And Then Some

Here are two tips to keep your job search humming

Two is (almost) always better than one. So we offer today’s tip + plus one.

At Nifty50s we sometimes liken a job search to wading through a stream. As you wade through that stream, you want to look under every rock that you encounter. After all, you never know what’s going to be hiding under that next rock.

Rock of ages

So when it comes to your job search, don’t leave any stone unturned. This is especially true for networking events. We recently heard a recruiter remind a room full of job seekers to “never turn down a networking event.” There’s a lot to be said for that. Here are some good reasons why.

One, if there is a program, don’t concern yourself with the speaker. Even though you may learn something, you’re not going for the speaker, you’re going to network. You really don’t care who the speaker is – or what the topic is.

Two, you never know who might be there. This is especially true if you’ve never attended a meeting sponsored by this particular group. Even if you have been there before, your best contact ever may have missed the past few meetings. You need to be there.

Three, although you think you may know everyone there, who you don’t know are the people that they know. Even if Kevin Bacon is not hiring, second (or third +) generation contacts can be more valuable than first generation. It’s not them, it’s who they know.

Been there before

Our second tip today has to do with circling back around. As you develop a list of job contacts, it may be helpful to circle back around to them periodically just to remind them that you’re still looking. Finding you a job is not their first priority. But if you remind them from time to time, that may just initiate the spark you’ve been waiting for.

Of course, final closure on this concept is that, when you do finally land a job (and you will), touch base with them to let them know where you will be working and to thank them for all their help.

More tips.