Different ways of looking at your job search
➔ There are so many factors that come into play when pursuing or discussing a job search. No matter how difficult it may have seemed in years past, rest assured that there is a lot more to the job seeking process today.
Of all the things that are considered the old tried and true, there also are elements of the new job search that have benefits. Knowing what to keep and what to throw away, however, can complicate things.
Consider things from all angles
Let’s look at the digital job search. There are many benefits for the job seeker in the online world. Click, click and you’ve found several job openings that could have promise for you. Click, click and you’ve submitted your resume (and/or application). Want to find out more about a target company? Click, click and there is more information that you could ever have dreamed possible.
Then there’s the dark side. After you click, click your resume, you become one of literally hundreds of applicants for that opening… and many of those candidates may live several states away. From the employer’s perspective, online job seeking makes their job so-o-o much easier. Click, click and those 400 candidates are reduced to 27 – still a lot, but a lot more manageable. Worse, the ATS (automated tracking system) weeds out resumes and candidates for irrelevant reasons. No matter how well suited you are for the job, if the ATS says “No,” there’s no appeal. You're left with trying to do an end-run around the system.
As old as time itself
What’s that they say about the best form of advertising? The consensus remains that word of mouth trumps all other forms of promotion. Let’s look at this a bit more closely. A referral produces a positive impression that’s not on a piece of paper. Even though it’s not on something as flimsy as a piece of paper, it carries more weight than if it were carved in stone.
Examine what will provide you with the biggest bang for your buck and then concentrate your efforts at making that the cornerstone of your job search.