What’s REALLY stopping you from achieving what you want to do?
It’s SO easy to think you need to all your ducks in a row before you launch yourself into your job search.
OR if you WAIT, WAIT, WAIT and think about things differently, they’ll simply get better where you are.
I speak from experience here. I’ve been in some awful headspaces at various times of my life, where I have tried to think my way out of a terrible situation.
I’ve been in this space for many years now – and if you read this blog – you’ll find hundreds of practical tips to help you find your next great job.
But from this time now – you’ll find fewer “how to” posts and tips from me.
I want to dig into something I now firmly believe is far more important than me parroting advice like “how to write a great resume”.
I want to talk about the emotions you can feel, and the things you may believe about yourself while you look for a job or are trying to change your career.
Heard the term “job search depression” before?
It’s a very real thing.
Check out this post on reddit about how other people experience depression on their job search and know what happens to you when you look for a job can be triggering, particularly if you have suffered in the past.
I want to unpack some of the beliefs you may have while you look for a job – and give some insight as to why you can feel deeply depressed or triggered. Breaking through these unhelpful but sticky beliefs is one of the reasons I created the Straight to Shortlist Challenge a few years back.
To the very end, and even in hospital to the nurses, I mostly called my Dad, Dougie.
That was what many of our family and friends called him, usually with a smile – as they knew him, liked him and remembered things about him – and because he was very much his own person.
Dougie knew what he liked, and when and how he liked it.
And if it ever had ever occurred to him that his preferences may have seemed a bit strange to others, it did not seem to bother him.
I thought I’d share a few quirks of Dougie’s that make me smile – and stand out the most in my memory.
Do you find yourself constantly tweaking your resume when applying for jobs?
You’re trying to make your CV look absolutely perfect, right?
You’re thinking the more you tailor your CV to the role, the better your chances of being considered?
If you are guilty of this, then you should know that constantly working on your resume is one of the worst pieces of advice you can hear when you’re looking for a job.
I get that you believe that advice because that’s the usual advice you get from HR professionals, recruiters, talent acquisition people, or resume writers.
Now I have a question for you.
When was the last time you ordered something from a mail-order catalogue?
When was the last time you ordered those magic pills that were promoted in that email?
When was the last time you claimed your inheritance for $100 Billion dollars?
What you’re really saying when you’re solely relying on your resume, is information on paper is the most powerful way to inspire a recruiter to take action.
Now my question to you is this…..
If you’re not getting interviews from constantly refining and sending out your resume, why do you keep relying on it?
You could actually be harming your job search because you’re not focusing your attention on things that will really make the biggest difference.
So, let’s look at how can you land that perfect job a whole lot faster without the pain of rejection and without the pain of too much ghosting.
Use LinkedIn in Finding Your Next Job
LinkedIn is a powerful networking tool.
But how can you use it when searching for jobs?
The advice I am about to give you is about having a powerful profile. But just as important, if not more, it’s about how you use the LinkedIn platform itself.
Here’s a better way to find a job compared to constantly tweaking your CV.
Set a profile up on LinkedIn to help you find those people that can help you find your next role.
Find those people who can give you knowledge about a company or an organization you’re applying to, and knowledge about the market.
Find those people who are happy to pass your resume along and recommend the hiring manager give you a call.
Find those people that will keep you in mind when they hear about an opportunity.
Find those wonderful souls who understand the power of networking and can introduce you to people that will help you.
And when you find that wonderful person that will actually recommend you for a role or pass your resume along to a hiring manager, what the research says is that you’re actually 10 times more likely to be successful in getting that job than if you apply online!
So let me ask you this.
Do you really want to just rely on applying for a job online and keep experiencing the same level of ghosting time and time again?
Or do you want to be the person who gets all those lovely leads from all those lovely people that are looking out for you?
I think you know the answer to that.
So, here are the next steps that I want you to take.
