20 Years Later - Can’t Adjust to a Different Place

After 20 years of working, the last nine of them with the same major corporation, I wanted to try something new. I went with a smaller firm whose president hired me to build a new division. However, the promised staffing support isn’t coming through, and I’m having a hard time adjusting to the “seat of the pants” decision-making. Any advice would be appreciated. — Robert

Advice From Our Readers

Dale: We get wonderful mail, often with great advice, and we enjoy passing the best of it along.

J.T.: What follows is from Ed Leighton of Phoenix, responding to our discussion of someone dealing with job-interview anxiety:

How I Did It - The Right Advice Made the Difference

JT: Today’s success story comes from Jim Heggie, who’s from northern Washington state. Here’s what he was up against, in his own words:

After 33 years in finance in government and non-profit settings, my organization downsized and I found myself 57 and looking for a job. I had taken early retirement from local government, but had a young family and still wanted to be doing something productive. So, I saw myself as having a double challenge:

My Termination Story Beats All Others!

I enjoyed your column about how to handle a termination. However, it only scratches the surface of my “soap opera” termination story. I was fired in retaliation to my being a witness in a sexual harassment investigation. Of course, I was given another reason for my termination. The situation ended up in federal court, where my employer gave up. Now, here’s my problem: Some interviewers want to know the reason given by my employer for my termination. To me, it’s a moot point, since it was a lie. — Don

I’m Stuck On Call: Shouldn’t I Be Paid For It?

I am a nurse working at a nursing home. The new administrator has developed a new policy where the nurses (who have every other weekend off) will be required to sign up for a 24-hour shift to be “on call.” No mention of reimbursement of any kind has been offered. — Megan

How I Did It - Turning “NO” Into “YES”

DALE: One of the great opportunities for getting a job offer is after getting turned down.

JT: And let’s start that conversation by passing along a story from Steve Chandler, a terrific writer of motivational and management books. (He’s most popular book is 100 Ways to Motivate Yourself.) The story he offers us is from earlier in his career, and while me mostly pass along recent experiences, we had to include this one because the point it makes is timeless:

Blogging for Career Advancement? They Can’t Be Serious.

Dear J.T. & Dale: Lately, I’ve heard people talking about blogging as a way to advance their careers. They can’t be serious, can they? —Andrew

Where Do You See Yourself in 5 years? Not working for you!

Dear J.T. & Dale: Almost all interviewers will ask during an interview, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” Is there a good answer to such a bad question? — Trish

How I Did It - Job Search Success In Trying Times

JT: Dale and I were brainstorming recently on ways we could help our job-seeking readers combat the negative thinking that can result from looking for work when there’s a high unemployment rate and floundering economy. That’s when Dale said to me, “Why don’t we just ask readers to share their own success stories?” So, we reached out to a few folks and the idea was given a big ‘thumbs up.’ We will be posting new stories regularly, so if you have one you’d like to share, please let us know.

DALE: This week’s success story comes from Wendy Jones of Albuquerque. Let’s get right to her summary of her search, in her own words:

“No, He Isn’t Eligible For Re-hire”

Dear J.T. & Dale: I was terminated from my previous job as a store manager. I had my brother call my previous employer to see what they’d say about me. It isn’t what they said, but how they said it: “He was terminated for performance,” and then with a snotty attitude, “No, he isn’t eligible for rehire.” What can I do? I was not terminated for performance but because my supervisor wanted me involved in unscrupulous dealings and I refused. Got any advice? — Jack