people try to duplicate what they had as a previous job--but you don't necessarily need to be shackled by those restrictions.

[2] Make your resume and cover messages calculated, personalized, & distinctive--every time you send one of them out.  These devices need to work hard for you--they need to pull a lot of weight,  first in getting you on the short list of people to be interviewed--and then an interview.  Every resume you send out should in some meaningful way be unique, customized, tailored to the person or organization you are approaching.  People who are hiring are very alert to detecting cover letters and resumes that are "stock," that are being sent to a kazillion other places. If that’s your strategy, don’t waste your time.  It's not a matter of having a resume--it's a matter of having, in effect, hundreds of resumes that position you just-right for the target firm.   

[3] Present your resume--and then yourself during the interview--in terms of what you have actually accomplished, not just what your job title was. Nobody cares very much about what your title was; the question now is what did you actually do for the place you were at before.  Did you increase sales?  Did you reduce costs?  Did you decrease failure rates or service errors?  Did you introduce a successful new product line?  Oversee a big project?  After you note the title for every position you have ever held, then clearly, positively state--ideally using quantitative measures if you can--what you did, not just what your role was!  This very important to how others see you and what you might be able to do for them in a new setting. 

[4] Get an elevator speech and never stop using it--even after you're tired of hearing it yourself!  In other words, strive hard to create a first impression and personal presence that sets you apart.  Here I'm talking about what in business is known as an "elevator speech." An elevator speech describes the time, in theory, it takes an elevator to go from the 1st floor to the 27th floor--the time you'd have a sales prospect "captive" to say what you have to say about you or your product!  You should never go out and talk with anyone about hiring you until you have a 60-to-90 second speech about who you are, what your career background is, what the skills are, what you have actually done, and what you proposed to be able to do for the prospective employer.  When you are good--and earnest about it--you'll have this memorized cold, but will be able to deliver it--with energy and conviction--as if you were thinking it up on the spot, in effect conveying the impression that you are composing it extemporaneously!  

[5] Be assertive at doing your own kind of "interviewing"--the kind that leads to interviews for you down the road.  I am a firm believer in taking non-job prospects--managers, owners, and executive who are not claiming to be hiring--to lunch. Ask people in the business or industry you are in the market for if you can take them to lunch to learn about the industry, who's looking for good people, what advice they'd be willing to give you as you job-hunt.  You'll do all of this after you clearly tell them at the start that you will not be asking them for a job.  In this day and age, clearly declining to seek an interview is frequently disarming enough to get the invitee to wonder whether they and their organization don't actually need to consider someone like you who is so confidence, assertive, and thoughtful in their approach to their career!  In any case, they'll be impressed by your assertiveness and career style--and they'll mention you--or, better yet, introduce you to the people who can hire you!  The place you mutually decide to have lunch is not important--it can even be a deli, for that matter, and needn't ever be expensive.  Beyond this, network. Network. Network.  Never stop networking.

[6] Act like the kind of person people would want to hire.  Consciously consider your personal energy level.  You never want to play the part of someone you are not naturally, but good managers and interviewers are drawn to individuals have a pleasing, alert, focused, and positive energy when they meet--meet casually or in a formal interview.  I have come to be very aware of both my own mood and emotional involvement level when I am around others--and I pay very close attention to how others are projecting themselves around me. Anytime you are around others in a professional setting you need to be thoughtfully and sometimes deliberately mindful of how you come across.  This advice is not intended to suggest you should be phony--ever--but it does mean that you need to exercise good eye contact, project a pleasant demeanor, and be very focused to what is being said and transacted.  I've lost track of all the people I've interviewed who are indifferent to how they come across in the conversation--don't be one of those people!  [I went out of my way to not hire those individuals!  Instead, I tried to hire only individuals who exhibited optimistic attitudes.]

[7] Arrange for others to speak on your behalf--well in advance of when they'll be needed.  I've never figured out why anyone ever--usually on their "bio" or resume--puts "references supplied on request."  On request??? Hell, is there a chance some interviewer or hiring organization might not want any references?!!!  It sends a huge signal of personal confidence when a prospective hire points me--without my asking--to individuals who I might call to talk get a reference from.  On the other hand, when someone is cagey about disclosing any references, I think that they might just be trying to manage a weak background.  [This advice is a little different when one is interviewing from the strength of an pre-existing job context--but that's not what we're talking about here.]  Line-up in advance to people who know you well--personally and professionally--and then prominently provide their names and contact numbers right from the beginning; to do that is very compelling to someone who doesn't know you.  

So there you have it, my best advice in a not-so-pleasant circumstance.  Take these measures and you will set yourself apart from most of the rest of the pack of those seeking to get back into the workforce.  

Again, be assured that I know you to be a terrific person to be identified with and a first-rate professional.  Feel free to put my name down as a person someone might call if they need a reference to vouch-safe for your integrity and talent.  

And, as always, never hesitate to call on me if I might be of assistance to you in your job hunt.  Good luck and strive be of good cheer.  Your friend, Keith.

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