Problems at work? Need advice? Our agony uncle ? and readers ? have the answers
Will a future employer see me as an asset or a serial quitter?
I joined my current employer as a temp for a month in April 2007. I then left for six months because I got what was (at the time) my dream job in a small advertising agency. This was a major change in career direction for me, but they were unwilling to take me on permanently. I came back to my current employer in December 2007 and left again in August 2008 for three months to try advertising once again, but that didn't work out either. So I came back in December 2008 and have been at the company ever since.
I am working on contract on a specific project which is soon to end. I have been promoted twice and am a valued member of the team, with excellent performance appraisals. I enjoy working here, and there may be a permanent role in the offing, but I am not sure if it will be one that will interest me.
I have spent some time analysing what went wrong with my abortive career change and the feedback I was given (I wasn't the right personality or skills fit with their existing teams). I have realised I should focus on larger, more structured companies and look for roles where my enthusiasm for improving systems and processes is useful (rather than the possibly threatening way it was seen in smaller, more staid companies). I also think that advertising was too much of a change, whereas something midway between my old career and new ambitions would make a lot more sense. My current role is a step in that direction as it is based in a large media organisation.
Prior to this, I spent three years working for one employer and seven years working for another, so overall my career has been quite stable.
How do I present this history accurately and honestly in a r�sum� so I don't look like I have something to hide, but equally, potential employers won't see me as someone likely to leave. Should I drop the second three-month stint in advertising and just explain (if I get an interview) that there was a short gap in the middle of my most recent employment?
Jeremy says
You say you've been analysing what went wrong with your abortive career change. Before you launch yourself on to the job market yet again, I think you should ponder a little further.
The feedback you got from those advertising agencies was far too vague to be of value. To learn that your personality and skills didn't fit with their existing teams tells you nothing; but you can safely assume that their vagueness was deliberate and that, for whatever motive, they were anxious to say nothing hurtful. On perilously slender evidence, I'm going to suggest what the truth may have been. Please don't take it badly. If it's entirely without foundation, you can dismiss it with a light laugh; if you think there may be something in it, it could help you decide what to do next.
The line in your letter that struck me most was when you wrote of your "enthusiasm for improving systems and processes". You felt that this enthusiasm might have seemed "threatening" to these smaller "more staid" companies. Well, small advertising agencies may have many faults, but being staid is rarely one. My reckless guess is this: your genuine enthusiasm for systems and processes, invaluable in certain places and at certain times, didn't so much threaten these companies as irritate them. I think you may have tried to apply discipline and tidiness to working practices which often necessitate muddle. Inventive solutions to business problems are seldom born of logical thought alone. You may have been slow to appreciate this.
If I'm right, it suggests to me that you and your present job may be a better match than you think. They clearly rate you highly (they've welcomed you back twice), so your knowledge of systems and processes is obviously valued. You enjoy your job and there may be a permanent role in the offing. You and the company know each other. So my first bit of advice is: stay where you are, at least for the moment, and see if your new job first materialises and then expands to fill your ambitions.
If it doesn't, you'll still have a better story to tell on any future r�sum�. The truth is usually the best option.
Readers say
? I have held a number of contract roles in the last four years. They've been relatively short but decent roles with respected organisations. This has made it easy for me in interviews when the topic is raised at the number of contracts I've had.
When asked, I admit I do worry about appearing flighty and having little stickability, when in fact I would love a permanent job. However, I add that my contracts have given me broad exposure and varied experience within my field and I feel that I'm better prepared for taking on responsibility than if I'd been in the same job. This generally impresses interviewers. olliehowe
? Always be honest; attempts to be otherwise, no matter for what motive, have a horrible habit of finding you out. It only takes someone to spot a gap in your CV and the whole thing will crash around your ears.
Smaller companies are not normally staid, perhaps they just knew that the changes to process and organisations you were pushing were plain wrong. Is that possible? Do you still have something to learn about being willing to be flexible and open to change yourself? If you see yourself as strong in the area of process and organisation, push it to your current boss and see what he says. Justabloke
I'm going mad here, but worry it would be madder to quit
I got a new job six months ago, but it's not working out for lots of reasons. Should I take something temporary to save my rapidly disappearing sanity or hold out for something more permanent? I have started applying for jobs and have been offered a six-month contract at my last employer (they'd love to have me back) which could turn permanent, though there is no guarantee of this.
Do I take the temporary job to get out and apply for other roles? Or do I stick with what I have ? despite being miserable to the point of crying every day ? and wait for something permanent? Will a prospective employer see my decision to move for what it is ? a bad fit ? or think I'm fickle? I can't leave with no job because I have a mortgage to pay.
Jeremy says
You're lucky to have an immediate alternative. It may not be permanent and may not be perfect, but to be welcomed back by your last employer will give an immediate lift to your spirits. Otherwise, you'll soon have lost all confidence ? and people with no confidence don't interview well.
If you look at your case through the eyes of a prospective employer, it's quite reassuring. Here's someone who chose to leave a job for a new one but quickly realised her mistake. That's not uncommon, and six months is quite long enough to make sure it was indeed a mistake. Furthermore, she was so well regarded by her previous employer they were happy to offer her a six-month contract. That doesn't sound like a worryingly fickle potential employee. If anything, you sound intelligent, responsible and unlikely to make the same mistake again.
So don't let your misery drag on for another unnecessary minute.
Readers say
? I walked out of a training contract to become a solicitor in a "magic circle" firm after four months because I didn't believe in what I was doing and was thoroughly miserable. I thought that was my chance of a decent career over and no one would ever employ me again. Basically, that's rubbish. Like anything in life, it is how you deal with the experience and what you make of it. I have (several years down the line) just been offered my real dream job and in my interview feedback they actually said my comments about having to accept I had made a wrong choice were viewed as a positive.
Throwing your hands up and admitting things haven't worked out shows just as much, if not more, strength of character than just struggling on. mistersusan77
? If you're crying every day and you've got somewhere to go, go today. Don't wait. They're not worth it. Look at it like this: you've had a six-month contract and now you've found something else, you can do the same again. I was in the same position three years ago and went. I've never looked back. card
? It's OK to admit a mistake if you do it quickly, certainly before the six-month review. I bailed from a really well paid job after only three months because I couldn't see my kids properly and was bored by not having enough to do. I went back to my old, underpaid job near my kids which was probably also a mistake but one I can easily live with. billthecat
? I ignored my instincts when I was in a similar position and it only got much worse. I ended up leaving after 11 months, having taken six weeks' sick leave due to anxiety and depression. It nearly killed me. Get out now. grrrl
For Jeremy Bullmore's advice on a work issue, send a brief email to dear.jeremy@guardian.co.uk. Please note that he is unable to answer questions of a legal nature or reply personally.
Read next week's problems on the Money blog from Monday and post your advice ? we'll run the best of it alongside Jeremy's in next Saturday's column.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/apr/02/dear-jeremy-work-advice
North Korea Petrol prices Local government Alexander Litvinenko Comedy Manchester United
No comments:
Post a Comment