Day 81: ‘Looking for something new’

I KNOW quite a few people at the minute who are looking for jobs. Most of them are in a job they desperately want to get out of, some of them are looking for career progression, and a couple are currently out of work.

Whatever position you’re in, it’s a tough one at the minute. So many more people are going for the jobs you’re applying for, there are more and more qualified people, with excellent experience, going for the same jobs, so how on earth do you make sure you stand out?

Recently a brand new Costa was opened on Hucknall High Street and apparently more than 1,300 applied for just six jobs. How on earth as an employer do you manage the shortlisting for that one. Undoubtedly with that many applicants you’ll have a range of ages, backgrounds, levels of experience and qualifications, and you know you have to let down 1,294 of them.

While on the other hand, one of my clients advertised a job before Christmas that required some level of skill and knowledge, but with a wide enough remit for a large number of people to have been eligible, and received a grand total of zero applications. 

When you look at the two extremes, both advertised within two miles of each other, it’s hard to decipher what really is the current situation locally when it comes to the job market. 

And if you’re searching for work, just where do you start? There’s the obvious job sites I suppose, perusing the adverts in the paper, and signing up to a recruitment agency. 

But is the most reliable method just asking around? Are you better to pro-actively get out there and speak to people you know, find out who is recruiting, or even just speak to the places you’d like to work and confidently let them know you’re available, you’d like to work for them, and is there a way that can happen? 

It’s cheeky, it’s brash, and nine times out of ten it isn’t going to work, but when you really want to find a new job, isn’t it worth forgetting the usual British reserved, polite, ‘do it by the book’ procedure, and just ask the question? The worst that can happen is you’re told ‘no’ and I know we’re programmed to not like that word, but if you see it as a hurdle rather than a barrier, it could be the best thing to drive you forward to find the right job for you.

I know I’m not in that position, so who am I to comment? But I have been, and I was brash and forward, and it worked..the fourth time! Now I run my own business and pitching for new business comes with the same trappings as looking for a new job, but these days I love it. 

My fingers and toes are crossed for all my friends looking for new work, I hope they find their way in, and in some cases, their way out!