CMS Career Blog

When you have a job you know when to get up, when to catch the bus, when to arrive at work, when to eat lunch, when to take breaks, when to go home and forget the work, and when to take a day off.  When you leave your job, your formal schedule goes out the window.  For awhile this can be a good thing.  MANY unemployed people just need to take some time to grieve, decompress, and rest.

However, sitting on your couch playing X-Box or updating your facebook every 10 minutes can get old fast!  These activities will NOT get you the next gig, so at some point you will need to get into a new routine.  That can be tough, especially if its something you have little experience with . . . like looking for work.

Never fear!  We have been through this ourselves, AND we work with dozens of job seekers every week.  Here are some things to consider when you go to make a schedule for your job search:

• Set weekly goals that you can measure.  Nothing is more frustrating than getting to the end of the week and not being able to say, “I accomplished something this week.”  EVERY Sunday evening sit down and decide what you need to achieve over the next week.  Then, on Friday, review your goals to see how you have done.  It will make the job search much more bearable!
• Network, network, network.  How many networking groups do you attend each week?  How many 1-on-1 meetings or informational interviews do you conduct?  Your goal should be somewhere in the 8-10 range PER WEEK.  If you aren’t out talking to people, your chances of finding a job are slim!  More than 80% of people find their job through networking, so get out and do it!
• Don’t answer email or touch the computer during daylight hours.  (That’s when you should be networking!)
• Practice your “elevator pitch.”  Nothing is worse than being in a group and listening to a bunch of people drone on about where they worked before the company went and laid them off.  Have something interesting to say and say it with ENERGY!  People will listen if you give them something to listen to.  But you better be well rehearsed, or they will tune you out!
• Plan for some “you time” in your schedule.  Stephen Covey calls it “sharpening the saw.”  You can’t cut wood with a dull saw.  If you don’t take care of yourself, you will be dull and ineffective in your job search.
• Let it go.  When you have completed your day’s work, leave the job search behind.  Let it go.  Disconnect.  Go enjoy time with your family and friends.  One of the reason’s you need to set clear goals, is so you can look back and say, “I’m finished for now.”  Then disconnect.  The job search will be there tomorrow.

When you leave your job, your regularly scheduled routine evaporates.  As a job seeker, you will need to set goals and create your own schedule.  A schedule helps you track your progress along the job search, and it allows you to take time for yourself, your friends, and your family.

I’ve been at this for nearly 3 years now and here are some of the things I’ve learned about what it takes to find a job.  These “hints” are important in ANY economy, but perhaps MORE important in this deep recession.

1. No postings does NOT equal no job — people are always being hired, even in a deep recession.  Why? Because other people move, get sick, quit, retire, die. . . Just because there is not a posting, doesn’t mean there isn’t a job there to be done … stop thinking of yourself as a “employee” and start thinking of yourself as an “independent contractor” — ee’s get hired and fired.  Independent Contractors are always on temporary assignment (who isn’t these days) and are able to pick up a “new gig” as the need arises.
2. Don’t wait until you are looking for a job to update your resume — or your network.  If you are currently employed you are probably aware of how temporary that could be.  We have had client with 25 years of experience in the same company come into work to find they no longer had a job.  NOW is the time to think about your next job . . . even if you aren’t thinking about your next job.
3. It’s not what you know, it’s WHO you now.  Somewhere 45-80% of all job seekers find their job through networking.  Networking is about WHO you know — not so much for what you can get from them, but what you can OFFER TO THEM.
4. Don’t work all the time.  You have heard that finding a job is a full time job.  Finding a job is also (for most of us) a series of learning and applying new skills — most of the time these are DIFFERENT skills than you will use in your regular job.  The process of learning new skills is exhausting.  You need to take some time off.  I recommend you spend 30-35 hours a week on the job search.  Plan into your day some time for networking, a small amount of time on answering ads and submitting resumes, AND time for physical exercise.  It’s really important.  Set goals.  Measure your success towards the achieving of those goals and not “did I get a job.”  You will be able to take some time off at the end of the week knowing that you have accomplished something.
5. You WILL land.  Eventually you will find work.  Hopefully it will be your perfect career.  Hopefully it will fit your life goals.  Hopefully it will be sooner than later.  But have faith, you WILL land.
6. You WILL go through this again.  Learn the process of finding a job now so you can use it the next time you need it.

These are some of the things I’ve learned about the job search.  What have YOU learned?

According to a recent NY Times article, President Elect Obama has upped his goal of providing new jobs in the first two years of his presidency from 2.5 million to 3 million. Many of these jobs will be in areas that will enhance our current transportation infrastructure (roads and bridges) and help us cut our addiction to foreign oil (new energy sources such as solar and wind power).  My fervent belief is that Mr. Obama and the new Senate will want to get started on this project within a few weeks of his taking the oath of office.  New jobs should be coming online within the next few month.  Are YOU ready?  Here are some things you can do now to be prepared when those new jobs come around.

1. Build your network.  You have heard that it’s not what you know, but who you know.  The saying is even more true today than it ever has been.  Statistics say that
2. Enhance your skills.  What do you need to know that you don’t currently know?  Do you need some training in a specific skill area or with a particular software program?  Now is the right time to take a class or return to school for a program that will enhance your skills and abilities.
3. Develop a strong, compelling, memorable, and inspiring Unique Selling Proposition.  Here’s link to a recent article on developing your “Elevator Pitch” that will be helpful for pulling together your USP.
4. Create a winning resume.  Make sure you focus on developing a resume that highlights that which you are both capable of and willing to do in your next position.  It should include a strong USP (Unique Selling Proposition) and clearly quantified results of your accomplishments.
5. Explore growing industries. Some of the industries sure to grow in 2009 are healthcare and alternative energy.  What skills do you have that might be transferable to either of these industries?
6. Clean up your Internet presence.  Do you have an account on Facebook? Plaxo? LinkedIn? Career Crossroads 2.0?  Have you updated them recently?  Do so now.

Obama’s innaguration is just 2 weeks away.  Are YOU ready for the new jobs this new administration plans to create?