Happy first day of summer. Remember when that meant vacation? Your life may be in a semi-vacation state, but financial stress can make it hard to relax. So get serious about your quest for financial okay-ness. You may have noticed that we haven't written about how to get a job lately. That's because it's hard. Who knew that sending your resume to a bunch of people could be so draining? You need a game plan. It probably won't be that inspiring to search job boards or do a bunch of networking. In fact, it will probably be the opposite of fun. But to get your dream job (or just any job), you have to break through your own barriers.
Devise a strategy. Your end goal is to have a job, so figure out the best steps to make that happen. Since applying for jobs tends to dramatically increase the probability that you'll actually get one, set application goals. Beginnings can be hard, so start slow.
1. Figure out what types of jobs you'd actually be alright working. If it's all about the paycheck, then focus your search on locally oriented sites. Make a folder in your email or using site features (if they exist) of all the jobs that look like they have potential. You may end up looking briefly every day. But if you spend serious time on days one and two looking through sites, you'll probably both (a) figure out what search engines are most relevant to the type of work you want and (b) only need to comb through a day or two's worth of posting. This focusing will cut down on your perusal time significantly so that you can shift your energies to application.
2. Make sure your resume is up-to-date. It looks bad to send in a resume that ends in 2006. If you haven't worked since then, try to make your activities sound good. If you've picked a focus for your ideal job, try to target your resume to that field. For example, if you want to go into communications, list communications activities at the top of each job you say say you've held. Recruiters tend to get a lot of resumes, so give them the information up front, concisely, and impressively (but honestly).
3. Set a target number of jobs to apply to each day and — this is important — actually apply to them! Five is a good starting number because it's a bit of a pain but not overwhelming. Feel free to choose your own target. Even if your day three goal is one job a day, that's a huge increase from the number you were applying to beforehand. Applying to a job can take a bit of time, because just a little research can have a huge impact. If you can personalize your cover letter (and most jobs will require one), with the name of the recruiter, head of department, or even CEO, you will look way more interested than the typical "Dear Hiring Manager" applicant. This should be obvious, but you'd be surprised at the edge it will give you.
4. Follow up if you've gotten any hint of encouragement. If you're lucky enough to get even a standardized response acknowledging receipt of your application, send a thank you email. Although it may be a computer, it may also be a person with some influence sending those emails. Best case scenario, you impress someone with your manners. Worst case scenario, it means nothing. See? Free, easy, and potentially high impact.
5. Do it again. The whole drudgery of the job search is its repetitive aspect. But it's what you have to do: apply, apply, and apply again.
We highly recommend getting support in some form. Sites like Rock Unemployment provide tips, comic relief, and community. Or, check out The Riley Guide for salary guides and advice about negotiating salary. This can be a very challenging process, but as Tupac said: keep your head up. Your job is out there.
