What You Need Before Starting Your Job Search

You’ve probably gone deaf to this all-too-common saying: “looking for a job nowadays is difficult.” The competition is getting stiffer. Employers are looking for experienced workers, but you’re only a fresh graduate. Depending on where you are located, there might not even be enough jobs for the degree that you finished. These and many other complications are normal when you’re looking for a job.

The good news is that there are ways you can prepare before you even start your job search. When completed, this can guarantee you a smoother job-hunt process. Who knows, it may even land you your next job. The preparation includes:

1. Resume

A resume is one of the most important documents that you’re ever going to have to prepare when starting your job search. It’s that piece (or pieces) of paper that contains a summary of the applicant’s educational attainment, training and certification received, past employment history, and other relevant information.

This is what potential employers look at and sift through, to have a little background about applicants before the first interview. Before you even start your job search, you must have already got a well-made resume.

Here are some of the tips that you can apply:

• Review excellent examples, so you can have a template to follow. Alternately, you can also ask for help from professional resume writers.
• Look for keywords on the job posting, and apply these words on your resume.
• Choose a basic font, one that’s easily readable, such as the classic Times New Roman, for instance.
• Keep it simple, brief, and easy to read.
• Don’t forget to include your contact information.

2. Prepare Your Social Media Profiles

Yes, in this day and age, some employers go as far as browsing through applicants’ social media pages. Remove anything from your social media pages that you don’t want your employers to see. This can include anything from nasty political, religious comments. Your profile photo should look like someone they’d want to have in their team. It’s time for you to change that profile photo from a wild night out last year. Your social media page and comments speak a lot about your personality. You’ve got to be sure that you’re sending the right message.

3. Overall Idea Of Expectations

When you go shopping, is it not that you’ve already got an overall idea of what it is that you’re looking for? The same should also be the case when you’re applying for a job. You must know what your expectations are, right before you start your job search.

Browsing through job sites on the Internet is going to take time. On average, it takes a person at least one to three months to land the job that they’re looking for. But, you can speed this up when, even early on, you already know how to filter out your options.

Certain expectations that you should have already been decided on are the following:

• Salary rate
• Benefits
• Hours you can work
• Location
• Position
• Job function

4. Information About The Company

For many applicants, they may also already have a specific company that they’d wish to apply to. If this is the case, it’s imperative that even before you start your job search, you already have general information about the company that you’re applying to. This gives you an edge, should you be called back for a pre-employment interview.

When employers can see that you’ve done your part to get to know the company more, it keeps them impressed. It shows them early on that you’re serious about landing a position with their team. This gives you that added edge against all the other applicants.

5. The Right Attitude

What is the right attitude when applying for a job? It boils down to two words: passion and determination. More than anything else, you’ve got to be passionate about wanting to land a job that’s more or less related to the degree that you’ve finished. This passion will keep you burning with the desire to do well, right from the start of the application process, and even when you already get started with the team.

Determination is also needed for you never to give up. Job-hunting isn’t easy. Many times you’re going to get turned down. If you don’t have determination, you’re also going to slouch and give up. Your momentum breaks. Muster all this early on, so you can still keep going, even during the difficult days.

Yes, mind you, potential employers will also be able to see this as well. They’d know if they’re talking with someone who’s passionate about the job and someone that wants it for the sake of getting paid.

Conclusion

As you prepare to start searching for a job, remember that you first need to go through a lot of hard work. Don’t just think about the salary that you wish to earn. While working hard to find a job, remember that it’s also about preparing for the job that you’re going to be satisfied and happy in. With this list, you’re one step ahead of finding the right job for you.

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Interesting article: “What is a Resume?“