Happy Saints Patrick & Joseph's Days

I grew up in Chicago's South-side and this time of year was a special. Yes, spring was normally around the corner, not like this year. It was special for two reasons. The feast of St. Patrick, March 17th and the feast of St. Joseph, March  19th.

Of course the Irish celebrate St. Patrick's Day with gusto and invite everyone to wear the green and revel in the spirit. Now St. Joseph's day is normally celebrated with a "St. Joseph's Table" which is a meal that can compete with the likes of Thanksgiving day. Whether you are Irish, Italian, Polish or any other nationality that lays claim to these Saints... the opportunity to celebrate is something that should not be missed.

For my brothers and sisters in job search, we are normally so stressed we forget to or refuse to enjoy the things life has to offer us. Job search is hard work, without many rewards until you receive a job offer, so we need to look for opportunities to celebrate.

St. Joseph Tables are normally a gathering of people who all bring some food and share.  Its a wonderful tradition of good food, wonderful desserts and of course good wine. For St. Patrick's the fare is beer, whiskey and not so great food.  While some drink green beer on this day, an abomination, the idea is to toast and cheer for the Irish.

And since on St. Patrick's Day we are all wee bit Irish I offer you all this blessing:
May your troubles be less,
your blessings be more,
and nothing but happiness come through your door!

Hope is a Choice and Faith is the Answer.

I remember a friend was once in the situation where he’d lost his job and time was running out. He had to move out of his house. At the time he had a pregnant wife and three little kids. Their house was all packed up into their car and a U-Haul truck. They had nowhere to live.

Now my friend is a man of much deeper faith that I, and he was confident that everything would turn out okay. In fact, he had a phone interview that morning which was the third and deciding interview with a prospective employer. He made the phone call to an Episcopal Church in Elkhart, IN, from a phone booth looking out at the truck and car.

The interview went well and they offered him the job and told him how much it paid. They asked when he could start and if there was anything they could do to assist him in the transition. He said that he could start tomorrow and could they tell him if they knew of anywhere he might stay for the night. He said he was all packed and would be in Elkhart in about 4 to 5 hours.

They agreed to meet at the church and they would work something out when he arrived. While he was on the road, two parish members called the church and told the Rector that they needed to leave town that an emergency had occurred; that they needed to leave right away for six to eight weeks. Could someone watch their house for that time? The Rector said that the new Youth Pastor was arriving in town in a few hours and needs a place to stay for awhile...

When my friend arrived in Elkhart, he was met by this couple who were packed and ready to head out of town. They greeted the new Youth Pastor, met his family and gave them keys to the house and directions to get there. They thanked each other and praised God's for his grace & blessings. My friend, his pregnant wife and three kids drove to a storage complex where they were met by 10 parishioners who help them unpack the U-Haul. They then drove to their temporary home, overlooking the river. They got settled and were taken to a welcome party at the home of another parishioner who would become their very best friends.

They eventually found a house to buy which was a real fixer-upper. That wasn’t the end of their troubles and trials, nor was it the end of their blessings and joys. So what’s the point? Chose to be hopeful; have faith and trust because when all seems hopeless something good will happen. It may not stay but then something else good will happen.

Unemployed need not apply

In the 19th century, businesses would have signs posted that said “Help Wanted” and then another sign saying, “Irish need not apply” or “No Irish Wanted.” In the 1950’s and 60’s signs stated “No Colored” meaning that if your were a person of color, don’t even think about coming in. It didn’t matter that the business needed someone with certain skills, if you were of a particular ethnic group you were not qualified.

Today, all throughout the Internet job postings use similar language, “Only employed persons will be considered.”  “Must be employed, no exceptions,” is another not uncommon phrase in job postings. You might be asking yourself, “How can this be legal?” It is legal, unless you live in a state that has adopted a “Fair Employment Opportunity Act.” A company utilizing this practice is not discriminating on the basis of Race, Color or Creed.

Why would a company employ (yes, irony intended) such a policy? For one reason, it narrows the number of applicants that the company need to process. Another reason cited is that people who've been out of work might be rusty and harder to get up to speed than people already working. Still, although  it’s not illegal, it is short sighted since; 13+ million people is too large a group to ignore.

To the best of my knowledge, these kinds of postings have been around since the summer of 2010. And since then, I’ve had dozens, in fact, hundreds of my clients who have landed jobs. Many of them were not employed in income generating work. (Conor Cunneen uses this distinction as a response to his hatred of the word “unemployed.”) They weren’t employed and they found jobs. How did they do that?

Only 20% of jobs are advertised and the “unemployed need not apply” practice is used in a small percentage of posted job opportunities. So many of the folks who have landed jobs were considered based on their experience and not their employment status. However, the vast majority of my clients that have landed since 2010 have found those job opportunities through networking with people in the so called “hidden job market.” Even in those cases where the jobs were posted with an “unemployed need not apply” tag, their resume or application was presented by a person within the company as a personal reference.  

So, if you see a posting for a job that claims not to want to interview people like you who are currently working in the non-income generating area of job search, don’t let that dissuade you from applying and landing the job. Do it though a friend or a soon-to-be-friend. They’ll thank you for the opportunity to make their company better.

Voluntary Terminations - Really

A recent ABC news article stated: “When an employee resigns from a job based on his or her own free will, it's known as a voluntary termination. An employee who voluntarily leaves an employment position may do so to take advantage of other employment opportunities, to escape an unfavorable work environment, or for personal reasons.”

Really! In this economy, people are resigning from one job to move to another. About a year ago, I remember an article in the Wall Street Journal that indicated the number of voluntary terminations (also call “quits”) had moved above the number of involuntary terminations (AKA Layoffs.) As a coach, working with folks dealing with transition between jobs, this was good news. The quits rate has maintained steady at 1.5% of total employment. In real numbers about 1.9 million people every month are voluntarily leaving their positions.
Why is this good new? Ask yourself, “Where are these folks going?” The are going to other jobs. That means that their old jobs may be available for you to fill. It also means that some companies that have taken advantage of the lack of open jobs and the surplus of workers will need to change some behaviors. It means that corporate America is starting to trust that the economy has in fact improved and they can start spending once again.

This is all good news... even if it’s not a perfect world where workers have three jobs to choose from and companies are enticing you to come work for them instead of Google. It’s an improvement over 2009, 2010 and 2011.

It’s so easy not to notice this “good news” with all the other (bad) news out there. I am not sure who started it but there is a force out there that is set on creating a mindset of fear and anxiety. I know, let’s call it “the dark side” to borrow from George Lucas.

We need to combat “the dark side” at every opportunity. Don’t listen to negative. Walk--no, run!--away from stinkin’ thinkin’. Turn off the news when you’re feeling blue, fearful, anxious! The most talked about commercial from this year’s Super Bowl was Chrysler ad featuring Clint Eastwood, “It’s Halftime America.” I was shocked to her people slamming the ad as a plug for corporate bailout. It was a commercial that created hope in its viewers. It said, Hey America, time to get back to work and tell the world we’re back.

So the heck with “the dark side” and shame on fear mongers. We’ve survived the worst economy since the Great Depression, this is something to be happy about. If you’re still looking for that next job... then you can be hopeful. It’s time to find our light sabers and remember that we are Jedi Knights and that you have value. The next time someone passes along negative, stinkin’ thinkin’ ignite your light saber and show them the light!