Apply a job when you don’t need one
Start saving money when you don’t need them. Start selling your products when you’re not fighting for survival. Start hunting for jobs when you don’t need one.
Start doing something when you’re not desperate for it.
I think things are getting very desperate for this kid
Those are the tips given by various career, motivational and marketing gurus. And I couldn’t have agreed more.
I’m currently at a stage where I’m pretty desperate for a good paying job – which is pretty rare this year. I’ve yet to mass email my CVs out but I’m planning to do that soon. The thing is, with my current mindset, it’ll be very risky to go for any job interview.
Because desperation will not help anyone in the job interview. Eagerness, yes but not desperation. If you’re desperate, you will become very nervous and might not be able to answer some of the important questions thrown at you during the interview. You are not the actual YOU and if faced with a difficult interviewer, you will be forced to the corner. And that is not a situation you want to be in.
Maybe that is why the experts always tell others to apply for a job or a better opportunity, when you are not desperate for it. Because you still have the power to say NO. If you’re desperate, you will lose that power and everything might backfire.
Remember, do that something when you are not desperate in order to get the best out of it (I think I’ve been telling people to attend a job interview with a nothing-to-lose mindset).
As for me, I believe I can change my mindset quite easily. After all, I’m not that desperate yet. I’m still better than lots of people out there who are without a job.
p/s…. this applies to other things too. Businesses should not be selling stuff ONLY when they’re on the brink of closing down. People should not start saving up for the emergency ONLY when they’re jobless and have no money to survive. And programmers should not try and finish a project ONLY when the deadline is 24 hours away.
I agree with you. When you have a sense of desperation within you, others can sense it and it isn’t appealing at all even if you sound too good to be true at the interview. Good luck in your job hunt!
Pennys last blog post..Main points of the Mini Budget 2009 and the benefits to individuals
Penny
11 Mar 09 at 10:50 am
Yeah. When a good opportunity arises, take it!
Of course, although I was looking out for some time, my termination notice was a turn-off for employers. 3 months… Besides that, the team was still fairly unstable, so bad timing…
Anyway, just have to keep it cool. I encourage you folks to keep looking out for better opportunities – especially when you want to look out for a place to not only earn more but learn more as well.
Angie Tans last blog post..Had It Bad In Life? These Four Yorkshiremen Had It Worse…
Angie Tan
11 Mar 09 at 2:40 pm
I think I mentioned this in one of my blog posts. One novel way to find a job that has no one competiting with you is to CREATE it. It requires you to select a target company, come up with an ingenious plan to either cut cost or increase sales (or whatever they are challenged with at the moment), and then offer yourself as the person to manage it. Its brazen but it worked for me. It allowed me to quit the programming line to do something I really like.
And oh, this only works if you speak directly to the CEO. Don’t try this with the normal channels. HR’s job is to follow published job specs when posting vacancies.
Damien Tan
11 Mar 09 at 5:10 pm
@ Penny
Yeap, if you’re desperate, you will be quite nervous too since u really want that job. Not a very good thing to do during interview.
@ Angie
Anywhere outside is a good opportunity now due to the pay
@ Damien
And it’s a bit difficult to do such ‘feat’ when you’re being pushed to the corner and feeling desperate 
Problem is, I don’t have such contacts
Alvin Lim
11 Mar 09 at 10:43 pm