Question: What are the best job search strategies?
Answer:
Don’t delay -
If you are unhappy and/or feel like you are going to lose your job, start your job search right away.
Know yourself -
Do a targeted job search based on what you know you really want to do (and keep in mind the right industry in addition to discipline).
NETWORK -
Everyone you know is a job lead!
- Ask your friends to make introductions for you.
- Use the web – LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, etc.
- Alumni Connections. Your alma mater can be a great source and ANY past employer.
- Attend events. Generally target industry/field related events and work the room (but almost any social event could be a job source).
Research -
Get to know different industries & different companies, Turn over every rock, Don’t settle for just any job – remember #1.
Target company websites:
Once you find targeted companies of interest, visit their career websites (regularly) and set up profiles so jobs will be emailed to you when they open. [Job-Hunt's links to over 8,000 employer recruiting pages by state will help.]
Don’t simply rely on the big boards (Careerbuilder, Monster, etc.).
Explore niche sites in your industry and/or field of expertise. For a great start head to Internet Inc., which lists the Top 100 niche job boards.
Follow-up:
Don’t let your leads go cold, Be persistent - just not annoying, Always send thank you notes.
Don’t get discouraged:
A positive attitude will go a long way.
Top 3 common mistakes that job seekers make:
- Not being focused (targeted) enough on their job search, saying that they will “take anything” or that they “just want to work.”
- Thinking that they are qualified for a job when, in fact, they are NOT.
- Failing to remember that they are always “interviewing.”
My top 2 recruiting sources/websites:
- LinkedIn. It’s an amazing business/social networking site with endless possibilities for virtual networking and sourcing.
- Time Warner Cable’s top two sources are employee referrals and our career website.
Favorite recruiting story:
We once had a candidate attempt a creative approach to get the attention of the hiring manager that went incredibly wrong.
He was looking for a marketing position and thought he would show his creativity by mailing a package to the leader of this organization with a couple of cans connected with a string (like the old telephone game one might have played as child) and in the package he wrote “Let’s Connect.”
Well, the package arrived wrapped in brown paper without a return address on the outside and made a strange clanking sound when it was handled. And, this was shortly after September 11th 2001, so security with mysterious packages in the mail was certainly heightened.
The police were called in who sent in the bomb squad to open up the package with a remote control robot. Obviously, there was nothing dangerous in the package, but it caused quite a stir.
Needless-to-say, this job seeker was not hired (in fact, he didn’t even get an interview – But, I believe he got a phone call from the Federal Government).
Bottom-line: use your judgment and think through all the possible angles when using guerrilla job search tactics!
Final words of advice -
Remember that you are ALWAYS interviewing for your next job. It really never stops.
Once you get a job, your next position depends on how well you perform in that position.
Also, the relationships that you built along the way and HOW you completed the job often factor in, and even more so when you are being considered for roles within the same company.
Never burn any bridges. You never know when you will cross paths with that employer, former colleague, or contacts again in your life.
© Copyright, 2010, Laura Labovich. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
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About This Author:
Laura Labovich, MLRHR, Chief Career Strategist of Aspire! Empower!, is a Guild Certified Five O’Clock Club Career Coach, speaker, networking coach, social media enthusiast, and award-winning resume writer with more than 12 years of Human Resources leadership experience. Feel free to connect with Laura via Linkedin at www.linkedin.com/in/lauralabovich and follow her on Twitter @LauraLabovich.
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