A job search is not immune to slumps. There may be times where nothing seems to be panning out the way you expected, or even to your baseline hopes. Jobs you once thought of as beneath you are ignoring you, maybe interviews become increasingly stressful and less fruitful, or maybe you are only getting lowball offers. Though it can be tempting to give up after all of this, stick in it just a little longer. Today we are going to look at some tips for making your slumping job search stand tall again.
Proofread Everything- One of the fastest paths to slumptown is a typo riddled resume. You could have the perfect job history and a completely relevant skillset, but if it looks like you slacked off on writing your resume you will not get the responses you want. Print out copies of everything that you send off to potential employers and read it with a red pen in hand. Spending 10 extra minutes doing this for everything you send to potential employers can make a substantial difference.
Aim Higher- Sometimes the worst thing you can do for your job search is apply to too many jobs. If you are sending out applications to jobs that you would not want to have it is actually harmful to the whole process. There are a number of reasons for this. First off, you only have so much time in a day. Every minute you spend applying to a job that you don’t want is a minute you could have spent researching another company, tailoring your resume, or send out important follow-up e-mails. There is also an emotional element on top of the practical one. If you spend most of your time looking at and applying for jobs that sound terrible, you will not be excited about your job search. If you feel excited about new opportunities instead of a sense of dread your whole job search will be much easier.
Treat the Search like a Job- Depending on your current habits treating your job search like a job may actually decrease the time you spend searching. At a job you have a set schedule, an upward limit of time you can spend there, and some push to keep a work/life balance. Do not toss these things out of the window when you are searching for a job. There are reasons that employers try to keep the work week to 40 hours, take weekends, and have consistent hours. Employees who have these things are more effective than those who do not. During your job search you are your own boss- and treat yourself as you would like your next boss to treat you.
Everyone hits a slump from time to time, sometimes it is out of our control entirely, and sometimes there are little things you can do to get out of it. If you are having a hard time during your job search try proofreading, setting higher standards, and keeping a regular schedule. You may be surprised at how much easier it gets with just these three simple changes!