For example, do you ascribe to the old saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”? If so, you may feel compelled to stay with traditional methods, such as responding to job postings, especially if that is how you found your previous jobs.
But (and this is a BIG but), times are constantly changing and that method may no longer be very effective (some would argue that it never really was particularly effective).
Just as the Pony Express gave way to the telegraph, which in turn was supplanted by the telephone, wireless communications, and real-time texting and tweets on Twitter, you may need to examine your information-gathering style and adjust it to encompass new ideas and tools.
What Is Your Style?
Why is it important to know your information-gathering style? The bottom line is that it has a huge impact on your job search. It plays a large role in what kind of information you seek, where you seek it, and what you are willing to trust. It influences your job search research, including your search for job leads, job postings, opportunities in the “hidden” job market, company information, interviewer background information, networking prospects, industry and market trends, and much more.
If, according to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator™ (MBTI®) assessment, you prefer Sensing (S), then you may:
- Be alert to specific details and facts,
- Trust sources that have been proven successful in the past,
- See information pathways as linear and deep (like a tunnel),
- Be critical of new (unproven) information,
- Follow a step-by-step process with a clearly defined plan,
- Confine your searching to methods you already know, and
- Have difficulty determining which facts and details are most meaningful.
If, instead, your MBTI® preference is for Intuition (N), then your inclination to amass and sift through information may:
- Be drawn to paying attention to the “big picture” and information patterns,
- Trust your intuition and hunches about the validity of information,
- See information pathways as multiple and interconnected (like a spider’s web),
- Avoid traditional methods as uninspiring and unchallenging,
- Follow a more erratic, spontaneous process with minimal planning,
- Glory in learning about and using new job search methods, and
- Have difficulty focusing on and remembering concrete facts and details.
Adjust Your Information-Gathering Style
Learning to modify the way you accumulate and pay attention to information is possible. Despite your natural inclinations, you can consciously take control and strive for a more balanced approach. Remind yourself of your information-gathering habits and ask the following questions to keep you on track.
If your MBTI® preferred style is Sensing, you may want to ask:
- Am I ignoring or overlooking potential opportunities just because they are new sources of information?
- Do I tend to criticize new job search and career ideas and information as a knee-jerk reaction?
- Is there a discernible pattern in the facts and details that might be important for my job search?
- Am I reluctant to learn about new job search tactics, such as pursuing employee referrals?
- Do I keep amassing more and more information, hoping that the “perfect job” will be revealed?
- What constitutes credible information? How could new ideas be seen as credible?
If Intuition is your information-gathering Style, you could benefit from asking yourself:
- Am I overlooking or not remembering key facts relevant to my job-search target?
- Do I tend to disparage “old” job-search ideas and information simply because they have been around for awhile?
- Am I so caught up in patterns and possibilities for future job-search action that I miss the simple opportunity right before me?
- Is researching on the Internet taking all of my job-search time because I get distracted so easily?
- Do I flit from topic to topic with no priorities or plan?
- Am I enthralled by every new idea and tend to forget what I am researching?
Balance Is the Key
The benefit of adding balance to your preferred information-gathering style is that you can use the best aspects of both the Sensing and Intuitive modes. For example, facts and details in the context of the larger picture can provide you with more and better avenues for job search action. Let’s say you uncover a job lead on Twitter (fact). How about researching that company and industry for critical problems and trends (larger picture) before you make contact? Knowing the facts and the big picture, you can position yourself as a knowledgeable and potentially valuable contributor.
Bottom Line
Determine how you pay attention to information, where you look for it, what it takes for you to trust it or not, and if you act on it. Ask yourself ALL of the above questions to strive for balance when gathering and reviewing information. Whether your personal style is Sensing or Intuition, you can expand your outlook and alter your job-search habits to encompass a more well-rounded approach. The pay-off could be a stellar opportunity you might have previously overlooked because you were either focused on minutia or daydreaming about possibilities!
