"Magic is
believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen."
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Yup - it is here - the "official" holiday season.
. The time of the year when parties abound, there are presents to buy and the
time of the year when no one finds a job …
Wrong! And so wrong
especially this year!
Every year I get on the same soapbox after hearing over and
over again …
“… I am going to lay low until after the New Year… ”.
Not a good strategy for sure, and this is why I thought I
would visit this again with some tips you can use starting today.
2013 is SOOOO
Different: Diffusing the Myth
The true fact is this: Companies continue to hire during the
holiday season but job hunters quit looking. As a recruiter and
corporate human resources executive job openings continue during December just
when many job seekers put their resume on the shelf for the holiday season. There
is no statistical proof that there are fewer new job openings in the month of
December versus other time of the year. In fact, many say it is just the
opposite. Hiring isn’t driven by a calendar, it is driven by need.
This past week, the week of Thanksgiving, the job market
normally gets a bit quiet on the Monday – Tues – Wed before the holiday. Not
just year. In fact, the market jumped 14% in that week – unheard of. There is
confidence in the market, perhaps fueled by the stock market, and employers are
now hiring strong. To put your resume on the shelf for the season makes no
sense; there are good jobs in the market right now.
Many companies want
to tie up loose ends – and that means hiring
In many companies, hiring actually heats up in December as
managers and business owners have money left in their budgets and want to spend
their budget rather than potentially losing it. Still others want to tie up
loose ends before the end of the year – and this includes filling open positions.
Many are also surprised to learn that the holiday season is
also a popular time for people to give their notice and move on, to get a fresh
start in a new job for the New Year. The result – more job opportunities for
others.
So I hope you get the message.
Six Tips for Your
Holiday Job Search
So, before you buy into the myth, put your resume on the
shelf and don your dancing shoes, consider the following actions:
Use holiday events as networking opportunities – Every event,
party, children’s school function, gathering etc. is an opportunity for you to
network, make a new contact. During the holidays there are generally more
events – and more opportunities! This past week Vikki and I went to five
networking events … and next week it continues.
Volunteer and make new contacts – Get involved with a charity or
group during the holiday season. Often the pillars of the community either
attend or help at these events and for you, which means an opportunity to make
great contacts – and give back to the community at the same time.
Rather than holding back on search
activities – heat up your actions – While I hope I have enlightened you to keep
the search activities going, others still won’t and there will be less
competition and fewer candidates giving you a better competitive opportunity.
Close down loose ends – contacts, follow-ups, applications – What
better time of the year to close down your “to do” list of contacts and
follow-ups and tie up you own loose ends.
Make yourself flexible & available and keep in contact – What
is miserably frustrating to a recruiter is the inability to get in touch with
potential candidates who “check-out” during holiday weeks. They just don’t
check their email and messages go unreturned. Stay connected!
Set goals – celebrate wins – visualize success - You may have heard
the expression “You cannot manage what you cannot manage”. In career & job
search, it is critical that you set goals, and set daily actions to achieve
your goals, especially when outside factors – like holiday activities – can be
distracting. I utilize the Get Hired
NOW! methodology with my clients which focuses on goal setting, drives results
through doing simple and planned actions every day, and celebrates the achievement
of goals. As an idea, set a goal for making X-number of networking contacts
this holiday season --- and celebrate when you hit your goal!
Keep the pressure on and take advantage of less competition
in the market as some will just not take advice and hang it up for the season.
You can win!
And thank you for reading this. - Dan
Dan
Moran
President
& Founder
Next-Act,
Division of DVG, Inc.
Career
Management & Transition Specialists
Corporate
Management Services
Celebrating
25 years providing career & corporate management services in 2013!
125 Wolf Road, Suite #128
Albany, NY 12205
Phone: 518-641-8968 dmoran@next-act.com
Author: Accept-Commit-Permit: Three Essential Steps to Achieving Happiness
& Success in Career (and Life!) ... Exclusively at Amazon.com: http://tinyurl.com/lluzsyd
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... Commit ... Permit ... Then Achieve!
