Job-Search Strategy

Diagnosing a Stalled Job Search

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If you feel stuck in your search, understanding where the problem lies is the key to moving forward. To diagnose your search and find the "cure", ask yourself these questions, split into three broad categories: Your targeting, your marketing, and the volume in your search. If your answer to any of these questions is not clearly "yes", you may have a gap that you need to address.

For the targeting, consider-- am I going for the right position for me? Is it a fit with my background as I'm presenting it, or is there a mismatch? Is. . .

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Age discrimination, or something else?

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A recent article in the NY Times focused on how particularly difficult it is for job-seekers over 45 to land jobs in this market. I and others at the Five O'Clock Club have discussed this article and strongly disagree that this group should be singled out. In fact, everyone has been impacted by this "buyers market", but some older workers, when they get discouraged, may misinterpret concerns about salary level as age discrimination. Personally, I've seen a similar rate of success among older job-seekers vs. other age groups, and have witnessed the power of a positive. . .

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The Importance of Targets in Your Job Search

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I see a lot of new job-hunters who are unfocused about their job targets. They feel that their background allows them to do many things (e.g., I can be a project manager, marketing director, or a corporate trainer). So their whole approach to the search is to position themselves as generally as possible, in the hope that others (recruiters, network contacts, etc.) will decide for them.

This approach doesn't work for a few of reasons. First off, you're watering down your message for any individual job target, vs. your competitors. Second, you need to make it as easy as possible for people to help you, and that means pitching yourself appropriately for a specific position. Don't ask them to do the work to translate your varied background into specific targets-- do this for them! Lastly, targeting is all about the benefits that accrue through

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