Are you attempting to shift away from an established career into a significantly new direction?
Are you returning to the workforce after being away for a while?
Are you trying to get your professional career started for the first time?
If you answered yes to any of the above, then you’re dealing with some unique job search challenges. Your biggest obstacle will probably be a lack of specific and/or recent experience in the career path you’ve chosen even if you have relevant education or training. Many hiring managers and most recruiters prefer the ideal candidate to have been doing the same or similar job in the same or similar industry. This is one of the main reasons why the recruiter won’t contact you when you’ve applied for an online posting that you know is perfect for you.
Of course, this isn’t the only reason for the lack of success with online postings. All job seekers experience a low response rate when applying for jobs online. For decades, job search research has shown that it’s far less effective than the more creative job search methods, such as networking to get referred to a hiring manager. So, it’s no surprise that recruiting software company, Jobvite, has reported that even though nearly 50% of all applicants come through job boards (followed by internal career sites at 35%), internal sources, such as hiring managers, referrals, and internal applicants, are more effective at driving hires in companies. (Report based on data from 10 million applications and 50 million job seekers.)
The bottom line is that no matter where you are in your career path (at the beginning or relaunching), it’s best to use creative ways to get hired, and here are 6 things you can do to make your new career launch go a lot smoother and get faster results:
1. Make a career launch/job search plan.
Even if it’s taking baby steps, you need a plan to move forward. Serendipity does happen, but you can’t rely solely on it. Want a great 3-point plan that’s easy to follow? Check out this excellent short article at LifeHacker.com, Create a ‘Career Search Action Plan’ Before You Look for a New Job.
2. Get support.
Build in some self-accountability to your plan. Change is challenging, so you need a way to stay focused and positive. Accountability partnering works well. That is, it works well as long as your partner is someone you admire and respect. When you share plans and goals with an accountability partner, you’ll naturally both want to discuss progress and celebrate milestones together. If you’ve never had an accountability partner and want to seek out one for yourself, read 5 Steps For Picking An Accountability Partner.
3. Connect and learn.
Find and meet with people who are already successfully established in the career you’re targeting. Yes, you can join a group online, but don’t stop there. Find a trade association dedicated to the profession you’re targeting and attend their programs in person. By networking and mingling, you’ll learn more about your chosen field. You can ask questions about possible career trajectories, you can learn the lingo, and, most importantly, you may uncover possible job opportunities that haven’t been posted online yet. If you’re not used to networking, you might also want to read Networking With Ease: Tips for Introverts AND Extroverts and Networking: Don’t Just Sit There, Make The Connection.
4. Get experience.
Do what you can to get the experience you need even if that means volunteering for free to do projects related to your new career. Think of this as creating a bridge to your future. Find part-time opportunities that you can add to your resume and that allow you to use your skills. Offer to support a friend who’s working on a startup business idea. Reach out to a nonprofit that would love to have your help. You could also find a paid temporary job or internship in the industry or sector you’re targeting as a way to get your foot in the door and build relationships. For a few more ideas, read Adrian Granzella Larssen’s article on The Muse, How to Get Experience in a New Field Without Starting at the Bottom.
5. Develop a resume for your new career.
Naturally, as you gain experience specifically related to your new career, even if it’s volunteer work, you’ll add this to your resume. In the meantime, you can also ensure that your relevant competencies and intangible qualities are conveyed well. For more about how to do this, read The Career Change Resume. Just be aware that it might not be your resume that ultimately opens doors. Rather, what might work best are the creative search strategies you use (more on that in number 6) and your ability to verbally express your passion for the new career you’re pursuing.
6. Find a job through creative targeting.
Yes, you should answer job postings just in case it works. However, as previously mentioned, you don’t want to rely solely on that search method. The most effective way to find a job, especially when launching a new career, is to target companies whether they have postings advertised or not. Here are two resources to help you with this approach:
- Career counselor, Robyn Ryan, suggests how to do it in her Forbes article, 15 Job Search Strategies That Work: “Make a list of companies you want to work for. When there is an employer you are dying to work for, take a proactive approach. They may have no openings on their website. Don’t send anything to HR or recruiters. Use LinkedIn to find the head of the department. It does take time to sleuth out the right person, but once you do, ask, ‘Yours is a company I’m very interested in. I’ve done some research, and my experience includes (list two to three accomplishments),’ then ask for a conversation. Include your phone number. Do not include a resume. A personal conversation is what you are after.”
- Dan Miller, career coach and author of several books on career and job search, provides a clear set of steps for the creative targeting method in his article, You’re Fired No Hired. He includes networking as one of the steps but in a certain way. He also mentions making a direct outreach to the hiring manager if networking your way in isn’t possible.