I wanted to avoid having to write a first paragraph justification for my writing vaca in my first post back – so I am just firing this warning shot post.  I will probably still manage to justify it in the written word anyway.  Bottom line is that I have been recruiting and that has been why 2011 has been a great year.

Since about 7 people read this faithfully, the impact of my writing hiatus was quite minimal.  I look forward to the posts swirling around in my head making it to my WordPress dashboard and on to your screen.

Standby.

This is the type of year-end post that spews the leftover crumbs of the oft asked, if not daily, question, “Andy, what do you think about this?”

Although my wife and kids never recognize me for this attribute, I listen too well.  I hear the subtleties in your presentation.  In the spirit of the holiday season, sorry but I must ask – Do You Hear What I Hear?

I love the discussions with job seekers that are all about what they said, what the interviewer said, and so on.  As much as I enjoy this back and forth with a job seeker, they mostly dislike the exercise.  BUT – the point here is to examine what you are saying, what you are projecting and what they are inferring. Controlling the interviewer’s inference is critical and you are responsible for their interpretation.

Let’s talk the obvious ones first.  My personal general favorite – flinching.  Next, the word – “probably.”  The phrases – “pretty much” and “I think so.”  I think subtleties cost you.  If you aren’t getting the offers to jobs you want where the chemistry is good, you are projecting tentativeness.  Tentativeness does not begat reassurance.  Reassurance is what you are closing the I want to work here deal with – we need the resolute “I can do it, I know I can because I have done it before, I own my desk” mentality.  They brought you in so your skills are a given, chemistry gets you to the next round, reassurance solidifies employment.

What prompted this post was my recent exchange with a candidate and some things I look forward to pointing out to him.  I had trouble reaching this candidate and he had trouble reaching me.  It was frustrating for both of us.  Believe me it pisses me off when I can’t reach people but I don’t project it (I bitch before the beep and after the hangup.)  It clearly annoyed this guy.  Did he say the words?  No.  He never said, “Andy, I am trying to reach you and it pisses me off I can’t.”  It was the lack of self-control subtlety in his voice.  Do you realize what you sound like?  Do you?   Think it but don’t say it.  Think it but don’t show it.

As much as I appreciated his urgency in reaching me (refreshing), I didn’t appreciate the tone  and actually considered not calling him back because of it.  I write this because his entitlement refrain in the form of terse voicemail tidbits was not some calculated tactic nor was it compelling.  Seething with entitlement, flailing job search guy lacks self-awareness.  Seething with entitlement, flailing job search guy is not owning his search – not practicing a self-control he must possess.  No wonder HR doesn’t call you back.  They may be scared seething with entitlement, flailing job search guy will become angry, workplace violence guy.

Do You Hear What I Hear?  Start listening to yourself.  THINK.  Check your subtleties at the interviewer’s door – in fact, just leave them in 2010.  You may be entitled to unemployment compensation but you are not entitled to say anything like THAT.  Hear what I hear.

On my mind today, search assignments.  Process Engineers and Senior Process Engineers all over the country need to be found, a Maintenance Manager, an HR Manager.  The work is there – I am calling YOU – YOU need to call me back.

My hiring manager says, “I need to see some results, Andy.”  Those six words attached to my name is really all I need to hear.   She said it matter of fact but in an encouraging tone.

A differentiating factor of the clients I enjoy working with – they use the word “need.”  Need says they have a key opening that will be filled as soon as the right candidate shows up.  One inspiring word.

Now to find those candidates that say, “I have been thinking about making a change, I just haven’t done anything about it.”

Person came back with questions -typed an email even – they seemed legit and I liked the effort.  Questions you might have, questions we hadn’t covered yet – “Why is the job open?  What is the bonus structure?”  I knew most of the answers but just needed to clarify a few details with the client.  The candidate was worth getting the specifics for and I like to prove I am different from other recruiters -so…bottom line – I had enough doubt I just wanted to make sure on a few things. I went and got the answers.

I had already failed at this point.

You may know where this is going.  Let’s cut to it.  I get all the answers, we review them and then, ” I AM NOT INTERESTED.” (definitely all caps from my recollection) I pretty much heard a game show buzzer and a large WTF? appeared on the wall in front of me.  I was rather miffed… but not really.  Honestly, this had been an exhaustive search and I was more disappointed in my recruiter optimism than anything.  I was lacking a wise perspective at this point – more pissed than miffed.  Maybe miffed but from the pissed sort of genre.  Ah..emerging clarity.

The real clarity on this conflict came on Saturday morning from my 3 year old.  My wife had taken the 7 year old to the American Girl Store in Chicago that weekend so it was the least I could do to take my 3 year old on a similar outing.  We chose Dunkin’ Donuts.  Seemed like a fair response to the shopping spree in a Dad sort of way.  Between the two outings, we spent $304.99.

You take the 3 year old for donuts – you know you are all about assorted donut holes, varying sprinkles and chocolate milk (see Donut handbook).  What you don’t expect between the donut hole collage and chocolate milk bottle repeatedly teetering on table’s edge is a recruiting mentor to emerge?  The colorful sprinkles needing wiped from her mouth, mouth full of cake donut, chocolate milk drip on her chin and all in a milk throat kind of voice – my Lucy says, “What else you got, Dad?”

I had come full donut circle at the teachings of Lucy Skrentny Leffkowitz.  The candidate’s emailed questions were crystallized into one gigantic question -

“What else you got, Recruiter?”

Big time learning from the smallest recruiter trainer.  Look for her training modules soon but don’t expect candidates wielding this concealed question to resign in the near future.  While the 3 year old in her discovery ASKS the question – the wannabe masks the question with tire kicking, counts a healthy bonus potential that hasn’t paid out in 3 years as income and clings to unreciprocated loyalty with a value system that worked well for his parents.

I failed because I should have re-re-qualified him specifically for his seriousness level – I did not – those darn unvalidated assumptions.  I wish good blog posts came from the victories and not all these learnings.  Now that you know the official question of the unrealistic – You need the song of the unrealistic because I know you wannabe a “JobStar!”

We need to discuss the above first.

A good career conversation is going to include painful discussion. Why would you leave your company?  What would you change about your current role?  What does your boss say about your future?  What does your boss’s boss say about it?

These are going to be questions you hear from me.  You may be asking them to yourself – maybe you should be.  Perhaps you self-medicate with over-the-cubicle remedies like “It’ll work out” self-talk, the ever-present – denial and unreciprocated loyalty.  If you face the pain, you know you have to take action, right?

Is it time for a painful discussion?  I am happy to pull up a chair if you want to talk.

One more thing – as you manage this career of yours – I hope you will SERIOUSLY ponder – Can the powers that be resolve the root cause of your concern?  Is it even possible?

This policy is solid – and while I live in the gray most of the time – we are going B and W on this standard. Your email needs to be your first name, initial, whatever plus a really creative dot…or no dot for you old school email artisans – and the email provider of your choice will typically take it from there.

Here is the new policy – if you have one those overly cutesy email addresses (confident I have not written a blog post with “cutesy” in it) – I will ask you to repeat it so much, spell it a couple of times, mix in a huh? or two and soon…you will discern – “Ya know…I really should change that.”

And here is why the policy is now in force. Because believe it or not – people say to me – “Hey, what is up with that email address?” Look, I promise you that if they don’t say it – they THINK it.

Hypothetical example to follow. Suppose, you are a dog lover and it is natural that you would wanna email address reflective of that, right? I mean, you got the hand painted dog biscuit jar and the furniture scars to prove it. Is that your feisty little Chihuahua barking as I interview you – oh, you have 3….ok…really? And 3 rescues on the way to your wannabe kennel? Wow. Ok.

Bottom line – people may want to email you. They want to drop you a line and your phonetic spelling of Chihuahua – spelled
“C-h-i-w-a-w-a-w” in your email – as in chiwawawlovr@dogguy.com – since chihuahualover@dogguy.com was taken – basically, your email…well…you screwed the pooch here. (Sorry… but you did.)

“What sets you apart from your professional peers?”

Simply, Jobseeker – You must know and you need to show.  This is the foundation of your unique brand.  Please – not the personal branding stuff again.  I KNOW – you hate that talk but….

Hiring managers are begging for something different.  Begging I say! – for better resumes, thoughtful thank you notes, a firm handshake with a look in the eye, really good, brief answers, prepared candidates that give employers reason to hire them.

As many of you know, I facilitate a job seeker meeting every Thursday in the Indianapolis area.  These job seekers have clearly stated they want the truth…and that they can handle it.  My goal is to help them any way I can and for them to help each other.  I am biased – but in this marketplace you need a group like this to stay in the game, to talk with your fellow persons, to engage.  Perhaps you should even start one.

I usually give first time attenders a pass before I unleash my opinion but I didn’t in this case.  A very nice lady shows up one day – an administrative assistant.  I tempered my comments at first but finally said, “Administrative assistants are a dime a dozen.”  (I did kind of cringe when I said it but I said it.)  At this time, I was hoping she knew I was talking about the “role” her and not the “real” her.  She didn’t flinch.  Whew.

Her resume was plain.  Plain plain.  Not even vanilla.  She was not.  She struggled to answer what set her apart though.  Here is why – the answer takes work. takes thought.  Takes examining where you have been, what you have contributed to your workplace, what you do differently – takes some focus.  We set up a time to talk – she called when she said she would.  She put a plan together and showed up at the the next meeting.

I almost didn’t recognize her – her first words, “I just wrote a killer cover letter.”  I am not sure those three words have ever been used together.  Killer. cover. letter.

Here is how she did it.  She writes a thoughtful opening paragraph building the case that she knows all the resumes they are reviewing pretty much look the same (check).  She then articulates the 3 traits that she feels set her apart (check) – then the best line of the letter smacks the reader in the face.  Here is the line.  Wait – are you ready for this?  OK.  Verbatim.  “My former supervisors agree.” Powerful line, Folks.

Now, how do we know that?  Let me share that with you.  She then incorporates 2 quotes from recent supervisors right there in the cover letter.  Ni-ice (pronounced Nuh-ice) work!

And now…The REST of the story.  She is now employed.  Hired by a company that she never sent this letter to when responding to their ad.  What?  She hadn’t written it yet.  What a waste, right?  Oh, not so fast.  She interviewed with them a few days after writing the cover letter.  The story is – the letter didn’t help her get in the door BUT the exercise of writing the letter and reviewing it with competent peers helped her interview better and be able to call their door her own.  She brought a new-found confidence and a secure grasp of what set her apart because she did the work and ACTUALLY asked her former supervisors what they thought of her contribution, her skills, her.

Do you refer to your cover letter as killer?  Do you know what sets you apart from your professional peers?  Can you articulate it?  Have you asked your former supervisors that question?   She went in knowing her brand.  Do you know yours …or are you just going in all Brandom (my word)?

Now…go rewrite your mediocre cover letter.