By Catherine Adenle
Explore ways to sabotage your job search. If as a job seeker, you want to be employed sooner rather than later, there are ways to ensure that your current lack of unemployment is not going to be for long. First and foremost, you have to keep searching.
Next, you have to keep making use of WOM (word of mouth), networking and telling people that you are looking for a job. You never know where your next job is going to come from, if people don’t know that you are looking for a job, they cannot help.
To keep searching, you have to also maintain focus as a lack of focus is another way to sabotage a job search. When you are out of work, looking for work should be your full-time job. Looking for a job every once in a while can ensure that you don’t find a job. If you have been looking for a job this way but having no luck, you may be inadvertently sabotaging your efforts without realizing it. Check out the sure-fire ways below of how job seekers sabotage their efforts. If you avoid them, you’ll be on your way to a more successful job search.
1. Not moving with the times by ignoring social media
When you are looking for a job, you should be in and out of the internet like a fiddler’s elbow. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and whatever other social networks people frequent are great job search tools and ones you should be making use of. They are free, readily available and intuitive to use. Your use of these sites should be professional, remember, you are looking for a job. Ensure that you are using the resources available within them to look for a job.
For how to use Twitter to search for a job, see these articles: Twitter Job Search, How to Use Twitter for Job Searching, How to Find a Job on Twitter. For how to use LinkedIn, see: How to Use LinkedIn to Search for a Job, Ten Ways to Use LinkedIn to Find a Job, How to Use LinkedIn to Search for a Job in 10 Slides. For how to use Facebook, see: Ten Ways to Use Facebook to Find a Job, Should You Use Facebook for Professional Networking? The Ultimate Guide to Using Facebook as a Job Search Tool.
2. Procrastination, lack of plan or goal setting
One of the ways you sabotage your job search is believing that you deserve the freedom you currently have. Don’t get sucked into any false sense of freedom as it is easy to sleep in as long as you’d like and stay up late, too. Not having a plan in place to follow daily in order to search for your next job is a sure way for you not to get a job. Inactivity and procrastination will always breed hopelessness. It’s essential for you to stay active in your job search, even when you don’t feel like it. I have heard too many job-seekers say they’re looking when all they’re doing is merely thinking about finding a job. Actually doing something about looking for work is the only way to go.
Have a ‘core CV and Covering Letter’ ready for tweaking any time you find a job you like. Do not postpone anything, start searching immediately. Goals are important, as they will help you to have a focus. It is surprising that most of us spend so much time choosing what to watch on TV or learn all of the programs, but we don’t get into the program of our lives. Trust me, it is tempting to want to roll out of bed in the afternoon, but it is important that you don’t if you are not currently earning any money.
Wake up as if you are going to work, then look for work, apply for the work you like, prepare for interviews and look some more. Do something daily to get you closer to a job. You have to make searching for a job by creating a job search schedule. Although you are playing by your own rules, it is important that you have deadlines set to meet. Take the opportunity of you as your own boss to get things done for yourself to yield the result that you want. Scheduling will promote efficiency, productive work, and balance, but above all, it will help you to secure a job quicker.
4. Not quantifying your accomplishments properly on your CV
What sort of reputation do you have on the web? Browse the net to see. People search for other people on the internet always. Google yourself, the information that you find is the same information that potential employers will find. This is the information age, so you need to know the sort of information that potential employers can get their hands on about you.
A picture of you brawling at night in a pub with a pint of beer in your hand is not a good look on the internet if you are looking for a job nor it is using a dodgy or questionable email address. The name partyboy001@____ or sexychocolategirl@____does do not get you any nod with a potential employer.
7. Negative thoughts
Nothing breaks down any job search sabotage like positive thinking. If you don’t want to stay unemployment, one of the best things to do is to constantly think about yourself and your ability to secure a job positively. Get rid of any self-destructive tendency you might have. Spend enough time working on looking for a job and be optimistic about things.
You are not the first person to be unemployed and you are not going to be the last, so don’t get yourself beaten down unnecessarily. You’ve got a job to do, believe that you know how to do it. Eliminate any negativity thoughts and steps from your daily routine, and you’ll love the final results.
Follow these simple tips above, so that you can land a job. To find your best career and learn more about your career interests and unique work personality, take a free career test or free iPersonic Career Choice Test.
How else do job seekers sabotage their job search?
Now that you have explored ways to sabotage your job search, what can you add? Add your comment below.
I agree. You are 100% right. It is good to remain positive irrespective of how long you have been searching for work. It is not easy, but one must keep keeping on. Thanks for these tips and advice.
Carole
Good advice. Very useful and helpful but the wording is abit broken at times. But other than that it’s good.
Olivia
You should check out Adzuna if you are a job seeker! We aim to help you find the right job locally and with 422,112 jobs available, you are bound to find something that suits you. So don’t give up.