If you’ve been applying to jobs online and hating it, or feeling paralyzed even thinking about starting your job search, know that you’re not alone! These are very common experiences. Even most very well educated folks do not get a lot of instruction on the process of getting a well-fitting job. Here are five under-discussed but crucial tips that have supported many of my clients in experiencing more success and ease in the job search:
Have a vision. As much as possible, get clear about what you DO know about the job you’d love. What’s important to you? What’s your ideal schedule, culture, salary, day-to-day responsibilities? Write down as much as you can, even if the details are vague to start.
Have a strategy.
Clarify your intention: Are you looking to get a job yesterday, get a job in six months, figure out what you want to do longer-term, or some combination of these?
How might you connect with people who can help you get clear on what you want? Or how can you get in front of people who might want to hire you or who can be an ally in helping you get hired? Think about how you like to learn and connect with people. You might consider doing a series of informational interviews with people in your network (and/or your network’s networks), volunteering, or attending events/conferences in your desired field.
To find out about jobs in your field(s) or interest, set up alerts on LinkedIn, Idealist, HigherEd jobs, or whatever job sites feel like a good fit for your interests. You might also join listservs, sign up for email lists, join Facebook/LinkedIn groups, or subscribe to relevant publications. If you went to college and/or graduate school, your alma mater(s) might have their own job databases and/or systems for connecting alumni with each other for purposes of career advancement.
Build relationships and keep up with them.
Most people think they hate networking because it seems transactional and disingenuous. I invite you to reframe the process as relationship-building. Maybe you have something to offer the other person. Maybe the chance to support you will be a gift to them. Folks who like their work tend to enjoy talking about it.
Who do you want to get to know? Who might also be able to support you in getting a job you love? Look through your own email address book, phone, and LinkedIn for possible connections. Maybe you email people you know to ask for conversations and/or connections. If it’s not a risk to your current employment, you can post on social media and ask for connections.
After you speak to someone, send them a thank you note and, if it’s someone you want to keep in touch with, circle back to them and keep them in the loop about your career journey. You can also send them articles or other media that you think would be of interest to them as part of your gratitude practice.
As you build your career, it’s a good practice to have informational interviews or coffee chats regularly. This gives you an opportunity to learn about new positions, industries, companies, or roles you’re interested in learning more about. It’s also an excuse to get to know people who you think are cool and an opportunity to practice talking about yourself, which many of us need practice with!
Tailor your resume. This is pretty standard advice but still a lot of people don’t do it. At the beginning of your job search, make a standardized version of your resume that you can copy, and then add to/subtract from to make it match whatever job description you’re looking to apply for.
If you’ve had a lot of roles, focus on including the most relevant and tailor the bullet points for each role to the skills listed on the job description. Use hard numbers whenever possible, e.g. grew canvass team from 20-50 people in six months.
Though you would probably not send to an employer, it can be nice to have one resume on file with your entire work history, for your own reference, and/or you can also put this on LinkedIn so it adds a little color to your story when people look you up.
Call on your support team. The job search often feels like homework we don’t want to do and it helps to bring people in, both for accountability and to support our success.
Organize a co-working night with other folks who are job searching, launching side hustles, or otherwise have extracurricular work they could use help with to support you to sit down and do your job search tasks.
Ask friends, colleagues, or family members to proofread your resume, cover letter, and other job application materials.
For additional, more tailored career advice, feel free to schedule a complimentary 35-minute strategy session with me here.