There are con artists at work in every business, including job search. I was struck by the number of charlatans out there when I spotted an ad for a free resume service on Craigslist. Of course, when you click through to the web site they offer the resume for free, but you can’t get the resume without a cover letter, which has a fee associated with it. And there is no information about the experience or credentials of those providing the service. Even such a free offer could prove really costly if you rely on amateurs to help you with your job search.
I could see a lot of parallels between the con artists at work in the career field and those at work in the financial services field. I recently ran across a book by Ken Fisher and Lara Hoffmans, How to Smell a Rat, which identifies five suspect factors to look for to avoid being swindled. You can apply many of the same lessons in the field of job search. Consider the following:
- Never hire a financial advisor who assumes control of your money, and never hire a career consultant who assumes control of your personal brand. You wouldn’t hand someone your wallet and say, “Here, invest this.” You also wouldn’t hand someone your resume or your marketing documents and say, “Here, go find me a job.” Any consultant you hire will be a partner in your success, but you will have to retain control of your brand and determine the best course to promote yourself.
- Be wary of financial experts who have never had a bad run, and don’t hire career experts who guarantee results. No financial guru is going to get it right all the time, and no career coach or consultant can guarantee success. Anyone who offers a foolproof guarantee is lying to you.
- Don’t accept an investment strategy or career advice you don’t understand. Watch out for so-called experts who claim to have a magic bullet or some kind of special connections or process. There are no shortcuts in job search, or in planning long-term investments.
- Avoid financial advisors who tout their exclusivity and only work with a handful of clients, and avoid career experts who aren’t working with multiple clients and offer you special attention. When you retain someone to help you manage your career, you want to make sure they are active and reputable, which means they are working with multiple clients.
- Don’t delegate due diligence. When you are hiring anyone to help you with your career, check their references, both past and present.
Career coaches and career management consultants can be invaluable resources. They can show you new ways of thinking. They also can help you develop your personal brand and package that brand in your career documents. And they can assist you in identifying the right kind of company to target, and in identifying the hiring authority who can help you land your next job. However, they can’t do the work for you. It would be like asking your personal trainer to life the weights for you. You have to do all the heavy lifting in order to be successful, and anyone who offers to make it easy is conning you.
