Economies will rise and fall, but you, my friend, will always need a job. (Unless, of course, youâre already rich and successful beyond your wildest dreams, in which case you can close this book now.) Instead of betting the farm on which way the economyâs heading, you need to make your job search independent of the economy. Itâs going to be a very long time before we see a job market fueled by as much hubris, hype, and cash as that of the late 1990s. Back then, we could write our own tickets, choose among a variety of glamorous jobs, and reap fat salaries. Those days are long gone.
Somewhere in the midst of the boom years, we lost our grip on (or never learned) time-tested job-hunting strategies. We believed that the Internet would make finding a job (like everything else) easy, cheap, fast, and painless. The result: today, around the country, hiring managers and recruiters are scratching their heads, wondering where the solid candidates have gone. Left in their place are applicants devoid of passion, politeness, and proper business acumen. As painful as it may be to admit, you are probably one of these applicants, at least in some respects. If you are looking for a job right now, are finding itâs going badly, and canât figure out why, chances are you are one of the clueless ones.
Face it, thatâs going to have to change. Job hunting is something you must get good at, because youâre going to be doing it a lot more often. Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that before you retire, you can expect to change jobs at least ten times and switch careers at least three times.* Successful job seekers know that old school is fast becoming new school. Networking, building relationships, personalizing and tailoring your job search, and focusing on what you want and where you fit best are skills that will never let you down. In this book, you can look forward to a hearty helping of no-holds-barred advice (tough love, if you like) on how you can get your job search on track and land your next jobâno matter which direction the economy is headed.
Inertia Will Be Your Real Enemy
A body at rest tends to stay at rest. Itâs nearly impossible to land a job by sitting around in your pajamas surfing the web. Even when the economy was going gangbusters, people still had to put on nice clothes and go meet other human beings for interviews. Hereâs the bottom line: people donât like job hunting because itâs time-consuming, a little scary, and often involves rejection. The good news is that if you can live through being single and dating, you can survive and excel at a job hunt. Just donât try to look for the easy way out. Youâre not looking for a one-night stand; you want a long, stable relationship.
The most effective job hunters are the ones that never stop hunting. If you plan on actively managing your career, you need to be out there looking all the time. This isnât to say that you should be interviewing 24/7, but you do have to put yourself in the mix so that youâre aware of opportunities and can take advantage of them as they arise. Start by pressing the flesh and making contact with real live human beings on a regular basis. You will get back what you put in. This means that if you approach your job hunt passively, you can expect recruiters and hiring managers to respond passively to you.
For most people, job hunting does suck, but it doesnât have to. Itâs impossible to get a new job, one that you really want, unless youâre keeping your âtentaclesâ out there. Get realistic about how long it will take to find the job. Donât wait until youâre desperate. A good rule of thumb is to expect the search to last about 4 to 6 months from start to contract signing. That duration might be shortened if youâre approached directly by a headhunter for a specific job or youâre getting poached by a direct competitor. Or it could take even longer if youâre looking for a highly competitive, unique, or senior position. Also, if youâre undergoing a career transition, the process can even approach a year as you reposition yourself for different types of opportunities. Donât wait until youâre forced to start your job hunt. If you hold off until you feel pressured to quit, you get laid off, or you graduate without a job lined up, youâre waiting too long. If youâre out there all the time, you wonât fall out of practice when it comes time to do research, to network, to interview, or to follow up. Youâll get so comfortable with job hunting that the stress and anxiety that usually go along with it will be greatly reduced. This way, when thereâs a job you really want to land, youâll be ready to shine.
Being open to other job opportunities even when youâre employed doesnât make you a Benedict Arnold. Youâre just looking out for number one. Keep in mind, youâre not required to take the first job that comes your way. In fact, sometimes the best thing to do is stay put and work hard to get promoted internallyâthe same rules apply to internal and external job hunts.
Lose the Entitlement
Repeat the motto: I do not have the job until I have the job. Time and time again, candidates walk into hiring managersâ offices demanding and expecting things long before itâs appropriate to do so. If this is you, itâs time to adjust your attitude. Companies can and will live without you. Even with the perfect work experience and a summa cum laude degree from a top school, a person with a bad attitude at a company is quite simply a bad seed. While you may in fact be the greatest thing since sliced bread, confidence should never be confused with arrogance. Beware of subtle demands that you might hint at in your cover letter, during interviews, or in your follow-up emails. Even simple things like not following directions can rub people the wrong way. Thatâs why you need to have other people check your work before it goes out and why you need to practice before you go into interviews. Youâve got very little time in front of decision-makers these days, and if you donât put your best foot forward, you will not get anywhere. Youâre not owed the perfect job; that, my friend, has to be earned.
Diversify or Die
Most peopleâs biggest problem with their job hunt is relying too much on one single strategy, like posting their resumes to online job boards, instead of using the web to augment tried and true, old-school methods of job hunting like networking. Itâs time to mix it up. Why? Because job hunting is toughâand ultra-competitive. Over-dependence on any one technique will severely impair your efforts.
If youâre going to have a successful job hunt, you can no longer discount old standbys like resumes, cover letters, and thank-you notes. They are an intrinsic part of job hunting. If you intend to blow them off, or donât plan on treating them as essential, stop reading now (no, really). Think about it this way: if you were going into combat, youâd want to survive multiple confrontations and deal with whatever situation you encounter. You wouldnât want a canteen that leaked water or a rifle that shot blanks. The same holds true for the job hunt. Your war chest should be well stocked with the following basics: a Master Resume from which you can craft individual customized resumes; an array of cover letters and thank-you notes that you can draw upon and personalize; and a database or spreadsheet (or Rolodex) of all your contacts including references, colleagues, business contacts, and companies you want to work for. You also need consistent and easy access to a non-work computer and fax machine (Kinkoâs will do, but think about investing in your own if you donât have them already), a personal email account that you will use only for your job hunt, a calendar to map out your strategy, and stationery.
Take the Emotion Out of Your Job Search
Donât get caught in the downward spiral of negativity by entering the oh so bitter âtheyâll sure miss me when Iâm goneâ job hunt. As humans, we tend to fly off the handle and quit our jobs when we have emotional reactions to work situations that donât go our way. Unfortunately, the grass is not always greener at a new job, and this is where regrets and bad career choices start to happen.
Perhaps youâve been passed over for a promotion or maybe your new boss is a total jerk. You need to assess the situation before immediately deciding you want to quit. Is there anything you can do internally, such as position yourself for a transfer? How about taking an honest look at your performance review and seeing if you can do better in the next six months? Fleeing when career disappointment occurs will usually cause you to make irrational decisions, and doing so can be quite dangerous over the long haul. Do you really want to sidetrack your career on an emotional whim?
Having a well-stocked war chest wonât get you the job by itself, but itâs a proactive step to getting yourself organized so that youâll find it easier to navigate through the challenges that lie ahead.
Walk a Mile in the Other Personâs Shoes
The one thing that job seekers seem to forget most often is thinking about the needs of the hiring community and the interests of the people helping them along in their job hunt. Before you email, call, interview, or follow up with anyone, take a minute to put yourself in his or her shoes. Ask yourself, What matters to this person? What can I say or do to let them know that I understand their needs? You should do this for everyone from headhunters, recruiters, and hiring managers to your business contacts and the people you plan to use as your references.
On that note, while itâs important to have your own agenda and schedule, it is absolutely essential to remember that you are also working under the timetable of your prospective employers. The best companiesâand the ones you want to work forâtake their time and exercise due diligence when they hire new employees. However much a body is needed, the wrong hire will make an organization worse off than no hire. Industry statistics suggest the cost of even one bad hiring decision can exceed one hundred thousand dollars, taking into account the time spent recruiting, hiring, and training the hiree and the amount of time the job is left undone or done badly by an unqualified applicant.* You need to respect the timetable, without pressuring anyone. Also, remember that the headhunterâs reputation is on the line every time a company hires one of their candidates. While you may feel the process is slow moving, there are established procedures and channels that recruiters and clients set up before beginning an engagement.
Most job seekers are obsessed with asking for what they want instead of thinking about what the other person needs. Their utter cluelessness is your big break! If you get behind enemy lines and study what recruiters and hiring managers want, youâll leave your competition in the dust. If you work hard to make the other personâs job easier, youâll be more successful, hands down. It really is as easy as that.
Now Go Work It!
Hereâs the Takeaway:
- Job hunting is 24/7; you need to be looking constantly.
- For best results, diversify your job hunt by combining old-school techniques with new ones.
- Lose the attitude and youâll get a lot further.
- Think about the needs of the people youâre interviewing with.