So, are you looking for a new job? You may be making a voluntary career transition. Maybe they fired you, or worse, they fired you. Regardless of the reason for your career change, one fact remains true: If you are conducting a job search, it is vital that you take an organized approach. Managing this search is like managing any other major project. You must create an infrastructure that allows you to operate efficiently and productively. A successful job search requires foresight and action. Here are some tips for conducting an organized job search.
- Sorting and pre-purging – If you are looking for a new job, it will be difficult to do so if your physical space is covered in clutter with piles of papers everywhere. Take some time to clear the clutter. Shred all the unnecessary items, archive the documents you need to keep, recycle junk mail, and put some order in that space again! It will be easier for you to focus on your job search without all that chaos and clutter around you. Just be careful not to spend too much time ordering her to start using it as an excuse to procrastinate in regards to exploring your work. A few days should suffice.
- Create a job search schedule – Let’s face it: looking for work is hard work! If you are still employed while looking for a new position, be prepared for an extremely busy schedule. If you are currently unemployed, keep in mind that you do, in fact, have a job – conducting a job search! Create a schedule that gives you plenty of time for all the activities you need to focus on to be successful: resume and cover letter preparation, surfing the web looking for work, networking, interviewing, follow-up, etc. Set aside time on your calendar for job search activities and treat that time as you would any traditional work commitment. Be consistent in the amount of time you spend each day and week on new work activities to keep your momentum going and not lose focus and miss out on valuable opportunities.
- Put your team in order – Update your resume, cover letter, references, and writing sample (if applicable). Request letters of recommendation and testimonials from former or current supervisors, coworkers, and professional colleagues. Get some nice new stationery and stock up on print cartridges for your printer. If you want to use an outside font for printing, some local printers will copy resumes for free during an economic downturn, so ask! Make sure you have a computer with high-speed internet access. An all-in-one machine for printing, copying, faxing and scanning will also come in handy during a career change.
- Create a job search center – Reserve space at home (or wherever you do your search activities) and make it a central place for your job search. Keep all your job search related supplies in that location, making it easy for you to find them when you need them. This will also help you enter search mode when you are in that space.
- Create a paper management system for career change – You may be picking up a lot of paper in your search: resources, articles, sample resumes and cover letters, networking contact business cards, contact later or rejection letters, etc. As long as you can keep these items paperless, please do so. But if you have to keep a hard copy, be sure to create a filing or management system for the job search paper, which will be kept at your job search center. Keep it simple and use the system that suits you best for ease of use (folder, portable bin, traditional filing cabinet, etc.).
- Job search activities plan – Plan daily job search activities such as phone calls to make, resumes to submit, online applications to complete, informational interviews to conduct, etc. Write down your search activities as calendar items, to-dos, or tasks so that you take them seriously and treat them as measurable goals. Be realistic about what you can reasonably accomplish in one day, but challenge yourself too!
- Activity tracking – Organizing your job search involves keeping track of all information and communications. Keep track of where and when you sent your resume, who you spoke to, when the interviews took place, etc. This information will be vital when deciding when to follow up with leads. You can track all of this information using a calendar like Outlook or Google, or an online tool like JobFiler.com. Regardless of the tools you use, it is important that you can keep track of the status of your job search.
- Manage job search email – In today’s world, much of your job search is likely to be done via email. So, even before you start your search, reduce the amount of email in your inbox so you can focus on your job search emails, which will add up quickly. Create folders within your email system using categories that make sense to you, like Companies Requested, Contacts Sent, Resumes To, etc.
- Improve your online profiles – If you are looking for a new job in today’s market, you would be remiss not to develop an online presence on social networking sites, especially LinkedIn, which is the most “professional” of social networking sites and can essentially serve as your online site. abstract. But consider other social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter as well. The opportunities are endless for employers and contacts to find you online. You can even have your own website, ezine, or blog. Maybe you publish articles on various article marketing sites or serve as a guest blogger on other blogs. If you maintain profiles on any of the social media sites, or have some form of online presence, be sure to polish your profiles to promote the image you want potential employers and contacts to see.
- Change your greetings – Change the message that greets callers to whatever phone number you plan to use for your job search to sound professional and convey the information you want your callers to hear. Be prepared, not embarrassed!
- Stay positive – The longer a job search takes, the more likely you are to turn negative about it. Try to stay positive as much as possible by monitoring your progress and staying active in your search. When the going gets tough while searching for a job, many people take a backseat and give up, which is counterproductive. Try to stay focused and make valuable contacts that are likely to lead to a job. However, don’t get consumed by your job search! Keeping a little balance in your life right now will help you a lot. Get enough sleep, eat well, see family and friends for pleasure, and take time to exercise.
Organization is one of the most important things you can do to keep your job search manageable. Just as being organized helps you improve any other area of your life, your home, or your job, it will also help you move forward in your job search quickly and efficiently and with less stress. It may even end up being the key to finding the dream job you’ve always wanted.
Good luck!