Monday Mission December 3, 2012

ORGANIZE YOUR JOB SEARCH

Photo from: http://www.morguefile.com/creative/Penywise

If you are anything like my other clients, organizing your job search is a challenge to say the least!  In this Labor Market it is especially important to apply for as many appropriate leads and to follow up if you hope to obtain employment.

Finding the jobs or employers to apply to is hard enough.  If you can apply a system to your job search, you will be less likely to miss opportunities and more likely to grow your network.  Easier said than done, I know! 

I heartily recommend an online platform especially designed for job seekers of all levels.  The Lifeworks Fresh Transition Platform  allows you to record your applications/submissions track your networking and interviewing and prompts you to follow up on outstanding submissions!  No more post it notes or multiple notebooks.  Just click away to record everything in one handy place. 

The site is simple and easy to use.  It also allows you (or your career professional) to obtain reports or check in on your activities to offer you better and more timely advice and guidance.  No need to print, copy, and fax or scan hand-written job logs!

Here is a screen shot of what you will see when you sign in.  As you can see - you are prompted in the center to complete Networking, Application and Follow Up activities.  Simply click on any of the three buttons to see details.  Or you can add a new event.

To the left, you can click on any number of "histories."  To the right are pending events.  Contacts and Calendar populate across the platform to help aid you in your job search. Your LinkedIn account, videos,resources and news are also available to keep you up to date with what experts are saying about job search and career planning.

The site is available for job seekers and includes online email support (up to 5 per month) for questions you might have or assistance you might need from me in your job search. The cost for the job seeker is just  $19 per month for the piece of mind that you are, finally, covering all your bases in your comprehensive job search effort!  Soon, I will be contacting to say, "Congratulations on your new job!"  I look forward to it.  Email me today for more information!              Already registered? Login Here

What is keeping you from getting organized today?  Comment and let me know!

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Job search tip of the day: Create a job search schedule

It is important to organize your efforts and cover all your bases in job search - even more so than when you were working!  There is nothing worse than finding out about the perfect job AFTER it has been filled by someone else. You certainly don't want to miss following up with a company about a position you would really like to work for.

A schedule can help make sure you are varying your job search methods and sources as well as following up and networking. If you have an injury and are looking for work you want to be especially careful to maximize every opportunity.  Having a schedule can help you do this.  Click on the Job Search Portal Page to see how to organize your job search online.

It doesn't have to be anything fancy - it can be as simple as making a list of things you need to do and sources of jobs and divvying them out over the course of the week.

Having a schedule also ensures that each day will be different and give you some relief from the non-responsiveness of your computer! It is important to write your schedule out and to refer to it the evening before and the morning you start your job search.  Have it available throughout the day to help you stay focused.

If you are somewhat easily distracted or find yourself spending more time on some tasks than others make a more specific schedule for yourself.  You may even need to tie a reward to completion of certain tasks, like making following up calls.

Make a schedule and stick to it - you will find a job before you know it! Here is a suggested schedule I give my clients to get them started:

Sunday:  Review and apply to help wanted ads online and/or in classifieds (If your local paper comes out on a different day, start this schedule from that day and change the below dates accordingly…)

Monday:  Call those ads that request a call and obtain directions/additional information for ads asking to apply in person

Tuesday: Apply in person, return calls of employers who called, attend any job development / training meetings, review job seeking skills material online/participate in groups

Wednesday:  Cold calls and practice interviewing, other job seeking skills training

Thursday:  follow up calls with any outstanding employers, work force technology job search

Friday:  Networking – Call friends and identify employers who are hiring.  Call and follow up with Staffing agencies you registered with.

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Job Search Tip of the Day: Make a To Do List and check items off

It is easy to get overwhelmed if you are conducting an active job search post-injury! Throw in the fact your home and family life continue to require your thoughts, effort, time and money and it can seem as if there is no way to get everything done. 

When you are juggling a lot of responsibilities it is often helpful to make a to do list.  This list can be as simple or as detailed as you like, but I recommend just sitting down and making a plain old-fashioned list on paper.  For now don’t pay any attention to order or whether it is for job search, home or family.

Carry a pen and the notebook you make this list on with you all day.  Every time you think of something that needs to be done write it down.  If you later think of a task, actually open up the notebook and find it on the list. Remind yourself it is written down.  Let it go.

At the end of the day, cross off anything you happened to do since you started your list – instant progress!  Organize the remaining tasks into broad categories according to what makes sense for your tasks.

For example, I organize my lists according to whether or not they can be done at the computer, on the phone, or in the car (errands).  I tend to do things when I am in the mood or have a chunk of time, so this makes sense to me.  It might make more sense in your situation to have categories like Job Search, Networking, House, Errands, Kids. 

Don’t make too many categories or your list will quickly suck up too much of your time trying to keep things straight.  Once you have identified your categories label each task with the first letter of the appropriate category: J for Job Search, N for networking, etc.

Now that you have each task on your list assigned to a category tear out that page and label the tops of fresh sheets with your categories. At this point you should have several pages with each of your categories at the top.

Copy your tasks over onto the appropriate page until all your tasks have been transferred.  Now you have a list of things to do for each of your selected categories.  Scan down through each and number the first three on each page that you want to complete before all the others.

Voila!  You have an organized list of things to do tomorrow and will have a productive day without worry.  Make sure to cross off or check mark each task that you complete so that you can see your progress. 

Add anything that comes up to the appropriate list.  When you fill a page, just start a new one and transfer only the undone tasks to the fresh page.  Even if you tend to use the computer to organize yourself I recommend you use the paper method to get started.

To organize your list on the computer, try one of the following.

Google Tasks

www.Getitdoneapp.com  

www.Evernote.com

www.dropbox.com

Your calendar (Outlook, google, Hotmail, other)

Word or other word processing program

Excel or other spreadsheet program

Don’t forget to cross off each item as you complete the task – it will give you a sense of accomplishment, not to mention satisfaction!