With this being Christmas week and all, and my penchant for a good play on words, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play upon the words of the most annoying part of the song “Twelve Days of Christmas”. In fact, don’t be surprised if you see a reprise of this during Olympic week in Vancouver 2010 too…you know, five rings and gold medals. Okay, enough of that, and on to the five golden rings of getting a job:
Make sure every contact “rings a bell” – We all know that we have to be so much better at networking and connecting than ever before. But with this comes having to have a very good memory as to who you talked to, when and for what job. It’s too much to remember, so if you haven’t started your contact list/database then now is the time. You’ve got be quick on your feet and with a database in front of you, you can be like a salesperson with Salesforce.com in front of them and be able to rattle off who, when, where and for what, you last spoke to them about. This memory at your finger tips can impress and be the difference between a recruiter paying attention or not.
Don’t be afraid to “ring ‘em up” – We have forgotten that companies and recruiters still have phones and voicemails. Leaving a voicemail early in the AM before anyone gets to the office could get you the first call to be heard when that recruiter sees their phone light on. Yes, do all of the other things, but don’t be afraid to go the old fashioned way too and get on the phone.
“Wring” out your network – I have written before on how important your friends are to your job search. They need to be constantly up to date on your dream companies, your geographic preferences and why you want to do what you do. They need your mini-story in their head all the time so you are top of mind when they get that headhunter call or someone mentions a job opening in passing. Over the holiday break would be a great time to drop them a line and update them on your situation. Be sure to thank them and return any and all favors of being referred.
Add up the “rings” – I am far from being a mathematician but I like part of the mathematical definition of a ring that says “rings also have specific properties that combine addition with multiplication.” This seems to fit well with getting a job. To get a job in today’s market, we all know that one resume does not equal one interview that then turns into one job . Like it or not, it is about having the numbers on your side and it is going to take lots and lots of reach outs to get a smaller amount of interviews to get the one job. This is the most frustrating part of a job search as the time and energy seems so wasted. But don’t get down on yourself and don’t stop adding and adding and multiplying your efforts. So many times, I have heard the stories of the people who got the job and the ones who didn’t. Too many times, the person who didn’t get the job was the one who just didn’t keep at it while the other person did. (my apologies to the real mathematicians on the stretched definition of a ring)
Be ready to change your “ring tone”– I am not talking about your cell phone ring-tone, I am talking about your personal ring-tone. As you already know, I am big on personalization; personalization of your story, your resume and your approach. The more you can tailor “you” to a company, to the hiring person and to the opportunity, the better chance you will have to be the one to get the job. Yes, do think about it as your own personal ring-tone for every job interview. How should you act, talk, dress and look when you walk through the doors of any company? I don’t want you to change you, but I do want you to be able to personalize you to the position and company at hand. How to do this? The more you know about the company, the person you are talking to and the opportunity then always the better. What they need to hear when you are interviewing is a sound that sounds just like their ring-tone.
Please enjoy the bells of this holiday season and here’s to ringing in a better New Year!
