Joyce Richman: Treat your job search like a smart shopping trip
Joyce Richman: Treat your job search like a smart shopping trip
If you weren’t a bargain hunter before, this economy surely has provided a crash course on how to become one. The basics of savvy shopping are the same as those for savvy job hunting. If the shoes don’t fit, don’t buy them, no matter how appealing and available they are. You’ll regret the purchase.
The same goes for job opportunities: No matter how attractive they appear to be, if they’re a bad match, all you’ll get is a Pyrrhic victory. You’ll have won something you not only can’t use, you’ll also regret having won it at all.
There’s one easy way to tell if the pants are too tight or if the dress is frumpy or too flamboyant: Try them on. If you don’t trust mirrors or judgment that shows only what you want to see, you take along a trusted friend for a candid assessment. Of course, you retain the right to make the final decision, but you clearly benefit from another person’s perspective.
When it comes to job-hunting, you need to pay careful attention to what you’re buying and the extent to which you are unduly influenced by what the employer is selling, to determine if the fit is as good as you think it is.
If the job sounds too good to be true, it probably is. If the business street address is a post office box, stay away. If the employer wants to hire you 10 minutes after meeting you, walk away.
If you have to pay to get the job, don’t. If you are asked to buy your own supplies and equipment to start the job, don’t. If you are asked to pay someone to find a job for you, don’t. If the interviewer says you can make a fortune without training, education or hard work, don’t believe it. Not even for a minute.
Scammers come out of the woodwork during tough times. They capitalize on fear and promote anxiety. They pose as one-stop shops for solving all your problems and all you have to do in return is pay them a boatload of money that you don’t have. Don’t do it.
When you play an active role in your job search, assessing your strengths and the jobs you seek, you feel more in control of the outcome. You can go it alone, but you don’t need to because there are legitimate, beneficial and affordable ways to get the assistance you need, whether online, in person, by phone or through a forum.
There are career counselors in private practice and at public libraries, guidance counselors in high schools, counselors at JobLink Career Center and Goodwill Industries, and vocational counselors at community colleges. Local colleges and universities have career centers and career specialists ready, willing and more than able to help their current students or former graduates.
So be a savvy job shopper. And if the shoe fits, buy it.
Joyce Richman is a speaker and career coach conducting seminars and workshops throughout the United States, and the author of “Roads, Routes & Ruts: A Guidebook for Career Success.” You can reach her at 288-1799 or JERichman@aol.com. Watch Richman’s latest career advice Wednesdays at 6:35 a.m. during “The Good Morning Show” on WFMY News 2.
