Most people have never been taught how to find a job, unless they have had the insight to work with a career coach. Research shows that the average executive spends 4 years in a job — and has as many as 12-15 jobs over the course of a career.
You may thrive on variety and change in your career. But no one likes to linger in the “unknown’ too long when making a transition to a new job or career direction. Here are some tips to help you work towards finding a new job faster.
1. Start with the end in mind. Take the time to think about what kind of job you’re targeting. What job title, functional roles, and industry are you interested in? Any specific companies you’d like to work for? If your ideal job was available, how would you describe it?
2. Take time to organize your job search. Outline a job search strategy and then use your plan to create a daily or weekly list of activities that moves you towards your goal.
3. Set aside a workspace for your job search. Designate a specific area to use when conducting your job search. This should be an area free of distractions and will help you keep your documents and paperwork organized in one place.
4. Devote sufficient time to your job search. The more time and energy you devote to your job search, and the more aggressively you network, the faster your job search will proceed. If you are not currently working, commit yourself to a minimum of 40 hours per week devoted to your search campaign. Yes, that’s making your job search a full-time job. If you are currently working, devote 15-20 hours per week at a minimum.
5. Recognize that your motivation is going to increase and decrease, depending on the success (or lack of success) you have in reaching your job search goal. Reward yourself for effort in each step you take, not for the final outcome.
6. Get the support of a team to help you. You don’t have to go it alone in your job search. Ask others to support you. Join a job club. Create your own mastermind group. Use the services offered by your city, county, or state employment office. Contact your university alumni association. Hire a resume writer and/or career coach.
7. Enlist an accountability partner. Recruit one person to support, encourage, and motivate you in your job search. This can be a friend, another job seeker, or a coach. (Choose someone who can be objective with you — and critical of your efforts — when they need to be. That role might be too difficult for a spouse/partner.)
8. If you are having difficulty finding a job in your area, consider relocation. If you live in an area with high unemployment — especially in your industry — consider whether moving to another city, state, or region would improve your chances of getting hired.