Some years back, a late afternoon on New Year’s Eve. My phone rang as I walked along the newly snow-plowed sidewalk to my home. After three months of back-and-forth with a financial service provider, my to-be boss was calling me to tell me I got the job. What a way to end 2013!
Then there was the time I was given the “you’re no longer a fit” speech, which I knew was coming. (TIP: Learn to read the room.) As I was packing, a company I’d been interviewing with—as I said, I knew what was coming—called, hiring me to manage their customer service department. Within 10 minutes, I’d call my wife to tell her I had lost my job and then call her back to tell her I got a new one.
Always be reading the room. Always be looking.
I’ve had several Hollywood-ending job searches, not quite “a dream job offer, champagne celebration, and living happily ever after,” but very close.
Based on my experience, a “Hollywood-ending” job search can be moderately orchestrated, but only to a certain extent, the main influencing factors being:
- Establishing yourself as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) through a compelling personal brand, LinkedIn profile, resume, cover letter, and digital footprint.
- Actively networking and building relationships.
- Interviewing skillfully and leaving an impression that makes your interviewer say, “We need [your name]!”
- Negotiating an attractive compensation package.
- Feeling a genuine sense of excitement about your new job.
Fade out
“The End”
Role credits
However, external factors such as economic conditions, employer priorities, and ubiquitous “hiring manager’s preferences” influence the aforementioned influencing factors. It would be naive to believe getting a job offer doesn’t involve some element of luck.
Ultimately, you can increase your chances of a “Hollywood ending,” but you can’t fully orchestrate or guarantee it. All you can do is put in the work, remain flexible, and be open to unexpected opportunities. While your job search should be characterized by positivity and persistence, remember that a degree of luck plays a role in your job search, as it does throughout your life.
I attribute my experiencing several Hollywood-ending job searches to having conducted my job searches by adhering to the following rules:
- Think for yourself.
The Internet, especially LinkedIn, is populated with self-proclaimed job search experts—talking heads—who are willing to take your money for information you can find for free. I’ve yet to come across a “job search expert” or “career coach” who doesn’t offer rehashed cookie-cutter advice. Following the same advice as other job seekers will not differentiate you in today’s hyper-competitive job market. Thinking for yourself, a practice that is decreasing—following and looking for shortcuts are easier—will.
Because I learn by doing, I advocate DIY job searching. In addition to saving money, DIY job searching is how you learn and develop job searching skills, which, with layoffs having become the norm, is a crucial career management skill.
I attribute much of my job search and career success to thinking critically—evaluating the pros and cons against my needs and wants—avoiding groupthink, exploring unconventional paths, charting my job search course and most importantly, trusting my instincts. Nobody knows me better than me. Rocky, Whiplash, Ford v Ferrari, The Founder and Steve Jobs are just a fraction of the many Hollywood movies where the protagonist walks their own path while thinking for themselves and ends up achieving their end goal(s).
- Know what you can and can’t control.
A recipe for frustration: Trying to control what isn’t yours to control.
Long ago, I accepted that employers own their businesses and, therefore, own their hiring process. Instead of obsessing over (read: wasting time and energy) how employers hire, which many job seekers do, I shrug my shoulders and say to myself, “If that’s how they want to run their business, then so be it,” and move on.
Accepting that you can’t control how employers hire will improve your frame of mind.
- Acknowledge your limitations.
“A man’s got to know his limitations.” – Inspector Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) in Magnum Force.
Another reason many job seekers are frustrated is that they aren’t acknowledging their limitations (e.g., skills gaps, lack of experience). Life’s harshest truism is that none of us are equal biologically, genetically and at an intelligence level. Biology is the root reason why “life isn’t fair.” Therefore, let go of the belief life should be played on an even playing field.
At the onset of my career, I was frustrating myself by trying to compete against those with inborn aptitude or affinity—I call them naturals—for the jobs I was aiming for. It wasn’t until I acknowledged and accepted my limitations and my naturals that my job search results improved, and my career started heading in the right direction.
A sense of self-awareness, combined with critical thinking, has given me the smarts to target roles and employers suited to my capabilities and present myself authentically and confidently; after all, I’m in my wheelhouse. Take it from me, humility and honesty lead to better job search results and sometimes to an ending” worthy of the silver screen.
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Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers “unsweetened” job search advice. You can send Nick your questions to artoffindingwork@gmail.com.
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