Job seeking in today’s day and age is easier than ever in terms of accessibility. With a few clicks of a mouse you can find hundreds of job openings across the globe and pick and choose from different opportunities to which you want to apply. Not only are millions of jobs a few clicks away, but there is a multitude of job seeking advice available, so sifting through it can be difficult. Needless to say, today’s job seekers are in a different boat than those in generations before them.
As the job search changes (applying online, etc.), so too must the quality of advice we seek. The career coaches from our friends over at The Muse offered their thoughts on different job seeking strategies that have become outdated. In this article, we take a look at three of them. To read the full article, click here.
Apply Without Making Connections
With companies using various applicant tracking systems (ATS) to sort through large numbers of job applications, standing out to a hiring manager is hard enough. When you apply to an opportunity blindly (without knowing someone at the organization) you aren’t exactly increasing your chances of hopefully getting hired; that’s not to say this doesn’t happen. By making connections within the organization through networking (LinkedIn, informational interviews, etc.), you can build a relationship that provides a look into the workplace environment. This will help you better position yourself when you’re ready to apply and hopefully get an interview.
“This [making connections] will help you better position yourself; you can’t do this when you just apply online and there’s an absence of human interaction.” – Avery Blank
Your Skills Matter More Than Your Personality
A job candidate may seem like the perfect fit on paper, but after coming in for an interview it might turn out that his or her personality clashes with the current employees. Someone could be the most qualified candidate, but if they are not a fit personality-wise then it more than likely will not work out. You can always be trained on certain job requirements, but it is very difficult to change who you are for a company.
According to Melody Wilding, “If you really want to get ahead, you’ve got to know how to impact and influence people, navigate relationship dynamics, and add value far beyond what’s detailed in the job description.”
Send The Same Resume To Every Company
As mentioned in previous articles on NexGoal, you should tailor your resume to each job you apply to. With companies everywhere (likely) using an ATS, making sure your resume includes some of the same keywords as in the job description will help it stand out. If you send the same resume to every company you are probably actually hurting your chances of getting noticed by an employer. Although it takes time, tailoring your resume improves your chances of moving onto the next step in the hiring process.
“And these positions all have different keywords in their job descriptions. So you must customize your resume, or create a new version to fit each job you’re applying for. Keyword optimization is a critical first step to avoid being shut down by an applicant tracking system, too.” – Theresa Merrill
Wrap Up
As is the case with many aspects of life, we must constantly change and adapt in order to thrive. The job search is no different. Gone are the days (or they’re on their way out) of sending the same resume to hundreds of jobs and showing up to places unexpectedly in hopes of landing a meeting. Since the amount of advice available to job seekers seems to be endless, figuring out how to sift through and find the right advice is key. By avoiding these outdated job search strategies, you will give yourself a better chance to stand out from the crowd and hopefully get hired.
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