No matter what stage you are at in your job search process, read on for eight tips to get your job search back on track!
"Your team does not offer remote positions" With less than four months, I was given a deadline to find a new job.
I dove headfirst into my job search - created accounts on every job site, submitted 8-10 applications a day, and accepted every introductory and interview call. Despite my best intentions, I quickly became overwhelmed.
Making little progress and feeling unmotivated, I took some time to regroup, organize my application efforts, and decide what I wanted in my next role. These crucial steps helped to get my job search back on track and ultimately land a job before my 4 month deadline.
No matter what stage you are at in your job search process, read on for eight tips to get your job search back on track!
1. Regroup & Recommit
During my most recent job search, regrouping to determine where I was getting overwhelmed and what I needed from a new job helped me feel less defeated and prevented me from settling on a job outside of my career goals.
This can be hard when the job search is weighing you down, but you need time to regroup and figure out where your search is stalling. Take a break to get back on track and work through your needs and goals.
Take a look at my New Job 2020 template to help get you started.
2. Create a Schedule
Try to identify at least 2-3 hours per day you can dedicate to job searching. Create a schedule using the dedicated time to complete tasks. For example filtering through jobs, creating job alerts, or sending follow-ups.
Your schedule should vary based on your urgency for a new job, available time and resources to dedicate to job searching, and the current stage in your job search.
If you are at the beginning of your job search, you may want to dedicate the first week to updating your resume and LinkedIn profile, determining your career goals, and creating accounts on job search engine sites.
3. Remind Yourself Why You Are Doing This
Your best motivation will be your Why. Are you stuck in a job without a future? Stuck in a toxic workspace? Laid off?
For me, when my job search became overwhelming, I reminded myself, "I'm doing this to move back home (employed)."
Don't focus too much on this, but when you are feeling unmotivated, come back to your Why.
4. Don’t Let a Rejection Throw You Off Track
I know, this is easier than it sounds, but try not to let rejection throw you off track. You are not going to land every job you apply for - remember that rejection is part of the process.
Turn the rejection into a learning moment by asking the hiring manager for feedback on why you didn’t get the job. Some may answer, and others will not. Use the feedback you do receive can help you determine if you were not a good fit, need more experience, or had an issue with interviewing.
5. Enable the 'Open To Job Opportunities' on LinkedIn
This setting allows you to select the job titles, job locations, and job types you are interested in, and select whether only recruiters can see this information, or also people in your LinkedIn network.
I was set-up for LinkedIn, Indeed, and so many other job's site. I ultimately landed my current job after enabling this setting and getting a direct message from the company's recruiter.
Also, this setting removed a lot of the job searching on my end and gave me direct connection with recruiters as a future resource for myself or friends.
Be sure to update your headline and other sections in your profile to ensure your profile showcases you as a clear and obvious match for recruiters.
6. Create Canned Email Responses
Job searching is extremely time consuming and tiring. Creating canned response - emails templates prepared in advanced - will help you save valuable time and make your constant communication with hiring managers and recruiters more manageable.
Save your best crafted email responses to common job hunting scenarios to quickly reply rather than typing out each response. Some examples are:
Yes To Job Interest Sharing Availability
Check-In On Next Steps
LinkedIn Message About Applying to a job
Thank You Email
You can see examples of my canned responses here.
7. Organize Your Efforts
Organizing my job search efforts - application submissions, interviews, and follow-ups - in one place provided the much needed structure to make my job search productive.
I used google sheets to track everything from my finances to yearly goals, so tracking my job search efforts in a spreadsheet was a no brainer.
For every application I sent, I added a row to track the company’s name and address, date of application submission, job role applied for, and a link to the job. When the application or interview process progressed, I added additional information like potential start-date, starting salary, important company benefits, and follow-up action items.
This organization helped me to stay on track of my applications and eliminate jobs that were no longer a good fit.
8. Pick a Day to Pause
Avoid burnout by reserving at least one day of the week to pause your job search. Doing the same thing every day over a long period of time is exhausting.
Pick a day to relax and recharge, do something fun or daring, or hang out with friends and family. Whatever you do, pause the job search, research, and resume updates.
By taking some time, you will feel more refreshed and ready to restart your job hunting
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