That's right - employers can pick and chose whomever they like and they know it. I think that competition is a key word here, because just like any other competitive scenario, nobody remembers who came second. The only winner is person who gets that job and you're up against it in what is cruel market place.

If you have been working in an organisation for a long time and are reaching older age category, being out of work for first time can shock you. All of a sudden you're in a cauldron of job hunters operating in an unbalanced labour market where supply far outweighs demand. Lets face it, it will not be easy but there is always hope. Whatever you do don't become defeatist and lose faith in your abilities. Get yourself in job search mode and learn all you can about job-hunting skills. It will be necessary for you to do this in order to compete at same level and edge closer to winning that job.

Your job search knowledge must consist of following areas of competence:

1. Ability to tap into hidden job market

2. Successful behavioural interview skills

3. Good letter writing ability with a marketable resume

4. Strong belief in yourself and mental stamina.

Successful job search skills knowledge is critical and this book focuses heavily on this key area. I have covered all of above areas of competence in separate chapters so that you can easily move from one key activity to another. Your ability to network with others and perform well at interviews will be paramount. Your ability to write good covering letters and have a well-written up-to-date resume is equally important. If you need more coaching beyond scope of book then go out and get it.

Below are some examples of power phrases I have used to demonstrate my achievements:

"Managed business downsizing and redundancy program eventually leading to business closure for a large automotive components manufacturer and successfully negotiated redundancy conditions with union."

"Formulated and implemented comprehensive strategic competency based training model for a division of a large blue chip Australian company." Managed a department of up to 5 diverse human resource professionals and several key contract and facilities providers."

"Contributed to financial year budget cost-down process by reducing HR budget by up to 10%." "Lodged successful tenders for $50,000 in training funding to deliver a broad range of industry specific competency based programs at workplace." Achieved approximately $200,000 productivity savings by negotiating and implementing 3 key productivity items resulting from enterprise bargaining negotiations."

© Copyright 2002 All Rights Reserved Anthony Ranieri