Articles - The Voice of Job Seekers

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.

by Mark Anthony Dyson

7 Ways to WOW Employers During Any Recession

Design by Mark Anthony Dyson

It appears we’re at the dawning of another recession, and the layoffs of 2022 right before the holidays can scare job seekers into pausing their efforts to find new opportunities in 2023. On the contrary, this job market will require creative and bold ways to stand out to employers and recruiters. Companies will always hire or reach out to great talent. You have to be visible to be included ahead of passive job seekers.

Part of the challenge for job seekers is many depend solely on job boards, bracing themselves for interrogation during the interview process and hoping to get picked. What’s unfortunate is waiting to be chosen, often by the company, as if it were the NFL draft. Many will even go with companies that are the wrong fit for them.

When it comes to your competitors, they settle for being the hired hand instead of being the shepherd of their career. They do enough to say they did something. It’s an intrinsic battle most of us fight once during our careers. I did it when I needed the check. It’s not the worst decision ever, but unfortunately, for some, it’s the only way to navigate career moves year after year.

Yes, you can have a say in where you work. You can determine if a job has the ideal culture for you. But it’s work you must do, and connecting with the right people is an essential part of the work.

WOW them before your first interview. Remember, there are no quick fixes or immediate results here. Build an online presence over time, make meaningful connections consistently, and be twice as helpful as what you receive. The result: You have built a direct and indirect referral engine (more powerful than Google).

Here are a few suggestions:

1. WOW employers by weathering the storms

Resilience is a powerful attribute to show. You showed it during the pandemic’s recession. You can do it again. If you’re telling your story online and offline, part of your story explains how you navigated the challenges and overcame fears. Show how you create workarounds without complaining about obstacles. It’s tough to do, but it’s doable. Show them you are flexible, adaptable, and capable.

2. WOW employers with your diverse network

Showing you can work with different types of thinking and people from various backgrounds demonstrates you’re relatable and are a skillful communicator. You will also notice your networking opportunities will open global possibilities for jobs. You maintain composure when it’s challenging to understand a dialect or language different than yours—or show no indifference if a culture or race is new to you.

3. WOW employers with a consultant mindset

Good personal trainers assess your physical movement before prescribing exercises. They will only offer training to weaken a weak body part if the exercise strengthens the muscle. The trainer may defer to your doctor for further tests or a physical therapist who can rehabilitate the weak muscle. In the same way, the consultant mindset finds the problem, facilitates team solutions whenever possible, and targets, plans, and implements short and long-term fixes.

4. WOW employers, with your agility

Job seekers who are getting it done are adding skills valuable to many different industries. They also invest in the training instead of expecting a company to pay for it. They perpetually scale their careers and prioritize networking to connect with employers, recruiters, and referrers.

5. WOW employers with a bold delivery of solutions

While video applications have yet to be widely used to apply for jobs, it increases the chances recruiters and employers will get to know and grow to trust you. When using these mediums as storytelling tools, you can ensure ways to be memorable. Creating a podcast or being a guest on a podcast, radio, video, or television show changes how you are remembered and valued.

6. WOW employers with your use of video

Video can help you reach employers in many ways, and you can optimize its use on LinkedIn Live and Instagram Stories. Recruiters and employers actively use both, and there is a growing use of Instagram to show their culture and employees as brand ambassadors.

7. WOW employers by extending your resume to the web

Your resume needs more than accomplishments and results to stand out in a competitive job market. Blogs, vlogs, and podcasts are slowly growing as a way for job seekers to demonstrate expertise. An article on JobMob.co.il shows 17 examples of people who found creative and bold ideas to present their credentials to target employers. When it didn’t work for the original target employer, it helped them stand out to other companies like the intended employer.

It takes time to find out what employers want at the beginning of your job search. Since so many job candidates don’t have anything, online employers want to see, for you, it’s where you want to lead them. So many people need to put in the consistency and the thought to build an impressive online presence.

Consider this advice an opportunity to make it easy and insightful for employers to find you and, at times, discover you before you know they are looking.

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Forget A.I.: 10 Never-Changing Job Search Tactics to Use in Years to Come

Forget A.I.: 8 Never-Changing Job Search Tactics to Use Today and in Years to Come by Mark Anthony Dyson

Despite all the talk about how A.I. is taking over industries, pushing people out of jobs, and reshaping the hiring process, I’m here to tell you that as long as “human” remains a central element of “human resources,” you can rely on a few surefire job search tactics that reach people.

Here are some timeless ways to find job search and career success today:

1. A Well-Written Resume

Many career analysts and insiders claim the resume is dead, but you have permission to ignore them at least for one more year. Many companies still use screening technologies that hinge on parsing resumes, so a well-written, keyword-rich document is crucial to your career.

2. Consulting and Independent Contracting

You’ve heard the predictions that more and more people will become independent contractors over the next few years. Why not get in on the trend now? Nothing will ever replace human-to-human business activity, and this is one area where advances in technology are set to help instead of hinder. Thanks to smartphones, you can be easily accessible to your clients and offer the kind of on-demand services that so many organizations want now.

3. Flaunting Your Recommendations

LinkedIn recommendations are a powerful way to publicize your value to the world. Last year, I heard the story of a virtual assistant who received high praise from a businesswoman on LinkedIn. The post was viewed more than 10,000 times and generated hundreds of comments – many from people hoping to hire the assistant.

4. Networking

Networking’s value can never be overstated. Everything is networking, and networking is everything. Don’t forget to explore how to leverage your “weak ties” on social networks.

5. Staying in Touch With Your Field

Staying current on the latest trends and involved in relevant conversations helps you to actively promote your brand, your work, and your value. It will also keep you informed of what changes might be on the horizon for your industry – which lets you get the jump on those changes and position yourself for success.

6. Producing Content

Producing audio or visual content that presents your original thoughts to the world can be nerve-racking, but it’s necessary. This content produces value for other people – including people who may want to hire you based on how great your content is.

7. Volunteering

I call volunteering “the new work experience.” Not only does volunteering show employers you’re proactive and passionate, but it also gives you a chance to sharpen your current skills and develop new ones. Volunteer work with the right organization allows you to achieve your goals, learning outcomes, and marketability.

8. Soft Skills and Personality

Hiring managers and other decision-makers want to envision themselves working with you. Set yourself apart by using your soft skills and personality to show off how much you’ll thrive at their company. Don’t limit your conversations to dry, technical matters. Exchange ideas, share stories, laugh a little – start adding value before you’ve even got the job.

9. Emotional Intelligence

My friend, workplace futurist, and author Alexandra Levit told me a few years ago, “Professionals must “develop the skills they need to compete with small machines: empathy, intuition, judgment, and interpersonal sensitivity.” Machines aren’t programmed for emotional intelligence. Only humans can employ these attributes without relying on anyone to process them.

10. What tech-relevant tools are in your industry?

The easier you can navigate the constant changing of technology, the interviewer can imagine you in their vacant role. Employers today prefer less time training for more contributions by new hires. It’s better to invest in yourself to get updated training to control your career advancement. In some cases, you may need to invest time. In most cases, you’ll need to invest time and money. Volunteering, as mentioned earlier, can help you find a place to hone your newly attained skills.

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A.I. is only in its early stages in recruiting and hiring. In the future, it may radically alter the landscape, so pay attention to new developments as they come along. If you’re wondering about the value of your skills in general, research how many industries demand the skill(s). That will tell you how and if they could be scaled as is, or if new training is needed.

But until A.I. really does take over recruiting and hiring, the tactics offered above will help you achieve success – no robots required.

Originally published on Recruiter.com!