Job Hunting Skills: 4 Unbeatable Job Search Skills!
on January 23rd, 2012 at 8:32 pm
Would you start buying flooring before you designed the house? Of course you wouldn’t. Yet many job hunters take this approach in their job search. They start responding to newspaper ads and internet job postings before they created their job search strategies and overall job hunting plan.
Their resume isn’t polished and they are using a copy of a cover letter they found on the internet. They start searching for work without thinking through the basics of what position they would clearly qualify for and where they might want to work.
This whole disjointed job hunting approach is doomed to failure. Or at best work is discovered which is not close to the “right job.”
Job hunters spend time in attempting to write a good resume, they might do some work preparing for a job interview and based on their work experience have a general idea about the right career. These are all individual skills that are useful but missing from this exercise is the design of an effective job search plan.
A job search campaign is essentially a marketing campaign. Each section works together to support the other. Just as a company would not ignore designing the packaging before they rolled out an advertising campaign the job hunter will be handicapped by not carefully planning the entire job search.
In any successful job search campaign there are four unbeatable principles that are the cornerstones for finding the right job.
1. Know what job hunting ideas work. By knowing what job search approaches consistently work in finding a job can be the start of a successful job hunt.
The right approach is one that helps the job hunter find the best people who can help them connect with possible job openings. Just answering ads and posting hundreds of resumes on the internet are basically a waste of time and resources.
Building relationships by networking, gathering referrals, going on informational interviews and contacting recruiters will uncover jobs where there is less competition and closer to an ideal position.
In the course of networking, helping others solve their problems should be the goal of every job hunter. This develops a strong group that is motivated to return the favor by guiding the job hunter to unadvertised positions.
By being pro-active in the job search, the marketing effort will uncover people who can make the hiring decision.
2. The most effective job search plans are detailed with a step-by-step process. All active job searches generate an immense amount of information. Typically, many job hunters quickly become overwhelmed.
Each resume is tailor-made based on the needs of the employer, there is research, interview preparation, people to call, others to meet, follow-ups and if you don’t have a well-developed system to track everything important items will slip through the cracks.
In designing a job search plan you must include setting specific and attainable goals, daily and weekly. Action steps to take every day and a method to track your progress. If the planned results are not forthcoming, the plan is adjusted and emphasis is placed on areas that appear to be more productive.
Job hunting is work, plain and simple. The payoff is huge when the job hunter finds the right job so effort put into the planning stage will always pay big dividends.
3. Plan on staying motivated. Job hunting is replete with rejections; phone calls not returned, dead ends, job offers pulled back, and promises not kept all will leave you frustrated. You can either see this as an opportunity and a learning experience or you can give up. Too many job hunters take the later route.
Rejection is normal in any job search. By sticking to the overall job hunting plan, remaining flexible and learning, there is no time to give up. Goals are being met every day and week, and this level of achievements will keep moving the job hunter closer to the right job.
4. Don’t let barriers stop your job search. When you’re stuck look for help. Search for others who can help you get out of your rut or help you overcome an obstacle. Job hunting is a lonely exercise. With a new perspective, perhaps new ideas, you can get your job hunting back on track.
With a solid hard-working action plan, attainable goals, looking for help when needed, will put you in charge of your future. A pro-active well planned job hunt is the answer to attaining your career hunting goals.
Learn more about changing careers, building unbeatable job hunting plans, resume and cover letter writing and career planning at http://careersafter50.com. Discover how others over age 50, built winning career plans and found the right careers by effective job hunting and career planning after 50.
