recovering from bad work experiences: out on the hunt again

this is another instalment of jacob share’s and my conversation on leaving bad work experiences behind. we started this last month, and pointed out the six stages of recovery from bad work experiences: resign, recover, resources, research, re-apply and results.

we’ve already covered

  • resign (get the hell out of dodge!)
  • recover (get your bearings before you throw yourself back into the job search),
  • resources (make an inventory of your values, skills, knowledge and experience) and
  • research (get the skinny on the people you’re next going to work with)

jacob and one of his guest bloggers, andrew rondeau, have some great advice regarding the “re-apply” phase – that’s when you go out there and look for a new job. a good job. a better job!

don’t forget that the job interview goes both ways – not only do they interview you, you interview them as well. in that interview, don’t be shy to ask smart questions like “when did you last ask for feedback on your management style, and what were the results?”

sounds pretty forward, doesn’t it? but if management style is important to you, why wouldn’t you ask such a question? of course, because you’ve inventoried your resources, you know what’s important to you in a new job, and you’ll craft the questions that will help you find out what you need to know about this organization.

apart from the background research and the job interview, there are many more clues that can give you a sense for your new work environment. pay particular attention to the receptionist: he or she is the organization’s human business card. how friendly, polite, upbeat and bright does he or she appear? again, what are your values? what type of receptionist would you like to have around? if the receptionist isn’t quite to your liking, ask yourself what that says about the organization.

another clue is how you are invited to the job interview. are you being told to show up at a certain time and place, or are you given a choice? what’s your first impression of the voice on the other end of the line? with the exception of large organizations, in most cases, the person you’re talking to will be a potential boss or supervisor. does that person sound like someone you’d like to work with?

do you have any more tips on how to tell whether an organization is good to work for?

(this post was listed in the carnival of healing at reiki digest

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