Job Search - Focused Job Hunting

Depending on the source, there are anywhere between 21 million - 40 million people unemployed (representing 15%+ of the workforce) in the US right now.?These are talented people from a wide range of industries, not just those from a specific industry like we might have seen in the past.?In this new addition to the series, I’ll go over strategies for staying organized in your job search.

TL:DR: Here is a template you can use to keep your job search organized. When you click on the link, it will automatically make a copy for you. There are notes on each tab as well as an example to help you get started.

2022 Update - A few more tabs have been added to the template.

2023: Update - Teal and Huntr offer similar tracking features to the template offered above as well as integrations.

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In 2019, I was laid off twice.?I remember all the emotions that hit me the first time I was told that after a certain date, I would no longer be needed, had to turn in all my equipment, and have a detailed breakdown of all my projects so that some could be maintained.?For lack of a better word, it felt like a break-up and I was devastated.?In those first few days, I sat in my apartment and ran through the mental checklist of everything I thought I might have done wrong:

• Did I speak too much in meetings?
• Why me and not another person?
• Did I lack a specific skillset?
• Should I have moved closer to one of the corporate headquarters so I could be closer to leadership when I had the chance?

But after I gave myself a few days to grieve, I sat down and wrote a list of all the things I had put on hold because of work (ex. learning a coding language) and started setting new goals so that, by the time I had my next job, I had used my time more effectively.??

One of the very first things on that list was deep-diving into Google Sheets and learning advanced formulas.?I knew I needed something that I would touch every day and that would allow me to use the new formulas that I would be learning.?I also knew that I needed to stay organized if the number of applications I was going to need to send just to land the first interview was to be believed (here).?So, I took applied a lot of what I learned into one thing: my job search.

Here are my tips, tricks, and a Google Sheets template you can use if you are starting your job search or currently in the process of looking and need a little organization.

Tip 1:?Know what you want.

One way to focus your job search is to know what you are looking for in the first place.?Too often, we panic and take a spray and pray approach when we are sending out our resume or press the easy apply button on LinkedIn, Indeed, or other sites and forget.?The issue here becomes what happens if the recruiter reaches out and you have an interview with that company??You don’t know what you are searching for which will come out in your conversation with that recruiter when they ask you about your expectations.??

Take a moment to make a list of questions (or use the ones that I have listed on the What I Am Looking For tab in the spreadsheet) and be serious with yourself when you answer.?This will help you when you reach out to your network and ask to be referred to roles because your friends can speak on your behalf internally.?It will also help you when you craft your elevator pitch or answer to the Tell Me About Yourself question.

Tip 2:?Do the research.

You don’t want to apply or take time with companies that don’t match your values because you will be miserable.?If you value hierarchical culture with rigidly defined roles, responsibilities, and rules, then you will be hit with a huge culture shock if you work for a company that is the complete opposite of that.?If you are used to coming from a place that had dogs in the office and everyone wears shorts to now suits and ties then similarly you are likely to be unhappy.?The point here is you want to find a place that matches you and visa versa otherwise you aren’t going to be able to perform your best.

Also, in your research phase, you should take a moment to look beyond the company values and the role.?Take a moment to do a search and see what comes up in the news or read their Glassdoor reviews.?Does this company have a seasonal layoff culture or is always landing in hot water in the media??This type of company might not work for you.

One added benefit to all the research is building out a network list (there is a tab in the doc).?The people on this list can help you understand a company better through stories from the inside or these people could act as your referrer to get you that first interview. ?I’ve said it before and I will say it again, being referred to a job is one of the best ways to get your resume into the hands of a recruiter.?Both jobs I landed after being laid off came from previous coworkers who referred me and could attest to my work (thank you Alan and Cameron) but many of my other former coworkers helped too.

Tip 3: Track your applications and job board passwords

The Internet has made it incredibly easy to apply to jobs.?It has also made it incredibly easy to forget that you have applied to a job.?This is where it is your responsibility to stay organized otherwise the time and the effort are for naught. I suggest having a tab or a list of places you’ve applied for the following reasons:

1. If you have to complete any forms for unemployment, you have your weekly list right there.
2. It can remind you to check your spam or promotions folders, regularly,?as sometimes emails from a company’s ATS accidentally find their ways there.
3. If you want to track the number of days between when you applied and when you are going to assume that a No Response is a response, it gives you a data point.
4. It gives you a place to remind yourself when to retouch base with your referrer, a recruiter, or a hiring manager.?I suggest hyperlinking people on this list in case you need a quick reminder.
5. If you had to set up an account and password to check on your application, remember to save those in a central place so you can find it easily later.

Tip 4: Figure out your talking points

With all the applications you are sending out or being a referral from your former colleagues and friends, you will land an interview.?One thing that I always felt helped me prepare for an interview was planning my pitches, thinking of the questions that would be asked, as well as the questions I wanted to ask in advance (two tabs are already devoted to this in the doc).?I always felt that having this information prepared prior to the interview helped me stay calm and also stay succinct in my answers since rambling is a very easy way for a recruiter to take you out of the running for a position.

To prepare my pitch and tell me about yourself, I leveraged LinkedIn’s Interview Prep.?There is some great advice in there about how to tailor both to be short and sweet as well as other questions you can anticipate.?I highly recommend using that as a resource.

After I had completed both of those, I turned my focus towards the questions I wanted to ask as well as the questions I thought would be asked.?This breakdown, at least I felt, helped me to focus my nervous energy into something constructive and I would build a new tab for every company that I interviewed with. Keys things that I would focus on with this tab were:

• Questions I was going to ask the recruiter
• Questions the recruiter asked me (which I did after the interview)
• Talking points and anecdotes in which I took the points I felt were most important from the job description and addressed each one

The beautiful part was, once I had built a company’s tab, all future information form each interview would be centralized and I didn’t have to go back to find any rogue piece of paper.

Tip 5: Track your offers or what would be offered

It is always good to track the compensation and benefits information that you are being provided throughout the interview process or even track your offers to notice if there are any trends for a specific industry.?By always keeping that information handy, you might be able to use it in a negotiation or also set your expectations.

I hope this has been helpful and insightful.?Feel free to like, comment, and share.?The next article in the series will on how to craft your narrative (a.k.a. How to tell your story in your resume).

Disclaimer:?The views expressed and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and they do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company.?Assumptions made in the analysis are not reflective of the position of any entity other than the author.?Since we are critically-thinking human beings, these views are always subject to change, revision, and rethinking at any time.?Please do not hold them in perpetuity.