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The Organized Job Search
by: Janet Barclay
Many people, under financial or other pressures to find work
quickly, feel they can't afford to take the time to get organized.
On the other hand, conducting your job search in an organized manner
will reduce the amount of time you spend looking for information,
following inappropriate leads, or waiting for your dream job to fall
into your lap. It generally takes at least a month to find an
entry-level job, and as much as nine months for one requiring a high
level of skill and experience. Getting organized before you begin
your job search can ultimately save you a lot of time and
frustration.
You should take several preliminary steps before you even begin
your active job search. You should start by identifying your skills,
interests, target market, and any child care, transportation, or
other issues that you will need to keep in mind. A career or
employment counselor can be very helpful in this area, as well as
with the preparation of your resume, cover letters, and any other
job search materials you will need.
Once you're ready to face the job market, there are three areas
where you'll find it beneficial to be well organized: your schedule,
your workspace, and your contacts.
Your Schedule
First, you must decide how much time you can realistically commit
to your job search on a weekly basis, and then create a weekly
schedule of activities. Keep in mind that looking for a full-time
job is in itself a full-time job! Some of your time will be devoted
to reading and applying for advertised positions, but be sure to
allow plenty of time for other job search activities such as making
telephone calls, generating and researching new leads, reviewing old
leads for follow up, writing thank you notes or other
correspondence, and visiting placement offices, employment agencies,
or other service providers. The percentage of time you dedicate to
each activity depends on what is most effective for your field of
work or geographical area, so it may be worthwhile for you to ask
others what has worked for them.
Most people perform different activities more effectively at
different times of day. Take your natural energy flow, as well as
the availability of quiet time for conducting research and telephone
calls, into consideration when planning your schedule. If quiet time
is not available at home during the daytime or evening, an
employment resource center can be an invaluable resource.
Keep your personal preferences in mind when planning your
activities. For example, if you dislike talking on the telephone, it
may be less stressful for you to get your calls out of the way
before beginning your other activities, or to intersperse your phone
calls between other activities so you don't become overwhelmed. If
you're planning to drop off unsolicited resumes, map out a route of
targeted businesses that are in a particular area, and plan to cover
the entire area in one day. This will cut down on your travel time
and expenses as well as the number of times you need to dress up.
Keeping a log of the actual time you spend on each activity will
allow you to see whether you are on track and to identify any
problem areas. It's not uncommon to become frustrated and depressed
when you're out of work, so be sure to schedule regular time for
self-care and other personal activities like going to the gym or the
hairstylist.
Your Workspace
At a minimum, you need a chair and a desk or table with plenty of
space for you to work with your information, make and receive
telephone calls, and plan your job search. All necessary supplies
should be stored close by, including paper, pens, index cards,
paperclips, staples, and your telephone directory. During your job
search, you'll likely accumulate various versions of your resume and
cover letter, job postings, company profiles, advertisements, and
business cards, but they will be of no value to you if you can't
find what you need. A binder or filing system, sorting the
information into topics, will allow you to refer quickly to both the
job posting and that specific application when you receive a
telephone call from a prospective employer. It will also allow you
to find easily any other information you may have gathered about the
organization before your interview.
You may find it beneficial to have an alternate "job search
office" such as your local library or employment centre, where you
can research, read, and write without the distractions you may
encounter at home. Many are equipped with computers that you can use
for Internet job search as well as resume and cover letter
preparation, which can be a great benefit if you don't have a home
computer or must share it with other family members. If you plan to
use this type of service on a regular basis, you'll need some type
of portfolio or briefcase to hold your job search material,
including your resume in printed form and on a diskette, your
calendar, and a notebook for jotting down leads and ideas. Most
facilities do not allow you to receive telephone calls, so be sure
that potential employers can reach you by voice mail, pager or cell
phone.
Of course, you'll need a calendar for marking down job interviews
and other important meetings. You'll also need a system for keeping
track of your job applications. This information may be needed to
confirm your eligibility for unemployment insurance or social
assistance, and will help you to follow up on your applications.
Your Contacts
During your job search, you will probably communicate with
hundreds, if not thousands, of people, but in order to make
effective use of the network you develop, you'll need a way to keep
track of all your contacts.
The simplest method is a card file system, with a card for each
contact. Each card should include the contact's name, title,
organization, address, telephone number, fax, and email address, the
source of the lead, and dates and details of any conversations,
correspondence, or interviews. You may find it helpful to set up a
"recipe box" with a set of dividers labeled with the days of the
week and a set numbered 1-31 for the days of the month. You can file
each card under the date you wish to contact that person. For
example, you may speak with someone on the 10th who suggests that
you call him or her in two weeks. After noting the information on
the index card, file it in the section for the 25th where it will
serve as a reminder for you to follow up.
There are wonderful software programs available that can help you
with organizing your job search contacts. WinWay Resume, for
example, has a section for storing contact information that you can
merge with your cover letter. ACT! allows you to schedule tasks and
reminders as well as perform mail merges. If you don't wish to buy
or learn a new software package, email address books in Outlook,
Outlook Express or in free Web-based email packages are also an
excellent way to keep track of your contacts. However, unless you
have unrestricted access to a computer, or a portable system such as
a Palm Pilot, you won't be always able to access the information.
The key features of any organizational system are ease of recording
and ease of retrieval. If using an electronic system will make your
job search more complicated and time-consuming, don't use it.
Job searching can be overwhelming, but when you organize your
schedule, workspace, and contacts effectively, you'll be able to
stay on track and find your new job more quickly.
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