How to explain A Layoff In An Interview
How to explain Laid-off or Fired in a Job Interview
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hey everybody down George Fitch here
with you today and in this video I'm
going to tell you how you can explain to
a prospective employer that you were
laid off from your last job I mean it
happens at one time or another in your
career I mean people get laid off
there's nothing you can do about it and
it's even happened to me I've been laid
off if you can believe that someone
actually let me go I know I'm surprised
too but it hurts I've been there I've
been laid off many times in my career
sometimes for six or nine months at a
stretch with a wife and kids and bills
it gets expensive and it's really
difficult and it's hard to get through
and what I want to do is help you get
through this I want to teach you how you
can explain being laid off to a
prospective employer so that it doesn't
sound like you were fired or that you
were let go because of poor performance
I mean most companies if they have a
layoff
it's because the company isn't doing
well so if you were let go because of a
widespread corporate layoff I'm gonna
give you a few ideas that you can use to
tell employers that it really wasn't
your fault and one of the things that
you really want to come through to be
crystal clear in your answer as to why
you were let go or why you're laid off
is to let them know that it wasn't a
result of your professional performance
your on-the-job performance you want to
let them know it had nothing to do with
you in fact you want to let them know
that your performance was excellent
let them know that your boss thought
your performance was great you have a
long history of excellent performance
reviews you want to talk about how much
you liked working there you want to talk
about how much you enjoyed what you did
you enjoyed the people so you want to
make it clear that it had nothing to do
with your personal performance in fact
your personal performance was great they
loved you you have a long track record
of excellent performance reviews you
loved working there you loved what you
did the people liked you the customers
like to you and even your boss went and
asked his boss if they could still keep
you in fact that's actually what
happened to me in my case my boss went
to his boss which was the owner of the
company and said hey we really want to
keep done the customers like him he does
a great job we want to keep him here but
you know what none of that mattered they
just simply said this was a numbers game
and we have to let go you know in my
case it was 45 people had to let go 45
people in order for the company to
survive and they didn't want to do that
because that was really putting them
down to a bare bones skeleton crew but
they had to do it if they didn't let
these people go the whole company would
sink so unfortunately I got caught up on
that and it sounds like that's what
happened to you too you got caught up in
an unfortunate corporate wide layoff and
it's not your fault
and that's the message that you want to
come through when they ask you why you
were let go from your last job or why
you were laid off that's what you want
them to understand is that it had
nothing to do with you and in fact they
loved you there and they didn't want to
let you go and what this really does
this is sending a message to that
employer that hey you know what there's
another company that really like this
guy but they had to let him go
so this is our opportunity to pick this
guy up to pick up a good guy on sale
maybe we can even pay him less than what
he was making before I I don't know if
that factors into it or not but this is
a chance for a company to pick up a good
person who's already been screened by
another company as being a valuable
asset now here's a problem that often
happens in cases like this if you were
very well paid at your last job
that's probably nothing that you want to
share with prospective employer it
doesn't look good to go into a
prospective employer and say yes I was
very well paid at my last job and then
they had a layoff the underlying message
in that statement could be that maybe
you were laid off because you
too much money so if you made a lot of
money or if you're paid more than maybe
you should have been paid
don't let that don't let those numbers
come out in the interview you might have
to taper down your salary a little bit
and shed a little shed a few dollars off
so that you don't look too expensive
because let's just say for example you
were making $100,000 a year at your last
job and then you got laid off and you go
in your interview for another job but
that jobs only pay in let's say
seventy-five thousand and you're
thinking okay you know what I'll go
ahead and take the 75 problem is that
employers gonna know that you're making
a hundred thousand and that if they
offer you 75 that you're more than
likely not gonna stay there for very
long you're gonna take the job at 75
you're gonna work there for a little bit
maybe six months a year until you can
get back to that hundred thousand dollar
mark and then you're gonna leave that
company high and dry so they're not
going to be interested in you more than
likely they're not so keep that in the
back of your mind if you're paid above
market value for your position you may
not want to share that exact figure with
them and tone down your salary to more
but a market value for what you're worth
and by doing that that's gonna help you
transition from being unemployed and
laid off into another position a little
bit more rapidly than if you were to
hold on to that past salary that you
were making and holding out for that
with somebody else makes sense okay so
in the end when you wrap up your answer
to an employer you want to let them know
that it was the company's fault not that
it was an individuals fault not that it
was bad leadership that overall the
company was struggling the company was
failing
they just weren't making in their
numbers anymore and they had to let go a
certain number of people in order to
survive and unfortunately you were
caught up in that I mean it's not your
fault that there was a downturn in
business or unless maybe you were in
sales and and it was your fault but
usually in a case like that there's not
one individual who's responsible for a
corporate wide layoff there's a lot of
reason
that a company doesn't make its numbers
I mean maybe the competition is too
tight maybe the economy has taken a dip
maybe the industry that you're in was
just struggling overall and and that
happens there's so many reasons that
companies layoff people but most
commonly it's a downturn business and
the business that they have today isn't
the business that they had yesterday or
last year for some reason they're just
not making the numbers and they have to
let people go
unfortunately good people like you
people like me we get caught up in that
and and we have to go out and we have to
hit the streets and we have to look for
another job but this makes us stronger
this makes it better every time I've
been laid off from a job and it's it's
been several I probably been laid off
three four maybe five times in my career
and I'll tell you it hurts it hurts
every time I don't like it it usually
comes as a surprise because for some
reason I didn't see it coming
everything was great you know and then
they they tap you on the shoulder and
they bring into their office and they
say you know what things aren't looking
good here we need to let you go pack
your stuff here's a box and get out and
that's just been said to me so many
times and it hurts and and and it's
happened to you and I'm sorry for that
but it's going to make you better it's
going to make you stronger you're going
to grow from this you really will
you're not gonna realize that right now
you'll see the growth and the strength
after you get over this hump and you
look back on it but it will happen I
promise you that they will happen you
just have to go out there and you have
to keep looking you have to keep your
chin up you have to be confident in your
abilities and you have to know you just
have to know and believe that something
is going to turn your way again it will
happen when they let good people like
you go this really creates an
opportunity for another employer to
scoop up someone else who's already a
seasoned worker who's
disciplined in what they do and can
instantly bring value to another company
and that's the kind of message that you
want to resonate from you when you go
into an interview you're giving yourself
strength you're putting yourself in a
stronger mindset for the interview and
it's going to help you like I said it's
gonna hurt now it's gonna sting right
now until you can get situated again but
just know that you're the kind of person
that always lands on your feet and that
this is only temporary it might seem
like forever but it's only temporary
and if you put your nose to the
grindstone and you look and you work
hard you will find something and all you
have to do when you get into the
interview is one don't complain don't
have any ill feelings towards your last
company don't throw them under the bus
praise them tell them how much you like
to work in there what a great company
they are and that you would go back
there again but unfortunately you got
caught up in a messy layoff and and and
you don't regret it now more than
anything you have to remember that
either not in a job interview to explain
why you were let go or why you were laid
off that's not the point of the
interview the point of the interview is
to talk about the value that you can
bring to them that's what you want to
shine through sure you have to address
this you have to address why you were
laid off but you don't want to spend a
lot of time on that maybe 30 to 60
seconds just talk about what happened
hey I worked there for a long time I was
really happy there unfortunately we just
the company wasn't making their numbers
anymore
and they had to let people go my boss
tried to save my job went to his boss it
just didn't matter they had to let
people go and I got caught up in that
and then move on you have to move on
from that and don't don't throw him
under the bus just move on and start
talking about
the value that you can bring to this new
company in this position if they hire
you I mean that makes sense right now of
course if they ask you more questions
about the layoffs they start digging and
picking your answer apart what that's
really telling you or should tell you is
that they're not buying what you're
saying they don't believe something
about your story so if they start asking
questions after you've already told them
what happened that means they're not
buying what you're saying so keep that
in mind it may or may not happen but
ideally generally what should happen is
you tell them what happened here's why I
got laid off and they should just accept
that and move on with the interview but
that doesn't happen watch out because
they're not buying it and you might want
to give them a little bit more
information about the company what
happened in your position and everything
else like that
all right that's all I have for you
today my friend I wish you well I
understand your position believe me on
that I've been there I now keep your
chin up keep your nose to the grindstone
get out there and remember smart people
learn from their mistakes really smart
people learn from other people's
mistakes
I wish you well take care we'll see you
in the next video if you're ready to ace
your next interview then don't leave
anything to chance you can't just show
up for a job interview and expect to
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