Category: Coaching Tips
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What to do if you DON’T land...
Continue Reading- Career tip
What to do if you DON’T land the job
We’ve all been there; here’s what to do if you don’t happen to land your dream veterinary job.
Posted: 27/11/2022
Read Time/Watch Time
5 minutes
Who should read this?
Anyone who wasn’t selected for their dream job as a vet, vet nurse, vet tech, or student.
Author(s)
Melanie Barham
Region
Global content
Have you been through this? What advice would you have for others in this situation?
We’ve all been there; you apply for a job. You polish your resume and go through the interview, and maybe even start envisioning yourself in the role. And then you get the news that you didn’t get the job. Ouch.
First of all, let me say that everyone who is willing to admit it has been turned down for a job. Here’s some advice about what to do about it.
- Be gracious, even if you don’t feel like it. It never pays to be sour about a job you didn’t get. I generally suggest thanking the hiring committee or person for their time and consideration and wishing them the best. Even if you can’t muster any other goodwill.
- Take time to feel all the feelings and recoup. Rally your team of mentors and trusted people around you and be as angry, annoyed, sad as you like. It’s ok to feel these things. Professionally, you will likely not want to act on them at this phase, but all feelings are welcome in this stage. Talking this through with a coach can be really helpful also. Hyperlink: https://vsgd.co/career-support/coaching/
- Objectively ask for feedback if you can. I’ve received some of the best feedback of my life from reaching out to the employer, someone on the hiring committee etc. after NOT getting a job. However, I will say that it is important to be sure you can listen humbly, and not get defensive or argumentative. Afterwards, it’s helpful to sit with the feedback, and decide which information you will take forward to modify your behaviour and which information you will leave behind. Not all advice is worth taking!
- Understand that sometimes it isn’t about you as a candidate, but the constraints and preferences of the employer. Sometimes you cannot change that.
- Make a plan to change things that need to be changed, and move on. It can be helpful to write it down as well.
- Know that it will feel a bit hard to put yourself out there again. If you feel a bit gun shy about applying to your next job, don’t worry. This is pretty normal. If your confidence has taken a beating, you might want to get your resume reviewed or do some interview prep with a professional, or lean on your support network.
Have you been through this? What advice would you have for others in this situation? If you want to speak to someone about interview prep, your resume/CV, or career coaching, please contact us!
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How to Survive the Rollercoaster of Applying...
Continue Reading- Career tip
How to Survive the Rollercoaster of Applying For Jobs
Creating a sense of calm and resilience when you're trying to find a new role.
Posted: 19/11/2022
Read Time/Watch Time
8 minutes
Who should read this?
veterinarians, vet nurses, vet techs, job seekers
Author(s)
Melanie Barham
Region
Global content
How to survive the rollercoaster of applying for jobs
If it’s been a while since you applied for a job, you might forget how much energy it takes. Much like dating, applying for jobs in any field is really putting yourself out there. It can be exhausting, exciting, and many other feelings in between.
Here’s some tips to help:
1. Budget your energy
Remember that you might have to take time to imagine yourself in a role, craft a cover letter and customized resume, and go through interviews. This can cause us to feel quite exposed, as though we’re holding ourselves up for examination and validation. Whether you get the job or not, set aside energy to dedicate to this process. Remembering this before you begin is so important!
2. Rally your circle of support
You may contact your mentors etc for references, and this is a great time to rally your supporters. They know you well, and can be your cheering squad and team of reflection coaches as you prep for each stage of the job seeking process, asking you great questions that get your brain thinking. If you don’t have a circle of support, reach out to our communities or a coach as either an anonymous support or for one-on-one support from our coaches.
3. Set aside time for reflection
It’s important to reflect on what went well and what didn’t at each stage of the job search. What went well? What were you most proud of? What would you do differently next time? Answering these questions, and considering them independently of the outcome or feedback of others first can be helpful. Seeking feedback from successful and unsuccessful job attempts can also be incredibly helpful to help with personal growth.
4. Avoid over-rumination
Sometimes, getting or not getting the job has less to do with us, and more to do with the specific job. If you go down the road of self-depreciation and examining your self worth, you know you’ve overdone the reflection. My fabulous husband always says to me, “Your worth is not measured by other people’s opinions of you,” which I will share with you as well. Even if you get 0 jobs you applied for, you are still an amazing professional and there is still a need for your unique talents.
5. Manage your expectations
A lovely wise person told me, “It isn’t worth keeping track of how many attempts it took to get you over the high jump pole.” Ah right! We always remember the failed attempts and take them hard, but in reality, it can take a few tries before we land an amazing position. Know that despite how people tell their career stories, there’s a lot of failed applications and attempts before appearing to leap to apparent success.
Let us know if we can help you on your career journey. You don’t have to go it alone.
Newsletter
We send out regular updates with articles about creating a sustainable career in vet med, along with job opportunities and more. Employers, we’ve got great articles for you too!
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Three Tips to Connect to Your Career...
Continue Reading- Think piece
Three Tips to Connect to Your Career Purpose
If you're questioning your next career move, follow our tips to help get you on track.
Posted: 19/11/2022
Read Time/Watch Time
8 minutes
Who should read this?
Veterinarians, veterinary technicians/nurses, job seekers, vet professionals questioning their careers
Author(s)
Adrian Nelson-Pratt
Don’t get stuck in the mud – imagine doing work that you’d love to do!
If you’ve ridden the rollercoaster of the pandemic, don’t be surprised if you start thinking about your career path. Maybe you’re like millions of people around the world just re-evaluating where you fit best. When you think about work, does it make you excited or are you fearing the worse rather than a sense of opportunity?
Don’t get stuck in the mud – imagine doing work that you’d love to do! I’m going to give you three tips to prepare for reconnecting to your career purpose.
The great news is that professionals in the veterinary field can cross sectors easily with transferable skills, and many people actually find they rekindle their joy of practice with a few adjustments.
Working with a coach on career vision, change and diversification might be just the thing to help you find clarity on your direction, explore options for diversification or build confidence to apply for a new role.
Perhaps you’re worried about stigma around switching or change? Unsure of how to reinvent yourself or find work you really want to do? How about seizing the opportunity you’ve been given but not knowing where to start?
These are my three tips for reconnecting to your career after uncertainty or change.
Take back control
Identify your concerns and write them down.
What can you and what can’t you influence?
What is actually within your control? Highlight this.
It is normal to have many things in your sphere of concern and be able to influence some of them, however we can only control the things within our direct control. These are our mindset, our choices and our actions.Once you’ve established what is within your control, then you can choose your actions or more importantly in the current circumstances, you can choose your response to your concerns.
What will I keep doing?
What will I start doing differently?
What will I stop doing?
What must I learn to accept? This does not mean liking it, rather accepting and choosing a productive response.
Being furloughed, made redundant or having your job role changed may well be a concern but not be within your control. You may have to accept it and choose a response instead. This is a common challenge that I address with my coaching clients.Work your values
What are the things you hold dear, that support your beliefs, drive your intentions and describe your identity? Is your work aligned with those values?Maybe your employer has struggled and not treated their people well during the crisis? Has that jarred you?
Perhaps you didn’t really feel settled or really like the work? Were you stuck in a rut and not sure how to get out?
If so, then this is an opportunity to reframe your job or career. Try answering these questions.
What words describe the work you’d like to do? Meaningful work that will make you feel fulfilled. What does fulfilment mean for you?
What words describe the kind of place you want to work? What kind of culture and management style, for example?
What would you do if you didn’t have to do the career you’ve been doing so far? You know, the dream job.
Taking the opportunity to work on your values now, to find the purpose in your career, gives you clarity deciding your next step.Prepare your shop window: Resume/CV, LinkedIn, Cover letter
When you have a secure job, it can feel like a high-risk strategy to update your CV, promote your LinkedIn profile or start networking. Good news: there are things you can do without announcing your intentions to the world.Build a keyword led, competency-based CV with a strong profile statement. The classic style of CV is reverse chronological – listing jobs and responsibilities. A better CV in the current market will be a skill or competency-based CV that highlights your skills by keywords. Transferable skills come first, with less emphasis on the jobs you’ve had and more on the things you can do.
Your profile statement becomes your elevator speech. What would you say if you got in a lift with your dream employer and had 30 seconds to make a memorable first impression? That’s 100 words to talk about your skills, experience and career aspirations.
Be a LinkedIn ‘All-Star’ profile. If you work on your CV first, this should flow from there. Check out LinkedIn help for how to build a killer LinkedIn profile that gets you noticed, but don’t forget, being findable and searchable on LinkedIn requires a keyword led approach.
Think about your network – personal and professional. In the current situation this is almost certainly virtual. Which networking communities do you follow on LinkedIn or social media? What about the local business community, growth hub or business accelerator? Are you engaged and interactive in these communities? Do you post your own content, comment on posts and watch webinars? What could your contribution be? What would it say about you as potential employee? Make a contribution, you won’t regret it.We’re here to help you with any of your career development needs, so secure a FREE, no obligation Coaching Exploration with one of our coaches.
There is a silver lining – uncertainty and change might just have given you a free pass to explore your options, reconnecting to your career.
Newsletter
We send out regular updates with articles about creating a sustainable career in vet med, along with job opportunities and more. Employers, we’ve got great articles for you too!
