This document discusses common career liabilities and how to overcome them in job interviews. It provides the ARQS technique for acknowledging the concern, redirecting to relevant qualifications, qualifying your understanding, and satisfying the interviewer with a relevant accomplishment story. Specific liabilities addressed include unemployment, being overqualified, career changes, lack of experience, job hopping, education levels, prior firings, age considerations, and short job durations. The presentation is given by Dan Nelson, CEO of CareerCampaigns LLC, a web-based candidate sourcing and marketing solution.

1. Common Career Liabilities
Real and Perceived
Presenter
Dan Nelson, CEO
CareerCampaigns, LLC

2. Housekeeping
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3. Career Liabilities
“If some aspect of your experience, skills or
qualification can be perceived negatively,
It will be!”
It can take only one perceived negative to
eliminate an individual from consideration.

4. Overcoming Liabilities
ARQS Concept
• Acknowledge
• Redirect
• Qualify
• Satisfy

5. ACKNOWLEDGE
Rule # 1.
Never argue about the validity of the point
raised or contend that it is not important for the
job you are seeking
“I can appreciate your concern about my
(whatever), Mr. Interviewer.”
“I can appreciate why you would say that.”

6. REDIRECT
• What is the job related negative that is being
raised?
• You must understand the reality that you must
address
“Would I be correct in saying that what you’re
concerned about is (reality)?”

7. QUALIFY
• Offer the interviewer a chance to confirm your
understanding of the problem
• Guide the interviewer into an area where you
can show your skills/abilities to your advantage
“If I could show you that…”
“If I could demonstrate that I can…”
“Would my past record help you see that…”

8. SATISFY
• Use an Accomplishment based story (CAB) to
demonstrate how you have been effective in past
situations.
• CAB Story (Condition, Actions, Benefits)

9. UNEMPLOYED
“I see you are currently UNEMPLOYED”.
Issues / Concerns
• Unable to “cut it”, not competent
• Questions your “work habits”
•“Out of the loop” for too long

10. OVERQUALIFIED
“You appear to be overqualified for this position”.
Issues/Concerns
• Salary demands might be too high
• Intimidate your boss
• Short-term employee
Redirect
•Contribution capable of being made

11. CAREER CHANGE – ENTREPRENEUR TO CORP.
Issues/Concerns
• Independent, quick-draw maverick
• Used to making unilateral decisions
• Not a team player
• Working within a structured environment
Redirect
• Understand direction and commitment to company
goals

12. LACK OF INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE
Issues/Concerns
• How quickly you can be effective
• Unfamiliar with common practices / terminology
• Lack of existing network of contacts
Redirect
• Experience in job function

13. FREQUENT JOB CHANGES
Issues/Concerns
• Job hopper
• Lack of stability
• Avoiding consequences of poor performance
Redirect
• Loyal, stable, career-minded

14. NO MBA / ADVANCED DEGREE
Issues/Concerns
• Your knowledge of specific disciplines
• Lack of special abilities developed in grad schools
• Client perceptions of competence
Redirect
• Knowledge of position and industry

15. FIRED FROM LAST POSITION
Issues/Concerns
• Personality clashes
• Power struggle
• Errors in judgment; string of mistakes
• Poor performance
Redirect
• Emphasize what you learned from the experience
and how you would address the problem now

16. TOO OLD
Issues/ Concerns
• Lack of energy
• Resistance to change
• Compensation – hire someone younger for less
• How long you will be around
Redirect
• High energy level, hard driving, flexible

17. SHORT-TIME IN CURRENT POSITION
Issues/Concerns
• Lack of commitment
• Escaping the results of poor performance
• History of short-term employment
Redirect
• Loyal, stable, career-minded

18. TOO YOUNG
Issues/Concerns
• Lack of experience
• Patience
• Stability
• Sound judgment
Redirect
• Maturity of judgment; ability to communicate
effectively at all levels of management

19. UTILIZING THE ARQS TECHNIQUE
• Your responses must neutralize the negatives
• Emphasize the skills, talents and capabilities which
give you “added-value”
• It is not unethical to “de-emphasize perceived
weaknesses”
Caution
• Guard against any direct falsification for it will
instantly destroy your credibility

20. What is CareerCampaigns?
• A web based candidate sourcing solution
designed to help Florida employers fill their
open positions.
• Our online Talent Center is based on a new
model for delivering qualified candidates
directly to a hiring manager’s inbox from our
pool of job seekers.

21. Law of Perception
• One of the Immutable Laws of Marketing.
• Interviewing is not a battle of candidates
• Hiring decisions are based on perceptions
• It’s what employers: See, Hear and Feel

22. What we do:
• Our researchers source top active and passive
candidates
• We built a pipeline to connect talent with
potential new opportunities
• Proactively market candidates to employers via
email marketing campaigns

23. Assessment Phase
• Candidates login and complete Personal
Experience Audit
• Conduct a thorough phone INNERVIEW
• Talented candidates invited to be included in
next eSlate campaign

24. Branding Phase
Your personal web page includes:
• Professional business portrait
• Recorded 30 second commercial
• MRA leadership matrix profile
• Employment history and educational
background

25. Implementation Phase
• Candidateweb page is prepared for an eSlate
marketing campaign
• Launched to thousands of decision makers
weekly
• Employers click on candidate ID code and can
immediately view profile page

26. Our DIFFERENTIATORS
For Job Candidates
• A proactive search methodology
• Exposure to thousands of talent managers
weekly
• It’s FREE. No charge for hosting your web
page.

27. Our DIFFERENTIATORS
For Employers
• Using permission base email marketing, new
candidates delivered to their inbox weekly
• Hiring managers get to see, hear and feel
what the candidate has to offer
• Employers pay our fee of 9.95%, a savings of
50% – 70%

28. Questions and Answers
Dan Nelson’s Blog
careercampaigns.wordpress.com

29. Thank You for Your
Time and Consideration
Dan Nelson
CareerCampaigns LLC
941.371.1037
dnelson@careercampaigns.com
www.careercampaigns.com