Lorne Epstein

Downsized! Make Sure You Know What to Do

admin — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 20:31:03 +0000

Get your cool on and stay as calm as possible. Up until the early 1990s, most employees would stay with one employer for years, possibly decades. Once companies such as IBM started to lay people off, other companies followed suit. The notion of lifetime employment was removed from the American workplace. Many of us have been tossed around from job to job regardless of our stellar performance or deep desire to be loyal and stay in one place.

Hiring managers are fully aware that you can lose your job regardless of your performance or ability to work. To clearly address any concerns they might have I recommend this preemptive action:

Early on, when you speak with the hiring manager or recruiter, tell him or her why you are unemployed (be sure to practice your narrative skills). They are looking for a story they can understand. If you leave a clear explanation until later, you lose credibility. Don’t be embarrassed that you were laid off. It happens, and the longer you work the greater the chance it will happen to you. You have earned your stripes as a contemporary American worker.

The moment you are laid off, immediately file for unemployment insurance. Every day you don’t file is money you and your family are losing. Unless you agree to not file for unemployment insurance get yourself into your state’s unemployment process, as you never know when you will need the financial resource.

Take your personal inventory

Why make an inventory of your skills? You should know them, for heaven’s sake! But if you have had your nose to the proverbial grindstone for a few years, your resume and your 30 second personal pitch will need some freshening up. You have learned a great deal over the past few years that is VERY cool and VERY valuable to your next employer.

Sit down with a friend or spouse and take an inventory of your professional and personal skills. Rank them by what you love to do and what you do well. How you can start is by taking a sheet of paper and writing down 10 (or as many as you want) things you love to do regardless of you having done them in the past for your work. Perhaps you enjoy cooking, writing, organizing, whatever, just write down 10 (or more) and the last few might take a while. Once you have your list, make another with 10 ways to earn a living for each no matter how outlandish it sounds. This is brain storming so all ideas are welcome. Once you have completed that start to circle the ways of making money that appear most attractive to you. You might find you have a few that go together well. This is an iterative process so take your time and see how many things you like and ways to make money you can expel from your brain.

Create a game plan for what’s next

Loosing your job could very well be the best thing to happen to you. Why you ask? What better incentive to start the business you always wanted to; take some time to visit family and friends; rest up after pushing your body to the edge with long work hours; or any number of reasons only you and your family know.

So now is the time to come up with one or more plans of action that outline where you want to go next in your career.

Check list for when you are laid off

Below is a list of things to do once you are laid off. Review it and make any additions based on your personal needs. Keep this list handy so that when you are terminated you don’t have to think, but just follow this list. Once you get laid off, your emotions will be very active and could cloud your judgment and memory.

___ Hold off on signing any legal documents that your employer gives you until you or your lawyers have read through them carefully. Never read them the day you are let go.

___ Return all company property that was given to you, including keys and computers. Make sure there is a signed document that records your return of company property.

___ Say goodbye to colleagues and keep it brief. Let them know you will be in touch at greater length in the following days or weeks. Don’t make a big production of leaving, as you have a lot to get done.

___ Create an auto-reply for your work email account so people will know what has happened to you and where they can find you. You can give out your personal email address or phone number.

___ Leave a voice message on your phone with a forwarding number so people calling your work number can find you.

___ Take your personal documents off of your computer via email or memory stick.

___ Pack your things from work to take home.

___ Drive directly to your state’s unemployment office and file for unemployment insurance. Many states allow you to file for unemployment insurance over the phone.

___ Re-write your resume and be sure to include all of your new skills. Have it proof read by at least two people who read and write English well.

___ Update your LinkedIn profile and email your friends that you have been laid off and tell them what kind of position you are looking for next. Ask your colleagues for positive references on your LinkedIn profile. You might want to give them to colleagues in order to get them in return.

___ Post and update your resume to the following job boards

___ Monster.com

___ Careerbuilder.com

___ Yahoo.com

___ Cragslist.com

___ Career TV at www.careertv.com

___ Any Web site that is specific to your career

___ Make a list of people you can call who can help you get your next job. Write them down so you don’t forget anyone. Keep notes of when you contacted them and what was said during the call. Let them know what you are looking for and ask if they can forward your resume to other folks as they see fit. Create a follow-up plan that works for them so you can keep track of progress.

___ Compose a 30 (or less) second elevator pitch that tells people what you are looking to do. If asked be prepared to briefly tell them what happened and why you lost your job.

___ Follow Job Angel on twitter and any other job sites on Twitter.

___ Google terms like Job Search and Social Media to find the latest and greatest tools on the web you can use to get your next job.

___ Find and read bloggers in your domain expertise.

___ Add your work history to InSide Job on Facebook. This is a tool that I built which helps you network professionally on Facebook. http://apps.facebook.com/insidejob.

___ Create a personal business card with your name, phone number, email address and job title.

___ Go to networking events every day or as much as possible. Collect business cards and give out yours. Use sites like meetup.com to find people like yourself to network with.

___ Start getting interviews and have the life you choose on your terms.

Lorne Epstein, author of You’re Hired! Interview Skills to Get the Job, the ultimate guide for job interview preparation, and designer of Inside Job, a professional networking platform for Facebook.

Body Language to Ace the Job Interview

admin — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 20:30:30 +0000

Interviewing has been a part of my livelihood as a recruiter for the past 12 years. I have interviewed thousands of professionals and noticed that interviewees are always communicating with their body language. I have made it part of my job to study this form of communication and share what I have learned.

Body language communication is always present and informs me when a candidate I am interviewing is being genuine, nervous, inauthentic, or any other emotion or way of being. This and more have been perceivable to me and others who take on the role of interviewer. I classify “Way’s of Being” as more than just emotions, but rather a vast set of experiences that others perceive you as. They include experiencing someone as authentic, passionate, reliable, professional, trustworthy, and more of which tell me a human beings state in that moment.

“Although they are generally not aware of it, many people send and receive non-verbal signals all the time. These signals can indicate what they are truly feeling.” Source: Wikipedia.com 2007

Body language is in the music to the words we speak. If you are speaking the words that you think sound good, your body language will indicate their authenticity. When your music (body language) matches what you are saying, you are perceived as authentic and have the best chance of getting the job you are seeking. If your appearance (hair, nails, attire, and general grooming), which also communicates a body language, is not in alignment with what you are saying, you diminish your chances of landing that job.

“The technique of ‘reading’ people is used frequently. For example, the idea of mirroring body language to put people at ease is commonly used in interviews. It sets the person being interviewed at ease. Mirroring the body language of someone else indicates that they are understood.” Source: Wikipedia.com 2007.

In an interview, a simple technique to getting the job offer is to use your body language to “mirror” that of your interviewers. Humans are attracted to those like themselves, consciously and unconsciously. You are appealing to the interviewer’s unconscious mind when you mirror their body language.

Mirroring takes practice to perfect and is a skill that will payoff in many areas of your life. Mirroring is when you hold the same or similar body-pose as the person across from you. If they are sitting up, then you sit up. If their legs are slightly apart then your legs are slightly apart. Their brain will unconsciously make them feel better about you when you mirror. Moving your body slowly to match theirs makes it feel more natural for you and your interviewer will feel better about being with you.

Practice interviewing with a friend and notice what your body language is saying. Of course you must listen to what others hear your body language is saying, since they are on the other side of the table, reading it.

Get clear and specific feedback from your interview buddy on what they you’re your body language saying? When you get the feedback, trust it, take actions to improve upon it and repeat the practice. Interviewing well takes practice and you can teach your body to speak the language of getting hired.

Lorne Epstein, author of You’re Hired! Interview Skills to Get the Job, the ultimate guide for job interview preparation, and designer of Inside Job, a professional networking platform for Facebook.

Conduct a World-Class Radio Interview

admin — Sat, 14 May 2011 20:29:55 +0000

General Tips

Setting the context for the one on one interview is the first step in having a conversation that yields an informative or entertaining interview.

Do your homework to assure you are fully aware of the interviewee’s expertise, background, past interview results, and agenda.

Discuss with the guest what you will be speaking about. Give them some sample questions that you will be asking. Never throw out questions that they are not expecting unless you are clear the questions are fair game.

Make your guest look great. They will want to come back if you present them in a light that makes them look good.

Make your guest feel welcome. Pretend that you are inviting them into your “home” and afford them the best hospitality you can. You may want to provide a small token of appreciation, like a copy of your book, coffee mug or other small trinket. Be sure to offer water, sodas, and possibly light snacks.

Introduce your guest while being recorded. Say their name, their title, and allow them to respond so the listener can identify the name with the voice. Do this several times during the interview, especially on intros and commercial breaks. Repeat their name and title. Ask them to give you lists of their books or websites so you can say them on air for listeners to refer to.

80 – 20 Rule

Listen at least 80 percent of the time. Often interviewers think the listener wants to hear them, when in fact it is the guest who is interesting and topical. You have two ears and one mouth so you can listen twice as much as you speak. Something to remember if you talk too much.

Guests who don’t get to talk as much as they want will not come back for more.

Open Ended Questions

There are closed and open ended questions. Close ended, mean just that, you close the answer as quickly as possible. They are YES or NO questions. Open ended questions get the guest talking and expressing information that your listeners want to hear.

Questions that start with Who, What, Where, Why, and How are open ended and will give your guest plenty of room to speak and share their knowledge or entertain.

Relaxing Your Guest

Often your guest will be nervous and feel self conscious about speaking. To help them relax you can take your 20 percent of your speaking time and talk.

Since my shows are recorded, I will always let the guest and I chat for a while before we start to record. This way they get used to hearing their own voice and mine through the headsets. The more they “practice” at speaking with you in your setting, the better they will feel.

You can start with throw away questions at first. Ask them where they are from or what they did today before questions of substance. This will help them work through their jitters and you yours.

If you make them welcome and comfortable, they will feel at ease.

Sample Interview Questions

Take the time to prepare for your interview by writing down 10 to 20 relevant questions.

Some sample questions that work in any interview

Tell our listeners what you have been up to?

Why is that important?

How can our listeners learn more about…?

What got you started in this field?

What have been some of the challenges you face?

What was the greatest success you experienced?

How are you helping people…?

When will you be…?

Who inspired you to do…?

Where can our listeners get more information about…?

Ending Early vs. Dragging On

Keep the interview packed and energized. If you feel the energy going down and don’ t feel a way to bring it back up, you have gone on too long. End the interview on a high note, leaving the listener wanting more.

Lorne Epstein, author of You’re Hired! Interview Skills to Get the Job, the ultimate guide for job interview preparation, and designer of Inside Job, a professional networking platform for Facebook.