Thursday, November 25, 2010

Looking For A Job? Avoid Common Mistakes

When you start your job hunt you are filled with enthusiasm and hope for a bright future. However, as the hunt progresses your optimism gets lower with every rejection you have to face. Ever wonder why you are not getting the job that you are perfect for and have all the relevant credentials?
The reason is simple: You are committing some basic job search mistakes without even being aware of the fact that you are doing something wrong. Even the most experience people, who have searched for jobs time and again and even found one, are committing these common mistakes which can eventually lead to failure on all accounts.
Make sure that you are not committing any of the job hunt mistakes mentioned below and if you are its time to stop.
Limited Research:
The most common mistake by all job hunters is that they look for jobs in selected few industries and that too from a single platform. You need to widen your circle and look into all industries which can possibly cater to your profession. There are so many job titles nowadays that there is no saying who can enter a company and who can’t. You need to keep an eye on all the job openings and apply to any job that is relevant to your education and experience. Applying to one or two jobs a month’s is not sufficient in the current job market.
Standardized Resume:
A large majority of the job seekers make this fatal mistake and have to learn sooner than later that standardized resumes don’t work. You cannot make one resume and apply to a dozen jobs by sending the same resume. It is important that you alter each resume and customize it according to the job specifications.
Employers don’t pass as much as a second glance at these resumes which are not specific to the jobs. Focus on the objective part of the resume and write related sentences which make your resume attractive for a specific job.
No Research on Potential Employers:
When the job seeker gets an interview call from a prospective employer, he prepares for all the questions that are asked by the employers but often neglect to research the history of the prospective employer. This is a big mistake as all employers will ask what you know about their company. Admitting ignorance in this regard, points towards a lack of effort and preparation at your end. You need not know everything about the employer but you can get the basic information by simply logging on to the company website and reading about their history and their profile. This little effort will help you tremendously during the interview.
Wasting Valuable Time:
When you are looking for a job you can often end up spending months in the pursuit of the perfect job. Meanwhile you end up wasting a lot of time which will be difficult to explain if the employers asks you about your activities when you were not employed. Make sure that you employ this time in improving your skills, studying additional courses or attending workshops so that you can show the employer that you value time and are proactive in life.
No Long Term Goals:
Not having a long term goal is a very important mistake as you will apply to random jobs and end up not getting a response from any of them. When you have a long term career related goal you can focus on the specific jobs that are good for your career and apply to those only.
Focused on salary alone:
When you are focused on salary only, you end up showing it to the employer. An employer wants to see willingness to work and passion rather than the need to get a high salary. So change your priorities now and see the difference it can make in your life.

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