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What Color Is Your Parachute? 2020: A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers

Richard Nelson Bolles

3.70 · Rating details · 13,080 ratings · 932 reviews

With more than 10 million copies sold in 28 countries, the world's most popular job-search book is updated for 2020, tailoring Richard Bolles's long-trusted guidance with up-to-the-minute information and advice for today's job-hunters and career-changers.

NAMED ONE OF THE ALL-TIME 100 BEST NONFICTION BOOKS BY TIME

What Color Is Your Parachute? is the world’s most popular ...more

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Kindle Edition, 320 pages

Published August 13th 2019 by Ten Speed Press (first published January 1st 1970)

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Jan 25, 2016 Jan-Maat added it · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction, business-management-pm, 21st-century, religion

I had imagined this would be a simple guide helping people to gain employment, little did I realise that this was all to the greater glory of God and would have nothing to do with parachutes.

"God loves a Trinity", the particularly irritating little kid who used to regularly beat me at chess when I was a student in Russia (view spoiler) used to like saying, an I had imagined this would be a simple guide helping people to gain employment, little did I realise that this was all to the greater glory of God and would have nothing to do with parachutes.

"God loves a Trinity", the particularly irritating little kid who used to regularly beat me at chess when I was a student in Russia (view spoiler) used to like saying, and true to this philosophy Mr Bolles' book is also divided into three parts (view spoiler)
Being no expert in the nature of God it strikes me that unemployment is a bit like the problem of evil in theology, and so dragging God into a book about job-searching is a bad idea, not so for our author and former episcopalian priest who seems to find the idea of self-service simply divine. And this is the key to the whole book, I was reminded of Dale Carnegie's how to win friends and influence people - in that both seem to be men who found a purpose, and a comfortable living, through their books which ostensibly are about helping other people to find a purpose and a comfortable living. As I was reading recently the only way to make yourself wealthy through self-help books is to write one. Having finished the book and in light of the importance for Bolles of finding out what God's purpose is for you the reader it now is clean why he begins with a discussion of how great is wife is, a hospitable, coffee brewing, cake baking spouse. The good spouse is a sign of being at one with God's purpose, along with a sufficiently comfortable standard of living, therefore Bolles' exposition, in an inverse humility topos, of his great relationship with his wife is meant to reassure the reader that he is rewarded by God and therefore is more or less at one with God and therefore a reliable guide in assisting you to find God's purpose for you in life in exchange for the cover price of the book.

It is mildly curious then to observe that all Bolles examples about living in accordance with God's will have nothing to do with the difference between being in or out of work, but instead are all about how you conduct yourself while either in work or out of it.

Working now from the back towards the front of the book we come to the flower section in which you fill in the petals of a flower to show yourself flibbertigibiwasimaticallitcanhardlybebotheredtoexplainbecausereallyitisanoverlabouredexerciseabout values, if you've done Schein's Career Anchors, or some personality testing, or read a horoscope then you know the kind of thing involved. It does strike me that you'd generally try to work your values into a CV (or Resume), covering letter or job application, or maybe you don't.

What I liked about the first section was its helpful advice - job hunting is tiring and depressing so the job hunter needs to rest, if you are scared in an interview the interviewer probably is too, the low rates of success of most methods of searching for jobs, you put your CV out into the world to work for you ad this creates the sense of an ideal CV - if only you could get the wording just right that the invitations to interview would never stop coming in - and depression as a consequence when they don't (view spoiler) and so on. But is was coloured by Bolles' fixation about Schools, presumably in the US sense of institutions of tertiary education, not teaching all the things that he was laying out in his book. I felt here he could instead be grateful as this was allowing him an opportunity to earn a dollar, and that secondly that colleges of tertiary education have their own programmes to deliver, and the careers advice that Bolles was dispensing could be reliably transmitted in about a half dozen printed A4 handouts from a careers office - its not something that requires formal teaching or a place on the curriculum. His mileage does differ. However I couldn't shake the impression from the language and phrasing used in the examples of what to say in job interviews or thank you notes, that Bolles' mental model of a job-hunter was Cary Grant in an old Black and White film.

Looking over this I feel mildly excited, or perhaps that is an after-effect of the cough medicine I've been taking, here I've got another fine specimen of US thought post Second Great Awakening, typical concerns - rejection of the state, searching for God, confidence that a purposeful and purposive life will bring material reward. If I was the kind of person who kept dead fish up on the wall in glass cases it would deserve a place with them. Since I'm not, it's back in the loch for you Nessie! ...more

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Oct 06, 2017 j e w e l s rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is THE handbook on what to do with the rest of your life! I read this many moons ago when I first graduated from high school and then a few years after that when I had a college degree in my hands. The book is a must-read guide to navigate the confusing job search we all encounter from time to time.

I was so curious as to whether the new edition would hold up in a cyber dependent world. The answer is YES! The book still offers invaluable advice as to resumes, interviews and prioritizing your ...more

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Aug 22, 2007 Rachel Smalter Hall rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: american, wellness-and-self-development

I picked up this book at a time in my life when I was like, "ok, Rachel, it's time to figure some stuff out." Along came Richard Bolles, like my own sweet little Grandpa giving me life advice. He actually had me doing all the cheesy exercises -- lists, graphs, venn-diagrams, even a flower chart for Pete's sake. And in the end, gosh darnit, I knew I was going to move back to the Midwest and become a librarian!

FYI, this book does have some serious Christian overtones, but Grandpa Bolles is pretty ...more

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Mar 26, 2018 David rated it it was ok · review of another edition

The book never addresses the central question: what color is your parachute? In fact, parachutes (of any color) are never mentioned at all.

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Nov 21, 2016 Bren rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: psychology-self-help, career, read-and-reviewed, reference, fun-books, better-or-worse-than-expected, educational, non-fiction

“Always define WHAT you want to do with your life and WHAT you have to offer to the world, in terms of your favorite talents/gifts/skills-not in terms of a job-title.”

What Color Is Your Parachute? 2015
by Richard Nelson Bolles

Does anyone EVER know what they want to do with their life?

If not, this book is certainly worth reading.

Actually scratch that..read it even if you think you DO know. It's that good.

I have actually read many versions of this book. Bolles would update it regularly and I alwa ...more

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Oct 15, 2016 Begüm Saçak rated it it was ok · review of another edition

If you are looking for a book which tries to teach you what you already know, this book is good for you. Other than a few useful websites and tips on finding jobs/your skills, this book was a waste of my time. At the end, the author surprises you by revealing his strong Christian faith; I just don't understand why on earth you would include a huge faith section on a job hunting book. He could have talked about faith in general. Well, this is my personal opinion, but I didn't like this book at al ...more

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Jul 21, 2014 Greg rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: business

One of the important skills one should have in our modern society is the ability to look and be successful in getting a job. Unfortunately, many of us are not well-equipped nor skilled enough to navigate our way around the job market. Moreover some of us are intentionally or unintentionally misinformed by others on how we should go about the transition in between jobs. We are getting multitude of answers and finally get a job only to find out that we are not satisfied; then the cycle starts agai One of the important skills one should have in our modern society is the ability to look and be successful in getting a job. Unfortunately, many of us are not well-equipped nor skilled enough to navigate our way around the job market. Moreover some of us are intentionally or unintentionally misinformed by others on how we should go about the transition in between jobs. We are getting multitude of answers and finally get a job only to find out that we are not satisfied; then the cycle starts again.

But good news! There is a book that can help us not just only to get a job but find ourselves as well. What Color Is Your Parachute? 2015 by Richard N. Bolles gives us an insightful view of what is happening in the current job market. This book is updated yearly so you can be sure that the information is always fresh and most of the time relevant. If you are not looking for a job, you can still benefit by gaining the knowledge of what you really want to do. As a result of this you may begin to question your existence in your current role and find yourself a more fulfilling place work for.

Here are just several of the reasons why you should consider reading this book:
1. If you want to get an understanding of why there are still so many unemployed people while employers are still finding it hard to fill in their vacancies, this book will enlighten us.
2. You will get a better understanding of your situation. You will realize that not every employer will like you, but there are several or many employers who are looking for someone who is exactly like you. Your task is to look for them.
3. It will teach you that just using your resume and sending it to different employers is not the most effective way to get an invitation for an interview.
4. This book will guide you to understand who you really are.
5. Written in a very engaging style, this book will make you feel like you are with a sage who will guide you all the way to your successful job hunting.

This book is primarily recommended for the following:
1. Job hunters
2. Those who have friends or family members who are looking for jobs
3. Career coach or counselors
4. Anyone who wants to understand themselves better

Just another tip: This book demands a lot from its reader. For you to get the full benefit from this book, you've got to do the exercises, particularly the Flower Exercise. These exercises will really help you a lot.
...more

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Jul 17, 2010 Patty Mora rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction

I've read this book and completed the exercises twice during my adult life, and it has helped me tremendously in answering the age-old question, "What is my mission in life."

For those of us who live to work, and not work to live, this is the book for you. I highly recommend completing the exercises, or "homework" as I call it, and you will uncover your talents and dreams that have been buried over the years.

It will take a little bit of your time, maybe an hour a night for a week or two, or over ...more

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Mar 15, 2010 Kevin rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: current-events

Seriously, this book is one of the best selling career self-help guides? I find that hard to believe. My issues with this book:

1) Awkward, and at times incomprehensible, sentence syntax. Dick Bolles comes across as a doofus with too much time on his hands who just decided to sit down and write a book, and not as a job-market-savvy consultant.

2) Seriously stupid advice. "Try a search engine, like Google, or Yahoo, or your favorite one if you have one." Yeah, thanks for the advice, Dick. I never t ...more

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Aug 17, 2015 Susan Barton rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: employment, non-fiction, business, career, job-search, book-series, money, guides, happiness, how-to

I'm embarrassed to say this is the first version of What Color is Your Parachute that I've read. Of course I've heard of it, but just never got around to reading it. In an effort to remain current with career search trends, Richard N. Bolles has been updating this book since 1975. Now that I've finally had the opportunity to read the 2016 version, I'm absolutely astounded by the amount of information the author provides. Loaded with practical job-hunting advice, the author has compiled the book ...more

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Dec 25, 2019 Bethany rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I’m not currently looking for a new job. But the parachute book has been on my list for a long time. I’m glad I chose the most recent because it is chock full of practical advise.

This book starts with the premise that every human being is unique and has something to offer “employers”. Chapters 4-6 help you define who you are and what makes you perform at your highest level. Chapters 1-3 describe the job market and the playing field, so to speak. Chapters 7-9 are the mechanics of the game, how i ...more

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Apr 08, 2013 Kater Cheek rated it liked it · review of another edition

A friend of mine bought this for me on kindle, saying it was a great way to find out what job best suits you. This book has been around for years and years, but as with textbooks, the author is quick to assure you that you really need the latest edition, as it's constantly being revamped. While there certainly are new addresses and new urls in this book, the basic principal, I'm sure, hasn't changed much.

Most of the book consists of a guided self-assessment of what your likes and dislikes, skill A friend of mine bought this for me on kindle, saying it was a great way to find out what job best suits you. This book has been around for years and years, but as with textbooks, the author is quick to assure you that you really need the latest edition, as it's constantly being revamped. While there certainly are new addresses and new urls in this book, the basic principal, I'm sure, hasn't changed much.

Most of the book consists of a guided self-assessment of what your likes and dislikes, skills and weaknesses are. There are charts to fill out, lists to make, and in a particularly memorable exercise, Bolles wants you to draw a flower where every petal represents a different element of your work personality.

I admit, I didn't do any of these exercises. First of all, the kindle format is really not a good format for reading this book. I strongly recommend that if you want to read this book, you opt for a paper version rather than an electronic version. While the silly little royalty-free illustrations came up okay, most of the charts were difficult if not impossible to read. Secondly, I'm not sure I really believe that these exercises would be a good use of time. They seem to presume a very high level of self-awareness. Do I really know that I wouldn't want a job in the medical industry if I've never had one?

The other problem I had was that there seemed to be huge gaps between finding your perfect job and actually getting it. It's like when you ask Google how to go to Australia and they tell you to kayak 1500 miles. You like chocolate + giving criticism + working near stainless steel? Chocolate taster! More than one person's perfect job would be "chocolate taster" but the chances that you know someone who knows someone who knows someone who can get you that job are slim. It's also a slim chance that "chocolate taster" pays a living wage and has insurance. I'm pretty sure that my flower would say that I'd be best in a creative job, like writer or artist which--guess what!--I'm already doing, but a lot of people need jobs that aren't just emotionally fulfilling, but also pay enough that you can pay bills with it.

One of the ways Bolles suggests you go about getting your perfect job when you decide what that is is to talk to people from the companies you want to work for. You're to find these people through LinkedIn. If you were on the far E of the extrovert/introvert scale, I'd imagine this would be a pleasant exercise, but the idea fills me with horror. Doing several informational interviews, and then going back and asking for a job interview, and then another one? I hate interviews. They're like the worst, most insipid, baby-shower quality bullshitty overly-positive, barely-scratch-the-surface smalltalk with people you don't like and have nothing in common with, except that at baby showers you at least have cake. You end up finding out as much about the job as you do about a suitor on a first date--which is to say, not much. And they find out just as much about you--close to nothing--and yet you're both trying to simultaneously make yourself look good while stifling a deep, bone-grinding boredom. You suffer through it, and then, odds are at least 4-1, you won't get the job. To deliberately seek out interviews before you interview seems as risky as taking a volunteer job in the hopes that it will turn into a paid position. Either way, you've used up a lot of hours. For an unemployed and discouraged person who had plenty of hours with nothing to put in them, it might be an acceptable risk.

But this book isn't really a job hunting book, but a right-brained missive of hope. It's even got a Jesus section in there, for people who are into that sort of thing. This book is about making you believe that you can get your perfect job somehow. It's based on the idea that there are better ways to get a job than sending out resumes. It's got a lot of information about starting your own business, about hiring a career coach, and about finding out what salary a specific job should command and what training it requires as well. So, I will probably go through this book again, once I get a paper copy that I can actually flip back and forth and look at. It probably won't cost me anything except time, and the flower-exercises are a lot like personality tests, which I adore. I can't say I have a lot of hope that it will do much good though. I've gotten most of my jobs by sending out resumes and answering ads.
...more

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Jan 07, 2009 Erik rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Take advice from someone in the workforce development field: this book and some degree of common sense will take you pretty far. No, this man did not teach me how to write a resume or interview. No, he didn't show me a shining new path in life. What he does do though is illuminate those all-too-easy to overlook things known as "the employer's thoughts and needs."

Job seekers rarely have the opportunity or background knowledge to appreciate the employer as not only a representative of their compan ...more

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Jul 07, 2014 Christopher Lawson rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book is widely recognized as the top guide to finding a job. Various editions of this book have sold MILLIONS. It is easy to see why. The author has extensive experience in the field, and backs up his ideas with impressive evidence.

► THINGS I LIKED THE MOST ◄

♦ Insight into the actual interviewing process--especially the suggested time min/max for your responses. Bolles provides "Conversation Tips" to prepare for. This section alone is worth the price of the book. They are also "Ten Commandm ...more

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Jul 09, 2009 Scott Dinsmore rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Why I Read this Book: I wanted to get a firm understanding of the career direction in which I wanted to head and how to go about it after finishing my university work. This book provided a wonderful road map.

Review:

This book, or I should say a version of this book has been on the best seller list for many years now. Bolles spends the majority of each year putting together the updated version for the year to come. This is not the type of book you buy once for one search and that is it. Every time Why I Read this Book: I wanted to get a firm understanding of the career direction in which I wanted to head and how to go about it after finishing my university work. This book provided a wonderful road map.

Review:

This book, or I should say a version of this book has been on the best seller list for many years now. Bolles spends the majority of each year putting together the updated version for the year to come. This is not the type of book you buy once for one search and that is it. Every time you are looking to change jobs and especially when you are looking to change careers, it is important to read through the most current version of this book. Given the leaps and bounds our world has gone in terms of change, it is no wonder why this book needs to be updated yearly.

This book is a must for career changers whether you are just getting out of college or you have been working for 30 years and you need a change. Dick Bolles is a brilliant man who I have had the pleasure of having dinner with on a number of occasions. He first started writing a version of Parachute in the 1970’s and has since changed countless lives. The success stories he discuss in the book are inspirational.

Bolles explains every job search method we have heard of out there today (and even some we have not). He gives very eye-opening statistics about which methods are most effective and which are not. Do you know what the single most ineffective strategy for job searching is according to Bolles’ research? It is posting your resume on a job board like Monster or Career Builder. That is only effective 4%-10% of the time. How many people use this as their only technique and expect good results? Too many. Just understanding that fact and what techniques produce the best results will make this read invaluable. Here’s a suggestion. Get started on building your network and never stop. More on the networking buzz word once you read through the book.

Parachute is also a great job search reference book. Every professional serious about their career should have a copy on their desk. It contains relevant websites, career tests, salary negotiation & interview tips, articles, techniques and processes that you can refer to at any time in your search. This is one reason why it is so necessary to update every year. Website links and data change in the blink of an eye. He has the most up to date links and resources online at his website mentioned at the bottom of this page.

The reason this book, and more importantly his system for finding your career calling, has been so greatly successful is that Bolles’ main focus is not on the job but instead on the job hunter. In order to truly find your career calling you must truly know yourself. Many of our inherent characteristics are things that we do not necessarily take as common knowledge. This is the key to his system, which he calls the Flower Petal Exercise. Be warned that this exercise will take some work, but it will pay huge dividends in your future. Going through this series of exercises is what is going to get you clear on what you should be doing professionally (and perhaps personally) with your life. I cannot stress enough the importance of completing the Flower Petal Exercise. The accompanying Parachute Workbook which I detail elsewhere in this site will step you through the exercises from start to finish. It is so easy to read a book and do nothing about it. The key is to take initiative and get proactive with this book and all books for that matter so that they will make a difference in your life and lead you to success. Enjoy the journey.

-Reading For Your Success ...more

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Jan 08, 2012 Jen Austin rated it liked it · review of another edition

This was an interesting book, but A) I shouldn't have read it at the same time as another career book and B) I liked the format of the other career book better. This is more about sitting down and writing while the other (I don't know what I want to do, but I know it's not this) had more quizzes. They both had their positives and negatives, but I felt this one gave a lot of examples, which could have been pared down a bit (I get it - 3 illustrative stories aren't necessary) and went into more de ...more

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Aug 23, 2015 W. Whalin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Valuable Insight -- Whether You are Searching for A Job or Not

No job lasts forever--whether we admit it to ourselves or not. This classic book (updated each year) is loaded with encouragement and insight for every reader. The step-by-step insights are valuable to any reader at any place in the job market.

I loved what Bolles said in the first chapter, "In today's world, he or she who gets hired is not necessarily the one who can do that job best; but, the one who knows the most about how to get h ...more

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Aug 05, 2009 Cassandra rated it it was ok · review of another edition

This book has been immensly popular for a long time. Its popularity is not due to the the author's writing style. For something that has gone through so many revisions, one might expect a polished, well-written tome. This is not the case. The book is written like a very lengthy ad; full of hyperbole, simplistic statements, and grammer that may be acceptable in the world of advertisng, but not that of non-fiction prose.
It's hard to see why this book is so popular. Perhaps unemployment lowers peo ...more

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Oct 01, 2018 Lara Lee rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: my-blog-books

What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard N. Bolles is a classic for job hunters for the past zillion years, so I won't bore you with how great it is and how you need to go out and buy it. The fact is millions of people already have gone out and bought it. What I am going to talk about is what I have learned from it as a freelancer.

I have always heard from the time I was little about how I should get a job that I loved and how I should change the world. Like so many in college, I pursued a degree What Color is Your Parachute? by Richard N. Bolles is a classic for job hunters for the past zillion years, so I won't bore you with how great it is and how you need to go out and buy it. The fact is millions of people already have gone out and bought it. What I am going to talk about is what I have learned from it as a freelancer.

I have always heard from the time I was little about how I should get a job that I loved and how I should change the world. Like so many in college, I pursued a degree that I prayed would land me a job that I would love. Many college students change majors over and over again trying to find a good fit. I stuck with one major, Graphic Design, but wondered if I should have explored more options. For me, I have always come back to graphic design and the issue of what to do with my life has been more of a confidence issue: was I do the right thing and am I actually any good at it?

After doing the exercises in this book, I found that my main passions, the things I can talk forever about, tended to be about art/design, history, travel, finances, Bible, and books. When I wrote out my roles and skills in each job that I have had, I found that I have often dismissed the things that I did naturally and with ease. I found that this book did more for helping me see my career with clearer vision and in a realistic perspective of my field and not the unattainable thing I created it to be in my own mind.

Mr. Bolles wrote this book from the perspective of his Christian background as a pastor before his years upon years of experience in career counseling. This means that he sees our career as being part of our God-created mission in life. That doesn't mean that the only really good career is in some sort of ministry, but that we were each created unique and have something unique to contribute to the world. In my mind, I immediately envision having some sort of cosmic world-changing mega-corporation that affected thousands of people, but this book actually has a more realistic scope: to work moment by moment, day by day to make the world a little bit better of a place than it was before using your own unique abilities. In that perspective, our mission is to just find a worthwhile task to do today and do it.

As I looked over my resume of 15 years of random designing tasks, I found that there was a surprising unity to all have done. I had blindly just found people who needed some sort of help with graphic design and just did what they set before me. I had not seen myself working while doing some of these projects. I was just helping out and doing what came naturally. Many of these projects were never even listed on my resume even if I had been paid for it because I had been just helping. When I organized all of this "helping out" from its unorganized mass of freelance tasks with varying fees and odd levels of responsibility, I discovered that I had a busy career focused very heavily in working with churches and non-profit organizations.

Wow. I guess I had a mission the whole time!

I am very glad I read this book and followed his advise. I now feel more confident to pursue the work I was created to do. ...more

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Aug 16, 2016 Teena in Toronto rated it liked it · review of another edition

Since the so-called recession of 2008, things have changed. What used to work in job hunting doesn't work anymore. The length of the average job hunt has increased, the length of time the average job lasts has decreased, the way jobs are done is changing, and not surprising that job hunting has move more and more online.

The contents of this book include:

* It's a whole new world for job-hunters
* Google is your new résumé
* There are over ten million vacancies each month
* Sixteen tips about intervi ...more

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Jan 30, 2013 Clea M rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction, 2013

(I read the 2013 version.) I mostly read this to make my mother happy. The cheesiness aside, it committed one of the mistakes of the self-help genre that most aggravates me: it convincingly and with great detail outlined the problem with the traditional approach to its subject, namely job hunting; its stated problem is that just emailing your resume out to job postings online won't work for a variety of reasons. It made a pretty convincing argument for this approach being pretty pointless. But t ...more

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Sep 16, 2010 Alyssa rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction

I find this book vastly over-rated.

I got it my Sr. year of college, at the recommendation of an academic advisor (the need for which I also found to be highly over-rated), and it did nothing for me. Yes, I ended up in an industry I LOVED, in a job that fit me well, but with no thanks to this book. It taught me nothing about myself I didn't already know and gave me little useful knowledge to go about my job hunt.

I suppose it could prove quite useful for someone who 1) lacks an intuitive introspe ...more

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Aug 05, 2018 Steve Moskowitz rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book will help you understand who you are and what matters to you. Lots of great exercises in this workbook that uncover the truth. It definitely takes time to complete them, but with anything you get out of the what you put into it.

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Jan 13, 2018 Clare O'Beara rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: america-fact, college

This book talks the reader through starting to look for work or a career change, especially when laid off with no immediate prospects. To begin, we are shown why just sending out hundreds of CVs doesn't work. Other methods of job hunting are described, and we are recommended to use more than one.

My lack of total enthusiasm comes from the facts that: it is all about America so a lot of the information given doesn't apply to me; it's dated from 2010, but a new edition is produced yearly; it's prov This book talks the reader through starting to look for work or a career change, especially when laid off with no immediate prospects. To begin, we are shown why just sending out hundreds of CVs doesn't work. Other methods of job hunting are described, and we are recommended to use more than one.

My lack of total enthusiasm comes from the facts that: it is all about America so a lot of the information given doesn't apply to me; it's dated from 2010, but a new edition is produced yearly; it's providing unrealistic scenarios, if you have read 'Nickel And Dimed' by Barbara Ehernreich; no mention of unions; it has an emphasis on religion, including a section on our Greater Purpose full of Capitalised Words about Spiritual Missions and whether God is Gracious - I'll quote Stephen Fry, "Bone cancer in children?"

The practical areas of the book include the simplest facts, like in the main, smokers do not get hired. Other facts you may not have been taught in school (I sure wasn't but what would nuns know about getting a job?) are how to research jobs before you get hired rather than after; how to make a good impression by being showered, tidy and neatly dressed, with clean breath; how to approach a job hunt as a person who can add value to a firm rather than as a beggar. Very well done is a section showing how you have more skills than you realise, and how skills used in managing one type of work can transfer to managing other types of work.

As with many books of this nature a lot of pages are taken up with work sheets you can fill out, but I don't like the author's referring to one as 'That One Piece Of Paper' because if you read this book over a few days you'll come back to it and wonder what piece of paper is he going on about? He starts calling this alternatively 'the Flower Diagram' many chapters before we see it, so we don't know why it's a flower until we see it. And while we may have loved working outdoors or building as younger adults, more mature people may be obliged to take urban or indoor jobs, not really covered.

I felt there could be a lot more about taking a training course, relating to a job that interests you. This makes you fit for purpose for an employer and shows you are using initiative. It also gives you a taste of the job, rather than the hunting up of total strangers who are employees in a firm and asking them what their job entails, as recommended. If you are changing career you will need to retrain anyway, and if your degree is thirty years old it is worthless. Upskill. In Ireland any education course is legally obliged to contain an employability / jobsearch skills component. And more could be provided about starting your own business and how to find clients.

The indexes at the back are American job coaches and the like; three of the pages list firms overseas, none of them in Ireland.
I recommend getting this book from the library and getting the most up to date version, ideally before you lose the current job, but I also recommend taking that training course.

This is an unbiased review. I run my own business. ...more

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Sep 10, 2013 Amy Armstrong rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: career-guides, business, netgalley-arc

Richard N Bolles is like a god in the career counseling world, but I have to admit that I have never been much of a What Color is Your Parachute? person. Knowing that makes me a pariah in career counseling circles even if my colleagues don't know they should treat me like one. However, I know that many job seekers every year turn to Bolles, and given The Great Recession, this minister's words of comfort have been greatly needed. Actually, when I found myself going through my own career crisis wh Richard N Bolles is like a god in the career counseling world, but I have to admit that I have never been much of a What Color is Your Parachute? person. Knowing that makes me a pariah in career counseling circles even if my colleagues don't know they should treat me like one. However, I know that many job seekers every year turn to Bolles, and given The Great Recession, this minister's words of comfort have been greatly needed. Actually, when I found myself going through my own career crisis when it came time to read this galley, I also found comfort in Bolles' words. So, in this way, What Color Is Your Parachute? 2014: A Practical Manual for Job Hunters and Career Changers strikes a good balance between offering the hard-nosed advice most job seekers need and instilling hope.
Bolles still includes The Flower Exercise even though I've always felt like it is way too much work. Also, how many people out there who are out of work are going to get excited about sitting down and saying, "I am someone who is . . . like a flower"? I think I'm kind of frilly, but I don't see myself doing that. It's a bit much.
I did appreciate Bolles' tips on interviewing. He includes the normal checklist of grooming tips and pointers on wardrobe choices. He also mentions that the fact that candidates are judged on the cleanliness of their nails or the freshness of their breath is petty, but he points out, as do I, that it's much better to turn down an offer from a superficial jerk than to lose out on an offer because of silly details like that.
The new edition of What Color Is Your Parachute? relies a bit heavily on Google for my taste. For some job seekers, that could seem a bit overwhelming and general. In a lot of the instances where Bolles refers job seekers to Google, he probably would have been better off referring them to their local librarian so they can learn how to use Google effectively to search for work. That said, this is a classic for job seekers, and I definitely feel comfortable directing job seekers to this new edition as a resource. ...more

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Apr 13, 2009 Jennifer Tse rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This is the best job-hunting book I read so far! What makes it better is the author Richard Nelson Bolles is also a Christian. By reading this book, I understand more about the new job search techniques. I guess the hard part is really practicing it cause networking IS hard. I really appreciate the chapter about job interviewing, letting me know how it is like a "date," so I won't be as nervous. I think either way, you will still be nervous since our natural tendency is for the other person to l This is the best job-hunting book I read so far! What makes it better is the author Richard Nelson Bolles is also a Christian. By reading this book, I understand more about the new job search techniques. I guess the hard part is really practicing it cause networking IS hard. I really appreciate the chapter about job interviewing, letting me know how it is like a "date," so I won't be as nervous. I think either way, you will still be nervous since our natural tendency is for the other person to like us whether we are compatible with each other or not. Kind of like I still rather every employer would want to hire me whether I'm fit for the job or not. :-P

Favorite Quotes (P.77-78): An interview resembles dating, more than it does buying a used car (you). An interview is two people trying to decide if they want "to go steady."
An interview is not to be thought of as marketing (yourself): i.e., selling yourself to a half-interested employer. Rather, an interview is part of your research, i.e., the data-collecting process that you have been engaged in, or should have been engaged in, during your whole job-hunt. While you are sitting there, with the employer, the question you are trying to find an answer to is: "Do I want to work here, or not?" You use the interview to find out. Only when you have concluded, Yes, do you then turn your energy toward selling (yourself). An interview is not to be thought of as a test. It's a data-collecting process for the employer, too. They are still trying to decide if you fit.

(P. 95) Remember, the hiring process is more like choosing a mate, then it is like deciding whether or not to buy a new car. "Choosing a mate" here is a metaphor. To elaborate upon the metaphor a little bit, it means that the mechanisms by which human nature decides to hire someone, are similar to the mechanisms by which human nature decides whether or not to marry someone. Those mechanisms, of course, are implusive, intuitional, nonrational, unfathomable, and often made on the spur of the moment. ...more

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Nov 18, 2018 Scout Collins rated it it was ok · review of another edition

What Colour is Your Parachute? looked like a promising read for "job hunters and career changers". But after reading the whole thing and doing most of the exercises, it's really not.

Also, what is this?
"Economists say that a decent middle-class job these days should be a stable, dependable job that pays between $40,000 and $80,000, annually." (5-6)
>> $80,000 yeah, but how the hell is $40,000 middle class?? That's basically living in poverty, ESPECIALLY if you're living in a big city. What econom ...more

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Jun 28, 2016 Kai rated it liked it · review of another edition

This wasn't one I read cover-to-cover, however I did get through most of it. Bolles relates some good information on interviewing and the job market, yet the real selling point of the book is the 'flower exercise' Bolles designed as a method of helping readers figure out what kind of career they want to pursue, based on their experiences and personal interests.

I didn't discover anything revelatory about myself or my passions/interests in completing said exercise, however it was somewhat helpful ...more

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Jan 02, 2017 W. Whalin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Anyone with a Job (or not) can learn Something In These Pages

Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, the world of work and career is filled with uncertainty. If you have a job, maybe you are thinking about a change. If you don’t have a job, and are looking for one, WHAT COLOR IS YOUR PARACHUTE? 2017 has been a keystone of for 45 years. Each year the information in this book is revised and updated.

Although I’m not currently looking for a new position, I read the new edition cover to cover and ...more

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May 05, 2014 Amanda rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: bir-2014, nonfiction

I think this is a great book for someone who isn't happy with their current job and wants to figure out exactly what they want to do that will be fulfilling, not just pay the bills.

I graduated from college a few years ago and back then I was just sending out resumes and I accepted the first offer I got. I didn't worry to much if I was going to like the job, just that I needed to find one. Now I have a few years of experience under my belt and I think I can afford to be a little choosier.

I liked ...more

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About Richard Nelson Bolles

Richard Nelson Bolles

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Dick Bolles, more formally known as Richard Nelson Bolles, was a former Episcopal clergyman, a member of high-IQ society Mensa, and the author of the best-selling job-hunting book, What Color is Your Parachute? The book remained on The New York Times best-seller list for more than a decade and has sold over 10 million copies.

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What Color Is Your Parachute? Workbook, 2009

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What Color Is Your Parachute? Guide to Rethinking Resumes: Write a Winning Resume and Cover Letter and Land Your Dream Interview (What Color Is Your Parachute Guide to Rethinking..)

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“Always define WHAT you want to do with your life and WHAT you have to offer to the world, in terms of your favorite talents/gifts/skills-not in terms of a job-title.” — 6 likes

“So many times you will see people wringing their hands and saying 'I want to know what my mission in life is,' all the while they are cutting people off on the highway, refusing to give time to people, punishing their mate for having hurt their feelings or lying about what they did.” — 5 likes

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