network for a job

5 Steps to Supercharge your Job Search Networking

May 31, 2016 By Marta Goertzen

Joe sent a nice update email the other day describing his job search status.

It was chatty and informative. His last gig did not work out the way he hoped so he is in the market again.

Joe says:

Unfortunately, [that company] wasn’t a good fit for me. I have been networking over the past few months and met with many great, helpful people. My network is continuing to expand. I continue to evaluate opportunities, but haven’t found the right one yet.

My career search is focused on a Human Resources Manager or Operations Manager position within a small business of $5M to $100M in revenue with 50 to 200 employees.

I appreciate any help and support in my job search. Feel free to contact me if you would like to get together for a chat or if I can help you in anyway.

This is a nice note. I really applaud Joe’s efforts to stay in touch. He has a very specific job in mind and he is utilizing his network to find leads.

However, he leaves the next step to me. What if the reader does not help? Then Joe’s nice note does not forward his cause.

I wonder if there is not another way Joe can focus his job search in addition to this kind of outreach?

Joe has a very specific job objective in a very specific size of company in a very specific geography. Although it seems counterintuitive, Joe has the right idea. Being very specific HELPS his job search.

These very specific requirements become the parameters for a search! He can search within his geography for companies that are $5M to $100M in revenue with 50 to 200 employees. There is a limited number of these companies, enough to make a great pool for his job search.

Here are 5 steps to this kind of proactive job search:

Create the list of possibilities.
Research those companies to prioritize in order of best fit for you – interesting products or initiatives, culture that seems to be a good match.
Use LinkedIn to find people who work at those companies who sound interesting.
Reach out to connect with those people.
Start a conversation via LinkedIn email about something in that company – a product, an initiative, a problem you know they probably have, a question that can start a conversation. After a few exchanges, you can ask for coffee meeting then VOILA you have expanded your network to people who can help you in your target market!

This kind of search is more sophisticated, requires more planning and research, and definitely more patience. But with this kind of search you take your networking into your own hands with more control over your future!

What do you think?

We can help you organize this kind of search. Just drop Katherine a line or call 330-495-2337. We would love to help you take your search to the next level!!

Six Tips to have fun in any situation

August 21, 2015 By Marta Goertzen

We were very silly last weekend at the Great Tomato Stomp at the Leamington ONT Tomato Festival! A team of crazy friends including my husband Kermit entered the contest and won by creating the largest amount of tomato juice by stomping two crates of whole tomatoes. Twelve teams entered. It was a blast.

What can we learn from such silliness? I came up with a few life lessons:

Find the fun in whatever you are doing. We drove 50 miles to a community festival celebrating the humble tomato. We saw a parade, visited booths and met really nice people. Who would have thought we could have such fun! Who ever heard of the Tomato Festival!! What have you done recently to have fun wherever you are planted?

Play well with others. Our team won by a landslide this year but it is important to be nice to everyone. We want everyone to have a good time too so we had to be considerate of others and include as many people as possible in our fun. Networking involves give and take. You have to have a great reputation for playing well with others. Do you help each other and involve other people in your search?
Depend on other people to achieve your goals. You have to hold on to each other to survive five minutes in a slippery plastic swimming pool stopping on juicy tomatoes. How are you using your friends, colleagues and acquaintances to achieve your goals?
Be creative to come up with unique solutions. The winning team created the most juice so the team came up with a great way to strain out the solids. The solution complied with the rules but turned the circumstances to our advantage. Are you considering ways to use the job search “rules” to your advantage? Maybe going around barriers instead of waiting for permission?
Look beyond the “ickiness” to your goal. Stomping tomatoes with bare feet feels kind of icky. But that icky feeling is a necessary part of the process. Job search has its own ickiness – occasional loneliness, a little fear. But without that ickiness you will never get to the other side to find the job you want.
Get right back up when you fall. Crushed tomatoes are slippery. A participant or two slipped and fell in the goo. But they got up and continued on. Most teams clasped hands or arms to stay vertical. That was part of the fun! What are you doing to stay vertical and on course?
Be a good sport and leave a good impression. No one likes a bad sport. Double check your attitude at the door. Be open, friendly, smile a little. Be gracious in victory and open in defeat.

Stay active and alert for opportunities for fun wherever you are! The chances are there if you look. Every adventure takes you closer to your goal.

How To Talk About Yourself While You Are Unemployed

January 19, 2013 By Katherine Burik

Editor’s Note: This is part 2 of a series of blogs regarding Catherine Rampell’s article, “Are there really no good job applicants out there?” in The New York Times on Wednesday, January 9, 2013.

This fascinating article begins with the fact that three out of ten companies surveyed by the National Federation of Independent Business in December 2012 indicated there were few or no qualified applicants for open positions. This at the same time 12 million people was still unemployed.

Average hourly earnings of private sector employees have declined indicating that despite the perceived lack of candidates, employers are not increasing wages to attract the available qualified candidates. This means to me that employers must not be as desperate to fill positions as they claim.

Finally, recruiters and unemployed candidates report that many employers refuse to hire unemployed candidates regardless of qualification.

Everyone knows someone who is or has been out of work. I have been there too.

I was still reeling from leaving my last position. A few days after leaving the job I spoke with a friend who is also a recruiter. He asked me what happened so I told him the sordid details. He paused in the conversation and said this to me: “I am saying this as a friend. I never want you to tell that story again. Ever. To anyone.”

Why would he say that? No one wants to hear why I left my last position. Telling that story emphasized that I was out of work and sounded like I was complaining. The story diminished me as a viable candidate.

I thought about it for a long time. I changed my story. I started describing my situation like this: “It was the right time for me to leave. I completed the challenge I set out to complete in that position so I left to return to the consulting practice I started in 2004.” My version was true but it was also true that the new President did not want me any longer. Which response makes a better impression?

You can change your story too. Make yourself more attractive to overcome these powerful barriers against unemployed people by changing the way you describe yourself. Here are some tips:

Choose your words carefully. Every word must be strategically chosen to enhance your skills and distract away from your current employment situation.
Think through your skills very carefully. Be certain you can articulate a very close match between what is expected and what you offer.
Have a prepared, rehearsed way of describing your current situation that moves the conversation to what you have to offer and away from the reason you left your last position.
Practice until your response to all potential questions comes across comfortable and relaxed. If you are nervous about your current situation so will employers.
Seek professional help to revise the way you present yourself to employers.

This means war. Drastic means are necessary if you are an unemployed candidate. Change your story to change the way you are perceived in the job market.