Before I go any further, I must advise of two important points:
*-I am not a professional job coach, nor am I employed in a professional capacity as a recruiter or in a HR position.
*-The suggestions are strictly based on my experience.
Let’s face it, being unemployed is uncomfortable. It’s unpredictable, it’s emotional, it has lows and highs that seems unable to navigate at points.
What I would like to share with you today are my suggestions to help my fellow job seekers.
- Be Persistent– I know it’s not easy, I’ve been living with this reality for the last few months. You spend all day sending out resumes, you go to local seminars, you interview well and you still can’t find a job. There are a lot of jobs out there and a lot more candidates than jobs. We just have to keep going. There is no other way.
- Do your research
- My research is done in two phases: One of the practices I’ve added to my job search is to find out information about the job before I apply, especially if the information on the ad is vague. Glassdoor and LinkedIn are great for research. One of the features that glassdoor offers that other job search sites don’t offer is anonymous reviews by employees and interviewees. I will also use hopstop to tell me how long it would take to get to the job site and what is the best way to get there.
- Once you get the interview, research is key. In addition to Glassdoor and LinkedIn, I often will use google to find out more about the company. Based on the research, then questions (which are very important and will be discussed at another time) can be formulated for the interview.
- Consider temping or volunteering– Temping and volunteering are great because not only do you make connections, but you may learn a new skill that may help you to get the job you want.
- Always get to the interview site 10-15 minutes early– Do a dry run of the route to the interview site if you have to. If you take public transportation, hopstop is a great website to advise the best way to get to the interview. The rule of thumb that I follow is be at the interview location no more than 20 minutes before the scheduled time. And if for whatever reason you realize that you will not get there on time, just call them.
- Utilize local resources– The local library may offer job coaching or job search resources. For New York City residents, the New York Public Library offers a variety of resources. Or, if you like, use yelp to look up a local career coach.
- LinkedIn is the place to be for job seekers– LinkedIn is the best job search site on the net right now. And it is the first place that a potential employer will look if they are considering you for a position.
- Clean up or increase the privacy setting on your social media accounts– I’m a believer that just because I have a few pictures on my Facebook page from spring break, that does not mean that I am lush who will be come into the office every Monday morning hung over. Unfortunately, that is not reality and some companies may pass judgement on a candidate based on what is or isn’t on their social media account. It’s best to either clean up the account or set the the highest privacy settings.
- Keep verbal diarrhea to a minimum– No one is perfect. Sometimes in our eagerness to please the interviewer and get them to consider us for the position, we may talk a little much. I know this because this is something I have to work on. Keep your answers short and to the point.
- Use emailed job alerts– Most of the job search engines for free email alerts. This is one feature that I highly recommend. Even if you are not able to go through the job search sites until later in the day, you can still look for a job with the emails.
- Use a professional email address– A resume with the email address hottie4u@email.com is likely to go into the no pile fast. I recommend using something like lastname_firstname@email.com.
These are my tips for a job search. If you have any other suggestions to add, feel free to leave them in the comments below.
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