TOPIC: CAREER How To Answer The One Question Unemployed People Dread BY VIVIAN GIANG What do you do? should be an easy question to answer — unless youre unemployed. This is the Catch-22 of networking when you dont have a job: You need to meet people to get another job, but, at the same time, people become disinterested when they find out you dont have one. We associate our identities so much with our jobs that its difficult to talk about who we are and what we do when we have no job. A recent Quora thread tried to get answers for dealing with this scenario by asking the question: How do unemployed people introduce themselves? Weve picked out the most helpful suggestions. Come out and say that youre looking for a job. Venkatesh Rao, a Seattle-based independent researcher and management consultant, advises using your answer as a networking opportunity by saying something like, I am on the market. Know any good gigs for a [your profession here]? Let them know you have options. Even if youre unemployed right now, you shouldnt put off a desperate vibe. So exude confidence by communicating that you have options, says Rao. You can say something like: Ive got a couple of options brewing. Havent yet decided what to do. Tell them youre in between jobs. There could be several reasons why someones in between jobs, from being laid off to quitting your job to focus on your own passion project. This is why Quora users Joe Samson and Brian Greenhow think this vague answer works best for those who are unemployed. Frame your situation as your choice. If you confidently say Im in between jobs or I am taking some time off like it doesnt bother you, then it wont be a big deal to others, says lawyer and technologist Gil Silberman. Instead, focus the conversation on your project, skills, or even volunteer experience. Usually it is best not to be desperate, and if you are desperate, it is usually for the best not to tell everyone about it, he writes. You can also say that youre taking some time off to figure out what you really want to do. Say you work for yourself. Luckily, the entrepreneurial economy has made it OK to leave a full-time gig to focus on your own career endeavors. You can easily say that youre a freelancer or entrepreneur, advise Pushkarr Thakre and Varun Upadhyay. Source: businessinsider
Posted on: Fri, 22 Nov 2013 06:50:48 +0000
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