According to The Holmes & Rahe Stress Scale, losing your job rates a 47 out of 100. While losing your job is not the end of the world, sometimes it feels that way.
We can never be fully prepared for what the world throws at us, but we can try! While you’re job hunting, think Murphy’s Law – if it can go wrong, it will. Your printer will break down the morning of your interview. Traffic jam. Transit strike. Stain on your lucky tie. Heel snaps off in a subway grate. You get the picture.
Ready.gov recommends preparing for an emergency in advance by building an evacuation kit; what is often referred to by military personnel, FBI, police, and doomsday preppers as a ‘go bag’ or a ‘bug out bag.’ You can build a go bag with both mental and physical solutions for your own job search – to prepare for Mr. Murphy!
Go Mental
The key word is PREPARE. Research the company at which you’re interviewing thoroughly. You may be asked “do you know about our fill-in-the-blank project?”
Dry Run. In this six-degrees-of-separation society, you must know SOMEONE who occasionally has to hire people. Ask around. See if they’ll give you a practice interview. Also, do a dry run of the actual way you’re going to get to the location – know exactly where the building is, what floor the office is on, figure out how long it’ll take you to get there, and tack on extra extra time to plan for Mr. Murphy.
What If? In your company research, visualize what your interviewer might ask you and plan responses. Also plan for job logistic ‘what ifs.’ What if they ask you what salary you want? What if they want you to travel extensively?
Let’s Get Physical
Always, ALWAYS have more resumes than you’ll need. Meeting with 2 people? Bring 6. Upload a copy to Google Drive. Make a JPG, PDF, Word Doc, and email them to yourself (so you’ll have it on your smart device). Put these on a flash drive (or two) as well and carry the drives with you.
Bring a towel. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy didn’t have it wrong – a towel is über useful. But what we’re talking about here is antibacterial face/hand towelettes. If you’re nervous and sweaty, here’s the solution. Nothing says confidence like a nice, solid, non-sweaty handshake.
Bring backup. When planning your gear for your interview, imagine the worst case scenario. Ripped pantyhose? Carry a spare pair. Broken heel? Keep a pair of Tieks in your bag (not just for interviews – super handy). Stain on your lucky tie? Bring the 2nd luckiest along, just in case.
Does any of this sound a little paranoid, or excessive? Maybe. Ask yourself this important question: HOW MUCH DO I WANT THIS JOB? Are you willing to go the extra, extra mile to get it? To over-prepare … knowing full well that you may not ever need any of the items in your go bag? If you really, really want this job, go the distance. Preparedness pays off.
Good luck – and GO get ’em!
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