The Nontraditional Job Search
The traditional way job seekers go about looking for employment is looking for an opening with an employer and then going in and talking to that employer. A different way to approach the situation is to look for an employer who needs someone with your skills, even if that employer doesn’t have a job opening right now.
What is an interview?
An interview is any face-to-face contact with someone who hires or supervises a person
with your skills, regardless of whether there is a current job opening or not.
With this approach, job seekers can approach potential employers before a job opening actually exists. This is what we mean by a nontraditional approach to the job search.
If you are clear about the job you want and the related skills you have, you will find many employers will talk to you, even though no openings exist. If that employer likes you and thinks you could do the job well, that employer will consider you first, should a job open up. Odds are, that job will never be advertised, as the employer has an impressive and already familiar candidate in mind.
So, the old saying is true, you have to know someone to get a job, even if that job is advertised. One study found that ½ of all people hired for advertised jobs never even read the ad, they found out about the opening from someone they knew. Another survey found that 85% of all employers don’t advertise at all. They hire people they already know, people who find out about the jobs through word of mouth, or people who simply happen to be in the right place at the right time. This is sometimes just luck, but there are ways to increase your “luck” in finding job openings.
The six steps for a quick job search:
- 1. Know your skills and have a clear job objective
- 2. Know where and how to look for job leads
- 3. Use a multifaceted job search approach
- 4. Spend at least 25 hours a week looking
- 5. Get two interviews a day
- 6. Follow up on all contacts
Don’t wait until the job is advertised, or you will find the competition is very tough. Successful job search activity includes getting “interviews” with potential employers before openings exist, as well as once a job is advertised. Redefine the interview and increase your activity, and you will increase the number of “interviews” you net per week. The following advice will help you get started.
Advice from employers:
- 1. Network with people that have similar skills
- 2. Join different associations
- 3. Go to professional meetings