Archive for the Q&A Category

Question

I am a member of the long-term unemployed and need the benefit of your experience. I stopped tracking the number of jobs I’ve applied for. (It’s in the high hundreds.) The few interviews that I have been selected for have failed to progress past the phone screen stage. The interviewers have been unwelcoming and downright unprofessional. I grade myself pretty hard, but I have gone into these phone screens confidently and with a positive, cooperative attitude. I adapt quickly to the interview style and I’m less nervous than I used to be, and I have a strong command of subject matter.

My most recent opportunity left me with the impression that I would be invited for a site visit. But after a full 30 minutes of discussion on the phone, they e-mailed me that my job candidacy “will not proceed.” I have a nagging feeling that they don’t really know why.

Anyway, I am running long and my intent is not to burden your time. I hope you can share your thoughts. How do they decide I “will not proceed?” What does that even mean?

Nick’s Reply

Job seekers rarely “proceed” past an employer’s screening because they don’t know you and you don’t know them.

What do you really know about your job candidacy?

Please think about this. When you search for jobs in online databases (Indeed, LinkedIn, ZipRecruiter, a company’s own “career pages”), all you know about “an opportunity” is that the job has a title, a description and a bunch of keywords. So what do you know about your job candidacy?

Software determined that your keywords earn you a screening — by phone, online form, video or otherwise. That’s all you know about anything. It came in over the transom. What made you believe it was a good match?

What does the employer really know about you?

Without any respect to the “intelligent algorithms,” because they don’t deserve it, the employer really knows nothing about you. That company didn’t come looking for you because you are a good candidate for the job. You’re just a database record.

The company knows nothing about your abilities, motivations, integrity, performance, successes, failures, aspirations, interests, or likelihood that you’d be a profitable hire. It knows nothing about how respected you are in your industry, whether you can ride a fast learning curve, or whether you perform best verbally in person, on the phone, or via video. It has no idea whether anyone in your field would actually recommend you because you can actually do the job.

You know really nothing about the job. Even if you recognize the name and research it, it’s not an employer you chose and pursued with great intent. It’s something that dropped into your lap thanks to a database “search.” If you’re honest with yourself (and here I mean anyone, not just you), you’re applying simply because you can.

The employment databases are so HUGE!

Human beings need to see some kind of connection, a trusted mutual friend or associate that brings them together. We like to see that we have something in common, that we have shared experiences by which to justify further discussion about working together.

The system that dominates employment today offers none of that. So it’s no surprise that virtually all “opportunities” you encounter online turn out worthless. The online jobs world is not fertile ground on which to spread your credentials. It’s a huge arid desert that impresses people because… it’s so huge! As if that’s a benefit!

Nobody needs access to 10,000 jobs or 20,000 candidates to fill a job! A company needs four or five good candidates. The same goes for the job seeker. More is not better. The dirty little secret is that this desert doesn’t produce many good hires.

This system is pretending to be an “intelligent agent” that uses “semantic algorithms” to initiate your job candidacy. But it cannot tell the difference between you and the next 50 candidates it selects for screenings. All 50 of you “qualify,” but — WTF? — after the screening no one can explain to you why you can’t “proceed.”

“I know William”

So how do people and jobs get together? Through mutual contacts, through professional associations and industry events, via customers and vendors and consultants and other trusted connections who can supply this basic element that’s crucial when matching a person to a job and a company:

“I know William. He’s great at doing X. You really ought to talk with him before one of your competitors snatches him up.”

Wouldn’t you love to be the name on that referrer’s lips? If you want a real chance at a good job, you have to be.

Trust your nagging feeling

There is nothing wrong with you. Your judgments are sound: those screenings are unprofessional and unwelcoming. Your sense that you’re not being judged properly – you’re absolutely correct about all of it.

Stop doing what you’re told by “the employment system.” Start doing the kinds of things to find a job that you’d do in the normal course of doing your job. Define your objective, do your homework. Plan who you need to meet and talk to that can help you. Figure out what problems and challenges an employer faces. Map your abilities onto those – and share with the people you meet how you’d do the job. They will tell you whom to talk with next.

WTF?

WTF indeed. Good question. The answer is right in front of us: Big Marketing by Big Job Boards tells us hiring and looking for work are now totally automated, totally intelligent, and easy! And that’s a lie.

This is all a lot of work. But, so’s that good job you want. Don’t trust your search to databases and automatons. Diddling your keyboard and talking to screeners who don’t know you from their left foot doesn’t work. So do the work.

Make friends and focus on talking shop with people who do the work you want to do at the company where you want to do it.

Make sense? You can’t get the good job you want by crafting keywords and applying for jobs whose keywords match yours. You can’t “proceed” when they don’t know you and you don’t know them.

What do you think they’re really doing behind the wizard’s curtain when they tell you “We can’t proceed with your job candidacy”? How do they decide, when they don’t really know you? What did you really know about them when you applied? How do people and jobs really get matched? How should they? Looking back at the last time you were told “We can’t proceed,” what do you think really happened?

: :

Question

I just started a new job that might be the wrong job. My new employer lured me away from a very good job at a very good company, and moved me to a new city. I have been at the new job for one month and am beginning to see a not-so-pretty picture of what my job actually entails, compared to what was originally sold to me during the interviewing process.

I have a strong feeling that things will not improve. I want it to work out, and I have spoken to my supervisor, but I honestly do not think anything will change. What is the best route to take here? Should I speak with the recruiter who sold me on the job? (This is a full-time position, not a contract.) What did I do wrong? Thanks!

Nick’s Reply

You’re on board now. Given that you relocated, there’s no easy way to turn back, unless you want to move back to your old company, and they’re willing to have you. That’s doubtful. Let’s discuss what to do now, then we’ll explore why this may have happened and how to avoid a repeat!

Did recruiter deliver the wrong job?

You should indeed speak to the recruiter, who might be able to serve as your advocate with the employer. I’d do this right now—the sooner, the better.

In most cases, the recruiter’s fee is contingent on you staying at the job for some period of time (90 days is common). So, the recruiter will have more than a passing interest in helping you work this out.

But let’s hope the recruiter didn’t deliver a wrong job.

Can you and your boss “right” a wrong job?

You should also continue to work with your manager to turn things around. It may take time, and you need to be very positive in the way you present this on an ongoing basis. You need to convey your interest in doing your work in the way that will be best for the company, and that “the way” is what you agreed to from the beginning. Don’t start with recriminations—that won’t help at this point. Approach it as a partner, because that’s what you are. Try to set the wrong job right.

This might mean your boss alters your job now, or agrees to change your work in the near future.

How to avoid taking a wrong job

The traditional recruiting and hiring process too often neglects the very issues that may have put you in the spot you’re in.

In the end, if the only real solution is to move on, you’ll know it. Remember that the purpose of a job search is not to “get a job”. The purpose is to win the right job. The best way to avoid situations like this is to address these questions before accepting a job:

1. Has the work been clearly defined? Do you truly understand it? By the time HR gets done chewing up a job description and spitting out the job posting that lured you, you may be interviewing for a job even the hiring manager doesn’t recognize. So, discuss the wording of the job posting with the boss. This is best done in the interview, but it’s very important to review it together now.
2. Can you do the work they want done? The only way to determine this for sure is to demonstrate your abilities in the interview, so they can see how you will approach the work. This also gives you the all-important opportunity to see what they really mean by “the work.” This may be why you’ve been taken by surprise — and why you’re in the wrong job.
3. Can you do the work the way they want it done? Clearly, there’s a disconnect here, and you and they are not “matching.” Again, this needs to be covered during the due diligence phase of the interview process. It’s as much your responsibility as the employer’s.
4. Can you do the work profitably, for you and for the employer? I doubt this ever got discussed, and it has likely contributed to the misunderstanding. If you had raised this issue and discovered what really matters to the employer, you may not have taken this job.

When these questions are not clearly and honestly addressed in the recruiting, interview and hiring process, people can land in the wrong job and wind up job hunting again very soon.

I hope you can work this out. Don’t assume yet that you took the wrong job. First, make sure you are doing a good job, then find out where this job leads. If you really took the wrong job, the sooner you move on, the better. (I won’t get into this here, but if you need to move on, please see Parting Company: How to leave your job.)

Never take a job unless you’ve addressed the questions above. Never hire anyone unless these questions have been addressed.

Have you ever taken a wrong job? What led up to the mistake? Were you at fault or was the employer? Should this reader even try to work it out with the boss, or just quit? What other methods should the reader try to get this resolved?

: :

Question

In a comment you posted on last week’s column, you said we should not automatically give an employer our resume, even if that’s what they ask for. You said the resume script is the wrong “cognitive script.” I’m mystified. A resume is how the process of getting hired starts, right? Are we supposed to play coy? Make them beg? Please explain further. I get the feeling you’re somehow right, but resumes are like the ante in a poker game. If you don’t ante up, you’re not in the game!

Nick’s Reply

It’s difficult for people to understand why, even when they’re asked for it, it’s usually best to decline to provide a resume.

What we do with resumes — our resume behavior — is guided by a cognitive script. A cognitive script is a well-worn sequence of behaviors that job seekers follow almost automatically. We don’t question it. We just do it because it’s a kind of play we’ve performed every time we want a new job. Everyone knows their role and doesn’t question or deviate from the sequence of actions.

The resume script

The eager job seeker really, really wants to hand over that resume. Doing so is almost a relief! “Just let me send my resume! I’m looking for a job, right? It starts with my resume, right?” But like any script, the next parts of the action are already written, and with a little reflection you’ll see the outcome is not good.

The recipient of your resume does their part of the resume script and automatically “passes it on” to someone else, usually HR. (You expected them to take it to the correct manager and pitch your candidacy? When is that ever a part of this script?) Your document goes into Resume Hell where it’s lost, or thoughtlessly deemed a “reject” by some unsophisticated clerk whose role in this script is to find reasons to reject as many resumes as possible. (Just following the script!)

This is the part of the resume drama you don’t see, while you fret over when to call to find out “Is there any interest?” Your resume is going round and round in the Applicant Tracking System (ATS), and that marks the end of this story. Meanwhile, you keep repeating the final line of the script: “Why is no one returning my calls?”

Drop the resume script and slow down

The problem with the resume script isn’t the use of a resume. It’s using it too soon. Slow down!

What’s hard for eager job seekers to understand is that handing over a resume too soon is the quickest way to a self-fulfilling prophesy: A resume almost never results in an interview or hire.

You know your odds of success are tiny, but you’re falling for one of the gambler’s fallacies: I can’t win if I don’t play, even if the odds suck.

So you toss your ante in the ATS pot  – even though what works best is for you to get directly involved. That is, you must represent yourself personally. Don’t gamble. You have to meet and talk to those that have a role in hiring, not in resume processing.

Don’t play any part in the resume cognitive script. Most job opportunities go south because the job seeker takes no initiative. They let the resume speak for them, and ATSes are not good at listening!

A resume test

So what should you do? Here’s my test for whether it’s time to hand over your resume.

Ask yourself, does the hiring manager already know enough about you (say, from a trusted source that recommended you) that the manager could quickly write a brief outline of your resume?

If the answer is no, then the manager really has no basis for wanting to read your resume — much less to meet you. You haven’t done the proper prep work yet, which is to make sure the manager already knows you or about you. Most job opportunities go south because the your resume cannot defend you while HR (or the hiring manager) is scanning resume after resume for the average of six seconds.

If you haven’t invested the time to talk with people in the hiring manager’s circle (or with the manager directly) so that they will introduce you to the manager, then you’re using the wrong cognitive script. In the resume script, the hiring manager is gathering hundreds or thousands of resumes just to reject virtually all of them.

But if you do this right, the manager drops the resume script and thinks about just one candidate — you. The manager sees you, not the resume. At that point, the hiring manager already has a mental resume about you and needs your resume only in order to “fill in the gaps” — after already learning what’s most important about you from trusted sources.

That’s when it’s time to hand over your resume. That’s when the hiring manager will devote more than six seconds to read it, eager to learn more about you.

Be the wired candidate

No doubt you’ve encountered job applicants who seem to steal every job opportunity from you. They seem to have a special edge. They seem not to follow the normal rules or the resume script. You know them. When you get rejected, here’s what you say about them:

“I didn’t get the job because some other candidate was wired for it!”

And you’re right. The next time you pursue a really good opportunity, it’s entirely up to you to be the wired candidate. Don’t use the resume script that ends with the main character asking, “Why aren’t they returning my calls?”

Reference: Get Hired: 3 steps to become the wired insider for the job

: :

Does job hunting feel like every time you send out your resume, you’re doing little more than gambling under lousy odds? Have you ever lost a good job opportunity to someone who  was “wired for the job?” Have you ever “wired” yourself to win?

Question

I’m enjoying reading How Can I Change Careers? and I have a question. How do I know what jobs I want? A big part of your book is finding someone who already is doing the job you aspire to. But my knowledge is imperfect and I know I don’t know all the jobs people are already doing. How do I grow my awareness? Wishing you all the best for 2024!

Nick’s Reply

Happy New Year to you, too! Thanks for purchasing How Can I Change Careers? I’m sure you’ve already read the section titled “The Library Vacation.” That’s a good plan for doing some blue-sky exploration to quickly identify a group of jobs you’re motivated to learn more about. But improving your awareness of jobs will always require talking to people!

How to explore jobs you want

Stated simply, my advice about how to learn about jobs you may be interested in is to go hang out with people who do the work you might want to do. Since you’re exploring, draw a circle big enough to encompass whatever range of work you’re considering. These questions should get you started.

1. What industry are we talking about?
2. Product type (or service type) you’d like to be involved with?
3. Or is it some kind of technology you’re most interested in?
4. A geographical preference?
5. A bunch of specific companies that excite you? (Don’t worry whether they’re advertising open jobs. There are other ways for Getting in The Door.)
6. A particular discipline? (Manufacturing, software development, finance, operations…)

Go where those workers hang out

Your answers to any of those questions can point you to places where people congregate to talk shop – that is, about their work, This may include bricks-and-mortar conferences, online gatherings, education programs, professional journals that include virtual or actual discussion forums, or even local hangouts (bars, restaurants, sports clubs) where such people get together. Start with one. Go there. Hang out. Participate. Figure out who the movers and shakers and opinion makers are – ask them well-thought-out questions about their work.

Talk shop

Here are some suggested questions, but take time to formulate some good ones of your own.

• What led you to work at your company?
• What are the biggest challenges you/your company/your industry face?
• What are you reading lately that influences your work?
• Can you recommend someone I should I talk to, to learn more?
• What advice or insight could you share with someone like me who’s interested in this industry/company/line of work?

Why am I suggesting this approach? Because I use similar questions to start conversations with people I need to get to know. And because people love to talk about their work and they love to talk about themselves. Make it easy for them — ask good (but not presumptuous or prying!) questions about their work. Then keep silent and listen.

Make new friends and more friends

The point is not to get an interview or to give them your resume. (That comes later.) It’s to make friends and to learn about their experience and views on their field of work, their specific jobs, their employer and their professional community.

The actual objective is to get referred to others in the field who can tell you more. As your web of new contacts grows, you will find your discussions start to narrow down to specific jobs and opportunities. This takes time, but there’s no magic dust to make it all happen quickly. The upside is, you can make a lot of new friends!

Friends refer friends for jobs

This article might give you some more ideas:

You can’t CLICK to change careers

And here’s a brief lesson you can listen to about changing careers:

How can I change careers? (audio)

In a nutshell, to meet people who do the jobs you aspire to, learn where they hang out with their peers to discuss their work. Then go there. At first, listen, then participate. Never, ever, ever lead with “I’m looking for a job!”  Just start by making some new friends and talking shop. (Please refer to “A Good Network Is A Circle of Friends” in your copy of How Can I Change Careers?)

How do you find people who can educate you about jobs you’re interested in?

: :

Question

I see you’ve been doing this — headhunting and advising people — a long time. Your methods about how to land a good job seem to make sense, but can you share details of any job-search success stories from job seekers who use what you teach? It would make me more comfortable about trying some of this!

Nick’s Reply

Thanks for asking! I’ve been saving your question for this first edition of 2024.

I used to publish job-search success stories from people who have used Ask The Headhunter methods from the website, the free newsletter, my books, and my Talk to Nick service. Perhaps I should start sharing them again.

Readers’ job-search success stories

I hope someone’s tips or story inspires you to try the job search methods we discuss on Ask The Headhunter!

•

“I used Ask the Headhunter to guide me to a carefully targeted company nine years ago where they created a position to solve problems I helped them identify. Thank you. I am a big fan and have given the book to my own kids. One of my regrets is that I did not read it earlier in my career.

“What really helped me the most was the idea that getting hired is not about me but it is completely about the work. I turned the interview into a work session where I asked permission to use a whiteboard and mapped out solutions their problems. I remember that you recommended to pretend you were already on payroll.” – Carlos A. Santayana, Global Head of Training & Director of International HR

•

“Hello Nick, I got fired in 2014 after new management took over the company. I had been there for 28 years, half my life. I felt terrible and embarrassed about it until I read your article. Now I don’t feel bad about it at all. Thank you for this article and helping me get out of the dumps.” – Jackie Larkins

•

“Nick’s advice helped me get my last two projects even though I have grey hair. I’m now at a great company that values experience. Thanks Nick!” – William R. Husa

•

“I’ve been following your blog and advice for years. (Who says 58-year-olds can’t get a job?) When I was laid off from a big pharma company, I panicked naturally from the pressure of needing to meet my financial responsibilities. However, I took a breath, adjusted my thinking and went to work on my next opportunity. Using your advice and methods, I did land my next and current position that I have been in for 2 years. During the search process, each company that I identified and researched and presented to offered me a position. The first one I accepted was my right now job. Then I found the “it” job that I have now. For those non-believers, your methods work. I even used your How to Work with Headhunters for one position. Keep up the good work. My next job will be joining you on the beach!

“PS: I’m celebrating the 31st anniversary of my 25th birthday! – Josie

•

“I am a 63-year-old woman, nothing special, with an MA in Liberal Arts and 20 years of progressive experience in business. I was suddenly downsized from a job I loved and intended to retire from. After nine months of researching companies, training myself in The 4 Questions, learning The Basics, and working hard to do the job to win the job, I have — again, at age 63 — been hired into a Fortune 500 company.

“I say I am ‘nothing special’ because your readers should know anyone can do it. Often when I hear some phenomenal success story I look for the silver spoon or the uncle who was in on the ground floor, but I did this myself, with a little encouragement and a lot of help from your advice. Glad I discovered you. I will continue to read your e-mail newsletter and pass along your tips to my job-searching friends. There are plenty of them out there. Thanks.” – Stephanie Hunter

•

“I am an American who has been living in Belgium for the last 27 years. I normally never write to any of the websites I trawl for nuggets of wisdom.  But your thoughts in the article Everything You Know About Job Hunting Is Wrong was the most important, eye-opening, and mind-expanding piece I have ever read on the subject of job hunting. Please keep up the excellent work. You are a natural resource of extreme value to job hunters everywhere. Thanks again.” – Arthur Rubinstein

•

“The hiring manager more or less offered me the position on the spot and indicated a salary range that is roughly 40-50% more than I make now. Your two biggest lessons (at least for me) at work in the flesh: (1) Never divulge my current salary, and (2) Talk about what I will do, not what I’ve done. They oughta make you a Cornell professor! I can already see that the one hour you spent with us will have as much impact on my MBA ROI as any class that I have taken in the program, if not more so.” – Rich Mok, Cornell Executive MBA Program

•

“I was in a toxic company, but I left when I couldn’t stand it anymore. Your website has been an absolute godsend (yes, I even bought a copy of your book) and I’m happy to report that I’ve already drawn up a list of companies I want to work for (bless you for The Library Vacation™). I did an information interview (and an e-mail interview as well — I live in Canada, the interviewee lived in Florida) with a person who had the job I wanted to do. Now I’m researching the problems each company faces and finding the “wow” factor (and having fun doing this as well).

“Thanks again for a wonderful website and for inspiring everyone to seek out their perfect job. I’ve already told everyone about your website and book. I hope you enjoy the royalties! (Your article about the Liberal Arts was an eye opener. I never knew we could do so much in the business world!)” – Nick Tang

•

“I went to five interviews after poring over The Basics for a week. I got four offers. I think you are some sort of modern prophet. Thank you very much for your insights.” – Travis Clark

•

“I would like to say thank you for your book regarding keeping your salary private. I recently won a job that paid 58% more than my current salary without having to reveal it. I followed your instructions to the letter saying that, ‘I want my salary based on my merits, abilities and skills. My current salary is something that is personal and confidential…’

“It worked perfectly. Best advice I’ve read in years.” – Tom Stevens

•

“I started what I thought would be 30 minutes of reading on asktheheadhunter.com, and four hours and 17 pages of notes later I just finished. It is very insightful reading.

“I am 60 and basically think I am unemployable at this point. While I am working on fixing that mindset, I have found that I have many skills that are of value. I retired from executive management too early and have regretted too much time on my hands. There are some things I can do with the insight I have learned from you — namely get out and use my skill in ways that most others won’t. Thanks for the articles. I am buying up the book after dinner tonight. Thanks for your help.” – Jim Pike

•

“I didn’t buy the book. I used what I read on your web site and I got a great job… I tried your $30,000 strategy approach in an interview on Monday. The person I was speaking with told me that ‘the company expects to lose money in the first year of this project.” I replied, “I refuse to lose money on any project. We either make a profit or we cut the costs.’

“I didn’t tell them what I did last year. I told them what I could do for them today. I asked for the top of the salary range and I got the job. I went in with a winning attitude and I got the job! You the MAN! YOU THE MAN!!!! I OWE you!” – J. Gardner

•

“If you recall I am an MD who was in touch with you during my job search efforts in finding a position as an Investment Banker. Irv Pfeiffer at Kellogg had put me on to your book.

“My interview preparation was focused on “Doing the Job During the Interview” as per the advice in your book. This was probably the best advice anyone gave me. My focus was on practically demonstrating the value I would bring to my new employer from Day 1. For me to do this required a different and more rigorous time of preparation for weeks ahead of time. I shudder to think what the results would have been in this very competitive environment had I not gotten or followed your advice.

“After a very active six month process, I was successful in landing a position as Vice President in Healthcare Investment Banking with a major regional bank. This was particularly rewarding considering this is my first job in this particular industry because I was able to leverage my expertise as a physician and healthcare executive. I have now been in this position for nearly a year and am loving it. Thanks for your kindness and help.” – Artaj Singh

•

Many thanks to all for their kind permission to publish their job-search success stories and tips above. Needless to say, I’m tickled by every one. I hope you enjoyed them!

Do you have job-search success stories of your own to share?

Maybe your success was based on something you learned on Ask The Headhunter, but it doesn’t have to be — it may be something you learned somewhere else or something you invented yourself! The point here is to share what worked and helped you land a job!

: :

Question

Normally there’s a question from a reader here, but this week’s column was stimulated by a news reporter who’s doing an article about hot jobs in 2024. She asked me what will be the hot jobs in 2024. That is, what jobs will need to be filled the most, and which will be most secure? I think it’s a worthy topic as we get ready to enter the New Year (and who knows what kind of economy). She posed her query as a series of more detailed questions which I’ll try to answer, if I don’t transgress and go off on a tangent. (Who, me?)

Nick’s Reply

Let’s take the reporter’s questions one at a time.

What will be the hot jobs of 2024?

1. What jobs do you predict will be in highest demand next year?

I never think in terms of highest demand or “what’s hot.” I want to know who are the very best people in their field and business. They will always be successful and hire-able even if they suffer a job loss. Being great at what you do gets you the attention you need to be successful, no matter what’s “hot.” Jobs aren’t hot; people are. People should select work that drives them, rather than jobs that drive them away.

A classic example is COBOL programming. COBOL has been a dying computer language — but it will take forever to expire. Computer Science students have long avoided it, assuming their colleges even offer it. But I could place every expert COBOL programmer I could find — for top salaries. Companies have huge legacy systems written in COBOL that must be maintained. It isn’t a hot job at all. But the best COBOL programmers have jobs for life if they want them. They are hot people.

What jobs will always be hot?

2. What jobs do you think will be most needed in the future?

Sorry, I don’t make predictions about the needs of business. If I could do that, I’d be rich. Anyone who pretends to know the future — well, I advise against paying them a fee to help you pick a job! The same goes for stock pickers. No one can fathom the myriad factors that determine the future.

Which jobs will see layoffs?

3. Is there a sector at the moment that has a falling job market that will result in people losing their jobs?

Look around — it’s happening everywhere. People are getting laid off for many reasons, and not always because they are not performing well. Industries and companies go up and down, but it’s silly to try and predict which ones will be up and when. All we can really control is ourselves.

Few industries (or companies) totally disappear in a downturn. The best still seek out — and keep — the best workers. They’re the people who are employed to help companies pull out of the doldrums. Are you of that caliber? If not, find a type of work where you are motivated to be that good. Or, don’t waste my time — or any company’s.

I’m not saying you can avoid losing your job or being unemployed, but if you’re very good at what you do, your career expectancy is much longer than that of the worker who jumps from one hot job to another. In down times, corporate failures are opportunities for great workers who can fix things.

Hot jobs and job security

4. What industries will offer the most job security?

There is only one piece of advice I’ll offer. If you like your work, get better at it. Be one of the very best. Work for companies and with people that are best-of-class, whether they work in hot jobs or not. (Life is short! Throw your lot in only with the best!) Be known as the kind of worker companies need even when business is off and you’ll be least likely out of a job.

Retention is not always related to which industries (or jobs) are “safe.” If a person wants safe, they should go crawl into a hole. The world changes every day. There is no security anywhere except the security you make for yourself. That’s why many people quit regular jobs to start their own businesses. While entrepreneurship is always risky, your own business may be the safest place because you can make choices quickly and change direction as necessary.

Don’t be a dope. Don’t take a job because someone tells you it’s safe. If you take work that you love and really want to excel at, no matter what happens in the future, you will have developed skills and confidence (and a reputation) that will enable you to move on successfully. I think that’s the only kind of security you will find.

HOLIDAY DEAL

Order any Ask The Headhunter e-book during the winter holidays and get 50% off your entire purchase. Enter discount code=WINTER50 at checkout. ORDER NOW! This offer is good on purchases of:

Fearless Job Hunting • Parting Company: How to leave your job • How to Work With Headhunters • Keep Your Salary Under Wraps • How Can I Change Careers

Limited time offer. ORDER NOW! Happy Holidays!

Which hot jobs will make you happiest?

5. Out of all the jobs that people may want to secure now for the future, in your HR experience what’s the job where people have been the happiest?

I don’t work in HR, nor have I ever, so please don’t call me HR. I’m a headhunter. I find people are happiest in jobs to which they are driven by their own interests, because those are the jobs that are self-motivating and thus most rewarding. The more you like your work, the more likely you will invest in your skills and abilities, and that will build your motivation and confidence. When you have smarts, motivation, and confidence, you will also be persistent. You will excel and you will survive most any catastrophe. There are no bromides; there are only the personal choices you make. Listen to what others tell you, and you’re doomed because you may “arrive” at a hot job, but you’ll have no idea what you’re doing there.

I believe professional happiness comes from being among the very best at the work you’re doing.

I sent these responses to the reporter, but I have no idea whether they will be published. Though I digressed from her questions, I hope the folks who read this column will find my observations useful, or at least entertaining! If you’re going to search for a new job in 2024, please check this oldie but goody: Job Hunting With The Headhunter: Go around the system!

What‘s hot about you? Do you have a hot job? What jobs do you think will be the hottest in 2024? How do you plan to stay employed in 2024?

Merry Christmas if you celebrate it, and whatever you celebrate this winter, I hope your holidays are merry and bright!

Please note: I’m taking a couple of weeks off to round up reindeer, so the next edition will be January 9, 2024!

: :

Question

I’ve read your Fearless Job Hunting books and I think you make a lot of good points that I believe will help the majority of people — but I’m not so sure about top execs. I’m not convinced that the same tactics would work for someone like me who is looking for a position on a board of directors. In this particular case, a direct approach would presuppose that you knew the company was missing the particular board position that you wanted to fill. This is rarely going to be the case.

Such a company would almost always use a headhunter and/or the personal networks of the other board members in order to fill the vacancy, but in your book you acknowledge that marketing oneself to headhunters is a very “hit and miss” approach. Do you have any specific ideas for people hunting such “one per company” positions?

Nick’s Reply

Common sense tells us that very few subscribers to this newsletter sit on boards of directors, simply because there are relatively few board-level executives in the world. So why am I writing a column about this rarefied level of management jobs? Because I think it’s an object lesson for everyone.

Time and again, I take a poke at top execs to make the point that everyone — everyone — has terribly misconceived notions about job hunting and hiring. Even the most successful top-level executives are clueless about how to land the right job.

Top execs make the same mistakes

It’s not an exaggeration, and this executive’s question proves it. It’s very difficult for anyone — even at the highest levels — to think clearly about job hunting simply because it’s stressful and even painful. The prospect worries people, so they don’t think straight. At the higher levels, job hunting is even more challenging, not only because there are fewer jobs, but because top execs incorrectly assume there’s something fundamentally  different about the executive-level job search process. No matter what level you work on, the process is basically the same.

It’s interesting how you describe the job you want. To me, every job is a “one per company” position. In other words, there are precious few “right jobs” for an individual, and precious few “right people” for any job. The shotgun approach, which promises to cover as much territory as possible so as to increase the chances of success, is just a fallacy. Matching a person and a job is just not a numbers game (even if you do get lucky). The best way to find a good match is through good relationships with people who work in the industry you want to work in, whether it’s for a technician’s job or a board seat.

The inside track is personal

I’m not missing what you’re saying: If the job isn’t there, why make contacts at the company? The reason is that the people you talk with (board members and other executives) have knowledge, insight, and contacts no one else has — including headhunters. You’re absolutely right: Companies will use their personal contacts to fill such vacancies. It’s important for you to focus on contacts because getting on the inside track is personal. Consider them a growing resource that you develop throughout your career. You never know how or when you’ll benefit from them. However, you will benefit.

When a board member taps an old friend for a board seat, that executive is not likely waiting around for a tap. The offer stems from a relationship that has developed over a period of years. So you see, you’re right about one thing. Employers do indeed use their network of personal contacts to make hires. What you’re wrong about is that “the direct approach” won’t work at your level. It will. (As an exec, you might be surprised to hear that garden-variety workers tell me you have to be a manager or executive for this to work!) But the direct approach is a long-term investment. It may not yield an instant payoff. It’s just one step toward your goal, and without taking that step, you will forever lose to people who introduced themselves long before any position came open.

Top execs (and you!) can do it

As you note, headhunters do fill such positions. But they do the very thing you are suggesting won’t work. They contact board-level executives who are not themselves currently looking to fill or find jobs. These top execs are conduits to others who are looking. So, pick up the phone. Make the calls now — and make them regularly throughout your career. If you don’t, you will always be floundering in the wakes of people who have strong, long-term connections to one another.

You see, top execs don’t have it easier or harder than anyone else. Everyone has the same challenge: to make new friends in your field (or target field) all the time. When you’re actively looking for a job, don’t just look where the jobs are. Go to the right people, and they will lead you where you need to go. (For more on this, please read I don’t know anybody.)

For more information about board-level management, I suggest you check my friend Larry Stybel’s web site. It’s a resource for board-level executives, but it’s also an illuminating experience for everyone else who wonders what the atmosphere is like way up there.

Thanks for your kind words about Fearless Job Hunting I think you’ll find it useful when you get into the interview. For the next two weeks, all Ask The Headhunter PDF books are 50% off for the holidays. Just use discount code=WINTER50 at checkout. ORDER NOW!

Just how important is it to make your job search personal? If you have an experience that shows how crucial this can be, please share it to motivate others. Naysayers are welcome to post their stories, too.

: :

Question

Let me cut you off at the pass. I know you’re not a fan of resumes and you tell us not to rely on a resume to get a job. I get that. But if I’m going to use a resume anyway, what’s your advice about how to make it pay off? What good is a resume really? (Sorry for the affront but I’d really like some commando-style advice out in the job jungle.)

Nick’s Reply

Your question is no affront — not any more than the in-your-face interview questions the best managers ask. And I welcome in-your-face questions. It’s the hard questions that are most important and that force us to countenance the challenges in our job search that no one else wants to deal with.

What good is a resume?

You’re right: I advocate against relying on a resume to introduce yourself, to get in the door, to show your stuff or to provide good reasons why someone should hire you. A resume is a dumb piece of paper (or string of digital “key words”) that cannot defend you. Think about it: The more resumes (or profiles, thank you LinkedIn) there are in the world, the more rejections occur and the harder it is for you to get matched to the right job.

There’s a line from comedian Steven Wright that I’ve bent a little bit to help make my point: Suppose you could have… everything in the world! Where would you put it?

Today employers have access to every resume in the world and job seekers can look up and apply to every job posting on the planet. What does it get anyone? More failures at matching. More rejection. And more is not better.

But you know all this already. You’d just rather ignore it and play along because resumes (and their sad brethren, job descriptions) are the coin of the failed realm of HR. (“Why can’t we find good workers?!”)

6 ways to make your resume pay off

So I’ll consider your “affront” with gusto! If you’re going to use a resume anyway, here are six answers about how to make your resume pay off:

1. Write it yourself

I don’t care how talented a professional resume writer is. You know your skills and history best. If you don’t accept the challenge to write your own resume, you will never recognize the kernel of qualities that will get you hired. You’ll know you did a good job if you can use the best sections of your resume as convincing statements in your job interviews. That’s why writing your resume has to hurt. It’s not a recitation. It’s a well-thought out plan for how you’re going to do a job that makes an employer want to hire you. Unless that resume writer is going to carefully research every job you’re going to apply to and customize each resume you submit, do it on your own.

2. Make your resume the cure

Make it vanilla. Skip the fancy flavoring. Leave lots of white space. Don’t tell all. Nobody wants to know everything about you. Include only what will help a specific employer. Yup, that means one resume per job you apply for. That means you must know what kind of pain an employer suffers from, and your resume must be the specific remedy.

3. The 6 second rule

Tell the manager exactly how you are the remedy on the top half of the first page. Eye-tracking studies suggest employers spend about six seconds scanning a resume. If you don’t show why you’re the best hire in six seconds, you instantly become a NO or a MAYBE.

4. Make contact first

Never, ever send a resume to an employer or hiring manager until after you have had substantive contact with that person. Don’t be someone the manager doesn’t know who clearly doesn’t know the manager. That’s the definition of junk mail. Managers are more likely to read your resume, interview or hire you, if you’re someone they know. The manager doesn’t know you? Do the work required to become known to the manager.

5. What good is a resume? It fills in the blanks

Once that manager already knows who you are, use your resume for one purpose. What good is your resume? It fills in the blanks about your history, experience and skills. Your resume is best used as follow-up information, not to introduce yourself cold. Do you want to be one of the very few applicants with an inside edge, or do you want your resume to be one of thousands?

6. Explain it to the manager

Try this test as you hand your resume to a manager: “Here’s my resume, Manager. When I give it to you, what am I really saying to you?” Are you saying, “Here’s my plan for doing the job you want done,” or are you saying, “Here’s all there is to know about me. Now you go figure out what to do with me.”

Managers stink at figuring out what to do with you. That’s why you (and everyone else) get rejected again and again. Your resume must quickly show the manager what to do with you.

Hope that helps.

How do you use your resume? Is it effective? Or do you use your resume like you buy a lottery ticket — so you can “be in the game”? What do you put in your resume that pays off?

NOTE FROM NICK: There will be no newsletter next week (Dec. 5). I’m going to visit Santa. See you Dec. 12!

: :

When you accepted that job offer, did you agree to stay or pay?

SPECIAL EDITION

Can your employer trap you into paying thousands of dollars when you quit your job?

Stay or pay: quitting is gonna cost you

It’s already happening. Employees sign agreements to reimburse their company for training expenses if they don’t stick around for a year, two years, or even more. Employers say they need to use these “stay or pay” clauses in employment contracts because jobs are difficult to fill when newly trained hires quit and take their training with them.

The New York Times Magazine (paywall protected) reports that the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are now taking measures to end this widespread indentured-servitude trend. Meanwhile, the costs of training are trapping workers across industries and jobs.

“A typical stay-or-pay clause [in an employment contract] is called a training-repayment-agreement provision (TRAP), which stipulates that the cost of on-the-job training will be borne by the employee.”

Who pays for overhead?

It kinda brings to mind restaurants that now charge their overhead costs to their customers — in the form of surcharges to cover credit card fees. That would have been unheard of 30 years ago. In fact, credit card accounts for merchants once prohibited merchants from passing credit card fees on to users. The use of a credit card was marketed as a benefit, not a cost.

Likewise, training was once held out as a benefit and as a reason to join a company. Today, employers argue they need to impose TRAPs to recover the overhead of employee training. But making workers pay is nothing new. Some employers also try to recover hiring and recruiting costs from departing workers.

Pay to work

Critics contend that training is a business overhead cost and that making employees agree to repay training expenses is similar to requiring restrictive non-compete agreements (NCAs). But NCAs are now illegal in some states and will likely be forbidden everywhere because they interfere with the right to work.

Stay-or-pay clauses used to be limited to just a few industries and high-paying jobs, like airline pilots and software engineers, but are now applied to dog groomers, bank workers, nurses, roofers and truckers. Experts estimate that up to a third of all American workers are now subjected to TRAPs — and, in fact, TRAPs may have become a racket:

“Workers’ rights advocates say that, in many cases, stay-or-pay clauses no longer accurately reflect the company’s costs but instead appear to be inflated financial penalties designed to discourage quitting.”

Ending the stay or pay TRAP

Help may be on the way. It’s no accident that the insidious nature of “stay or pay” leads to comparisons to other questionable methods employers use to control workers.

“Regulators, governmental officials and politicians are starting to take notice of stay-or-pay clauses. The Federal Trade Commission’s proposed ban would include TRAPs that operate like de facto NCAs…Last June, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced an investigation into ‘practices that leave workers indebted to employers,’ indicating that it may use its power as a consumer-debt watchdog to intervene in such cases.”

But the wheels of government turn so slowly that workers subjected to TRAPs continue to be hurt when employers penalize workers for quitting. For now, it’s up to you to avoid funding an employer’s overhead when you quit. Read all job offers, employee policy handbooks, and all associated documents carefully before accepting a new job.

How widespread are TRAPs? Have you ever reimbursed your employer for training because you quit too soon? Would you sign a job offer or contract that included a stay-or-pay clause?

: :