Many of you that know me know I have a six year old daughter. She often hears me discuss with my husband some of the trials and tribulations job seekers are facing today. Sometimes, she'll hear her friends talking about a parent losing their job, or she'll hear the news reports about housing foreclosures. Of course, when she doesn't understand a word, she'll ask me about it, and I have to find an age appropriate way to explain. I'm absolutely positive all the parents out there can relate to this, and have your own hysterical stories about a word you had no idea they had even heard, and the tap dance you performed to provide an adequate explanation. Or maybe, you deferred the answer to your spouse. (As unique as my husband is, I'm positive he isn't the only one that has ever done this!)
I didn't realize how much the conversations about job seeker misfortunes' had impacted my daughter, until this past weekend. She went through the pantry, looking for "snack" items. I thought she was having a picnic in the front yard with one of her friends. She had her little tray, and a few items separated on the tray in coffee filters. She had her little plastic table and chairs positioned in the front yard where she could see both cross streets. During one of my "checking up on her visits", I noticed my yard filled with several of the neighborhood children. All of these children had been over here at one time or another, so I didn't give it a lot of thought, but I opened the door to make sure everything was OK. She reassured me, "Yes, Mommy. Everything is OK. We're just talking." All seemed on the up and up, so I came back inside. A couple of minutes later, she came in with three dollar bills. She handed them to me and said "Mommy, maybe this will help some of the people you talk to every day". Needless to say, tears welled up in my eyes for her kind, tender spirit and desire to help complete strangers. When I asked her why she would do that, she said she sees her Mommy helping strangers, so she thought she should, too.
Of course, my mind went in different directions when this happened. How can I look at the world from my child's eyes and benefit those adults I talk to? For her, it was as simple as gathering her friends around and "selling" them snacks from our pantry. (She said that everything was free, but they wanted to give her money) What she proved to me, and I hope I am able to express this well, is that by opening ourselves up to help from our family and friends, we can reach our goals. That is a "prong" in the search strategies I help my job seekers develop. Of course, every person's search strategy will be different and should be tailored to their needs, but I thought I would take the lead from my daughter and provide a few more tools for the job seeker toolbox. Here are some of the common threads each search should take.
1. Make sure your resume is in "top notch" order. If you don't have an effective resume, nothing else is going to matter. Paying a reputable service to rewrite your resume is the single best investment you'll make in your ability to be considered by potential employers. It is their first impression of you, so make it count!
2. Work the job boards. Yes, you are one of 1,000s doing it, but you never know when you are going to be the 1 that gets selected.
3. Work with a recruiter/headhunter that specializes in your industry. If you can find more than one, all the better. If you can find 100 that are willing to work with you, use all 100. BUT, keep your expectations in check.
4. Network, network, network. This includes sites like LinkedIn, in addition to going through your Rolodex and contacting past co-workers and supervisors, as well as vendors and subordinates. Talk to your family and friends, too.
5. Target companies that YOU would want to work for. Don't worry if they are hiring. Get to the inside of the company and find out who the hiring manager is over the department you want to work. Email him/her your resume with a cover letter explaining why it would benefit them to call you in for an interview. (and potentially hire you) You'd be surprised how far these efforts will take you.
6. Keep a log of every resume submittal you make. Then, follow up on a regular basis. This includes your family and friends. Stay on their radar. If you fall off their radar, you could be missing opportunities.
7. Take control of your search. Don't sit back and wait on someone to call you. Follow up. Follow up. Keep your expectations in check, but follow up. Walk the stalking line, but don't cross it.
The most important aspect of a search is keeping your confidence up, believing in yourself and staying present with your search. Don't fall off any one's radar. If you are persistent with the search efforts, they'll assume you'll be the same way when hired. If you were a hiring manager, would you want the person that continues to show interest in the position or the person that interviewed and you never heard from again? We all know the answer to that one!
If anyone needs help with any of these methods, please feel free to contact me. Before starting 2-7, make sure you take care of #1. I cannot stress that enough. If your foundation is weak, nothing built on it will last long.
From the Cyr family to yours, we sincerely hope these suggestions will help. As always, I am available, willing, and more than happy to help anyone that needs it, and am proud of my daughter who wants to follow in my footsteps.
Kim Cyr can be reached at kcyr@cspgroups.com, www.cspgroups.com or 888-831-9495
From LinkedIn
ReplyDeleteMany long term unemployed have learned a valuable lesson. Searching for a job should not be an activity that starts when you need one. People are learning the value of building a rich network on contacts and informing others of major successes.
Prior to this recession, most working people did little to build or maintain a network. Then, when they need a job they start the process of building a network which can take months.
Going forward people should always be working on building and maintaining a quality network of people. They will also keep the network of assignments and successes. By doing so they will establish a creditable reputation in the industry which, among other things, will br of great value should they need a new job in the future.
Posted by Ed Sussek
Kim: Great Message!
ReplyDeleteGood points Kim. Recently while in his 5th month of his Job search, my husband was losing hope. He didn't want to send another resume into the black hole. But he labored on, checking the local job boards as he did every morning. And you know it was that LAST resume he submitted that landed him his current position! You have to keep going, don't get discouraged. Treat each day like it WILL be the one!
ReplyDeleteFrom LinkedIn
ReplyDeleteEd Sussek • Many long term unemployed have learned a valuable lesson. Searching for a job should not be an activity that starts when you need one. People are learning the value of building a rich network on contacts and informing others of major successes.
Prior to this recession, most working people did little to build or maintain a network. Then, when they need a job they start the process of building a network which can take months.
Going forward people should always be working on building and maintaining a quality network of people. They will also keep the network of assignments and successes. By doing so they will establish a creditable reputation in the industry which, among other things, will br of great value should they need a new job in the future.
From LinkedIn
ReplyDeleteAPARNA SHIGGAON • Hi Ed Sussek,
I totally agree with you and I also feel that maintaining the quality network people is essential in today's market.
From LinkedIn
ReplyDeleteI loved the story so real, it brought tears to my eyes!
I hope that the readers (candidates) out there are taking advantage of all this great advise you are giving and realize what the first step to landing that dream job entail.
lrm
Posted by Lori Rose Mueller
From LinkedIn
ReplyDeleteKim makes some excellent points. I would agree that a strong resume is recommended, however, no one ever hires from a resume. It is part of the preparation process. The number one approach should focus on getting an introduction and hopefully not even have to submit a resume until a "face to face" meeting. Unfortunately, resumes are more often used to screen people out than in. Once personally prepared, everything a person does should be directed at getting that face to face meeting. Enjoyed Kim's blog.
Posted by Mike Shrader
From LinkedIn
ReplyDeleteI too enjoyed Kim's blog. However, I agree with Mike that a resume is a necessary tool but will not get your hired. I recommend to my clients that they have 2 resumes. A reverse chronological, listing their responsibilities, for answering ads and a functional, containing their accomplishments, for meetings including with the decision maker, I also recommend that my clients work only with retained recruiters unless the recruiter has a track record of working with a company they purport to represent. I have seen too many clients beseiged with job descriptions from recruiters that have no relationship to their expertise and from out of the area even though they indicate they will not relocate. This is a very tough time for many people and the indiscriminate use of job descriptions by some recruiters for the sake of dumping databases on a company in the hope someone may be picked up, truly offends me.
Posted by Steven J. Krauss
Mike and Steven, thank you so much for not only reading my blog, but also taking the time to comment on it. I agree with both of you that a resume will never get you a job. On the flip side of that, you will probably never get a job without a resume. A resume should be designed only to get your foot in the door and get noticed enough that the company wants to interview you. Your interview skills is what will lead to the job offer. Depending on the candidate level and industry, along with their prior career stability (number of jobs within the last 10 or so years), a biography, reverse chronological, or functional resume would be beneficial. We always recommend against a functional resume, as they are clearly designed to "hide" something. What we find is most beneficial is a combination resume that focuses on acheivements, abilities, and capabilities, followed by a reverse chronological career summary. The focus really needs to be on what you offer an organization and why you are more relevant than the other job seekers competing for the position. Our writers are experts at showcasing these attributes.
ReplyDeleteAs for working with recruiters; the number of real job openings they can offer a job seeker is a fraction of where they were two years ago, and truly indicative of where the market is today. Actually being placed through a recruiting agency is a low probability, which is why I always remind candidates to keep their expectations in check. However, you never know when you are going to be in the 1% and not the 99%, so I believe there is still benefit to working with recruiters and headhunters. I wouldn't spend half my search time on recruiting agencies, and I wouldn't recommend jumping through hoops for them until you get to a point where you know there is a real opportunity on the table for you, but I wouldn't dismiss this part of the search strategy. I completely agree that you want to research the company that you are working with and be sure that they have a presence in your industry.
Steven, I believe when you mention working with retained recruiters, you are referring to recruiters that work through their corporate clients on a retainer basis and not that a job seeker should pay to retain a recruiter to market them. If that is the case, I agree with your statement, however, I work with many recruiting agencies that work on contingency and are successfully placing candidates. Because of the market where it is today, I am finding the retained searches to be far fewer than contingent searches, so I think both have their merit. Database dumping offends me also, and I would strongly recommend candidates steer clear of those agencies.
I want to thank you both, again, for reading and commenting on my blog. I think that open dialog and discussion is truly beneficial to all job seekers. I appreciate the opportunity to share in this with you.
Hi Kim... I really enjoyed reading your Blog and your daughter is priceless to help who you are helping. Quite a testament to her mom. I am going to work #'s 4,5 &7, as I'm good with #'s 1, 2, 3 & 6. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise!
ReplyDeleteMary Kirk