Organize Your Job Search

Before you go wasting your time trying to read everything in print or on-line about job searching and before you try every single job-search engine out there, stop and take stock.

You need to have a good idea of what you are looking for and what type of work your skills assessment and qualifications suit you for. You need to be making the most of your time rather than going after every opportunity that comes along. It is important to be able to weigh up your chances of getting the jobs you see advertised so that you don't waste their time and yours. Multiple rejection notices (or no answers) can be demoralizing - you need to keep as positive as possible.

Prepare Yourself For Your Job-Search

Are you looking for a local job or are you willing to travel or re-locate? How much money do you REALLY need? Can you be flexible about the compensation package?

You should have a professional and effective resume available to hand to prospective employers at short notice. You may need more than one resume produced to suite different types of opportunities.

You need to be confident and well prepared with good interview skills. In a competitive market, it is not always the best qualified person who gets the job. First impressions count for a lot! Doing research on the company you are applying to can also be a very effective technique for interview success.

Networking can be a powerful way of finding a job. Many jobs never get advertised and you will find that many executives never found a job through an advert.

You should also seek out Employment Agencies in your area and speak to a professional recruiter to get a second opinion about you. Let them get involved in finding you a job. Career Counselors can also be valuable to help you understand your strengths and weaknesses.

Additional Resources

In addition to the articles available on this Web Site, I recommend that you have a look at the e-books available at SmartJobGuides.com. There are lots of well-written books available on subjects such as resume writing, interviewing techniques, salary negotiation and even starting your own business.

May 2004

  
• Special Edition - Job Seeker Survey Results

  
• "Where do I find the best jobs?"   
• "Do I REALLY need a resume?"
  
• "What's the best method of responding to a job ad?"
  
• "How can I improve my chances of being selected?"

Job-Searching is a Self-Marketing effort ....

Many people who are not in sales will be daunted by this statement, but if you break the effort down into smaller chunks, you will see that anyone can do it.

6-Step Job-Search Plan

The plan outlined below is really just an overview showing you the steps to achieving your ideal position. I recommend that you follow my links and seek other sources for detail on each section to fully understand how to make this happen.

1. Self Assess
Evaluate your strengths. Complete an honest self-assessment of your strengths and abilities. List your job preferences. List what activities give you most satisfaction in the workplace. Develop a career search focus. Be sure what sort of position you are looking for. Casting around for anything that moves will result in poor decision-making with long term results.

2. Prepare
Set and prioritize your objectives. It is necessary to keep a clear head and go after your most important requirements. Clarify work options. What business function are you looking for? What business sector will you be happiest in? Where do you want to work? What size company do you feel comfortable with? Create effective tools. A powerful Resume and Introductory Letter are essential. You may also need to develop a Reason For Leaving Statement. Develop key messages you will take with you into interviews. What value do you bring to a prospective employer?

3. Research
Investigate your chosen employment market. Learn to use Internet Search Tools to identify companies that meet your criteria. Develop a network of contacts. Start building a database of personal contacts and target-company contacts. Knowledge is power. The more people know what you are looking for and the more you know about the companies you are researching, the better. Leverage the hidden job market. Focus on finding out what opportunities exist for your chosen career. Develop a strategy for approaching target companies and hiring decision-makers.

4. Focus
Identify and narrow down your most promising options. Create a need/contribution statement that addresses each opportunity and identify which ones you feel best about. Test and monitor your original strategy and key messages. Always stay focused on your original plan. If you receive information which leads you into a different area, set up a new plan and stay focused on that. Select the best opportunity. Refer everything back to your career search focus.

5. Interview
Increase your effectiveness in interviews. Your self-assessment and focus activities will give you confidence that you are the right person for the job.

6. Negotiate
Evaluate offers. Aim to have more than one offer on the table. Don't be forced into accepting the first offer. Decide which items of the offer(s) are essential, negotiable, unacceptable against your original requirements. Negotiate your optimum terms. You are in a position of strength because you did your homework and you know you are right for this job. Respond with clear statements related to your worth.