3 Ways to Get Unstuck in Your Job Search
By Kevin Donlin | November 26th, 2008
If you’ve been looking for a job for any length of time, you’ve probably run into roadblocks.
Weeks go by with no job interviews. Employers don’t call. And you start to feel … stuck.
How can you get “unstuck” in your job search?
Here are 3 ways …
1. Read the comments on career blogs
Some of the smartest job search ideas come from … smart job seekers.
Where to find them? Smart people often share their success stories and tips as comments on blogs.
So, check out the comments posted on high-traffic blogs that deal with career and job-search topics. You’ll find many of the most popular blogs at this link.
2. Remix and replay your greatest hits
I’ll break this idea down into two parts.
First, look back over your career. How did you find out about every job you’ve had since you left school? Examples: You networked with a professor in 1990, networked with a neighbor in 1994, answered a want ad in 1996, called a recruiter in 2003, etc.
Now ask yourself: How could I repeat that or do something similar to it?
You probably won’t find as many jobs in the Sunday paper today compared to 1996, for example, but what about the online edition of the newspaper? Or what about looking through an industry newsletter or magazine that serves a narrow niche? Trade publications can be a terrific source of job leads — call your local library and ask for help finding them.
Second, what did you do and say to get hired for previous jobs? What’s the best cover letter you ever sent? What’s the best line in your last resume? The best answer you ever gave in a job interview?
Now ask yourself: How could I repeat those successes in my current job search?
3. Ask different questions
To get different answers in your job-search, start with different questions.
Example: How would you get a “job” on American Idol? Send a resume? No, you’d audition. And before your audition, you’d practice like mad.
So, ask yourself this: Where and how could I “audition” for a job? Whom would I have to contact to get an audition? And what skills would I have to practice beforehand?
Approaching your job search as if it were an audition for “American Idol” is just one way to do something different.
How would you get hired for a job as a bus driver? A tennis coach? A senator? A mountain guide in Tibet?
You may be just one different tactic away from your next job. What is it?
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