Q: When you tried to go from fired to hired after losing your job at NBC News, what obstacles did you face?
A: When I was fired from NBC News from a job I loved and a place I considered heaven on earth, I was stunned. I thought my world had come to an end. I was embarrassed. I didn’t want to talk to anyone. I stayed in my apartment for weeks and weeks. Ultimately I had to accept that the job was over, but my life and career could continue just fine. I had come out of hiding, pick up the phone, and reach out to all of my contacts. I had to hold my head and realize that the skills and successes were still mine—and nobody could take those away.
Q: If I get laid off today, what’s the first thing I should do?
A: Two things simultaneously: Indulge in a pity party. Give yourself a moment to let your emotions run wild. You’ll no doubt feel scared, frustrated, angry, and maybe a tinge of relief. Acknowledge those concerns, but don’t allow them to consume you. After all, you’ve got a lot of work to do. Focus on your finances. If you’ve lived paycheck to paycheck, it’s time for a reality check. What are your monthly obligations and which ones can you lower? How much money do you have in reserve? File promptly for unemployment, with an emphasis on accuracy and honesty so your claim isn’t delayed or denied.
Q: What are three mistakes you see jobseekers making most often?
A: #1. Trotting out the “nobody’s hiring” excuse. By assuming “there are no jobs out there,” you’re looking for an easy excuse—a crutch—to throw in the towel and give up on your search. When I appeared on Larry King Live earlier this year, a caller phoned in to ask how he could possibly find a job when 90 percent of the local employers in his area weren’t hiring. My answer is always the same: Focus on the other 10 percent. You don’t need 100 percent of the employers to be in hiring mode. You only need one to say yes.
#2. Talking mainly about your needs. It’s not about what you want, dummy. It’s about what they want. No employer will hire you because of what you want—such as an “opportunity for growth in a progressive company.” Forget that nonsense and recognize that you’ll only be hired based on what the company wants. Figure out what they want and position yourself as an ideal match. (Ultimately you have to want the same things for yourself, but as a jobseeker, sell yourself based on their needs first, not your own.)
#3. Spraying and praying. Only a fraction of online time should be spent on the giant job boards because they lead to a false sense of accomplishment. You submit hundreds of resumes and you feel pretty good about yourself. You assume someone out there will respond to at least one, if not more, of your submissions. All logical assumptions—and all wrong. Job searching in a recession is more about quality than quantity. If you’re not following up and proactively reaching out directly to decision makers, your chances of being discovered in that big black hole are slim.
Q: Where do jobseekers say they’re spending most of their time online?
A: Sadly, the sites they turn to most often are the giant job boards. That’s fine for finding job leads and getting a sense of who’s hiring and what’s out there. But it’s hardly enough. I steer them to social networking sites. Anyone looking for a job should be on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. It’s not good enough to simply have an account and amass a slew of contacts, friends and followers: you’ve got to work those connections to make them work for you. Embrace the 60/40 rule: 60 percent of your job search time should be spent offline, with just 40 spent online using job boards, social networking sites, blogs, and industry sites.
