Do you look for excuses not to job search or do they find you?
The nights are lighter the weather is better and suddenly a number of executive job seekers have better things to do with their time other than implement an effective job search. The garden needs sorting, no one is there over the bank holiday, the kids are off school and the list goes on. The thought of having to spend time in front of a PC sends them reeling. The period after the bank holidays is one of the most buoyant in the recruitment calendar and this is exactly why you should be making the most of this period.
The job search should be treated like a full time position, a small percentage of your time should be research on the internet, job boards a fraction of this time. The more valuable approach is to evaluate who is likely to be interested in a candidate of your calibre and prepare a target list. Who are the buyers in your marketplace, who might need you? I am not adverse to the great outdoors and making the most of the good weather by all means network on the golf course, take a wander to your local pub and get talking to potential contacts. The good weather tends to mean the opportunity to meet people increases significantly, attend all of the barbeques you normally avoid like the plague, after all you never know who you might meet.
I advocate networking to all of my clients as the most effective way of securing a new position, developing a contact list that can sustain you for the rest of your working life. Do remember that networking is a long term strategy rather than a quick win. The networking that you commence now may lead to the job you secure in 6 months or 6 years time. Many job seekers allow themselves time off before they begin their search again in earnest, perhaps not really understanding the length of time the process can take. A more fruitful approach may be to set a task list and run your networking plan alongside all of the other activities.
My most successful clients have always been the ones who establish targets and maintain them throughout the job search. When they achieve what they set out to achieve on a daily basis they can be free to pursue their own activities, as they did when they were gainfully employed. Plan job search free days in to the calendar too avoid “search fatigue”. Knowing you have done everything you needed to will enable you to free these days up and not have the nagging feeling of, I should be job searching.
There is a three month window between now and August to ensure that you are really penetrating the market. Have you filled the gap on the CV from when you were made redundant? When did you last update your CV? Were there people you meant to call but assumed they would be away for the Easter/Bank Holiday period? Break down your tasks to achieve into realistic amounts over the next 12 weeks to ensure that you are apportioning enough time to the advertised (20%) and the unadvertised (80%). Are you carrying out your job search with the same characteristics you displayed in your last position? Set yourself a plan and the results will start to snowball. After all everything gets better when the sun shines.