Bold Moves for Job Hunting - Top Three Tips

Take Control of Your Job Seach

Everyday there is some new website, blog, career adviser or service that promises to accelerate your job search and guarantee results: you WILL get an interview if you just purchase this service or package. Yeah right! OK, full disclosure, I may have made some of those claims myself, as a career coach pushing my services! But, I know, and I tell my clients, there are no guarantees in job hunting. It is probably the most frustrating activity we humans engage in. Often, the job seeker is in the dark as to why their resume is not selected, or why they don't make it past the first round of interviews. We are distressed because no one even acknowledges our resume has been received, much less read. It is rough out there, that is for sure.

So, what can you do to have a little more control over your job search? Here are this week's Top Three Tips:

1. Ignore the “No Calls, Please”

When I recruited, I often put “No Calls” on my job posts. The primary reason was I wanted to review resumes and call the candidates I deemed the closest fit. In today's flooded job market, no one is actually reading resumes. Your resume is filtered based on keywords. Then it lives on a server, and if necessary, a junior HR staffer will do a search, and maybe your resumes pops up, maybe not. So, by all means, CALL. It is your resume, you submitted it, and you have the right to follow-up. Be polite, inquire as to if they received it, if the position is still open, and what the notification process is.

 

2. Skip the HR Department

Pretend you're in sales and cold call the hiring manager. Can't find the hiring manager? Call in an ask for the name of the “Director of Whatever Dept Your Applying To” then hang up and call back in 15 minutes and ask for them. Have your “30-second” phone pitch down, and go for it. The worst that can happen is you will be hung up on. Like that's never happened, eh? If you are looking for a job, you need to do this.

3. Drop Off Your Resume in Person

I know, I know. Conventional wisdom and a million other career coaches say not to do this. But, mostly, it is OK. Especially if you are an entry-level candidate, or a career changer. Your resume will most likely go straight to the HR office, so get the name and title of the HR Director. Then wait 5 business days and give them a call (have your pitch ready again). Either they'll be curt and get you off the phone, or provide you with the information you request.

The main thing these three tips have in common are they cut out the “waiting and wondering” portion of your job search. You are the one looking for a job, not the HR department or Hiring Manager. It is in your benefit to move things along, or get the attention of the Hiring Manager, or at the very least, find out if there is no chance and move on. I never actually minded phone calls about jobs I posted, and I often interviewed candidates who blatantly ignored my plea. I thought, well, they are not waiting around, and they are not afraid to pick up the phone and pitch themselves.......my kind of candidate.

About the "No Calls" Author: Kristi Enigl is a Career & Job Search Consultant who brings over 20 years of Hiring, HR Management and Executive Recruiting across a broad spectrum of industries to her professional practice. She helps professionals identify, create, and market their personal brand so they reach their career goals – FAST. Email your resume to coachkristi@kristienigl.com for a complimentary, professional evaluation.