Navigating Career Opportunities for Your Ideal Position

Technology has changed the way we network forever. Apps offered by Linkedin, Monster and Craigslist have brought the job search to cell phones and allow you to find opportunities like never before. But the key is persistence. If you spend just a few hours a week at working in the direction of your desired goal, networking, researching and throwing your hat into the ring, you may be surprised by the results. Here’s your guide for working full-time and still finding time to find the job that magnifies your passion.

Persistence is the Root of Passion

It’s hard to be passionate about work, until you find your passion. And while many people don’t exactly know what their passion is, the best way to not find it is to bury your head in a career that sparks nothing inside of you. The great entrepreneur and motivational mentor Gary Vaynerchuk tells us to stop watching TV and start pouring our time into something we like to do. It may not make us rich, but it will reveal to us our passion. The next step is to examine what we love about that passion and determine how to incorporate it into making a living.

Embrace the Evolution of Your Employment

The truth is, unless you’re the CEO, you could be fired or laid off at any time. And there are only two ways to deal with this fact: stress out or prepare. The old adage, ‘the best time to look for a new job is when you have one’ couldn’t be more true. The odds of finding a truly satisfying job right when you need it (e.g., if you get laid off and bills are due) are slim to none. So even if you are beyond satisfied with your job, consider it a part of your job to be networking and maintaining or building connections within your field.

Link Up with Linkedin

Linkedin can be a job searcher’s best friend and worst enemy. The networking opportunities are endless but also overwhelming. Your first trick to truly hone in on your dream job and the major players that you want to network with is refining your search terms. Get creative and get specific with your searches by utilizing search modifiers. Put quotations around a phrase if you’re looking for results that contain those specific words in that order. Use the words AND, OR, and NOT to refine your search results and get better at finding the right opportunities and people with your Linkedin searches. You can also search for specific positions within a company, save your searches and have Linkedin notify you via email of new open positions matching your search criteria.

Once you’ve found your dream job, it’s time to apply. Make sure your Linkedin profile is up to date; many experts advocate uploading your resume as well. In fact, you should always edit your resume to better fit the job description. Make sure you read the application twice so you don’t miss any specific details and look for keywords that you can work into your resume as well as your cover letter.

Stay in the Loop and Up to Date

Don’t forget to keep your Linkedin profile updated and ready to be viewed even if you’re not actively searching. Remember, time is of the essence, especially when applying to ideal jobs, because you’ll likely have lots of competition. Be the first to respond by having a cutting edge smartphone so that you can apply to jobs and respond to inquiries anytime, anywhere. The Samsung Galaxy S7 edge has a huge 5.5 inch display, which makes it much easier to navigate apps offered by Craigslist and Linkedin, making searching and applying much less of a headache. The S7 also has some of the longest battery life on the market, so no matter how hectic your life or current position may be, you’ll be a lot less likely to miss out on a huge opportunity because your phone is dead. Be sure to have a copy of your resume saved as a Google Doc so you can easily copy and paste the link into an email and not have to wait to get home to use your computer and send a PDF.

Your career mentor,

Bud

 

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