Planning the job search (intro)

Job search can be an exhausting and lengthy process, which will have its ups and downs. It is important to remember that job search is a marathon and not a sprint, unless you are in dire need to take pretty much any opportunity that comes your way, but we hope each candidate can choose to a certain point.?

Goal setting:

Before you start, we recommend mapping your skillset, listing professional and technical skills on one end, and soft and transferable skills on the other. Why is this important? It is, firstly, a great exercise to detail your skills, as you will have likely not done so, for at least the duration of your previous position. This list will be extremely useful:

• to map the positions you are suitable for against your skillset,?
• to talk about your skills in the interviews and
• to find resources to build the skills needed for the positions you are interested in, and that you may not currently have.

We also recommend you map your expectations:

• What are the minimum requirements I am looking for in a new position (salary, benefits, flexibility, etc.)?
• What is the ideal set of circumstances for a new position?
• What are the absolute No’s in my job search?
• What am I happy to trade off or be flexible on?
• How long am I prepared to look for the “ideal” position?
• What is my timeline?
• What are the checkpoints at which I will calibrate my search??
• How will I provide for myself financially while going through the job search?
• How will I take care of myself, physically, emotionally and socially??
• How will I process and apply the learnings from the job search?

Create a schedule?

Whatever your circumstances are, whether you are job searching full time, or can only afford a few hours per day/week/at weekend, a realistic schedule will allow you to focus on the job search in the time slots allocated to it. Be realistic and then very disciplined about how much time you can dedicate and what you will spend this time on.

Prepare your CV

After goal setting and creating a schedule, this should be your first focus. You need to make sure you have a solid CV to accompany your job search. This article gives you plenty of tips on creating a solid one for your needs.

Update your social media profile

Make sure your professional profile aligns with your CV and can show off your skillset. Be careful about your private social media presence as you want to make sure you guide the potential employers to the most relevant source of information, while making your social presence private.

Cover letter

As we discuss in our article focused on the cover letter, whether you need one or not will depend on the companies you are applying for and the impression you want to make, but if you do invest in writing a cover letter, make sure it serves you. Don’t send generic cover letters to different employers, this will only work against you and, in this case, you’ll be better off without one.

Prepare for the interviews

Being interviewed can make candidates feel exposed, interrogated and generally ill at ease, but it can be a very pleasant and useful experience, so we suggest you empower yourself with great preparation. Remember, you are also interviewing the companies in order to make sure you find the right position, so take this process as a two-way conversation.

Manage your expectations

This is closely related to goal setting and, although we refer to expectations with regards to the timeline and alignment of values, you will need to actively think about and later discuss your salary expectations and assess the overall compensation and benefits package of your potential employer. Make sure you prepare for these often tricky and, at times, unpleasant conversations.?

Selection process steps and assessments

The more you know about the processes you are participating in, the more power you will have to decide what you are willing to spend time on, and the better you will prepare for each step. You should always ask about the process steps in your screening interview (and sometime this information will be sent to you beforehand). Our detailed articles on the most common selection process steps and assessment types will help you get ready.

References

When you are preparing for your job search, you will do yourself a favor if you give heads up to your referees. Many employers will want to talk to your previous managers/colleagues, so make sure you let them know they may be contacted via phone/email/platform. Although this process stage can be imperfect and biased, you will do well if you line up the referees who know your hard and soft skill well enough to speak about them to your potential new employer.

Keep learning

The job search can take months and you will find so much about companies, but also yourself in this process. Take all the learnings and feedback as gifts, and be open to adding new skills to your skill set by taking courses and doing workshops. There are many affordable resources online, you just need to look for them. Your professional profile is not static, show your potential new employers that you have invested time wisely in up and reskilling as needed.

Connect and network

Use your network to connect to new employers, learning experiences, and opportunities by sharing and actively engaging with your contacts. The power of community is immense and you will many times receive useful information and kindness from acquaintances. Make sure you do the same for them when the time comes.?

This article series has been co-authored with Milena Stanic .