JamesM

Be confident and direct and as mentioned talk your self up or your job will go to some cradle with half your ability but who has a greater sense of modesty.

Boris-canadabound

Just received rejection letter. So disappointed. Didn't get a second interview. Bit peeved because the interview I did have did not allow me to show myself in the best light - it was of a chat with the interviewer going off on tangents.

Still, I am out of practice and I won't allow that to happen next time (if there is a next time). I have never had this much difficulty getting interviews before. Doesn't do much for one's confidence. Oh well, back to the applications ...

JamesM

It's not you. It's them so keep your head up.

If they are giving crap interviews and not giving you the chance to high light your skill set and what you can do imagine how crap the place is to work at.

Which city are you looking and what are you looking for?

Boris-canadabound

Thanks JamesM.

I'm in Ottawa, not the easiest place to find work. Just looking for any suitable office job. Most recent background is publishing (would do better in Toronto for that reason I think) but also have some legal quals/exp.

Could be worse as I do have a p/t sales associate job but it isn't really 'me' and even p/t it is wrecking my feet!

johnh009

Yes, an interview is a two way street. Often I have gone for interviews and thought "do I really want to work for these people?".

JB0591

Keep your chin up, I've had four interviews so far and each one was really different.

The worst was the one in which the HR lady made me late, there was no introductions, they quizzed me on stuff that was not on my resume, members of the panel defended me stating some of the questions were unfair, after 1.45 hours the main person doing the talking said oh its 5.45 pm I better go pick up my daughter, it ended as abruptly as it started. I was a little shell shocked coming out of that interview. But I did learn from it.

JB

JB0591

I'm Ottawa based, if you fancy meeting up for a coffee to discuss job hunting send me a PM.

JamesM

I was out of work from November 11th until March 18th (4 months). It drove me insane. I just missed out on several jobs and was very down through the month of February after a company made me interview 5 times and then strung me along for 3 weeks before offering the job to some one else.

However things really picked up early March and my confidence kicked back in. It's funny how quickly life can turn up or down.

You are definately doing the right thing with a part-time job. I was entitled to employment insurance but I think having a part time job would have been much better for my esteem and mental state. Not working through the winter really sucked as it's so hard going outdoors and being in this condo 20+ hours most days drove me nuts.

Keep up the social interactions and focus on meeting and talking to new people. Remember that you are simply re-inventing yourself at the moment and this is all part of the process. Say yes to all social engagements etc.....

Recruitment consultants are generally rubbish in Canada but there are a few good ones out there so don't give up on them. I got nothing from them initially but in early March 3 of them came knocking with opportunities and were very good at massaging my deflated ego with their bs.

They are not as good as LinkedIn but definately post your resume on Monster and Workopolis. Just be very firm with any callers about your expectations.

It's also a good idea to take up JBO591's offer to hook up. Two of you pooling idea's resources and good recruiters will increase your chances.

Atlantic Xpat

I believe Linked In can be a useful tool. It was largely pooh poohed by some of my fellow posters during a thread a whiles ago, but I believe it can be an effective tool both for indentifying companies and more importanly people that you can contact to chase that opportunity. It is important to treat it like your resume and keep your profile current and eye catching. I've had a number of enquiries regarding my interest in jobs over the last couple of years. I've not pursued them as they usually involve moving to Toronto, but it's good to get the nibble. (fnarr fnarr)

Boris-canadabound

Hi JamesM, thanks for sharing that. Funny you should mention social engagements as I have been missing friends, especially as my OH's job (the reason we are here) involves a lot of travel and he is away much of the time. I recently got chatting to a customer who moved here from England a few years ago and we arranged to meet up. Her husband seems to travel a lot too, so it is handy for both of us. I haven't had much luck with agencies. I emailed one agency in particular with my cv, and followed up with emails and phone calls (always on answerphone) and just asked for advice more than anything, but they ignored me. So now I am constantly looking at websites for companies I am interested in, and contacting them directly. I think I am going to have to (reluctantly) look at applying for f/t retail jobs as well.

JB, sounds a good idea - thanks for suggesting - I will PM you shortly.

Atlantic Xpat - thanks for the suggestion - I joined LinkedIn a year or so ago, but haven't anything with it since. Maybe I should take another look.

Atlantic Xpat

IMHO, Unless you keep it upto date, it's worth is much reduced. Spend some time on it as you would your resume.

JamesM

I've mentioned this on several other threads but LinkedIn is a huge tool for job hunting and in my opinion more useful than anything else because of the volume of constantly updated contacts. I am amazed that any poster would challenge it's role in a job hunt.

Your profile is like a real time resume and also allows you to promote your personal brand by providing status updates etc.......

It might not be an ideal tool of you are say in the Police Force but for most white and blue collar private sector professionals it needs to be a part of your job search strategy. 60% of my interviews came directly or indirectly from LinkedIn with recruiters and other job sites making up the rest.

Novocastrian

Very glad to hear that you're back in work. I must say though that when met at the Yard in February, I didn't notice any lack of confidence. Rather the opposite.

Cheers.

JamesM

Thanks.

I think in the Yard I was convinced I had an offer coming. It was mid-February when it was apparent I was being strung along and had few other job opportunities in the pipeline.

My house mate waking me up in the morning and forcing me out the condo to Tim Horton's for a coffee and newspaper helped immensely.

I am a better person for the whole job hunting experience but it's a tough gig and I can understand how people can get in ruts quickly. It's hard to not take interview feedback personally and when you apply for a job you know you can do well and never hear anything it can quickly dampen the soul.

I never want to be unemployed in an Ontario winter again that is for sure!

JB0591

I was strung along for 4 weeks by one company, lost the whole of Jan because of it. Learnt lots from it.

I would like to add whilst I have had 4 interviews, it might look like I have to brush up on my interview skills, but only one interview went really badly.

1st interview went well and I was told I had to job (see first sentance)
2nd interview went well but I was told they were interview one other person then they told "me not this time"
3rd interview was with a company who had mucked me about since before my recce trip......that was the interview I described in an earlier post on this thread
4th interview went well but it was a two phase interview, firstly a PM + HR then the project interviewed me, the two groups said conflictiing things about the post which sounded an alarm bell....sounded like company was not set on it......got told that it was "on hold"