Your Career Search Is More Than Finding A Job

An effective Career Search means different things to different people at different times in their working lives but you can be sure yours is unique to you so please make certain it is what you want it to be, i.e. leading to the right jobs for your career.

Sometimes, you might find its easier to follow what other people think you should be doing. But their ideas of how your career should progress may not be the same as your ideas, so stay in control - its your career change that counts.

Are You Asking Yourself Questions?

You may be searching for career change guidance or careers advice because you have reached that point in your career when you say:

• “Why am I doing this?”

• “Do I want to do this for the rest of my life?”

• “I’m better than this!”

If so then please do something about it and following my advice throughout the pages of this site will show you exactly what you have to do because it is important that your career search produces what you want. For the best and most comprehensive information available get your own copy of my Career Change Guide which is a set of 8 Premium Career Guide Manuals I wrote specifically to help you succeed.

Perhaps you’ve got to the stage where you feel that you have all the knowledge and skill to allow you to do your job expertly and competently for the foreseeable future. Even into retirement. But all the challenge has gone. You feel like you're on autopilot.

In which case you need a change, but it may be a promotion or other advancement with your company or business that would fit the bill.

Using my career search advice you can put together a good case with your present employer to re-evaluate or redesign your job and create the interest and challenge that you once had.

Has Your Career Already Changed?

Maybe you have had a change already; you’ve been promoted or started a new job, but you’re not getting on as well as you expected. Use the same career search guidance to help build up your confidence and tackle your employer to give you the support you need. Career Management is your responsibility and if you don't speak up your employer may assume you're happy.

It is career search time and you are ready to get started. This article explains how to make the most of your career search and the importance of having a plan before you start.

I always think it makes sense to have a good idea of where you are going before you set out, don't you?

Career Searching: The Facts You Need...

Career search is an important but difficult process for most of the people and the first law for anyone embarking on it is that it takes effort. The first step in beginning your search is to look for open jobs that match your skills, qualifications, and interests, and the easiest way to do that is to go online and do a local search. And whether your job search is global or local, your on-line efforts are just as important.

The key search is in the career planning process, and a little bit of it will go a long way. Career planning is not an activity that should be done once and then left behind as you move forward in your jobs and careers. Our career affects every other aspect of our life and especially our general happiness and contentment.

Rather than being passive, like just reading books and surfing the web - or reactive, waiting for a vacancy to appear before making an application, you get better results if you take the initiative in finding out what is involved in a career or about job opportunities. That is being pro-active.

The creative career search is particularly important when there is a lot of competition for the jobs for which you are applying, for example during a recession, or for popular jobs such as those in the media or environment.

No matter if you are just starting your career, changing jobs or looking for a new career direction, not only will following these few simple ideas make your career search more successful, but by spending a little extra time preparing for your job search, you’ll reduce the amount of time you actually spend looking for a career.

Launch Your Career Search

Here's how candidates can launch a successful search and increase the chances for a new career. The labor market may be difficult and employment scarce, but by improving key areas of the job search campaign the person can walk into the interview with a greater sense of confidence.

• Make sure you take the time to personalize your resume or CV when you apply for jobs.

• An executive career search is not as simple as creating a one-page resume and uploading to the web.

• A job or career search is a process, especially during a recession, and we need all of the encouragement we can give ourselves to get through it.

• The career search is not about the applicant; it’s about what the applicant can do for the employer.

• The career search is where most students and professionals first come in contact with the newer concepts and implementations of personal branding.

• Effective personal branding not only makes you stand out from the crowd to employers and recruiters, but can also increase your job security by communicating your value as a leader and team player to your organization.

• You can also use this brand and pitch when networking at events or in interviews when employers ask you why you should get the job or to tell them a little bit about yourself.

• You should actively consider your personality type as the individual personality of a person determines and influences whether he or she will enjoy a job or not.

If you are looking for a change in career, be sure you have strong, valid reasons to change careers; doing so might mean drastic changes in self-perception, working environment, income, work-life balance, health-care benefits and a myriad of other considerations.

Planning Your Career Search

An executive jobs search should be planned like a business. The professional executive should display achievements accomplished throughout the career, proving skills in strategic planning, leadership, staff development and business sense.

Develop a list of references – coworkers, managers, and business associates who would be willing to put in a good word. This can also be used for actual job hunting, and the contacts that you make through networking to inform yourself about careers may be helpful later when you are actually seeking jobs.

Informational interviewing is basically talking to people about the work they do and can be a great help in making career decisions. Networking can be used, once you have completed your initial research, to gain a first-hand insight into jobs and careers that will help you to ensure that you have made the right choice.

Whether you are making speculative applications for jobs, or want to try networking directly to employers, then there are three main methods of approaching these employers - writing, emailing and phoning.

Developing relationships with people you meet networking will take time and effort but they are worth it. If you start out on Monday morning with the intent to make some networking calls, but haven’t planned in advance who to call, you will spend the whole morning trying to figure that out.

While the Internet provides easy access to networking, traditional methods should not be overlooked. Networking can be intimidating and a little nerve wracking, but in a world where there are far too many people looking for jobs and perhaps only a handful of jobs open that you want to take, every little bit counts.

I’d recommend you look around at the many social networking sites. When LinkedIn is used in combination with face-to face networking it will really help gain new business and raise your own and therefore your business's profile.

LinkedIn is a professional career-oriented social network that allows members to connect with old friends, classmates, and colleagues and form new contacts to help power a career or get advice from industry professionals.

You should be confident that the information I give on this site is best practice, derived from my many years of experience as a Career Coach, CV writer and interview skills trainer and proved to be effective by the thousands of corporate clients I have served.

You can take personal advantage of my coaching by joining my Career Development Programme and receiving personally tailored career / job change advice as you need it.

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