Are you unhappy with your current job? Maybe you want a job that pays you what you’re worth or that allows you to take on new challenges. Or do you want to change careers and find a job that is more meaningful to you?
There’s nothing wrong with any of that. But quitting your job on a whim is not the best option until you know more precisely what you are looking for. Check out this guide as we have covered all the essential tips in case you are going to apply for a new job.
1. Define What You Are Looking For:
To get started, first know which direction you want to go. Take the time to define your personal and professional goals. Would you like to move towards a position with less responsibility or, on the contrary, with more leadership? Do you want a part-time job to have time for your projects or your family, or a full-time job? Would you like to work in a field other than the one in which you already operate? It is by answering these first questions that your research will become more specific.
2. Develop An Approach Strategy:
Define precisely the activities you want to do to land the job of your dreams. Then, depending on what you have determined, choose the preferred channels to find interesting job offers.
Depending on the field of activity, it may be job sites, specialized sites, social networks (by relying on your contacts), newspapers or magazines even if they are less and less used these days by employers, or even the HR section of certain companies that you have on your mind.
From there, several initiatives are possible, as long as you do not show your intentions broadly. Because it could work against you if your management or your current colleagues find out.
3. Do Research:
To avoid unpleasant surprises, find out about the sector and the companies that interest you beforehand. The post-Covid context is quite uncertain, and job opportunities are volatile. So, make sure that the company you want to work for is well-established, serious, and not at risk of going bankrupt.
Also, check who your counterparts or colleagues will be by searching for their contacts on Nuwber. You can get in touch with them to get personal and professional feedback from people who are already in that sphere.
4. Organize Your Time:
Doing your research during your working hours is not a good idea. It would be disrespectful to your current employer, on the one hand, but could also expose you negatively to the companies you approach on the other.
Instead, define the time you want to allocate to this job hunt, and distribute this time per week and per day, outside of actual working hours. Find out how to fit these periods into your schedule, allowing at least 15 minutes, twice a day, to respond to recruiters by email or on LinkedIn. Block out these times to make sure you are not disturbed.
5. Be Discreet:
We can never repeat it enough: publicize your research as little as possible. You, therefore, do not need to inform your colleagues or contacts. At this stage, your employer must not know that you are chasing opportunities, because he could find you a replacement behind your back. Or even worse, convey negative messages about you in their network. And when looking for a new job, the brand image that you create and carry is essential.
6. Stay Efficient In Your Work:
Don’t neglect your current job because it doesn’t suit you like it used to. Finish the tasks assigned to you as usual, and focus on the objectives you were assigned. No one should notice that your mind is elsewhere, your direction in the first place. Your relations with your superiors could deteriorate and you risk being fired without having found a new job.
7. Plan Your Interviews:
Once you start sending applications, you will likely be called for interviews. If your CV is transparent, your interlocutors will understand that they should not disturb you during your working hours.
But if some of them still insist on meeting you during these times, politely decline these invitations to avoid overlap or arrange, if this work interests you and you have no other choice, to be alone when you talk to them. The ideal option is to schedule these interviews during your break hours or your days off, to be physically and mentally available.
8. Prepare Yourself Properly:
With your up-to-date CV in hand, take the time to remember mandates or anecdotes from your personal and professional experiences, to provide convincing arguments during your interviews. At the same time, to avoid bouts of stress, practice alone in front of a mirror (or with a loved one) a list of common questions recruiters may ask.
9. Be Prepared For Any Outcome:
The recruitment process may vary from company to company. Some of them may only have two steps – a test and an interview – and can be completed in a period of a few days, especially if the position is to be filled quickly. At other companies, however, you may have to pass a technical test, and several interviews, in addition to reference and criminal background checks.
On the other hand, from now on, interviews are done just as much, if not more, by videoconference than in person. So, don’t be surprised that all your research is done in virtual form, and get ready for this type of exchange and encounter. Pay particular attention to spelling mistakes on your CV and in your emails.
10. Stay On The Course:
The search for a new job can take weeks or months, requiring the sending of many applications and the completion of several interviews. So don’t be discouraged. If a company did not retain you, be positive and tell yourself that this was perhaps not the best opportunity for you. Keep in mind that the best is yet to come and that the right position is the one you will succeed in getting. Take rejected interviews as exercises to better secure the next one.
