Resilience in the face of rejection

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Looking for your next career move when facing redundancy can be hard. Regardless of your level of experience, industry knowledge or even your latest job role, there is a high probability that you will receive at least one rejection letter when you are looking for your new position.

Sadly, given the volume some companies receive, you may not even receive an acknowledgement of your application, let alone obtain a notice of rejection, which can be even more difficult when you have spent time and energy on applying for the role.

This isn’t an indication of anything that you have done wrong, or even that you weren’t suitable for the role you were applying for. With many other people also looking for their dream job, it is a statistical probability that you won’t always be successful, and a large proportion of people’s applications can leave them being made to feel ‘ghosted’.

However, in the face of rejection, it is important that you are resilient. The right job is just a successful application and interview away, but maintaining a sense of self and your self-confidence is imperative to enable you to perform well when the opportunity comes along.

Resilience is how well you can deal with – and bounce back from – challenges. Resilient people tend to maintain a more positive outlook and cope with stress more effectively. It can mean the difference between accepting rejection and being overwhelmed by it.

Although some people are naturally resilient, resilience can be learnt, and you can build resilience in a number of ways.

Set your goals – what are you looking for in your next role?

The threat of redundancy can be extremely daunting. However, setting yourself some reasonable goals can be the first step towards bouncing back. Those goals might be to revisit your CV, update your LinkedIn profile or reach out to a former boss, colleague or business partner for a coffee and a catch up. Whatever it is, setting and then achieving simple goals will help you start to work out – and work towards – what you want in the future.

Once you have set your goals, working towards them will also help you feel more in control of your situation. Finding a new job won’t happen without effort on your part, but breaking down the work that needs to be done and tackling it in a manageable way is important.

A sense of purpose

Redundancy is hard, but it can also be seen as an amazing opportunity to find an exciting new role or even change direction completely.  With a defined purpose, you’ll be more motivated to learn from your past experiences and keep going.

Outplacement is also a highly effective tool which your employer can provide to help you in finding your next career move following redundancy. Our team offers tailored outplacement to assist with this process, to help identify your options and transferable skills which could open new doors to your next role.

Believe in yourself

During a redundancy process it is important to retain confidence in your own abilities. It would be easy to start doubting yourself, but self-confidence is an important element of resilience. Listen out  for negative comments in your head. When you hear them, practice immediately replacing them with positive ones. Research has demonstrated that your self-esteem plays an important role in coping with stress and recovering from difficult events. Remind yourself of your strengths and accomplishments – and if you identify areas for improvement, take time to develop them too.

Develop your network

Your business network can play an important role in helping you find your next role. Reaching out to former colleagues, bosses, suppliers and other industry contacts can yield impressive results. It can also help your resilience, as having a network of supportive individuals is so important. Your personal network is important too, as we all need our champions and supporters cheering us on.

Embrace change

Flexibility and optimism are essential parts of resilience. By learning how to be more adaptable, you’ll be better equipped to respond when faced with a difficult life experience like redundancy. Change is difficult, but with a resilient mindset, you can come out of it stronger and happier, and with a new career.

 

Contact us today and see how our Consultants can help with Outplacement support and our Career Coaches can help your team build resilience.

 

Outplacement: helping create positive change

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It’s not just the New Year which sees many seeking pastures new. The financial year-end can also bring about many changes for individuals and companies too. Sometimes welcome, sometimes not. However, this chance for change can bring many benefits, and these can be fully realised through outplacement.

Why outplacement?

It is in a business’ interest to offer outplacement to its team if it is making significant structural changes. One of the biggest advantages of outplacement is that it gives an individual the opportunity to stop and think about what they really want from their career and next job move. They might be happy to find a similar role or the next step up in the same sector. Or, they might decide to focus on achieving something entirely new and different. It might be something which aligns more with their goals, on a totally different path. Through outplacement, a Career Consultant will work with an individual to help them identify what they need to do to get to where they want to be.

What is outplacement?

Outplacement can be hugely beneficial. However, the individual has to fully engage with it, to get the most out of it. There are many stages, which will come in a different order for each individual depending on their personal circumstances. The main areas include identifying options, preparing a CV, updating LinkedIn and putting a strategy in place. This is followed by interview training and check-ins.

Outplacement is not a linear process. Some might need to start from scratch, especially if they have been out of the job market for a long time, and should begin with writing a new CV. Others might need a tailored approach which reflects their more recent job search experience, such as just tweaking and updating their LinkedIn profile. Outplacement can help an individual make sense of what needs doing, in what order, without it becoming overwhelming.

Making it work for you

One of the key services offered by Career Evolution is outplacement. Having one of our professional and highly skilled outplacement Consultants working with the job-seeking individual will help ensure that they stay focused and accountable. Whatever the time of year, individuals job searching will be competing against other people looking for their next career move too. However, through their outplacement commitment, and with Career Evolution’s support, this will help them to find their next career move. When they find it, our Consultant will continue to help them prepare for the interview and achieve the role they want.

Speak to us to see how we can assist you.

What an exit – how to enhance an employee’s departure

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The loss of an employee can be a difficult time for a company, especially if they are exiting from a senior role and have been with the company for a long time. Either of these elements can have a detrimental effect on staff morale.

As they leave it is essential that HR’s off-boarding process manages their exit effectively, not just for the employee involved, but also as a clear message to the rest of the company, and potentially for new hires, that the business will continue to look after its staff, even when they depart for pastures new.

While this can be easier for an employee leaving of their own volition and are departing on good terms, this is also important to manage for an employee who might be begrudgingly handing in their notice if they were unhappy in their role, or because of a company decision, such as redundancy. This can ensure that the company can retain some good PR, even out of a negative situation.

Sweeten the deal

There are multiple ways you can enhance an employee’s exit at an executive level.

Retaining some of the perks which the employee enjoyed for a short period of time after their departure, will help smooth their transition from the company and should be looked upon favourably from the remaining staff.

Offering such things as being able to keep hold of the company car, work mobile or laptop for another month for example, or extending their healthcare, will be sure to be appreciated, especially if their move is a geographic one as well as a work one.

Organising a moment of farewell, allowing other members of staff the chance to wish the exiting employee well in their next role, will provide all involved with a positive and lasting impression.

A small gift can act as a token of appreciation, and could take the form of company-branded merchandise, to continue to keep the company’s name in the leaving employee’s mind, especially if the door remains open for their potential return in the future.

Room to improve

One way to get a true measure of a company is to look at how they treat their departing staff, and, whatever the circumstances of a member of staff leaving, if they are treated with respect and made to feel valued, this can only lead to more positive reflections for the business.

Learnings can also be gained from the process, and used to inform future recruitment strategies and improve staff performance and retention, to assist with the growth and reputation of the business.

A good send-off

In order to retain a positive relationship with the exiting employee, providing support and assistance would not only be beneficial to them, but also the company. This can help to create a potentially beneficial connection, with the greater likelihood of new talent being referred, and enhancing the company’s appeal to attracting and retaining staff.

Offering coaching or outplacement support to the exiting employee can demonstrate how they are valued as a person as well as an employee, and can go a long way towards thanking them for their years of loyalty and service to the company.

We can offer a personalised approach for employees at all levels, providing a tailored package to suit the individual, demonstrating consideration and aiding towards a genuine, positive, beneficial and effective employee exit experience.

Get in touch to see how we can aid your staff leaving strategies.

Conforming to gender norms

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There’s a lot of discussion around gender in general and specifically gender in the workplace, as an ongoing debate about equality and fairness. In terms of parity, it’s important that any discrepancies between pay and opportunities are addressed, and we do seem to have come a long way in terms of redressing the balance somewhat.

One example I have encountered is highly-successful female clients who fear participating in interviews, if they know there are men on the shortlist as well. They become self-effacing and self-deprecating, to the point of being too humble about their achievements and experience. In fact, they become convinced that their own skills, experience and achievements will not win over the interviewer and secure the role. This is patently not true but persuading them otherwise can be problematic.

Never knowingly undersold

It’s very important not to undersell yourself when it comes to interviews – no matter what gender you are. By feeling inferior due to gender, you are immediately setting yourself up to fail. It’s a disadvantage from the off and we all know it’s difficult enough preparing for interviews, without added pressures such as psychological impacts to factor in. It’s also important to ensure that you are well prepared for your interview, so that your CV and interview answers accurately reflect your real personality, knowledge and skills. Don’t undersell your achievements and skills, in fact highlight areas you feel that are your particular strengths. 

Mental barriers

The sense of women feeling inferior in the workplace or of being unsuitable for a role may seem archaic in 2024, but in some women’s minds these mental barriers still exist. They feel as though they are conforming to gender norms, that if they are a women they shouldn’t be putting themselves forward for certain roles in specific professions. This is at a time when women’s participation in traditionally male-dominated sectors, such as construction or engineering for instance, are on the rise. If I am encountering this in my circle of clients, which I always deem to be a pretty representative cross-section, then it’s probably not an unusual occurrence across business and society in general.    

Engendering confidence

So much so, that it is not unusual for us to be approached by organisations to offer support to employees who are going for high level internal roles and need to perform in interview.  In my experience, even in this situation, some women immediately feel at a disadvantage.

Part of my role as a Consultant is to actively encourage positivity around identifying and finding new roles, and also to engender confidence prior to an interview situation. This can be done in a number of ways. It may sound like stating the obvious, but I find the more preparation candidates carry out, the stronger they become and the more confident they will be in their own persona and capabilities. This will come out in the interview and present them as a strong, convincing candidate. In this way, the best candidate will always secure the role they are best suited for – whatever their gender.