Job hunting – but how?

Once again, the Viennese Lean In Circle Femspace has brought together about 40 interested ladies to dwell together with HR specialist, Fürst Ada, on the mysteries of job seeking. 

Written by: Viktoria Tanczer, translated by: Rita Macskasi-Temesvary, Photos: Nora Varga

One of Ada’s sentences has caught my ear: „Do not show all your cards in advance! It’s like in a relationship: some mystery must remain to keep the interviewer curious. If she calls you in, you can tell your story yourself anyway.” But how should we tell our story, cause each one of us has a different story and is driven by various motives.

CV and covering letter, or the first impression

One thing is certain, that our storytelling will start with our job application. As always, the first impression will count, and in case of the HR manager, this will be our CV and covering letter.  We got many pieces of advice how a decent CV looks like: well-put together, formally in order, with relevant content and flowless spelling. If needed, our CV should be adapted to each job application, to emphasize those skills that let us appear in the best light possible for the job. 

A cleanly-built-up CV is essential to guide the HR manager’s expert eye towards the relevant information, based on which our CV might land in the favorites staple. The gist of it: true content, which reflects the demands of the job description, needs to meet sophisticated design. Only by doing so, can we make a good impression at the HR department and hope for getting a personal interview. 

The job interview, or the second date

Because of/ before/during a job interview we are often very nervous and would do anything to get the job, however we also have a choice, thus it’s worth to be prudent. When signing with a company, the firm basically buys our time and knowledge. That’s why we can consciously manage its price and terms of use. We must communicate determinedly our agenda and should give a flash of what we are capable of. (Seasoned knowledge must be warmed up again, newly-acquired skills need to be used well for the current undertaking). 

Moreover, we shall highlight that we are flexible and eager to learn, and should always be well-equipped with fitting examples that support our strengths. We should never be modest in case we really want the job. Finally make sure to put time and effort into the preparation for the interview and maybe even rehearse possible answers in several languages. 

Success and failure

Given, our efforts are rewarded by getting the job, there is not much left to do but pop the corks and lean back. But what if we fail?

Well, we can still open the bottle, but with a different motivation and we might regret doing so the next day 😊. Rejection is always in the deck, but we must never let failure disappoint us.  We need to move on quickly not to lose time. We must think of the opportunities one can create out of failure, such as the experience gained from each interview. A good advice is to have two strings to one’s bow and apply for more open positions at the same time. 

I had several big insights during the workshop. For one, that motherhood is not the only longer period of absence from the job market. By taking maternity leave, we are not worse off than those who take a sabbatical for 3-6 months. It is very unlikely that latter spend their time building financial models in Excel to keep their skills up-to-date. That’s why we must not worry about the time factor. If we can update ourselves and our skills, nobody will care that we have not worked in Excel, planned, or analyzed for a longer period. All timidity must be eliminated, we cannot let it hold us back. 

It would be an overstatement to claim that there is one winning recipe for the job search. However, the workshop has greatly helped us to consciously work on the main drivers of success, to activate the hidden energies in ourselves and those dwelling in Femspace, and to see how to build a personal strategy around the job seeking process.