Dear Joan:

I have just started looking for a new job and I’m concerned about panicking and taking the first thing that comes my way. With the economic situation I am worried that good jobs will be in short supply.

I have a solid background with a lot of strong results in the HR area. I was fired from my last position because of my relationship with a toxic company president. He is notorious in the community for being extremely difficult to work for. I was one in a long string of terminations resulting from not seeinshares her tips g things his way. Right now my job objective is to find any job where I don’t have to report to him!

I interview pretty well and I have a few coming up. I’m concerned that I will want to jump at the first offer I get. How can I manage my fear that if I pass something up I won’t find anything else? I don’t want to derail again and I need this next job to be a longer lasting, more successful experience.


Answer:

You’re smart to recognize this tendency—it’s very common after losing your job and especially in an economy like this one. The best remedy is to have a career planning discussion with someone you trust.

During the planning discussion, brainstorm a list of all the characteristics of a job. Then go back and rate them from 1-5. 1=little to no importance to you. 5=very important to you.

For example, a job in which you:

Are of service to others; feel excitement; get a raise based on your performance; others are highly dependant on your work; you do (or don’t) travel; you have a wide variety of activities; have little stress; have the freedom to do things your way; are responsible for initiating change; have time for non-work activities; get recognition from management for doing a good job, have contact with a wide variety of people; feel secure; are part of a team; have lots of surprises;

aren’t criticized for performance; are highly specialized; have high visibility; are accountable for results; have a lot of responsibilities; have no relocation; don’t have to travel far to get to work; can predict your schedule; have certain benefits, and so on.

Then take the top ranking items and rank them again. Those are your primary motivators and should be used to guide you in your decision making.

You can then rate your last job or any job you’ve had in the past, which will probably give you insights about why you liked or didn’t like those experiences.

Once you have your primary motivators clearly articulated, use them to weigh each job after an initial interview. That way you are less likely to be swayed by other elements of the job and you won’t be as tempted to take anything out of desperation.


Dear Joan:

Recently, I interviewed for a position I am extremely qualified for. I have great references. I was contacted by a head hunter and interviewed with HR by phone. A manager spoke with me by phone and then flew into town and interviewed me in person. She was very complimentary and the next week I was flown out to the corporate office where I interviewed with the director and a couple others.

It seemed to go very well, but after a couple weeks the head hunter received an email stating they liked me, thought I was a good candidate, was still under consideration, but they wanted to interview other candidates and asked her to send them some other candidates.

They are still interviewing and I have found out there is little hope I will be chosen. The head hunter says I am the best candidate she sent them and she has no idea why, as they will not give her any reasons. Is it usual practice to not let a candidate know so they can avoid a possible interview mistake in the future? Do you think it could be a reference I am not aware of? It is so frustrating to not know.


Answer:

It’s impossible to know why they wanted to cast a wider net. Interestingly, the fact that you have a head hunter working with you usually enables you to get that insider information. The fact that they won’t give her a reason is a little odd. It may suggest that they really don’t have a good reason, other than to see who else is out there in the hopes of getting the best of the best.

If it were a reference who undercut you, I think they would have told the recruiter. If you want to check that out, you might suggest to the recruiter to call your references and test that theory.

In the meantime, don’t obsess about it. It has happened to me, too, and to many others…you may never know, so just focus your efforts on finding something else. If you were that appealing to them, you will be appealing to many others. Who knows, they may come looking for you once they find you were indeed the best candidate after all.

Joan Lloyd is an executive coach, management consultant, facilitator and professional trainer/speaker.  Email your question to Joan at info@joanlloyd.com.  Joan Lloyd & Associates, (800) 348-1944, Visit www.JoanLloyd.com © Joan Lloyd & Associates, Inc.