'Parachute' author still tending the grapevine

Eve Tahmincioglu • Profile • E-mail

Many years ago I faced a major career decision. I could stay at my job as a reporter for a major fashion newspaper where I made a good salary and had job security, or move on to a publication where I could expand my journalism horizons.

About this time I came across a book called "What Color is Your Parachute?" by Richard Nelson Bolles. The book helped me visualize my dream job and that turned out to be a financial reporter for United Press International, a struggling news service that offered me a 20 percent pay cut and little job security.

My editor at the time thought I was nuts for even considering the move and so did most of my friends and family. But I turned in my resignation and took the plunge. Looking back, it was the best decision I ever made in my career and I have Mr. Bolles to thank for it.

In my column, I often suggest job hunters pick up a copy of Bolles book, first published in 1970, and recently I got to wondering how he would look at the job market today and what advice he’d offer.

Well, nearing his 80th birthday, Bolles was more than willing to let me pick his brain.

The following is part one of my conversation with the bestselling author. The second part, where Bolles talks about the importance of enthusiasm during the interview process will be published Feb. 19.

Job-hunting can be one of the most demoralizing things a person ever takes on. Is there any way to make it less daunting?

Author Richard Nelson Bolles

The problem is there’s a real parallel between sex and job-hunting, but no one realizes it. People think they are born with knowing how to do things when they really need to learn more. You don’t know enough naturally to do a job hunt well. There’s a discipline that has to be learned. You need to know your Plan B when luck runs out.

I can’t think of a human activity that is more researched than the job hunt. It’s amazing what we know. There are 15 methods of job hunting. If a person uses one method they tend to get discouraged and quit in two months. If they use two to three methods they tend to stay at it longer. The research is so thorough; knowing which method of job-hunting works and which don’t makes a big difference to people. You need to be putting energy in methods that work the best.

I know the best method. The best method has proven to be when a job hunter takes time to sit down and do some really hard work on figuring out who they are and what they have to offer.

The novice comes into job market assuming they need information but [thinking] they need information about the job market itself — the hot jobs, where employers are desperate to find people. That’s not as important as figuring out which employers can offer you a job that fits your gifts and experience.

How important is the resume? How important is networking?

Everything depends on the employer when it comes to the resume. There are employers that hate them and employers that love them.

A human relations director of one of the largest corporations in California recently told me: “I haven’t read a resume in I can’t tell you how many years because it’s so easy to lie on them.”

There are a huge number of lies on resumes, much worse today than in the 1970s, particularly about education and experience.

I think a resume is an important thing to leave behind after you’ve been to a company. You have to use your contacts, not the resume, to get into a company. If you want to work at Bechtel Corp., I would ask everyone I know if they know anyone at Bechtel. Chances are someone will say yes and they can give you an introduction over there.

Then, when I got there I’d I leave my resume because I know I probably didn’t initially meet with the decision maker. At big companies hiring is probably done by committee. So with the resume they’ll have something to show everyone.

The resume is poison for many employees if they send it on ahead. One resume out of 1,470 leads to a job.

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