From Harvard Business Review - August 12, 2009

by Larry Stybel

You know the Catch-22: "You can't get a job without experience, and you can't get experience without a job."

Young job seekers have always faced this dilemma. In today's
shrinking job market, people with years of experience also struggle with
it. Whether they face the reality of a layoff, or merely the threat of
one, many older workers are trying to reinvent themselves in order to
become marketable in a changed economy.

Whether you're launching your career or trying to change its
direction, you can get around this Catch-22 with some creativity and
humility.

Here's how I did it:

I was a clinical psychologist in a community mental health center. It
was professionally satisfying and financially unrewarding. I decided it
was time to make more money. I would become a business consultant.

Imagine my surprise to learn that I could not find a single company
eager to hire me. Apparently, they couldn't see that my ability to
counsel sexual offenders was a transferable skill!

I couldn't get business experience without getting hired. I couldn't get hired without business experience. What to do?

At a party, I met Dr. Charles Daily, an organizational psychologist
and entrepreneur. Dr. Daily was trying to market a new product to help
companies make better hiring decisions. He had a good idea and no money
to hire someone to help him realize it.

I said to Dr. Daily, "I'll do telemarketing cold calls for your new
product. But I insist on being paid. The first payment will be a title
appropriate to the job I will be doing - say, 'Business Development
Associate.'" The second payment, if I fulfill my end of the deal, will
be a good reference and introductions to colleagues who might be able to
help me."

For the next two months, two days a week, I did my best to help Dr.
Daily get traction for his new service. I made hundreds of calls -
hating every one of them. I ultimately was able to set up two in-person
appointments for Dr. Daily.

Neither of those led to new business. But Dr. Daily said my job had
been to open doors; it was his job to close deals. I'd performed well
and would get paid, in the form of introductions to some business
associates. Those introductions, along with a resume that included my
new title, eventually led to a job with a talent management-consulting
firm.

How can you use such a strategy to get out of the no-win loop that circumscribes your professional growth?

Look for a company with a great idea and no money to execute it. Then:

1. Be specific about what value you will provide. I wanted experience
   in the sales and marketing of professional services. I said I would make
   phone calls and get appointments for Dr. Daily. I didn't say I would
   generate sales because I didn't think I could do that.


2. Be specific about what value you will receive. For me, appropriate
   compensation was a title I could add to my resume and introductions and
   a reference from Dr. Daily. Compensation is about value received for
   value given - and you're thinking too narrowly if you define value only
   in monetary terms.


3. Be specific about time frame. I promised to work two days a week
   for two months. Be sure that your commitment doesn't preclude you from
   actively continuing a job search - or performing well enough to keep
   your present job.

What? You're too proud to offer your services at no charge? Get over
it. If you choose the right opportunity, you'll gain industry or
functional experience that has immeasurable value - and will ultimately
lead to a real paycheck.

Larry Stybel is co-founder of the global career management firm Stybel Peabody Lincolnshire. He also is Executive in Residence at the Sawyer School of Business at Suffolk University.