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"You\u2019re really good at what you do, but you were just passed over for a job that you would have killed. So what.\nThe typical hiring process is fantastically dysfunctional. There is little that\u2019s right, so it feels quite random and unfair if you don\u2019t land the gig. And that stings because we\u2019ve deluded ourselves into thinking the job and the company were perfect (and we hate losing). \nWe never imagine what it would have been like to work there after the honeymoon period fizzled.\nAs the great philosopher George Costanza once said, \u201CIt\u2019s not a lie if you believe it.\u201D  But failing to do our own diligence has its costs.  \nI know because I\u2019ve also been willing to overlook red flags in order to win a job. And after \"winning\" the job at a then-hot startup, I proceeded to be miserable and an awful contributor for the next 7 months and 17 days. The light bulb went off when driving to work a stoplight turned from green to yellow. My body physically went slack with relief as I realized this was 45-seconds less that I\u2019d have to spend in the office that day*. But those 227 days cost me:\n\nConfidence, which spilled over to our initial failed attempts to raise money (I wasn\u2019t going to work for someone else again) and took almost two years to regain.\nMotivation to engage in the other important areas of my life \u2014 family, exercise and hobbies.\nOpportunity to positively advance my knowledge, responsibilities and personal brand. \n\nNeither my knowledge nor my skill set had changed, and yet I was a brilliant failure.  \nThere is more to our professional success than having the chops, and it comes back to how well we fit the company culture, the team\u2019s work dynamics and our manager\u2019s style. The best thing you can do when finding your next employer is to dig deep and conduct your own interview.  Odds are the hiring manager isn\u2019t going to be able to articulate the culture or how they operate so you have to get your hands dirty to get a better feel for whether it is the right place for you. Specifically:\n\nDecision-Making.  Who makes the decisions, how are they made, who gets credit?\nFeedback and Rewards.  How and when can you be expected to get feedback?  What do the top performers do to be considered such? \nTeam Dynamics. What needs fixing? What are the expectations of new team members?  What\u2019s a meeting sound like (i.e. thoughtful, raised voices)? How does the team operate with other groups?\nManagement.  Is your manager a top performer or is your star going to dim simply by being in his/her orbit?  How does the manager resolve differences on the team?  How does the manager divvy up assignments?\n \n\nAnd then:\n\nDrop Your Preconceived Notions.  Every company operates differently, which is often at odds with the consumer-facing brand.  Chances are, what you think you know is wrong.  \nListen Critically.  Everyone is trying to sell you on the job.  Pretend like you\u2019re buying a new car and read between the lines on everything.\nProbe.  Ask for specific examples and don\u2019t settle for platitudes. You\u2019re making a decision that will consume 70% of your waking hours.\n\nLanding a job is less important than landing a job at the right company for you. Take back some control over the process, interview everyone on the team and don\u2019t hesitate to be the first one to say, \"It\u2019s not you, it\u2019s me.\"\n* Realizing how stupid this was; I quit before lunch.\nSocial Media Job Listings\nEvery week we post a list of social media and web job opportunities. While we publish a huge range of job listings, we've selected some of the top social media job opportunities from the past two weeks to get you started. Happy hunting!\n\n Sr. Marketing Manager, Audience Development- RealSimple.com  at Time Inc. in New York City\n Web Producer  at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Washington, D.C.\n Social Media Manager at Buildon in San Francisco\n\nImage courtesy of iStockphoto,  MarkGabrenya"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2012/03/10/hate-your-job/>