Are you job hunting this Christmas? It might be the first time you have ever started the job-search process, or perhaps you have done it more times than you care to remember. Whatever category you fit into you are probably a little apprehensive about having your achievements scrutinised by potential employers. This feeling of apprehension and listlessness can often stop you from gaining the most from your search.
The start of the job-hunting process will lead most of us to grin and bear an unsuitable job, that is until the situation gets progressively worse and we have to accept that enough is enough. In the long-run this type of job-hunting methodology will hinder our ability to pursue a successful career. Plenty of us have remained in a job even though we have stopped gaining any useful experience from it because it is safe, easy and cosy.
The main job search methods that we have available to us foster this cold and transactional way of finding a job. Enter keywords into a search box, flick through the results, find something that looks interesting and then click apply; repeat many times. We have no idea who we are sending our details to, whether the job is still available, and if we will ever hear back from them. If we don’t hear back, is it because we weren’t appropriate or didn’t have the required experience? All of these unknowns fuel our insecurities and lead us to further postpone that fundamental next step in making our career a success.
Every time you start out looking for a new job you should take something away from the process. It could be something as simple as a well written CV, some decent contacts that can help you in the future or some knowledge or understanding of how to ultimately reach your goal. This allows your search to grow and gather momentum rather than starting from scratch every time you want to search for a new position.
Recruiters are in a perfect position to help your immediate job search as well as your ongoing career development. The UK is home to about 20,000 recruitment agencies who specialise in every area imaginable. Use services like seevee.co.uk or Linkedin to source suitable recruiters with expertise in your chosen industry. Speak to them. Get as much information as you can about their current vacancies, what their clients are looking for in candidates and how they can help you moving forward. They might not be able to help you immediately but take their advice on board and stay in contact. In 6-12 months, they may well have your ideal job.
Remember, when you look for a job do it on your own terms, don’t be hurried into making a bad decision because you have been putting off job-hunting for too long and are feeling desperate for something new. Take something away from each search, contacts, information, knowledge etc. Build relationships with recruiters, it may not bear fruit immediately but it will certainly benefit you in the long-run.
Every snippet of information or help you can gain from each job-hunting campaign will make the next one less daunting. As soon as you stop learning from your current role it’s time to move on up.
Contributed by: Chris Callaway
