Posts Tagged ‘unemployed’

Hope for the holidays.  As this series continues it occurs to me how difficult it is to be unemployed before the holidays.  That’s why I believe in Compassionate HR, not just in theory, but rather in practice.  We have to remember that while we enjoy the plenty around us, that there are people that don’t have anything at all.  Let’s not put them out of our heart.

Hope For The Holidays

If you’re in need of help during the holidays, there’s a few things you can do to help you get through it.  As long as there is the breath of life in your body there is hope.  Hang on to that.  Here’s a few tips to get you through the holidays:

1. Call The United Way, and ask for the name of agencies in your city that can address your specific needs.
2. Contact your state’s “One-Stop” shop for job seekers.  You can find many resources there, everything from workshops with resume writers, career coaches, and recruiters.  Often these “One-Stop” agencies have access to computers, printers, resources, and job boards.  You might even find a group of supportive people that want to help you.
3. Attend your local job search focus group. JobHunt.org has numerous resources.  Most cities have several vibrant career transitions groups.  Here’s the website to JFSG in Cincinnati and The Career Transitions Group in Nashville.
4. Participate in a special edition of #HFChat on Twitter January 19th, 2012. We are going to be discussing LinkedIn for Job Search, and I’ve acquired the donation of career books, resume packages, prizes, and the time of extraordinarily talented career professionals who are donating anywhere between 30 minutes to an hour of their time to help you with your resume, to help optimizing your LinkedIn profile.  While these prizes will be awarded in January, rather than December, according to my research the rate of depression is much higher in January.  I know this all too well.
5. Get counseling.  Every city has resources for counseling for people who can’t afford a psychologist.  Don’t beat yourself up if you feel you need help this time of year.  You’d be surprised to know that most of America is in therapy this time year.  I think this is a good thing.  The holidays are even stressful for rich people, so don’t feel bad.  You’re in good company.

As my series “Hope For The Holidays” continues, I will share special tips, tools, and ways you can enjoy the holidays, even if you don’t have the money to enjoy the holidays like those around you–you can still have fun.  Don’t ever be ashamed to get the help you need.  There’s shame in getting help, but I’m telling you this, it’s a shame not to–and that’s the truth.

Your Job Search Pal,

HRMargo

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The toxic workplace.  How many of us have seen them?  How many of us have worked within them?  You don’t have to be the environmental protection agency to condemn an organization’s culture a super-fund site.    How many times has your system been poisoned by lethal bosses who are emotionally violent?  While these questions are pointed, and my language is strong, I implore you to consider the damage that a bad boss, or a toxic work environment can do to your health.

With unemployment still rearing its ugly head, most people that have survived the massive cut backs are in many ways stuck.  Some have survivors guilt, particularly after seeing people they grew to love depart from the organization.  The pressure mounts as organizations have to do more with less.  And who does this hurt?  YOU!

If your organization doesn’t have a healthy culture, you might find yourself feeling torn to bits.  Sometimes the organization is broken at the systemic level.  Sometimes it’s toxic bosses that poison the well.  Regardless, if you are stuck in a workplace that’s eating you alive, and keeping you up at night all is not lost.  If you wake up in the morning dreading getting out of bed, you are not alone.  Here’s a few of my ideas to help you survive.

1) Create a short-term survival plan. Decide what, if anything you can do.  You might want to use a tool called mind mapping.  Mind mapping allows you to brainstorm on paper, and organize your thoughts. It’s an excellent planning tool.

2) Do a spot check inventory of yourself. Ask yourself honestly, am I contributing to the situation? How can I make it better. If there is something you can do to improve the surroundings around you, figure that out, and put your good ideas to work.  Sometimes it’s not about you.  Sometimes is the people around you, or perhaps you have what Chris Pentilla calls a “Boss Hole.” Bob Sutton wrote a good book on this topic, “Good Boss, Bad Boss.  If you are plagued with one of the many profiles of a toxic boss, read these articles for more insight.

3) Make an exit strategy.  Work with a coach, a friend, or even a family member to discuss your situation.  Design your signature path,  put the wheels in motion to get out.  Finding a new job doesn’t begin with a job board, or your resume.  It begins with you.  Dig deep down into your gut and decide once and for all what would make you really happy. Then craft your resume, create a job search strategy, and start networking.  I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to take the path of self-discovery first.  It will help you build a firm foundation upon which the rest of your career is built.

4) Desperation is a gift.  Our desperation can turn into inspiration.  It is a pivotal shift that can shape our new life. Use your sense of feeling stuck as a spring board up and out.

5) Blow the whistle.  Most organizations have dispute systems where bad behavior can be reported. Don’t get paralyzed by fear.  Go through the proper channels.  If you feel your physical, or legal rights are being violated, and you have the courage to report it, then do it.   That’s a personal decision that only you can make.  Only you can decide if you want to live with the consequences of doing so, but if in the final analysis you decide to launch a case, know that there will be plenty of people in the online community that will support you. The point is: you are never alone, so you don’t have to feel isolated.  There are so many people in our HireFriday community who may have experienced the same thing, and could support you regardless of what you decide.

The good news is this: most companies have dispute systems where offensive behavior can be reported.  If your organization has a union, it’s much easier to file a grievance than not.  However, if someone is violating your rights, or if you feel you are working in a hostile environment, get help.  Taking action is a very personal decision.  Only you can make that decision.

I’ll leave you with this final thought.  If you ever need someone to talk to, connect with someone on our HireFriday Leadership team. Whether you stay, or leave our HireFriday community is here to help.

Your job search pal,

HRMargo

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And so it is, the strongest among us are those brave enough to be vulnerable.  Amelia Earhart once said that courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace.

Your truth will give you strength, alas it will set you free

How many among us are strong enough to say, “this hurts, this economy is crushing my spirit.”  I’m here to tell you that if you are unemployed right before Christmas and Chanukah that all is not lost.  There are those of us who have felt the same way you do.  The strongest among us fail, and grow and learn from their mistakes.  This is a time for you to take stock of yourself, where you are, and where you want to go.   It is the humble that rise up.  Looking for work is humbling.  Whether you are passively looking, in active pursuit of work, you can take comfort in knowing there is an entire community that cares about your journey.

I’ve switched the focus of HireFriday on Twitter to the #HFChat.  I’ve done this because during that hour we get more visitors than we used to get in a whole day.  At the beginning of this year, my resolution was to grow HireFriday to one million strong.  We’ve far surpassed that.  With the help of the HireFriday Leadership Team: Tom Bolt, and Cyndy Trivella, we have reached 5.8 million people.  Think about that for a moment.  Our reach, resonance, and relevance has a broader reach than we had ever imagined.  Why do you think that is?  It’s because of people like you–who’ve shared a part of your heart, and soul with me.

So my friends, keep your spirits up during the holidays.  There is hope, as long as there is breath in your body, there is strength.  You know the most beautiful thing of all, is that each and every day we get a clean slate.  Enjoy your slate, and know that you have a friend in us.

Join us this Friday for #HFChat Noon-1 Eastern Time, 11 Central for your weekly dose of job search goodness.

Sincerely-Your job search pal,

HRMargo

It's not a 'me' community, it's a 'we' community

Margo Rose

Social Media Strategist

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The holiday season is upon us-quite literally. Sometimes it can feel like a weight on the chest of an unemployed person.  Now is the time to breathe, and affirm that you are a super star, as the song goes, “that’s what you are.”  Sometimes we have to believe it before we see it.  We have to believe in ourselves, and others will believe in us too.  Are you empowering your career development, or destroying it?  Sometimes we spank our career growth without even knowing it.  It’s what I refer to as our blind spot.  People can see things about us that we can’t see in ourselves.  The fact is you are leaving an impression with everyone who interviews you.  During the holidays it is particularly important to affirm your worth.  Embrace what you do best, and learn to articulate your strong points.  As you do so, you are actually reprogramming your brain, and undoing habituated patterns of negative thinking which can lead to negative behavior.

Does positive thinking always bring about positive results? Not necessarily, but I guarantee you this: negative thinking will not ever reap the results you want.  Negative thinking is like a soul sucking vaccume that takes the wind out of your job search sails.  Here is an excellent model illustrated by our friends at CareerBuilder. It illustrates that if you do what you love, it is an affirmation of your strengths, and can put you on the path of career realization.

Your Career And You via Career Builder

So in the final analysis, I want to leave you with this thought: Act like you are a success.  Live your life as if you are succeeding.  Be really clear about what you do best.  Learn to articulate your value proposition, and if you need a reminder grab one of us in the HireFriday #HFChat community, and we’ll empower you, reassure you, and be your job search pal during your transition.  Some people might think I’m a little sappy pollyanna, but hey somebody has to wave the flay for the candidates who happen to be unemployed.  Somebody has to be an career advocate for those people who secretly hate their jobs but feel stuck because they are so afraid of losing their job during this recession we are in (and surviving) and somebody has to get behind both the employed, and unemployed that want to make a change, and care about moving their career forward.  The HireFriday Leadership Team does just that.  Get in touch with Cyndy Trivella, Tom Bolt, Steve Levy or me.  The easiest, and fastest way to reach me is on Twitter just Tweet to @HRMargo.  I reply to every tweet.  It’s hard to reach me by phone, or email, so just tweet me anytime of the day or night and I promise to get back to you.

One more thing.  On January 19, 2012 from 6-8 p.m. Central, 7 to 9 p.m. Eastern Time The Nashville Social Media Club, The Nashville Career Transitions Group, The #HFChat Community are sponsoring an event: Linked In Optimization, Your Job Search, and You.  Panelists include world renown experts Jennifer Way, Mathew LeBlance, Shannon VanCuren (and little ole’ me).  We are recruiting the best recruiters in the business to tweet live, career focused vendors to donate prizes (like resume packages, fun gifts, linkedIn profile reviews and optimizations, books and cool stuff you can really use in January).  Why are we doing this?  Because we happen to know for a cold-hard fact that January is the most depressing time of the year to job search.  Guess what?  We’re going to turn that around.  Why?  Because we care.  We want to remind you (all of you) that you are a super star.  That’s what you are. Will you please help us out and share this post with your social network pals? I’d sure appreciate it.

Your job search pal,

@HRMargo

Social Media Strategist

Founder of HireFriday, and HFChat

Are we LinkedIn?  No? Let’s remedy that today: http://linkedin.com/in/margorose

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