When Abraham Maslow postulated his 5-level hierarchy of needs he created a framework that can be applied to many applications, including finding employment. Whether you are an experienced person switching careers or a brand-new job seeker there are five levels to achieving your career goal. Please take five minutes and see what you think, apply the lessons to yourself, share them with someone you know who is looking for work, and/or please add your comments.
As with many of my articles, this is just the beginning, an overview of the challenges you and others face every day. Know there is help available and please take advantage of this post and use it to help accomplish your goals.
Level 1: Getting to the starting line.
Do you want a job? The first and most important question. It is not as obvious as it might seem. I see many people whose family or partner wants them to work, but they do not want to. Unless a person wants to work, they will not be successful.
Do you know you can get help? And it doesn’t cost you anything. Finding a job is difficult … finding a job on your own makes that process more difficult than needed. Help is available for free in most communities. Use 211 to locate your local employment agency. There is training available for every step of the process. There are people who can connect you with community resources for everything from food to retraining and everything in between. Most people are not aware of this help and surprisingly many people who are, don’t use it because of pride or stigma. They can help anyone regardless of skills, attitude, or behavior including people with substantial barriers … all you have to supply is the desire to want a job.
Are you prepared to accept help? The resources that are available to help can provide you with virtually all of the tools you need to succeed; however, like wanting to have a job, you cannot succeed unless you are prepared to listen and accept their help. It doesn’t work otherwise.
Satisfying this first level makes everything else that follows possible. Overcoming each subsequent level helps put the outcome of quality and fulfilling employment closer to being within reach.
Level 2: Setting your goals (short/medium/long term)
What do you want to do? Many people know exactly what they want for a career but a larger number often has no idea of what they want and correspondingly no idea on how to get there. I suggest starting with your immediate needs, why do you want to work? Depending on the level of urgency that is going to determine your short-term goals. It is okay if you don’t know what you want to do in five years. Think about what you need to do in the next week, month, or year, those become your short-term goals. Do the same with what you want next year for your medium-term goals and your long-term goals are anything after that.
Do you have the skills to do what you want to do? Look at what you know how to do, look at what skills you have from other things you have done that don’t seem related, are any of those skills transferrable? Make a list of what you can do and what you want to be able to do, the first one will help with your resume, and the second list will form the basis of the training your employment advisor can help you obtain.
Is it possible to get to where you want to be? Ensure your goal(s) is/are SMART goals (S-specific, M-measurable, A-achievable, R- relevant, T-time specific) and if what you want to do isn’t achievable, then you may have to adjust your goal(s) before moving forward.
Are you prepared to take the steps necessary to get to where you want to be? Some people are and some people aren’t. To achieve your goals, break them into smaller, more achievable steps so that you don’t get overwhelmed, frustrated, and then give up.
Are you motivated? Employers want people who are motivated, people who care, and people who have goals to achieve. Everyone has different keys, determine what yours are and keep them “front and center” to help drive you towards what you want for yourself.
Are you reliable? Work is work and there are going to be many days where you don’t feel like doing it, everyone feels that way, but to be successful you have to work even on those days where it is the last thing you want to do. Be early, don’t take extra breaks, and don’t leave early either. This may be the #1 attribute many employers look for.
Are you dependable? This is different than reliability. To be dependable is to be given a job and for your employer to feel confident the job will get done, on time, and they don’t have to check on you. This may be the best compliment an employer can provide to anyone, that they trust you.
Level 3: What barriers are in your path?
Even if someone wants to work, has achievable goals, and has the desire to make them a reality, our society and reality may still crush them before they can even begin.
Life stabilization – Maslow was not wrong, to succeed a person must first take care of their basic needs.
Housing – Finding safe affordable housing has become virtually impossible to find. Housing should take 30-40% of your income but in 2024 far too many people spend upwards of 80% of their income.
Food – In my community, 1 in 7 people do not have enough food for themselves or their families. Food Banks and Community Meal programs help, but they are a band-aid at best.
Clothing – After paying for shelter and food, for some people there is little remaining for clothing, fortunately, some of the government funding from the employment agencies can help with this.
Poverty/Living Wage – Poverty is the root cause of so many of the life-stabilizing issues we face as a society. Successive conservative-leaning governments have cut or frozen social spending for decades. More and more people are falling through gaps and stigma, bias, and misunderstanding fuel this reality. Everyone should be able to earn a living wage, which is the salary deemed necessary to live a modest life. In my community the living wage is $23.73 and the minimum wage is $16.55.
Multi-generational Poverty – This is a growing divide and a substantial problem for our society. Our failure as a society to eliminate poverty is creating generations of people who have only known poverty and the negative realities poverty entails.
Daycare – Finding safe, affordable, and time-appropriate daycare for families and single parents or caregivers is a significant barrier that often makes working an impossible task due to costs, locations, and availability.
Language and Literacy – For many people, their lack of literacy and their inability to use language (written or verbal) well is a significant barrier. Fortunately, many libraries and free services exist to help overcome this barrier but many of the people who could benefit are unaware of these services.
Confidence – Hard to build and easy to destroy, a person’s confidence to push themselves out of their comfort zone, to pick themselves up after a setback, and to overcome any of these barriers is vital to building success. Working with employment agencies, and local support groups, and asking for help does work.
Medical/Health/Addiction/Stress/Anxiety – One in four people in my community will experience one of these health issues this year. The resources available, particularly in rural areas are nowhere near enough. People are falling behind and as a society we must do more. For anyone experiencing these issues, step 1 is to seek help, even the limited help that is currently available.
Physical/Disabilities – As a society we need to recognize the abilities and skills of people who experience these barriers. Overcoming stigma, bias, and misinformation is the solution to this barrier. Disability awareness and confidence training is readily available and free in many communities.
Lack of Benefits – For the past thirty years, too many employers have reduced or eliminated benefits for their employees or only hired part-time staffers who don’t qualify for benefits. As a result, we are making it impossible for some people who require expensive medications for any number of chronic health conditions to survive much less to work at a low-paying job.
Transportation – In many communities, particularly rural ones, the lack of public transit, and/or transit times is a major impediment for many people to get to work. Even in larger centres the inaccessibility of getting to work makes using public transport something that takes hours to travel relatively short distances because of multiple transfers.
Opportunities (lack thereof) – Access to opportunities is another significant barrier for many people. The ability to work remotely has helped; however, in a post-pandemic world, many employers are retreating from offering work-from-home employment.
Past Mistakes – Sometimes significant barriers can be the result of poor decisions and bad luck. Having a criminal record, being fired from a job, and not taking advantage of opportunities are all examples of past mistakes that can be a barrier to someone looking to build or rebuild their life or achieve their employment goals.
Level 4 – Gathering and using the Tools.
Armed with the fortitude and desire to work, with at least your short-term goals in place, and in the process of overcoming many if not all of your barriers; the next step is to gather and put into practice all of the job-finding tools you can.
Resources are available to help – Even if you are a practiced job seeker, take the time to enlist the aid of a government-sponsored employment agency. There is no cost to you and they can provide the support you need to achieve the next step in your employment goals.
Prepare two resumes – Research and create resumes for applying online (ATS) and resumes for handing out in person for cold call appointments and for job fairs.
Create cover letters for every application – Deconstruct the job advertisement to find the key skills, experience, and behavior/attitudes the employer is looking for, and use your cover letter to match those needs with your skills.
Conduct an extensive Job Search – Search online, conduct “cold call” in-person visits to speak with the hiring person at organizations, and network as much as possible to seek out and find opportunities.
Interview skills – Few people are naturally adept at interviews. Interviewing well is a learned skill, and learning what employers want, what their questions mean, and how to answer them effectively is worth whatever time you invest. Using role-playing to practice “cold-call approaches, treating an employer’s staff with respect, doing interviews, and following up will give you an extreme competitive advantage.
Tenacity, Coping, and Frustration – part 1 – Looking for a job is difficult and can be very difficult on your confidence and sense of self-worth. Tenacious means not losing your enthusiasm when approaching 40 employers and only getting one interview; or if you get many interviews but no job offers; or if you never get interviews. Working with an employment agency will help and remember there is no charge to you.
Level 5 – Find a job and make it stick.
Congratulations when you get a job offer; however, there is still stress and anxiety to overcome.
Anxiety, coping, and support – Adjusting to a new work environment, meeting and working with new people, and finding a new comfort zone is what ‘s supposed to happen in orientation. Sometimes orientations are enough and extra support is required. Having a friend or a support person to confide with helps tremendously.
Bridge Financing and other unexpected costs – When starting a new job, ask and be prepared for your employer to hold back your first pay. Some employment agencies may have funds for assisting to bridge that gap for medications, groceries, transportation, new clothing, and moral support as well; do not underestimate the benefits of this assistance.
Next steps – If your new job is the pinnacle of your career, congratulations. If it is just one step of many towards that pinnacle then work hard, learn, and plan for the next step(s).
Learn how to quit a job – This may seem counterintuitive in a post about achieving your employment goals; however, learning to quit a job well is an important component of achieving your eventual employment goals. Treating your current employer with respect, providing appropriate notice, and having secured the next step on your career ladder before quitting are all important. Additionally, if you have made a mistake and your new job is nothing like what you wanted, learning to extricate yourself well is equally important.
Deciding you want to work, knowing what you want to do and how to get there, appreciating and overcoming all of the barriers you see or don’t see, finding and using of the necessary tools, and finally, being able to achieve success is at least a five-step process.
It is possible to do on your own, but for many people getting appropriate help can make the tasks so much easier. Learn about the free resources in your communities and use them. It does make a difference.
Good luck,
Paul.