Struggling with creating an effective job search strategy? Try the tips.

1. Tips to Stay Motivated in Your
Job Search
by
Donna Shannon
720-341-8229
donna@personaltouchcareerservices.com
1© 2012, 2015 Donna Shannon

2. The Personal Touch Career Services
• Our Mission: To help job seekers of all levels achieve
their employment goals through solid, practical advice
and services
 Resumes
 Interview coaching
 Job search strategy development
 Group classes
 My book: How to Get a Job Without Going Crazy (2nd Ed.)
2© 2012, Donna Shannon

3. “Treat your job search like a job…”
What the heck does that mean?
3© 2012, Donna Shannon

4. “Treat your job search like a job…”
You now have to manage an employee
with..
• A poor work environment
• No set schedule
• Unknown standards of performance
4© 2012, Donna Shannon

5. Your Management Essentials
• Structure
• Understand your work style
• Organization
• Implement a proven tactic to organize your search
• Motivation
• Know the key metrics to gauge your effectiveness
5© 2012, Donna Shannon

6. KEY WORK STYLES
What structure works best for you?
6© 2012, Donna Shannon

7. Four Key Work Styles
Knowing what moves you will get you moving!
– Goals
– Schedules
– Deadlines
– Lists
7© 2012, Donna Shannon

8. Goals:
Do you work best when striving to meet a specific goal?
Samples:
• I will research 10 companies this week.
• I will apply to 3 jobs today
• I will finish my LinkedIn profile
TRAP:
– Unrealistic goals are detrimental
TIP:
– Break down the job search process into smaller, attainable
rewards
8© 2012, Donna Shannon

9. Schedules:
Does doing same thing everyday or every day of the
week give you focus?
Sample:
7:00 am - feed pets on Facebook
7:15 am – read Google alerts
8:00 am – review employment websites
10:00 am – work on LinkedIn network
11:30 am – lunch
9© 2012, Donna Shannon

10. Schedules: Trap and Tip
• TRAP:
– Getting thrown off balance by the unexpected
OR
– Not enough structure
• TIP:
– Create a set schedule for specific tasks
(especially ones that suck time, like email)
10© 2012, Donna Shannon

11. Deadlines:
Do you work best when there is a tight deadline to keep?
Samples:
• Unemployment requires 5 calls by Friday
• Cutoff for submitting your resume is June 30th.
11© 2012, Donna Shannon

12. Deadlines: Trap and Tip
• TRAP:
– Procrastinating to create the pressure they need
• TIP:
– Get a hard-and-fast tool for accountability:
– Outside forces such as agencies (government or
private)
– Job search buddy or group
12© 2012, Donna Shannon

13. Lists:
Do you organize your work into a to-do list?
Sample:
1. Work on LinkedIn profile
2. Check out networking groups
3. Look up three target companies
13© 2012, Donna Shannon

14. Lists: Trap and Tip
• TRAP:
– Becoming too dependent on the process OR
– Unable to break it down
• TIP:
– Consider all the steps needed for your job search
14© 2012, Donna Shannon

15. Lists are not Goals…
• Lists break down the process into steps
• Crossing them off is the reward
• “Get a job” becomes:
1. Complete LinkedIn profile
2. Finish resume
3. Find a good networking group
15© 2012, Donna Shannon

16. THE SALES PROCESS
A proven business strategy
16© 2012, Donna Shannon

17. The job hunt is a Sales process..
• Prospecting
• Qualifying lead
• Discovery
• Proposal
• Interviews
• Job offers
17© 2012, Donna Shannon
Prospecting
Qualifying
Discovery
Proposal
(Resume,
Cover Letter)
Interview
Job
Offer

18. Prospecting:
• Takes the most time
• Feels like smallest reward
• GOAL: find as many as possible leads without
judgment
18© 2012, Donna Shannon

19. Prospecting
• Samples:
– Scanning the job boards
– Pulling research on target companies
– Reading the news
19© 2012, Donna Shannon

20. Qualifying
• Determine if this is a viable prospect
• GOAL: eliminate the undesirable and find
direct contacts
20© 2012, Donna Shannon

21. Important note:
You will spend the majority of your time Prospecting
and Qualifying –
To most people, this feels like a waste of time.
It is NOT.
Realize this fact, and you see the real value of what
you’re doing.
– Clarity = Sanity!
21© 2012, Donna Shannon

22. Discovery
• Find out about your target BEFORE
submitting anything
• GOAL: Break free from the pack
– Hit every possible target
– Make cover letter / resume relevant
– Determine if you want to work here
© 2012, Donna Shannon 22

23. Proposal
• Submitting your resume to the company
• GOAL: create a targeted and relevant
proposal
– Your resume
– Custom cover letter
– Reach hiring managers
23© 2012, Donna Shannon

24. Interview
• Review all your research to create intelligent,
insightful questions
• GOAL: Get the offer while qualifying the
company
24© 2012, Donna Shannon

25. Job Offer
• No matter what the offer is, you can
negotiate
• GOAL: Get a job that is a good fit at the right
terms
25© 2012, Donna Shannon

26. EVALUATION PROCESS
So how are you doing?
26© 2012, Donna Shannon

27. Cold, hard facts of the job search:
1. How long does it take to get a response from HR?
– 3- 4 weeks for most jobs
– 45 – 60 days for highly technical or executive level positions
– Up to 3 months for government jobs
2. How many jobs should you apply to every week?
– 10 if you research every job
– 10 – 30 if sending out stock cover letters / resumes
– 50 – 100 if applying blindly to anything and everything (but don’t
expect much of a response if you do)
27© 2012, Donna Shannon

28. More facts…
3. How many hours a week should I spend on job searching?
– 40 hours – this is your job!
– Remember time for networking, research and social media
4. How many resumes do I have to send before I get an
interview?
– 10 – 20 if you carefully research every job, send targeted cover
letters and reach out to hiring managers
– 20 – 50 in a cool market
– 100+ if not doing any research
NOTE: if you have submitted to over 30 - 50 jobs without any response, you
need to re-evaluate your tactics, your resume, or the market
28© 2012, Donna Shannon

29. Sound like a lot of resumes?
• Remember this is a sales
cycle…
Successful salesmen can boast
a closing rate of 1 in 10 for
each submitted proposal –
But they may have prospected
anywhere for 100 to 1,000 to
get to the qualified lead!
© 2012, Donna Shannon 29
Prospecting
Qualifying
Discovery
Proposal
(Resume,
Cover Letter)
Interview
Job
Offer

30. No Response?
Possible culprits:
• Resume
– Get a professional opinion, and get more than one
• Online Profile
– Are you conveying the right message?
• Employment Websites
– when was the last time it was updated?
• Groups
– Are you getting involved?
30© 2012, Donna Shannon

31. Personal Evaluation
Activity Point of
process
What is working: What is NOT
working:
31© 2012, Donna Shannon

32. Personal Evaluation- Sample
Activity Point of
process
What is working: What is NOT
working:
Searching for
jobs on craigslist
Prospecting Found some jobs not
advertised on
Monster;
Got 2 interviews in 3
weeks
Not enough high level
jobs listed;
Cautious of scams
Brown Bag Job
Search Group
Prospecting,
Qualifying
Learning a lot;
Made new contacts;
Got a job search
buddy;
Info on PBS recruiting
practices;
Good support
No job leads yet
32© 2012, Donna Shannon

33. Moving forward?
• If there are NO activities further down in the
sales process
…you have a real problem
33© 2012, Donna Shannon

34. Moving forward
• What are some activities you can add to kick-
start your sales cycle?
• What work style would you use?
34© 2012, Donna Shannon

35. WRAP UP
Questions & Answers
35© 2012, Donna Shannon

36. Keys to remember:
• Use your work style
• Remember the Sales process
• Evaluate efforts on regular basis
36© 2012, Donna Shannon

37. Want more information? Check out these links:
www.personaltouchcareerservices.com
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/PersonalTouchCareers
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DonnaShannon.careercoach
Twitter: @DLShannon
Networking Group: Brown Bag Job Search Group on Meetup.com
© 2012, Donna Shannon 37