Making sure that it is you that the employer hires
Author: Eric Thompson
At times of great volatility in the job market individuals find themselves under more pressure if they need to find a new employment opportunity. Fewer jobs and more candidates conspire to make the task appear more difficult. The fear in these situations is that there will be no suitable jobs, and if there are any, there will be so many people competing for them, that the chance of winning one seems remote. It’s easy to see why people may be tempted to hide in these circumstances and even be discouraged from trying.
Yet the reality is that there are always jobs to be filled. The volume may go up or down slightly, but most people should continue to find opportunities that meet their needs. Job advisors report that even in the current tough employment conditions their clients continue to find positions. There is a clear message here. Those that are not put off by the apparent enormity of the task, and work diligently at it are likely to succeed.
So what is it that these people are prepared to do, that the rest of us can learn from? The secret seems to lie in five simple concepts that when addressed fully by an individual will ultimately lead to success in the job market.
The first issue is direction. What is it that the individual is looking for? The first point here is that if the individual is clear in their own mind about what they want to do they make the task of convincing an employer to give them the opportunity much easier. Employers like candidates that have convincing reasons for wanting the job. Perhaps more importantly though, if the individual has a full understanding of their own capability (the skills and experience that they have) and works out where in the job market that capability will be valued, they are able to increase the number of positions, for which they are well suited, that they find and can apply for. Being clear about direction significantly increases your opportunities.
The second issue is the work that goes into a CV or an application form. A standard CV which is sent off for all prospective positions is simply not good enough. If you leave it up to the employer to work out whether or not there are some relevant skills hidden somewhere in the CV, then you are raising the likelihood that your CV is not one of those that will be short listed for interview. It is up to the individual to find out what the employer wants and then to showcase those of their own skills and experiences that match what the employer is looking for. Employers also look for evidence rather than just an assertion that the individual has a particular skill. The best way of proving that is through describing things that you have achieved using the skills in question. A CV that is based on achievement and focused on the skills and experiences that the employer is looking for is much more likely to have the required impact and get you onto the all important shortlist.
The third area where you can make a difference is by paying attention to the different methods of searching for jobs. If you only ever use a single way of finding jobs you are putting yourself at a considerable disadvantage in terms of the number of opportunities that you are likely to find. If for example you habitually look for jobs only in the local paper, you are actually cutting yourself off from the majority of the job market. There is no single method that will take an individual to the majority of available jobs. It is therefore up to the individual to understand all of the potential routes to the job market and select those that they feel comfortable with to use but which, in combination will give them access to sufficient of the job market to give them the opportunities that they need. The more routes you use, the more opportunities there will be. Why operate with one hand tied behind your back?
The fourth area for attention is the interview. In particular, your need to prepare for the interview is paramount. The interviewee need not be a victim. There is no need to sit there simply reacting to the interviewer’s questions and trying to fend them off as best as you can. Interviewees can prepare their interview strategy and tactics as well, and make sure that they get all of the points that they wanted to make across in the time allowed. If you fail to prepare, you will as always prepare to fail!
The fifth and final lesson is to conduct a learning campaign. If the current CV is not getting you short listed, sending our more of the same is hardly the smartest of moves. You need to obtain feedback, and learn from the reactions of others, to make sure that what goes out next time has a better chance of success. Performance at interview can be improved in exactly the same way. You hopefully won’t be in the job market long enough to get enough feedback to become a hundred percent successful with your CV or at interview, but that is the goal that you should be aiming for. Failing to take on board lessons that others have learned will surely make the task of finding a new job more difficult, but not correcting your own mistakes is equivalent to shooting yourself in the foot.
If you can address these five issues you can significantly increase your own chance of finding a job, even in a difficult job market. However, if you work on your own to find a job it can be a lonely experience. It’s never as easy to be rational and dispassionate about your own performance even when you know what you are supposed to be doing. Finding someone that you can work with will make the task much easier, especially if they are knowledgeable about the job market. A mentor to guide you through the process may make all the difference to the success of your campaign, and I recommend that you seek out a suitable individual to give you support now. If you have someone that you can access that will give you that sort of support, go and talk to them now. If not, you can obtain the same help professionally.
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