Tag: rejection

New Week – New Start

So the weekend was kind of a downer – I got not one but TWO automated “thanks but no thanks” emails on job applications on Saturday night. What’s up with that? The automated systems just want to ruin our weekends? 

So now it’s Monday and I just certified for unemployment for the first time. That was weird. I’m still VERY uncomfortable with the whole unemployment thing. I want to work, not collect. Sigh….

And because it’s a new week and I’m logging the “no thank you” emails, I’ve opted to put all my job search activity into a spreadsheet this morning instead of the notebook I’ve been using. Nothing like a little digitizing to get my week off on a good note? 

I’m the queen of organizing. I’ve color coded my new spreadsheet to reflect what version of resume I used and I’m toying with using a drop down menu to make logging the source of the job lead easier. It’s certainly going to be easier to use the spreadsheet to track the followups I’ve been doing. So now I’m off to start my weekly follow ups – wish me luck please?

Layoffs

This isn’t my first time on a “corporate hiatus.” In fact, this is the third time in my career that I was impacted by a layoff. Fourth if we count Midas – although I chose not to take the job offered to me at the company that bought Midas so I don’t really think we can count that as a real layoff.

My first lay off was back in my agency days in the 90s. I was laid off when the agency lost the account I was working on which is fairly typical. I called a headhunter, sent them my resume and less than 2 weeks later I had a new job offer. It felt a little bit like I was just changing schools. No muss, no fuss, just pack up your desk and move to a different office address in Manhattan.

My second layoff was a little more traumatic mostly because the job forced me to move to Chicago and then 88 days later they “reorganized” and eliminated my role. So I was new to a new city and at loose ends. But my network came through and I landed relatively easily at Carat USA – with a lot of thanks to my mentor who was the CEO at Carat at that time.

Being laid off from Comcast in 2016 was just plan rough. My Dad had just been diagnosed with a terminal illness and the layoff was just the bad icing on the bad news cake. The job boards were empty so I did some consulting/project work and made a lot of trips to Ohio to be with my family. It took about 18 months to land into a new corporate gig between personal and professional reasons.

I’m not lying when I say I do NOT want that big of a gap between corporate gigs again. I don’t like not having a corporate job. It isn’t just the salary/benefits – I like the feeling of being needed in a role. And I can’t wait to be needed somewhere again.

Rejection – and your health

I got yet another automated rejection email in my job search this morning. Intellectually, I know it isn’t the end of the world but emotionally – OUCH. Job searches are a game these days trying to outsmart the automated screener to even get to a real person who might understand the value of the person represented in the resume. But can that rejection impact your health?

Of course I dove into Google and here’s what I’ve got. According to the American Psychological Association, rejection does take a toll. They say people who routinely feel excluded have poorer sleep quality, and their immune systems don’t function as well as those of people with strong social connections, he says. Even brief, seemingly innocuous episodes of rejection can sting.

But, I found another article that says your reaction to rejection can be a good thing. It’s a sign your brain is working correctly. Read this – I’ve got to go read more job listings and keep on keeping on!

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/17/why-rejection-is-good-for-your-brain-according-to-a-psychologist-.html

First Rejection

My resume is updated and I started applying for new jobs last week. And promptly got my first rejection note. Oddly enough, it didn’t really bother me. The role was one I could have done well, but it wasn’t really my dream job. And really, I don’t know that I should settle for just “a new job.”

At this point in my career, I really hope I don’t need to settle. I want to work at a company that really values their employees and where I can use my experience/skills to make a difference. I am good at what I do – although at times like these, it isn’t always easy to remember.

I’m reading a book titled YOU are a BADASS: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life. I cannot recommend it enough. I’m not usually a self-help book kind of person – but this book is really helping me put some things about myself into perspective. I’ve never been good at self-promoting but maybe that needs to change.

For all of you that I have worked with in the past and have sent me messages over the last couple of weeks – even when we haven’t spoken in FOREVER, I cannot tell you how much I have appreciated hearing from you. The sympathy and encouragement are overwhelming – thank you!

And last but not least – if you work in HR or know someone who does, know that the rejection notes are the nicest thing you can do for an applicant if you won’t be moving forward with them. Ghosting your applicants just leaves them hanging. The roller coaster of emotions your applicants are going through is hard enough – so send the note so they know where they stand OK?