Unemployment continues to climb and with each passing week that you are out of work, it becomes harder and harder to find a new job. It is expected that an additional 12,000 people will soon be joining you on the streets as the stimulus money that was used to create jobs in the private sector runs out. Employers will no longer want to continue keeping those workers on their payroll if the government is no longer picking up the tab for their salaries.
So now you have even more people, out there competing and you have not had a single bite on your applications and each passing week you are becoming more frantic about finding a position. So what are you going to do now? Have you posted your resume on every job board on the internet that you can think of? If not, get busy and do so. Are you using your social media sites to their full capacity? If you have a Face Book account but don't have a My Space or Linkedin account be sure to set one up. Post your resumes on your My Space and on your Linkedin account.
You can also create a blog and post your resume, set up several at different blogging websites. There are also places where you can create a free website, go ahead and take advantage of those locations.
Are you using your networking resources? Old classmates that you have stayed in touch with or have reconnected with through Face Book, My Space or Linkedin? Have you thought of asking other professionals that you know who might possibly know someone else that could create a lead? This would include ex-coworkers, others at competitor companies that you know in the same industry that you were in before being laid off, your minister, your dentist, your doctor, your insurance man and your neighbors. Spread the word to everyone you know that you are searching for a new job.
If you were in any type of management or executive position prior to being laid off, contact a "head hunter" personnel agency. Let them know right up front that you will not pay their fee to find you a job, that a company worth working for will be willing to pick up the tab to get someone with your skills. Oh believe me, they will try to get you to agree to pay either all or part of the fee, but tell them absolutely not. Stroke their ego, tell them if they are good at their job, then they know the company will pay!
If you attended or graduated from college, go see their alumni department for some assistance and leads. Ask someone to look over your resume and cover letter and make suggestions on how you might improve both for today's job market.
If you are just answering classified ads or sending out letters of inquiry for a position, you are losing out on the chance to be seen by a prospective employer. Get off the couch and go after that job you want!
Get dressed up in your interviewing clothes, grab your portfolio, fill your briefcase with resumes and put on your walking shoes. Make a list of companies in your city where you feel that your qualifications can be utilized. Map out your route and hit the trail! Start out early in the morning, say around 8:30AM and plan to keep going to different locations up until 11:30AM. Take a lunch break and then hit the trail again from 1:30PM to 3:30 or 4:00PM at the latest. Do this on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Mondays and Fridays are terrible to try and get anyone to speak with you! Don't just "drop off " your resume, ask to speak to someone in the Personnel Department. Let them know you are looking for work and ASK if they presently have or anticipate having any positions available that can use your background. Summarize your best skills to tell them about and ask them to accept your resume for consideration when they do have positions become available.
Get really inventive and creative like some of those on Wall Street when they got laid off. They made "sandwich boards" with a summarized resume written on it and stating that they were looking for work. At this point, you need to do whatever you can to get an interview!
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