5 Ways to Speed Up Your Job Search

5 Ways to Speed Up Your Job Search Is it possible to speed up your job search?   There are definitely things you can do to increase your odds. 1.   Invest time up front in finding your focus By understanding what your strengths are you will be much more likely to find the appropriate opportunities, as opposed to randomly applying for anything that looks close.   Finding your focus means learning about you and learning about companies.   I have seen job seekers waste precious time searching without really knowing where they are going.   What are your strengths and Weaknesses? Conduct a SWOT analysis by My Career Manager 2.   Know your values. Finding the right fit isnt just about the perfect skills match.   I know, youve seen a job posting and thought, This is the perfect job for me.   I am a natural fit!.   But are you really?   What do you know about he company?   As an explorer, you will want to discover as much as you can about the company as well. This post has some ideas on what you could be assessing:   Measuring Trust 3.   Manage your time well Without structure, it is just too easy to get distracted.   Believe me, I know.   Ive recently started my own business and struggle with this.   You will want a strategy first and then you can design your tactical approach.   Dont get lured into surfing the internet.   It is too easy.   Here is a post with suggestions for managing your time in chunks. 4.   Invest in activities with the greatest return on investment According to CareerXroads 2010 survey, almost 30% of external new hires were referrals (this means you need to make contact with people working within companies of interest) almost 25% of external new hires were from the companys career site (this means you need to identify target companies) almost 15% of external new hires were from job boards and then the numbers get smaller. The idea here is to invest your time in networking.   If the rumor is true and over 70% of jobs are secured through networking, imagine spending about 70% of your time there. 4.   Dont go it alone.   Get help. There are job clubs, networking groups, career coaches, etc that can help you with your job search.   This is not the time in your life to be stubborn and refuse help.   You need it, every one does.   Statistics have proven that those people involved in job clubs or other groups find jobs faster than those working alone. While I am mentioning help, if you feel you are sinking into depression, get help.   It is quite normal and almost expected that you will feel depressed, however, if you cant shake it, please do something about it. 5.   Assess what is working and what is not Job search will take longer than you want.   Dont beat yourself up.   Conduct and assessment of what youve been doing and what the outcomes have been.   Are you getting interviews?   Are you arranging networking meetings?   Are you applying for jobs?   By looking back over your activities for the past 30 days or so, what breakthroughs have you had?   Dont wait too long before you take an assessment. Can you recommend a piece of advice for those who are in a stalled search? If you are looking for more ideas, check out the related posts below!   It is an area which I have written about before.