Today there was a Wall Street Journal blog post entitled Mister Rogers Was Right: Be Yourself, which was written by a Recruiter in reference to some advice he was giving his younger brother before an interview. The whole piece is excellent, but one bit stood out particularly:
As I noted in my previous post here, I'm sick to death of filtering myself to the point where I'm sounding like "a happy female, 66-100 years old"! Obviously trying to be a "kinder, gentler Brendan" isn't impressing any damn hiring managers or recruiters out there or I'd have a FUCKING JOB BY NOW (oooh, look ... I used a naughty word!), so what the hell is the use?The downside of a poor job market is that everyone is competing for a small number of jobs. Don’t succumb to the pressure of being someone you’re not simply to win a job. It’s not worth it. In the end you’ll be unhappy and your employer will be dissatisfied, leaving you right back where you started. Know who you are and be proud of who you are. Your employer will appreciate your authenticity and honesty.
Sure, until I get a job, I'm likely to continue giving the current occupant of the White House a pass (as much as I think he's the biggest disaster this country's seen in the modern era), instead of ranting against him the way I did with the Klintons ... but I have GOT to get back to being ME instead of just a statistic waiting to happen. Frankly, if I don't get a job soon none of it will matter any more. We've now almost exhausted The Girls' college funds and the money my Mom had left for them, and what The Wife is bringing in (while slowing the bleed, obviously) is still less than half what we need to survive. The minute I find myself out of my house, all bets are off. I just want a last flowering of the "real Brendan" before then.
Damn, I hate this so fucking much!