Job Search Temptation

My advice is usually pretty good, and sometimes even heeded by the people at which it is aimed. Unfortunately I have had more than my share of having to find a place to land when the company I worked for went out of business. As a result of those circumstances I have developed a few guidelines for being out of work. I mentioned the 3:15 rule, which is still a good one, and one that I have followed for the past two weeks. It works..trust me.

This is not the greatest temptation. The greatest temptation is to find an opportunity, then rest the entire weight of the search on that single opening. Here is what it looks like in my world.

There is an opportunity that is working out there that I am excited about. It involves an industry with which I am familiar, it is with people that I have worked with and am excited to do so again, it is my premium, A-1 top choice. It has not happened yet. Will it happen? I think so, I hope so, I am dreaming about it, I am already working out the logistics of it, I have a battle plan ready. Do I sit and wait? No. A firm no. A reluctant no. You see, this might not happen. Then I have wasted a couple of weeks sitting around waiting for my first choice to happen. Meanwhile other opportunities slide right on by. You see, the 3:15 works. I have four other opportunities that I like less, but are viable, realistic opportunities.

So how do I resist the temptation to sit and wait and see if my number one option happens? I pretend. Great, you are thinking, you fool yourself. Well, as men we are pretty good at it. How else will a 56-year-old guy still feel like he "has it" when his body and the stupid mirror tell him differently? I pretend that the other four are my first choice. How would I approach each one if it were my first choice? How often would I contact them? How hard would I push? Would I hold back a little to gain a negotiating edge? What would be my strategy if it were my first choice and how would I implement it? Then I handle each one according to the above questions.

Secondly, I jump on every lead. AS SOON AS I HEAR ABOUT IT. I figure by the time I hear about it, it could be old news in other circles. If it is fresh, so much the better. But waiting just assures that others will get the jump on me. I am selling the product that is uniquely mine..me. I know this product better than anyone else in the world. I want to make sure that the new lead has the best chance to see how much benefit my product will have to what they are trying to accomplish. You can't do that if the playing field is crowded. So I get on it the same hour I hear about it. My full time job right now is finding my full time job.

So what happens if one of the secondary opportunities is ready to pull the trigger before the primary one? Several things to remember. You can always say no. My preferred method is to stall and use the time to contact the primary and tell them I have to make a decision. Bluffing here doesn't work. You have to be ready to take the secondary one if the primary is not moving along. I always tell the primary that they are my first choice, but I have a time constraint; rent, food, happy spouse.

The temptation is tremendous. I have felt it over the last two weeks. It is a very seductive lure to sit and wait. Sitting and waiting is fatal in job hunting.

As a P.S. to the above. I go to Panera Bread a couple of mornings a week to work. I send emails, I call people, I continue to work my 3:15. Why not do it from home? Because the temptation gets too great to dawdle with cleaning dishes, making the bed, washing clothes, vacuuming (I hate to vacuum, but I found myself looking for the vacuum for crying out loud, where do we keep that little monster?) For the past 5 years Panera Bread and Starbucks have been my mobile office locations. When I go there I can work, and will work.

Anyway, keep us in your thoughts, pray for option one. But will go with option 2,3,4, or 5.

Godspeed.
Don