So you have been thrust unwillingly into the job search pool without a towel.
Feeling wet and more than a little cold by the experience as you face some difficult questions? Where to start? Where are the jobs? Who can I speak to?
You still may be smarting from the experience of being “let go” even if it was handled humanely and with respect. You may be daunted by the task ahead given the unknown of timeframes, competition for jobs and the mystery around “rules of the job search game”.
If you are offered a Career Transition Program with a specialist Career Coach, take it. These professionals are usually expertly placed to help you gain job clarity and focus. They will help you gain the skills you need to navigate the job market to find the ideal next job.
If you were not offered career transition coaching don’t panic. Here are 3 key things you can do to help prepare yourself to uncover the jobs and market yourself with confidence to potential employers.
- Know yourself – who are you and what is your brand?
What are your key skills knowledge and talents?
Think about your key achievements over the past 10 years. Being able to articulate your achievements is critical to demonstrating how you add value to an Employer and generates a “wow” factor.
What are your competencies? Which did you use to accomplish the achievements in your list? Demonstrating competencies is vital in matching your skillsets with the criteria the Employer is using to select the best applicant.
Ask yourself what am I passionate about? What do I stand for? How do I get things done? The answer to these questions forms part of your personal brand.
This essential information will feed into your resume, application letters and preparation for interviews
- Remain positive and energised (Take care of yourself and have a little fun)
It is important when job seeking to come across as energised, resourceful and adaptable. You will be more appealing to Employers and more engaging in networking. You may still be dealing with the emotional turmoil and grief of exiting a job you loved and your confidence may have taken a hit. So remember the “locus of control model”. It is better to know what parts of the situation you can control or influence and take proactive and positive action to impact the situation to a new outcome.
There will be bits that concern you that you can’t change and the challenge here is to notice and let it go. Otherwise you are living in the past and losing energy to negative feelings and thoughts. The last thing you need is to let negative thoughts turn into negative self-talk. This comes out as putting yourself down, blaming yourself for things going wrong and even catastrophising a situation. In my next article in “The Best Way to Get Your Next Job Series”, I look at how to reframe negative self-talk.
Notice and accept what you feel, working through the issues and the emotions. Find people you can trust and talk to them. Take some positive actions to start moving forward. Do whatever you do to take care of yourself and invest time and energy in exercise, healthy diet, connecting with others socially. Try something new. Do a Yoga class or dance lessons or a mediation course. A balanced life is the key for staying focused and inspired.
And…celebrate the little wins along the way. Set yourself some realistic goals each day and find ways to recognise and reward yourself with each achievement. It may be as simple as enjoying a favourite tea after finishing an application and savouring that sense of achievement. It is great just to notice the accomplishment before moving onto the next task. Be creative in finding other ways you can have fun on the way.
- Network to connect
Relationships are the key to your success. The Australian Bureau of Statistics tells us that for each job advertised on-line or in print, there are at least 2 other jobs available that have not yet been advertised. So get in early. It is essential to converse with people in your network and discover which Employers you should be talking with to seize opportunities as they arise. People that you know have their own networks and are a great source of information when researching industries and employers. They can introduce you or recommend you to employers that are thinking about hiring. Ultimately it will reward you with a conversation with a business leader who needs to recruit. You want to speak to the person who can decide to employ you.
In a later article I will share some tips of what to say in both networking meetings and job interviews.
Networking is about connecting with others to learn more about them and share what is important to you. It may take a number of meetings or contacts to incrementally connect and build trust and gain rapport. We do this naturally as we are social creatures with advanced and sophisticated communication skills with a tendency to cooperate and collaborate for mutual success. We want a sense of belonging and connecting to others.
With attention and focus it is possible to be more aware of networking opportunities. A great question to ask people you know is “who else do you think I should be talking to”? Remember to demonstrate appreciation of the time anyone makes to help you out.
If you are interested in finding out more about gaining the clarity, connection and self-care needed to secure your next job read my new e-book Navigating the Career Transition Gridlock
If you would like to read the first chapter of the e-book click here.
So dry yourself off, keep breathing and start by gaining some clarity of who are and what you have to offer. This will increase your confidence as you meet with people to identify opportunities and take positive steps to secure your next job.
Robert Stocks is the Director of Integrated Coaching Solutions and has been delivering Career Coaching and Career Transition Coaching programs to individuals and Employers from all sectors; commercial, Government and NGO organisations over the past 9 years.
He is a “Certified C-IQ Coach” after completing a year-long program with Judith E. Glaser* and her team. He is a Professional Member of Career Development Association of Australia.
Contact Robert to discuss your job seeking needs on 0403 843 604.
*Judith E. Glaser and the CreatingWE ® Institute are the source of the Conversational Intelligence® materials and framework. Judith E. Glaser is a renowned business strategist and sought after author and speaker. The C-IQ framework is changing lives across the globe.