If you have been made redundant (as I have twice in as many years) you will know it’s hard to pick yourself up and start again. When I was made redundant I was told ‘it’s not personal or a reflection on you” well of course it’s personal! I’m the one without a job who still has to pay the bills. So I wanted to give you some key tips on how you can pick yourself up and move forward.
Step 1 – Wallow! – you may be surprised to see this here. BUT if you are feeling bad you need to get it all out, because when you start job hunting and hopefully interviewing you MUST be positive. So allow yourself a couple of days to wallow, feel sorry for yourself and then get put an end to it ready for step 2.
Step 2 – Bake! - or draw, write, paint, exercise, whatever you can do that is either creative or will take your mind off how bad you feel about losing your job. I spent hours baking for my family and friends, in between planning my future course, and this simple action reminded me that I have talents, people like what I do and I was making them happy, and just because these previous employers didn’t recognise my value I did have something valuable to contribute. My confidence started to grow again which is essential for step 3.
Step 3 – Promote – If you haven’t already done this I would highly recommend you spend some time on your Personal Branding. This includes getting a great CV and Linkedin profile (see how to create yours here) but is much more than that. In this climate it is essential to stand out from the crowd and make sure that when you get the opportunity to be in front of a potential employer you make an impact. More and more this is done online first. Potential employers are VERY likely to google you and check out your Linkedin profile, Facebook and twitter if you use it. So be aware that they will do this and make sure you have done it first, and are really happy with what they will find. If you need help in getting your LinkedIn profile up to scratch take a look at my LinkedIn profile service which shows you how to make sure the right people find you and helps get you introductions to work on step 4.
Step 4 – Network – on and offline. A huge percentage of jobs are never advertised and if they are it is likely they already have a candidate in mind! Recruiters and HR professionals use the internet now to find candidates so having a great online profile is essential. Let your contacts on Linkedin, twitter, facebook and anywhere else you hang out know that you are looking for a new position and ask if they know anyone who is recruiting. Personal recommendation is becoming so much more important, as recruiting the wrong person can be a costly mistake. But don’t limit your networking to the internet. Get out and meet past colleagues and any friends who may be able to help, and remember to reciprocate by introducing them to people that may be helpful to them too. If any of your friends are great sales people get some tips for step 5.
Step 5 – Sell – If you have done all the work involved in the previous steps the final one is to Sell Yourself. Often we find this hard to do – we can sell a product or service that we feel passionate about but we feel that selling ourselves is somehow boastful. If you have done the work on creating an authentic personal brand you should have an understanding of your strengths and there is nothing boastful about describing what you are good at. Back everything up with stories and examples to bring it to life and provide evidence of your successes. Check out my 15 tips for the perfect interview.
This article just scratches the surface and I will be following up with loads more hints and tips on each of the last three steps, as well as how to create your online profiles, how to present yourself and MUCH more. If you feel your personal profile may be letting you down why not try my Polished Presence service.
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