Getting your player ready...
Dear J.T. & Dale: I recently lost my job after being there a year. Prior to that job, I’d been unemployed for nearly two years, went through my savings and eventually filed for bankruptcy. How negatively do employers view an applicant who has a bankruptcy on his or her credit report? What can I do to make employers see that I am not a bad or lazy person? – Michael
DALE: OK, it’s true that there are some employers who care about credit ratings. So what? (I’m shrugging here.) I’ve never seen any statistics on the subject, but let’s say that 20 percent of employers say that a bankruptcy bounces you out of contention. What does that mean for your search? Yes, that’s right – focus on the other 80 percent.
J.T.: Still, you might be able to convert some of those who do care. Here’s what I suggest: Get through the first round of interviewing; then, if you’re invited for a second interview, at the end of that interview, say something like this: “I have huge respect for you and the company and really want this job, so I feel it’s important that you hear this from me.” Then you own up to the bankruptcy. You might say: “I can’t say how hard it is to share this, but I ran into tough times and a bankruptcy was unavoidable. It taught me some important lessons, but now I’d like very much to put it behind me by landing this position and building my credit again.” It takes a brave professional with a lot of character to say those things. Employers will love that you had the guts to do so.
DALE: Part of me wants to agree – after all, everyone loves a good confession, and it would humanize you, Michael. However, in a time when bankruptcy is common, I hate to have you go into a second interview worrying about when and how to bring it up. It’s better if you just forget about it. (What might help you forget is to put “famous people with bankruptcies” into Google and see that you are in the company of Walt Disney, Larry King, Willie Nelson and many, many others.)
J.T.: But why risk having the bankruptcy be a surprise to the employer? Here’s a compromise: Forget about the bankruptcy until the second interview is over; then, at the end, when you ask about next steps, if they mention a background check, bring up the bankruptcy.
Dear J.T. & Dale: I’ve recently spent four months in the interview process with one company. I went on five separate interviews, each time meeting three to five people. I was told they’d make a decision soon. Today, I called and they said I was their lead candidate but that they decided to look at a few more. I was furious! Should I assume they’re “just not that into me” and walk away? – Kerry
J.T.: You have to conclude that they aren’t sold on you. That doesn’t mean they won’t eventually come around, but you need to show them you’re not hanging around waiting for them. Assume that you will not get the job and focus on other opportunities.
DALE: The ideal situation would be to get another offer, then announce to them that you’re about to take another job and watch them come panting after you. Meanwhile, rather than assuming the worst, try assuming that there probably is just one person at the company who wants to keep looking, probably someone in the hierarchy above the hiring manager. So go to the hiring manager and ask what you would need to do to win over that recalcitrant executive.
