How I'd do it
A job search in practice
I’ve run my own business since 2011, and by my measure I’ve been pretty successful.
Although my measure is a little different to many in that my goals are to support my family as well as I can, be the person I aspire to be and provide first class service to people I want to help. A consequence of that has also been a reasonable income.
My work as a recruiter is a bit unusual in that I work as an external partner, I help talent acquisition teams improve how they recruit (primarily through better candidate experience) and occasionally run recruitment projects in-house for employers.
But, I’m mindful that nothing is forever, nor am I completely closed to talking to an employer doing something amazing where I could contribute in a transformational way.
What would happen if the recruitment landscape changed irrevocably?
Would I follow my own advice?
It’s not as unlikely as I would like to think. As AI continues to improve, with the prospect of radically changing the transactional aspects of recruitment medium term (there’s a way to go as tech isn’t ready, then would need to be implemented, adopted then entrenched).
Though if that is the case, who knows what else would change?
I’m an advocate of negative visualisation, considering realistic worse case scenarios, so that I have a plan I can act on immediately should the need arise.
So this edition is a promise to myself, should the worst happen and I need to look for a job.
But perhaps it’s also a lens through which you can revisit your own plan.
Principles
Establish what’s important.
If not recruitment, then what else?
If not self-employed, then what does employment look like?
How much would I need to earn, to keep our family’s head above water? I’m fortunate that my wife’s career is going from strength to strength, but the only money we have access to is the money we’ve earned for ourselves.
Would a job at Aldi’s be sufficient, everything else being even?
(I’ve jokingly said I’d be happy to be a gardener, but this is true enough if needed)
What would I enjoy doing? What could make a difference? What could I do sustainably?
Then - what does this look like realistically from an employment perspective?
I won’t speculate what that will look like now, but these are questions to answer at the right time.
Philosophy
It wouldn’t be me that’s failed, it would only be my business, which means there’s no reason I can’t find the right success in future.
Always be honest - with myself, my family and the people around us.
Be proactive and persevere. Go get what you need, and keep going. Listen, reflect, learn, adjust, execute. Take a break when needed. Look after mind and body.
Pay it back, pay it forward, ask for help, tell people I’m looking.
Strategy
Build a sustainable plan accessing:
establish the current rules, play the game well, break the rules with integrity when possible
all appropriate inbound and outbound channels to market: job boards, networking, doorknocking, recruitment agencies, consulting, freelancing, referrals and recommendations; high conversion CV, LinkedIn profile, advertising / personal branding, CV databases, get my network working for me, #OpenToWork
build a pipeline of short-term, medium-term and long-term activity so that they all come together long-term, yet may pay off asap
use any good news to galvanise more action: if I’m expecting a job offer, push harder elsewhere and ‘keep up with the joneses’
establish my market value range, and negotiate against that
get a job, then wait for the job
Execution
I’d go back through my own articles:
Linkedin profiles that convert
Apply based on criteria required from a vacancy (article next week)
Focus on applicable, not transferrable, skills
Optimise my applications and use of job boards
Keep working on personal branding (as well as copywriting and advertising): part 1, part 2, part 3
Make sure I take advantage of interview opportunities, through preparation, delivery and follow up.
I’m fortunate to know some great career coaches, so I’d ask for their help through these points, and maybe call in some favours.
I’d then work on the principles of continuous improvement, always challenging myself to improve - plan, do, check, act.
So that would broadly be my plan, with the understanding any opportunities are likely at the behest of the state of the market, and the competition I’m up against.
And I’d try not to blame myself for the things I can’t control.
Next week’s article is on how to read a job description.
Thanks for reading.
Regards,
Greg