You may be passively surveying the market or actively looking for job opportunities. You may be contemplating an important career transition after many years in the same company or simply looking for opportunities for a similar job elsewhere. You might have just started your research or you have been applying for months. This reading aims to target all possible scenarios and help you stay focus on your goal and stay positive and motivated.

Have a plan… a weekly plan… even a daily plan !

I’ve had many similar conversations where I realised that people where focusing too much on the final goal (landing a job) and they tend to forget setting simple, ambitious, but also realistic objectives along the way.

And this is so important to avoid being frustrated every time you receive a rejection email from a company you apply for (yes, I’m talking about those automatically generated emails, the ones you usually can not answer to and when you can, you usually don’t get a reply. Indeed, the recruiters are too busy and simply can not respond to all applicants, especially when you are rejected early in the process. This is a sad reality important to accept. Therefore, when you are looking for a new job, instead of only asking yourself: “how many applications did I make this week?” or “how many rejections and invitations did I get”, ask yourself: “What is my plan for the week?”:

What is a must for me to achieve ?
What would be really nice to achieve ?
What is “nice to have” but not so important this week ?

And start with the most important task you will have identify.

This simple way of prioritizing will help you on the “being” side to stay positive, and look back at your day, week, month of job search with a feeling of pride and self-satisfaction. And this is indeed mentally extremely helpful in difficult time when you feel you don’t receive as much positive echo on your applications as you would expect. It also helps on the “doing” side: you “plant seeds” every day in order for you to reap the rewards of your work at some point in the near future.

Be strategic: diversify your job search goals

Now that you have a “weekly plan” mindset, be strategic, diversify your job search goals. Don't focus only in looking for jobs on Linkedin and preparing your applications. Go out, meet new people, ask questions, be curious, try, fail, try again until you feel there is something new you should try, network and use your network, use ChatGPT as you "Job transition Intern", do some research, find ways to "disconnect" in order to recharge your batteries.

CV / Cover letter / Linkedin, etc

This is usually where job seekers spend most of their time….big mistake !

Draining, depressing, frustrating, irritating, time consuming and…rarely satisfying.

Of course those documents and platforms are important, very important, and you do want to feel confident about your job applications materials. But once you’re set, there is no need for your to spend extra time. Make sure to set the right job alerts, finetune your documents properly when you have identified exciting opportunities that mostly match with your profile. And if you don’t feel excited and/or your profile don’t really match the job criterias, then why should you waste too much time or even in applying?

Use Artificial Intelligence

Just a few examples I can share on my side:

ChatGPT will help you in conveying the right tone and the right message you want to convey in your application documents, your interview preparation. Use this tool as if this was an Intern working for you with the goal of finding a new job. Provide as much as context information (Prompt) so it can take it into account in its suggestion. By doing that, you will also do yourself a favor in reflecting what is really important for you when you think of the stories you want to tell. A few tips for you to write a good prompt: Write clear instructions; Give a reference text, in other words your drafted version; Literally give the tool “some time to think" (write it in the chatbot). Always check the results.

Indeed, don’t make the mistake to not edit ChatGPT’s suggestions. Again, this is a tool that will help you to be more efficient in your preparation, not some magic tool that will do everything for you without the need to review and correct.

Jobscan - Today, many organizations use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS), software tools that help recruiters and hiring managers manage their hiring process. The ATS can automate tasks, screen candidates, and track their progress until the final selection. Jobscan helps you optimize your resume for any job, highlighting the key experience and skills recruiters need to see. Tested and approved 👍

Sonara - Acts much like your personal AI recruiterin order to simplify your job search journey. With seamless automation, it takes charge of the job application process, refines your resume for optimal impact, and recommends the most fitting job opportunities tailored to your selected preferences.

Do some research…

About the companies, organizations you apply for. Check the latest news, who is in charge and how it is structured, etc

About the people who work there. You may know someone who already works/worked there. You may know someone who knows someone…(thank you Linkedin). Use this as an opportunity to connect with an “insider” and then prepare your questions, speak to the person and use it to your advantage later on in the process.

About their values and key principles. Always important to do a check-in to make sure you’re aligned and important for the preparation as well.

About the competencies they are looking for. Competencies differ depending on the role.
Identify the critical competencies needed for the role by reading very carefully the job description (JD) and sometimes between the lines. Try to understand what is really important for the role. Usually, the first bullet points are the most important in a JD. For example, if “team player” and ”creative” appear to be everywhere, you can be sure that collaboration and creativity are key competencies needed for the role.

Once you have identified the key competencies of the role and the company values (usually available on the corporate website), look for some specific examples of your professional experience honoring those, using the STAR model. On this specifically, I wrote a 2 articles about interview preparation and job interviews in case you want to explore this topic further.

Network “smart” and efficientely

During a period of job hunting, your time is precious. Indeed, you might have a job to do in parallel or even 2 or 3 if you are a parent and/or need to take care of a family member, etc. And even if your main activity is to land a job, it is still a full time job !

Reason why you also need to be strategic about the people you connect withand why you do think they might be able to help you in that process. There is a big difference between:

a. raising your hand and shout “hey everyone, I’m desperately loooking for a job! Can you help me?”

and

b. doing some research about who in your network you would like to contact, why you would like to reach out, how do you think they might be able to help and what exactly you would like from them.

I'm obviously caricaturing a bit, but it's a good starting point that will save you time in the future, and you're more likely to leverage efficiently your network.

On top of your list, have your “career sponsors”, the people you have been working extensively with, who have seen you in action many time and who value the quality of your work. The people who will recommend you with closed eyes in your expertise domain and may even hire you for a brand new opportunity they just had.

Have fun in the process

Given the amount of energy, time, stress and frustration you spend looking for a job, you better have fun in the process as well, right ;-)? When I did go threw an important career transition a few years ago, moving from corporate full-time employee to independant “solopreneur” coach and career advisor, what really helped me enjoying the process was actually 3 things:

Learning - Job search, whatever the context, the reasons, should be a great opportunity to learn some new things and feel proud about it.

Connecting - As mentionned earlier, use your network smartly and efficientely. I would add one component that really helped me in my transition: connecting with people I did not know (friend of a friend, someone with similar areas of interest, someone I thought I could potentially learn from). This might bring you unexpected “surprises”, reboost your energy and confidence and a even a smile (back) on your face.

Feeling proud - For things that really matters to you, make sure you do your absolute best to be successfull. Have no regrets whatever the outcome is. And when positive things happen, take time to celebrate your successes.

And finally…

Learn and make sure to regularly to switch off your phone, your computer, your job ads and application documents in order for you to recharge your battery, “disconnect” and focus on other things that matters to you (your family and friends? Your hobbies? What you cherish in life? Others?).

This part is essential like a breath of fresh air, don’t underestimate it.

Interested about this article? Feel free to contact me here.

I provide coaching and counseling to both private individuals and corporate clients on career, leadership, and development. I also facilitate group workshops with organizations and business schools

I also write blogs on critical topics such as internal mobility, navigating challenging conversations, providing effective feedback, job interviews preparation and personal development.

If you want to speak to me directly, book your free chemistry call here.

How to stay focused during your job search? Simple tips for success