Will Work for Food
Posted Feb 21, 2009 Job Hunting
∞ We will return you to your regularly scheduled sadism shortly.
The hot topic of the day seems to be the flood of applicants on the job market. Laurie at Punk Rock HR published a reader question yesterday that deals with the anger and bitterness of those trapped in the job search throng. Laurie indicated that I had a post somewhere in the comment I left for that job searcher. As I was kicking that idea around, I found a CNN Money article addressing the same topic. That clinched it.
Finding a job is hard right now, and there are tons of people applying for work well outside their expertise. CNN has some interesting figures in their article on the subject. As much as I’ve come to despise the phrase, this really is a sign of the times. There are people out there who are desperate enough that they’re looking completely outside their field or experience, and even willing to take a step (or six) down from their previous position just to generate some income.
CNN’s article quotes job search site Indeed.com’s CEO Paul Forster as saying, “Don’t apply for jobs you’re overqualified for or under qualified for.” Forster continues: “try to show how your qualifications and experience relate to the company’s needs.”
Part of this I agree with, and part of it I don’t. When there’s nothing out there at your level and the clock is ticking on your unemployment, what does he expect you to do? Sit back and wait for that Rich Uncle Moneybags you never knew existed to kick off and leave you millions? Sure, in a stable economy, that would be great advice. In today’s real world with the desperate situations that are becoming more and more common, though, I think Forster just told the world through CNN to cripple themselves even further.
If you’re considering a step back, or even a step down, please consider these tips for job seekers.
I’m not going to lie to you. Stepping back is hard. It means acknowledging that your lifestyle will have to change, even if just for a while. It means abandoning your ego and submitting to someone who may not be as qualified as you are, but who is nonetheless in charge. It means accepting that things aren’t now what they once were, and committing yourself to the new role you’re seeking.
That’s a hell of a lot of pride to swallow right there, but you have to swallow it if you’re going to succeed at finding a job outside your field or below your previous professional station. More and more people are doing it these days, and have decided that their old lifestyle isn’t worth the continued stress and pressure of unemployment. Convincing hiring managers of that decision can be tricky, though. For those of you who have done so, please take these tips from the hiring manager’s perspective to heart:
- Trash your existing resume.
And that fancy cover letter, while you’re at it. The way the economy is going right now, smart employers are considering the benefits they can reap from a job market that’s flooded with talent. Being so smart, however, those employers aren’t going to give a second glance to a cover letter or resume designed to impress people at a level higher than their open position.
Your elevated positions over the last however many years are not a selling point for you when you’re starting over. Your accomplishments in those positions are. If you were an executive or a manager, take a minute to think about what you’d expect to see in a resume for a position at the level of the job you’re applying for now, and adjust your presentation accordingly.
Especially for those of you who are going outside your established industry, make sure your resume and cover letter highlight specifically how you can be valuable to the company to which you’ve applied. Blanket “I’m good and you’ll be lucky to have me” application campaigns will come back to bite you.
- Don’t scare your interviewer.
This is advice that I’d offer anyone looking for a job in any circumstances, but it’s doubly important for those who are taking a step back. You need to convince your interviewer that you have made lifestyle changes to deal with the new economy and that you can support that new lifestyle on the income you’ll be getting if they hire you. Don’t launch into any personal tales of woe; your interviewer probably brought you in on the basis of his or her sympathy for your circumstances, so bringing that out won’t help you.
Give an honest assessment of your abilities and your outlook. If you’ve accepted that starting over is the way to go, you can explain that you’ll absolutely be interested in posting for promotion opportunities when they arise inside the company, but you feel that coming in at the level you’re interviewing for will give you a much better perspective and make you that much more qualified for those opportunities when they’re presented to you.
It’s very easy to sound desperate when explaining why you’ve opened yourself up to new prospects. Watch your tone and wording very, very carefully when you discuss these issues in the interview. Present yourself as confident and humble enough that a step down won’t bother you. Don’t ooze desperation to have any kind of income.
And above all, don’t give your interviewer any reason to suspect that you’ll bolt the minute the economy starts to climb again. Even if she is looking to capitalize on all the talent that’s out there right now, she’s not going to shoot herself in the foot by hiring someone she thinks won’t be fully committed to performing well for her.
- Re-evaluate your worth. Then re-evaluate it again.
When the time comes to talk turkey, you’ll need to show that you have a realistic grasp on - and a solid acceptance of - the situation. Your last position as Director of Sales netted you a base $65,000 per year plus perks and bonuses based on your team’s performance? What did your sales team earn, at the base? $35,000? Ask for that, and be prepared to live on that salary.
Maybe you can bump it a little bit to reflect your experience, but understand that managers aren’t going to hire you at a salary so inflated you might as well be one or two positions up from where you’ll be coming in. Especially for those who set salaries in the industry previously, make sure your salary expectations are realistic and legitimate for the job you’re seeking now.
I myself have expanded my hiring range a bit. I’ve hired a couple of people recently at five or ten percent over what I’d normally offer, because they came to me after a round of layoffs with a great attitude, a realistic outlook, and worthwhile experience. Just be sure your salary requirements match the position you’re going for, or your resume will gather dust very quickly. (As was the case with the woman who wanted to come in two levels below me at a salary that was roughly triple what I make. Yeah, you know what? I don’t think so. This candidate was perceived as either delusional and desperate or insane; either way, she didn’t get so much as a toe in the door after that screening call.)
In the end, it all comes down to presenting yourself appropriately for the position. Because I realize how profoundly the country is affected in the job search arena right now, I want to invite all readers who have specific questions about looking for work in the new economy to contact me and ask. Even if it’s just to confirm that you’re on the right track or to get a bit of moral support for your approach to finding a job, if I can help, I’ll be happy to do it.
(The Sadist acting like a softie? Must be a sign of the times.) ∞
