Top 10 Job Search Tips

1.     It IS about who you know in addition to what you know. You should have been networking all along. If you do not have a network, it is time to build one…immediately. Complete your profile on LinkedIn, connect with former colleagues, join Zoom calls, look for development opportunities and attend open meetings of all kinds (eventbrite.com is a great place to find them). Introduce yourself and ask questions to gain visibility, find ways to share your expertise and connect with interesting people afterward.

2.     If there is an association of people in your field. Join it! Take a leadership role. Find a way to add value that puts you on stage and/or gives you the opportunity to reach out to whoever you want to meet (i.e., Program Chair, Membership Chair). Fully capitalize on that role to meet people of interest in your industry. You can talk to just about anyone if you give them the opportunity to gain visibility. With all the social media attention required these days, people are looking for ways to stand out.

3.     If there is no group that gives you an opportunity to share your expertise, start one. Invite others who want to get to know each other. If you become the connector that introduces key people to the people they want to know, you become will become the hub of the networking wheel.

4.     Give before you get. ALWAYS be generous in doing things for others when it comes to networking. Constantly be looking for ways you can you connect others with each other to further their goals (not yours). When you are generous in your support of others, it comes back to you in amazing, wonderful ways.

5.     Come up with your top 5 stories of success throughout your career. Identify those times when you hit it out of the park. What was the STAR – Situation, Task, Action and Result (in terms the employer would care about)? Circle back to these stories when you are asked the standard behavioral interviewing question “Give me an example of a time when you…” Nowadays it is standard to ask what you HAVE done. Not what you would do or will do. From the employer’s perspective, the best predictor of future success is past success. Be prepared with stories that show you can, and have, done things the employer cares about.

6.     Even though I was in HR for 30 years, in many cases HR is the gatekeeper that says “no”, not the hiring manager that says “yes.” Your job is to find out who the decision maker is and get your resume submitted to that individual by someone they like and trust. Use LinkedIn to find the contacts at companies of interest. See if you know anyone at the company. It is MUCH more effective to have someone internal to the organization bring your resume in than it is to go through the job postings like zillions of other people do. Use the tools available to you to gain a competitive edge.

7.     If you are wanting to make a career change, take a half-step in the right direction. Find the halfway point between where you are and where you want to go. Pursue that step first. For example, let’s say I am an accountant who wants to get into sales. I could not make a direct transition into that job. I might, however, be able to get into an accounting software firm, provide technical support to the sales organization and use that as a foothold to get into a sales position (not that you would find many accountants who want to go into sales). Be strategic in your job search.

8.     Go above and beyond to be professional and share your interest with a potential employer. Be ultra-prepared for the interview. Dress one level above the job you want (even if you are interviewing on a Zoom call). Research the company and think about the value you could add to that firm in the specific role of interest. It is all about them. It is not about you (until later in the process). Write a thank you note immediately after the interview and follow-up with a call after that. Show your respect and show your interest. Politely follow-up on the positions you are interested in until they are filled.

9.     Clean up your on-line presence. Employers will absolutely look you up online. If you have wild pictures from that Cabo trip on your Facebook account or have said some things online that could come back to haunt you, take them down. If employers are not able to find you online, that is also a red flag. Make sure you are representing yourself in a positive, respectful way. If you give back to your community, be sure to include those pictures as well. You want to present yourself as a positive, constructive, professional person who will add value to any organization lucky enough to hire you.

10.  If you are doing online interviews, be sure to be aware of the scene behind you as you interview. People will notice the books on the bookshelf and the clutter in the background. Put the dog out back or in another room and ask someone to watch the kids. Turn off your cell phone and give the interviewer your undivided attention. 

These are some of my ideas…what are yours?