Reading Group Guidelines

Get Hired Now! was written with reading groups in mind. The 28-day program outlined in the book is ideal for use by a group of job-seekers working together, and the book has been adopted as a text by job clubs located around the world.

The typical reading group who chooses Get Hired Now! will not just discuss the book’s content, but rather work together to complete the exercises and put the 28-day program into action. The book uses a cookbook metaphor to help readers plan their job search. Here’s how to use the book with your reading group or job club to get the most benefit:

While it’s not necessary for a Get Hired Now! reading group to have a designated leader, it can be helpful to have members take turns at facilitating. The facilitator can make sure that everyone has enough time to check in and that no one member dominates the discussion.

Some groups also hold mini-workshops at their meetings, taking turns to present a tool or technique from the extensive collection of job search how-to’s in Chapters 7–11.

Whatever format your group chooses, remember that the key ingredients for success with the Get Hired Now! program are action, accountability and peer support. By working together to help each other, everyone will benefit.

	Get Hired Now! was written with reading groups in mind. The 28-day program outlined in the book is ideal for use by a group of job-seekers working together, and the book has been adopted as a text by job clubs located around the world.
	The typical reading group who chooses Get Hired Now! will not just discuss the book’s content, but rather work together to complete the exercises and put the 28-day program into action. The book uses a cookbook metaphor to help readers plan their job search. Here’s how to use the book with your reading group or job club to get the most benefit:
	1			Form a group of 3–15 members who are willing to meet on a weekly basis for at least 6 weeks. Group members should be actively engaged in looking for work, not just thinking about it.
	2			Many groups meet in person, but busy job-seekers can also meet by telephone. Virtual groups use three-way calling or free teleconferencing services to schedule phone meetings. (Search the web for “free conference call.” Conferencing is free, but you may need to pay long distance charges from your location.)
	3			Before your first meeting, suggest that all members read Chapters 1–3 and complete the first half of the Action Plan Worksheet on page 47. (Copies of the worksheet can be made from the book or downloaded from the authors' website.
	4			At your first meeting, members should introduce themselves and share the contents of their worksheets so far: what type of job they are looking for, their goal for the 28 days of the program, where they are feeling stuck or lost in their job search, and what job-seeking approaches they intend to use.
	5			Each member should ask the others for any feedback, perspective, resources, or support they need to be successful in designing and implementing their program. This should take place at every meeting, giving members the opportunity to provide advice, leads and ideas to each other.
	6			Before the second meeting, members should read Chapters 4–6, finish filling out the Action Plan Worksheet, and complete the first column of their Tracking Worksheet from page 103.
	7			At the second meeting, each member should share the design of his or her personal 28-day program, including one to three Success Ingredients, ten Daily Actions, and a Special Permission. (These elements are all described in the book.) Each member should set a specific date to begin his or her program.
	8			Before each subsequent meeting, members should read the daily entries in Chapter 6 that correspond to where they are in the program, typically Days 1–7 before the third meeting, 8–14 before the fourth meeting, etc.
	9			At each weekly meeting, every member should begin by reporting on his or her job search progress, using the Tracking Worksheet as a guide. These reports should be concise, so that each member has a chance to check in every week. A useful approach for check-in reports is to summarize just the results on the worksheet without telling the story behind each one.
	10			Members should hold each other accountable, noting when other members are not moving forward and reminding them of their stated intentions. A key benefit of working the program together is the “benevolent peer pressure” provided by the group. Gentle reminders are more effective than scolding one another. For example, members might ask each other: “What got in the way of completing your daily actions this week?” or “How can we help you move toward your goal?”
	11			After the check-ins, members can discuss challenges, celebrate successes, ask questions of each other, share leads and resources, brainstorm ideas, or ask for and offer support. Chapter 6 and the job search “recipes” in Chapters 7–11 provide many solutions to specific problems members might encounter.
	12			At the final meeting, members should celebrate each other’s progress or success in the program, and discuss what they have learned over the past 28 days.
	13			Not everyone will have found the job they are looking for, so any members who wish to continue working together should schedule another four weekly meetings and begin the program again. Typically, members choose to revise the design of their 28-day program before beginning a new one, so they should do so before the group next meets.
	While it’s not necessary for a Get Hired Now! reading group to have a designated leader, it can be helpful to have members take turns at facilitating. The facilitator can make sure that everyone has enough time to check in and that no one member dominates the discussion.
	Some groups also hold mini-workshops at their meetings, taking turns to present a tool or technique from the extensive collection of job search how-to’s in Chapters 7–11.
	Whatever format your group chooses, remember that the key ingredients for success with the Get Hired Now! program are action, accountability and peer support. By working together to help each other, everyone will benefit.