It was a dark and stormy night ...
Actually, it was a really sunny day on the Adriatic coast, as I launched this meme [launch post is here] while I was away on my holidays. I'm delighted to see the response so far - thank you so much to all who have contributed, passed on the meme, commented, or written directly to me. Please keep the ball rolling; the quality of the contributions so far has been outstanding and there is so much more working-life experience that we can share on this oh-so important topic.
I'm going back to politely pester the people I have tagged on this one who haven't got around to contributing yet, and I'm delighted to see new input trickling into my inbox from people I have never met or read yet. Already, I've added a dozen new blogs to my reader and found new ideas and approaches in each one of them. Let's make the trickle of ideas a flow ...
Contributors to date, broken out by the stages of the hunt:
HURDLE 1 - Targeting & Research- Michael Wade, the Execupundit on playing the numbers to increase your chance of success. How do you find more oil? Drill more wells ...
- Lisa over at HR Thoughts on finding the right fit - just what shape of a peg are you?
- Alexander Kjerulf, the Chief Happiness Officer with a stunningly simple thought on what constitutes the right job for you. He also has some clear-sighted thoughts on identifying your tipping point of when it's time to move on ...
- Karen from Please Don't Call Us Headhunters with a plethora of riches - first her thoughts on targeting and research.
HURDLE 2 - The Written Stage- Deb Owen over at 8 Hours & A Lunch has a really tightly written piece on turning your CV/Résumé into a real marketing tool. The keys? Know your audience and differentiate, differentiate, differentiate.
- Karen from Please Don't Call Us Headhunters again - her pithy thoughts on representing yourself in writing.
HURDLE 3 - Interviews- Declan Chellar has an elegant piece of real-world advice on minding your manners, even if you get bad news at an interview.
- CHO Alexander Kjerulf also contributes a great question to ask them during a job interview.
- Liz Handlin at Ultimate Resumes with her marvellous interview tips.
- Karen the Headhunter speaks much sense on the subject of the big errors to avoid at interview - make sure you catch her thoughts in the addendum piece too.
- Pawel at Software Project Management has some good thoughts on keeping the dialogue going at the end of the interview.
- Ask A Manager with some spot-on thoughts on dealing with questions about weaknesses and failures in your past.
HURDLE 4 - "Dance Monkey Boy!"- Wally Bock over at Three Star Leadership distils 40 years of professional experience into a soaring post on job-hunting: "... the basics haven't changed. You need to be choosy, systematic and tireless. Be little bit lucky helps, too." Encore Wally!
- Karen the Headhunter on how to approach the various strands of pre-employment testing (When it comes to drug screens, avoid asking, "It’s just urinalysis, right?") [Thanks Karen, I ruined a perfectly good shirt when I squirted tea out my nostrils I laughed so hard at this post]
- In the comments, Craig very kindly points us to a swoon-worthy post by the Cranky Product Manager on how to impress her in the selection process. Reverse engineering all the way - I think I'm in love ...
HURDLE 5 - Negotiation- Kris Dunn, the HR Capitalist - when should you start talking about the filthy lucre.
HURDLE 6 - Starting The New Job- Evil HR Lady shows her human side (!) in an excellent post on making your new job layoff-proof.
- Steve Roesler at All Things Workplace with three posts - getting your head in the right frame to consider a mid-career change. Part 2 of Steve's post is here.
Y'all come back now, y'hear? We've got lots more goodies coming. I suspect this beast is going to get bigger and bigger ... [You can subscribe for updates using the RSS button thingie over in the sidebar]
QUESTIONS ARISING
I've had some good questions by comment and mail:
Jacob - there's no deadline for submission. If we build enough quality material, I'd like to go the e-book route by the end of the year or maybe early next year. Plenty of time to get your thoughts together!
Craig - you do have a post on this topic. You just haven't written it yet.
Bilal - your experiences and lessons from the Middle East will be a very valuable contribution to the body of knowledge in the Project. I very much look forward to seeing your thoughts.
Sally - I look forward to your post.
Nicholas - Thank you for the kind words and encouragement.
4 comments:
My human side? Snort.
Who says I have one? I'm HR.
Snort?
Would that be a derisive snort?
We appear to have hit a nerve, and that means there are feelings, and a heart and - who knows - maybe a soul?
QED
Sorry about the shirt! Glad you liked the post.
In order to win the best jobs and ultimately your dream job in today's world, you have to work like a ninja. Your job search must be different than everyone else's. You have to search where others don't search. You must have a strategic plan of attack.
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