Don't let this be you or yours.

I love this article about The 10 Worst Mistakes of First Time Job Hunters.  Give it a read if you’re in college or know someone who is.  The writer offers some valuable advice about preparing for your job search before you need a job and while you have access to some very valuable resources.

The advice that’s offered on getting an internship can’t be overstated.  I’ve hired a number of interns over the years and many of those folks have gone on to become full time employees or have used the internship as a stepping stone to a position at another firm.

Networking while still in college and developing marketable skills may be foreign concepts to many college students who are focused on more academic or social activities, but they can really give you a leg up.

Millions of people have been out of work for more than a year.  They just can’t find the right job, in the right place, at the right time.  This is particularly true in states like California and Nevada, where double digit unemployment has made successful job hunting a difficult proposition.

If you’re in this situation, the article offers some smart, but maybe tough to take suggestions, such as relocating or changing careers, in order to move forward.  Many people feel they can’t relocate due to family or friends or other obligations and changing careers is a scary thought for nearly everyone.

Undoubtedly, these are tough times and tough choices must be made.  Think carefully about what’s most important to you, what you’re willing to give up and seek some trusted advice.

Whatever you decide, good luck with your job search and stay positive.

While some of the suggestions, like reaching out to your network and studying up on the company you’re interviewing with may seem obvious, job seekers frequently overlook them. 

I’ve been interviewing people the past couple of weeks for a temporary opening in our department and everyone has been great, but nobody has had a great elevator pitch.  Think about your elevator pitch this way:

This is who I am

This is what I’ve done

This is what I can do for you

This is why I’d like to work for you

This is why you should hire me

Write it down, then practice it until you’re comfortable with your elevator pitch.  Think about creating a condensed version for networking opportunities.  Good luck!

What I thought was interesting about the article was that it shines a spotlight on how stress affects the job search.  Stress over self-image is just as stressful as anything else and that stress may very well show through in an interview.  So it may not be a job seeker’s appearance that’s the problem, but the stress over that appearance (or over some other reason) that may affect interview performance.

When I was interviewing for my current gig, it was a very thorough interview process where I was interviewed by four different people at four different times.  I felt my stress levels rise as the process progressed.  By the time I got to the last interview with the big boss, I was so stressed out that I drove right past the building and was a couple of minutes late.  It all ended well, but I’ll remember that time as a real stress inducer.

Whatever your source of stress, identify it and deal with it so that you can concentrate on your strengths and not dwell on your perceived shortfalls.

Online ads and emails promising work from home opportunities are targeting desperate job seekers.  Most are come-ons for “guides” or “starter kits” that will end up enriching nobody but the producer of those materials.

A word to the wise:  If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.  If a company asks you for money to help you with your job search, do your due diligence and check them out thoroughly before buying anything.

Good luck and be careful out there.

Avoid online scams

Job seekers see the posts almost daily:  Make money from home!  Mystery Shoppers Needed!  And the list goes on.

My advice:  If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.  When I was job seeking, I ran into a lot of well disguised job opportunities on Craigslist that were actually scams. 

Here’s a great article on the top 10 scams that target job seekers.  Seek, but seek with your eyes wide open.

Suggestion number two, “Learn to Tell Your Story Well,” is a summary of a conversation I had this very day with the recruiter who placed me in my current gig.  The upshot of the convo was this:  Many people who are well qualified for a particular position don’t get the job because they have not mastered “their story.” 

So what is your story?  The answer to that question may well vary between person and opportunity, but generally the “story” recruiters and hiring managers want to hear is what value you bring to the position.  It may be your unique experience, your skill at adapting to new environments and challenges, your approach to managing others or your raw talent in making money for your employer.  Whatever your value proposition, it’s important that you let that and other key reasons to hire you, shine.

So what’s your story?

You can read the article (although I’ll warn you it’s a bit depressing), but here are my takeaways.

If you’ve been looking for a job for more than 6 months and haven’t landed any interviews, something isn’t working.  It’s probably time to consider a new strategy.  A job coach may be able to help, but there are now a lot of free job search resources out there, so be sure to scour them for new ideas.

In San Diego, they are starting to see an uptick in demand for recruiters.  This is good news because in most markets, the recruiting industry has been hit particularly hard due to the lack of open positions to fill.  When the recruiters go back to work, everyone else will follow.

Follow the recruiters, they’ll lead the way.

Open that window

The article offers some great tips for preparing for your job search and then getting out there.  Many of these tips have appeared in this blog, but the article does a nice job of summarizing a few of them.

Bottom line:  I have no idea if this “window” is fact or fantasy.  But what if you decided to take the next 90 days and energize your job search by updating your resume and your Linkedin profile, by applying for one job a day, by going to one networking event every day, by making 10 calls to recruiters/friends/your network every day, by creating some “out of the box” job search tool like a personal newsletter, by joining one new group that may help with your job search and by taking advantage of some free or paid job search counseling.

If you did all of these things you just might find a job while the window is open.  And even if you don’t, what is the downside? You just might find the job on day 91 or day 101, but I’m willing to bet you will feel better knowing that you’ve done the best you can.  Now throw open that window!

No Stress!

There is a great article in yesterday’s New York Times about the stress a person feels after losing a job and how that stress can help sink the job search process. 

This reminded me of my own job search stress.  I had been unemployed for a few months and my stress was growing daily.  One day out of the blue, a recruiter called and what seemed like the last company in town that was hiring had called them and wanted to see me.  I sweated through three interviews and sat on pins and needles for every piece of news, assuming the worst during periods of silence.  Finally, the day for my fourth and last interview came.  I was so stressed out I drove right by the company, and arrived a couple of minutes late.  Nervous and assuming I was cooked, I soldiered on and got the job inspite of myself.

So I understand how stress, anxiety, depression, a sense of self doubt and all the rest can play havoc on the job search.  These are real feelings and they shouldn’t be ignored.  But they can be managed. 

My advice is to ask others to help you:  friends, colleagues, family, healthcare professionals, recruiters, job search experts and anyone else you may respect.  In many cases, just talking about your feelings can help enormously.  When you’re in need and you ask for help, help can come from the most unlikely places.