So You Think You Want a New Job
Recently, I feel like I’ve been talking to quite a few people about pivoting careers, getting jobs, and interviews. I know a lot of people have lost their job during this time and are looking for new ones, and I’m still in that age group where it’s common to change jobs and careers quite frequently. As such - here are some things to think about if you find yourself job hunting or interviewing*:
Applying for jobs -
Even though it’s abhorrently time consuming, your resume and cover letters need to be up to date, relevant for the job you’re applying for, and have no wasted space. Early in your career, you get a page to make an impression, so every line has to count. Every line should be some sort of accomplishment or value, you don’t want to just regurgitate job descriptions. Facts and figures look especially great on resumes (i.e. Led an initiative that increased revenue by 20%), while compelling stories make CV’s pop more than just reiterating your resume. I already have written an article linked here, with more details on this.
The quickest way to an interview is always through someone you know. You can find success applying through portals online, but you’ll always have a better chance to get an interview at a company if you leverage connections. I used to feel awkward about reaching out to people for the sole purpose of trying to get a job, so instead, I now use a learning approach.
If I see someone who works for a company I’m interested in, or who has a role I’m interested in, I reach out to ask how they like working at their company and if they’d be willing to speak to me about their role and their time there as I’m looking to learn more about the field and the company. If all goes well, they’ll let me send them my resume and if not, I maybe made a new connection and learned something. Make use of that linkedin network - if you see that people who used to work for your current company now work somewhere you’re applying, that’s perfect! You can reach out based on shared background and ask how they liked the switch!
Ok now for interview and the home stretch:
If you made it to the interview in the first place, you’re in a great spot already. Make sure you review your own resume before the interview and be prepared to talk in detail about anything you’ve written on it. Also be sure to look up common interview questions (you know - where do you see yourself in five years? What are your strengths?) and spend some time considering the answers to those. You want to be as honest as possible because that will help you stand out.
For example, I HATE the ‘where do you see yourself in five years’ question. I think it’s inane and useless in determining talent. The whole point of that question is to see if you’re someone who has staying power. So to answer this one I always say something along the lines of: ‘This question is always hard! I think a lot about what I want my life to look like in five years as a whole. I’d like to have a family, travel, good balance, and at work, I’d like to have the opportunity to lead and to mentor others, and to be an expert at what I do, blah blah blah.’ All of this is true and I answered the question in the way that was the most authentic to myself while still giving the interviewer a good answer. Trust me, they can tell the cookie cutter ones from a mile off so make sure you have something authentic to say.
Lastly - here are some quick tips.
Don’t overshare. Of course I mean this in the obvious sense, but I also mean that you don’t have to tell them anything they didn’t explicitly ask. If they ask you how long you need to consider an offer, you can say - ‘I need a week’ - without saying it’s because you’re waiting to see if another offer pans out.
You can do everything until you can’t. Oversell yourself as much as possible. This may sound underhanded, but my rule is this - if the ability in question is something I want and am able to learn, then I tell the interviewer I can already do it. Because I know that I will be able to learn it if it is needed for the job. The caveat with this one is that there are some interviews that test hard skills like coding or data splicing. If there is an actual test as part of the job, you just need to be prepared for that separately.
Closing. I know it’s cheesy but I do like closing with ‘Do you have any reservations about my ability to succeed in this role?’. It puts the onus back on your interviewer, and gives you the opportunity to address any concerns that might have come up for them.
Negotiating. If you get here, congrats! You got an offer! Everyone’s situation is different depending on what type of job it is, BUT, I will say that HR and Talent acquisition can be expensive. If this company has given you an offer, they want you, and they’d much rather not go through the pain of trying to find someone else to do this so always push for more - even a little more. You will almost always get it.
The view from my workspace in my apartment since home is where a lot of us work now…
*My experience with this has been solely white collar. I work in technology consulting and have little experience in the gig economy or in the service industry.