You’re not a failure – it’s your job search that’s failed, not you!
Photo by Nik Shuliahin on Unsplash
“My self-esteem is rock bottom now after being made redundant over a year ago and having not been able to get back in the saddle I’ve struggled to get my mojo back workwise. Do you think you can help?”
This is the type of story I hear all the time from people who have got to the end of their tether with a job search.
Job hunting is great when things are going to plan. It’s exciting and incredibly flattering to be courted by recruiters and companies. However, when it’s not it’s frustrating, miserable and lonely.
You may feel like it’s you that’s a failure but it’s not you that’s failed – it’s your job search and that can be remedied.
In this post, I’ll share some of the steps I followed to help my client Mark, a retail director who had run out of steam with his search. As ever, I’ve changed his name for confidentiality.
The hardest step
Going around in circles with a search and the pressure building at home? At what point do you admit defeat?
The hardest step is admitting that you need help. Somewhere along the way we’ve learnt that asking for help is a sign of weakness and it’s ridiculous – especially when it’s so competitive for senior-level roles that you need to be at your very best.
It’s tough to admit that you’re struggling.
It’s even tougher to admit it to friends and loved ones.
But it’s easier to tell someone who is objective and not emotionally connected.
How do you know that your search has failed?
It’s based on the length of time you’ve been looking
The number of rejections you've had
The fact that you’re shortlisted but never offered
Being overlooked by recruiters for jobs that you could do
When you’ve started applying for jobs you could have done 10 years ago
When you’re sick and tired of checking your phone and scrolling through your emails for updates from recruiters
When you’re fed up with wasting time and energy trawling through job boards
When you’re avoiding friends and wish your people would STOP asking how your search is going
When you’re so wound up and uptight that the dog is giving you a wide birth
The truth is this stuff is personal!
Failed job search – where to start?
When Mark, signed up to work with me it was pre-pandemic but he was struggling to use his retail and brand experience to land a job.
He was surviving on regular pay-outs from an insurance policy that was coming to an end. That policy had given him a false sense of security and because he had to apply for jobs to meet the criteria his search had gotten very messy.
He was out of leads and with pressure mounting at home he needed practical and moral support.
I knew I had my work cut out.
Looking back to move forward
The first thing I do with any new client is to get into the nitty-gritty detail so that I can understand their career and find out why things aren’t working out.
I gave Mark strict instruction not to apply for any jobs without my go-ahead – I needed to break his scattergun habit.
Back-to-basics
We went back-to-basics on everything, his CV, LinkedIn profile, the cover letters he sent, telephone screening and interview technique.
I also provided exercises to do between our sessions to help Mark rebuild his confidence.
Your career story – what you say and how you say it
Mark was worried and it showed. He'd tried to mask his feelings by acting extra positive but he just sounded over-rehearsed and too keen.
We worked on his interview style and I taught him how to explain his career story and the choices he’d made along the way with confidence. This helped him to be and feel more natural and comfortable about selling himself.
Action plan
Once we’d sorted out the job search ‘essentials’ we got to work on the job search strategy and we created his next steps action plan.
By this point, Mark was back-on-track and he’d started to get some good leads. It’s amazing how a few subtle (and not so subtle) adjustments can make all the difference.
The Results
The Career Accelerator is based on my experience as an executive search headhunter. Designed to help you save time and energy knowing what to expect and how to navigate the recruitment process – this ‘insider’ knowledge will help you in future searches too.
Feeling well prepared, knowing what to expect in meetings and interviews and telling the right story helped Mark dramatically. Trying to second guess where he was going wrong had distracted him from the most important thing – finding the right job and the best company for him.
As his self-belief grew, the pressure lifted at home, and his luck changed.
Mark told me that the Career Accelerator was a stretch but he took the investment in himself seriously. It wasn’t long before it paid off either because he landed a new role, in the sector he wanted, at the right level, which he started during the first lockdown of 2020.
This is how we did it:
STOP we stopped and drew a line in the sand
CLARITY we refocused and looked at the bigger picture
REVIEW we reviewed everything
UNPICK we unpicked everything
PRACTISE & IMPROVISATION EXERCISES to get ready for interviews
MINDSET we worked on his mindset and confidence throughout
CREATIVE we mapped out options
ACTION we agreed on the actions he needed to take and followed up to made sure they happened
FUN we made the sessions fun and motivating
You don’t need to get yourself in a state before you reach out for help. If you haven’t had to search for a job in a long while, it’s better to go through the process with an expert rather than try to work it out alone. In the long run, this could save you time, energy and money.
If you think you might need a bit of help, and you’d like to find out I can provide it, get in touch and let’s arrange a quick call.
Read more:
The Career Accelerator – will it work for me?
ABOUT ME
I’m Tracy, Career Consultant, former Executive Headhunter and I help senior executives and leaders to land great jobs and be successful at work through 1:1 coaching.
I work with clients around the world from my London-based Zoom office.
If you’re ready for straight-talk and career guidance get in touch – let's start the conversation.
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