After 20 years of successfully moving from one job to another without much effort, I suddenly had to find a job. The process of finding job was completing foreign to me. This is my story and lessons from my 7 month job search journey.

1. HOW LOSING MY JOB HELPED ME
FIND MY CAREER
Renee A. Giacalone
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reneegiacalone
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ReneeGiacalone
December, 2015

2. What happened…
 For more than 20
years, I never had to
look for a job.
Promotions just
happened. I made no
attempts to meet
people outside of my
organization. I kept
my head down and did
my job.
 Little did I know that I
was putting my whole
career at risk.
 Then, I suddenly had to
find a job. I sort of knew it
was coming but still, I
wasn’t prepared at all. I
honestly thought it would
be easy. I thought I had
enough professional
“friends” that surely one of
them would hire me. But
that didn’t happen.
 I had to face the music. I
didn’t know how it worked
anymore. I didn’t have a
network. And worse, I
didn’t know what I wanted
to do.

3. This is the result of my 7- month
career transition journey …

4. FIRST THINGS FIRST…
 Mourn the loss, but set a date for how long you’ll tell
your job loss story. And then you’re done talking about
it.
 Learn the new process; finding a job is not like it was
even just 5 years ago.
 Just about everything you need to know about job
search is online. Just Google it!
 Create a project plan. Set a goal, determine your
strategy and ultimately your tasks.
 Manage your project. Get up every day and go to
work, Monday – Friday. Take the weekends off.
 Talk to everyone willing to talk to you about your job
interests. Networking is critical.

5. WAKE-UP CALL
 Leverage low cost resources to
learn about yourself:
 Myers Briggs Test
 Emotional Intelligence 2.0
 Strengthsfinder
 Hire a pro if you need help. You
aren’t supposed to be good at this.
 Google it.
 Recommend Gail Sussman-Miller
 Know your requirements:
 Commute, compensation, level
 Know what you are willing to
compromise on for the right
opportunity
 Do your homework:
 Once again, Google to the rescue. Look
up intel about people, companies, jobs,
industries. It’s all out there. Check
out Glassdoor and LinkedIn.
Your
Passion
Your
Skills
Market
Demand
It was time to figure out what I could do (skills/experience), what I wanted
to do (passion) and what the market was willing to buy.

6. INVEST IN YOU
 Brainstorm a list of topics that are relevant to what you
want to do.
 Find clubs, groups and associations where people are
talking about these topics of interest (industry or trade):
 Webinars (most are free)
 Seminars
 Microsoft free tutorials
 Book recommendations
 Serves two purposes: continuous learning and networking.
Tip: What professional topics have you heard people
at work talk about that you privately confessed that
you knew nothing about?
While I was spending all my time doing my job, I stopped learning.
So for 7 months I studied, I read, I listened to anything and everything that
would help me become more valuable to an employer of choice.

7. “The old way – the job was the light, you were the moth. The new way –
you are the light, the job is the moth.” – Greg David.
Don’t…
 Don’t rely on applying for jobs through online
portals. Those screening technologies are
designed to keep you out of the process. Has
some value.
 Mail or email cover letters and resumes to
people you don’t know or have any
referenceable connection with. The odds of
getting a response are very low.
 Don’t assume recruiters will advocate for you.
They will take the easiest path, go with a
referral or someone inside rather than fight for
you to be considered.
 Assume your resume is all that you need to tell
prospective employers who you are. It’s just
not enough anymore.
 Chase a bunch of jobs that you could do.
Desperation is not attractive and besides, you’ll
be miserable in no time. Chase what you WANT!
Everything that I thought I knew about job search was just wrong. This quote
perfectly summed up what had change while I wasn’t looking.
LEARN THE PROCESS
Do…
 Lean out, reformat and update your resume. It is
still a required tool of the trade. There’s tons of
free help online but if you have radical changes to
make, hire a pro like Charlotte Weeks.
 Participate in job search clubs and accountability
groups. You’ll need a handbill and/or business
card. Job clubs help you learn how to use a
handbill in job transition networking situations as
well as perfect your elevator pitch. Groups like
ExecuNet, Executive Networking Group and the
Community Career Center.
 Use LinkedIn and Twitter to establish your digital
brand. 92% of recruiters will use LinkedIn to find
out more about you. You control what they find,
make it count.
 Launch an effective networking campaign
leveraging 3 kinds of networking: Job Search,
Industry and Affinity.

8. NETWORKING
According to a report from ABC News, 80% of today’s jobs are landed
through networking. Mic drop. There are three types: all are necessary
during job transition.
#1 Job Transition: since the great recession, job clubs have
multiplied rapidly. They’re in every town now. For a small fee, you
can attend power networking sessions with other job seekers.
How is talking to other job seekers even remotely helpful?
Two reasons:
1.) The purpose is to make connections to decision makers or more often to
other people who can make direct connections to decision makers. This is
why the process of finding a job takes longer now. It may take you 2 or 3
connections to get to someone who can make a referral or have influence
over you getting a shot at a job. Fellow job seekers have networks and are
willing to help!
2.) It’s an excellent, safe place to practice your elevator pitch and tell your
story. An essential professional skill for everyone, not just job seekers.

9. #2 Trade Groups: where do people congregate who do what you do
or want to do? Trade associations. For just about every job on the
planet, there’s an organization that promotes, educates and
networks among its members. Examples - Manufacturing, product
management, marketing, human resources, finance, project
management, consumer packaged goods… the list goes on and on.
Once again, Google is your friend. Chicago Network Associations.
This is how I found my job. I found a local chapter of the Association
of Change Management Professionals, an area of professional
interest.
I joined the association.
Attended a local chapter meeting.
Met someone walking to my car.
She referred me to her company’s recruiter
8 weeks later I had an offer!
I’m still a member to this day.

10. #3 Affinity Groups: networking doesn’t have to be just job related.
In fact, it’s more fun and interesting if it’s related to a topic you are
personally passionate about.
I used my job transition time to try several networking
opportunities: professional women’s club, toastmaster, chamber of
commerce, community career center and general business
networking clubs. They all had merit but some were a better fit
than others.
Over time and after I returned to work, I limited my participation to
organizations where I felt a strong connection. But without
experimenting, I would not have known about them in the first
place.
I also increased my volunteering hours during my transition and met
some terrific people that way too.
You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other
people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested
in you. - Dale Carnegie

11. NETWORKING: Top 5 Tips
1. Give first: change how you measure the value of networking from
“receiving help” to “giving help.” Go to networking events with a goal
to help 5 people. The Universe has a way of evening the score.
2. Follow-up: the power of networking evaporates fast if you don’t do
what you said you would do. This also demonstrates integrity.
3. Don’t overcommit: sometimes the desire to help gets the best of
you. If you really don’t have a strong enough connection or don’t feel
comfortable making an introduction, don’t say you will.
4. Get Involved: when you do join an organization, get involved
immediately. Volunteering is the fastest way to meet more people.
5. Build relationships not connections: people will not stick their neck
out to recommend you unless they know you well enough to do so. Be
prepared to go beyond the initial meeting.
I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will
forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made
them feel. - Maya Angelou

12. PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
Promote Me - Virtual Tools of Job Search & Beyond (No Rules)
LinkedIn (B2B) Twitter (B2B, B2C) Facebook (B2C)
Promote Me - Conventional Tools of Job Search (Follow the Rules)
Elevator Pitch Resume Handbill Business Cards
My Brand – What are employers getting when they hire me?
What - Unique Expertise & Know How
Hard Skills
How – Leadership Competencies
Soft Skills
My Requirements – What do I want?
Role Compensation Culture Commute
Wake-Up Call – Skills, Passion, Demand
Job Search Trends in 2016

13. WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT
 Keep faith in who you are and what you can do
 Trust the process as long as you work the process
 Choose positive thoughts, people, surroundings
 Most people want to help
 Practice and develop bravery
 Take care of ALL of your parts:
 physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual
 EXPECT SUCCESS!

14. Renee A Giacalone
Senior Manager at Centric Consulting, a full-service
management consulting services firm. We help clients tackle
their toughest business challenges with innovative, balanced
and measurable solutions. Partner with us for an unmatched
experience.
http://centricconsulting.com/locations/chicago/