Some people have a knack for walking into roles for which they are, on paper at least, entirely unqualified.

Passion and wanting it so much it hurts, as any failed Australian or American Idol contestant can tell you, doesn’t make it happen for the rest of us.

I’ve seen hundreds of people over the last twenty years, desperate to get into a new job with greater responsibilities and excitement.

Take for instance, the eager, young up-and-comer, yearning to take on the manager’s role, disheartened by failure to snare it, yet not understanding that it was the lack of years, experience and maturity that was behind the ultimate decision.

Then there is the Executive Assistant, experienced in the art of managing corporate soirées, Board meetings, catered lunches and more with flawless perfection, who dreams of an event management role catering to people in their thousands, in cavernous rooms with hi-tech equipment. Time and again, her hopes are dashed as she is passed over for other candidates with a strong background in event management.

Most people fail to face the realities of the job search. Think about this critically. If you were hiring for say, a Chief Executive Officer for a global financial institution, would you select the twenty-two year old recent MBA graduate as the person to lead this world-leading institution? He or she may have the knowledge of contemporary business practices, but does he or she have the wealth of experience and knowledge that it has taken to reach that level over decades? That is experience and knowledge that no amount of classroom training can buy.

There’s nothing wrong with throwing your hat in the ring and hoping you may have a chance (as long as there’s nothing to lose like relying on the dream to feed your family and keep a roof over your head). It is also a good value proposition for you to work towards your goals; to see what you have to do to get where you want to go and then pursue it…whether it is training or following a strategic, planned career path. What is soul-destroying, is failing to face the facts about your candidacy and then, like those failed American or Australian Idol hopefuls, plunge into feelings of devastation, bitterness or anger.

How do you stand aside and look at yourself realistically?

For a start, look at the job description or criteria for the position you want so desperately.

If the job description indicates that the successful candidate should have five years of experience in senior management and you have only been acting in a team leader role three levels down, then chances are that your application will not come close to being seriously considered. No matter how wonderful your resume is and how much you have achieved in your short stints as a team leader.

If the job description indicates that the successful candidate should be a senior sales representative with a strong track record selling mainframes to multinational companies and you currently sell wine to the local liquor outlet, then the chances of getting your application considered are slim. It really doesn’t matter if you fulfil all the other criteria of being enthusiastic, client focused, well organised and able to service important customers if you cannot supply the two key ingredients of the job — being in the right industry, and having a track record of selling a specific product.

No-one is saying you shouldn’t have goals. No-one is saying that you can’t make a strategic career transition to where you want to go, and no-one is saying that you need to stay in the same job or industry forever. Dreams can come true, but they have to be supported by pragmatism and the willingness to face facts. Trying to squeeze your skills into a space that leaves no room for growth or movement can be every bit as disheartening as stretching them paper thin to reach boundaries that are beyond your reach.

Being realistic about the opportunities available to you right now, and establishing a vision and a plan for how to execute and achieve your long-term goals is the recipe for hope, optimism and ultimately, career success.

The interview is over. Phew! What a relief! The hard work is done and now it is up to the “powers that be” to make a decision. You’ve done as much as you can do and now it’s just a waiting game.

Really? You don’t have any niggling concerns about:

• That project that you really wanted to mention but didn’t?
• An example of your experience you just remembered that would have perfectly fit the interviewer’s question?
• How you forgot to expand upon your capacity to travel or your flexibility?

If you think that the decision making is a “done deal” after interview, you’re wrong! The process is just beginning. You do have a chance to make it right.

Immediately after interview, even if it is in the car in the parking lot, jot down some critical details while they are still fresh in your mind. Who was conducting the interview? Make sure you get the spelling right. Analyse your performance. What did you leave out? Is there something you could have improved upon or a better example you could have given? What are your impressions of the organisation and of the people who interviewed you?

When you get home review your notes and open your word processor. Write down the details of that project or that example that you wanted to mention, expand on your impressions, and get everything down in one document.

You know what that document has become? It’s an extra chance to sell yourself; that’s what it is.

It is also the fledgling stages of your thank you letter that will thank the interviewers for their time, while reinforcing your skills, solidifying your position, and expanding on how and why you are the best candidate for the role. Here’s an idea of what that letter could look like.

Dear Mr Smith

Thank you for the opportunity to meet with you and John Carter yesterday morning. I enjoyed our discussion enormously and I was most impressed by the vision you have for XYZ Corporation’s continued prosperity. Further, I believe my experience to be an ideal match for your needs.

You mentioned that your current concern is deciding whether the company should solidify its position or take advantage of the current conditions to expand. I don’t think I mentioned during our discussion that I was instrumental in driving the successful merger of….  Additionally, my experience in ….. would align itself well to meet the challenges you face in the short and medium-term.

A role of this nature requires an individual willing to travel. With my family now grown, I am free to travel extensively to unite all key stakeholders for a flawless project execution.

A thank you letter such as this can make all the difference. The race for the right candidate is not over until the offer is made so you have ample time to put things right or elevate your profile.

Your reputation is one thing you can’t buy, beg, borrow or steal. Your reputation is yours alone, built by your actions–how well you perform, how you treat those around you up-and-down the ladder, your intelligence and your ethics.

Today, more than at any other time, your actions and deeds can be widely communicated through co-worker complaints on Facebook, Twitter or blogs, through a forwarded email from a disgruntled colleague, or just simply by those who come across you every day and who have friends industry-wide.

Let’s look at a couple of reputation killers that despite some short-term gain on your part, may end up being long-term personal PR disasters.

• Cultivating a competing offer of employment to leverage extra money or responsibilities where you are.

It may be quite clever to pull this off and you may pat yourself on the back if you managed to secure a “counter offer” to stay with your current employer. Ethically and as far as your long-term reputation is concerned, it’s a different story. You have used and abused your employer’s goodwill and you have wasted the time of recruiters and the resources of another employer to solidify your existing position.

Short-term as far as you are concerned, you’re smiling. You have either more money or a more prestigious role. How your current employer feels about being manipulated and forced into making a quick decision is anyone’s guess, although frankly if you’re still in that position 12 months from now, consider yourself lucky. From the recruiter’s and potential employer’s perspective–well your reputation has taken a big hit. If you think this is going to be forgotten and it isn’t really a big deal anyway, try applying for a job with the same recruiting firm or employer six months down the track and hope against hope you’re not unemployed when you’re doing so.

* Slacking off after giving notice.

Congratulations, you’ve found another job and you are currently serving out your notice with your existing company. Resist the temptation of tarnishing your reputation by slacking off, rubbishing the company to other employees and being an overall fun-loving distraction. Instead, continue to be a good employee; stay focused and work hard to the end. Your ethics, your ability to remain businesslike and earn the money that is being paid to you to do just that, will be the way you will be remembered. If you think that nobody will talk of how you confronted long-term enemies or “spilled the beans” by providing inside information to customers or suppliers, you are deluding yourself. Your reputation can be irrevocably damaged in serving out your remaining time.

Remember too, sometimes reference checks continue to be done after a job offer is made. Your reputation will be expanded upon through the eyes of others. Who will speak for you from the last job and what on earth will they say? A job offer can be rescinded right up to the day you start work if new and damaging information about you is uncovered.

Sustaining a successful career from teens to retirement takes more than being in the right place at the right time. Your reputation and your professional network are assets that will be most valuable to your career. It is in your interest to invest time and energy into both.

There are some perfectly valid reasons to leave your current company.

• An entrenched bullying culture, where management pay lip service but nothing ever changes.
• Serious mismanagement where you know that any moment auditors will be walking in the door and closing things down
• You are fighting an uphill battle against a family-owned and operated company, knowing that the chances of you being promoted on merit over the owner’s children are laughable to even contemplate.
• You are a whistleblower, who despite doing the right thing, have become a pariah in the company.
• You will be in the same job, doing the same thing until the next ice age.
• The company is relocating to another state and you are not prepared to go with them.

Clearly these are serious situations; serious enough for you to submit a resignation and leave without looking back.

Assuming your situation is not so dire, then think about your motivations for leaving. Times clearly aren’t too brilliant right now. Lots of competition, too few jobs. The wait for a job that fits your particular brand of talents could be months away. Even if that job does come along, you will not be the only candidate and you may not be successful.

So let’s look at your situation pragmatically. What are the good things about where you work?

• People know you and you’ve made friends. Perhaps some people don’t like you too, but that’s ok. The next job you’ll have to start from scratch and prove yourself again. Do you think there will be no troublemakers or agitators at the new place? Is there a possibility of jumping from the frying pan into the fire?
• Assuming you are a competent worker, you have earned the respect of those above you. Respect is earned over time and it will not be automatic at your new place of employment.
• If you’ve accrued benefits, annual leave, share options, sick leave and superannuation, are you aware of the cost to you if you leave the employer and go elsewhere?
• You know the routine. You know what you can do, achieve. You know where things are, you know the way things work. With a new employer you’ll need to learn all this from scratch.

Clearly it’s easier to stay where you are, but what is making you want to make that move? How can you make your current situation work for you?

• Do you want to move up to the next level? If so, what have you done to communicate that to decision makers? Have you taken on high-profile assignments? Have you been visible in joining task forces and committees? What do you have to do to move forward? Could it be further education or training? Why not create a plan right now? Where do you want to be, when do you want to get there, and what do you have to do to achieve it? Work out the person with influence that you can voice your aspirations to and enlist his or her help.
• Is there something missing in your work? Would you like to learn something new so you don’t get stale? How would this be achieved? Could you sit in on another department’s operations or is it something that you could learn in a training course? If you would like to enrich your skills, build a case for why and how it would help your employer. Would it save them money by having to hire an external consultant? Would it allow you to share your learning with others and thereby increase the knowledge base of the team to provide better or quicker service? Once you have worked that out, who can you see who would support you in your endeavours?
• Perhaps you get along great except for one person who makes your life, and possibly everyone else’s life miserable. If you leave, then that person has had quite a bit of power over your choices and your future career. Do you really want him or her to have that power? Consider what can be done. Who do you know in the company who can help you mediate a successful win/win?
• You want more pay. How do the payscales work? Are they based on productivity? Achievements? What can you do to proactively put yourself in a position of greater visibility to score some high profile wins?

I’m not saying stay at your company forever. What I’m saying is if you decide to make the switch to a new employer, do it for the right reasons: greater opportunities, a genuine step up, or in an area that you have dreamed about. If your whole motivation for leaving is a knee-jerk reaction, you will be bound to be disappointed as the grass is very rarely greener on the other side.