Closing my business down - job hunting advice needed!

Sorry to hear about your business closure. I have had a few friends in the same boat. Sometimes its for the best. They have been lucky to have had a trade, so they basically have gone back to their trade jobs. Very lucky to have chosen that career path. I cant offer you much more than that sorry. Best of luck in your next career move.

 

Dont let them know about it -or- tell them you built and sold a business. Building and operating a business is a 24 / 7 job. I dont know your age, but tell them you had an opportunity to sell the business at a more then fair price and you look forward to enjoying more time with your family.

 

I had a small Trucking company for 8 years fuel and insurance prices started going up. I tried to go back to my customers and raise my rates. I had 2 that accepted the new rates the others didn't. So the next thing I did is started calling customers and saying I was closing the company. I still had my warehouses for income and as soon as another company in town knew I was closing the owner came by and offered me a job. So as soon as I finished wrapping up my business I went to work for the him. I keep this job basicly because I like the people I work with plus the benefits. Luckily I have the warehouses for my main income. I don't know what kind of business you are in but if you have a customer base then one of your competitors would probably be interested in hiring you hoping you will bring other customers with you.

 

Well, I respectfully disagree. Being dishonest or cagey is no way to begin a relationship with a potential employer.

Give some thought to what happened in your business - what, if anything, could you have done to make it succeed? If you had to do it over, what would you do differently? What did you LEARN from the experience? How has this made you a better employee, and what can you bring from that experience to your new employer?

This is absolutely NOT NOT NOT a black mark on your resume. The entrepreuneurial spirit, the willingness to take a calculated risk is exactly what many smart employers are looking for. You will be respected for having taken a chance and learning from the experience if you present it in that manner.

If you try to lie or spin your way around it, they'll sense it and you'll be toast.

Best of luck,

Neil

(yes, I am in a similar boat now. Downsized for third time in 5 years, currently looking.)

 

Good post. Exactly what I was thinking, only you said it better than I could have.

 

I think that saying you have a propensity to start businesses and are used to working for yourself is a big red X to someone looking for an employee.

 

I've been a part of hiring over 100 people in the last 5 years. Starting salaries anywhere from $25k to $75k. I would NEVER discount someone that started a business that didn't work out. You should stress what you LEARNED, what you'd do differently, and how you'll apply the experience to your future position. Typically when I hire someone that had been self employed, they're looking for the stability of working for a large corporation. I worry less about the longevity of those people than I do the Gen Y's that expect to be promoted every 9 months.

 

It's nothing to be ashamed of at all. Certainly don't try to hide it. I've failed more times than I've succeeded. I've been in your position. I was 25, I had just closed my business, had a mountain of debt, no job, no formal education and no freaking idea how I was going to service the debt, let alone basic survival. I survived and flourished, I'm sure you will too.

One of the sole reasons I was able to get the job I got right after that failure was that I was upfront about having to close my business. I got offered a job that frankly I had no qualifications for, but based on my track record of willingness to work my ass off and proof that I'm a risk taker I was hired. Almost ten years later I now work for myself again and I specifically look to hire people who have experienced the ownership side of a business.

 

the previous responses here illustrate what i think is the core issue - let me just underline the point (pretend you're watching an Oliver Stone film).

there are folks hiring people who grok the entrepreneurial mentality and there are folks hiring people who do not grok it.

the latter will likely not hire you. they're probably "lifer" wage-slaves and that's all they've known.

the former will likely be more interested in talking to you than another candidate with no entrepreneurial experience. they grok the work ethic and focus and risk-taking and all that yummy stuff.

depends on the role too. hiring an entrepreneurial type that reports to sr. management is one thing - hiring them to report to a manager who reports to a director who reports to a vp who reports to an evp who reports to a president who reports to a ceo (you get the picture) is a different affair.

good luck. you'll land on your feet.

keep a positive attitude - a negative or bad attitude shows fast and furious in the interview process.

i've failed in entpreneurial ventures plenty of times. failure sucks, but imo you can learn just as much (some would argue "more") from your failures than your successes. and if you're learning, you're ultimately succeeding.

doody.