ERADAD - the JobSeeker's Acronym

I'm a huge fan of acronyms and the power they have as mnemonics. Many years ago, I can remember watching a comedy bit with Paul Reiser, when he was doing standup, and he explained the importance of getting a phone number that actually spelled something: "It's much easier to tell your friends, 'Don't forget, call me, SNOOPY5!' than it is when you're saying, 'Give me a buzz, SLURGFE!'"

One of the most famous acronyms is DABDA, which is known as the Five Stages of Grief. Those stages - Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance - have been adopted to all sorts of personal crises, including divorce, drug addicition and infertility.

(On a tangent, my first exposure to the concept of DABDA was not from a college psychology class, but rather, from the movie All That Jazz, a Bob Fosse semi-autobiographical film, which chronicles the life/final days of a cynical showbiz director. The finale remains one of the most shocking memories I have from media in my childhood (remember, I saw this film when I was about 10 years old). Set to the song, "Bye Bye Love," Roy Schieder and Ben Vereen sing "Bye Bye Life" - it's a more powerful finale when you've seen the whole movie, but for those who never intend to see it, I've attached the finale below --warning, it's not entirely safe-for-work, as there's a *very brief* moment of nudity):



On to ERADAD. I was thinking, does DABDA really capture what the jobseeker goes through, each week? And, I realized, it definitely doesn't. First, there's no denial. When you're unemployed and looking, there's no point in denial or assuming it's not happening to you. Such an effort simply delays the process. And, even more to the point, there's definitely no place for 'acceptance' - to accept the fate is to simply give up.

So, it was now important to come up with a new acronym. Thus, was born ERADAD, which truly captures the week-to-week emotional rollercoaster of the unemployed.

ENTHUSIASM: Each week, when I send out resumes, I'm the most optimistic. Look at all these great jobs! I would be perfect for all of these roles! It's just a matter of time until they call me, interview me, and realize that I'm absolutely the best person for this job. It's definitely going to be any day now.

RATIONALIZATION: Why haven't the jobs from last week called? Well, it's probably okay. Do companies really call people back that quickly? There's so many applicants, it takes time to get through those resumes to see mine. And, what if the hiring manager is on vacation? This is absolutely a minor setback.

ANXIETY: But, what if that's not the case. Did I make a typo in my cover letter? Should I have customized my resume a little more? How do I possibly improve my standing? What more can I do? Should I apply again? Should I go to the office? That has worked for other people, right?

DESPERATION: What is taking so long? Am I going to be unemployed forever? Should I apply to other jobs I'm less suited for, so that I increase my odds? Should I look into changing my career? What other mistakes have I made with my life?

ANGER: This is ridiculous. What is taking so long? How can these companies not recognize that I'm definitely the best candidate for the job? I know I killed during the interview, and I'm very interested in their company and the role. I don't see what the problem is. I have great references, and I'm a great employee -- loyal, proactive, creative -- what is taking so long?

DEPRESSION: I'll never get a job. Why do I even bother? I should just give up. I'm only prolonging the inevitable. Let me sell my house, and figure out how to make it the next 20+ years until I can collect social security (assuming there'll even be social security then).

Note - the amount of time from "enthusiasm" to "depression" can be as little as one day. There's definitely no place for 'acceptance' here -- it's vital that the depression wear off in time for the next week, so the process can begin again.

Along the way, you try and take your mind off things; cultivate your network, keep up your skills (I attended a social media conference last week, just to stay up-to-speed on tactics; even though most of the information was fairly beginner-level).

But, the cycle above stays pretty stable week-to-week. I do feel lucky that I've had the number of interviews I've had -- among my circle of fellow job-seekers, I've almost certainly had more than anyone else. However, while that keeps me occupied, I fail to see how that's necessarily a good thing (heh - look at that, in one sentence, we jumped from "enthusiasm" to "depression" ... that may be a record!)

My Secret to Getting Interviews

Been a few weeks since my last post -- apologies...my wife had surgery and it was a little hard to get back into a routine (I'm still not).

I belong to a job seeking group made up of marketing/communications professionals. In spite of the potential competition that could arise from the similar backgrounds (and goals), the group succeeds. There's a good exchange of information and best practices.

We introduce ourselves at the start of each meeting, and I always give an update on my search -- the number of interviews I've had, in particular. I've been fortunate to have what I'd consider to be a decent amount of interviews, although - obviously - I'd certainly trade interviews for offers.

I credit the interviews, first, to my search mechanism. I've outlined the use of RSS feeds as a way to greatly improve your online efficiency. Through those tactics, I'll see approximately 7000 jobs a week, although - admittedly - not all of them are even loose fits (one of the drawbacks of searching this way is that you need to be quite broad in your search terms. Also, searching for "communications" generates an awful lot of job titles, as many have the words "communications" in the job description). Even still, it's far easier to cycle through these jobs in an RSS reader than it would be to do searches on each site each week.

Through that effort, Ill probably identify anywhere from 20-50 jobs each week that I can apply to -- internally, I group them into 'tiers' -- Tier 1 are the jobs that are perfect for me, with companies I think I'd love to work for; Tier 2 are a little less appealing - maybe I don't have exactly the qualifications, or it's a sizeable step up (and I'm wary); and Tier 3 positions are jobs I don't feel extremely comfortable with -- for any number of reasons.

I don't turn down interviews -- even from Tier 3 positions -- for two reasons: 1) I'm always open to being surprised; and 2) interviews are always good practice.

What *is* concerning is that the majority of the interviews I get are from the Tier 2 and Tier 3 positions ... admittedly, the Tier 1 jobs are already few and far between; but I'm always astonished when those positions don't result in interviews. Although , I'm waiting to hear back from one Tier 1 position, even now.

I don't think I'm necessarily revealing anything super-secretive about landing interviews -- for me, it all starts with the search, which I do each day. I have a standard resume (which I'll occasionally update to the job's specifics) and I always attach a cover letter, which I customize far more often. But, in the end, it's the search that fuels the interviews. If I'm landing 2 interviews a week, and I'm sending out 50 applications, then it's logical that someone sending out 5 resumes a week, will be waiting about 10 weeks to get those same 2 interviews. The search drives the effort.

What's Wrong WIth This Picture?

So, here's a fairly easy litmus test for anyone involved in designing/delivering presentations. Watch this video:




If you don't see anything wrong with it, *immediately* send me an email and offer me a job. It will be the best decision you've made.

What Can I Do? What Should I Do?

So, I may have reached a crossroads. My job search has been both fruitful and disappointing. I've been called for many good positions - and, many times, I've left the interview *knowing* that I'll be the best person for the job; but, as of yet, I haven't received an offer -- come close, but nothing definite.

This experience causes me to look at what I'm doing and try and determine what my best course of action could be. From all accounts, I'm a talented communications professional -- I've won an award (from the International Association of Business Communicator) for my work in employee/internal communications; but, is that really where I should be? Given the lack of offers, perhaps my skillset isn't what employers are looking for, today?

So, what is my skillset?

1. I'm a fairly early embracer of social media, and the use of it within a company (as well as outside a company).

2. I think I'm a pretty good writer; and an even better editor. Editing is enjoyable because there's an opportunity for teaching/training that doesn't come from writing. Part of what I enjoyed about my last role was the opportunity to advise and counsel senior leadership on strategies pertaining to communications.

3. I pride myself on my organization and project management skills. I definitely consider myself far more organized than most people I know.

4. Although I'm in no way an expert, I'm very proud of my Excel (and database) skills. I have no formal training, though...I've taught myself everything I know.

5. I can be freakishly fast (and accurate) with numbers. For the early part of my life, I wanted to be a statistician; so my love of numbers stems from that.

I had worked for many years as an editor of trade magazines; but the rise of online markets and the decline of pure paper products was too obvious for me to overlook. I enjoyed my last position (working in communications, with a definite focus on internal/employee communications) more than any other job I've had.

Thus, the crossroads -- is that where I should be? Enter self-doubt.

If I were independently wealthy, I might go to law school; or become a professional author (although, you probably need an*idea* to be an effective author; then again, perhaps my life and stresses are too much to generate an idea). However, my mortgage company doesn't seem to accept my "if I were independently wealthy" excuse; so those jobs don't work, currently.

On the other hand, I've always been fairly ambitious -- my last role, in communications, didn't even exist until I created/wrote the job description and submitted it to Human Resources. Is that the best way for me to be? I'm sure there are positions out there, for which I'm extremely qualified, that pay decently and don't require the *attention* that my last job demanded.

So, I turn to you - my readers - in hopes that you might present to me some ideas (or, even better, leads) about what I should be doing ... Many of you know me fairly well. Feel free to ask anything that might help you generate an idea; but I'm happy to hear them all. I have nothing to hide; this is my life we're talking about. The only thing I'll ask is that the suggestions be legitimate -- since my readership is quite varied, please hold back on the less-serious recommendations.

Other than that, I'm anticipative of what you might recommend!