10 Things you need to do when you lose a job
Getting the flick in today’s job market is not uncommon and it affects almost every profession and industry. It can be like being evicted from your home in a storm. Either prepare ahead of time to exit when you see the signals or deal with the job loss when it happens. There are a endless nuances to being a hiring professional — like many jobs, to an outsider it may seem straightforward. But there are multiple stakeholders, laws and budgets vying for attention that make it really difficult sometimes.
Here are 10 tips to help you get both feet in the door and the attention of the right decision maker.
Tip # 1 Always work on your Relationship – Always!
HR Managers and retained recruiters are always scouting for job candidates to fit their open slots and often contact executives who are already happily employed, hoping they’ll jump ship. Work your relationships – all the time “You never know when you’re going to be fired or the company is going to be acquired. We’re in a tricky, fragile job market, and you have to be prepared.”
Tip # 2 Work with Multiple Hiring Professionals
It can take from three to five months for hiring professionals to fill an open mid or senior level position. Even if you’re already working with one hr professional on an active job lead, reach out to as many other recruiters in your field as possible.
Tip # 3 Give yourself time and make a plan
Don’t panic and just get the next best job just to have one. Take time to figure out what you want to do next. Maybe it’s a good time to move to a new city, or maybe it’s time for a career change, do your research and give yourself some time to figure things out.
Whether you’re staying on the same track or using the opportunity to change careers, make a plan. Set realistic goals for yourself to look for jobs a certain length of time every day, or to apply to a certain number a week. Plan for any options that might come up in your job hunt.
Tip # 4 Play Your Cards Right
Good relationships with hiring professionals recruiter can be an asset. But be warned: They are not your golden ticket, nor your advocates.
So before you pour your heart out or ask for career advise or feedback on your resume, know this: Especially recruiters don’t work for you. Instead, they work for and get paid by the client or company looking to fill a position. Recruiters are not your career confidantes, if you get that wrong it can mean the difference between snagging a well paid job and a new career or a new career dead end. Like any job, recruiters are measured, and lauded (or not) based on how well they perform. They want that job to close fast. So make it easy on them to sell you.
Tip # 5 Weirdos don’t get jobs! Period
HR professionals spend a lot of time on the phone and it can make some of the recruiters crazy. They deal with interviews, tons of calls and they listen to many tales of insanity — I am talking about real odd calls, strange answers to interview questions and tales of incredulity (such as: “applying for 3 jobs with the same recruiting firm?! “Dealing with Recruiters is like dating. Say “I love you” too soon, call too many times or try too hard and you’re just turning these guys off. Seriously – just accept it!
Don’t Call Them (They’ll Call You)
Unless you know the contact personally, never cold-call a recruiter. Make it as easy as possible for the recruiter to know who you are and why she should get back to you, they get hundreds of contact attempts from job hunters every day,” Recruiters and HR Managers are networkers, so whenever possible, network with your industry contacts, contact previous employers, use your database and mine your social media accounts for direct referrals to recruiters.
Tip # 6 HR Professionals influence but hardly ever, decide…
A hiring decision usually comes from the hiring manager. It may even have to be approved by his boss. The hr manager or recruiter doesn’t decide. She will contribute to the discussion and provide opinions on interactions with candidates. She’ll provide context like salary ranges or market analyses, but she won’t decide. So don’t rely on the recruiter throughout the entire process. Weird behaviour makes hiring managers nervous too. (See Tip #5 ).
Tip # 7 Keep your Social Media Profiles Up2Date
HR professionals conduct social checks especially if they work for fledging start ups or modern businesses, and LinkedIn is currently “The Holy Grail” when it comes to tools recruiters use to find candidates. It’s sad, but it’s true! Most recruiters are still catching up with other relevant social media tools. When recruiters conduct Google searches on potential candidates, LinkedIn profiles come out on top.
Just make sure your LinkedIn profile reflects and mirrors your professional image from your resume, and please remove all the irrelevant stuff like useless and meaningless endorsements. Also, unless you keep your Facebook page, Twitter account and other social media platforms strictly professional, don’t link to them, unless they’re relevant to the job position. In other words, clean up your online act.
Tip # 8 Change the way you apply for jobs.
A lot of people apply for jobs by just sending out resumes to any openings. This is one of the main reasons why hiring managers deal with so much application spam. Don’t do this and expect to get what you want. Read job listings carefully, make sure you want the position and would be a good fit, and then tailor your application to each specific job. Write cover letters only if they are requested.
Tip # 9 Take some Time Out.
If you have some money put aside from working so hard for so long? Why not use some of it for some Time Out? Don’t spend so much that you put your ability to pay bills at risk, but see if you can fit a small trip into your budget. Who knows when you’ll have this opportunity again.
Finally Tip # 10 Lower your expectations.
Losing a job means it’s a good time to follow your dreams, but you also a good time to manage your expectations. Losing a job is bad, but it is not the end of the world. It’s good to have goals and dreams, but you also need to know when to let go of these expectations and embrace the new opportunities, just remember to hunt wisely!
Uli
