Tag: interviewing

No cogs

Fabrizio1 Comment

When looking back at our career, all we see is often company names, titles and dates.

But in those periods, in those roles, at those organisations, we have done stuff. Often, a lot of stuff. And that is much more important than the rest.

If you invest time writing down what you have done at one company, it is likely you are going to identify two or three skills you had no idea how to word and present. Do this for all of your past experiences, and you’ll have a pretty good picture of what you are good at and what you like to do.

The following step is to build a story around that, a narrative that matches the characteristics of the market you are in and the needs of the company you want to be hired from.

If you do not want to be treated like a cog, step out of the machine and go find your way.

Cover letters

FabrizioLeave a comment

There are four key elements to any cover letter, and they are often missing or misunderstood.

First, the appeal of the company. The question you are trying to answer is why do I want to work for this company?. You might not have a reason when you see the job ad, but you better find one soon. This require some research online. Look for stories that might resonate with who you are and what you stand for, or even for characteristics the company has that meet some of your outstanding experience. “I have heard a lot about company X”, or “I have always wanted to work for company Y” does not really cut it anymore. Basically anybody can claim the same, and you should start singalling uniquess from the very beginning.

Second, the passion for the role. The question you are trying to answer is what makes this position important for me?. Here is where you start telling about your passion for the field, about the times you have worked in the same role elsewhere and have excelled, about how you have tailored your curriculum to exactly arrive at this moment, applying for this position. Even if you are a new graduate, you probably have some passions or preferences for one field or another, and expessing them is always better than “I am just ok with any job you could offer me”.

Third, your experience. This is what most people get wrong. It’s not about making a list of places you have worked, roles you have covered, skills you have accumulated. There’s a CV for that. The question you are answering here is what have I done so far that matches the requirements listed in the job ad?. Many applicants preach to the wind, figuring that their experience would be good enough for most jobs. But actually, you want to look at the list of requirements carefully, think at what you have done so far (professionally, academically, personally, in order of importance), and see what you have learned that might be applicable in the role you are applying for. It will take a while, and you really have a chance to stand out in this section. It helps if you look at your career horizontally rather than vetically. Pick two, maximum three, relevant examples, and use a story format: “We had this problem at company X, we tried this and that, we eventually achieved a x% improvement in A, and this tought be the importance of B” (where B is what the target company is looking for).

Fourth, and last, the deabreakers. In this final section, you want to list things that are a must for you. “What could the company fail to provide that would make me change my mind about all of the above?”. Here is where you list availability to travel or relocate, salary requests, need to work remotely, and so on. If you have more than two or three items, carefully think if they are all _so_ important that you really want to point them out in the cover letter. Eventually, you do this to avoid a waste of time, but you also want to signal some sort of flexibility to further underscore that this role at this company is truly what you want.

Few thoughts

FabrizioLeave a comment

A bunch of random thoughts, further reflecting on my story as an expat job seeker in Finland.

When you are in a new situation, use where you’ve been to fuel the journey ahead, not as a reminder of the journey it could have been.

People need somebody who believes in them, and while you are waiting for that somebody yourself, it’s easy to forget you could be the one believing (in you and in others).

Being aware of luck is tremendously important, and helping others with the luck you are given is a great way to keep your feet on the ground.

If you are thinking about mentoring, helping, volunteering, the best thing to do is to just stop talking about it and start doing it. It’s generous, rewarding, and it does make a difference.

Vertical and horizontal

Fabrizio2 Comments

How do you think at your career?

If you think at it vertically, it means you see it as a (more or less) straight line. It’s a progression, you look at where you were yesterday and make expectations about where you will be tomorrow. Of course, there might be hiccups, that we perceive as overwhelmingly negative and that we do our best to avoid. But in general what you care about is advancing, going forward.

Traditionally, careers are built vertically. Since school, we are used to approach things in terms of levels (first grade, second grade, …; primary school, secondary school, high school, …), and at certain points we are given particularly difficult tasks (exams) that might get us promoted.

This system is partially based on the assumption that what you do will stay with you, and actually accumulate throughout the years. It’s the reason why people who stay with a company for ten years are more likely to get promoted or to have a higher salary, or people that have 20-30 years of experience are more valuable on the job market than new graduates.

The alternative is to think at career horizontally. In this case, rather than looking at where you were yesterday, you think about what you have learned, achieved, experienced. Where do your skills fit best in this particular time? What type of company could use your experience with this or that? What role would really allow to put the best you at the service of the community?

There is no straight line in this sense, rather a wide variety of opportunities. You might find yourself in a position you would have not considered, just because that’s what make sense right now. You might have to accept a lower salary, just because you understand that you are needed, here and now. You might have to make a long detour, just because you want to refine a certain skill or learn a new art. I’d go as far as say that if you approach your career horizontally, all these things would not even matter in the first place.

All this becomes particularly relevant when you are looking for a new job.

If you approach the search for a job with a vertical mindset, you are narrowing down the options quite a lot. Say you have been some sort of Marketing Manager in the past four years: you’ll most likely look for some a senior marketing leadership positions, possibly at larger companies, probably in the field you already have experience with (B2B, Saas, B2C, etc.).

If instead you look at the situation from a horizontal perspective, the Marketing Manager role loses its importance, and you could for example focus on the fact you have learned how to lead people to solve difficult problems, how to present in front of a wide audience, and how to work across departments to align vision and strategy. These are all skills that are applicable to many more positions, fields, companies, industries than a simple job title is.

I am not implying that one way is easier than the other. Certainly, most of the current job market is designed with verticality in mind, both on the demand and on the offer side. And for this very reason, people often struggle to find a different way: they hit their head on the wall, they get rejected, over and over again, they feel drained and demotivated, and eventually they give up.

The way you approach things changes the way you see things. And sometimes, all you need is some more opportunities.

You don’t know it

Fabrizio1 Comment

What should you learn next?

Should you double down on something you are already good at, trying to refine your expertise in that field?

Or should you try to fill a gap, working on something that you and people around you see as a weakness?

I have changed my opinion over time on this particular topic, and now I am more inclined to invest on further developing traits that are already strong. This might vary at different career stages, though.

One important thing to keep in mind should you decide to put effort in learning something you don’t know is the following.

You don’t know it.

Progress might be slow, you might hit a wall more than once, your motivation might falter. And when that happen, remember.

You don’t know it.

Be extremely kind with yourself, as beating yourself up for something you don’t know is like beating yourself up because you are not tall or your hair are not the type you desire.

You are learning something new: it’s going to be difficult, you have to give yourself time, it’s an opportunity not a matter of life and death.

By the way, you should never bet your career or your possibility to be hired in an important role on something you don’t know. It’s just not worth it.