Unemployment has increased due to COVD-19. However, what appears to be a "bust" economy right now may become a "boom" economy in the near future. It would be wise to start preparing for employment now.
Have you ever helped someone find a job? Sometimes the best way to help yourself is to help someone else. A lot of learning in life comes through "trial and error," which includes making mistakes. If we worked in collaborative pairs, we might achieve our goals quicker because we’d only make half the errors ourselves!
A long gap between jobs on your resume will not doom your quest for employment.
After the Global Financial Crisis (oh happier times!) research in America showed that most employers were not bothered by "employment gaps" as long as people had filled the time with useful activities such as studying or volunteering. It is likely that employers will be even more understanding, post COVID-19.
These days, a lot of recruitment is processed via computer. People’s online applications are scanned by a computer which searches for key words. If none are found, the applicant is automatically culled. The reason for this is that every available job may attract hundreds of written applications. There are simply not enough humans available to read them all.
There has to be a better way.
Employers often prefer to hire people they know. Given a choice between hiring someone whose work you are familiar with and employing a complete unknown person with all the right key words in their resume, who would you hire? But how do you become known?
It comes down to making connections with as many people as possible. Make sure they know that you are looking for work and what type of work you are qualified to do. Give them a copy of your resume and it may even end up on your ideal employer’s desk!
Be sure to let friends and family know that you are actively seeking work. Chances are that someone within your network is aware of an opportunity that fits what you are looking for. Use social media like LinkedIn to put yourself out there and investigate job vacancies online.
Read through the credentials specified in job advertisements to get a feel for the skills and experience employers look for. Consider how you might be able to build on your experience. Talk to people you know or use the internet to learn more about what goes on in particular workplaces. Perhaps you can practice tasks that will be beneficial for your job search, at home, such as cleaning, gardening, cooking or making sandwiches.
By Warren Heggarty, Panorama Magazine
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