You can't afford to be passive!

If you've read my previous post (When it pays to be passive!) I won't blame you if you assume that I can't seem to make up my mind!

Some people wrote back after the last post and that triggered this follow-up post. So here goes :

The most important point I was trying to make in the previous post is that hiring managers/ companies/ search consultants tend to be biased towards candidates who are not actively seeking a job-change.



Image : sheelamohan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net



But if you do not have that luxury and if you are actively looking for a change, then you definitely cannot afford to be passive. In an ideal world, you are well networked and very well-established in your career, where people seek you out as soon as they hear that you are possibly looking for a change.

But if you are not being approached by people with job offers, you have to go out there and seek opportunities. Yet, you have to do that without coming across as too desperate. You do not want people treating you like an insurance sales-person where they politely excuse themselves or just don't return your calls and messages.

So how do you walk this thin line? Here are a few thoughts to keep in mind to help you in your job search :

(you could also read this related post by the Career Sherpa (Hannah Morgan) at Job Seekers: Change How You Look for Work)

1. Make friends :

The best way you can get a job is your friend referring you to her friend, a hiring manager, who's looking for people.

I can say from my own personal experience; I have at least 4-5 people reaching out to me everyday wanting to meet me or speak to me. While I try speak to as many of them as possible, I do not manage to meet everyone. But I always meet people who are referred to me by my friends/ clients/ colleagues/ etc.

What this means is that you should have been actively networking before you needed to look for a job. You should be reaching out to all the people you know when you are looking for a job (and you'll be amazed at the number of people you know, if you sat down and made a list).

And don't stop at just telling them that you are looking for a job. You'll be far more effective if you could tell them specific things they could do to help; and you'll be surprised at the number of people who are willing to do their bit! (that's assuming you've been building up your quota of good karma over time! :) )

2. Begin before you need to begin :

This would be one of the most important pieces of advice for people who are in leadership positions.
It pays to be connected with other leaders in your industry. It also goes a long way to be connected with the hiring managers and search consultants in your market/ sector. And there are many ways to do this, but that would be the topic of another post.

The key is to be well-connected with the relevant people so that people keep talking to you about opportunities, even when you are not actively looking for one. Do not reject these opportunities outright. Engage with the people who are reaching out to you, understand & evaluate such opportunities and if you are clear that you do not want to make that move yet, help them with references of other credible professionals you know of.

There is nothing more powerful in the world of hiring managers and search consultants than a good deed! These good deeds will come around and bail you out when you are actively seeking a job.

3. Meet people :
In today's world, technology allows us to connect with people around the world without leaving our desk. And this is the reason why most people, when searching for a job, are shooting out hundreds of mails and messages with the hope of landing one.

But nothing is more effective than a face-to-face meeting. (Remember how easy it is put off a person trying to reach you over the phone, than someone waiting for you in the meeting room outside.) Use every opportunity to meet people. Start with your own friends, acquaintances and ex-colleagues. This adds a completely different sense of purpose and seriousness to the whole exercise and the people you meet would be far more inclined to act on your behalf and make that all-important reference introduction.

4. Meet friends of friends :
Use a simple sales-person technique to significantly improve your chances of meeting people most likely to be able to help you with your job-search. Ask every person you meet to give you a few references! You could ask them to do a telephonic or email introduction and then follow it up with a request for a meeting.

Its the simple law of exponential growth. You'll be amazed at how quickly and widely the net spreads!
But while this is happening, it is important to keep track of all the connections. Note all the introductions made and the referee and follow up with all the introductions to their logical conclusion.

Remember to thank the people who have given you the reference.

In fact, remember to thank all the people who have helped you in your job-search exercise! These are 'brownie points' you earn, the good karma you accumulate.... and they will again come to your rescue some other rainy day!

When it pays to be passive!

Most of us through our professional lives have been oriented and rewarded by being aggressive or assertive or actively pursuing our goals. Initiative and enterprise is always appreciated and these are considered to be wonderful traits in any true-blue professional.

But unfortunately these very same traits become counter-productive when you are a job-seeker.

Let me explain.

Image courtesy : http://launchpadu.com/2011/07/the-hidden-job-market/

When companies are looking to hire senior executives they tend to be biased towards professionals who are not actively looking for a change. I am not sure if it has to do with human psychology, but hiring managers tend to be somehow wary of people who are actively hunting for a new job. And this is also how search consultants view active candidates vis-a-vis passive ones.

They prefer to believe that they searched the market, identified some solid candidates and wooed one of them to finally come across and join their organisation. And if they come across a candidate who is as competent and with the necessary pedigree, sills, experience, etc., but who is actively looking for a job they somehow tend to rate him a few notches lower than the previous category of candidates.

Somehow the assumption is that the active job-seeker might be enthusiastic about the opportunity because she needs a job at this point of time, and therefore might not be the best choice for the job.

So what do you do if you are an active job-seeker and are genuinely interested in this particular opportunity? Here are a couple of points to keep in mind :

- Never come across as being over-enthusiastic or eager about the job.

- Communicate a clear logic and reasoning for being interested in this opportunity and what you would be bringing to the table.

- Try to get someone to sell your candidature for you; be it your referee in the company or the search consultant.

- Do not follow up too often directly with the company representatives; it is advisable to follow up with your referee or the search consultant.

- And finally remember, if they need you as badly as you need this job, they will pursue you!

And what if you are a hiring manager and you are evaluating active and passive job-seekers for a position?

- Keep in mind that an active job-seeker could possibly be a better fit for the role than the passive person you are wooing. It would serve you best if you keep aside your bias during the evaluation process.

- Try dig deeper and understand why the person is looking for a change. Why is she keen on the company and this opportunity? Do some referencing and enquiries on your own.

Sometimes being a little aloof and playing 'hard to get' (without being rude or obnoxious) makes you a lot more appealing and valuable to the suitors out there! (Sounds like dating advice? Well, you'll be surprised at the similarities. Maybe its time to discuss your pre-nuptials! :) )