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Ruth Sternberg | Confident Career Search

Ruth Sternberg, Confident Career Search

Specializing in interview-attracting resumes and LinkedIn profiles. Talk to a career search professional at 614-746-4587!

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The Hiring System is Broken (a story we tell ourselves)

Filed Under: Essential Job Search Tactics, Get an Interview, Ghosted by Recruiters, Job Search, Master Your Mindset

I’m going to say something that might not be popular with my readers:

If you are not getting a job offer, it is time to consider that you might be the problem.

There, I said it.

I felt I had to say something, because I see so much posted these days about difficult job searches and unfair interview processes.

Here’s what I see:

“The system is broken! Can’t they see I’m qualified? I have all the right skills!”

“That stupid recruiter! Why aren’t they contacting me? They expect me to have experience that I need to acquire by getting the job!”

“They are ghosting me! What jerks!”

“Didn’t they see that I can do the job? What do they expect from me?”

“They asked really stupid questions! They expect us to be able to do the work of 3 employees.”

“The interview process is broken!”

“They just ignored me after three interviews! That is so wrong. Why do I even try?”

I do agree that employers don’t always handle things well.

But I also see lots of people getting hired anyway. And the one thing they seem to have in common is that they “own” the process and their part in it.

See, here’s the problem:

Most people will default to the lowest-effort strategy to find a job. They will peruse the job ads, find roles that seem to fit them, and then submit resumes, hit send, and sit back and wait.

The silence can be deafening.

Ultimately, if they don’t get responses, many of these job seekers will then default to blame.

If they do get interviews, but no offers, the situation is much the same. It’s the system’s fault.

Yeah, okay. I read a lot of articles about how hiring practices have to change if companies want qualified employees to come on board and stick around for an appreciable length of time.

And there’s truth in it.

But here’s the problem with most of this complaining:

This is not the most productive way of approaching things.

Ranting online could actually cost you an opportunity. And it’s not going to change your situation right now.

Here’s my take on what actually might benefit you—and really work—if you decide to take a breath and readjust your mindset.

Here are some (proven) effective steps I coach my clients to take:

(Full disclosure: These take work and commitment.)

1. Check your mindset. Are you still angry about your layoff? Are you feeling emotionally vulnerable about your situation? Take some time to gather yourself. Start writing down the things you are grateful for. Talk to a therapist or a friend about how you are feeling. Get some exercise. It can drastically shift your attitude!   

2. Do the work to establish what you are aiming for. Review the values that drive you. Revisit your career path. Take note of what you enjoyed and what no longer serves you. Keep that list handy as you search.

3. Know what’s out there and how you fit in. Research the industry and companies that interest you. Talk to people who already work in target roles, or for target companies. Find out what the landscape is like so you can decide if the direction is right for you. Find out what the interview process is like.

Applied, but haven’t been successful?

1. Review the job requirements, then look at how you are explaining your candidacy. Could it be that you are not going far enough to demonstrate the results you have achieved using the desired skills? Are you merely describing skills and duties, or are you providing quantifiable results that have made a difference for your employers?

2. Have you done enough to amplify the aspects of your career that make you different from your competitors? Sometimes you need to take things a step further than the requirements from a job ad. You may have accomplished goals that demonstrate you are multi-faceted and bring additional expertise to the job. Those should be on your resume!

3. What do you know about the problems facing your target employer? Are you prepared to talk about how you might help them approach these? Can you show that you understand them and their culture? Prepare yourself to talk with them as though are “one of them.”

4. Have you practiced talking about yourself and your accomplishments? If you felt a bit tongue-tied in your interview, that’s a sign you need to prepare better. A coach might be a great investment.

Remember that the people interviewing you don’t know you. They see only what you provide and present. If they don’t pick you, it’s because something’s missing. You are not making a strong enough case for your candidacy.

You have a lot more control over your job search than you believe. You have the power to present yourself as you wish to be seen. You have the ability to prepare materials that will showcase your abilities and achievements. You have the freedom to tell your career story in a resonant and memorable way.

I promise you that if you keep to this way of thinking, you will eventually be able to stop blaming the “system” and start putting your best self out there to find that match with an employer who sees your value and snaps it up.

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A Cure for Job-Search Paralysis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiRsEnarfcw

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Ruth is a gifted master of words. I hired Ruth because I needed someone who could clean up and reorganize my resume and LinkedIn profile. Ruth took in my career… Read more “Maria Blauvelt”

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I was really struggling during COVID after getting laid off. I just could not seem to break through and get noticed.  I had used Ruth’s services before and gotten a… Read more “Sam Lewis”

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I am truly honored to have the privilege of working with Ruth. She took the time to reach me on my level, and assist me in honing my interviewing skills… Read more “Randall Johnson”

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Ruth is passionate about her clients. She truly cares and loves to see us find our next “Big Step” on our career journey. She is engaging in conversation and she listens. She… Read more “Karen Diehl”

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Ruth worked to help me understand my strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes. She not only built a great resume and LinkedIn profile for me, but also coached me to believe… Read more “Matthew Knouff”

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Ruth is a tremendous resource for help in overhauling a resume and building a LinkedIn profile. She is very knowledgeable about what it takes to get noticed by recruiters. Ruth… Read more “Dan Carson”

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I highly recommend Ruth as a career coach. She provides clients with concrete tools and advice to create a plan of action. Ruth truly understands the job search process, from… Read more “Francesca Fuerman”

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Ruth became passionate about my professional experience immediately. She knew I was struggling to effectively portray my depth of experience in writing for effective recruitment by employers. Once I had… Read more “Anthony Bahr”

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I felt so confident in myself after working with Ruth, after I was able to take a step back and look at my résumé and see just how accomplished a person I… Read more “Logan Weissler”

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When you said to me, ‘Okay, we got this. We are going to figure this all out and get you into these companies,’ I felt my whole body relax and… Read more “Cathy C.”

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Ruth took the time to get to know me and understand my strengths and abilities. She overhauled my résumé, which was essentially a list of job tasks, and created an attractive, compelling… Read more “Jillian O.”

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Ruth is an amazing, thorough, and professional résumé writer with an eye for bringing out your hidden story and value. Over the course of a month we were able to transform my résumé from zero… Read more “Craig M. Chavis, Jr.”

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Ruth has a gift for listening to her client’s needs with real empathy, and for translating their background into words that accurately reflect relevant talents. Moreover, Ruth is the kind… Read more “Cory Joyrich”

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Working with Ruth was an excellent experience. Coming out of the military, I spent several years working with resumes that never seemed to achieve the goal of interviews. After realizing… Read more “Calvin Jones”

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  • Get an Interview
  • Job Search
  • How to Answer: “Tell Me About Yourself?”
  • Identifying Transferable Skills
  • Ghosted by Recruiters
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