Seven Job Searching Tips

These tips are not listed in any ranked order. I’m not saying that the first tip is any better than any of the others. It’s simply a case of something had to be first. With that said let’s dive right into these ideas intended to help you with your job search.

Staffing Agencies

There are a great many reasons to get connected with a staffing agency. I’m going to list four of the most common reasons.

1.    It’s a great place to get experience

2.    It allows you the opportunity to see if you like working at an organization

3.    Employers prefer to hire people who are already working, even if the job is a temporary or part time position.

4.    It helps you expand your network.

Training/Education

There is so much free education available on the internet that there is no reason to not learn the things you’ve always wanted to learn. For those few of you who have nothing you want to learn, there are always the things you need to learn for your career or perhaps there are some gaps in your everyday life skills. Instruction to help with that can also be found online.

Below is the path to follow to find a variety of FREE online training.

Below is just a small taste of what’s out there.

Go to www.onestops.com

On the left side of the home page is a gray box containing links. The first link is Employ Florida Marketplace. Click on that link and log in to Employ Florida.

Under Services for Individuals, click on the third link down. It’s titled Education and Training. Move the mouse across to the menu and down to the link for Online Learning Resources.

 

Scroll through this page and explore the different opportunities available.

When you’re exploring the open courseware of the colleges and universities, keep in mind that even though you aren’t going to get college credit for any of the courses offered, you may be able to use the knowledge you gain to test out of some classes at your local college. Paying for a CLEP test is much less expensive than paying for a class and it will take less time to complete.

If you want to explore what CLEP Exams are available you can go to https://clep.collegeboard.org/exam and start learning what CLEPs are available. Or visit the school you’re thinking of attending and ask them about how you can CLEP out of some classes.

Networking Organizations

Seventy to eighty percent of jobs are found through networking. While networking does include social media, it’s not exclusive to social media. We are still a society where face-to-face, real time, in person networking is important.

There are a great many organizations designed specifically for networking. Do your research and find one that is suited to your needs. Of course, that means that the first thing you need to figure out is what you are looking for in such an organization.

Are you job searching? If so, what type of employment are you seeking? Or are you planning on starting your own business? What kind of business? The answers to those and other questions will determine the organization best suited for you.

Some networking groups can be found by exploring www.meetup.com.

LinkedIn

While LinkedIn is a form of social media, its purpose is to serve as a networking resource for professionals. It can be used for business-to-business networking, business-to-customer networking and many people use it for job searching. While the majority of its users have college degrees this resource has tools to offer almost any job seeker. You can find out what’s going on at that company you’ve always wanted to work for and maybe even connect with someone working there. Those are the kind of connections that lead to jobs.

Community Organizations (volunteer)

Volunteering is a good way to expand your network. You meet people that, if you’re unemployed, you’re not likely to have the chance to meet elsewhere. These are the people with job leads.

Remember, no one wants to hire a stranger. People want to hire people they know, like and trust. As a volunteer you’ll meet other volunteers, some of them will be fairly high up the corporate ladder. These are individuals that not only hear about jobs that other companies have, they are also in a position to recommend candidates for jobs within their own organizations.

Volunteering also helps you keep your workplace skills sharp and who knows you might even learn some new skills that will help with your next position.

Build Your Network

Some people don’t think they need an active network until they’re out of work and start job hunting. That is not the time when you want to have to build your network from the ground up. If you are currently employed, now is the time to grow your network and not let it die. If you are unemployed and you don’t already have a network you’re behind schedule, get busy building your network. Once you find that next job make sure to keep your network active. Networking will help you move into that next position and then it’s your turn to help others in your network. It may be that no one in your network needs to find a job at the moment but we all know how quickly that can change. Stay in touch with the members of your network. It can be something as simple as knowing that one your network members is an avid bird watcher and you come across an article on a rare bird that was recently spotted. Send them a short note and include the link to the article.

Find a Mentor

Personally, I have many mentors, some I see in person; others aren’t even aware of my existence. Here’s a short list of some people who have mentored me without even knowing me. Here is a short list of some of my mentors.

Randy Gage

Ali Brown

Wayne Dyer

Stephen Covey

Marcia Bench

Donald Trump

While a precise definition of Mentor is elusive, in our society it has come to mean an adviser who imparts wisdom to and shares knowledge with others. It’s not generally a one-time event. With a Mentor you build an ongoing relationship.

Find people whom you admire, people who are successful and read about them. Learn how they think, find out what it is they do that’s different from what most people do and then emulate them.

It’s also helpful to have someone that you can meet with in person to talk over your plans and iron out challenges you’re facing. It may be that instead of a single individual you join a Mastermind Group.

If you can’t find a Mastermind Group to join in your area perhaps you should think about starting one.

As a short review here are the seven elements I’ve gone over here.

1.    Staffing Agencies

2.    Training/Education

3.    Networking Organizations

4.    LinkedIn

5.    Community Organizations (volunteer)

6.    Build Your Network

7.    Find a Mentor

 

 

 

Job Qualifications – Their Effect on Your Job Search

Posted by:  Darlene Duncan CWDP, JSS, CCC, JCTC, JCDC
                  Training Coordinator

According to an article in the New York Times both sides of the workforce are broken. The job seeker is applying for any job that’s available and employers have unrealistic expectations.

There are those working to repair the problems and that too is addressed in this article.

Many people have varying ideas about education and how it relates to getting a job. This article is one opinion.

It’s definitely worth the time to read it.

Click here for the article.

 

 

 

Want a No-Cost Education From Ivy League College?

Posted by:  Darlene Duncan CWDP, JSS, CCC, JCTC, JCDC
                 Training Coordinator

Or maybe you just need a refresher course to get you up to speed on some of the changes in your field. Either way there are thousands of courses available to you online at no cost. Big name institutions like, MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Johns Hopkins University, Yale and Harvard just to name a few offer classes online. All you need is an internet connection.

Click here to read the full article with the details.

Also, if you’re interested in finding a comprehensive listing of the schools offering online classes at no cost, follow the steps below.

1. Go to www.onestops.com
2. Click on the link to Employ Florida Marketplace
3. Under the Job Seeker heading, click on the words Education and Training Resources
4. Click on the words Online Learning Resources
5. Scroll down to the Education section and choose the school in which you’re interested

Facing the Real World of Work

By Suzy Kridner
Career Specialist
Trying to find a job in this economy is scary for people of all ages.
Older workers think the jobs are going to young people. And those right out of college think jobs are going to the more experienced.
It's true that job hunting is difficult for everyone.
Older workers need to focus on their skills, not their age or how long they've been in the workplace.
Those who have graduated this year, or in the last few years, need to focus on their skills too.
According to a blog from the U.S. Department of Labor, two important qualities for recent graduates are structure and discipline.
While these two items might seem fairly trivial at first glance, they are two of the more significant changes many will face when transitioning from college to a career. The blog goes on to say that the amount of change and adjustment required for these two areas will vary greatly depending on one’s previous full-time employment history.
For blogger Kevin Sheil, a Wage Hour Investigator for the Wage and Hour Division of the DOL, "the most important piece of advice I can give is to figure out a schedule that works best for you, allowing for both maximum productivity and the necessary free time to pursue your interests."

Read more about transitioning from college to work in Kevin Sheil's blog.