Shoe's on the other foot ...

Collarspace Discussion Forums

Home Login Search

Shoe's on the other foot ...

View related threads: (in this forum | in all forums)

Logged in as: Guest

All Forums >> [Casual Banter] >> Off the Grid >> Shoe's on the other foot ...

Page: [1]

Message

<< Older Topic Newer Topic >>

Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/7/2008 1:42:25 AM

JulieorSarah

Posts: 552
Joined: 8/25/2007
Status: offline

Some time ago a fellow CMer was a little nervous about going for a job interview or maybe the first day/week at the new job ...

i offered advice, hey it's not such a big deal ...

well, now it's different

tomorrow i'm heading off to a job interview, and i'm beginning to be a little tense ... unsure of myself, doubtful, we all know the drill, it's just that it's now my reality ...

have you ever made this mistake ... dismissed someone else's concerns and then found yourself in the same position a bare few months later ... and really understanding their circumstances ... and kinda regretting your off-handedness?

Profile

Post #: 1

RE: Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/7/2008 4:17:17 AM

spinninsweetness

Posts: 477
Joined: 3/6/2008
From: London
Status: offline

So many many times. Job interviews yes, exams, driving test, etc etc. Just like me to do that!

I usually get my come-uppance though.....

_____________________________

I'm English, and as such I crave disappointment. I actively seek it out.- Bill Bailey

(in reply to JulieorSarah)

Profile

Post #: 2

RE: Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/7/2008 7:41:07 AM

Termyn8or

Posts: 18681
Joined: 11/12/2005
Status: offline

Actually you should take your own advice then. If you "flunk" the interview they are not going to pull out a gun and shoot you.

Really, if you go there looking for a job and don't get it, you leave there looking for a job. But you might get the job. So there are two possible outcomes, you either win (get the job) or you break even (don't get the job).

So have a little more confidence in yourself, you were right the first time. A little bit of nervousness might show them that you consider this to be something important. A lack of nervousness shows confidence.

And as I type, I realize that one day the shoe might be on the other foot for me as well. I speak from exerience, because at one time I was inexperienced. Now I interview the company as well. I have turned down a couple of jobs, flat out.

But I am working in a dying industry and one day I will most likely have to find another line of work. When that happens I am likely to be in my fifties and inexperienced. How am I going to handle that ? I got some ideas but they are just ideas.

When that happens hopefully I will take my own advice.

T

(in reply to spinninsweetness)

Profile

Post #: 3

RE: Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/7/2008 7:43:17 AM

pahunkboy

Posts: 33061
Joined: 2/26/2006
From: Central Pennsylvania
Status: offline

yes. have a plan B,

if plan A fails then go to plan B.

(in reply to Termyn8or)

Profile

Post #: 4

RE: Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/7/2008 8:31:27 AM

Termyn8or

Posts: 18681
Joined: 11/12/2005
Status: offline

Plan B might be to go into business. If I am lucky enough to get five more years out of this job I will be 52 and green. Yes I can do alot of things. I can almost build a house by myself, although I would job out the cement work and roofing. I mean everything in between, including all the heating and AC, all the wiring, all the plumbing, the works. I would also job out the drywall and painting because I just ain't that good at it. But you give me studs, pipes, wires and ductwork I can deal with it.

But I can't really demonstrate any professional experience. All of this other work has been done with mostly friends and family. Believe me it is done right. I never had any desire to do things right, but I damwell don't wan't to have to do them again. So the laziest I can be is to do it right the first time. I think ahead, and I try to see the pitfalls and problems before they occur. In a way you could almost say that this is my criminal mind at work. So be it.

I think I could sell myself, but are they buying what I have to offer ? If not, I might be better off not getting the job and moving on to somewhere where my particular talents would be more appreciated.

That's the way I see it.

T

(in reply to pahunkboy)

Profile

Post #: 5

RE: Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/7/2008 8:45:24 AM

sub4hire

Posts: 6775
Joined: 1/1/2004
Status: offline

T, we need a new roof if you're up for a road trip working.

Contractors are hard to find around here. All roofers are booked up at least the next year and thats even the cruddy ones.

Anyway..follow your own advice. Its not the end of the world if you don't get the job..it will just feel like it for a while.

(in reply to Termyn8or)

Profile

Post #: 6

RE: Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/12/2008 5:48:12 AM

JulieorSarah

Posts: 552
Joined: 8/25/2007
Status: offline

Well i had the interview at 11:00 am ... my referees rang me at about 3 pm and said they'd been contacted. They rang me at 5:00 pm and we discussed funds, and as of 8:00 am today all the boxes have been ticked. Contract has been signed, resignation handed in start date set and i'm doing the coupla days at the new place before i start and a coupla days after back at the old place ... i work in a small town so it's a good 'keeping your options open' strategy.

For this interview the best advice i received was to prepare for what their questions may be ... i had a lot of holes in their essential and none in their desirable. Yet i know i can do this. i was offered the job because i had such a strong small business background, and had shown in the interview i'd thought long and hard about what i could bring to the workplace ... a 'can do' attitude!

i think termy is right. I had nothing to loose, only to gain, and if i'd been unsuccessful, it was my first interview in three years, so i'd have crossed that hump regardless of the outcome.

termy a thought for you ... if you are a great 'jack of all trades' have you thought about offering your services to a local real estate agents to do the minor fixes on rental properties or similar? Work your own hours say half day on a weekend to start ... and grow the business slowly so that you have a reputation in place for when you do leave the current position or do a slow move from one to the other if that's possible. cheers j

(in reply to sub4hire)

Profile

Post #: 7

RE: Shoe's on the other foot ... - 8/12/2008 6:26:53 AM

candystripper

Posts: 3486
Joined: 11/1/2005
Status: offline

One point Terny made should be emphasized over and over...make it a two way convo. This is your best and probably only chance to get any feel for the type of workplace you'll be entering. More and more workplaces are becoming quite toxic as jobs grow insecure and people react accordingly....more and more employers happily disguise short term assignments as actual career opportunties....many jobs being offered are fixed points in the landscape with no hope of ever rising or escaping laterally.

There are two resources everyone in need of income from work should try to aquire...one is a network of people working in the industry you actually do or wish to work in...the other is an ever-evolving business plan for 'being your own boss'.

An excellent resource few people take advantage of is the Small Business Administration, and agencies attached to it, designed to take a motivated but unskilled planner from the dream to the income. There's a Small Business Adminstration office here in Cleveland....it is supposed to serve the entire Midwest, so there propbably isn't one in your city.

But you may still get hooked up with resources such as SCORE....Senior Corp of Retired Executives...which exists to aid in drawing up business plans which will pass muster with the SBA...and later, the Technical Procurement Center, which exists to aid small businesses in securing and complying with government contracts. A very excellent income source which is not likely to dry up, but which is not easy to access.

Back to the interview. Watch the interviewer closely...who is it? Someone from HR, or a potential supervisor? How long have they been with the company? What positions have they filled there? Look at your surroundings...not just in the interview room but in the building as a whole. Signs of neglect or lack of housekeeping are a red flag...as are empty office space...the very most expensive rental space in town...the very cheapest...space that has seen a great deal of turnover.

Ask if the company produces a newsletter or an annual report and if so, may you please get a copy. Look for signs of health in the company, such as a touch of goofiness in the newsletter or a solid bottom line -- especially if the report has been auditted.

Don't begin with or stop at the interveiew. Check with the EEOC and any regulatory body that watchdogs the company. Run a check on Google through your local newspaper for stories on the company if possible.

There is no such thing as too much information about an employer you are considering. Don't focus entirely on whether they want you -- give some thought to whether you want them as well.

I wish to Gawd someone had told me this before I graduated. Wouldv'e saved a great deal of suffering and unhappiness.

Best wishes and many congrats to the Op.

candystripper

(in reply to JulieorSarah)

Profile

Post #: 8