“Everything you want is out there waiting for you to ask. Everything you want also wants you. But you have to take ACTION to get it.”
Jack Canfield
During the summer months it’s easy to put job hunting to one side. Many people make the assumption that recruitment dries up with the spring showers and sit back until September arrives. Over the years I have frequently asked myself the question “When is the best time to seek new job opportunities?” When you consider the various events throughout the year…Xmas, New Year, Easter and the Summer Holidays which for some can often include both July and August, should we really start to erase a third of the year from our job search?
Whilst I acknowledge that recruitment slows down during a holiday period I have to disagree that it’s also a time to sit back and wait. Taking the appropriate ACTION is the key to securing that new opportunity.
So what ACTION can you take over the next coming weeks? Below I have provided you with some ideas:
Added Value
It’s important for you to identify where you add value. What can you offer an employer in return for your salary and benefits? In this competitive market, it’s important for you to stand out from your competition whether you are looking for an internal move with your existing employer or a new role externally.
CV
This is your most important job finding tool and for some reason a lot of people regard writing their CV as a chore, something to do on a rainy Sunday morning. Yet this is the document that could decide how much you earn over the next few years. Don’t skimp on it, review it, obsess over it and try anything you can to improve on it.
Transferable Skills
These are what make you marketable and they will provide you with an advantage over your competition. Your transferable skills are essential to your career success and will ease your transition into a new role. Transferable skills are the skills that employers look for when they are interviewing you so it’s essential for you to reflect on these and to be able to develop them, add to them and speak about them confidently at job interviews.
Interview Technique
We practice our driving technique before we take a test, actors practice their lines before the actual take and even expectant mothers practice childbirth before labour! And yet for some reason job seekers spend no time at all to practice for an interview? Take the time to role play an interview situation with a friend or colleague as it will allow you to practice being your worst over and over again.
Options
What are your options? Do you need more training or perhaps need to retrain? Do you need to build on a particular skill? Would you be more successful in your job if you had a professional qualification behind you? Identify what you want or need to learn to improve your worth. Set a goal to master a new skill with every project. Get yourself in the habit of adapting to the situation so you can be ready to contribute.
Network
Both on-line and off-line. Did you know that nearly 80% of jobs are filled direct via internal referrals, company websites and various job board sites? Therefore it is so important that you are not relying solely on Recruitment Agencies. Strong job seekers are aware that networking is a vital part of the job seeking process and are always looking for opportunities to meet or connect with new people.
“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle”
Abraham Lincoln
