Five ways ex-offenders eliminate themselves

Ex-offenders have two key issues standing against them when they seek work.

  • Not getting hired because of the criminal past
  • Self-eliminating issues which can include the following five reasons.

Rejection

Rejection means not getting hired. This is a hard thing to handle for everyone, including ex-offenders. There are two types of rejection:

  • Direct - this is the outright 'no'. It can come in letter or verbal form and can sometimes be the better way of not getting hired because you may get a reason behind it that you can learn from.
  • Subtle - this is the type of rejection which is most often in the form of an unreturned phone call after multiple attempts of contact or never being able to give a clear answer about hiring.

Rejection usually outweighs the acceptance when looking for a job. One of the biggest ways of how not to get hired is to quit looking. Not getting hired by ten employers will be completely eliminated once one employer hires you. Allowing rejection to eliminate you from finding a job is a self defeating way of how not to get hired anywhere. The employer who says 'yes' may be the next one.

Frustration

Frustration is the effect of what happens when you think you have tried every possible way to find employment and not getting hired. The problem of not getting hired isn't in searching, but in how you are not getting hired. Here are a few things which will cause an ex-offender to not get hired.

  • Giving up early - it takes up to six months to find employment you can use
  • Using one method - there are many different ways to look for work if you think about them
  • Not adapting to change - being realistic and adapting to circumstances will help find a job in an area you may not have seen before.

Multiple rejections can lead to frustration when you are not getting hired. Quitting because a certain approach is not getting you hired is how you eliminate yourself from your own success. If one approach doesn't work, think of another method. Always be open to another way of doing something.

Laziness

How can you increase your chance of not getting hired? By not working at getting hired. Finding a job requires lots of effort and needs full time commitment. Putting in a couple of job applications each week will only help in not getting hired. How do you get around this?

  • Set up your own routine - as an ex-offender you are used to having a routine; replace the old routine with another which helps you get hired.
  • Planning - planning and thinking about each day will help you achieve goals each day which will get you hired faster.

Fatigue

There will be times when not getting hired seems to wear you out. Getting hired does not mean seeing how tired you can make yourself. If you need a day to rest, make sure you take the time to reenergize yourself. Other ways you can help yourself battle fatigue are:

  • Beginning and ending the day at the same time each day
  • Allowing for at least eight hours of sleep each night
  • Eating properly to maintain energy
  • Reducing stress by engaging in an enjoyable activity each day
  • Pace yourself to achieve a set amount of job seeking each day

Pushing yourself into fatigue will not get you hired, only exhausted.

Self-Esteem

Lack of self-esteem is one of the biggest aids to not getting hired. How? You present the appearance that since you are an ex-offender you must be of less value to an employer and therefore will not be getting hired. You must present yourself in an opposite light to this assumption.

  • Conduct yourself with purpose and confidence
  • Believe in your goals
  • Believe in your abilities and skills
  • Believe in your future worth in the world

If you present yourself as someone who believes in themselves, and their abilities to get work done, there will be an employer who wants to hire you even if you do have a criminal background.

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