From the new book: Reinvent Yourself

Chapter Twelve           Getting a new job

            Unemployment is rotten!

            There is no polite way to say or sugarcoat that word.

            Donald Trump saying “You’re fired!” may be a funny punch line for his reality TV show. But they’re gut-wrenching words when they come out of the blue at you like a Nazi Stuka dive bomber.

            Being in advertising for many years, I personally heard that deadly phrase several times. The typical scenario: The creative director comes into your office and closes the door. A promotion? Congratulations on your most recent ad campaign? Not quite.

            The creative director says quietly, “I have some bad news. (Pause). We have to let you go.”

            The next few minutes are a merciful amnesia of quiet conversation, mostly one sided sentence fragments you barely hear: severance pay, thanks for years of successful campaigns and loyalty to the agency, and use us for references in your job hunt.

            A conversation that is all very civilized, done in the tone of two people meeting on the street and exchanging meaningless  “let’s have lunch sometime” vows.

            The personal emotion starts a few minutes later when a number of other thoughts crowd in.  Mortgage payments.  Applying for unemployment benefits.  How much money is in the bank account?  Cancel the calendar note to buy two orchestra seats to Phantom of the Opera.  A sudden glimpse of your new life the next few weeks or months?  Moments like swallowing thumb tacks. 

But fortunately I was living in the go-go years of advertising when you updated your resume, put together your book of ads and a reel of  your TV commercials, and visited neighboring ad agencies who might have just fired someone else.  My average length of unemployment ranged from two weeks to a (nervous) seven weeks. Today agency staffs have shrunk, and the average unemployment periods are much longer.

Something changed in our country in the early 90’s.  The economy tanked. Now suddenly white collar workers who had never even thought about looking for another job found themselves on the streets.

I began to hear stories from unemployed colleagues and read stories in the paper that really depressed me. Some people who were fired never even told their families. Each day their ego and sense of self esteem drove them to ride the train into New York as if they were going to work. Then spent the day at the public library.

Judi Dash, a former editor of a New Jersey newspaper, recounted her personal ordeal when she was fired March 16, 1993. It appeared in Family Circle magazine. 

“Lacking motivation, I sat on my couch still dressed in my pajamas, drinking coffee late into each afternoon. Then I’d switch to my bed and watch television all night.  I bathed sporadically and washed my hair only when it got too stringer to bear. After all, what was the point. There was nowhere I had to be, nowhere people would see me. My mind, when it could focus at all, raced back and forth between extremes. I would whip out my resume and pound the pavement looking for a job. No, I would take six months and do nothing but play. No, I would . . . “

Having been there, done that – I could understand Ms. Dash’s feeling.  But I began to think about the positive side. How had people I knew or had read about beat the odds by finding new jobs as quickly as possible. I realized that I had developed my own “tools” for getting a paycheck again in the shortest possible time. I wrote some of these techniques down and created a newsletter for the unemployed called, Rotten Times. 

I had learned in marketing that sometimes the only way to get publicity is through the use of lightning words that shock reporters into reading further. In this instance, shock worked. The story of Rotten Times appeared on the front page of USAToday and in a small column item on the front page of the Wall Street Journal. It was picked up by the Associated Press and ran in newspapers across the country and on the Paul Harvey radio news.

Despite the overwhelming publicity, the newsletter was never a financial success. I had ignored one simple fact. Unemployed people may not have much money to spend on newsletters.  But I have always followed that old cliché: If you have a bunch of lemons, make lemonade.

I called up a good friend of mine, Paul Plawin, who had been a travel editor at Better Homes & Gardens and a career editor at Changing Times magazine.

“Would you help me write a book on how to get a job?” I asked.

He agreed and within two weeks we were at work on 30 Days to a Good Job, based on Paul’s experiences of writing many articles about career advancement and material I had already written for the now dormant Rotten Times.

I photocopied clippings of media stories about  Rotten Times  and sent them with a  book proposal to my agent, Barbara Kouts. Barbara sent the material out on “auction” to twelve publishers, giving each a chance to bid on the book.

Within 48 hours, she called to say that an editor from Simon & Schuster would call me.  She said that S&S did not want to get involved in a long bidding process.  When the editor called, I must either accept or decline.

Naturally I did not leave the phone. Five minutes later Fred Hill called.

“We like the book proposal,” he said. “We’ll give you an advance against royalties of $20,000.”

I told him I was very pleased at his reaction, but I would have to call my co-author to see if he agreed.

I immediately called Paul. He was also pleased with the advance, but he wisely cautioned, “If Simon & Schuster called so quickly, they must really be interested. Maybe we should play a little hard ball, stall a little, and they’ll increase the advance.”

I agreed. Two minutes later I called Fred Hill back and, after a few seconds of a hard-ball pause, said, “We’ll take it!”

The book was published in 1993.

30 Days to a Good Job.

The systematic job-hunting program that will help you find profitable employment in one month or less.

I have always been proud of that book.

Here is the preface. I still believe it accurately describes some of the problems job hunters face today, including the emotional trauma of rejections and the blind alleys – until they find their job.

Over the years search and rescue teams have noted a curious quirk among hunters and hikers. When they lose their way in unknown territory, they start to run as fast as they can. This, unfortunately, is the worst thing to do, since in a few minutes they become exhausted, often fall and injure themselves and/or seriously deplete their already limited body warmth and energy. Then their desperation increases to the point that they go to the other extreme – they find a place to huddle and do nothing.

In today’s corporate America, when some people lose their jobs, they may exhibit similar behavior. First they “run” to all of their friends, asking for job leads. Then they throw together a disorganized resume and an indiscriminate cover letter and mail it to virtually every help-wanted ad remotely related to their interests and qualifications. And, of course, they call dozens of personnel offices. In the meantime, they may rush right past “hidden” job opportunities, never knowing they even existed. After several days or weeks, they may discover that their energy and resources are depleted, and they sink into helpless despondency on the living room couch, their job search effectively ended.

You can buy this book today, at Amazon.com.  Its price new is $15 but if you’re unemployed and every dollar counts, you should know that some people (hopefully who have already found jobs) are selling used copies on Amazon for as little as a $1.15.  A writer’s fame is fleeting.

Here are ten suggestions from the book that may start you on your own job-getting plan.  Good luck and God Bless.

1.                          Begin every day with a 20 minute walk. It clears your mind, helps build your stamina, and is a good time to plan your day because – that’s right – you’re going to work. For yourself.

2.                          You already have a job. Make getting a job your full-time work. Set up a 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. work schedule every weekday.  You’re the boss. Give yourself specific assignments and deadlines for each day.

3.                          Start by reading the local newspaper every morning. Not just the “help wanted” ads but the whole paper. Is a new company coming to your town?  Have several companies announced increases in sales and profits? Go on the Internet to find out more about these companies, including the names of top executives.

4.                          If the company’s products or services match your interests or skills, write a personalized letter and an individualized resume (tailored to include your experiences that might closely match that organization’s needs). Send the letter not just to the personnel department (they’re often the last to know of impending job openings). Send letters to senior executives, even the president of the company. Thomas Christensen, Executive Vice President of Citizens Federal Bank in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said, “Most CEO’s get few resumes because many job hunters wouldn’t think of sending their resume to them. CEO’s often don’t know the specific hiring needs of their department heads. But if they see a resume that looks good, they will bounce it down to the appropriate department head – or even to all department heads. These people will consider the resume carefully because it came from the CEO.”

5.                          Make a separate index card for each contact – including names and titles and phone numbers of people you’ve talk with. Add any comments they made to the card. Ask for information about the company.  If you get an obvious brush-off, ask if you can speak with another person in the company. If a Senior Vice President gives you the name of someone down the “name chain,” call that person immediately and say “Mr. or Ms. (name) suggested I call you.” This is a very useful guerrilla tactic. The person you just called will have no idea what your relationship is with Mr. or Ms. Big (a cousin, friend of the family or?) And chances he will call Mr. or Ms. Big to ask – “Do you know this person?” are not very likely.  You at least have your foot in the door and may be on your way to an interview.

6.                           Don’t overlook smaller companies (100 employees or less). About 80% of the hiring in America is done by these companies.

7.                          Hiring someone new is hard, expensive work for most organizations – especially with the flood of resumes and letters they receive following any job opening announcement. The executives who go through these piles look for any possible excuse to reject the application (to reduce their own workload). That means that any misspelled words, obvious form letters, and poor grammar  can quickly get your application a thumbs-down.

8.                          Watch out for job scams. There are many people in this world who love to prey on others who are unemployed or who need money. There are ads promising you glamorous jobs in advertising, modeling, TV – but all they deliver is standard information for a fee (often copied from the Internet).  Many work-at-home schemes are the most insidious.  I once wrote an article that was picked up by the Associated Press, “How I could make $72,000 in three months stuffing envelopes at home.” This was based on my calculations based on the work-at-home ad in the newspaper, “Earn $3 for every envelope you stuff.”  I literally did a time-motion study and found I could stuff about a hundred letters an hour, “earning” $300 an hour, $2,400 a day. Even working part-time for the next few months, probably on a beach in the Caribbean, I could clear my $72,000.  Beware of such crimes, often aimed at people who are desperate for money – and perpetrated by crooks whose consciences must have gone south at birth.

9.                          Keep going. The more contacts you make each day, the more you can often shorten your job search. According to a survey by Goodrich and Sherwood Company, job hunters making twenty contacts per week with prospective employers found jobs up to five times faster than those who only made two contacts.

I enjoy writing books. And getting paid for doing what I love.  But as I grow older, I get even more satisfaction of knowing that what I have written has helped others. That was why I was very pleased to see notes from people who got jobs using ideas from the book.

But the one that pleased me the most is this reader review that was posted on Amazon.com next to 30 Days to a Good Job listing:

This unassuming book WILL land you your next job,

Feb. 5, 2003
Reviewer: A reader
 This book truly has EVERYTHING you need to land the job you want, including interview tactics, outstanding resumes and cover letter samples, plus a lot more (such as negotiating a better salary once you get the offer).

It's geared toward people who are unemployed and therefore have all day to look for a job (it has a suggested daily schedule and to-do list for each day which is truly brilliant), but in every case I adapted its techniques while I was working full-time to get my next job.

This book has landed me my last three jobs. Did I get offers within 30 days? YES!, EVERY time, even in 2001 and 2002 when no one was hiring in my city (Atlanta). This book is worth thousands of dollars to me, so even if you're considering other job hunting books, by all means put this one on your "must get" list.

Julia G.

          Thank you, Julia. You made Paul Plawin’s, and my, day.

Reinventing yourself

Think about:

Unemployment is not a time for panic but reflection. Think about all of the jobs you’ve held or your volunteer assignments with local groups.  Make a list of your skills.  What experiences have you had that would be useful to new employers?  What type of jobs would you be most qualified for?  What types of jobs are available in that field?

Take action:

Make a list of organizations you want to work for. Go to the library and on the Internet to gather information about them. Start a folder for organizations of special interest. And one more “guerrilla job hunting” tip. Volunteer for local charity projects that already attract many top local executives (United Way, various churches and synagogues, Red Cross, etc.). It’s a great way to network with people, demonstrate your skills, and set up contacts with successful local companies.

Words to consider:

“Life isn't about money. It's about God. It's about love. It's about family and relationships. It's about personal evolution, learning and growth. However, part of our growth is learning the balance between the different forces of life. For those who do not accept responsibility for financial matters, life is thrown out of balance. To the financially enslaved, life becomes all about money. It's not.”

Richard Paul Evans

You can download the complete book, Reinvent Yourself, as an eBook (Adobe PDF file). Eighteen chapters in all with special "reinvent yourself" exercises at the end of each chapter for only $6.06. Click here to purchase.

Or order as a 166-page trade paperback book for $13.95 plus s/h. Click here.