How To Improve Your Job Hunt

That’s because a job hunt doesn’t really ever end. It just stops on hold for a little while you stay where you’re at. Then, you’ll hunt for another job down the road. But part of this process is bridging the gap in relationships. So I’m going to give you some tips on how to best market yourself, even when you’re not  “in the market” for a job. First tip: Send out a paper resume. That’s right. U.S. Mail, because hardly anyone does this anymore.  Even if the hiring manager gives it to his assistant to deliver to HR, it’ll go to a place with hand-delivered resumes. That’s a change from email delivered resumes. So stick some stamps on it.

Mind you, there’s nothing wrong with them. But most of the time all you’ll find will be generalist-type of jobs. Some studies show that fewer than 10% of people who get hired, get the job off some online job board. Instead, get up with people that have friends. Push for an introduction. Crawl into their social networks. That’s a lot smarter way to network now, especially online.  And it will pay you back with face to face time and possibly a referral to a job.

I’m on the radio and even I have to practice what I’m going to say sometimes. The same goes for you, especially when it comes to expressing interest in a job. Why should someone hire you? You need to develop talking points. Sort of like what the politicians do. They have a certain agenda and issues they care about. And everything they say stays on-point: on agenda, with talking points. You need to do the same thing about why you want the job; what you can bring to an employer; and why you are the best candidate. So get working on your talking points if you’re in the job hunt.

That means some days you’ll be more active than others. So my advice to you is that on one of those slow days, try to be helpful to others. Be a matchmaker. You can easily expand your sphere of influence by finding jobs and employers and telling others about them – at least, that is, until there’s a job that comes around up your ally. So be helpful. It indeed will be helpful to you; especially on those days you may feel down and dejected because a hundred employers aren’t beating a path to your door. I promise you, it will come back and pay you dividends in the weeks ahead.

Or are you passive and waiting for something else to come along. Whatever the situation, I’ve been giving you helpful hints on how to advance your professional career. And with that typically comes advancement, personal growth, and often economic gain. The bottom line is they require you do be active about it. If you’re just sitting around wishing and hoping someone’s going to come along and knock on your door, you’re fooling yourself. You need to be active about your efforts in searching for advancement. That doesn’t mean you have to jump ship; nor are you admitting that. It just means you’re not going to sit by passively hoping that new job comes along.