When should I start a job search? Two years ago
Dear J.T. & Dale: I am a new grad. I want to enjoy the rest of my summer and then start my grown-up job in the fall. When should I start looking for work? — Brandon
DALE: Whenever you get around to a job search, do not mention to hiring managers anything about enjoying your summer. Why? The people hiring you were not off enjoying summer, they were working, and they want to hire someone who puts work first, not someone who feels he needs a vacation.
J.T.: Honestly, I would not wait to look for a job. According to a recent LinkedIn study, it’s taking companies about 11 weeks to hire a new employee. That means from the moment you apply to the moment you start your job, it’s almost three months. You need to start looking now so that you can get through the hiring process, especially since the hiring process often takes even longer during the summer as they juggle interviews around hiring managers’ vacation schedules.
DALE: So, odds are you won’t have actual employment over the summer. Still, put away the sunscreen because you’ll have plenty of work, spending at least five to six hours a day on your job search. You’re already a couple of years behind, so it’s catchup time. You should have been doing internships and building a network over your last couple of years in school, but you can make up for it with intense networking — getting together with other recent grads who already found jobs and by visiting with alumni who work in the field you’re planning to pursue — along with research into companies who are hiring grads and who have excellent growth prospects. Do it right and it will be the most rewarding and exhausting summer of your life.
Dear J.T. & Dale: I got laid off after 27 years with the same company. I want to do something different but have no idea what I’m qualified for. Where should I start? — Len
J.T.: I think it’s great that you’re open to a new opportunity. You likely have an incredible number of transferable skills, and the goal will be to narrow them down and figure out which skills you want to use in your new role. Companies hire you based on your UVA — your Unique Value Add. It’ll be much easier to choose a career that will be a fit if you keep that in mind. If you’d like to get a start on assessing your professional strengths and determine your UVA, check out my free quiz over at WorkItDaily.com. It’s called the Career Decoder and it helps you identify your top workplace personas. These will help you understand what value you want to bring to the workplace so that you can choose a career that will make you feel successful and satisfied.
DALE: And a couple of things to keep in mind as you start to network and interview. First, while I hope the company came up with a generous severance, it’s a common mistake to feel that you deserve a break from working after all those years. Bad idea. People who let the severance run down tend to end up doing a panicky job search that often begets a downward career spiral. Indeed, if you have a chance to do freelance work while you search, that would insure that you have time to do it right. Second, while 27 years demonstrates remarkable loyalty, job tenure isn’t what it used to be. Unless you were making
steady progress in your skills, some people will wonder why you were content to stay so long in one place — it can be taken as inertia rather than loyalty. Your attitude can make all the difference here. Let everyone know that you stayed because you were committed to your work and team, and now you can’t wait to jump in and help the next team. And, speaking of attitude, you can think of this as a scary, stressful time, or you can think of it as an adventure, full of the energy of exploration.
Jeanine “J.T.” Tanner O’Donnell is a career coach and the founder of the leading career site www.workitdaily.com. Dale Dauten’s latest book is “Experiments Never Fail: A Guide for the Bored, Unappreciated and Underpaid.” Please visit them at jtanddale.com, where you can send questions via email, or write to them in care of King Features Syndicate, 628 Virginia Dr., Orlando, FL 32803. © 2023 by King Features Syndicate, Inc.