Business and Finance

Laying the groundwork

Job hunting can be tough. Whether you just started looking for a job or you’ve been searching for jobs for months No matter where you are in your job search chances are you’ve felt like you ran smack dab into a brick wall at least once. These tips are designed not only to help you break through that brick wall but to help you land a job you’ll really like. Ready? Great! Here we go…

Job Tip #1 Get Serious

But you ARE serious… right? Of course you are. By “get serious”, I’m talking about making a personal decision. Up until now, chances are, you’ve been looking for “a” job. “A” as in “any job” or maybe “any job you qualify for”. Well forget that.
From now on burn this idea into your head: you are going to get an incredible job, a great job, an amazing job. From this point on you refuse to settle for anything less than the best the world has to offer you. Got that? Good. NOW you’re serious!

Job Tip #2 Take Stock

Right now is the perfect time to take a good look at your past. Make a list of your dreams, desires and wishes. Go all out. Don’t pull any punches.

List all your past jobs – big, small, good and bad. Don’t leave anything out here. For each one write down all the details you can remember about each. What you liked, what you didn’t like and so forth. Write down what you accomplished in each position. Try to include as much detail as possible. If there are any facts you can document then do it.

What you should end up with is the most complete job history you’ve ever had. Don’t worry if it’s a book. No employer will ever see all of it.

In the end you should have everything you’ve ever done or wanted to do at your fingertips. Take as much time as you need for this.

After you’ve finished with paying jobs, do the same for your school career, any volunteer work, and your hobbies.

Include everything. Sweep out those corners. Become your own best detective. Remember this is serious stuff.

Job Tip #3 Get Organized

Maybe you’re a natural organizational freak. If so then you’ve probably already done everything in this section. But I’m guessing you’ll check just to be sure… right? And if you’re NOT “uber-organized” – now’ s the time to get your ducks in a row.

Now you want to organize all of this. I won’t tell you how. Just arrange it all so it makes sense for you. Looking ahead you’re going to make a list of the tasks you like to do so it may help to keep this in mind.

Job Tip #4 Do Some Weeding

You need to make four lists.

Things you like doing Things you do NOT like doing Things you are good at Things you stink at

Feel free to modify the titles of the list to suit you. Notice everything will end up on two lists. If you need to make some “in-between” lists of things that don’t fit these categories – go for it.

Now make a list of things you are good at and you like doing. Go ahead and make another list of things you like doing and would like to learn to be good at it if you wish.

Okay, you need to make one more list -your list of marketable skills. The goal here is to make this list as long as possible so the more marketable skills you have the more options you’ll have available. Reality may present some trade-offs. If you want to be a police detective, you’re going to have to do paperwork.

Job Tip #5 Get Focused

Now you have a list of marketable skills to offer potential employers. Now you have some real choices to make. If your number one marketable skill is something you love doing, you’ll spend most of your time using this skill in a job and it’s in great demand – you’re set. This kind of “fit” simply won’t happen for most of us. From here we will take this list and start matching it jobs where we can spend as much time as possible doing what we love while minimizing the time spent on more unpleasant tasks.

In the next installment, I’ll show you how to turn this list into the kind of job you’ve always dreamed of having.

Click here formore job tips and resources to help you find a great job.

In Part 1 “Laying the Groundwork” You did some soul searching created some lists – ending up with a list of marketable skills. Got that in front of you now? Good.

Job Tip # 1: Narrow your Search

Now you need to match those skills with the kinds of jobs that will pay for them. Keep in mind there are lots of skills that transfer well to other jobs. For example:

I once ran across someone who helped her husband build a Real Estate brokerage. After 5 years, he left her and filed for divorce. She was devastated and jobless. Her instinct was to limit herself to real estate work but her skills took her far beyond that.
She was great at marketing and could use those skills for any small business.
She could manage any office – especially personal service types like insurance and investment fields.
She could set appointments. Do phone work, web design, handle advertising, bookkeeping and a host of other tasks.

The question she should have been asking is… which of those valuable skills does she want to offer and to whom?

Do a bit of brainstorming to come up with some kinds of jobs that may need the skills you have to offer.

At the end of this article you’ll find a link to a resource page to help you match those skills to specific job descriptions if you get stuck.

Job Tip #2: Set Your Sights

By now, you should have a list of the kinds of jobs available. Next, make a list of potential employers. Again you want your list to be as broad as possible and include as many potential employers as you can.

After you’ve drawn up a list as extensive as possible – you should arrange them from most desirable to least. Don’t worry – you need not write the list in stone so you can always change the order… or even cross some employers off entirely if you like.

Job Tip #3: Interview Prospective Employers

From the list of potential employers, you want to narrow down your search again to a short list of potential employers. Forget about job postings. You are going after the job you want – “job openings”.

Decide what companies you want to work for and why. Make sure you know what you like about these companies. Keep your eyes wide open here. Not even the “Best Place to Work in America” is perfect.

Now order your list from the most desirable to the least. Start at the top and begin your research. You want to know as much about the position as you can.

Talk to people working in the department. What’s it like working in this position. What do you like about this company? How does it compare to other companies?

Talk to the department head. Ask him/her about job duties, work environment, expectations. Your purpose is not to ask about a job but to research the kind of position you want to pursue.

If they are “not hiring” then find out if they anticipate an opening and if so when? Ask about the industry in general – is there a demand for skilled people? Is the demand expected to increase to decrease? Why?

Remain undaunted if they claim to have no openings right now. Most any decent ompany wants to grow. Growth means expansion and expansion means jobs.

If there is any interest in your skills at all, ask the department head they would like to see your resume and offer to submit it to their human resources department. (Or if they are small – right to the person you are talking too!) If they say “yes”, submit the resume with a sticky note saying “Ms. X said she wanted to see this when you got it” or something so they are sure to forward it.

Job Tip #4: Tailor Your Cover Letter and Resume

When submitting your cover letter and resume – be sure to focus on the skills they are looking for. If they want someone to answer the phones – emphasize your phone skills! If they don’t mention typing skills, it may not matter how great yours are.

For each job you decide to go after – you should have a resume and cover letter targeted for the requirements of that position. Make sure the employer sees up front that you have exactly what they are looking for!

At this point if you find yourself explaining why they should consider you in spite of your shortcomings – it may be time to recopied your qualifications.

Remember – the point here is to target jobs you are highly qualified for. If you find yourself lacking skills then you should either adjust your focus or improve your skill set.

Job Tip #5: Make the Wheel Squeak

Be sure to follow up with a thank you card and a phone call. While you don’t want to become a pest, make it clear you want to work for this company and why.

If you know anyone who works for the company then they may be able to give the inside scoop on news. The more information you can get the better. Stay patient. The more desirable the company and the job, the willing you should be to bide your time.

Landing the exact job you want may not be easy but the payoff is worth some extra effort. As a bonus, this extra work may pay off with some surprising rewards you never thought possible.

You may find the company you were originally high on isn’t all that. BUT there’s a position open now at an even better firm. Plus once you can present a knowledge and enthusiastic prospect to a potential employer – you can suddenly find yourself as a “hot property”.

The employer may be willing to go all out to bag a trophy employee – you!

Remember this ball started rolling because you decided to pursue something you would enjoy doing instead of settling for “whatever”. In the end you will be happier and your new employer will be overjoyed to have an enthusiastic employee who really wants to be there.

Did you miss Part 1? Read 5 Job Tips – How to Find a GREAT New Job here…

Check out the Find and Land a GREAT Job resource page here…