Most available jobs are not job postings

Regrettably, some of today`s less informed job seekers believe that the Internet has transformed the job search into a nearly effortless process. They hastily update their resumes and post them on several online databases. These jobseekers then sit back and wait for an employer to call. Most of them wait a long, long time-often in vain. Even in the age of the Internet, a job search still requires hard work. Having a plan, using multiple search methods, and asking for help all increase the chances of success.

Matthew Mariani, Job search in the age of the Internet: Six jobseekers in search of employers, Occupational Outlook Quarterly, summer 2003, pp. 3

I`m not suggesting you shouldn`t send in your resume to online job postings.  But the facts are this:  there are usually so many applicants chasing those secure jobs especially in the government or a large corporation that HR clerks can`t processes all of them.

 

Many times poor resumes are automatically discarded. Large companies don`t have time to dwell on each and every resume, and not every resume is scanned into the system.  In this economy, HR departments are scaled down—the organization isn`t employing or hiring as many people as the good times—so there are fewer resources in house to process the ever-increasing volume of resumes that come in.  The result is that HR only has enough resources to evaluate the first 50 or 100 resumes that come in for a posting. If you`re not in that initial lot—and how would you ever know—then you`re resume is not even considered.

Even if your resume is looked at, if there is little to catch the eye of the reader in a quick scan, chances are the resume will be screened out, not in. Too many job searchers have old-fashioned, ineffective resumes.  Get an up-to-date resume, one that conforms with current resume conventions, to optimize your chances in a competitive online world.  Get a professional rewriting of your resume to attract the attention of a reader!

Even with a good resume, the fact of the matter is that job postings represent only about 10% of the jobs available at anytime in the workforce.

You can`t be faulted for this mindset of thinking the only jobs available are those you see in the newspaper or online. After all, it makes sense, doesn’t it, that if a company needs an employee, it will  tell everyone about it (through a posting) so they can fill the position quickly?  Well, put yourself in their shoes.  If you put up a posting, and get 1000, or 10,000 resumes, all that does is dramatically increase the cost—in terms of time, people, and money—to add to the hiring process.  Companies are trying to minimize costs in this economy, not engage in costly hiring processes.

What other way is there of finding a job?  What is a more effective way to find a job in this economy? 

Find out the answers to these questions and more from George Dutch, a certified job change expert at http://www.jobjoy.com.  Register here for his free webinar `Secrets of a Successful Job Search. More information please Visit this site www.jobjoy.com

Career Change Advice for Talented Women with predictable, boring, mundane jobs

Taba Cookey is an extremely talented woman who had immigrated to Canada from Nigeria to go to work in high level finance. She had earned her first degree in England and had got a Masters degree in Canada some years later before returning to Nigeria to continue her banking career.

She said that while she was in Ottawa looking to move from her job in financial sector research, she thought she should take advantage of the kind of career consulting (that I offer) that doesn`t exist in Nigeria, and explore her options for career change. I had Taba write her story eight examples of experiences that had been very satisfying for her throughout her life. They didn’t have to be job related.

What came up again and again is that she thrives with new competitive challenges that force her to stretch herself beyond anything she had ever done before. She also needs those challenges defined with deadlines and guidelines for measuring success. For example, she was usually one of the best students in her schools and was the only student in her graduate school class to complete her master’s thesis in time to graduate on schedule.

When she moved from Nigeria to London at age 9, she quickly established herself as one of the star sprinters in her elementary school. Before long, having run out of female competition, talk in the playground was that she should take on the fastest boy runner in the school.

Finally, a date and hour was set. It was close but there was no doubt about the result: I won, and that was the end of John`s bragging about how fast he was, Taba said.

At some point during this career audit, she accepted an offer as Standards and Insurance Manager for a Canadian government agency that was charged with protecting consumers’ deposits in event of the failure of federally regulated banks and trust companies. She didn`t understand why at the time, but found herself so bored and frustrated with her job.

We figured out that even though her position at the government regulatory agency might be the perfect job for someone else, it was just pushing papers for her. Many jobs, including the one she was in at the agency, organized to be predictable and mundane and often become simple and boring for talented people like Taba.

Using her story, we determined:

* The work environment she would thrive in.

* The type of work she would thrive in.

* The way she likes to be managed.

* The way she likes to be rewarded.

* What motivates her?

* And how she likes to approach tasks.

My work with George made me realize this sort of work was thoroughly unsuited to me says Taba.

She began to seriously consider returning to Nigeria and we talked about the need for African ex-patriots to return home and use their knowledge and expertise in developing Africa.  She decided to go back to Nigeria without any prospects for a job. I told her that she had lots of talents and people would recognize and reward her for that.

I think that one of the reasons ex-patriates don`t go back to their home countries after being educated abroad is because they’re worried they won’t get challenging jobs. I knew it wouldn’t be a problem for Taba because she has talents that transfer across borders. It was just a question of packaging her talents to be recognized and rewarded in different cultural contexts.

So we had to put her talents into a resume to show what this person could do for an employer anywhere a dramatic example of how her talents transfer across cultures and borders.

She sent me an email saying, An amazing opportunity opened up in Ghana. I am a Program Manager with the African Finance Corporation (http://www.africafc.org), based in Accra, responsible for overseeing all IFC leasing development programs in Africa. IFC is the private sector arm of the World Bank, promoting development through loans, equity and technical assistance to the private sector.

A lot of businesses in Africa have difficulty in accessing traditional bank financing, and leasing provides an attractive alternative to such companies. The program aims to promote the role of leasing through training, public awareness, attracting new investment into the industry and working with the authorities in specific African countries to improve the legislative and regulatory environment for leasing.

This job is challenging for her because it is so varied and really stretches her capabilities. Also, she travels all over Africa and has to deal with different personalities in differing cultures. She needs to be in circumstances that stretch her, like beating the fastest boy in school.

The other day I went through the life stories I had written and the analysis you had done four years ago now, and was amazed at the way it has all come together in my present job, said Taba. It is really quite uncanny. But then again perhaps not, since you had so accurately identified the kind of work and environment that would give me ‘job joy’ and I have finally found it. It is not surprising that I can now say without hesitation that I have never enjoyed work so much, and yes, feels fortunate that I am actually getting paid for it. I come to work every day with a sense of anticipation, and hardly know where the time has gone at the end of the day. I actually have to tear myself away! This is such a change from so much of my previous life spent clock watching and day dreaming at work.

When we get into a job fit, other parts of our lives often fall into place.  After a few years in this job, Taba returned to Nigeria in 2008.  It is great to be backing home, I think age is finally taming my itchy feet! She was recently married, and took a new position with the Nigerian Stock Exchange.  Congratulations, Taba, in putting down roots! 

More information please Visit this sites www.jobjoy.com

Six tips for slipping off the Golden Handcuffs without ruining your career

In the past two years, I have assisted many men & women in their 40s & 50s who got laid-off; some from a job they enjoyed; others who didn’t—but all of them had resisted making a career change until it was forced on them because of the Golden Handcuffs syndrome.

In effect, they felt compelled to stay with their employers because they had an income and lifestyle that offset any job stress or dissatisfaction.

Being let go, for any reason, is a blow to the confidence of anyone. But once they are laid off, almost 60% of them think they don’t need any help with their job search and can figure it out for themselves.

In almost all cases, they are surprised, even shocked, to discover how difficult it is to get another job with a similar compensation package…or find an opportunity that stimulates them.

Before they know it, they are out of work for more than a year, their savings are vanishing, and they soon realize that they need a job ASAP.

But because they had no clear plan or motivation for a job change or career move, the competition for interim jobs-to-get-by-and-pay-bills is not only intense but often goes to individuals with less education and experience because the risk that they will get something better in the short term and move onto another employer is much lower.

We all know people in this situation. When we have good jobs, we often feel powerless to change our situation, so we accept our Golden Handcuffs as necessary…until we too get a pink slip. What is to be done?

If you are in such a situation or know someone who is, here are a few tips to reduce your stress and increase your chances of making a positive change more quickly and easily 

1.  Pay Attention. Review your employer’s situation, keep your ear to the ground for any information, even gossip, that might reveal any threat to your job security, e.g. rumors to convert permanent jobs into independent contractors, temps, consultants, or freelancers. If you see any writing on the wall, ready yourself for job change, career change, self-employment, or early retirement

       2.     Prevent Career Obsolescence. Do whatever you can to keep your skills marketable and your  qualifications in mint condition. Whenever possible, invest in transportable skills that you can carry across economic sectors or job situations.

      3.    Take a Long View. Get a proper career assessment done. Be sure you know the several dozen jobs that you are suited for, based not only on your education & experience (which may have landed you into a Golden Handcuffs role that cannot be replicated elsewhere), but of your talents & motivations, your real value proposition!

       4.  Reflect on Unsavory Options. Although self-employment is not for everyone, especially for individuals who do not manage financial uncertainty well, thinking about how you could start a business on your own or with partner(s)…it may prove more secure and rewarding than being at someone else’s beck and call.

    5.   Network Forever. Any business is about relationships. Join professional organizations, community groups, or just lunch more frequently with friends to discuss the changing dynamics of our economy and workplaces. Pay it forward, help out when you can because the contacts that you nurture now can open doors when you unexpectedly need them.

    6.  Get Professional Help. The digital era is ushering in new job search tools and techniques, and having an effect on how to interview, negotiate, and strategize for better job opportunities. Engage a career professional to update and upgrade your toolbox to optimize your chances of making a successful move if or when the time comes.

Finally, don’t get complacent. Do a few things now to avoid finding out the hard way how Golden Handcuffs can add stress and pain to your life!. More information please visit site www.jobjoy.com

Making a big career change late in life as a single mom

Vera Adamovich was very motivated to make a career change when she showed up at my office. She had that day signed a contract with another career consulting firm, heard of me, and then signed up with my organization too.

At the time she was running a home-based desktop publishing business, the main product of which was a weekly advertising publication.

She wasn’t unhappy with the business because, as a single mom, it had allowed her to be home with her daughters for nine years.

However, when I met Vera, the kids were 11 and 16 respectively and there wasn’t the need for her to be home as much, which caused her situation to be less than satisfying.

Although not miserable, she was always struggling financially because the business didn’t provide sufficient income. Vera hated the responsibility for advertising sales that were necessary to increase the volume of business, but it was difficult to secure good sales people. She’d hire them and they’d last a month.

Though she knew she’d “had it” with desktop publishing, Vera had no idea of what she wanted to do.

Assessment

After reviewing several of her more pleasant assignment experiences, I realized Vera had one very valuable talent. She was able to translate complicated concepts like accounting procedures, computer reports and financial statements in such a way that people could understand and apply them.

In the past she had had jobs where she taught people how to use software, how to interpret management reports and how to process and track orders on an automated system.

Vera’s education wasn’t in high tech but in art, which she used in her desktop publishing business. She loved the creativity involved with designing graphics and derived much satisfaction from a well turned-out final product. What was missing was people contact.

In fact, her work life was structured exactly the opposite way than it should have been. She was spending 80% of her time at home alone working on the computer and 20% of her time interacting with people.

It wasn’t a good job fit and she needed to reverse that equation so that the people portion was 80% of her time and the remainder was spent working at her computer.

She needed to be independent, and not confined to a 9-5 desk job. In other words, she needed a variety of activities and the flexibility to manage her own schedule.

It was actually a question of whether she was going to build a career around her artistic talents or her communication talents. The creative route gave her a real feeling of accomplishment, but she wasn’t able to make enough money from that alone.

Job Choice

Armed with the knowledge of what she needed and what she needed to avoid, Vera was able to find the perfect job in a very short time. She got a position with Laurentian Financial Services as a Certified Financial Planner. However, even though she works with a big company, she has a sense of being self-employed under a structure that is similar to a real estate agent.

“It’s absolutely a people business,” she said. “When it comes to financial planning people have problems that need solving. Dealing with what are often huge problems to my clients, I am able to offer solutions with ease.” Vera enjoys the level of comfort she is able to bring to her clients. She’s happy as the captain of her own ship and totally in charge. She can choose whether to work in her home office or her downtown office.

Most of her time is spent talking to people. When she does have to work on the computer, she says, “It’s a joy! It comes naturally to me, and that’s a creative outlet as well.”

She added that her income is now “great.” It can be whatever she wants it to be. She has everything she needs to get true satisfaction from her career.

Values + Talents = Good Jobfit

Vera made a career decision based on values – that it was important to be home with her daughters. A value-based decision one hears more often is something like, “I’m going to be a millionaire by the time I’m 30.”

It’s not a bad thing to make a decision based on values, but don’t make a decision that excludes your talents. They don’t have to be mutually exclusive. People who make a career decision based only on values may be setting themselves up for a job misfit and years of frustration. Vera’s values were noble. She was trying to do the best for the kids, but her choice didn’t match her natural interests and talents.

She could have done both. Many people get trapped in job situations because they don’t recognize their natural inclinations – what they do naturally and effortlessly – in terms of the right work.

Once Vera had that knowledge, she was able to spot an opportunity that fit her to a “T”.  Today, Vera’s business continues to grow through the Independent Planning Group Inc.

More information please visit site www.jobjoy.com