Avoiding a job-seeking time suck, and other tips for job seekers

Job seeking is a time-intensive process. For people like me, who don’t have a natural knack for time management, it’s easy to get sucked into a swamp of distractions and other tasks. As a result, it can be difficult to carve out time to look for work. So, I reached out to LinkedIn members and a time management expert to find out the best way to structure a job search to maximize efficiency.

“During search periods I often keep a really simple time-management cadence,” wrote Doug Kincade, adding that he does outreach and applications in the morning and reserves the afternoon for research and learning. Chantal Wallace wrote that she dedicates 5 hours each week toward improving her skills. “I also try to spend about 5 hours per week applying to jobs and reaching out to networking contacts,” she added.

For those of you struggling to structure your job search, time-management expert Laura Vanderkam told me that you may want to try either setting a specific number of daily goals or a certain number of hours to work on applications and other tasks.

When you are done with those tasks or that time, you are done, she said. “Now you can relax and do whatever else you want… There’s no reason to feel guilty. You’re going to be back at it tomorrow,” said Vanderkam, who is the author of several books, including “168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think” and “What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast.”

You should also make sure that you’re setting realistic goals and plans, Vanderkam told me. “Making the list limited means it seems more doable. It’s better to aim for two and do two than aim for 20 and do none.”

For those of you who are currently employed and struggling to find time to job search, Vanderkam told me that you may want to do that work in the early morning since a lot of people tend not to use their evenings efficiently. 

Regardless of your circumstance, she said it’s important to go into your job search with the right mindset. “The vast majority of people will find something within a reasonable timeframe. You will find another job. This is a time-limited thing. This is not going to be the rest of your life.”

How do you manage your time while searching for work? Join the conversation.

? The follow-up:

Salary negotiations are notoriously difficult for job seekers. We spoke last week with compensation consultant Victoria Pynchon about how to discuss salary with a potential employer. She suggested that job seekers should find out their market value, be the first person to put a number on the table and keep the door to future negotiations open. Here’s what people are saying about those suggestions.

? Other news to help you #GetHired:

Uber employees learned the value of work relationships after a mass layoff. The ride-hailing giant laid off 400 people in its marketing department, prompting current and past employees to pull together to help their former colleagues. One former Uber employee put out a call on LinkedIn for those laid-off employees to get in touch for opportunities. The result? A shared spreadsheet that has accumulated 800 open positions and more than 300 names of people looking for work, according to Quartz. Here’s what people are saying about the initiative.

One Ohio town is no longer hiring people who use tobacco or nicotine. Dayton wants to create a healthier workplace and environment, reports the Dayton Daily News. While the rule doesn’t apply to existing employees, the city will start screening applicants and new hires. Experts say they don't know of any other city with such a policy. The move comes as many other states and cities work to protect marijuana-using job seekers. Here’s what people are saying about the new rule.

How much would you pay for interview prep? A former Amazon executive is now offering to prepare people for the company’s famous interview process with a pricey Airbnb Experience, reports Business Insider. Unlike the usual experiences of walking tours or zip-lining, the former executive offers a Seattle-based interview prep course for nearly $800. A more intense round of mock interviews is available for $5,000. Here’s what people are saying about the experience.

? Up next:

A job search can be a mentally draining experience. In many cases, you’ll face a number of rejections and a lot of dead ends. Even landing an interview means that you’ll be asked to demonstrate your worth to a potential employer. We’ll be talking about how to best handle the psychological toll of a job search in the next edition of #GetHired. If you’ve struggled with this aspect of your job search or found ways to cope, please let me know in the comments below or post a video to your profile with the hashtag #GetHired. I may include it in next week’s edition.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to reach out to me if you have ideas on topics or questions I should address in future editions of #GetHired.