Have you ever wondered why some people seem so lucky? They graduate from high school, get a job while waiting for their results, graduate from college and immediately land their dream job.
Meanwhile, you can’t even manage to get a part-time job at the grocery store across the road.
Believe me, I have heard many such tales and I want you to know that luck has nothing to do with it. He who knows what to do and how to do it effectively is the one getting the desired results. And don’t be surprised if no one told you all this while what the secrets were.
Of course the top people getting the top jobs will like to keep the competition down.
You see, to be able to land your dream job, you need a very special set of skills. In fact, you need to arm yourself with the right information; otherwise, you will just be firing blanks in the dark.
After interviewing and interacting with some employees of top firms and companies across Africa, it has become clear that most unemployed graduates lack relevant advice and information about how to effectively hunt for jobs.
A lot of job hunters today only hide behind their personal computers (or even worse their phones) from dusk to dawn and send out uncountable number of random applications. It doesn’t work like that; there is a science to the whole job search process.
Here are some of the top advice I give job seekers:
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Always keep in mind that your LinkedIn profile and resume aren’t set in stone
You may have the perfect LinkedIn profile or a resume designed by Da Vinci himself. But if these two don’t portray you as the best fit for the job you going after, then no employer will even take a second glance. You have to be ready to move things around.
Swap key words and change layouts to fit the role you eyeing. Do your homework and find out all you can about the company you sending an application to, their taste of design, official colors, and core values.
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Project yourself as the best possible fit for the job
For those applying mainly through online job portals, CVs and resumes are mainly screened by computer and then passed on to humans in the HR Department of the given company. Due to the large volumes of applications processed these days, it is best you make things crystal clear in your resume.
The alignment between your skills, educational background & competencies and the vacancy you have applied for must be visible right from the onset. Make sure you’ve thoroughly studied the job description and know what qualifications the employer is demanding. Then showcase your strength in relevance to these requirements.
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Beware of the Bore Factor
If there are any two words I would use to summarize this point they would be these; be remarkable. Like Seth Godin will say, be the “purple cow”. Make sure you set yourself apart by being human and endearing yourself to the employer or interview panel.
Too many applicants go into their interview looking too clean and cheesy. I recommend you watch the first episode the TV series Suits and take note the character of Mike Ross during his interview.
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Don’t limit your applications to online jobs when doing your job hunting
What do you do after you’ve applied for all 10 000 jobs on your chosen career and job website? Am sure that’s not a question you’ve asked yourself. Well, I must point out to you that though the internet has become the preferred starting point for job search, you don’t need to stop there.
You can cold call companies you’re interested in to ask about job vacancies. I also advise graduates to build rapport with people inside the companies they applying to work with. Get to know the various decision makers and keep their ears on the ground for any relevant news.
The final advice I would give job hunters out there is that if you insist on restricting your job search to only online job postings then please do yourself a favor and check out sophisticated job boards on the internet such as WealthBankers Job Arena.
To do otherwise would be a deliberate sabotage of your own future.
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In Conclusion
A very touching story from Ernest Adjei as he recounts how he was able to land his dream job of being a writer through the WealthBankers Job Arena and the use of advice you are currently reading.
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“I had graduated college for over 2 years and just could get the kind of job that would challenge me and provide room for me to grow professionally.
I read an article posted by Faustinus and decided to change my tactics based on his advice to unemployed graduates because really I had nothing to lose.
So, I visited WealthBankers Job Arena (also another free advice the writer dropped) and was surprised to find so many vacancies available in my country. In minutes I created my profile, uploaded my CV and, with the help from the support team, wrote my first effective cover letter.
Within 3 days I was called by the employer to attend an interview. Naturally, I was kinda nervous because this was the first time I would be in an interview.
So I decided to read about interviews. The information I found on the Job Arena about effective interviews saved me a lot of trouble. And ultimately helped me land this job. I am currently happily employed and very hopeful for the future.”
– Ernest Adjei
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A word to the wise is enough. I don’t have much else to add but to stress that the time for blaming the system for not providing jobs is over.
You can’t blame it on the government or the economy anymore.
If you aren’t able to land a job after reading this post then you must have missed something. I wish every job seeker out there success in the searches to come.