Articles - The Voice of Job Seekers

Job Search Trends of 2023 With Hannah Morgan and Robin Ryan

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Happy New Year!! I hope all is well in your world. For the past few years, including this one, I have been presenting a show with a panel to discuss the new year’s trends with Hannah Morgan and Robin Ryan.

Hannah Morgan is the founder of CareerSherpa.net and loves helping people understand what actions they need to take to find a job faster. She is a speaker, trainer, and nationally recognized expert.

Robin Ryan is Wall Street Journal’s best-selling author and has contributed her expertise to media outlets more than 3,000 times. She is a current Forbes Career Contributor, leading webinars and helping clients.

Here are highlights of our discussion:

Washington State just announced their law requiring companies to post the job and salary range. Will this continue to trend upward?
Pay Transparency
Can we finally put to be the “Quiet-Quitting” narrative in 2023?
Do layoffs in one industry affect other industries?
Layoff preparation.
Employers are looking at promotions more seriously and as an alternative to finding new talent.
Flexible work arrangements and their impact.
Job seekers will need to market themselves more strategically.
What makes a job-seeker stand out today and in the future?
LinkedIn is a necessity, but any platform will go away. Websites and about.me are ways to sustain online visibility.
Networking is a staple in your job search strategy.

You are more than welcome to join the discussion. Here are three ways you can:

– Call and leave a voicemail at 708-365-9822, or text your comments to the same number

– Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com, press the “Send Voicemail” button on the right side of your screen and leave a message

– Send email feedback to mark@thevoiceofjobseekers.com

by Mark Anthony Dyson

12 Ways Work at Home Pros Get Professional Development

12 Ways Work at Home Pros Get Professional Development by Mark Anthony Dyson

Do you work at home, but yet, feel your skills are becoming dull? It depends.

According to Flexjobs recent survey* of working mothers, 64% feel they are more productive at home.

Yet, many work-at-home (WAH) professionals feel challenged to keep up with trends and to learn the new skills necessary to stay employed and well-paid.

Like your work, you can also do this important learning at home. Professionals need continual skill refreshment to remain productive for their job and add value to their work and career.

I like to share the resources and tools I used. These helped my career growth and sharpened my skills:

1. Webinars and teleconferences

Most organizations provide continuing education online via streaming or on-demand, making it accessible around the clock. Depending on the organization, an additional charge occurred by the user, and possibly, not included in the membership cost.

You can also check to see if the organization put last year’s webinar or teleconference on YouTube for free. Depending on the industry, last year’s information is useful after a year or two.

2. Podcasts and vlogs

Niche podcasts and vlogs (video blogs) are often part of an industry organization’s library for members. Podcast directories and libraries house many subjects from different angles.

Most smartphones have a place to download and store podcasts and vlogs so you can listen anywhere. As I mentioned, creating and hosting a podcast not only a closer network but also learning opportunities.

Listen: Strategies for the Working Parent to Find Remote Work

3. Collaborations

Work with other WAH professionals who are keeping up with industry trends on articles, videos, and online presentations.

If you are older, work with a younger peer who knows how to use online tools. Older workers would benefit working with younger professionals to help remove the “too old” stigma.

Younger professionals will learn how to apply and present knowledge and gain knowledge about many aspects of successful careers from older professionals who have learned from (sometimes painful) experience.

4. Volunteer

There are non-profit organizations who work with professionals to pilot their new but unpolished skills. There’s often a significant learning curve, and it benefits both parties.

The generosity environment breeds people will vouch for the value of your abilities. It’s an excellent way to get a few recommendations and endorsements on your LinkedIn profile and give your profile additional visibility.

5. Train others

Maya Angelou once said, “When you learn, teach. When you get, give.” It’s easier to become fulfilled today once you start helping others become fulfilled.

Training others is more than just passing the time with billable hours. Training is purposeful when you’re passing on to others what has fulfilled you.

Listen: How to Find Telecommuting Jobs with FlexJobs

6. Create networking opportunities

Meetups are a great way to curb the feeling of being on an island. Events are a great way to get feedback on innovative ideas you would value.

Every social interaction is a networking opportunity. Church, hair salon, barbershop, or the cleaners are all networking opportunities. One piece of advice or one person can change the trajectory of your efforts. Don’t waste an opportunity.

7. Read with your local public library, “Libby,” and YouTube

All you need is a local library card to access digital and audiobooks. Libby is a free app available on iOS and Google Play.

You borrow and return books from your library using your app for all transactions. You access the books like you do at your local library.

YouTube is useful for audiobooks. I found and listened to Chris Voss’s book Never Split The Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It for free. You can find older classic business and career books there.

8. New certifications of a different skillset

Toastmasters is just one way to polish a skill that crosses many platforms. Getting the advance certifications encourages you to master this highly useful transferable skill.

Certification programs also provide networking opportunities, both online and offline. My training certification process and short practice added valuable insights into my writing and consulting with job seekers.

There are many parallels in the way people approach fitness and job search. I’m sure there are many other similar parallels of interest to sharpen your skills in working from home.

9. Participate in industry organization contests

The competition will test what you know and exploit what you don’t know. Failed to place?

Get the training and then come back for the win. Contests can help familiarize yourself with the cutting edge of trends. The competition also will bring out the best of your access at that time.

When you do place first, you can use the accomplishment to promote you, your services, and expand your brand.

10. Don’t forget LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, Skillshare etc.

All of these services have mobile apps you can use anywhere. Udemy often offers classes at a 90% discount, so it’s worth watching for the offers. Theses on-demand classes are available anytime.

11. Think Tank groups

There are several forums and Facebook groups I belong to as it helps my perspective of my industry. One is a writing group, and the others are with career professionals as part of a larger organization.

It doesn’t hurt to pay to join these groups although you may find some for free. The paid groups motivate you to get value because you paid to do so. I belong to a couple of free ones. They don’t offer the cost as the paid ones. But everyone’s experience is different.

12. Professional associations

Small, local professional associations may exist as well as local chapters of national and international organizations. These can be great sources of learning in seminars and professional certifications (in person or recorded), even emailed newsletters.

You may also find opportunities to join association-member-only social media, like a Facebook group, where insider information may be shared. These groups can be excellent sources of information about the local market for your work plus opportunities to learn and a great environment for the networking that helps you remain employed.

Just because you’re a WAH professional doesn’t mean you have only to use the tools an employer tells you to use. If fact, your best career advancement and tool sharpening strategies is on your dime.

BONUS: 13. Use Loom to document for learning and feedback

Loom is a video platform where professionals are using it to create various forms of content. I was writing an article for a client and asked an expert for a comment. He sent me his thoughts using Loom and it helped me score points with the editor for the detail I provided having the video.

There are professionals who learning and exchanging ideas with co-workers as well as learning by documenting their processes.

The Bottom Line

Forge forward and increase your marketability to its full potential because an employer will only provide what is necessary for them. You own your future. For me, podcasting has created a networking ecosystem, and even if no one listens, I’ve talked with hundreds of professionals in my industry. Many of them follow trends, and some are innovators who pointed to other resources to enrich my learning.

This article was originally published on job-hunt.org!

P.S. I was asked by the people from Prezi which resulted in a complementary video to this article. Watch and let me know what you think.

by Mark Anthony Dyson

One Job Search Strategy is Not Enough

Design by Mark Anthony Dyson

You want to be seen and heard of getting a job but not famous. It takes thought and strategy. Looking for opportunities when transitioning to another career or due to a job separation is a chase you don’t want to pursue.

I get it.

It was almost a year ago I was ousted by Facebook and IG. They claimed I posted “against community standards.” When I emailed them three times to contest it and asked what standards I broke, they said they would get back to me. People told me I needed to get back as soon as possible. I was urgent in resolving the issue.

They weren’t.

They disabled my account instead.

After attempting to reach them for a few weeks, I decided to double down on Twitter and LinkedIn. In a way, life got more manageable.

I’m sorry, I don’t have a sexy “I-gained-tens-of-thousands-of-followers” story on any platform.

I didn’t crack anybody’s algorithm.

Well, tomorrow’s here, and I’m not hooked; I didn’t spend my last dime tryin’ and didn’t miss it. I’m NOT feenin’ (for Facebook or IG). I didn’t create second accounts for either.

I got a blog with hundreds of articles.
I got an email list of almost 3,000 people (more than that, but I purge regularly).
Not to mention I create tons of other content.

Lesson learned: Never rely on one platform to send your message.

Any platform could dive at any time.

Apply the same principle I mention here to your job search:

One method of job search offers little success. Diversifying your strategy over time (and hopefully continuously) will bring a stream of potential opportunities.
When one method brings a little momentum, use others for a forward thrust.
Social media offers opportunities to connect with people, but reliance on one platform could minimize your possibilities.
Creating content showcasing your expertise has a lot of value. It’s one way for people to find you and your work and discuss what you do, not how you got there.

Rejection may cause you to panic and make you feel anxious, and you do some things you’ll regret. Don’t fall for it.