There’s nothing like the excitement of a new job. You’ve hustled to get your resume updated and perfected, sent out countless applications, and prepared for a handful of interviews that didn’t bring any luck.
Suddenly, when you’d almost given up, your dream job comes knocking! Opening the door, you anticipate greener pastures and smooth sailing ahead.
Flash-forward to 2 months later: Your dream job, on paper, is your nightmare in reality. The company, and management, lacks direction and is floundering to stay afloat. There’s zero office morale, negative energy, and no prospect to improve your career or learn from your peers — who have, collectively, ‘checked-out’. You can’t blame them. Management seems to be united in their narcissism and terrible leadership skills. Everyone feels under-appreciated and there are no signs of improvement.
Although extreme, this scenario is not uncommon. There are ways to avoid this plot-line and here are our tips for how.
(1) USE A RECRUITER. Sure, we’d like to think that this is us. We do have over 10 years of industry experience and are particularly good at what we do (if we do say so ourselves!). This being said, a recruiter is already connected to top-tier, established, and recognized companies who can’t get away with poor leadership and lack of direction. Even for start-ups, we have done the vetting for you. Just as we wouldn’t introduce the businesses we work for to candidates who are unqualified, we also would never introduce candidates we work with to businesses who are unqualified to have you. Our reputation rides on our ability to make successful matches.
(2) DO YOUR RESEARCH. So you’re going out on your own and dedicated to finding #therightfit without the help of professional recruitment? Do your research. Check out the profiles on the companies you are considering applying to, before you apply to them, whether it’s on social media, LinkedIn, or Indeed. The digital presence and reviews of businesses says something about their company culture and the experiences of those who have worked for them already. Needless to say, this will also prepare you for your interview! :)
(3) SPEAK UP. You own your role, wherever you go. It’s the key to your success. Employees need to take responsibility for their own success in order to deliver for a company. In doing so, they need to speak-up to their management and explain that they require additional support, as needed. Having the right tools for success is 90% the company’s responsibility and 10% your own. If this doesn’t work for you, then there is no point in trying to change the entire business to work for you. It’s time to start looking. Don’t hang your hat somewhere that the hooks are broken — you know?
(4) START LOOKING. We’ll just go out and say it: Start your stealth job search — whether that’s with us, or alone. If you're like the majority of the employed population you can’t just up-and-leave your career without another one lined-up. Getting paid, it’s nice (and so necessary). But that doesn’t mean you need to stay somewhere that makes you miserable. #Hustle
(4) LEAVE. Suffice to say, managing-up and a stealth job search are not always enough. Your self-worth and sanity should never be sacrificed for your career. Sometimes, it’s worth it to close the door on something that is detrimental to your mental health and happiness, in order to open the door somewhere that will support it. If you’re worried about how it will look on your resume, our suggestion is to omit the job off your resume entirely. Employers want to see that you’ve been somewhere at least a year, 2 ideally, so scratch-it off (It’s not helping, and clearly didn’t help you either). There’s always another job in the industry.
Need help? Connect with us. We’ve successfully placed countless candidates, like you, and love what we do.