Feb 2

Feb 2 Find a Career Cheerleader to Help You Win Your Dream Job

I know I’m not alone in this but the last 2+ years have felt like wading through quicksand. And after an underwhelming start to 2022, I decided I really need some change in my life. I’ve been applying for new jobs and have just been shortlisted for a senior role in a creative agency that I’m really excited about. They’ve asked me to provide referees and that’s my problem. I’ve been in the same business for just over 10 years, worked my way up through a couple of different roles and I’ve grown and experienced a lot in that time. In fact, it’s been the most significant time of my career. Obviously I can’t suggest my current boss as a referee…I don’t want to flag my intention to leave until I have a solid offer and contract in hand. And my previous employer isn’t all that relevant given it was a decade ago and I was pretty junior back then.

I really want this new opportunity but I’m a bit stuck as to who to nominate as referees. Any ideas?

Hey Lady,

Your quicksand is my room-temp oatmeal; rather than feeling stuck, I’m just feeling slow and weighty with maximum effort expended for very little actual movement. But that could just be the long-COVID talking.

Good for you popping up your periscope and being on the lookout for new opps like so many signing up to join the Fuck-This-Job movement known as The Great Resignation. But first things first, comrade: you said you’re gunning for a role in a creative agency right?! So get creative FFS. Perhaps two+ years of treading the relentlessly choppy waters of a global pandemic has waterlogged your brain and dulled your instincts. You’re not thinking like the creative type that this new role requires you to be.

Allow me to do that thinking until your brain resets and redeems itself…

HR types and recruiters fully get the sensitivities of this very sitch
They won’t expect you to nominate your current boss as a referee. In fact, that would be weird.
Referees don’t necessarily mean past employers
Colleagues (past and present) can also make great career cheerleaders who can be tapped to talk to your strengths on a shared project or how you work as part of a team. If there’s no one in your current crew who can be trusted to talk you up without blowing you up then scan your LinkedIn connections for former colleagues who you feel comfortable to approach; ask whether they’d be willing to rave about your above-ave work ethic, dependable character and boundless expertise. If he/she/they happen to have ascended to upper management in a shiny, high-profile organisation, that’s even better. If it’s been a while since you worked together, don’t just assume they can recall your best bits at will. Take the time to prep them so that you’re not wasting theirs. Offer up some relevant talking points that they can consider, remind them of past projects and collaborations and give them a little info on this new gig. Make it super easy for them to rave about you with authentic enthusiasm and thoughtful insights that will help the powers that be want nobody but you.
Don’t forget about clients
Think about a project, pitch, or initiative where you shone bright like a diamond, overdelivered on expectations, or converted a tricky client or situation into a major win for the company. [Obvs they need to be a client with whom you can be open and trust they won’t sound the alarm with your current boss.]
Remember that volunteer work also counts
Genuine time on the tools as a volunteer for a community or charitable project says you play well with others (and for little or no reward); that you have a heart, a conscience and a clean police check. Your volunteer supervisor or community leader is another referee option you can put forward to talk to your sense of community, team spirit and selfless acts of service.

Lady, the fact that you’re at the referee stage of the process is wonderfully positive. It means you’re on a shortlist at least or you’re the frontrunner at best. So make the recruiter or HR team’s job easier by offering up the most thoughtful, varied and prepared list of referees who are happy to help pole vault you to the very top of that shortlist.

And while I reload my glitter cannons in readiness for the follow-up email you’ll be sending me to say you got The Job, I’m reminded of an important, final To-Do. Please make sure you don’t forget to share the excellent news with your referees. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve agreed to be a referee, been interviewed (at length) and then never heard another bloody word. Remember that if you land this role, your refs have played a part in that successful landing. Keep them sweet. Send a thank-you note and a giant novelty brownie because if The Job turns out to be a bust and you find yourself back on the employment market in a matter of months, then you may need those referees again, sooner than you’d imagined. [Gulp.]