Searching for a job is a real job. It is a full-time job especially in a country like Nigeria, with its number of unemployed. Getting a good job may prove tedious and tiring but that doesn’t mean there is no job. It could be so discouraging, especially if it’s your first job considering the efforts you have put into the process – from compiling your CV to doing the many offline and online job searches and to preparing for interviews.
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Whether you are already working and in need of a new job or you are a fresh graduate, there are steps to follow. These steps guide you on making necessary preparations. They also make your chance of getting lucky high. The process is long, but at the same time, a short one. It depends on you and how desperate you are to make the best of your time.
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Tips For Searching For A Job
Listed below are carefully researched steps that, if followed, can increase your chance of landing your dream job.
The Best Time To Start Searching For A Job
The time to start is now. If you are employed, don’t wait till you get sacked or lose your job before you start hunting for another. In fact, getting another job while still employed gives you a great edge. It offers you the opportunity to compare and choose. If you are doing well in your current place, it is an opportunity to renegotiate your payment.
Also, as a fresh school leaver, you should have started applying for jobs when in your final semester in school. Waiting to finish before you start could amount to unnecessary delay. You could make your need for a job known within the circles and connections you have built over the years. Remember, this is not an internship, it is a full-time job.
Another good time to start hunting for a job is during your final months in the NYSC scheme. You need not wait until you finish your service. The company you are serving as a corps member is a good place to start if they do what you like.
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Make A Thorough Research About Jobs And Their Availability
The first thing to do after you have made up your mind to finally get a job is to do proper research about various vacancies. Consider this: does it sound rational to apply for the position of a senior accountant of a company as a fresh graduate? No. That kind of position requires at least 8 years of experience. And here you are, with little or no experience. So, if you keep applying for jobs you aren’t qualified for, your being unemployed has obvious reasons.
During your research, be sure you focus on those jobs your qualification makes you a fit for. Job vacancies placed out have their specifications and requirements. Your desperation should not make you jump at everything you see without understanding the details.
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Get Your CV Crafted
Your CV is not an ordinary document. It is meant to be as serious and updated as much as possible. Without a nicely written CV, your job hustle is on a track to nowhere. A CV is to you what a gun is to a soldier. It is what projects and gives you the image an employer sees.
Why would you rush writing it when it should be an important tool? Let it be your home, a place you reside in daily.
Your CV should not be a textbook. It should be simple and concise, yet contain necessary information. Irrespective of your experiences and how much you know, your CV should be about 2 pages.
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You Need A Cover Letter
Cover letters are used for introduction. It is the first thing your employer reads from and about you. Your abilities, skills, and tendencies are the features of your cover letter. Let it not be a long boring essay. It works best when it projects what it is meant to, succinctly.
However, there are things to note when writing your cover letter. Clarity is very essential in cover letters. The words and sentences you use should be as plain and simple as possible. Using ambiguous words is like a groom speaking French to her bride’s Nigerian parents on their first meeting. He would simply be seen as a joker.
Your reader should decode what you are about in just a read and not get confused. Avoid typographical and grammatical errors as much as possible. Begging in your cover letter is so unprofessional and it may get you denied a chance. Also, the use of unofficial languages is totally out of it.
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Work On Your Qualities To Match The Employers Expectation
All employers are after two things: Building a very good and trusted brand and delivering valuable and desired services. They are very mindful of the image and impressions that people have about their company. These are the things that determine the qualities they expect from whoever would work for them.
It’s not a matter of being outstanding; being cultured and flexible is one of the few things they value so much. So, whenever you are applying for a job, do well to research the things your employer would possibly desire. The nature of the company and what they do should be a very good guide for you.
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Look Out For Jobs Of Your Preference And Apply
You know the kind of jobs you want. Spending a good amount of time searching for vacancies both on the internet and offline should make yields. Applying for jobs could take different forms:
- Online – You can apply directly on the company’s website or through a job portal. Sometimes, professional platforms like LinkedIn also avail such opportunities. The most important thing is the assurance that your application gets to where it should. Sometimes, some companies require that you take some online tests on their website. Joking with such is like shooting yourself in the leg.
- Offline (In-person) – Some companies want you to submit your CV in person. If that’s the case, just be prepared for interviews on the spot. Nonetheless, they may not conduct any interview for you, but prefer that you bring it personally for other reasons.
- Application via email – This is probably the commonest method of application in recent years. Nothing changes. Still, be professional with it. Your CV is attached and sent with a cover letter.
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Make Your Social Media Profile Represent You Well
Everyone uses social media. Both young and old. However, these platforms have gone past just civil communication tools or places of fun. They are a good place to get your desired jobs. Companies these days use social media to increase their reach. So what do you do? Search for companies and follow them. Always look out for sponsored advertisements.
Has anyone ever mentioned to you that some employers check up their potential employees on social media? Well, they do. Your social media accounts can work for or against you. If you are so sure there are things you don’t want your employer to catch a glimpse of on your pages, simply remove them. If you find them important, you can change the privacy settings of your pages to control the people that have access to such things.
Prepare For Aptitude Tests And Interviews
There are so many preparations to be made for interviews and aptitude tests. They include:
1. Having a good knowledge of the company. One would look a fool staring back blankly at one’s interviewers when they mention things that relate to their company. It costs you absolutely nothing to have foreknowledge of what the company is all about.
2. One thing is sure, you are going there to answer questions. Your performance would only be based on your knowledge and experience. So, why not make a little more effort to know more. Prepare like those days in school when you have a targeted outstanding score for a particular course. Here are some tips to help:
- Be prepared. Let everything about you show preparedness.
- Your confidence is being observed, don’t compromise it.
- Give succinct answers. If you are not asked to explain further, be brief.
- Don’t be reserved in discussing your achievements and experiences. The way you talk about them makes the employer believe or doubt them.
- Avoid being repetitive. Your passion and zeal are part of what gives you credit
- Be sure to relate your course of study to your career goals. Make links and let them be understood.
- Be formal and professional, but not stiff. Feel relaxed and coordinated with a welcoming face.
- Take some time to convince the interviewer what makes you superior to other applicants.
- Also, very important, ask questions of the interviewer. The questions should be prepared before going for the interview. Of course, there should be some you will develop in the process of the interview.
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Be Mindful Of Your Dressing
You need no one to remind you that it’s an interview, not a party or social event. Except otherwise stated, you have to be formal and look professional. Be mindful of the kind of perfume you wear. You don’t know the kind of people you are going to meet and the things they like.
Don’t make that mistake of entering the interview room with your headset/earphone on. Too much of everything is bad. It is not a fashion parade; be mindful of the kind of clothing and the accessories you put on. Be modest and smart.
What To Take Along For Interview
Don’t make a mistake at this point. While some recruiters would indicate in their message to you to bring along all your credentials, some would not even mention it. You should go along with your CV, cover letter, certificates, and other relevant documents. Whichever way, don’t leave any behind. They are proof of everything you would say.
Don’t gamble with addresses. Be sure to ask for the route if you do not know. Meanwhile, you should have the contact (both name and number) of someone there to locate upon your arrival. Take a working pen and paper along. You might need mints to clear your throat in case of long discussions.
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Attend To Your Mails As Much As Possible
If you are the type that does not check your mail, now is the time to develop a new habit. A habit of living right inside your mail. Going through the process of sending out applications without being on the tab for feedback is bad. It’s like cooking to quench a serious hunger and forgetting to check on the food.
Treat every mail you get with utmost seriousness and make sure you don’t miss any. Once you are contacted and you refuse to reply or show up, the opportunity is gone.
Don’t Miss Interviews
Does it make any sense, planning your own birthday party, and not attend? It is your thing, people came to celebrate you. So also are interviews. It would be bad on your part to miss an interview when the recruiters consider your application.
It is not magic. They want to meet you and confirm you have all you have written. If you pass, they would probably consider you. This is one of the main reasons you should be so glued to channels through which you can be reached.
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Give All Your Attention To The Search
You know what getting a job means to you. If you consider it so important, then you won’t have any reservations in putting all of yourself into it. It would cost you many things, time inclusive. You will dedicate so much of other resources also into the endeavour – from crafting your CV to undertaking all the searches and preparations.
This endeavour indeed is a job on its own. It is no jokes.
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