There was a period of time where the majority of us felt like we were in a recession due to the coronavirus: lockdowns that were imposed upon us and unemployment increased. To those who got lucky, work-from-home set-ups were implemented instead of job losses and social gatherings were frowned upon.
There were at least 5 million job openings in April 2020, yet unemployment was and still is high. The question is, are people following the right process and are they looking in the right place with their job searches? Job search is a skill. Some are just more natural in finding the right job at the right time.
Here are some modern and easy tips on how to effectively track the right job vacancies for you.
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Take advantage of job search engines:
The old-fashioned way would have been to browse through newspapers and flip through to the job vacancy ads section. The present-day way is to utilize top job search engines such as Indeed, LinkedIn or Facebook Job Search. There are a lot of different job search engines that cater to the type of industry you are focusing on, including location and salary-preference. It can get overwhelming at times, but you need to be diligent in narrowing down the vacancies that you think are the right fit for you.
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Polish your resume:
Possessing the appropriate resume for the job that you are applying for is the single, most crucial tool that will get your foot in that proverbial door of landing an interview. There are different resume templates and even more ways to make sure your resume speaks volumes to your qualifications and value to get the recruiter’s attention. You will probably spend more time understanding how to write a professional resume than on a job search.
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Revisit old contacts and make new ones:
Some say that networking is the best job search channel, and there is a lot of truth in it. The advantage of searching for job availability through contacts is that you can get access to job vacancies and opportunities first-hand. Networking gives you a better chance of getting job leads, insider information of other opportunities, and even referrals.
Another great way is expanding your network by acquiring new contacts. Sounds tricky, right? Not necessarily. I cannot stress enough the beauty of living in the digital age. The swiping functionality has been a big hit in the social scene; from dating to getting the latest gadgets and now, in professional networking.
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Maintain a healthy attitude:
Job search is tedious and draining at times, but done right it can be most rewarding. While patience is a virtue, so is optimism while being realistic. More applicants are competing for jobs nowadays. While landing a job is 70% qualifications and 30% luck, accepting that rejection is a possibility, but learning in the process is a crucial attitude to have.
Whether you’re a complete novice in a job search or an expert in landing interviews left and right, the above tips and guidelines are applicable regardless of your level of skill.