Committed to Your Success Coaching & Consulting

As a career coach, I am used to getting a lot of calls from job seekers who are stumped as to how to go about finding employment.  We go through the ususal list of questions, such as why they are out of work, what type of job they are looking for, where have they been looking, and what type of job startegies they have used.  A lot of times, I find some of these job seeker are using the traditional methods, such as job boards and career fairs, but are not having any luck.  A good majority of them have very high education and experience but can’t seem to get their foot in the door.  What seems to be the problem?

Upon further investigation, it is discovered that there is something negative in the job seeker’s background, like a bad performance review, an allegation of wrongdoing, or termination.  Does this automatically preclude these people from being hired? No it does not.  The key is to own up to the negative and see how it can be turned into a positive.  If the negative is a performance issue, see what the issue is and what you can do to correct it, such as more training or education.  If it was due to an error or a policy violation, see if there is anything that can be done to atone or make amends. If not, resolve to never make the mistake, forgive yourself, and move on.  If the negative was due to being fired, again it is important to analyze what led to the termination and see what actions can be taken to improve or correct them.

Be honest with a potential employer about your background - it will be found out during the hiring process. It would be easier to come from you as opposed to them discovering it; if you had omitted this information, it will negate you from consideration as it will be perceived as fraudulently leaving off the information.  It may mean looking at other organizations or industries that will value your talent and experience.  See how you can leverage your skills, i.e. think outside the box, at what other opportunities you may have as opposed to the traditonal, work for a company, thinking.  A negative issue in your background does not mean the death of your career - it is just a roadbump.  It will take some work on your part to learn from them, to overcome them, and to make them work for you.