Job Search Mistakes

{Click here to read the original article on LinkedIn.}

The process of job search has changed from the old days of searching the job listings in the classified section of the newspaper. Technology and the internet have changed every aspect of our lives of course, but other factors have impacted the way employers hire people. Job seekers must execute a diversified strategy and employ a variety of activities to leverage as many career options as possible.

Employers have become more sophisticated in ways that impact job seekers significantly. Job applications must be analyzed and dissected prior to resume customization. Many employers prefer to bring in professional and technology staff as contractors before hiring them ‘permanently’. The recruiting industry provides targeted outsourcing, consulting services and permanent placement opportunities in ‘niche’ markets that were unknown 15 years ago. Read more

{Click here to read the original article on Careerrocketeer.}

I had a discussion with a senior level executive recently about the best way they can find a new job. I was encouraging them to network with as many people as they can to gain information, leads, and referrals.

They were cynical of the recommendation. Read more

{Click here to read the original article on About.com / Government Careers.}

When hiring managers post jobs, many times they get many more applications than they care to go through. They want to find that needle in the haystack that is the perfect person for the job, but it can be incredibly tedious to go through a pile of applications.

Hiring managers look for things to weed out people who are unlikely to be successful in the job. They also want to get the hiring process over as soon as possible, especially if the position has been vacant for a while.

Don’t make your application one of the first ones discarded. Read more

{Click here to read the original article on Careerocketeer.}

Quite a while ago, I wrote a piece titled…

I can’t get a job because…

In it, I made the case that people aren’t truly affected in their job search by various forms of discrimination as commonly as they may think they are. Read more

{Click here to read the original article on Forbes.com.}

Guess what? Older workers get jobs. It might take a little more time for a myriad of reasons from your salary demands to your own lack of imagination about the kind of work you’re applying for, but employers really aren’t out to shun workers over 50.

They do want grown-ups in the shop. We tend to be loyal, even-keeled, reliable. We bring intangibles to the workplace from experience to a vast network of connections. These are not something the whippersnapper cohort can even dream to do at this stage in their lives. Read more

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There are two kinds of harmful gaps in a job search. They are a lack of experience and a lack of skills. Both seem like insurmountable barriers because you can’t gain experience without work and it takes time to acquire skills. And yet, there is a way to bridge the gaps so long as you are willing to take off your fuzzy slippers. Read more