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

An ordained Episcopal priest, Bolles was canon pastor of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. Made redundant in 1968, he created another career by publishing the first edition of Parachute in 1971--then little more than a newsletter. Today it is published in 10 languages world-wide and bought by 20,000 people a month. It's an immensely detailed, friendly book whose attractive layout includes coloured fonts, nice historical sketches and lots of easy-to-read grids, charts and even the odd poem. Useful Internet site addresses abound. And although Parachute is American, most of Bolles's advice is just as applicable in Britain as in the US. Bolles evidently means to be inspirational and is. He's also down to earth. Once you get into an interview you are much more likely to get the job if you don't reek of aftershave, perfume or garlic and if you've had a bath and pressed your clothes, he points out. --Susan Elkin

Amazon.co.uk Review
For nearly 30 years, What Color Is Your Parachute? has been the guiding light for those in pursuit of satisfying and fulfilling employment. The 1999 edition has been completely revised and rewritten and is designed to work in conjunction with the book's Web site. At the heart of Bolles's formula for finding the right job are two questions: What do you want to do? Where do you want to do it?

Answer those and you're well on your way to finding the job you really want. Packed with time-tested advice, What Color Is Your Parachute? works as a good companion for those just starting out in the "real world" as well as for those who are thinking seriously about a career change. --Harry C. Edwards, Amazon.com

I disagree with other reviewers about the emphasis on skills. I find, all too often, that employers are very literal about skill requirements and extremely poor at recognising transferable (or even equivalent) skills. The only hitch is of course, if you are out of work you are probably unable to make the financial committment that many skills require, thus leaving you in vicious circle.

My only criticism of this book is the encouragement to search for smaller organisations rather than larger ones. This might be ok for some people but small organisations can be very much dictated by one or two personalities - for worse as well as better, and this can make a very negative working environment that is more difficult to change. On the other hand, large organisations are more change driven and offer far greater opportunity, though as an individual it is much harder to make an impact in a large organisation. Also in my experience in the UK and Ireland, small organisations, often often limited benefits taken for granted in bigger organisations that can have a big effect on your life quality - sick pay, training, health insurance etc. I would definitely advise people to be cautious when talking to smaller companies as its much easier to get into a job you'll end up really unhappy in.


Retrospective Look At What Have Been Some Good Practices   May 25, 2004
 22 out of 22 found this review helpful

I am reviewing the 2000 version of this book. I have not read any more recent ones.

I was uncertain how to rate this book. Compared to other job-hunting guides I have read, it is the best. So it didn't seem fair not to give it a five star rating. On the other hand, compared to what is needed, this book is mired in stalled thinking of the past.

Let me talk about the good first. The book is pretty good on goal setting. Its first piece of major advice is to decide what you have to offer the world. Many people fail to self-assess and become stuck in misconceptions about what their job potentials are. Most people can do more than they think they can. In a tight job market like today, chances are you can get some flexible responses if you look for them.

On the other hand, I thought the third major piece of advice was much more relevant: Go after organizations that interest you the most. Companies are increasingly hiring for attitude, and plan to work with you to add the necessary skills. If you find organizations that turn you on, chances are they will turn you on, too. The current thinking is that companies should have exciting purposes that make a job more like a meaningful adventure. I'd start there, if I were you.

In fact, I was surprised to see the emphasis on skills in this book. That's certainly relevant, but it has not been a dominant factor except for certain types of engineers in over five years. Does Bolles do any new research on the job market before writing each volume?

The best part of the book related to encouraging people to find their mission in life. That's something that most people never do. If you just read that section (inexplicably located near the back of the book -- I'd have put it up front) and apply it, you will more than have gotten your benefit from this book. A good related volume on that subject is Awaken the Giant Within by Anthony Robbins.

Now, on the negative side, the book assumes that you are suddenly on the street and have to find a job quickly. Or so it seems, because there is little in the book that suggests how to prepare to be very hireable when you have a job and are not looking. That's when you can do the most good by accomplishing things that will impress future employers, raising your visibility, networking with people who can give you job leads in the future, and so forth.

Also, the book is awfully complacent about having found the best method for getting a new job. But it doesn't mention the idea of being so much in demand that you are always getting feelers so you never have to look for a job. That works 100 percent of the time.

The advice for getting a job is to find people who can hire and demonstrate skills that can help them to meet their goals. That assumes that those hiring can link you and your job to their goals. That's assuming a lot. I think that better advice would be for them to see you as someone who helps them feel more confident they can accomplish something they care about. That might be simply getting home to dinner with the family on time.

Here's a particularly critical point: What is the environment like in the company? This book treats employers like they are undifferentiated in many ways. Actually, they are more different from one another than they are similar. The advice on how to find out more about big companies before pursuing them is very good.

Despite my reservations, there's a lot of value in here. Good luck in finding an irresistible job! But banish your stalled thinking first!