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The Subversive Job Search: How to Overcome a Lousy Job, Sluggish Economy, and Useless Degree to Create a Six-Figure Career
Millionaire real estate investor Alan Corey reinvents himself as a career man after having to go on a job hunt for the first time in 10 years at the worst possible during a historic economic depression. As unemployment rates sky rocket, Alan begins his subversive job hunt and details all the loopholes, back doors, and sly techniques it took to go from being hopelessly ignored to being incessantly headhunted. The Alan was able to land an entry level $40,000 salary day job and turn it into a $190,000 a year career just 24 months later. The Subversive Job Search details how you can do it too.
224 pages, Paperback
First published April 22, 2013
3 people are currently reading
28 people want to read
About the author
Alan Corey
4 books13 followersAtlanta-based Alan Corey is a well-recognized author, entrepreneur, and investor managing over $40 million in real estate holdings. Alan teaches the concept of House FIRE and other real-estate related early retirement strategies at TheHouseOfAC.com and on "The House FIRE Podcast."
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 8, 2013
'What the world needs now...'
Balls. This hilariously well-intoned little book by Alan Corey is the best medicine for everyone at this point in our economica excrementa state of living. Even if you thought your job was fool proof or immune to the nibbling away by our current layoff and downsizing and outsourcing mindsets of the corporations we thought were so safe, read this book and prepare.
It is such fun to discover a book that takes a potential problem in a bleak time and manages to make you laugh your way through it. Not that this is a comedic novel - far from it. This is a survival kit disguised as a self-help book of sorts. The really wonderful aspect of is that it is the true life situation of the author who rose to the ranks of a millionaire real estate investor, took a tumble all the way to the bottom and devised a way (no, make that a series of ways) to reenter the job market using his unique brand of chutzpah and commonsense mixed thoroughly with this tried and true methods of `get yourself up, dust yourself of, and start all over again' techniques that are easily understood, and seem as though they will work.
Smile your way through Corey's Resume tips, setting up the `model' interviewee, learning how to read recruiters, and the final payoff of getting yourself place in a super happy and profitable position. All this may sound corny when distilled in a comment about this book, but this is one of those `manuals' you'll want to read and re-read - both for the wise counsel it offers as well as for the genuine humor and self confidence inducing state of mind it produces. Highly recommended.
Grady Harp
Balls. This hilariously well-intoned little book by Alan Corey is the best medicine for everyone at this point in our economica excrementa state of living. Even if you thought your job was fool proof or immune to the nibbling away by our current layoff and downsizing and outsourcing mindsets of the corporations we thought were so safe, read this book and prepare.
It is such fun to discover a book that takes a potential problem in a bleak time and manages to make you laugh your way through it. Not that this is a comedic novel - far from it. This is a survival kit disguised as a self-help book of sorts. The really wonderful aspect of is that it is the true life situation of the author who rose to the ranks of a millionaire real estate investor, took a tumble all the way to the bottom and devised a way (no, make that a series of ways) to reenter the job market using his unique brand of chutzpah and commonsense mixed thoroughly with this tried and true methods of `get yourself up, dust yourself of, and start all over again' techniques that are easily understood, and seem as though they will work.
Smile your way through Corey's Resume tips, setting up the `model' interviewee, learning how to read recruiters, and the final payoff of getting yourself place in a super happy and profitable position. All this may sound corny when distilled in a comment about this book, but this is one of those `manuals' you'll want to read and re-read - both for the wise counsel it offers as well as for the genuine humor and self confidence inducing state of mind it produces. Highly recommended.
Grady Harp
Read
June 26, 2020For the month of July, I read The Subversive Job Search by Alan Corey. This book is a how-to manual for job searchers looking to make more money or for those that want to increase their salary in their current workplace.
This book is brimming with all sorts of strategies and tricks that I’ve never heard of. There were a lot of interesting ideas and theories in this book, but almost all of them are money-motivated (this isn’t necessarily a book about finding a dream job that you love). Some of these ideas are good ones, but a few seem a little sketchy, so proceed cautiously.
A few highlights (from reasonable to ehhhh):
When you begin a new job search, you should always A/B test your resume. This means that you create multiple versions of your resume with slight tweaks. For example, if you want to test how potential employees view your service year, you might test labeling your service year as an AmeriCorps position vs. labeling it as Community Technology Empowerment Project vs. labeling it as the name of the site where you served. Send your resume out to at least 15 different organizations, and keep track of which ones (if any) generate a positive response. You might find that labeling your service year as an AmeriCorps position does better than labeling it as a position with Community Technology Empowerment Project. Continue to do this until you’ve crafted a resume with the most positive responses.
Even if you are comfortable at your current job, it is still a good idea to go on interviews and keep your resume up-to-date. You might discover that you are underpaid at your current job, have a really bad resume, or that you are in very high demand. And, being ready with a back-up plan means you will be ready in the event that you are unexpectedly laid off.
Don’t try to be a jack-of-all-trades. Companies are looking to hire highly skilled experts. Work to hone your specific skill set, and make sure your resume includes only the jobs and skills that relate to the job for which you’re applying.
Ask for perks, not money. If your new employer isn’t willing to offer you a pay hike, ask for an extra week of paid time off or a bonus if you reach a certain sales goal.
Advertise your career search on Facebook and twitter. Offer $150 to any friend or family member that makes an introduction that will help you get the job you want
Work as a contractor to build your skill set. All you need is social security # and your name. You can write off some things like home office, gas mileage, etc. On sites like taskrabbit.com and odesk.com, you can bid on contracting jobs. Once you’ve completed a job you get feedback, which helps build a reputation. When you first start out, work a few contracts for free until you get positive feedback.
Always tell a job interviewer that you are making $10,000 more than you actually are. Then, say you’re willing to take a new job for $5,000 more than that. Very rarely they will check up on this or ask for paystubs. If they do, you can figure out a way to value an extra $10,000 from your current job if pressed—say, an upcoming bonus or promotion. If you’re unemployed, say you’re contracting or freelancing.
Make a fake job posting. From there, you’ll collect resumes from hundreds of job hunters. Cull through these and send only the best to recruiters for a referral fee.
This book is brimming with all sorts of strategies and tricks that I’ve never heard of. There were a lot of interesting ideas and theories in this book, but almost all of them are money-motivated (this isn’t necessarily a book about finding a dream job that you love). Some of these ideas are good ones, but a few seem a little sketchy, so proceed cautiously.
A few highlights (from reasonable to ehhhh):
When you begin a new job search, you should always A/B test your resume. This means that you create multiple versions of your resume with slight tweaks. For example, if you want to test how potential employees view your service year, you might test labeling your service year as an AmeriCorps position vs. labeling it as Community Technology Empowerment Project vs. labeling it as the name of the site where you served. Send your resume out to at least 15 different organizations, and keep track of which ones (if any) generate a positive response. You might find that labeling your service year as an AmeriCorps position does better than labeling it as a position with Community Technology Empowerment Project. Continue to do this until you’ve crafted a resume with the most positive responses.
Even if you are comfortable at your current job, it is still a good idea to go on interviews and keep your resume up-to-date. You might discover that you are underpaid at your current job, have a really bad resume, or that you are in very high demand. And, being ready with a back-up plan means you will be ready in the event that you are unexpectedly laid off.
Don’t try to be a jack-of-all-trades. Companies are looking to hire highly skilled experts. Work to hone your specific skill set, and make sure your resume includes only the jobs and skills that relate to the job for which you’re applying.
Ask for perks, not money. If your new employer isn’t willing to offer you a pay hike, ask for an extra week of paid time off or a bonus if you reach a certain sales goal.
Advertise your career search on Facebook and twitter. Offer $150 to any friend or family member that makes an introduction that will help you get the job you want
Work as a contractor to build your skill set. All you need is social security # and your name. You can write off some things like home office, gas mileage, etc. On sites like taskrabbit.com and odesk.com, you can bid on contracting jobs. Once you’ve completed a job you get feedback, which helps build a reputation. When you first start out, work a few contracts for free until you get positive feedback.
Always tell a job interviewer that you are making $10,000 more than you actually are. Then, say you’re willing to take a new job for $5,000 more than that. Very rarely they will check up on this or ask for paystubs. If they do, you can figure out a way to value an extra $10,000 from your current job if pressed—say, an upcoming bonus or promotion. If you’re unemployed, say you’re contracting or freelancing.
Make a fake job posting. From there, you’ll collect resumes from hundreds of job hunters. Cull through these and send only the best to recruiters for a referral fee.
August 29, 2021
I like how he tells his story and that it about his life. The information that he gave was easier to understand because of that. I really enjoy his writing voice.
October 17, 2015
Most of this is anecdotes. There are also some outlandish ideas that helped cement the fact that the author and I live in different worlds in terms of business field, life stage, and -perhaps the most obvious - financial maneuverability. The rest of it was random statistics from studies & surveys with a few "good idea, I suppose"/"everyone keeps saying that" tips sprinkled in ("TAKE CONTROL. MAKE A PLAN!").
Would not recommend to recent graduates. Most of this does not apply to them and everything that does could be found in a better, graduate-tailored book.
Would also not recommend to the assumed target demo of mid-life desk workers who love in big cities, but only because I'm sure there are better & more comprehensive books than this one.
Would not recommend to recent graduates. Most of this does not apply to them and everything that does could be found in a better, graduate-tailored book.
Would also not recommend to the assumed target demo of mid-life desk workers who love in big cities, but only because I'm sure there are better & more comprehensive books than this one.
April 7, 2016
Although it is a personal story and there are parts that are a bit incredulous, this book still offers a lot of practical tips that are highly relevant today. Yes, this guy may have had a bit of luck on his side and speaks to a more mature working professional but nevertheless the spirit of his job search, the tenacity and the resourcefulness are all reasons to pick up this rather entertaining, yet functional, guide.
January 9, 2017
Quick read that is really inspiring.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews