September 13, 2012

How to Jump Start Your Job Search

In today’s competitive job market, it is important to find ways to stand out to potential employers. While experience and education are still highly sought after by employers, it is necessary to highlight these in a way that shows how they will be beneficial to a business or company. Additionally, because many jobs require specialized skills, it is becoming necessary to make sure that any documentation of experience is flexible enough to be tailored to reflect a job position’s specific needs. Searching for a job can be demanding and frustrating at times. Therefore, the following ideas will help anyone to jump start their job search so that they will have a better chance at being successful when attempting to secure a new position.

1. Revise Your Resume-One of the biggest mistakes that many people make when they are looking for a job is forgetting to update their resume. Obsolete skills should be omitted. This is especially true if they are not pertinent to the position. Additionally, if new skills have been learned or a person has recently attended school, then that information should be included.

2. Utilize Social Media-New technologies have made job networking easier than ever. However, many job seekers forget to take advantage of the benefits that social media can provide. Therefore, anyone searching for job should use social media sources to get insider information about a company, announce their job search or even post their resume where potential employers can see it easily.

3. Tailor Your Cover Letter-Many people make the mistake of sending out a cover letter that came straight off of a template. While these make good outlines for a letter, it is important to personalize cover letters to reflect each company’s mission. This not only helps a job candidate to stand out, but it also shows that a candidate is knowledgeable about the company to which they are applying.

4. Take a Writing Course-When the first impression that a hiring manager has of a potential job candidate is their resume and cover letter, it is important for it to contain proper grammar and spelling. Therefore, many people find it helpful to enroll in a writing course in order to brush up on their skills. Additionally, writing classes can be added to a resume to show that a person has pursued continuing their education.

5. Follow Up-Often-A person leaves a job interview or sends off a resume without ever following up. Sending a simple thank you letter or email can make the difference when a hiring manager is attempting to choose between two candidates with similar backgrounds. Follow up letters should be kept brief, and touch upon a few key points of why the job is right for the candidate. This can help a person to truly stand out from the crowd.

When a person begins to search for a job, it is important to put their best foot forward. Therefore, having a well-written resume and cover letter as well as taking advantage of social media resources can enable a person to score that interview that can lead to a promising career.
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Author: Nancy Parker was a professional nanny and she loves to write about wide range of subjects like health, Parenting, Child Care, Babysitting, nanny, www.enannysource.com etc. You can reach her @ nancy.parker015 @ gmail.com