November 26, 2025 • 8 mins
Greg offers hope to job seekers during the holidays and provides advice on navigating tricky situations-like what to do if your boss asks you to work when you’ve already scheduled time off.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now let's go to Greg g and Grande career advice
expert with us every Wednesday at this time. I really
encourage you to go to Greg dot com because he
can help you if you have a job search. He
can help answer your questions about what's going on at work.
It is an important resource. So again that is go
(00:22):
to Greg dot com. So Greg, let me ask you
some of the questions that I know you've already been asked,
but this is for our audience. Is it pointless to
conduct a job search between Thanksgiving and New Years? Or
should I wait until January?
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Good morning, Larry. That is a common myth that everything
shuts down, and so your job search should shut down too.
Here's what I would say that if you are already
in the grind or throes of a search, now is
definitely not the time to stop. You can pause over
this holiday weekend and think through all of the activity
(01:06):
you've done, think through your materials and your approach. You
can look at your LinkedIn profile and your resume, just
to make sure that you are approaching your job with
the best foot forward. But definitely not to pause, because
hiring continues. There's lots of really good reasons why to
(01:28):
continue your search now the competition is less, many people
do shut down their search, but many companies are still hiring,
So so would I would pause this weekend just to
reassess your approach, but I wouldn't put it on hold.
Speaker 1 (01:44):
You know, it's interesting nowadays there's so many people that
just go online and they put their resume online and
it's almost like they're going fishing, you know, they just
they have it, they have their bait in the water
and they're waiting for a bite. So much more to
a job search than that, isn't there?
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Well, it's a great point, Larry, and perfect analogy. You
need to fish where the fish are. You could be
out there all day casting lines and not getting a
bite and think that you're a terrible fisherman. You might
not be doing anything wrong. You just may be fishing
in the wrong spots. And big point in the job
search is activity doesn't equal productivity. So a lot of
(02:28):
people think I've sent out because it's easy to do
it with just a click, hundreds of resumes. I've responded
to hundreds of online job postings, lots of activity, but
it happens to be the lowest productivity job search activity.
It's the least return on that effort because there are
(02:50):
literally millions of jobs online and millions of resumes that
are going across the transom. It's the lowest return on
the investment. So you should absolutely apply the jobs online,
but only the most selective, most targeted, and you need
to supplement that online application by trying to find someone
(03:14):
through networking who knows the company, knows someone in that
department that you can get another avenue into that job opening.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
And you don't have to know that person, right, you
can just find them sort of like on LinkedIn or
online and send them an email or send them a
message to see if they respond.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Absolutely, and they would appreciate it too. People like when
you demonstrate your kind of being innovative and entrepreneurial and
scrappy and looking for different ways to get in than
just clicking on an apply button that doesn't show interest,
but your effort in trying to get to that employer,
that hiring manager, that department that really helps you stand up.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
All right, let's take another question from the webs. I
work in retail and had previously been approved for paid
time off this holiday weekend. Now my boss is telling
me that they're going to be shorthanded and I have
to work this weekend. I've already made plans. What are
my rights?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Yeah, well that's a common and tough dilemma. Being a
retail worker around the holidays is like being an accountant
around tax season. Your time is not your own and
it's rare that time off would have been approved. But
the reality is an employer has the right to adjust
your work schedule based on business needs. So if your
(04:42):
employer previously approved your paid time off this weekend, but
now says that they need you to work because they
are shorthanded, they have the right to do that. Now
you can say, I'm really sorry, I have planned out
of town and I did no way I can adjust them,
or you can simply refuse and then see how your
(05:04):
employer responds to that. But they have the right to
make the change, and if they want to, you know,
implement any kind of disciplinary action because you didn't work
when they needed to work, they have the right to
do that too.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
I would think, and you can tell me you know
better than I would. I would think that most bosses,
if they know you have a vacation planned and you're
going out of town, and you spend some money on it,
they wouldn't make you work. Am I right about that?
Speaker 2 (05:36):
You're right? It would be only the small minority of
really bad employers who thinks it's a good idea to say,
I don't care that you have these airline tickets and
you have family meeting you know, in another state. You
need to be here. It's fine for them to ask.
They may not know your plans, but once they see
(05:56):
that you have those types of plans, what is prospect
of a good employment relationship going forward? If they force
you to come in, or if they threaten you if
you don't. So, most employers are going to understand if
you truly can't. Now, if you can swing it, even
part time, if you can help relieve some of the
(06:19):
crunch that they're feeling, you're likely to win lots of
points with your employer. If you can accommodate it, maybe
you can't do everything they last, you're likely to win
lots of points and maybe get an extra bonus, extra
pay out of it. So if you can accommodate even
a part of it, I think it's really good will
and probably will put you in good standing with your employer.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
I'll tell you an interesting story, because you know the
stories have been out there that AI is being used
to go through resumes on LinkedIn, and AI is being
used now by employers to make the first cuts. A
friend of mine told me that his son then decided
to use AI to deal with AI to say, hey,
(07:05):
what is a resume I could write that would catch
the attention of AI and then put their resume in there,
and it came back with a resume. I don't know
how it's worked out yet, but I'm dying to find out.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Yeah, there are all these tricks that people are trying,
but the good old fashioned way is still the best
way networking, trying to use your relationships and targeting specific
employers and demonstrating why you want to work for them
rather than just blanketing the world with resumes hoping to
land a job. An employer wants to know that you
(07:42):
are targeting them specifically because you want to work for them,
not that you're just looking for a job.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
That's a great point. It always comes down to picking
up the phone call and calling somebody. That's what it
seems like. No matter how technical we get, that human
contact is the best way. Greg gm Grande career advice
expert with a SA every Wednesday at nine thirty five.
Thanks a lot, Greg, good talking to you.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
Happy Thanksgiving. Thank you.
Now let's go to Greg g and Grande career advice
expert with us every Wednesday at this time. I really
encourage you to go to Greg dot com because he
can help you if you have a job search. He
can help answer your questions about what's going on at work.
It is an important resource. So again that is go
(00:22):
to Greg dot com. So Greg, let me ask you
some of the questions that I know you've already been asked,
but this is for our audience. Is it pointless to
conduct a job search between Thanksgiving and New Years? Or
should I wait until January?
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Good morning, Larry. That is a common myth that everything
shuts down, and so your job search should shut down too.
Here's what I would say that if you are already
in the grind or throes of a search, now is
definitely not the time to stop. You can pause over
this holiday weekend and think through all of the activity
(01:06):
you've done, think through your materials and your approach. You
can look at your LinkedIn profile and your resume, just
to make sure that you are approaching your job with
the best foot forward. But definitely not to pause, because
hiring continues. There's lots of really good reasons why to
(01:28):
continue your search now the competition is less, many people
do shut down their search, but many companies are still hiring,
So so would I would pause this weekend just to
reassess your approach, but I wouldn't put it on hold.
Speaker 1 (01:44):
You know, it's interesting nowadays there's so many people that
just go online and they put their resume online and
it's almost like they're going fishing, you know, they just
they have it, they have their bait in the water
and they're waiting for a bite. So much more to
a job search than that, isn't there?
Speaker 2 (02:04):
Well, it's a great point, Larry, and perfect analogy. You
need to fish where the fish are. You could be
out there all day casting lines and not getting a
bite and think that you're a terrible fisherman. You might
not be doing anything wrong. You just may be fishing
in the wrong spots. And big point in the job
search is activity doesn't equal productivity. So a lot of
(02:28):
people think I've sent out because it's easy to do
it with just a click, hundreds of resumes. I've responded
to hundreds of online job postings, lots of activity, but
it happens to be the lowest productivity job search activity.
It's the least return on that effort because there are
(02:50):
literally millions of jobs online and millions of resumes that
are going across the transom. It's the lowest return on
the investment. So you should absolutely apply the jobs online,
but only the most selective, most targeted, and you need
to supplement that online application by trying to find someone
(03:14):
through networking who knows the company, knows someone in that
department that you can get another avenue into that job opening.
Speaker 1 (03:25):
And you don't have to know that person, right, you
can just find them sort of like on LinkedIn or
online and send them an email or send them a
message to see if they respond.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
Absolutely, and they would appreciate it too. People like when
you demonstrate your kind of being innovative and entrepreneurial and
scrappy and looking for different ways to get in than
just clicking on an apply button that doesn't show interest,
but your effort in trying to get to that employer,
that hiring manager, that department that really helps you stand up.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
All right, let's take another question from the webs. I
work in retail and had previously been approved for paid
time off this holiday weekend. Now my boss is telling
me that they're going to be shorthanded and I have
to work this weekend. I've already made plans. What are
my rights?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Yeah, well that's a common and tough dilemma. Being a
retail worker around the holidays is like being an accountant
around tax season. Your time is not your own and
it's rare that time off would have been approved. But
the reality is an employer has the right to adjust
your work schedule based on business needs. So if your
(04:42):
employer previously approved your paid time off this weekend, but
now says that they need you to work because they
are shorthanded, they have the right to do that. Now
you can say, I'm really sorry, I have planned out
of town and I did no way I can adjust them,
or you can simply refuse and then see how your
(05:04):
employer responds to that. But they have the right to
make the change, and if they want to, you know,
implement any kind of disciplinary action because you didn't work
when they needed to work, they have the right to
do that too.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
I would think, and you can tell me you know
better than I would. I would think that most bosses,
if they know you have a vacation planned and you're
going out of town, and you spend some money on it,
they wouldn't make you work. Am I right about that?
Speaker 2 (05:36):
You're right? It would be only the small minority of
really bad employers who thinks it's a good idea to say,
I don't care that you have these airline tickets and
you have family meeting you know, in another state. You
need to be here. It's fine for them to ask.
They may not know your plans, but once they see
(05:56):
that you have those types of plans, what is prospect
of a good employment relationship going forward? If they force
you to come in, or if they threaten you if
you don't. So, most employers are going to understand if
you truly can't. Now, if you can swing it, even
part time, if you can help relieve some of the
(06:19):
crunch that they're feeling, you're likely to win lots of
points with your employer. If you can accommodate it, maybe
you can't do everything they last, you're likely to win
lots of points and maybe get an extra bonus, extra
pay out of it. So if you can accommodate even
a part of it, I think it's really good will
and probably will put you in good standing with your employer.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
I'll tell you an interesting story, because you know the
stories have been out there that AI is being used
to go through resumes on LinkedIn, and AI is being
used now by employers to make the first cuts. A
friend of mine told me that his son then decided
to use AI to deal with AI to say, hey,
(07:05):
what is a resume I could write that would catch
the attention of AI and then put their resume in there,
and it came back with a resume. I don't know
how it's worked out yet, but I'm dying to find out.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Yeah, there are all these tricks that people are trying,
but the good old fashioned way is still the best
way networking, trying to use your relationships and targeting specific
employers and demonstrating why you want to work for them
rather than just blanketing the world with resumes hoping to
land a job. An employer wants to know that you
(07:42):
are targeting them specifically because you want to work for them,
not that you're just looking for a job.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
That's a great point. It always comes down to picking
up the phone call and calling somebody. That's what it
seems like. No matter how technical we get, that human
contact is the best way. Greg gm Grande career advice
expert with a SA every Wednesday at nine thirty five.
Thanks a lot, Greg, good talking to you.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
Happy Thanksgiving. Thank you.
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