Attitude, Passion, Selling It & Acing The Interview
by Angela Loëb
This week I spoke to a gentleman on the west coast who told me that at the age of 51 and having struggling with health issues for the last year, he’s ready to just get a job – forget what he’s passionate about.
Mmmm….
Well, if you’re familiar with my take on things, you know I didn’t let that pass.
I told him about a client I worked with last year who, even at age 53, worried about disappointed his elderly father. He also fretted about dramatically changing his and his wife’s lifestyle by desiring a change. You see, he was tired of banking and wanted to work for a non-profit he strongly believes in. He wondered if he should just call up a friend who works for another bank to see if he could get an interview there. When I pointed out that his lack of enthusiasm about banking might sabotage him in the interview, he paused. Then, he agreed. What happened next is that he worked on ways he could replace his income rather than his paycheck. He did it and successfully moved into doing something he is passionate about.
“…I found the part you mentioned about processing your feelings to be the most critical factor in starting a post-layoff job search. If you are in the wrong mental state, it will “leak through” in an interview. My first 3 weeks of interviewing after the layoff were very unproductive. Your exercise helped.”
The above is from a client who took my advice a couple of years ago… just like the advice I gave in my recent article, “You’ve Lost Your Job, Now What?”
In my book, What You Need To Know To Get A Job Now!, I address this important aspect of job search:
Attitude is a critical factor in the success of just about anything we do, and it’s especially important in the job search. Over the years, I’ve observed many candidates get a job because they showed a lot of enthusiasm and passion even when they didn’t possess every qualification listed on the job description. On the flipside, I’ve seen many good people miss out on great jobs because they sabotaged the interview due to fear, unresolved issues, lack of confidence, lack of personal vision or all of the above!
So, think about it. They’re all tied together… attitude, passion, selling it & acing the interview.