A job
search is a complex series of skills
focused on the goal of Long term stable employment. By breaking the task into smaller, more
manageable tasks it becomes a series of simple
tasks that can be completed one at a
time.
A job
search can reduce the amount of time a person is unemployed. It’s not realistic to never lose a job but
it’s helpful to the person’s financial situation if they are unemployed for as
short a time as possible.
Please
expect a lot of competition for each job you’re interested in but take courage
in the fact that you just have to be a
little better than everyone else. If
this were a game just one point more than the other candidate wins the game for
you!
The
employment specialist will be your coach and should provide feedback on your
job search. The employment specialist
won’t find a job for you but should help you develop your job search skills.
Be
prepared to start at the bottom of any career or job track.
If you have
any issues with any your home phone or auto, handle them right away. In order to have a successful career search
you’ll need a working home phone and reliable transportation. An auto is preferred in case you need to work
overtime, an early shift, or commute between work locations. On an even more basic level if you don’t have
heat, electric, or food at home, work with the Bishop or your home teacher.
Set a
realistic vocational / career goal.
“Follow your passion.” What work
do you do well? What do you do?
List jobs you
can do well
1
2
3
Under 3 jobs you can do well
it’s important to realize that you may need to add additional jobs in the
long-term (career choice) categories, medium-term and short-term
categories. Using the following formula
you’ll know when it’s time to put the long-term choices on hold and start on
the medium ones right away.
(Assets – Monthly bills) /
Monthly bills = maximum number of months before you have to have a job without
bankruptcy. Allocate two-thirds of your
available time to the long-term jobs and one-third to the medium-term. Once you get to the end of the time period,
go for short-term right away.
(10,000$ - 2,000$ per month)
/ 2,000$ per month = 8,000$ / 2,000$ = 4 months
Why can you do
those jobs well? (This is the place to list skills you have. They are picked up as paid experiences,
volunteer, educational, military, hobbies and life’s little experiences so if
you have more than 5 just keep a longer list.)
1
2
3
4
5
Build 2 or 3 of these:
Accomplishment ______
Problem being solved ______
Benefit to the company
______
Benefit to coworkers ______
Benefit to customers ______
Three key skills used ______
(The point here is to be
prepared in an interview to talk about how you can help the company. Help them see you’re the best candidate for
the job! You don’t have to save these for
an interview, they can be used on an application, resume and when networking.)
Additionally, prepare a 60
second commercial about your career objective and how the company will benefit
by hiring you. Using a very specific
example with concrete improvement numbers is best.
It’s called an elevator
pitch because you can give it while riding the elevator and that person will
walk away knowing who you are and what you can do!
This is a great networking
tool and it’s also helpful during an interview if you get stumped by a question.
According to Monster Careers; How to Land the Job of Your
Life this is your pitch and should be smooth yet concise and
persuasive. It can be used “whether you’re
networking for leads, talking to a recruiter on the phone, or interviewing for
your dream job.” (pg 145)
It should be practiced so
you’ll be confident giving it but realize that the confidence will allow “good
things [to] happen.”
You need to be aware that a
first impression can be formed very quickly so you need to use your time
wisely. Consider carefully each word in
your pitch so you’re only conveying positive impressions, your key points and value
as a candidate.
Save space for passion and enthusiasm!
According to monster.com
your elevator pitch should “be fast, energetic, compelling and perfectly
targeted to your audience, or you'll never hear from the chap again.” The pitch needs to include:
1. one
2. two
3. three
Your pitch is very personal
and should be written like a marketer would write a commercial, a “crisp
highlight of what the brand stands for and why you should be interested.” Monster
Careers; How to Land the Job of Your Life (pg146)
Your personal Network is vital. You should always be networking! This may allow you to very quickly move in a
new job because you’re already connected to a series of hi
“Network with weak links -- Most job leads do not come from
strong ties such as family members or close friends. Most come through connections with people we
know only casually. Expand your
network. Look for your next weakest
link.” From, When job search hits a brink wall by the LDS Employment Resources.
Most jobs are found by networking not by the internet or
newspaper classifieds.
Write
down answers to the following questions:
Can
you help me make money? ___________________________________
Can
you solve my problems? ______________________________________
What
kind of responsibility can you handle? __________________________
Will
you fit into the culture of my organization? ________________________
Ask
the interviewer; what are the challenges or top priorities in this job? Your answer to that question will get you the
job. You need to accomplish two things. One the interviewer needs to like you and,
two, the interviewer needs to understand that you’re the person they’re looking
for since the unique skills and experiences will solve the challenges or align
to the top priorities.
Ask
the interviewer; do you feel I have the qualifications to do this job? Listen to answer and tell another of your
prepared success stories to further demonstrate your ability to do the job if
the interviewer seems unsure.
After
the interview, send a thank you note.
Take that time to correct any mistakes and thank the interviewer for
their time. Make sure that the
interviewer is fully aware that you’re interested in the job. If there’s any question in your mind if that
was clear use the thank you note to express your thoughts.
Ward
employment specialist
Michael
Jones will help with generating ideas, providing feedback, and expanding your
network.
http://ldsjob.net
or toll-free 888-lds-jobs
This LDS regional web site
has thousands of job listings including a space for you to post job openings.
This is a subscription site
for job seekers containing 5 million open job postings. Call toll-free 888-lds-jobs to reserve a time,
obtain the user name and password allowing you to search this site at no cost
to you. You’ll be able to access this
site from the internet at home or on a public computer.
This LDS national web site
has many job listings and provident living resources.
This site contains an
interactive career resource to help you find or explore several careers and
training options. Call toll-free
888-lds-jobs to get the password.
http://www.bls.gov/oco/home.htm
U.S. Department of Labor’s
Occupational Outlook Handbook
For
hundreds of different types of jobs—such as teacher, lawyer, and nurse—the Occupational
Outlook Handbook tells you: