Prioritizing for the ambivalent job hunter

I tried really hard at this last job. Whatever they wanted me to do, I did it and did it well.

So what?

I was working on a product line that was fundamentally flawed and they laid off practically everyone in the commercial group as they started over. No matter how hard or well I worked, my efforts amounted to nothing and now I've got a lot of scattered experiences that prospective employers who are looking for proven abilities don't care about. My hope was that I would have enough connections internally to get me to the next stepping stone and while I can keep hope alive, I'll assume I need to move on.

I need a job. The time off from the last job has been wonderful and I have a taste for what it would be like to focus more on our home. Yet, there is the reality of our personal fiscal cliff looming in early 2013 when my severance runs out. Plan A is to wow prospective employers with my awesome transferrable skills and get into marketing. Plan B is to find something I've been doing well, but don't care that much about, so I can have some security to work on a small business.

My job coach says that companies make the most hires in Q4 in expectation of new budget cycles starting in Q1 so I should not slack off much longer. Applying for jobs should be my first priority. And who knows? I might be able to negotiate something that works for me. I really like her because she is good at pulling me back to reality.

I started applying for jobs in earnest this week and already have been rejected from one.

Because job hunting is disheartening and rejection news does get in the way of productivity, it's imperative to structure my time. I know I am terrible at sticking to a schedule. How I apply structure is by having a one or two big things that need to get done in a day and being productive around them. I like using my calendar on my phone to remind me of appointments, but that's it. The rest is in my head or on whatever piece of paper I find in the morning.

I procrastinate, a lot. But I am productive because I procrastinate.

I know that when I have a very important priority, I will find ways to do everything but. I make the job such a big deal that my brain gets paralyzed. The task becomes so important that I feel like everything has to be in perfect alignment before I take it on. This is perfectionist thinking and completely why I am encouraging my kids not to be perfectionists.

So I try not to have many Priorities, usually one, but up to three in a day, and lots of things-to-do-eventually. In addition to being few, the Priorities are also pretty modest, like, write a blog post, or apply for two jobs.

In terms of weekly goals, I mix up my job hunt Priorities. In no particular order, they are...
1. Job applications (aim for 2 in a day, two days a week as early as possible before demoralizing rejection news comes)
2. Networking (aim to talk to 5 people a week)
3. Industry research
4. Document creation (Resume customization, cover letters, blogging, job hunting-related statements, lots of lists.)
5. Exercise (need to fit into all my work clothes when do land a job!)

I find procrastinating with small tasks is is enormously useful. I know if I can get a small task done, then completing my top priority will eventually follow. This might not be a strategy everyone should follow, but works for me. and is a much better way use of time than say, watching all four seasons of Battlestar Galactica in a stretch, getting to level 45 of Candy Crush, or scoring 761,500 points in Bejeweled Diamond Mine.

The Job Hunt Blues

We got back from a thoroughly enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday at relatives to start my job hunt. I have a personal goal of applying to two jobs this week, but have hit some road blocks. First, the jobs I will be applying for are not jobs I really want. One is far away in a place, the other is doing something I don't want to do. So I've been procrastinating on this task.

One way I've been dealing has been to look for openings locally. I've got a list and I'm hoping that I will handle these two with the bulk of applications.

Another has been to bog myself down with self-defeating thoughts: It seems like I have not made it on to the short list for a job I applied for a month ago. One one hand, I had always thought that it would have been unreasonable to think that I could get that job. It's a job in marketing and I just don't have the experience in it. On the other hand, I did have hope they would see the transferable aspects of my experience and skills.

I'm sure there are some lessons to be learned here, but I'm a bit sore at the thought of not even being considered.

I know a person who made it on to their short list. Funny thing is, he's done this sort of thing for so many years, he doesn't want to do it any more. But a job's a job.

Fat Tony tells me it's a good thing. One day I'll look back on this and think how I dodged a bullet. I know he's right, but there is a part of me wondering, "Why not me? What's wrong with me?" There's another part of me that's got the ugly answers. It's the same part of me that needs to chomp on potato chips when the going gets rough.

The difficulty now is to be focused. Here's my dream: to work for myself. Working for a company--it's a path to the dream. There are no guarantees of success for me, but to never have tried is worse than failing. I can't be distracted when others find new jobs because that's not my path, never was.

I need to focus on what's really important and never stop moving on it. What does all this mean? What am I actually going to do? Well, I guess we'll all have to stay tuned.

The outplacement firm

I've been taking time to do things like spend more time with the boys and complete some house projects, which I have. Halloween is behind us and Thanksgiving in front, but where my head has been of late is in my job search.

This has been a really interesting time. Getting laid off is a bit like dying, to be over-dramatic. I have gone over to the "other side" and I feel a bit like a ghost to those I've worked with, like I don't exist any more. Any time I reach out to those still at the company, I feel a bit like I'm reaching out from the grave. That said, this period is proving to be enlightening. Perhaps that is another truthful analogy. Guess I will find out one day.

I have been working with an outplacement firm to organize my job search and it's been a good experience. This organization formalizes the job search process and gives us job seekers a structure to work from. I think a good number of job seekers would want to get right to work, applying to X number of jobs a week and if you know what you want to do, that would be reasonable. But for me, I am stepping back and assessing who I am and what I want/need...and I've got a workbook to help.

The company has created a template with definite milestones to meet and has many concrete examples for those of us lacking inspiration. For example, everyone has heard that most jobs come from networking. Yet, how do you really network? It's intimidating and I feel awkward and self-serving, not to mention exceptionally inferior. I know that in a lot of respects, I just have to get over it and think that this all part of a cycle. Someone will help me, I will help someone later. But there is also the matter of what to talk about. As part of the program you, the job seeker, have to put a marketing plan together, which means clearly defining what you want, who your target market is, and what you bring. This also serves as a handy document to build a discussion around when networking. If that's not enough, there is even a sample dialogue to help guide conversation.

I really like how this intimidating process is broken down into do-able steps with concrete deliverables. When I can't handle the idea of looking at more job postings I don't fit, I will work on something like a target list or a position statement. Then I've got something handy to in moments of panic or even mild insecurity. The plan is once I've got this down in writing, I will keep a ready copies around should I be ambushed one day by a recruiter. I am creating a security blanket.

While I say that all the above stuff is important, my counselor is keeping me on track for job applications. My tendency is to want to apply for only those jobs I love. But what she is saying is that while it is important to prioritize, I need to keep in mind that there is some negotiation that can happen and it's essential to be getting interviews, period. In all likelihood, I won't be getting the first job I interview for. Getting interviews is simply another part of the process. You have to practice and be sharp so you don't blow it when it really matters and it's very easy to fall out of practice quickly one you are out of the work environment. I have to remember that I can't talk to recruiters and hiring managers the way I would talk to family.

In addition to the counselor who helps me stay on track, there are webinars on aspects of the job search and even extends into entrepreneurship, and there are a set of online courses I can view pertaining to many aspects of business. Right now, I am working through Marketing and other Business curricula.

I have a time limit on how long I can use the resources, so even though I have milestones to meet, I am also working through all the online resources first as I will not need their help to actually apply to jobs. 

All these skills seem so basic. I can't believe this was never formalized in my education. Because of this experience, I am a believer that basic project management should be on our homeschool curriculum.

We are doomed

“Here's all you have to know about men and women: women are crazy, men are stupid. And the main reason women are crazy is that men are stupid.”
― George Carlin