There’s a lot more that goes into today’s job search than a spiffy resume
When we started our work lives all we needed to get established was a neat, clean resume and an engaging manner during the interview. Today’s job search landscape is radically different. What a shock!
Back in the day, if you could scour the newspaper want ads and talk to a few well-placed friends, you could feel pretty confident that you had tagged all the bases. Not so any more. And this is especially true for the older worker.
Today there are any number of possible sources of employment: the major corporation, the small business, the start-up, a franchise, a non-profit organization, your own business, et.al. As we’ve said many times in this space, you haven’t explored all your options until you’ve looked under every rock in the stream. Lift up that rock. You never know what you’ll find underneath.
As hockey great Wayne Gretzky said, “You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take.”
But it doesn’t end there. Have you checked all the boxes on the job-search to-do list? You’ve probably drafted a cover letter – or at least the core of a cover letter which can be adapted to a specific employer. Similarly, sure you have a resume. But is it ATS friendly? (Automated Tracking System) Do you have a ready list of keywords and long-tail keywords that bolster your presence?
And we haven’t touched on LinkedIn yet. Does your LinkedIn profile adequately portray you as a sought-after job candidate? Have you had someone knowledgeable review your profile?
That brings up another point. LinkedIn belongs in the social media family. Have you scrubbed all your social media accounts to remove anything embarrassing or controversial, or something that could be misconstrued and eliminate you from contention for a position?
And you thought that this was going to be easy.