Archive for the ‘Job Search’ Category

5 Google Search Ground Rules

April 25th, 2011 by Susan P. Joyce

People often express frustration when they can’t find what they want on Google.  Google is not perfect, no question.  However, it is very, very good.

Often when someone is describing their Google “problem” they demonstrate some confusion with how Google works, so here are some “ground rules” to keep in mind when you are using Google for search:

  1. Google uses “stemming” to find all variations of a word.  So if you search on the word “job,” it will typically also show you pages containing the word “jobs.”  A search on “engineer” will typically also find “engineers,” “engineering,” and “engineered.”  But it doesn’t do the reverse – if you enter “engineered” (or some other word with no additional variations), it won’t find pages containing variations of the word “engineer.”

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5 Worst Reasons to Use Twitter for Your Job Search

March 20th, 2011 by Susan P. Joyce

As we’ve all said countless times in our lives, “it’s all in how you look at it.”  If you see Twitter users as a bunch of self-absorbed people with too much time on their hands Tweeting about what they ate for breakfast, then that’s what you’ll see when you go to Twitter.  Not necessarily true…

5 Worst Reasons to Use Twitter for Job Search:

1.  Because your job search coach or career counselor told you that you should do it.

2.  Because you read somewhere that you should do it.

3.  Because “everyone else” is doing it.

4.  Because your spouse/significant other/teenager/tweener/neighbor set it up for you.

5.  Because you don’t have anything better to do.

Much MUCH better reasons to use Twitter for your job search exist!  Below are the first 5 I could think of.  Many more exist – feel free to add them in the comments. (more…)

For a Successful Job Search: Know the Enemy!

March 13th, 2011 by Susan P. Joyce

Or… Know the EMPLOYER!

Right after college, I joined the United States Marine Corps.  Many people considered it an odd thing for a college-educated woman to do (particularly my college advisor!), but, coming from a family comprised of WW II veterans (including both of my parents), it seemed like a good option to me.  And it was.

I learned many things my 3 years in the USMC that have helped me in civilian life, and one of the most useful was -

“Know the enemy!”

I’ve applied that advice to many aspects of my civilian career, translating it to “know the adversary” or “know the other side” in business, and I’ve always been glad that I did.

Know the Enemy => Know the Employer

In a job search, ”Know the Enemy” morphs into ”Know the Employer,” and it means collecting information on potential employers so that you can focus your job search efforts on organizations where you will have the best opportunities. And making an informed decision when you accept a job offer – NOT a fingers-crossed, please-let-this-work-out decision! (more…)

5 Ways You Look Out-of-Date in Your Job Search

February 12th, 2011 by Susan P. Joyce

For most of us, a job search, fortunately, is NOT something we do often enough to be really proficient.  So, when the time comes to job search, we must look at what is effective now – not what we did when we last hunted for a job 2, 5, or 15 years ago.

Effective job search methods have changed a great deal since 2007 because recruiting methods have changed dramatically with the widespread use of the Internet and search engines and, particularly in the last 2 years, with the growth of social media.

If job seekers don’t understand how “the new system” works, they can look out-of-date and less desirable as potential employees.  These are the 5 major ways that job seekers can look out of date. (more…)

Impossible to Hire!

January 19th, 2011 by Susan P. Joyce

Yet again, a job seeker has posted an announcement about his availability with a description of himself as a “fast-learning, analytical problem-solver” who is “flexible” and “keeping his options open.”  No details on skills, experience, accomplishments, or – worst of all - any indication of the job he is looking for.  

Would this work for a sales person with a product or service to sell? 

“This is my service – fast-learning, analytical, problem-solving.  You, my potential customer, figure out how you (or someone you know) can use my service, and then please buy (or refer me to someone you know who might buy)!” 

It would be much more effective and actionable if he described the problems he has analyzed and solved (family, marketing, medical, financial, or?) because most of us have problems that need solving. 

Until he invests the time and effort into figuring out the job he wants (the problems he can solve)  - he’s impossible to hire!

To Get Hired, Get Focused! (more…)

Don’t Get Fired for Job Hunting: 4 Tips

December 18th, 2010 by Susan P. Joyce

Employers have never liked their employees to job hunt, even before the Internet.  The response is often to fire those job seekers. So, no job, and, probably, no Unemployment Compensation. Cut loose without a net! So be very careful!

Note! This does NOT mean that you should quit your job before you start a job hunt!  That would be the VERY LAST THING I would recommend!  If you have a job, do your best to keep it.  Being unemployed while you job hunt may ease some of the logistical problems, but it is not something to do voluntarily.

One major worry employers have is that the departing job seeker is no longer a loyal employee – and that employee may take valuable information (e.g. customer lists, knowledge of products/services/pricing, etc.), colleagues, or other important “stuff” with them when they leave.

Another major worry is that these employees are no longer working very hard at their jobs.  They are focusing at least some of their time and energy on finding another job rather than doing a good job at the job they have.

So, keep your job search a secret. Yes, it feels sneaky because it is.  Get over it because you don’t really have an option, unless you are a “transitioning” military service member. 

4 Tips for a Confidential Job Search (more…)

Employer Benefits of Employee LinkedIn Participation

September 22nd, 2010 by Susan P. Joyce

Employers - AND Employees – Benefit from Employee LinkedIn Participation

It may be a surprise to some, but LinkedIn isn’t useful only for job search and recruiting.  Active participation is good for your career and good for your employer as well.

NOTE:  Before you join LinkedIn, or, in fact, participate in any social media, be sure to check for an official policy from your employer about employee use of social media. Some employers ban social media use by employees, at least while the employees are at work. Some don’t want any mention of the employer at all, while others think social media is great and encourage employee participation. So, it’s best to check for a policy and/or guidelines to be sure.

In fact, your employer may benefit from your active participation in LinkedIn. Even if you are the only employee who is a LinkedIn member, your participation puts your employer “on the map” (virtually) as an organization.

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Leveraging LinkedIn for Your Stealth Job Search

September 17th, 2010 by Susan P. Joyce

I strongly recommend that – if at all possible (and sometimes it is not possible) - people continue working in their old jobs while looking for their new jobs.  If you have the option, you are much more attractive to an employer when you are still employed.  Not logical, but very human (here’s why). 

Someone in Twitter recently disagreed with my recommendation in that article that people be sure their LinkedIn Profile is complete while they continue working in their current jobs. This person felt that being in LinkedIn signifies that someone is job searching. 

Yes, being active in LinkedIn can mean you are job hunting. But, most people in LinkedIn are working on expanding their network, getting in touch with thought leaders, former colleagues, and new potential clients, all to help them with their job performance. (More on how LinkedIn benefits your employer)

So, being in LinkedIn can also mean you are a savvy business person, leveraging current technology to improve your ability to do your existing job better, through better networking, and learning new skills.

NOTE:  Some employers do not want their employees using social media, particularly during working hours and/or using the employer’s computers, networks, etc. Check for a “Social Media Use” policy (and also an “Email and Internet Use” policy), to be sure that you are in compliance.

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Maybe Social Media Isn’t a Waste of Time for Your Career

September 12th, 2010 by Susan P. Joyce

The trend data from giant job aggregator Indeed.com, bottom, shows something very interesting happening.  Social media terms like “Facebook” and “Twitter” are appearing in more and more job descriptions every month. Since its founding in 2004, use of the term “Facebook” in job descriptions has grown an amazing 550,000% (that’s not a typo, the number really is five hundred fifty thousand percent) through July, 2010.  And it was the fastest growing in the 12-month period which ended in July, 2010.

Employers add social media terms to job descriptions because social media
is growing in importance, and they need employees with social media skills.
So, the value of your social media skills is increasing.

You can leverage your social media skills to benefit your job search in many ways.

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10 Steps to Job Search Success!

September 3rd, 2010 by Susan P. Joyce

An earlier post about wasting time in a job search described how job seekers waste their time and energy applying for hundreds of jobs, under the delusion that applying for jobs via job boards is how people land job. For over 85% of job seekers, applying via job boards is NOT what works!

Rather than hundreds of fruitless applications, this is what does work:

1.  Choose up to 3 job titles for jobs that you really want.

Why bother applying for jobs you don’t want?  If you landed one, you’d be miserable, most likely, and you probably wouldn’t be a good perfomer, so you’d be job hunting again – way too soon in this economy - and probably with less than stellar recommendations.

Let’s be serious here. Don’t pick “network TV news anchor” or “dermatologist” unless you have the credentials required of a network TV news anchor or dermatologist, respectively, or unless you have a plan to get those credentials before you start your job search.

If you really don’t know what you want (other than a paycheck), buy or borrow a copy of Richard Bolles best-selling book, “What Color Is Your Parachute.” Read the whole book, and do ALL the exercises.  This will be time very well spent!

Focusing on the few job titles for jobs you really want enables you to be more effective in your job search.

2.  Choose up to 20 target employers.

Find employers who seem to be financially stable, relatively secure in their market niche, and in the right location for you:

  • Check local Best Employer lists.
  • Ask family, friends, neighbors, even employees of various local companies, for the names of local employers that are good places to work – good management, fair pay, good benefits, etc. – whatever is important to you.
  • Go through the Yellow Pages of your phone book or search an online Yellow Pages for your location to find potential employers in the right kinds of businesses for you (e.g. food wholesalers, jewelry stores, IT consulting companies, etc. – whatever your target employers might be).
  • Identify more potential employers by searching on job titles, type of business, or the industry/sector you want in one of the job aggregator sites, like Job-Hunt’s sponsors Indeed.com, JustJobs.com, and LinkUp.com.

(more…)

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