Job search tips

Are you Busy or Effective?

February 13, 2018 By Marta Goertzen

How are you spending your job search time?

I met Angelo recently. He has been out of work for six months. He showed me a binder with over 200 jobs he applied for. He heard nothing from those companies. Not a peep. Not even a “thanks but no thanks” letter. He said, “There are just no jobs out there. No one is hiring.”

Another time I will share my rant about how badly most companies treat earnest candidates like Angelo. Today I would like to consider whether Angelo is using his time effectively. Can Angelo organize his time in a different way to get different results?

Angelo is busy, certainly. Two hundred applications in six months is about 20 applications a week, so Angelo has been busy finding opportunities, crafting cover letters and customizing his resume. But then he sends off his resume to a big black hole and is surprised that nothing happens. It is a sad but all too common story.

Angelo is busy but is he effective? I think not, otherwise his efforts would have born some fruit.

Here are some tips for Angelo (and you?) to spend his time more effectively to get a different result:

Decide how much time you want to spend on job search. If you are out of work or in transition, you should be spending at least six to eight hours every day on job search. Thirty to forty hours a week devoted to working on your Job Search Marketing Plan. If you are still working but want to change jobs, can you find an hour or two each day? That gives you five to ten hours per week.

Spend time on tasks that are most effective. Most people (60% to 80%) find a job by networking. Advertisements are much less effective. Your chances of finding a job from an ad are less than 10%. Therefore it makes sense that an effective job search allocates significantly more time networking and much less time on job ads. Don’t be Angelo.

Allocate your time accordingly. If you decide you will spend 8 hours per day on your job search, then here is a sensible time allocation:

Less than one hour (about 10%) on job ads. Get up in the morning, scan the online ads, find a few that sound interesting, send off your resume and move on with your day.
Five hours (about 65%) allocated to networking, research, outreach, LinkedIn, coffee meetings, professional meetings, getting referrals from contacts, etc.
Two hours (about 25%) allocated to follow up on LinkedIn invitations, resumes submitted, referrals, recruiters, other kinds of marketing campaigns, etc.

It is not hard to apply this kind of formula to any amount of time you decide to devote to your job search. The trick is deciding how you want to spend your time.

How are you spending your time? Are you Angelo just sending resumes off in response to job ads but never getting a response? Or are you open to a different way? Make a plan then stick to it. That discipline will bear fruit in increased activity.

Job search is a numbers game. More effective outreach delivers more action. The Interview Doctor’s Job Requirements Comparison List is the perfect tool to clarify what you want. Networking is easier when you know what you want!! Download the Job Requirements Comparison List today to get started on your networking adventure! So much better than taking pot luck.

What Career Nugget is Growing Inside You?

January 30, 2018 By Marta Goertzen

Did you know that your career transition answers could be right inside you?

Isabel called the other day. She is frustrated in her job as a dentist. Putting her hands in disgusting mouths all day makes her gag. I wonder how she made it through dental school but that is neither here or there. She wants to do anything else. Maybe something involving science, maybe something sales-ey. Anything without spit.

HELP!

I get a lot of these kinds of calls. Insert any profession. I hear this from teachers, supply chain folks, accountants, sales people, marketing folks, HR people – just about anyone can be that frustrated with a career choice or with their current job. I sympathize with the frustration. I’ve been there myself.

I remember my frustration after getting laid off for the umpteenth time earlier in my career from a job I hated. A sympathetic friend, Stuart, an industrial psychologist came to my aid. He administered a battery of career assessments that revealed that I was in the right profession after all!

He wisely said, “You are in the right church, wrong pew!”

Sort of like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, I had the ability to solve my own problem and find my own happiness. I knew all along that I wanted to solve people problems with humor and creativity so people and organizations would thrive. That is now my personal mission. But it is hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel when you are in the stew.

Enough with the clichés already!

Sometimes it takes an outsider to make sense of this frustration. I am eternally grateful that Stuart was my guide to discovering I had chosen the right profession but the wrong place to practice it. I felt an immediate sense of relief.

We can help you find your path. After helping many clients discern their paths I realized most of us are already in the right path. Ok maybe not Isabel the dentist. She needs to get out of dentistry right now. But just about everyone else I meet actually has that nugget of truth inside them already. They already know what they need to do. They just need help bringing that nugget to the surface.

That is where we come in. I listen. I have a few stupid simple exercises to help you find that nugget that already exists.

Many times clients are like me, right profession but wrong company. Actually that happens more often than you would imagine. The change of scenery makes all the difference.

Sometimes clients need to switch to a slightly different usage of their skills, a career tweak if you will. Like a teacher who wants to work for a publishing company or an HR person who wants to specialize in talent acquisition.

Less frequently clients like Isabel need a total refit. I suspect even Isabel has a nugget of insight in her that needs to be brought to the surface.

If you are interested in exploring your own nugget of insight, let me know. I bet I can tease that nugget to the surface so you hit 2018 with a career plan that makes sense for you. Check out “10 BE’s to Grow Your Career” to some ideas on how to grow your career.

The Stories you Share Build Career (and Job Search) Relationships

January 9, 2018 By Marta Goertzen

We are more similar than different.

Who would have guessed?

This insight unexpectedly popped up at a workshop I led the other day. I have the privilege of conducting a three session workshop with folks who are mentoring 8^th graders in the Cleveland Public Schools. I am very impressed with this program and these wonderful volunteers. They signed up to help 8^th graders figure out the path they want to follow for the rest of their lives, beginning with the important choice of which high school to attend and which career path they want to explore.

This is a big deal. Like the mentors, I had no idea what I was signing up for.

I was asked to present three workshops on how to confidently speak in front of a group. I ended up learning so much more.

Like any public speaker or trainer, I consider the outcome I want to achieve then find exercises, activities and stories to allow the participants to make observations that result in change. But you never know what will happen!

The room was loud with laughter and conversation as these folks learned from each other, sharing life stories that will influence their relationships with the young people they mentor. Many people continued to talk long after the session ended even though these volunteers had already worked all day. The enthusiasm was contagious!

Here are some observations from the participants:

Importance of story and being personal
Learned speaking from the heart is the best method
We are all similar
Communicate with passion and relatable stories fetch the best attention
Sometimes you have to go with the flow of the audience
Even in a group of diverse people, we all have similar stories
Not everyone hears the same things the same way because we have different perspectives driven by different experiences.
Experiences are all relatable despite everyone taking their own unique path

I share this experience because I see strong similarities with folks seeking to advance their careers or find a new job. We are most successful when we are relatable. The stories you tell from the heart, with passion get attention. Realize that even diverse groups of people have similar stories and you have the power to connect with other people. It is that connection that moves you forward in your career or in your job search.

Be brave. Share your stories with passion so you can relate to other people. Relationships build careers. Use this information to your advantage!

Are you struggling with your co-workers? Grow your career through the relationships that you make at work. Get your free copy of the “10 Be’s to Career Growth” list.

Where is the Interview Doctor in November?

November 3, 2017 By Marta Goertzen

Here is where Katherine will be speaking in November.

There are links to the events that are open to the public to register and attend.

November 9, 2017	Elevating Confidence & Influence with Style…One Closet at a Time! National Association of Women Business Owners Dress for Success! Cleveland, 2239 East 55th, Cleveland, Ohio 6pm – 7:30pm Open to the Public
November 28, 2017	Create a Job Search Marketing Plan North Canton Executive Networking Group 1940 Town Park Blvd., Uniontown, Ohio, 44685 9am – 11am Open to the Public

Is your resume the reason you’re not getting hired? Make sure it has the power to do it’s job; getting you an interview! Download our free guide to “Avoid the Top 5 Mistakes with Resumes“.

In Job Transition? You Need a Job Search Marketing Plan

October 17, 2017 By Marta Goertzen

I received this note the other day and thought this was a great note to share with others.

Dear Interview Doctor,

I am in the process of either changing jobs or doing consulting in Quality Management. Since 85% to 90% of companies have not made the transition to the new ISO 9001:2015 standard, this may be a good opportunity for me. After helping my last company, I have a solid understanding of what needs changed to make that transition. I just purchased your e-book, which may help. Any advice would be helpful. John

Dear John,

I am sorry that you are in this situation but the best way to respond is with a plan. My best suggestion is to create a job search marketing plan! The same steps involved in changing jobs will support consulting goals as well so no actions are wasted.

Consider these steps:

1) Clarify the problem your target company probably has based on your knowledge and experience. Sure, we are guessing a little but you probably have a good idea what is the problem you can solve.

2) How specifically can you solve that problem? This is the WIIFM – “what’s in it for me” from the company’s perspective. This is also what you will talk about with people. You do NOT want to talk about your job search or no one will want to talk to you. How could your ideal company most effectively utilize your knowledge, skills and abilities? What are deliverables in what time frame that could solve the company’s problem? Is there a contract option available too? Is that an option? How would you structure that? This is all background information that you will now have at your fingertips when you speak to people.

3) Identify by name those target companies that meet your parameters. These are companies that you believe could utilize you to solve the problem you are pretty sure they have. Until we do that research you are only making an educated guess. But we need to start with some sort of list. We will use this list for outreach.

4) Now start your research. Research the company on Google, their website, LinkedIn and other social media sites. Who is the decision maker – the person who could hire you? Who do you know who works there? Who knows someone who knows someone? Who works there who might be a peer or in a subordinate role? Read some LinkedIn profiles to get an idea of what those people are like. Read press releases to identify projects. Extrapolate the issues behind those press releases.

5) Create a project plan that allocates some time every day to researching the companies on your target list. Start your outreach 5 companies at a time. When one company falls off the list for being undesirable or a dead end then add another so you always have at least 5 companies on your action list.

6) Take action. Reach out to connect to people at the company with whom you can have a conversation about the problem you think they probably have and that you are an expert in. “Talk” via email inside LinkedIn about business issues, professional to professional. Exchange LinkedIn emails about the topic until you feel comfortable asking for coffee. Then at coffee talk further about that business issue, not about your job search. You want the person to think you are a whiz at that professional stuff (because of course you are! ) so they either want to engage you, really keep you in mind or make introductions to other folks because they think you are great (because you are!)

Does this make sense? It really works. Not on our time schedule but it works. Remember job search is a project plan without an end date. All you can control is the plan, not the outcome.

What do you think? Can you do this? The Interview Doctor can help you create a personalized Job Search Marketing Plan that supports your job search. Check out our helpful Networking Guide for valuable tips on how to bring your Job Search Marketing Plan to life!!