Looking for a job can be an incredibly frustrating process. While the average job search is supposed to last 43 days, it can feel like much longer when your applications are eliciting little response.
If you’re looking for a way to improve your job search, there are seven practical steps you can take.
1. Refine Your Resume
Your resume is one of the most important tools you have when it comes to finding a job. It can make or break the interest that a company takes in your application. When putting together your resume, make sure the information is clear and accessible. It’s important to remember recruiters often receive hundreds of resumes—if yours requires a great deal of work to understand, it’s unlikely the recruiter will read past the first few lines.
2. Optimize LinkedIn
LinkedIn has become an essential platform in the employment market; recruiters consistently check out applicants on LinkedIn before making further inquiries. Ensuring that your LinkedIn profile is in top condition is a great way of improving your job search, which means including a professional photograph and giving extensive information on previous work experiences.
3. Monitor Your Online Presence
LinkedIn isn’t the only online platform that gets checked out by recruiters, however. A recent statistic suggests 80% of hiring managers perform Google searches on applicants before giving them a call.
If you’ve got any compromising photographs or status updates displayed on social media, you may want to put those profiles on private before going ahead with your job search.
4. Get Networking
Networking has become a huge part of the way candidates are chosen, meaning it needs to be a huge part of the way you conduct your job search. Recruiters are much more willing to take a chance on someone who has connections within their larger networks. If you see that you have a mutual connection with a recruiter on LinkedIn, ask for an introduction; it can make a big difference.
5. Consider Temp Work
Picking up temp work has a lot of practical benefits for those on the job hunt, from the ability to try out different kinds of work to the ability to make strong industry connections while you’re there.
Temporary workers are in highdemand, meaning that you may find it easier to get a placement if you’re flexible in the type of work you’re willing to do. Additionally, another great reason to consider temp work is because such a position can turn into a full-time position when the company you’re working for is impressed with your work.
6. Work with a Staffing Agency
Putting together the perfect application requires a certain amount of skill; you can learn a lot from a staffing agency. These firms have years of experience finding people jobs they’re suited for, and when you work with an agency, its expertise becomes available to you. Its recruiters can give you invaluable insight into everything from building a great resume to the interview process. They also come with extensive networks that they can call on to learn about new opportunities.
Working with an agency can give you access to that elusive “hidden job market” that is becoming an increasingly bigger part of hiring.
7. Put in the Time
The saying “looking for a job is a full-time job” might be a cliché, but that doesn’t mean it’s without truth. Finding a job that’s right for you means putting in the time. If you’re submitting an application or two a week, your job search is going to take a long time.
Set aside a significant amount of time each day that you can devote to the search and then hold yourself accountable to it. Finding work is a numbers game—the more you apply, the better your chances.
