Getting fired or terminated from a job can be very rough. It feels like a huge obstacle to get over, and how are you supposed to get a new job if you were fired from your last one?
The good news it’s not only possible, but TONS of people get fired and turn around to get a better job elsewhere. Here’s how:
Come to terms with it. This can be the hardest part, as you may feel like you weren’t good enough for the job. Don’t worry, you’ll be back on your feet soon enough. Take a few days to go over why it happened, and if there was a specific reason or gap in knowledge for why it happened, try to brush up on it before applying for a new position. This way, you can leverage it into a strength in an interview!
Do NOT say you were fired on a resume! This is a surefire way to get your resume thrown out. You don’t have to mention how you left the job in your resume or cover letter. Focus on your job responsibilities, any software you used, and whatever else you think would look great on your resume! You aren’t lying to them - if they really want to know, they’ll ask in an interview. Which leads us to the next part…
Explaining your termination in the interview: Be brief. Don’t go into too much detail or you may say something you shouldn’t. Don’t badmouth your previous employer or coworkers. It reflects poorly on you, and is in absolute bad form during an interview. Use phrases like “We decided to go in a different direction” and “I felt a change in my career path was best” when talking about it - then use this to segway into how ready you are for this new job and what you bring to the table. If you really did mess up and it resulted in you being fired, clearly identify what you could have done differently. Then, speak to them on how you have grown professionally from that experience.
I hope this has shed some light on how to explain being fired in an interview - if it did or if you have more questions, please comment below!!
How about, "I took that job to work on improving my interpersonal skills but, in a twist of irony, was fired for communication. In the end. I can rest easy knowing that my coworkers were able to sign up for health insurance."
That's not what I was fired for on paper. I slipped and gave them an out. I had never before experienced and, don't expect other employers to play that game. It felt good, having someone thank me because, they went a year without health insurance after, HR failed to announce open enrollment the previous year.
So true that's the blssing from God on his mission
Well said Matt! Don’t burn the bridges that you may need to cross over. Be professional, to stay professional!
How do you explain being terminated because of a work Comp claim that turned into a lawsuit against the company?
After 9.5 years, I was fired for misconduct as one of their top operations specialist. I was called into an office and read as sheet of paper that sounded nasty and legal. I had burned out after they put me on steps for 9 months to avoid promoting me (3 months later, the performance error I was put on steps for was shown to be a common error that everyone in the position made - as I repeatedly told my manager in our semi-weekly reprimand meeting). Then I was denied a promotion because my production went down even though we were all told ' don't worry about production, focus on quality/accuracy) I was one of the highest scores in accuracy because I slowed down and sacrificed productivity while I saw others do the opposite and get promoted. I balanced my productivity and quality and became one of the top in my department again. Finally, they switched my schedule from 7 am start to 11 am start (after using stacked rating to lay off 3/4 (200+ of us)) and demanded the same productivity from me. Most of my vendors were on the East coast, so this was impossible as most responses stopped around 4pm cst. To maintain productivity, I occassionaly (87/9,000+ times) held onto quotes instead of passing them on for the morning crew to handle. I was burned out and didn't care. Each of those 87 quote requests over the 6+ months during my new schedule made me sick, but I wasn't going anywhere. I wasn 't getting responses to applications from other departments hiring despite doing ride-alongs and engaging with their hiring manager. I was actively engaged in 2 corporate clubs and continued to show my value, however, I was walking in and depressed daily (and had to try not to show it to maintain professionalism - I have 2 kids and a sick wife who depended on me). But the job got the better of me and I did what I did. I wish my manager had had the balls to say 'here's an opportunity for you to resign' instead of reading the statement which effectively said I was being let go for misconduct and now I cannot find a job. It has been 20 months.
I told all recruiters or interviewers I was released during their 12 months of lay-offs, which is true. When prodded, I would explain how the 200+ people lost their jobs to Panama and I was also effectively forced out. People were released in waves about every 3 months, there was re-interviewing, re-hiring -- it all related to the tech bubble and trying to maintain the organization while sales and profits were down - same story for many of the fortune 500. Simple and true.
I have had over 50 interviews with approximately 40 companies in the last 2 years and can only try to work my way up from a temp job delivering mail warehouse work. I am familiar with several interviewing techniques and communicate well although my interviews can always go a little better. My answers are average and should be sufficient. Some of these interviews went great so I do not know why I all of the sudden stopped getting phone calls at the time of an offer. I would get a follow-up email with a canned statement down the line every time. Is this 'misconduct' scar the reason I am not getting the job? What are companies allowed to check?
What about being fired for trying to return back to work from maternity leave and they lie saying you left voluntarily without notice
No I wasn't fired people lol I moved from manatee county to zephryhills FL.
Yes
Hi LM ready for work in USA
I'm from Algeria Looking for work Do you help me?