On the hunt: 3 ways to sharpen your job search

If you’ve been on the job hunt for a while and don’t seem to be making much headway, it might be time to finetune your approach. Here are three tips that will help you track down that job you want — or, at this point, that job you need:

Go to the source: If there’s a specific company or organization you want to work for, be sure to regularly check their site. Numerous companies and nonprofits place their employment listings on their job sites first before moving them to the larger job sites. And don’t think you have to wait for an ad; it never hurts to send a resume and letter of interest to the human resources department or the appropriate contact.

Go retro: It’s likely you sent out a flood of resumes in the early part of your job search and received responses from — or maybe even interviewed with — a few hiring managers. Even if you weren’t offered a gig, that doesn’t mean these employers aren’t interested in hiring you now, especially if you made it to the final round of the hiring process. Consider reaching out to firms you initially contacted to express your continued interest and to find out if new positions have opened up.

Take a temp job: As you search for a full-time job, it might be worth considering working as a temporary professional. Not only can temp jobs help you build new skills but you’ll also be able to meet new people who could serve as important contacts down the road. And a temporary job could lead to being hired into a permanent role — the work doesn’t go away so companies often hire temporary workers on an hourly rate from consulting firms and temporary placement agencies.