There are four ways of finding work in today’s economy. That’s right. Just four ways.
The other day, I shared two approaches with you: traditional and targeted. Traditional is when you package yourself up in a resume and put yourself out there, hoping to be seen and hired. Targeted is when you determine exactly what position or role you would like to be hired for, and then package yourself (resume, LinkedIn profile, conversations) as the perfect person to fill that role or position.
You might notice that each of these ways is what I call “reactive” or “responsive.” What I mean by that is that you are reacting or responding to a position that has been created by someone else.
In this article, I will share two new approaches for finding work in today’s economy. They are “proactive” ways of creating work, based on who you are and what you have to offer the marketplace. Here they are:
1. Consultative: This approach requires that you know who you are and what you have of value to offer the marketplace. What do you do? What do you have to offer that is valuable to the marketplace? The key is to figure out who has a need that you can fill? Who has a problem that you can solve?
EXAMPLE: Early in my career, I coached a client in the marine insurance industry. There had just been a legislative change in Washington, DC and companies were scrambling to figure out what it meant for them. He had helped his company to navigate through these regulatory waters and so reached out to other companies – in a consultative way - to see if they needed help. This approach is so effective because you are essentially identifying a problem and offering a way to help.
You will need first to identify what you have to offer and then determine who needs what you have. Once you identify a potential client/employer, you need to have a consultative conversation where you articulate who you are, what you do, how you think you can help them, and share proof of where you have done this in the past.
2. Make it Up and Charge For It: This option is my favorite. This is where you create something for sale to the marketplace. It can be a product or a service, such as, in my industry, a book, coaching program, online course. You create it and determine how and where to sell it. Leverage your intellectual property.
These proactive approaches to the marketplace are the most effective. If you can either use your talents to help a company solve a problem, or sell a service or a product to inform, your chances for finding paid work are great! Create your own way in today’s economy. That is the secret sauce to success!
And, if you need help with this, reach out and let’s set up a strategy session. Click here to apply.
The Official You Are Free Blog
Find Work in Today’s Job Market: Two Approaches
For those of you who don’t know…
There are four ways of finding work in today’s economy. That’s right. Just four ways.
Today, I will share the first two with you. Here they are, along with my recommendations:
1. Traditional: This is how most people look for work. They write up their resume as a history of everything they’ve done and put it out into the marketplace, hoping for a reply. A reply that never comes. And, they wonder why.
This method doesn’t work, for several reasons. First of all, if you are writing your resume as a history of everything you’ve done, you are expecting the prospective employer to take the time to translate what you’ve done into what they need. No one has the time to do that. Your resume will land in the trash. It’s not strategic.
Secondly, if you are not targeting what you have in your resume to the job specs, you will never get hired. The job market is way too competitive. Companies can afford to hire exactly what they are looking for. If they want to hire an owner of a three-earred hamster, they can. (I’m being facetious, but you know what I mean.)
Finally, if you are just putting yourself out there, applying everywhere, hoping that your resume will stick, I can tell you, it won’t. You have to be very strategic about where you are applying in order to be seen above the fray.
2. Targeted: This option is where you get very focused and targeted about how you present yourself. For example, if you are looking for a copywriting position in the advertising industry, you will know exactly what the companies are looking for at your level, and include examples in your resume of how you demonstrated the important skill sets.
It may sound counterintuitive, but the more focused your resume, the better chance you have of getting it read. This flies in the face of what most people want to do. Most people want to make themselves as broadly appealing as possible so as to be considered for the widest number of jobs. Sounds good, but in reality, this strategy produces the opposite result. The more broadly appealing you make yourself, the less chance you have for finding any job.
Be bold, take a stand for what you have to offer, figure out who needs what you have, and make your case of providing value to them.
And, if you need help with this, you might want to set up a strategy session with me. Click here to apply.
There are four ways of finding work in today’s economy. That’s right. Just four ways.
Today, I will share the first two with you. Here they are, along with my recommendations:
1. Traditional: This is how most people look for work. They write up their resume as a history of everything they’ve done and put it out into the marketplace, hoping for a reply. A reply that never comes. And, they wonder why.
This method doesn’t work, for several reasons. First of all, if you are writing your resume as a history of everything you’ve done, you are expecting the prospective employer to take the time to translate what you’ve done into what they need. No one has the time to do that. Your resume will land in the trash. It’s not strategic.
Secondly, if you are not targeting what you have in your resume to the job specs, you will never get hired. The job market is way too competitive. Companies can afford to hire exactly what they are looking for. If they want to hire an owner of a three-earred hamster, they can. (I’m being facetious, but you know what I mean.)
Finally, if you are just putting yourself out there, applying everywhere, hoping that your resume will stick, I can tell you, it won’t. You have to be very strategic about where you are applying in order to be seen above the fray.
2. Targeted: This option is where you get very focused and targeted about how you present yourself. For example, if you are looking for a copywriting position in the advertising industry, you will know exactly what the companies are looking for at your level, and include examples in your resume of how you demonstrated the important skill sets.
It may sound counterintuitive, but the more focused your resume, the better chance you have of getting it read. This flies in the face of what most people want to do. Most people want to make themselves as broadly appealing as possible so as to be considered for the widest number of jobs. Sounds good, but in reality, this strategy produces the opposite result. The more broadly appealing you make yourself, the less chance you have for finding any job.
Be bold, take a stand for what you have to offer, figure out who needs what you have, and make your case of providing value to them.
And, if you need help with this, you might want to set up a strategy session with me. Click here to apply.
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