Anonymous writes:
Here is the situation. I’m a former police officer who was recently (wrongly) convicted of a white collar crime. I have a two-year degree in business and have had about three years of previous restaurant management experience before becoming an officer and about 3 years in the radio industry. First question, how do I answer this question on an application? Secondly I really don’t know which way I can turn career wise from this point.
The Career Doctor responds:
Well, of course, you don’t need to broadcast that you have a record; however, if asked, you not only need to come clean, but you need to adjust your attitude. What’s the punch line to the joke — something like 80 percent of people incarcerated in prison are innocent (or so they say). Employers are often willing to work with someone who appears to have learned from a past mistake, but are very leery of job-seekers who seem to have learned nothing from the experience. And even if you are one of the few innocent people convicted unjustly, no employer wants to hear it.
Once you’re ready to face the issue, discover the lesson you learned so that you can have a positive spin on the conviction if and when it arises during the job application/interview process. Just remember to not raise the issue unless asked about it. But never lie about it, smooth it over, or argue the conviction.
As for your career and where you go…that’s the next thing you need to figure out. You obviously have a lot of valuable skills and experience, and should be able to package that nicely in a resume once you determine your career direction.
What is it you want to do next? If you truly have no clue, take the time to conduct some self-assessment. First, spend some time reviewing all your experiences (work, hobby, etc.) and make two lists — one with activities you enjoy and one with activities you never want to do again. You could also consider taking one or more assessment tests, many of which you can find online.
Once you have a better picture of your likes and interests, the next step is researching careers that closely match your profile. Take the time to do this important career exploration. There are a lot of online and print resources that can help you in this process. My favorite is the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Once you’ve identified a career path (or paths), the next step is finding employers in that field — and developing a strategy for breaking into it. In any job market, but especially in this job market, your key to success is building a new network for your new career. Find and join professional organizations in your new career field, use alumni networks to find people in your new career field.
Use the Career Exploration Resources section of Quintessential Careers to help you.
And learn more about networking in the The Art of Networking section of Quintessential Careers.
And all sorts of great resume-writing tools can be found in the Resume Resources section of Quintessential Careers.
