Career experts claim that the majority of job openings are never publicly announced or advertised, but they are found through word-of-mouth. This word-of-mouth networking is often referred to as the “hidden job market”.
Networking refers to the means of developing a broad list of contacts, and using them to your advantage when searching for a job. Some of your contacts may be able to offer you advice or information that you could use to land your next job. They might even introduce you to a new company and educate you about it. Confronting your past coworkers or previous employers are a great place to start your networking. Often times, your coworkers have similar interests and therefore they could point you in the right direction for your next job.
For example, one of my coworkers quit his work at an animal hospital day clinic because the pay was not that great. Shortly after he started working at a local Emergency Pet Hospital. He relayed the news to me and even put in a good word for me to his new boss. I eventually landed the new job and the pay was indeed much better.
Some helpful steps to Successful Networking are:
-Develop a firm grasp of job search basics
-Conduct a self-assessment
-Prepare a strong resume
-Decide how to organize your network
-Communicate with your network
-Initiate informational interviews
-and finally to Follow up with your network.
Here is an educational video:
Works cited:
Hansen, Randall. "Networking Your Way to a New Job". 4/4/2009
Good post Kristina...
ReplyDeleteI will most certainly use all of these tips for my next job search.
Networking is very important, the job that I currently have, never even got posted at the job seach engines or even the corporate website. I was offered the position before it was even available, and it was all because of networking.
By the way... I really liked the cartoon as well... =)
ReplyDeleteGreat post Kristina!
ReplyDeleteIt will be very helpful for readers who come to the BlogDoctors.
Also, great cartoon and good youtube!
This is a very good article. When I was in the career office, they discussed this very topic with me. Everyone we know in our chosen field is a potential contact. An example of a contact would be my father. He is an accountant, and I am taking an accounting major. He knows of other accountants, and has some insider knowledge on the industry itself. He also might know of people who I could contact for a job, through word of mouth just like this article said.
ReplyDeleteAwesome post, Kristina. Full of voice and good tips.
ReplyDelete