1. Always Begin With Self-Assessment: This is equally applicable to those seeking subsequent job changes as well as new candidates. Your self-assessment should tell you more about your character type, your job preferences, willingness to take responsibilities and abilities to take risks, as well as whether you are a leader or want to tread a safer path. It should also shed light on your salary needs, in addition to your skill sets and experiences. This includes revelations on your perception of life and your job, the job security you need, ability to multitask and motivate employees.

If you are brutally honest in your self-assessment, it will help you acquire those skills that you lack and target your resume to those jobs that call for matching abilities.

2. Research The Job Market: This is not about just looking at the classifieds in different media, but categorizing them to analyze later as to how many of them match you to about 90-95%. If your tabulation is skewed unfavorably, try and find out the reasons, which could be anything from your ambitious expectation of salary, mismatched skill/age/experience or location preferences. This is what they call the proverbial pin pointing of the problem. Once you identify it, it becomes easier to deal with realistically.

3. Choosing a Career Field: Although this is broadly decided through your education, you need to identify your niche to choose a field and narrow down your job search. Bear in mind that your chosen field probably has prospects and growth potential within the industry to make room for future job changes. For example, choosing to be a cost accountant has a higher scope in every respect than a broad-based job search for an accounting position.

4. Improve Your Job Search Skills: Student counselors and HR counselors assess and guide your job search skills. Being on track and informed keeps you abreast with changes in job market demands. Job search skills include adaptation to circumstances with respect to your resume, interviews, and handling salary issues and behavioral issues effectively. Career workshops are critical to learn what employers’ expectations are, how they are changing and how to handle sticky issues effectively.

5. Job Search Campaign: Begin your campaign with realistic targets for a start date, job position, location and salary. Shorter targets normally mean accepting smaller salaries and organizations. Expanding your network, pursuing advertisements, approaching employers directly, having target cover letters and resumes and being enthusiastic & persistent will pay off handsomely in both the long and short run.

Your job search strategies should address all the concerns of both the employers and yourself. The five tips above lead you on the path to a better job search and are effectively designed to plug the holes on either side.

© Heather Eager, All rights reserved