Looking for Work on Monster? The Odds Are Not in Your Favor
A recent poll conducted by AskTheHeadhunter.com found that only 4% of job seekers were able to find work through sites such as Monster, CareerBuilder, or HeadHunter, yet these are often the first and only places job seekers turn to search for future employment. If you have only a 4% chance to find work through the online job boards, does it really make sense to spend the majority of your efforts on Monster or CareerBuilder? If you were seriously ill and offered a treatment option that gave you only a 4% chance of survival, do you think you might consider a different treatment? Considering the low odds, it's important to get more creative in your efforts to find work.
Personally, I have never gotten a job through a job board. Every position I've ever worked has always been through somebody I know, such as a trusted friend or former colleague. I think companies prefer referrals because the referred candidate is less of an unknown quantity. People often say pretty much anything on a resume, so you have a much better chance of landing a job when somebody can vouch for you. So, by all means, post your resume online, but it's best to focus the majority of your time to find work on what is most likely to land you your next job: networking.
Networking Is The More Creative and Effective Way to Find Work
The best place to begin your job search is your network of contacts, including family, friends, and colleagues you've worked with at past jobs. If you work your existing contact network and let people know you're looking for a job and what kind of skills you have, you might be surprised what some of your family and friends can come up with. If you're not currently on LinkedIn, it's worth taking the time to get a profile set up and start networking that way with everybody you can think of, including old classmates from high school or college, family, and former colleagues. You'd be surprised how many people are on LinkedIn these days. It really is a great resource for networking.
The following are a few ideas for expanding your contact network and finding job opportunities:
A recent poll conducted by AskTheHeadhunter.com found that only 4% of job seekers were able to find work through sites such as Monster, CareerBuilder, or HeadHunter, yet these are often the first and only places job seekers turn to search for future employment. If you have only a 4% chance to find work through the online job boards, does it really make sense to spend the majority of your efforts on Monster or CareerBuilder? If you were seriously ill and offered a treatment option that gave you only a 4% chance of survival, do you think you might consider a different treatment? Considering the low odds, it's important to get more creative in your efforts to find work.
Personally, I have never gotten a job through a job board. Every position I've ever worked has always been through somebody I know, such as a trusted friend or former colleague. I think companies prefer referrals because the referred candidate is less of an unknown quantity. People often say pretty much anything on a resume, so you have a much better chance of landing a job when somebody can vouch for you. So, by all means, post your resume online, but it's best to focus the majority of your time to find work on what is most likely to land you your next job: networking.
Networking Is The More Creative and Effective Way to Find Work
The best place to begin your job search is your network of contacts, including family, friends, and colleagues you've worked with at past jobs. If you work your existing contact network and let people know you're looking for a job and what kind of skills you have, you might be surprised what some of your family and friends can come up with. If you're not currently on LinkedIn, it's worth taking the time to get a profile set up and start networking that way with everybody you can think of, including old classmates from high school or college, family, and former colleagues. You'd be surprised how many people are on LinkedIn these days. It really is a great resource for networking.
The following are a few ideas for expanding your contact network and finding job opportunities:
- Volunteer for as many charities as you can. Being involved in charities will give you a great natural high and help give you a positive attitude that will look great on you in interviews. On top of that, you'll be helping out a great cause, it will help fill in that growing hole in your resume with something that looks impressive, and you'll have an opportunity to mix with people that might be able to connect you to a potential employer. Personally, I think a prospective employer would be very impressed with candidates that chose to fill their free time with charity work instead of sitting at home eating Fritos and watching soap operas.
- Attend mixer events. Mixers tend to be more common in larger communities, but if you have them in your local area make it a point to attend them. Mixers are often well-attended by prominent business professionals in a variety of fields. You never know who you may meet, and it may just lead to your next job.
- Attend adult education classes and seminars and get to know everybody in the room. Adult education classes are a great place to meet people that can help you get your next job because industry professionals frequently attend them. Often you can "audit" classes for free, and spending your free time learning will help keep your brain active and your skills and knowledge current. It may also help you feel more "plugged in" to your industry even though you're not actively working in it.
- Do "pro bono" consulting work for companies in your area. If you have a useful skill that businesses need, help them out by doing "pro bono", or "free", work. It will help you keep your skills current and will allow prospective employers to take you for a "test drive" that could lead to your next job. Even if the company you're working for doesn't have an open position, they may like you enough to create a position or refer you to somebody else that has an open position.
- Finally, and most importantly, keep a positive attitude at all times. Being out of a job can be a bummer, and it can be stressful if finances are tight. However, do everything you can to keep a positive attitude at all times. Prospective employers can smell desperation and despair from a mile away, and you don't want a whiff of either of those on you when you're networking and interviewing. Again, this is why working with charities can be so important. Volunteering offers you the chance to do good in your community and it will help keep your attitude positive.
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