If you are over 40 or 50, your resume may not even get to the 45 second review stage. You could be tossed out by the receptionist because you are too grizzled and old.
Here are some ideas from a WSJ article on how experienced workers can keep in the running for top positions.
A friend is someone who will help you move. A real friend is someone who will help you move a body. (unkn)
How to get a friend a job
This programmer didn’t have any experience using the language and tools the company software was developed in. He hadn’t programmed in 2 years. He was, however, one of the best programmers I have ever met. He got himself hired without an interview.
First he put together a great resume showing his experience and accomplishments. He had a friend working at the small company. His friend took the resume into the company owner and put it on his desk. He said, “This guy is better than me. You should hire him. You should also pay him more than me. He’s really good.” The boss called the programmer up and said, “Come in at noon tomorrow and walk around the place. If you like it, you can start work at 12:03. We’ll give you a week to prove you know what you are doing and then adjust your pay accordingly.”
Just so you know, for backup he had a glowing letter of recommendation from his former employer. He never got to use it.
If you absolutely believe in your friend that is how to get him a job where you work. Only do it this way if you absolutely believe the guy is the best person available, that he is extraordinary. Your boss will appreciate the help.
Something To Do Today
If you want to be the guy getting the job, you have to be way above average and have a dynamite resume. Work on both. Just for luck, also get that glowing letter of recommendation.
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Tomorrow: A fair non-compete
Later: Sand in the gears
Posted in Finding jobs, Networking, Resumes
Tagged find a job, get a friend a job, great resume
These mistakes apply to IT, accounting, engineering, and other careers.
The guy who is getting her is very lucky. No brag, just fact.
Will you make your next employer feel as lucky as my daughter’s new husband feels?
Posted in Uncategorized
“I have completed all objectives as an executive for 37 years and was just laid off due to an industry downturn.”
To some people that says you were just laid off because you are an old retirement aged clock watcher, and they wanted to bring in some young blood. They wanted someone with energy who will work harder. You have just said, “Please discriminate against me because of age.”
In my experience age discrimination is much more common than discrimination based on race, sex, religion or any other factor. That’s reality. No one wants to hire someone who is marking time until retirement. They want an energetic go-getter. Whether you are old or young you need to prove on your resume that you are not just a place holder. List in bullets what got done only because you were at your last job. Show your energy and enthusiasm.
The secret to staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age. (Lucille Ball)
Don’t lie about your age, disguise it
Your resume has one function, to get you an interview. That’s all. If you were 37 years in one job and don’t want it to show, break up that job into the positions you held. List each position or division you worked for as a separate job entry with its own dates of service. That way you can get the older dates off the first page of your resume.
Age discrimination isn’t nice, but it is a factor to consider. Make your resume an effective advertisement for what you can contribute. Avoid showing how old you are unless you are sure it will help you get the interview.
Are there other things that you think are causing people to discriminate against you? Then deal with them. Is it race? There is a lot of discrimination against Asian-Indians in the USA. They overcome it most often by persistence and education. Is your sex a problem? A physical disability? Your speech impediment? Your religion? Accept that fact and learn to deal with it. Accept that you need to shine brighter, and work hard to be so good that you cannot be refused by the best companies.
Something To Do Today
Are you over 40? Time to start considering age discrimination. Over 60? Age discrimination is a fact. Deal with it in your resume.
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Next week: How to get a friend a job
Sand in the gears
I made over 150 survey calls in one week. I wasn’t trying to find out which companies were the best companies, but I stumbled across it accidentally. What I found out applies to most industries.
You can run your own survey without making 150 calls to company presidents. Start asking people you work with, “What companies are the best in our industry?” Ask any salespeople you meet, “Who is your toughest competitor?” Look around. There is no reason you should be employed with anyone but an industry leader.
Something To Do Today
Make a list of companies in your industry or geographic area in your job journal. Start keeping notes about comments you hear about each company. Discount what you hear if someone is a jerk or a bad worker where they are now. If they are a great person and worker, take a lot of notes. You’ll soon know who’s who.
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Tomorrow: Please discriminate against me
Later: How to get a friend a job
A fair non-compete
Posted in Finding jobs
Tagged finding the best company, the best companies, worst companies
The other day I had to tell a woman the awful truth. She is worth twice what she is getting paid.
How would you feel if you were told that you are earning ½ of what you should be earning?
I called up one other company 30 minutes from her home. Only one company. The owner said, “Yes, we would pay her twice what she is earning.”
This is extremely rare. The new company will not, however immediately pay her twice what she is earning. They will initially pay her what she is earning now and give her the chance to prove in their company what she is worth. She will have goals that are clear. When she hits those goals, she will get a raise. We all suspect it will take 18 to 24 months to actually double her income.
She had doubled her value in her old company by extremely high performance. She is a top producer. Because her goals there were set, measured and attained in an extraordinary manner, she is worth more. Her old boss wouldn’t pay her more, but her new boss gladly will. The change would not have happened if she demanded to get paid before she produced. She would have never been given the new job.
You can double your value if find out what you can do that is most valuable to your company. In most cases you won’t even have to change jobs to get a raise. If your goals are set, measured and attained in an extraordinary manner, you will get your raise.
Invest in yourself. Sow the seeds of success. If your company won’t invest in you, invest in yourself. You are worth it. And when you have proven you are worth twice what you were before, go find someone who will pay it.
Something To Do Today
Who is way ahead of you in pay? Are they doing what you want to do? Who is not just earning a little more, earning a lot more? Invite them to lunch. Ask them how they got there and what you need to do to get there.
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Tomorrow: Surveys
Later: Please discriminate against me
How to get a friend a job
Posted in Accomplishments, Focus, Promotions
Tagged double your value, getting paid, make more money, worth more money
Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away. (Philip Dick)
Each week someone says, “Bryan, I have applied for hundreds of jobs and no one even acknowledges my application!” That may mean it is time for a reality check. If they have 10 very good candidates, is it a waste of time for those companies to talk to you? Are you betting that no one else sees the same online ad that you do? Sometimes a reality check will tell you good things, sometimes bad things.
I only allow reality on my desk as a recruiter. I don’t “hope” that a client will overlook my candidate’s surly disposition. I don’t submit him. If I have a programmer whose references say he can’t get projects done on time, I withdraw his candidacy even when the company has made a job offer. A salesman who has 3 jobs in 3 years and no positive results won’t get a job through our agency. Reality rules my desk. I can’t work any other way and feed my family.
Bow to reality in your job hunting. Sure, apply for jobs you are only barely qualified for, but don’t be upset when your resume isn’t even acknowledged. If a company is laying off people, still apply for a job, but don’t wait with quivering excitement for a call.
Too many people think that The Power Of Positive Thinking says that self delusion works. It doesn’t. In that book by Norman Vincent Peale, he spends a lot of time dealing with reality. So should you.
If you really do deserve a 50% raise, hope for it, but acknowledge that raises that big are rare. Most people can expect a 5% to 20% raise. Most people get a job at the same level they are at and work their way up in their next job. Some do find a new job at a higher management level. They are exceptionally well qualified.
Become exceptional at your current job and reality is that you can get a big raise and a promotion into your next company. If you are very good, expect a raise and a chance to earn a promotion. If you are average, or less, no one is going to be in a hurry to hire you.
That is reality.
Something To Do Today
Keep a list of every job you apply for. Also list how well qualified you are for the job. Take a reality check. Are you over qualified, well qualified, barely qualified, or under qualified? Keeping honest track of that answer will help you if your job hunt takes longer than you expect.
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Tomorrow: Double your value, make more money
Later: Surveys
Please discriminate against me
How to get a friend a job
Posted in Attitude, Finding jobs, Perseverance, Recruiters, Resumes
Tagged applied for jobs, good candidates, hunt for a job, reality, reality check, waste of time
My dad was in court defending a man accused of using a dangerous weapon. The weapon was brass knuckles. Dad pointed out that the law very specifically defines the weapons to which it applies. The law mentions a brass device that fits in the palm of the hand for support and goes around the fingers or knuckles to protect the holder and do harm to an opponent. It was ALMOST a definition of the weapon in this case. Unfortunately the defendant’s brass knuckles were made of aluminum. The judge had no choice but to dismiss the charges.
Don’t get that precise and misleading when you are applying for a job. Even if you get the job, you’ll be in trouble later. There are expected degrees of precision and disclosure in resumes, interviews and job applications.
Aristotle said, “It is the mark of an educated mind to rest satisfied with the degree of precision which the nature of the subject admits and not to seek exactness where only approximation is possible.”
Let’s apply this to your job search.
Resumes:
These are personal advertisements. You do not need to disclose anything you don’t want to. That said, lying on a resume is a firing offense. Moving dates or claiming titles, responsibilities and accomplishments you don’t have are lies. Leaving out irrelevant jobs is fine but don’t move the employment dates around those jobs. Putting a brief and accurate summary of your job responsibilities in place of a title is acceptable because hiring authorities will use the title you put down as a summary anyway.
Interviews:
A lie is any communication given with intent to deceive. You don’t have to confess something unless you are asked about it or know it will normally disqualify you completely. Don’t lie. Shrugging your shoulders can be a lie. The difficult thing is picking the relevance of your revelations. Strive to understand what your interviewers need to know. Give them the short and simple truth. When your background or claims are checked out, no one will remember precisely how you worded an answer. You’ll get fired for skirting the truth in an interview. Be clearly understood.
Applications:
Be precise. Answer the exact question asked. Don’t embellish. Don’t add explanations. Tell your problems in as few words as possible. Don’t leave out any jobs on the application. You can leave them out on the resume, not the application. On the application they want all your recent jobs. Put your exact and official job title where it asks for it. Applications demand very exact and precise answers. Don’t lie by being incredibly precise and misleading. Be precise and understood. In many cases your application is never read carefully anyway.
A resume, interview and job application are not the places to try and get away with highly technical definitions. In Dad’s court case the judge was bound by a strict set of laws. When you get a job, your boss and coworkers are going to quickly start calling you a liar if you rely on word tricks. You may technically have been accurate but you will still get busted.
Something To Do Today
If you have a blemish on your record, decide where it needs to be talked about or shown.
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Tomorrow: I only allow reality on my desk
Later: Double your value, make more money
Surveys
Please discriminate against me
Posted in Accomplishments, Focus, Interviews, Resumes
Tagged confessing mistakes, honesty, interview, job application, precision, resume
It was in my mother’s garage. A trumpet. We have no clue where it came from. We took it to the band teacher who said, “That’s a nice old German trumpet. It should be cleaned and fixed.” We still don’t know where it came from.
The trumpet may play beautiful music again. It only takes up space and makes noise until its value is accurately assessed. Then a master appears and music dances in the air.
Two things about jobs to learn from this.
Are you the trumpet or the band teacher who can spot a great trumpet?
Something To Do Today
Take a fresh look at your personal skills. What do you pick up most quickly? What do you see or hear that others can’t fathom?
Also take a fresh look at the people around you.
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Nest week: Brass knuckles and the law (and resumes and interviews)
I only allow reality on my desk
Double your value, make more money
Surveys
Please discriminate against me
Posted in Attitude, Promotions, talent
Tagged ;eader, advancement, Helping others, opportunity