Conflicting job search information

When you are in a job search, there is so much conflicting information from so many sources that you hardly know where to look. And for job seekers, they feel as though they don’t have anyone on their team many times. They think their efforts to find a job isn’t working and they are frustrated and angry at recruiters, human resources, and hiring managers.

On the other hand, human resources managers, recruiters, and hiring managers are bombarded by resumes, applications, and emails from job seekers without any clarity in who the best candidates really are. Yesterday was a very full day for me. Late last night I caught a post from Laurie Bartolo who is launching a new blog called Plan B HR called “Oh please, no more resumes.” I like Laurie and I know she is credible and caring but I had to tell her I disagreed.

Part of what Laurie says is this:

Today’s resume does little more than tell us what candidates want us to know about them rather than what we really want (and need) to know about them. Thanks to career management books, blogs, and experts, it seems every resume I read tells the story of a rock star employee who is “perfect” for every job they see posted.

I don’t write that kind of resume.

“perfect” for every job they see posted. No! I teach my clients to fine-tune their accomplishments and make sure they thoroughly understand the company they are targeting and the job description. I don’t want my job search clients blasting hundreds of resumes out at every opportunity they see.

What does the Bible say about Human Resources (HR)?

Yesterday started with a meeting with my Christian Business Leaders group to talk about “What does the Bible say about Human Resources (HR)” Did you know it says alot? For example, Proverbs 22:29 says:

Do you see any truly competent workers? They will serve kings rather than working for ordinary people.

The question to ponder was: What results have you seen when you have quickly hired someone at hand rather than patiently searching for the best possible match? and the Principle was: Don’t settle for good employees, search for the best employees.

I think this is what Laurie was getting at in her post. Candidates who come in primed to be the best candidate with a resume that makes them sound like superstars for EVERY job they apply for but do no homework on the company or job and only parrot a resume without being able to answer specific interview questions about how they will help the company aren’t the best employees.

My group of business owners and managers talked about the times they made the easy choice and took someone who looked like they could do the job but really didn’t have the attitude or skill set or worse was really on a mission to launch a similar company and was trying to steal ideas and customers.

Teaching job seekers the right way

After my morning breakfast group, I went to Northcentral Technical College to teach a business simulation class about job search, resumes, cover letters, and the best resources for cutting edge information. The class was simulcast to all six NTC campuses and I had 20 some students in the actual classroom. Using this blog site, I explained resume strategies, job search tips, and answered a bevy of questions both from the classroom and the remote students. Those students want to do it right but they are being bombarded with information that may not make sense to me, other career professionals, or Laurie’s HR people.

My two hour class taught totally interactively and extemporaneously with no outline went back very quickly. I even enlisted the help of one of my clients, Helen (Holly) Petrucci in Florida, using the Google+ stream to answer job search questions from the perspective of a NASA engineer.

The students asked pointed questions about how tough Holly sees the market and what she has done to overcome the issues. She too told them to fine-tune their resume and read job descriptions to make sure that you can do the job. Holly will be on the 60 Minutes show with Scott Pelley on CBS to share her story as one of the people whose career ended with the shut down of the space program. (I’ve just been informed that 60 minutes rescheduled the stories for Sunday and now Holly’s story is in a TBA status instead of January 29.)

You see I really do believe we can be on the same job search team.

We need clarity in our message and we need to constantly talk to the people who have to read those resumes to listen to their concerns. People need jobs, companies need workers, and we need to make sure that everyone is doing their best to make that happen.

Stuck in your job search or just ready to move on from your existing position? Julie Walraven can help you find a new career! To find out how, Click here!

Photo Credit

Thank you to all of you who have talked to me or my brother, Andy, on Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ or called or e-mailed. I think we are both at peace with her death.

The rainbow

This morning when I looked out my office window, the rainbow above greeted me. There was no rain just a glorious rainbow. I have never ever seen a rainbow from that window before and I have never seen one when there was no rain. Remembering why God gave the rainbow to Noah as a promise, I saw it as such for me.

I wrote Mom’s obituary and I would like to share it here with you:

Marion Ione Plath, 84, died Friday, July 8, 2011 at Aspirus Wausau Hospital from complications from a fall on June 28 at her home. Marion Plath was born Marion Ione Werner on March 12, 1927 to Julius and Lydia Werner in Wausau, Wisconsin. Lydia was 43 when Marion was born. Marion joined her sisters, Viola (Werner) Behling, Hildegard (Werner) Birk,  and Berdina Rice. As her sisters were starting their own families as Marion was growing up, Marion was surrounded by nephews and nieces throughout her early years in life.

Marion married Robert Plath on August 13, 1955. They had one daughter, Julie (Bill) Walraven and one son, Andrew Plath within the first years of their marriage. Extended family was always important to Marion and she was born in the same house on South Fourth Avenue and never moved during her 84 years of life. Lydia lived in the lower apartment until her death in 1979 where Marion cared for her in later years.

In her youth, Marion was an active member of the Trinity Lutheran Walther League, traveling to national conferences throughout the United States, snapping photos with her little Brownie camera and creating scrapbooks to detail her trips.

Music

Marion loved music and singing. She even invested her time into voice lessons so that she could share her gifts as a soloist at many weddings, funerals, and she was also an active member of the Trinity Lutheran Sanctuary Choir until her children were born.

Gardening

She loved gardening and at one point, even entered her gladiolas at the Wisconsin Valley Fair. Even this year just days before the sudden accident that led to her death, she was still out in the yard planting flowers and weeding her many flower beds.

Career

Marion spent most of her career as a secretary for what is now Thrivent Financial, formerly AAL Insurance. She served as the office manager and grew to be a strong support system for the general agent, Ernst Heinecke and what her children called, “the men.” The agents and their families also became part of her extended family and built lifelong relationships.

Friends

Marion gathered friends and kept them for years. Early in life, she worked for the H.C. Phillips Company and for years after she left, she gathered with a group of 6 to 8 women for monthly “club” meetings. She did the same with her coworker and two other friends who worked in the same complex as the Thrivent location, dubbing that group the “4 Squares.” She also bonded with early friends from Trinity, in the “Trinity Friends” group that met periodically and was made up of grade school friends.

Reading and writing

She shared her love of reading and writing with both Julie and Andrew and transferred all her creative pursuits to interests that later became big parts of her children’s lives. A regular for years at the Marathon County Public Library, Marion kept a huge binder listing all the books she read, organized by author, and detailing all of the titles so she could track what she read. She also believed in the fine art of letter writing and wrote many hand-written letters throughout her life to friends and family.

Family

Marion is survived by her children, Julie and Andrew, her grandchildren, Tim and Dan Walraven, all of Wausau, her niece, Judy (Robert) Johnson, La Crosse, and her sister-in-law, Mary Lou (Harry) Feirer, as well as many other extended family members and friends. Marion was preceded in death by her parents Julius and Lydia, her husband, Robert in 2007, and her sisters, Viola, Hildegarde, and Berdina.

A celebration of her life will be at 11am on Friday, July 15 at Trinity Lutheran Church on Stewart Avenue, Wausau. Visitation will be at the Helke Funeral Home, Wausau, on Thursday, July 14 from 4pm to 7pm and from 10am until time of services on Friday, July 15 at the church. Reverend Gary Schultz will officiate. Burial will be at Pine Grove Cemetery Wausau. Memorials may be directed to Trinity Lutheran Church. Online condolences may be expressed at www.helke.com

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For today, this is enough. Thank you again for all of you who have cared. It means so much to all of us.

I don’t believe I even really hung up after I said yes. I had been in bed but my husband, Bill, was downstairs and I quick called him to come up and asked if he would go with me up to the hospital. Even with having to pull on clothes, we beat the ambulance to the hospital and Andy by a few minutes.

Then commenced long hours of waiting while they ran numerous tests, C-scans, x-rays, and we knew only what the administrative clerk told us. Finally, they let Andy and I go back. Mom wasn’t coherent enough to talk at all. We had to wait another long time while they ran another x-ray. The ER doctor explained what they knew that she had two pelvic fractures, a dislocated elbow, and broken bones in her arm.

A little about Mom

Mom is 84. I took the photo above earlier on the day she fell. I was looking at the flowers and the roses she was pointing out and she was saying, “oh, don’t take my picture” when I snapped that one. Mom never did like her photo being taken and since my brother is an avid photographer, a trait he got from my dad, we all learned not to point and shoot at Mom but last Tuesday, I didn’t listen and just clicked.

She has been experiencing some form of dementia for some time now. But she was ambulatory and able to still do things she loves. She was confused about cooking and recipes she made for years now didn’t work but she still planted flowers outside and knew all of them by name. She still worked on crossword puzzles and read fiction. She still kept up the large binder detailing the books she read by author, title, and other details… all without a computer.

Mom was born in the house she still lives in. 84 years in one house. My grandfather built the house and until my grandmother’s death in 1979, Gramma lived downstairs while our family lived up on the second level with 14 stairs to climb.

Some people asked after the fall why we didn’t make mom move downstairs. Mom was stubborn and she wasn’t likely to do anything she didn’t want to do. She wanted things to remain the same. Yet, she never had trouble with the stairs before that day.

Change is hard

Everything is changing for Mom now. She never wanted to have any tubes hooked up to her and she didn’t want to go to a nursing home. Right now she needs 24/7 care. She has so many bruises and broken bones from the fall. Much of the time, she doesn’t say my name and drifts out of consciousness. As her power of attorney for health care, I talk with the nurses, the doctor, and other staff. I keep forefront her faith and mine. She knows her final destination and I am instructing the doctor to help keep her comfortable until God tells her it is time.

I am grateful for the time we have had throughout her life and the moments since the fall when she knows me by name but I will honor her request to not use any extraordinary measures to keep her here on earth.

Why share this?

I share all this with you because I know I am not alone in this time of caring for elderly parents. My husband Bill’s job for the last 6 years has been to care for his now 89 year old father after his heart surgery. My brother took the key role of caring for my Mom who was more active than Bill’s dad. Bill spends 6 days a week helping his dad with household chores, errands, and other projects while my role has been to keep income coming in to pay the bills and keep our household running.

But many of you reading this will relate. My sons are 24 and 25. The sandwich generation they call us, still involved with our children’s lives while caring for parents.

This is an incredibly hard time. But Mom had told me what she wanted far in advance. Planning for the unexpected is never fun either but in the end, it will help clarify and make decisions somewhat easier.

Some of you are regular readers of this blog and while I primarily weave in job search strategies, this post is to share with you this challenge. I thank all of you who have shared your thoughts and prayers already on Twitter and Facebook and by e-mail or phone. I am taking life day-by-day now and weaving in time to see Mom daily up at the hospital.

Note:The final chapter

On Friday, July 8, 2011 at 7:30pm, Mom died. She never really recovered enough to hold a conversation and never even got out of the hospital bed. We will miss her forever but the memories will always be there. She always had her faith in Jesus as her personal Savior and I knew that she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life hooked up to tubes. Her injuries were so extensive that eventually the rest of her gave up and went home to Jesus.

Photo by jcoterhols

Job seekers often blame other issues when their job search doesn’t seem to be getting them results. Business owners do the same. But most of the time, you can succeed despite the economic conditions, despite challenges that get in your way, and despite personal or family problems as you strive to change your outcome.

Clients who choose to work with me comment that one of the reasons they selected Design Resumes is because I am very passionate about everything I do. Like everyone, I have bad days too but I am basically a fighter!

I don’t believe in giving up or throwing in the towel when things don’t go my way. I firmly believe your attitude plays a huge role in whether we succeed or fail in life. You might guess that from the growing number of posts in the attitude and mental health section of this blog’s categories on the sidebar.

I can fix or create an outstanding resume for you! There is no doubt that any resume that walks in the door will change dramatically once I get my hands on it.

But I can create the best resume in the world and you can still fail in your job search. Why?

1. You may be using the wrong strategies to get employers to call you.
2. You may not understand the many ways to stalk that elusive new position.
3. Your mental attitude or something in your past may be getting in the way of you moving forward.

Number 3 is huge! One of the things I am now offering to local clients is a referral to qualified counselors.When you are hurting and you can’t move past it, you cannot succeed in other areas of your life.

Loss is loss. And it hurts!

I learned that again with losing our dear Teddy. People asked how I could blog about losing our family pet and my companion so soon after the loss. For me, writing is cathartic (and therapeutic.) I know I have an enormous support system of friends online and in real life. And I knew I would deal with it better by sharing.

But there are people who have no support system or a weak one at best and they need the expertise of a counselor to move on. If you have lost a family member, gone through a divorce, lost a job that you loved, are fighting substance abuse, or experienced other losses, you may need expert help to come around to the other side.

I am now referring clients to a new ministry at my church that offers free counseling. It is supported by donations from people who believe in the need to help people get past hurts or issues of alcohol or other drug abuse. I know the counselor, Jim Bitner, personally and already heard feedback from one client that he found the root cause of her issues and is helping her move on.

I also have a team of counselors with the Center for Human Development that I am recommending to those who have coverage or the means to pay for counseling. I have known Lee Webster for years and trust the services his team provides.

I can fix your resume and I can coach you to use more successful job search strategies but if you have major emotional roadblocks in the way, perhaps you should consider services from people like my resources above to help you fight your way to success. I firmly believe that no one should go it alone!

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