Sometimes even when you do everything right…
We have a friend who has spent decades helping people find jobs (and some them were very difficult to place people.) He says that finding a job is an accident, and that his job is to create “quality accidents.”
While you may not agree with his assessment, we can say unequivocally that he’s not wrong.
There are so many factors that go into finding a job that it’s almost impossible to list and/or categorize them. What’s worse is that many of those factors are completely out of your control.
Job Seekers Roulette
Consider: Mr. Jones works for XYZ Company. XYZ Company is one of your target companies. You like the company. You like the work, the product(s), the industry. You like the culture, etc., etc.
And you know that Mr. Jones attends a certain monthly professional event. You go to that event expecting to have an opportunity to meet Mr. Jones and to speak with him for a few minutes in the hope of establishing a relationship.
Well, Mr. Jones was sick that day and didn’t attend the event. Did you do something wrong? Of course not. Was there something that you could have done to make that situation work at that event? Not likely.
Then on your way home, you stop at the market to buy some bread and milk. While waiting in the checkout line, you strike up a conversation with the person next you. That person coincidentally works at XYZ Company and knows Mr. Jones. It’s a built-in, served-up-on-a-platter opportunity. You seize it. Good for you.
Based on your experience, would you advise a job seeker to hang out at the market in the hope of stumbling on such a chance encounter like the one you just had? Probably not.
Sometimes you’re just “accidently” in the right (or wrong) place at the right time. The bottom line is that you need to position yourself for as many “accidents” as you can possibly have.