Job searching is a job.
Starting a job search for the first time in my life has been quite a journey. I’m only one week in and I feel like it’s a lot to cover. I’ve been reading some articles and watching some videos to help me prepare for this, and I’ve written down some notes to keep me on track. I’m going to share what I’ve got and what I’ve learned so far.
Getting my documents in order.
My resume and cover letter have been the most important pieces to my job search. I need those to look good before I can even start applying to any job. If it’s been a while since you’ve touched these documents, I would recommend starting fresh and looking up what’s the new “best” template for your specific role. I didn’t realize how different resumes could look while asking my friends and checking out others online for different positions.
Your going to want you cover letter to be unique for each job your applying for. However, you can still create a template that you can change the details on later. It’s much easier if you give yourself a starting point.
Creating an online presence.
In the new digital world, one of the first things a hiring manager will probably do after reviewing your resume is look you up online. You would want them to be impressed by what they see.
Not having any social media has given me a bit of an advantage here. I only just created a Twitter for the first time to help with my online presence. But if you do have any social media platforms, a funny saying I wrote down is: “Think of it this way: if you wouldn’t want your grandma to see it, you don’t want a hiring manager to see it either.” Seems like a good saying to follow.
I created my LinkedIn profile as well, adding some projects and examples of my work. I also filled my profile page with my skills, education, and previous work. You could also ask some previous colleagues to post recommendations or endorse your skills.
There are tons of things you can do, but the key here is to make sure that your online reputation is something that you’re proud of. I wouldn’t apply to any jobs before knowing my online profiles were at a point I felt comfortable sharing.
Creating and sticking to some goals.
Obviously, my overall goal for job searching is to get a new job. But that can, and probably will, take some time. It’s easy for me to get discouraged when I feel like I’m not making any progress towards my objective.
This is why I try to map out a plan and have smaller goals for myself during this process. I try to set a time, just like if I had a real job, to be searching and following up on e-mails. I also set a number of people I want to reach out to each day.
Having these smaller milestones will keep you on track and accountable, while also giving you plenty of opportunities to celebrate some smaller wins. It’s a great way for me to stay motivated when the job hunt can be discouraging.
Getting started on your job search is half the battle. Fortunately, there are several small steps you can take to get the ball rolling. These are a couple I’ve read, watched, and written down to help myself out through this process. I hope these can also hep you.
