First let me wish all my readers celebrating Passover this week a wonderful holiday, and don’t overdo it with the wine and matzo.
Now on to this week’s advice; searching for a job is a daunting experience and at the end of the day many job seekers feel frustrated and physically and mentally drained.
This is exacerbated by the limited number of new executive and professional jobs being created, the increasing number of job seekers now willing to relocate for a new position, and the lack of understanding by many jobseekers and new graduates on how to find a new job in this day and age.
So here are some hints:
1: Get an attitude adjustment; the glass is always half full and each day you are one day closer to success. To do this set up a formal job search strategy with realistic daily and weekly goals and stick to it.
2: Find a coach or someone to discuss your problems and fears with, answer your questions, and give you equal doses or encouragement and constructive criticism on how you are conducting your job search.3. Unless you feel your resume is perfect as is, have it reviewed and if need be edited or rewritten by a knowledgeable professional in a style and format that is easy to customize for the different jobs you apply for.
4: While unemployed become an avid reader of print and online business news and take copious notes of what and who is happening in your field and industry and who is making money and who are the people and companies on the move.
5: Then try contacting HR managers and decision makers at these companies directly or find ways to get referred from a trusted source. If this is not possible find their name and contact information by reaching out to current employees of the company with the available position using linked in, Hoovers or other networking tools that are available to you. Customize both a cover letter and your resume for this company and try and find a mutual connection to get it into their hand and if this is not possible find a creative way to do this.
Author:Perry Newman, CPC is a nationally recognized executive resume writer, career coach and social media strategist renowned for his ability to produce marketing documents and job search strategies that get results. You can view sample resumes at http://www.perrynewman.com/ and email him your resume at perry@perrynewman.com for FREE resume critique.
Five easy ways to improve your job search
Telephone or Twitter-getting a hiring managers attention
Luckily Telephone or Twitter is not an absolute choice. You can use both in your job search campaign.
Over the past few months I’ve read several how to use Twitter for Job Search e books and articles. If you are not familiar with the concept, consider trying this link.
Twitter:
- is easy to use.
- has great utility in connecting with constituents fast.
- provides a great forum to demonstrate expertise as well as build your personal brand.
- is emerging as a job listing resource through tweetmyjobs, tweetajob and others.
That said, I believe Twitter is an example of marketing with soft engagement. (Email represents another soft engagement). What is soft engagement? Let me explain.
It is has simply become too easy to sit at ones desktop and Tweet (or email) all day. As a matter of fact, many power Tweeters, simply set up a series of timed scripts using Hoot Suite and other Twitter management tools. I view this type of activity as soft engagement. It has it’s benefits for brand building, but it really does not get at the crux of finding a new position. Getting hired requires real contact and engagement with hiring managers.
In my opinion, despite the growth of social media in recruiting efforts, the overwhelming majority of hiring managers, rarely read blind emails or mine Twitter for critical new hires. This is not to suggest hiring managers do not use Twitter. My point is that we are clearly in a time of electronic information overload. It is too easy to tweet or send emails. Since it is so easy to push information out, Twitter and email are getting more and more cluttered. They are loaded with useless information (including Spam), and folks with limited time, are not as engaged with these electronic communications as one might think.
Now contrast this with the telephone. Everyone has seen their communicating mediums shift over the last decade. Although I can not defend these statistics, I believe it is fair to state, the business community has flipped how they communicate from 80% phone, 20% online communication 10-15 years ago, to; 20% phone, 80% online communication in 2010. (These percentages are meant to be more illustrative than factual.) I believe, herein lies an opportunity for job seekers. Hiring managers are receiving less phone calls and less voice mails than you might think. Also, in general, my personal experience is that folks are picking up their phone more frequently than they did a decade ago.
Perhaps simplistic in approach, but I would strongly suggest you have a better chance of getting a hiring managers attention, to your candidacy, using the telephone than through electronic communication. If you call very early or very late in the day, you will even have a greater chance of getting them on the phone as opposed to voicemail. Yes, it takes a little more effort, confidence and drive to use the telephone, but I believe your personal return on investment will be greater.
If you are serious about finding work faster, do not hide behind the ease of soft engagement. Leverage all communication mediums, but please pick up the phone.
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I recently received the following email from a former Monster executive and thought it worth sharing with you.
I recently read an article in the NY Times which resonated with me because of the parallels I saw in packaging myself to prospective employers…and the value prop Career Brander delivers. The article, “The Muddled Selling of the President” (January 29, 2010) was about defining oneself (US presidents) to shape how others (voters, constituents, opponents) perceive you. The most effective leaders “have cultivated thematic definitions of themselves to shape the way their choices are perceived. A strong, clear narrative helps a president connect with voters and explain the journey he is leading. The lack of one invites opponents to craft a less flattering portrayal.” An image-maker also commented, “You’ve got to have a clear, easy to understand story.” Very relevant to the job search, especially in a fiercely competitive landscape. Here’s the link, if your interested in reading more or gleaning additional positioning ideas/statements:http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/weekinreview/31stevenson.html
How to Find Your Job with Twitter Lists | Career Rocketeer - Career Search and Personal Branding Blog
How to Find Your Job with Twitter Lists | Career Rocketeer - Career Search and Personal Branding Blog
Twitter’s recently-launched Lists feature is an outstanding new tool that not only improves the overall Twitter experience by allowing you to organize and group the people you follow on Twitter, but that can also help you optimize your job search and personal branding efforts.Here are some top tips on how to find your job with Twitter Lists:Follow ListsCareer Search - The easiest way to jumpstart your job search with Twitter Lists is to begin following lists created by job search and personal branding experts. There are already a number of great lists out there that will help you filter out career search and personal branding advice and tips from the rest of the everyday Twitter “clutter.”Here are just a few lists that will help you get started:The Rocket List by yours truly, Chris Perry @CareerRocketeerGreat HR Recruiting Peeps by Mark Stelzner @StelznerJob Search Experts by Susan Joyce @JobHuntOrgCareer Experts by Rosa Vargas @ResumeServiceCareer Workplace by Lindsey Pollak @LindseyPollakPersonal Branding by Mohammed Al-Taee @MAltaeeCareer Coaches and Job Search by Jenny McClure @CincyRecruiterJob Postings by Cris Janzen @CrisJobCoachTop Job Bloggers by Jacob Share @JacobShareCareer News by WSJCareers @WSJCareersCareer Resources by Brent Peterson @InterviewAngel
How do you get hiring managers to remember you?
How do you present yourself to create powerful recall?
How do you improve your chances of the hiring manager thinking of you for an open position?
Recall diminishes over time, so a personal marketing campaign to ‘stay front of mind’ is critical. However, be sure your personal campaign includes in person contact, telephonic connections, and written communication.
Consider some generally accepted facts about human recall.
- If it is read, most people will recall 10-15%.
- If it is heard, most people will recall 20-25%.
- If it is seen, most people will recall 30-35%.
- If it seen and heard, recall jumps to 60%.
- If it is seen, read and heard, recall jumps to over 80%.
Now ask yourself, are you being seen, read and heard in your job search
Are you utilizing all the personal marketing tools available to be seen, read and heard?
Job Search Radar provides you with the daily business intelligence to execute a meaningful personal marketing campaign that can incorporate all three communication recall mediums.
Be read, be heard, be seen and you will find work faster.
Careerpreneur
Careerpreneur
March 31st, 2010I was chatting with Julie Walraven about career stuff and I made up a word, on-the-fly, that is pretty cool.
I was talking about how professionals need to manage their own careers… they need to manage their careers like an entrepreneur manages his business. Flexibility, vision, discipline, etc.
Career-oriented + entrepreneur = careerpreneur
What do you think?
If you are a careerpreneur you believe that you are the CEO of Me, Inc.
If you are a careerpreneur you know that your ability to provide income, or income security, comes from the strategy and tactics you employ in your career management.
If you are a careerpreneur you know that change is inevitable and you constantly position yourself to survive/win.
If you are a careerpreneur you network because you have learned to love it and do it right, not because you are in a pinch and need to lean on others.
If you are a careerpreneur you are FREE, not burdened down wondering when you might lose your job.
If you are a careerpreneur you… _______________________________________
Okay that is too fun. Now that’s two words/phrases I’ve made up in this career space (the other is “income security,” which replaces “job security“)!
Posted in Already Employed, Income Security, Joe Job Seeker, Personal Branding, Strategies | | Permalink | TrackBack | 9 Comments »
The Final 1%: Where Dreams Are Vanquished Or Vanished
So, I was sweating, panting and grunting my way through an indoor cycling class the other day…
When, amidst the sea of exertion, our teacher, Christine Dercole, who’s pretty damn close to a walking, talking conduit of inspiration (and provider of great tribal beats), says to the class:
I want you to ask yourselves a question. When you hear me say there are only 5 seconds left in a climb, or a sprint, or a ride…do you let up and coast from 5 down to 0…or do you dig in and hammer home? Because, the difference isn’t just 5 seconds…it’s life immortal.
Well, actually, I may have added that last part, but she said something like it.
Point being, in nearly every element of life, the ability to push hard through the final 1% of an already limit-shredding experience doesn’t give you a 1% advantage…it delivers you into the realm of greatness, of transcendence. Of revelation.
The final 1% is where winners are born. Where magic unfolds…
Because you’re there, refusing to give up when everyone else is throwing in the towel and saying, “screw it, I’m done.” You’re rising up and taking full ownership of the outcome of your efforts. And, that’s something astonishingly rare in a time defined increasingly by the quest for “good enough.”
It’s just so much easier to relent, to coast, to say you don’t really care…to blame.
And, I’m not even talking about the physical manifestation of your efforts during the final push. Your body may or not rise to the challenge of your will. The weather may turn, your friends may fall away, circumstances may disappoint. Those are things you work to corral and empower, but truth is, they’re not always within your control.
What I’m talking about is what happens within that mass of matter, electricity and spirit between your ears, that thumping source of life that beats within your chest. Your ability to sustain them at concert pitch to the absolute end of the road, all to often, defines the difference between “life immortal” and a life of envy.
So, the question is…
What do YOU do in the final 1%?
Entry Level Job Search - Launch Your Career
Reposted from CareerAlley
"
It's lonely out in space On such a timeless flight" Elton John, Bernie TaupinYes, it is lonely out there in job search space and it can sometimes feel like a timeless flight. But if you are looking for an entry level job, you are in luck because there are so many choices and opportunities when you are first starting out. Do you know exactly what you want to do? Have you looked at and thought about all of the career choices that are open to you? If you are in college, have you visited your college career office? These are the types of things you should be exploring.
One key thing to remember is that you don't always get the perfect job. You may have to settle for something different than what you had planned. You should focus on the companies that you want to work for and that fit your career plan. "Career plan?" you say. Yes, you should be planning your career now much as you would plan a trip because if you don't know where you are going you are never going to get there.
Career Planning:
- What is Career Planning? - The best place to start is to understand the concept. This article, from About.com, provides an explanation and then a four step process for developing your career plan. This is key to creating the right plan for you. The article has embedded links to additional information (such as writing your resume and developing the steps). If you are looking for an entry level job or are about to graduate from college, this article is a must read.
Job and Career Ideas:
- Career Planning Resources - This site (the left hand side of the screen) is like the "mother lode" when it comes to career planning. There are an amazing number of links to key tools such as Skill Assessments, Career Counseling, Explore specific careers, Career tools and so much more. As you build out your career plan, use this list of links to get specific information to help you build your plan.
- Unusual Jobs for College Students - One way to help you figure out what you want to do is to work while you are in college (crazy idea, right?). This article, from About.com, provides a number of ideas. From Sports jobs to the aspiring actor there are several ideas you can explore. There are additional links at the bottom of the article such as where you can find your college job.
- Job Search Ideas for College Students - This list of ideas, from suite101.com, provides some ideas for you in your search. Really the basics (but still worth a read), the article covers such things as your resume, checking the local papers, placing your resume online and dressing for the interview. The article has additional links with related information.
Job Leads and Links:
- Career Ideas For Different Personality Types - Sometimes matching your personality to the job is as important as the job itself. This article, from Teamtechnology, provides ideas regarding the tools you could use to help get the best match. These include items like the Job Demands Questionnaire. A good article to help determine which jobs work for you.
- Aftercollege - This job search site is designed for college grads and entry level jobs. The top of the page has links for schools (by state), Jobs and Resources. You can join networks from your school, search for exclusive jobs, search based on employers or city, state and zip. There is a section for featured jobs center page and "browse for popular jobs" links on the right hand side of the page. According the the website, there are over 200,000 job opportunities.
Good luck in your search.
- Campus Career Center - Entry Level Jobs - This job search board by campuscareercenter.com is also designed for recent grads and students as well. There are links at the top of the site for Post Resume and Job Seekers. You can quickly search jobs from the right hand search box or look at the links to featured employers center page. Below this there is a blog. The right hand side of the page a job seekers section with links to search jobs, research employers and search categories. There were over 88,000 job opportunities when I checked the site.
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