| Introduction
I’m continually frustrated by the advice I read online and in
newspapers for people that have been unemployed long-term, for
people that are over 50 and are seeking a new job for the first
time in many years (because they’ve been laid off, because their
business closed, whatever), or for people just starting out in a
career. I know that there isn’t going to be a perfect list of
advice anywhere, but the advice I’ve read seems to be written by
people who have never been in any of those circumstances. They
seem to speak in platitudes (“stay positive!”) or don’t offer
detailed, practical advice.
I do career
consulting for people seeking to work in humanitarian-related
fields, and I base my advice both on my own career
pursuits, on my experience hiring and managing a staff, and on
being a part of various interview and candidate review
committees. Using that experience, I’ve put together this
list of realistic tips for people who are seeking jobs
and have been long-term unemployed, for older job seekers (those
over 50) seeking a new job for the first time in many years, or
for those just starting out in their career. I hope this is also
helpful to people with disabilities who are seeking employment.
Some of this advice is to help you get passed applicant-tracking
software that will exclude certain applications because of
various information, or lack there of, that it's been programmed
to look for. All of this advice is about honestly showing how
you would be a great person to hire. None of this advice
encourages you to lie to a potential employer - ever. And some
of this advice may require that you get busy with volunteering
or taking classes in order to get experience you might be
lacking.
Of course, different jobs have different requirements, so not
all of this advice will apply to every job. For instance, some
advice that would apply to a person that wants to be a public
relations assistant won’t apply to someone that wants a job
related to civil engineering.
Advice:
Hide your age
Age discrimination is illegal in the USA - but still practiced.
I’ve heard educated, intelligent people say, both in the
workplace and in social interactions, that they would never hire
someone of a certain age, or that people of a certain age can’t
learn anymore, or that people of a certain age don't take work
seriously, etc. When I push back against those perceptions, they
give me a list of ridiculous reasons as to why their prejudice
is justified, whether it’s thinking certain age groups are “too
young” or “too old.”
Hiding your age on your résumé and any online profile a
potential employer might have access to is especially important
for people over 50.
Don’t put your high school graduation date nor your birth date
on your résumé, and if your university degree is more than 20
years old, don’t put the date of that either. When the time
comes to share your age on official documents, fine - but never
share that information on an application (it’s illegal for an
employer in the USA to ask a job candidate his or her age, FYI).
You want potential employers
to focus on your abilities and potential, not your age.
Look positive to family and
friends, online & in-person
I’m not going to tell you to “stay positive”, nor to never
lament your unemployment situation or the frustrations of job
seeking. Don’t deny reality! Being unemployed is frustrating and
even hurtful, no question.
But don’t let your unemployment and frustration define you to
others. You don’t want anyone to hear your name and think, ugh,
that unemployed negative person who is always complaining
about not being able to find a job. You want them to
think, oh, that so-and-so, she/he would be great to work with,
because that person has the skills I need and an attitude that's
pleasant and I like to be around!
Be careful with whom you share your frustrations regarding
job-seeking, and how often you share those frustrations. By all
means, tell people you are looking for work, and even remind
them every now and again, but exude activity and thoughtfulness
in your conversations and online messages - be the person people
want to work with. Talk about what you are doing - volunteering,
books you're reading, hiking, enjoying ANYTHING - rather than
what you aren’t doing,
as much as possible.
Let people know you are looking
for work
There’s no shame whatsoever in letting people know you are
looking for work. Post to your Facebook
account and link to your LinkedIn
profile about what it is you are looking for,
employment-wise. Don't come from a place of desperation for a
job ("I really need a job! I'm desperate!") but, rather, about
what you are looking for ("A reminder: I'm looking for an
entry-level marketing position. My profile is on LinkedIn. Let
me know if you hear of any opportunities!"). Have business cards
with your name, phone number and email address, and be ready to
hand those out to anyone you want to let know that you are
seeking employment.
Show that you are a project
manager/leader
Even if all you want to be is a receptionist or a cashier,
showing that you can manage and finish a project successfully
will set you apart from most other candidates, and show you are
capable and responsible - and it’s far better to show you are
capable than to just say it. What jobs are there these days
where one NOT have to be capable of immediate on-the-spot
creative problem-solving, and responsible?
On your résumé, name projects you have managed, even if you
were never called a “manager.” Did you coordinate the move of
your department from one building to another? Did you oversee
the closing of a department or office? Did you manage your
company’s or class’s involvement in a Habitat for Humanity
build? Did you organize a holiday party for 100 employees and
their families? Have you lead a Girl Scout troop?
Emphasize your tech savviness
You MUST know how to use various computer and online technology,
and to learn new tools as they emerge, to be considered for MOST
jobs, even those that seem to
have nothing to do with technology. You don’t have to
be a computer programmer, you don't have to be a web designer,
but you do have to show that you can use word processing
programs for more than just typing in words (can you format a
document, with headers and titles having different fonts, can
you insert automatic page numbering, you can use the “track
changes” feature, etc.? Prove it by doing it on your résumé),
that you can use basic calculation functions on a spreadsheet
(having a sum at the bottom of a column of numbers), that you
can create at least a simple presentation using slide software
(like Powerpoint), that you can input data into different fields
of a database, etc. List that you can do these things on your
résumé. There may be free classes at your local public library
to learn these activities, if you don't know them already. List
your favorite apps on your SmartPhone as well if you think such
demonstrates your tech-saviness - or just some kind of statement
that you HAVE a SmartPhone, especially if you are over 50. You
also need a fully-detailed LinkedIn
profile, to show you know how to navigate an online form
and the Internet, in general. You do NOT have to have a public Facebook
profile or a Twitter
account, unless the job you are applying for relates somehow to
marketing or social media.
Put high-responsibility
volunteer experience in spots on your résumé
This is true especially if the volunteer experience happened
when you were unemployed. Don’t segregate high-responsibility
volunteer experience at the end of your résumé. If you were the
marketing manager for an event that raised $5,000 for a local
nonprofit, that’s a BIG DEAL. List it on your résumé just as you
would for a paid job: note your responsibilities, that you
managed volunteers, your successes in that role (like staying in
budget, or coming in under budget), etc.
Put adult education/non-formal
education classes on your résumé
Have you been involved in Toastmasters? Taken an
acting class recently? Taken a class in child development
recently? Taken a class in how to use a particular computer
program or how to use a video camera? Gotten your CPR
certification or re-certification recently? Gotten your mental
health first aid certification or re-certification
recently? Note these experiences on your résumé. These are not
only valuable skills for the workplace, they also show that you
like to keep busy.
Note your experience working
with multi-cultural teams or audiences
Have you worked with people for whom English was a second
language? Immigrants? People of a different ethnicity than
yourself? People of many different ages? Note that experience on
your résumé - show that you are comfortable working with a
variety of people. What job DOESN'T require this nowadays?!
Don’t offer any information
related to your health
Employers want to hear about your abilities, not your
disabilities. Don’t put anything on your résumé or any
application that would indicate you have health issues that
would interfere with your job. Yes, the Americans With
Disabilities Act legally prohibits discrimination for persons
with disabilities in employment, and legally requires employers
to provide reasonable
accommodation in a job that allows a qualified
individual with a disability to apply for a job, perform job
functions, etc. And that's as it should be. But put yourself in
the chair of an employer: they want someone that is capable to
do the job. If you are capable, emphasize those capabilities, be
defined by those - that makes employers much more comfortable
when it comes time to accommodate employees because of health
issues (and there will ALWAYS be health issues!).
I have often got messages from people that start off with, "I
have such-and-such medical condition and it's really hard to
find a job. Can you help?" That message starts off with, "Here
are my limitations." Instead, the message should have started
off with, "I have experience doing this and this and am looking
for such-and-such kind of job. Can you help?"
Don’t offer any information
that might suggest you will need large amounts of time off
Don’t mention kids or a spouse or any family on your résumé if
at all possible; many employers will take such mention as a red
flag that your family will interfere with your job to the point
that it interferes with their bottom line. Don't note on your
résumé that you have taken time off to be a caregiver unless you
can make it clear that such full-time caregiving is absolutely
over now - your young children are now in grade school, you have
now made other arrangements for a family member you were
providing full-time care for, etc. Employers will exclude
candidates that give the impression, via their résumés, that
they have many priorities that will compete with their work.
Having taken classes recently or undertaken volunteering
recently that somehow relates to the job you want will
demonstrate to employers that you are ready for employment (see
other advice here regarding listing such).
Spelling counts
For some jobs, a misspelling on your résumé will get you
automatically excluded as a candidate. For others, the employer
may not care. Why take a chance on anything
that might make you look like anything less than competent,
capable employee - or that the applicant-tracking software used
to screen candidates may kick you out for a misspelling? Spell
check your résumé!
Be well-spoken
You need to be able to speak clearly, with correct grammar, to
be taken seriously by most potential employers. You may have a
regional accent - that's fine. Don't be ashamed of it. But you
need to have a "customer service" voice, one that is easy to
understand, including on the phone. You need to say "yes", not
"yeah," to say "This", not "dis." Never say "ain't." I say all
of this as someone who grew up with a very strong Kentucky
accent and learned quickly that how I spoke with friends (with
lots of slang, with a heavy dialect, etc.) was NOT how I was to
speak around adults. Watch how people are treated on Judge Judy
- have you ever noticed how she is immediately frustrated by
people that use poor grammar and that she cannot hear? Again,
accents are fine - bad grammar is not. Join Toastmasters if you
want to become a better speaker (and note on your résumé that
you are a participant or a graduate).
Consider yourself highly
skilled in something? Even an expert? Prove it
If you imply that you are an expert in whatever field, a
potential employer will want to see proof. That comes not only
from a certification from an accredited body, it also comes from
seeing things you have written or created that prove your
expertise. A blog could be a great avenue for you to regularly
share your expertise about whatever it is you believe you are an
expert at (human resources, accounting, public health,
whatever). A web site could also be helpful - if you tell me you
have kept up-to-date regarding the latest in human resources
practices, but you’ve been unemployed for six months, I’ll
probably still take you seriously if you have an up-to-date web
site that is nothing but links to your favorite resources
related to human resources, or if you have a Twitter account
where you never tweet but where you follow employment-related
Twitter feeds.
Have a great online profile
If an employer types your name into Google
or Bing, what
comes up? What comes up under the "images" section of either if
an employer types your name in? Can anyone see what you post to
Facebook, as opposed to just friends? Pretend you are a
potential employer and look at what comes up online about you.
If you have potentially-embarrassing photos online that anyone
can see, change the privacy settings on those photos so that
they can be seen only by approved friends, and take your full
name off of any identification for those photos, in case someone
shares them. Or take them down altogether. Also, be sure to
upload photos you DO want potential employers to see, to Facebook,
Flickr, Instagram,
or whatever social media you use - make those photos public, and
use your full name to identify yourself in those photos, so that
these photos come up first in any search. Do political rants,
religious commentary or gossip you've shared come up when
someone searches for you online? How might an employer feel
about finding that? If you don't want employers to find it,
either take your name off of it or take it down altogether.
Don’t just say you have social
media or online communications experience: show it.
This advice doesn't apply to everyone - only for those applying
for jobs that indicate the employer wants someone to have social
media or online communications experience. If that's the case,
don't just say you have that experience - show it:
- Your LinkedIn
profile should be as detailed, if not more, than your
résumé. Do not just link it to your website and expect people
to go there to get details about your experience and skills.
- You must have a public Twitter
account that shows your social media chops. If you don’t, you
are NOT social media savvy - and you shouldn't say you are.
It’s not so much how many followers you have on Twitter; it’s
that you post regularly with quality and appropriate content,
that you have public lists, that you have your favorite tags
to following your social media profile, etc.
- Name in your résumé the social media profiles, including
blogs, for which you have been responsible. If an employer
types your name into Google or Bing, or the name of the
organization for which you claim to have managed social media,
what comes up?
Fill gaps in your résumé
If you have been unemployed for more than three months/90 days,
according to your résumé, you need to show in your résumé what
you have been doing in that time. So... what are you doing?
Temping? Taking classes? Volunteering in high-responsibility
roles? Did you take a sabbatical and travel? Yes, some employers
will exclude you because you have been unemployed for more than
three months, or have been temping in a service job while
looking for a job in your profession, but many WON'T if you show
productivity and initiative in that time of unemployment. See
the earlier advice on this page if you took a lot of time off to
be a care giver for children or adults.
Careful of acronyms
Acronyms can confuse employers, or even date you. Unless the
acronym is WIDELY known among people who are NOT in your field,
don’t use them, or have a short explanation of such
somewhere.
Careful regarding religious
information
It's fine to put on your résumé that you have been employed by a
religious organization, or that, as a volunteer, you coordinated
all of the volunteers for a church's food bank, ran a mosque's
annual meal for homeless people in a community, designed and
managed a temple's web site, coordinated all of the arts
activities for 100 kids at a church camp, etc. Any of that would
indicate your religion, but more importantly to employers, it
reflects on your leadership, team-working and management
abilities. But leave overt declarations of your religion off
your résumé - declarations like, "I'm a proud
Christian/whatever." If you put such an overt declaration on
your résumé, many employers will fear that you will make such
declarations on the job, to co-workers and customers, to the
point of making others uncomfortable.
Careful regarding political
information
It's fine to put on your résumé that you have been employed by a
political organization, or that, as a volunteer, you coordinated
all of the volunteers for a campaign, that you were part of a
get-out-the-vote campaign by a particular candidate, making
phone calls and visiting homes, etc., designed and managed a
party's web site, etc. Any of that would indicate your political
slant, but more importantly to employers, it reflects on your
leadership, team-working and management abilities. But leave
overt declarations of your politics off your résumé.
Fix your credit
Some employers run credit reports on job candidates they are
seriously considering for a job, and will exclude someone who
has a very poor credit report. If
you have a bad credit score, fix it! Clark
Howard explains credit scores.
Network network network
Go to job fairs - such are advertised on TV, the radio and local
newspapers (can't afford a newspaper subscription? Go to the
library). Join professional societies related to your career
choice and go to their meetings and events (if you think you
can't afford to join, say, the local human resources
professionals society, cut back on your TV subscription
services, or cut out going to the movies, so you can), join a
local civic group (Rotary, Lions, whatever), volunteer
(particularly in high-responsibility roles), take adult
education classes where you will interact with other students,
etc. The more people you meet, that have a great impression of
you, the more likely you will encounter someone that has a job
lead for you.
Support groups?
Support groups for the unemployed can help - and can make you
feel worse. When they are helpful, they give you an emotional
outlet regarding your frustrations at not being employed. When
they aren't, they make you feel worse. If you go to one and find
that it is NOT making you feel better, STOP GOING.
Stay busy
All of the aforementioned should keep you plenty busy, and help
you in your job pursuits. But if you aren't kept busy by the
aforementioned, then do keep busy in your every day life. Limit
your TV watching and the time you spend on the Internet, texting
with friends, etc. Be able to have something useful to show at
the end of every day, whether that's mowing the lawn or cleaning
the bathroom or preparing a terrific supper for your family. It
will greatly affect your outlook on your job search - trust me.
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Suggested books:
The
Customer Rules: The 39 Essential Rules for Delivering
Sensational Service
Be
Our Guest: Perfecting the Art of Customer Service (Disney
Institute Book, A)
dfree:
Breaking Free from Financial Slavery by DeForest B.
Soaries
Broke,
USA: From Pawnshops to Poverty, Inc. – How the Working Poor
Became Big Business by
Gary Rivlin
Clark
Howard's Living Large in Lean Times: 250+ Ways to Buy
Smarter, Spend Smarter, and Save Money by Clark
Howard
Women
& Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny
by Suze Orman
The
Money Book for the Young, Fabulous & Broke by
Suze Orman
The
Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness
by Dave Ramsey
The
Financial Peace Planner: A Step-by-Step Guide to Restoring
Your Family's Financial Health by
Dave Ramsey
The
Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Out of Debt by Ken
Clark
The
Everything Guide To Personal Finance For Single Mothers
Book: A Step-by-step Plan for Achieving Financial
Independence (Everything (Business & Personal Finance)
by Susan Reynolds
250
Personal Finance Questions for Single Mothers: Make and Keep a
Budget, Get Out of Debt, Establish Savings, Plan for College,
Secure Insurance by Susan Reynolds and Robert Bexton
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