The Voice of Job Seekers

Mark Anthony Dyson ★ Career Writer ★ Speaker ★ Thinker ★ Award-winning Blog & Podcast! ★ "The Job Scam Report" on Substack! ★ I hack and reimagine the modern job search!

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by Mark Anthony Dyson

14 Job Search Tips to Master in 2018

14 Job Search Tips to Master in 2018

If it has been a few years since the last time you went on a job search, you need to know that things have changed. Sure, there’s advice from 2011 that still applies today – for example, networking is still a great idea. That being said, you’ll need to brush up on the latest job search strategies if you want to land a role.

One particularly important new development you should know about: Using social media to stay connected, visible, and engaged in your network is critical to job search success today.

Of course, that’s not where it ends. Here are 14 tips to help you find a new job like a modern job seeker:

1. Don’t Overestimate Tech

Artificial intelligence is a big deal in recruitment circles today, with many people claiming that chatbots like Mya will help you get your next interview.

The way I see it, unless Mya is advanced enough to laugh and cry, it isn’t likely to increase your chances of landing the job. It is still true today that nothing beats getting a referral from someone you know.

via GIPHY

2. Think Outside the Box to Gain New Skills

Volunteering, entrepreneurial ventures, and side gigs are great ways to gain new job experiences and skills.

Don’t accept “You don’t have the experience” as the final word. Go get that experience.

Click To Tweet

3. Stay Engaged

The modern job seeker remains perpetually engaged in the job search in a number ways: networking, consulting, training (as both trainee and facilitator), professional development, and social media promotion. Take every opportunity you can to build your personal brand.

4. Breathe Life Into Your Resume

According to Jessica Dillard of Dillard & Associates, it’s time to stop treating your resume like a transactional document. Instead, use your various experiences to craft stories that demonstrate your results.

Furthermore, stop treating the job search as a transactional process. At every step, try to approach your job search as a “collaborative, engaging partnership,” Dillard says.

Listen to How Will You Stand Out at Your Next Job Fair? Use a Handbill

5. Whip Out Your Phone

Your smartphone is an invaluable aid in your job search. Scanning documents, sending emails, submitting applications, completing assessments – you can do it all through your phone. You can also use your smartphone for career development purposes by accessing online courses and programs.

6. Higher Ed. Degrees: Not Totally Necessary

A higher education degree is no longer the sure bet to advance your career.

Before investing in another degree, take a look at successful people in your industry or career track. Do they have degrees?

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7. Build a Team

Some career coaches are open to working with groups rather than single clients. See if you can find some like-minded professionals to start a “career partnership” group and split the cost of a career coach. You and your group members can also add value to one another’s job searches.

8. Get Past the ATS

Some reports suggest that more than 70 percent of resumes are rejected by applicant tracking systems (ATSs) before they’re ever seen by a human being. To ensure your resume gets through the gate, check out tools like Jobscan, which compares your resume against the job ad and suggests ways to improve your resume accordingly.

9. Offer Social Proof

Social media profiles alone are not enough. You’ll need social proof, too – that is, proof of the value you create as an employee shared by others on social media.

Are you engaged in the conversation at large in your industry? Have you published articles or peer-reviewed research? Does the industry recognize your contributions? More than 90 percent of recruiters check out potential candidates on social media. They’ll pay attention if they see you actively engaged in your industry – e.g., sharing industry news, interacting with thought leaders, and being praised by clients and coworkers.

10. Ready Your References

Many employers will require at least three people to vouch for you. I recommend having up to seven people who are ready to speak up on your behalf. You should know what these references will say if contacted and to which of your strengths they can speak most effectively.

11. Small Is Beautiful

via GIPHY

Big companies are not the only option. Small businesses and startups are increasingly viable options.

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If you’ve never worked for a smaller operation before, you might also consider freelancing with a potential employer to test drive their culture before committing.

12. Stay on Your Toes

In-demand skills change constantly today, so you’ll have to be flexible. By 2021, more than a third of the skills considered “important” for today’s workers will have changed, according to the World Economic Forum.

13. Defensive Googling Is Essential

Recruiters will be looking you up on Google – you should do the same. Google yourself once a week. Take note of any results that tarnish your image – including those that may be about other people who happen to share your name.

For some help on managing your Google results, read this article.

Listen to LinkedIn SEO with Susan P Joyce

14. Archive Your Performance

Keep an exhaustive list of your professional accomplishments, the career development programs you’ve completed, the results you’ve achieved, and the positive impacts of your actions at work. Keep your old performance reviews and kudos emails. These things will help shape your outlook on the future, restore confidence during trying times, and build your resume.

–

If you ever say, “I’ve tried everything, but nothing has worked,” then you have given up too early. No job search strategy on this list – or any other list – is one and done. You may have to try targeting different people, companies, and locations until you yield results.

There are hundreds of job search tips available on the internet. Don’t attempt them all at once. Instead, try three or four at a time to see how well each works for you.

Thanks to venngage.com for the infographic and partnership. This article was originally published at recruiter.com!

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: careers, Job Search Tagged With: Job Search, Resume, Social Media

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Job Search News Special – How to Use My Job Search Tips eGuide

Job Search News Special – How to Use My Job Search Tips eGuide

What’s hot? My updated eGuide “118 Job Search Tips…”

If you don’t have my job search tips eGuide, you can get it right here. I feel the need to explain how to use my tips guide. You can apply this to any checklist, article, or presentation. I wanted to provide you with relevant advice to get you started. If you’re parents or friends tell you the job search is a numbers game, tell them to get my eGuide. It’s free for the taking and using.

Set them free today from old and stale advice!

Click To Tweet

There are more than 118 tips! There are about 14 areas I cover to get you started!

People are still giving advice their parents gave them from years ago hoping it would work. Then again, people are always assuming the most popular advice others follow is the best advice. Frustration and confusion overcome strategy and logic, which results in job seekers doing what is comfortable and passive. Many job seekers go months and years without interviews and jobs when they can just click and apply.

  • They will rely on job boards by applying to everything.
  • They will depend on a few friends to offer leads.
  • Maybe they will read some advice columns or blogs; a few will read books.
  • They will attend career fairs in desperation mode, annoying the attending employers.
  • They will go on social media only looking for someone to give them an opportunity (rarely does it ever happen if at all).

Then at the end of their ropes, when they ask for advice, it’s out of desperation. If you ever noticed, everyone runs from a desperate job seeker. Everyone.

Job tips send you in the right direction. They are the arrow pointing you where to go to start.

It’s up to you to seek out what the entire process is for you to succeed. But remember, it is only a tip.

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Tips work best: Experimentation is good. If it doesn’t feel right, you can back away, although, in my eGuide, no workout equipment is needed. Decide which tips are worth being patient for to succeed. Plan on being patient but diligent.

Tips fail: When you experiment half-heartedly and without a strategy. Why would you conduct a job search without one? Admittedly, you’ll need to make some moves requiring advice. 

Tips work best: You want longevity for your career, especially the ones about brand building. Writing articles, doing videos, or creating podcasts takes time to get views and takes work to create quality products. The payoff isn’t the instant gratification of being noticed and getting hired on the spot. The payoff comes in creating a body of work and positioning yourself as the go-to person in the industry.

Tips fail: When you are impatient and desperate. Networking can be an out for desperation among the people who know you and understand you. For people who are minimally familiar with you, not so much.

 

Tips work best: Any strategy requires treating, rinsing, washing, and repeating. Consider how you approach people with your wants and needs and ask yourself, “What will this relationship look like a few minutes, months, and years from now if I’m only asking for stuff?” Most of the tips shared in my guide involve how you interact with others (if you have thought deeply about them).

Tips fail: No advice works when you miscommunicate the goal.  Asking an awkward question such as, “Can I network with you?” breeds a lack of confidence. It would cause people to pause even if you have good intentions, but are not grasping the big picture.

via GIPHY

Tips work best: By sharing these tips (I love attribution, but give from your heart), you will get back in the long run. But more important, give without any expectation of return. My spirit about it all is to help people no matter how far and wide it reaches. Some of these tips were given to me by mentors and teachers. In return, using my experience with coaching and training job seekers, I created a guide for others.

Tips fail: If it’s all about you! Share with others what you’re doing. I have an attendee from my Job Lab who sends his contacts a newsletter to let them know how he’s doing and to share what he is learning. Capture this spirit, and you can take a load off yourself.

 

Tips work best: Be open-minded to change, pivot, and recalculate. The job search is not designed to be comfortable or painful. You get results when your resolve exceeds your comfort and embraces your willingness to be uncomfortable.

Tips fail: When you are looking to minimize your efforts. None of these tips are magic. They will take some trial and error.

 

Today’s modern job seeker stays engaged whether in career development mode or job-search mode. Preferably, you’ll stay engaged in both. As we move towards a gig economy, the job will matter much less than the work itself. As time goes on, I will renew these tips and add new ones yearly.

 

I hope you’ll stay with the newsletter and this blog as I share the changes in strategies and tips as they happen, or as you give me feedback.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: Job Search, job search news Tagged With: Job Search, job search news

by Mark Anthony Dyson

Job Search News – November 4, 2017

Job Search News – November 4, 2017

This is your job search news  with articles and resources so enjoy! I’ve read them, and you can feel free to comment on them in any form you’d like. Leave a message on the “send voicemail” button on your right. I’ll try to keep it short, fresh, and informative. If you have some news I need to know about, tweet me @MarkADyson!

#Resilience

Struggles are a part of life and makes us better to endure them. This Fast Company article shows up how we can endure and then thrive. Every job search episode has a struggle. Sometimes, it comes from our having to let resolve set in. We know we need to get it done, but there are times we haven’t found resolution and success eludes us. It’s good we learn from the process difficulties take us through. If any thing, we learn how to thrive so we can help others persist.

I like the way you move…people

via GIPHY

If you give people the security to feel their contributions matter whether manager or mail person. It’s your soft skills, baby!

 94% of recruiting professionals believe an employee with stronger soft skills has a better chance of being promoted to a leadership position than an employee with more years of experience but weaker soft skills.

~Forbes, 8/18/17

They set you apart from the crowds if you can demonstrate them either through recommendations, references, or a recording of how you use them training others. The power of seeing them in action or someone speaking on your behalf makes you memorable. If you want to compete, understand how you can demonstrate the soft skill functionality in your profession.

🔥🔥🔥What’s 🔥 in soft skills?

This article is from 2016 but I don’t think the desired soft skills have changed. I find this list of soft skills useful and the same list seen on most surveys.

😒😒😒when soft skills go wrong 😒😒😒

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

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Filed Under: Job Search, job search news, soft skills Tagged With: Job Search, job search news, Soft Skills

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I moderated a panel on Wealth Management for executives by Black Enterprise Magazine in October 2023 in Miami.

I was interviewed on Scripps News show, “The Why!” 4/13/2023

I talked with John Tarnoff and Kerry Hannon of “The Second Act” podcast about job searching after 50 in October 2022.

I was on “The Career Confidante” podcast to talk about “boomerang employees” and “job fishing” in June 2022.

Making Job Search a Lifestyle With “Dr. Dawn Graham on Careers,” SiriusXM Ch. 132, Wharton School of Business May 2021

In October 2025, I was interviewed by Nafo Savo, of Marketplace Tech, National Public Radio show

Beverly Jones, host of the NPR podcast “Jazzed About Work,” invited me back to talk job scams, job search trends, and AI tools in April 2024

WOUB Digital · Episode 183 : Job search expert Mark Dyson says beware of scams, know AI & keep learning

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