I like Susan Joyce. I like her story, her passion, and her mission. Her website, Job-hunt.org, has helped many people through the years. She just shared her thoughts in an article on LinkedIn titled 10 Steps to a Shorter Job Search.
You know what sucks about any politician celebrating unemployment numbers? This line from Susan’s first paragraph: “And over two million have been unemployed for one year or more.”
You know who those two million people are? Regular people. Like you and me. I’ve met them across the U.S. Very talented people. People who have a lot to offer. Many of the long-term unemployed I’ve met are struggling with age discrimination. Some were in their 50’s and 60’s… you kind of expect them to struggle with age discrimination, right? I met plenty of people in their early 40’s that complained about age discrimination.
Here’s what I want you to do: read her post. Make a checklist of things to do daily (or, regularly), and one-time things that you need to fix/do/cleanup. Then, make a list of things you would do AFTER you land your next job. We live in a world of constant career management, and networking and things like that are must-dos, as part of the new normal.
I love everything Susan says… here are some of my comments:
#3: I say do MORE than one a week. Perhaps five a week? And have purposeful, strategic conversations.
#4: Yes, do this, but make sure it’s not spending time reading articles and news, etc. Your time on LinkedIn as a job seeker is a time for strategic networking preparation. Finding who to talk to, who you want introductions to, and learning more about those people, is the reason you are spending time there.
#7: the key to The List is that you work the list, and figure out how to network in, and get new introductions from everyone you can along the way. Making a list isn’t a job search… working the list, with a purpose, is.
#9: that is why I offer JibberJobber users a 30 day pass…!
Susan’s article deserves your time and attention. If you need to recalibrate, this is the article for you. Jump over now.