Not sure what’s missing?
If you just can’t attract any interest, consider your approach to finding opportunities.
1) Are you relying on job boards?
They have minimal efficacy in landing target roles. Learn more about modern networking leveraging social media platforms and a spirit of generosity.
2) Has your resume been posted online?
If it’s been posted online for a few months, you might look like a stale candidate. Similar to seeing a house that’s been on the market for months, many start to wonder if something is wrong. Consider refreshing your content to generate renewed interest.
3) Are you branding yourself as unemployed or looking?
Lead with your value offering instead of your employment status.
If you’re not progressing past the prescreen, there might be a disconnect between how you're presenting yourself in your content and what you're saying when you speak to a person.
1) Do your resume and LinkedIn profile reflect what you want to do NOW?
Sometimes job seekers quickly add a few lines reflecting a current role and hope that’s enough. Sometimes they hope someone will give them a chance on a leadership role without ever spelling out they’d like to lead or indicating what might qualify them to take on more.
2) Have you prepped for common questions?
Giving a personal response to “Tell Me About Yourself,” going longer than 3 minutes on your answers, or peppering your responses with filler such as “like” and “um” indicate you might need a little more practice.
If you’re landing interviews, but not offers, reflect on your value offering and how you’re presenting yourself.
1) Do you make a positive first impression?
Take video of yourself entering the room or introducing yourself onscreen. Are you smiling? Do you appear confident? Can you succinctly introduce yourself and relay what you bring to the table?
Research tells us many hiring authorities can predict within the first 15 seconds if a candidate will proceed to the next stage of the hiring process. First impressions matter!
2) Do you research the hiring committee to uncover talking points?
People hire people. A primary concern among hiring authorities is whether or not they can actually imagine working with you day after day. Humanize yourself and demonstrate you’ll be a friendly coworker by bringing up a few hobbies or light topics, especially if you can uncover any common ground when researching your interviewers online. Don’t get too personal, but their alma matter, volunteer work, and follows on LinkedIn air fair game.
3) Do you ask follow-up questions during the interview?
This is a great way to discern how on-point your answers might be and find out if you’re addressing their priorities. Check in intermittently between questions to ask if they need more information or if your answer aligns with their needs for the open role.
4) Do you send a thank you note?
Yes, it’s another thing to add to your to do list, but common courtesy really makes a huge difference in your job search. You can score bonus points by sending a custom note address the concerns of each member of the hiring committee.
5) Do you follow up to reinforce your interest?
Most often, you don’t receive an offer immediately after sending in a thank you note. They may need to speak to more candidates or discuss your candidacy at higher levels. That doesn’t mean your work is done! Let hiring authorities know you remain interested in the role by following up. Mix up the modes of outreach and ask if you can offer any additional information to help them make their decision.
If you're not getting interest for a prolonged period (3+ months), it might be time to rethink your target or get more creative about how you attract leads.
