Jobs Search

With the recession about to hit us and job losses on the increase, you need to employ some creative job search techniques if you want to get hired.

The truth is that most people are taught the wrong way to find a job and so they end up using the least effective job search methods available. This makes life tough at the best of times, but a lot more difficult at times of economic uncertainty.

So, if you want to find a job when the government is telling you we are on the verge of recession, at a time when people are losing their savings and their jobs and having their homes repossessed, you need to find some efficient job search techniques.

So, how do you go about finding a job? If you are like most people, you search online and you look in the local press or specialist journals. Then you send in an application form or a résumé or CV with a cover letter and you wait for a reply. If you are particularly industrious, you may send out hundreds of these applications and still not get an interview.

Experts agree that these methods, whilst being the techniques most frequently taught and most frequently used, are in fact, the least effective, accounting for a very low percentage of success, somewhere in the range of 5-14%.

So, you could get a job using these methods, but if the success rate is so low, you need some more ideas.

One of the most effective job search strategies is building a network of contacts. You've heard the theory that there are only six degrees of separation between everyone on the planet and whether that is true or not, the more people who know you are looking for work, the greater the chance of meeting someone who is interested in hiring you.

Creating a network does take a bit of time and effort, but it will pay off. You can start with friends and family and use professional networking sites on the internet. You can also contact professional colleagues and people you have worked with in the past.

Don't be put off by the fact that you don't think that anyone in your immediate circle is likely to know anyone who might give you a job. Everyone that you know has their own circle of friends and acquaintances.

Go about building your network in a professional manner. Look at it as a job in itself and spend time developing it every day. Be sure that you have a good generic resume or CV typed up, which can be targeted to a specific job very quickly or used as a general introduction.

If you are employed at the moment but afraid that you may lose your job in the current crisis, start building your network right away. Even if you do avoid being laid off, your network will be a valuable resource for the future.

job